Oolong knits

The last time I checked there were no projects for this pattern on Ravelry. Somebody should right this injustice. Personally I love the combination of black-and-white pattern almost everywhere and then an unexpected dash of colour at the end of the sleeves. Rings & Roses Mønstergenser by Bente Presterud Røvik is a free pattern for a monster sweater (have I got the translation right?). Unfortunately the pattern is only available in Norwegian, but the colour work is charted, so you can easily add it to your own sweater recipe.

I do not know if I am just very unlucky, or are British Horticultural Companies completely unreliable and unprofessional? My experience of buying plants from both garden centres and online retailers has been full of surprises and I can only give one advice about it: relax and try to enjoy the fun and unpredictable side of it. When I started gardening I (very naively) expected these companies would employ expert botanists who would provide their clients rigorous information on the plants they were buying. Soon I would find out that on the contrary, we are lucky if we are told exactly what we are buying,—in some cases a generic common name that could refer to many different varieties or even different species is used,—and even luckier if the name provided is correct. Let us not mention the information about plant care provided. One example (I could provide more), I bought some Anemone coronaria corms from Sarah Raven, only to find out after they flowered that they were An...

Fading Circles by DROPS design. An unusual, fun shape begging you to find an equally fun colour combination far away from the dull grey choice of DROPS design. Nice, free pattern too.

Sage is one of the strongest flavoured herbs: a few leaves only go along way. It is a evergreen, but it does not do very well in cold, wet winters outdoors. It has pretty pale blue flowers in Summer and its velvety leaves are not only pleasantly scented but quite pretty. It is also quite easy to grow at home from seed and save a few bucks in the supermarket. Follow this link for some instructions.

The Oban Sweater by Thea Colman. Just another cute cable sweater. I have a weakness for them, but I still have not found the courage to do one.

Easy to grow, healthy and delicious. Lettuces are one of my favourite allotment staples. And the truth is that you simply cannot find a proper lettuce in British supermarkets, what they sell is water packed in lettuce form. Be aware that vitamins, minerals and all things that make lettuce healthy have flavour, so if it tastes like nothing, it is probably nothing from a nutritional point of view. Considering how much I like to eat salad, I could have a allotment only to grow it. The better news is that I do not have too, I can also grow other goodies. Some lettuce are of the type "cut and come again" (that means you can cut the outside leaves and the plant keeps on growing), others are meant to be harvested whole. The latter are the perfect crop for successional sowing, in order to keep a constant supply. Because they germinate so quickly, you can also cut the baby leaves instead of waiting the long weeks to full maturity. Baby leaves are all the rage among people who thin...

Aoede by Áine Boudreau. A lovely old-fashioned lace shawl. I must admit that this is not something I would ever wear, but I still can appreciate its beauty. And the pattern is free.

Wow, I took this picture only a couple of weeks ago and what a difference it makes. My plant is now a lot more healthy looking and twice the size. And I even have already eaten one of its fruits. A big cucumber that was so small when I took the picture you cannot see it. Soon enough I will be eating more because this lovely plant is already displaying a few good looking small fruits. Cucumber (Cucumis sativus) Soil moist, fertile, plenty of organic matter Aspect warm, sunny, sheltered Row spacing 60 cm Plant spacing 60 cm Germination 1 week Time to maturity 18 weeks Sow outside May-June Sow undercover March-May Plant outside June Plant undercover April Harvest August-September Store harvest regularly before cues mature Pests/diseases mildew

Dunas by Gretha Mensen is a beautiful triangle shawl decorated with cables. Like the designer, you will want to make it using a light plain colour that allows the subtle texture to stand out.

Comfrey is an important plant in organic gardening because its leaves can be used to produce a very good potassium-rich liquid feed. This is the best feed for all fruit plants and particularly for tomatoes and the good news is that it is really easy to do and free. I have seen quite a few recipes for comfrey feed: here is one . It does not include water, which is weird, maybe they forgot? It seems that everyone does it slightly differently. If you do not want to bother producing liquid fertilizer, you can simply use the leaves in your compost or directly in the soil as mulch for tomatoes (it will take more time to act than in liquid form, that is all). Comfrey's secret is that its root is extremely long and reaches down the soil to where most other plants cannot reach. Then it brings the nutrients it has found deep down to its leaves. There is a sole disadvantage to it. Once it settles, it is extremely difficult to get rid of comfrey. So be very careful not to let it spread. To ...