Belleville goes exotic

[Above & below] Three Aubergine plants in all their glory.
For some reason these are doing much better than expected.

The variety is Long Purple, and it's obviously well suited to the rather cool weather we've been having.(Cream Sausage tomatoes in the background).

The chillies and peppers are also doing well. All sorts of varieties are thriving again despite the weather. The one disappointment is that the pumpkins and squash have been a disaster - they grown to about two or three inches and then rot or wither and die. I'm blaming the weather. Nothing to do with my incompetent gardening obviously.

There's also a new crop of oriental salad (Mizuna, Pak Choi etc) which is something of an experiment. Looks good though!

Next produce sale is today (Sunday) at 6pm, Wakehurst Rd entrance. There are LOTS of tomatoes, as well as the above crops.

Post holiday produce

Just back from our hols and we have a new look for the Belleville blog. We've also harvested lots of tomatoes which are now ripening nicely.


Two Omar's Lebanese tomatoes alongside a couple of giant Radiator Charlie Mortgage Lifter tomatoes [right]
We also have spinach, chard, rocket. The carrots are just about ready but too small. The parsnips are also doing well.



Chillies and aubergine are also coming along nicely, and should be available in a couple of weeks, touch wood.

STOP PRESS: Below is a BRANDYWINE tomato, considered by some to be the tastiest tomato in the world. This one looks slightly more weird than they normally do so I didn't sell it. Which meant I could eat it myself. It was VERY tasty, so look out for them at the next produce sale on Wednesday (if any more have ripened by then). Midday and six pm is the plan.

Good news! We have a major new addition to the veg garden team.
Duncan Marshall (left), who lives right opposite the main entrance to Belleville School in Belleville Road, is semi-retired and looks after the children while his wife is at work. He is going to drop in every day while I'm on holiday to water and tidy up, and will harvest only if the Lola Roja team have left anything. Also pictured are Cristina and Antonio, owners of Lola Roja on the Northcote Road. Antonio is also the chef and is particularly interested in the Tres Cantos tomatoes which originally hail from the Andalucian region of Spain and should be rather special, given a little more good weather!