Last allotment update of the year...

So that's it for another year, well a few months anyway, the weather is getting colder, certainly windier where we are, not much is growing now.

It's been a mixed year for us veg wise, we haven't had as much from the plot this year, but some of that was due to rodents and other things like the weather, we lost all our sweet corn, it got eaten, it was there one day and pretty much gone the next, the little buggers had the strawberries as well.

Exhibit 'A' your honour -

At least some one enjoyed it...

On the plus side our Asparagus seems to be doing well, it's been cut back now, but it has grown a fair bit and we'll maybe get some to eat next year, it's taken a while raising the plants from seed, but so far it's going well.

Asparagus - 

The picture was taken at the end of summer.

Spuds did well this year, we've had around 40 kg of spuds, double the amount we had last year, we also did well for beetroot which my wife was happy about (I can't stand the stuff) we got a fair amount of squash type veg, not as big as last year, but enough to keep us going for a while.

Some beetroot, spuds and beans - 

A small selection of what we ended up with.

We put two broad bean crops in, the idea being one we'd eat and the second we'd half eat and then save the rest for the seeds, the rodents got them too, they have been an ever present menace this year affecting some on the site worse than others.

Some of the squashes we got, some of which have been eaten or turned into things ready to be eaten, this year we grew some round courgettes, we only planted a few and they don't seem to put out as much as a normal courgette plant but they were very tasty.

Courgettes and other squashes - 

Round courgette to the left of the picture, lighter green than normal courgettes.

The round courgettes are good for stuffing, just open them up, like you would a pumpkin and scoop out the insides then fill with whatever takes your fancy and roast for a bit, very tasty, stuff you've grown yourself always seems to taste better.

Dinner - 

A great use for a round courgette.

My wife did the cooking, she used sausage meat, onions and garlic and some other things and the topped it with cheese and roasted it, tasted great and they are a nice size for one person as well.

And of course we still have a pile of squashes for eating through winter, some have been turned into relish and some have been turned into purée (pumpkin) for pies and soups.

Future meals - 

You don't have to keep your squashes in a cat bed.

And that as they say is that, another year done, I have some concerns about the soil on the plot, so over winter and into spring I'll be trying to improve it a bit, maybe invest in some manure and such like and no doubt there will be loads of small jobs to get done before growing starts next year, we still have some things in the ground, like leeks and swedes, but for the most part the plot is being left alone for a few months, I'll cut back any weeds and let them rot down, this may also help the soil a bit.

So for now we'll say bye to the plot and see you in the spring - 

Soon be time to start again.

Thanks for reading.

Handmade buttons ... ...

Buttons are great, and you'd be surprised how easy it is to make your own, I'm not talking about the plastic ones, I'm talking chunky wood buttons, great as a feature on a knitted hat or some other item.

It's easy to do, you need a saw (a hack saw is easy to use)

Bit battered, but works okay

 You'll also need a drill of some kind and a drill bit (I normally use a 3mm bit)

My post drill.

I use a post drill for making the holes in my buttons, but if you don't have one a cordless drill will work just as well, but be careful when drilling, and if you don't have an electric drill then a hand drill is just as good, but you will need a vice or some way to hold the button still whilst drilling.

Hand drill -

You can buy these quite cheaply.

And obviously you need some kind of wood, sticks are easiest to work with, but if they are freshly cut it's best to leave them in the house some where to dry out a bit first.

Then all you need to do is slice your stick up into sections as thick or thin as you want, although the thinner the sections the harder it is to grip them for sanding.

Ready for slicing -

Gripped tightly.

Now if you don't have a vice you could use a strong clamp to hold the wood, but I'd recommend a vice of some kind, it doesn't have to be expensive, I have a hobby vice I use in my work room at the back of the house, it was less than £10 and is great for small jobs like this.

Once you have some slices of wood it's on to the next step, and this is where things get personal, it's up to you how many holes you drill, where they are and such like, I tend to drill 2 holes in each button.

Ready for drilling -

They look a little rough, but they will turn out nice.

With holes drilled -

4 or 2 ? it's up to you.

You don't have to drill the holes first, I do things this way because if the holes are a little rough they'll get sorted out when I finish the buttons, saves time and extra sanding.
 
The next bit depends on what sort of equipment you have, if like me you have a variety of power tools then you may well have a belt sander or orbital sander, these will do for finishing the buttons as long as you use a fine grit (like 180) sanding sheet/belt if not then you can use a sheet of sand paper (again use a fine grit) and a wooden block, this will take longer, and probably make your arms ache a little, I use my lathe sander to finish the buttons, takes about 2 minutes (give or take) to finish a button.

I built a sanding wheel for my lathe, I made a short video of me using it, please remember to watch your fingers if your using a power sander of some kind, gloves might be an idea, and a mask as things will get dusty.

Sanding video -

Mind your fingers !

As you can see it doesn't take long, and apologies for the video quality, it wasn't as easy as I thought sanding and filming at the same time.

So once all the sanding is done you should have some nice smooth wooden buttons, they might be different sizes and thicknesses, but that just makes them more unique.

I tend to either give my buttons a coat of beeswax to protect them without affecting the colour, or I use linseed oil, which brings out the grain quite well, but you could wax them,varnish them, or paint them.

Finished buttons -

All done, 5 cypress & 2 pear wood.

Here's a picture of a cypress button and a pear wood button coated with linseed oil -

The pear wood is the darker one.

You can see from the picture above that you can make the buttons as round as you like, or leave them a little less finished for a slightly more rustic look, and if this all seems a little like hard work then I know a chap who sells them in his shop ;-) which you can find here (opens in new window) I'm also working on a lathe jig that will allow me to make sets of buttons the same size and decorate the buttons with simple designs.

Thanks for reading.