the story of Casa Azul

Offal and orchids

May 14, 2013 richard Comments 7 comments

Since last November when we dispatched the pigs, their livers and kidneys stare at me every time I open the freezer to take out a more delicious cut – maybe a chop or a pork belly or a shoulder for roasting. No longer, for the offal are no more. I know some people are a bit squeamish and only like the boring, homogenized modern, (mostly chicken) liver pâtés but I am well chuffed to have produced a traditional, fairly lumpy, strong, and exquisitely delicious farmhouse pâté. And we have over 4kgs of the stuff! The kidneys weren’t spared either. I opted for the rather basic Delia recipe for pork kidneys in a chilli sauce. These were pretty tasty too.

Meanwhile, the garden has been putting on something of a show. A show, yes. A show garden, no. Some may even say our patch of land is little more than a partially tamed wilderness. As the difference between a flower and a weed is in the eye of the beholder we like to describe ‘the lawn’ as a resplendent carpet of gold. Others may just say we have a major problem with dandelions. Also providing colour is a profusion of red and orange (Californian) poppies and in fact, grass, which is still green. We will enjoy it while we can because in a few short months it will turn into an unforgiving dustbowl.

Apart from the flowers, I’ve been keeping a careful eye on the fruit trees. Unfortunately it seems that the plum harvest will be non existent. The flowers were all out in April but they got completely washed off by the torrential rain. There will be no plum crumbles, jam, or cordial this year :-(. On a more positive note the apples have set and we should also get quite a few pears. (Oh, and there’s a nest in the pear tree so we’ll keep an eye and ear out for any little tweetsters). And there will be plenty of quinces as well, so all is not lost.

The heat of summer is not yet upon us and so the cool breeze often makes the courtyard a better option than the garden. Jackie has been hard at it repainting the blue bits and has actually added a stripe to the bottom of the main house which I think has made it even more Portuguese.

The ambiance is also certainly improved by a glass of chilled white and we are currently enjoying a few bottles of Casa Azul, 2012 vintage. Yes, it’s the elderflower wine which is a surprisingly fine drop. As the elderflowers are out now we had better get busy and prepare for the 2013 vintage.

Outside the realms of Casa Azul, we continue to walk the dogs every day and keep an eye out for the wild flowers of which there are many. Jackie has become an orchid expert and has managed to identify at least a dozen indigenous species. We’ve had a succession of different types over the last weeks and now it is the turn of the pyramid orchids…

And even a few mirror orchids…

Carnivorous chickens

April 28, 2013 richard Comments 1 comment

Posts have been rather few and far between recently, not because we have been too busy sipping G and Ts on the manicured lawns of Casa Azul but simply because we have been too busy doing other things. One of them, for me was going back to the UK for a couple of weeks. This meant Jackie had to shoulder the burden at home on her own. And now I’m back, my list of things to do has grown exponentially.

So what’s been happening? Well after the wettest winter on record, we’ve had no rain at all in April. This has meant the watering system had to be dusted off, repaired and put back in action. We seem to have bought more trees and shrubs over winter so this means even more watering. The previous rain and the present sun has meant the grass has also taken off, which of course means strim, strim, strim.

Most of the fruit blossom has come and gone but I’m not sure how much fruit we will get. The plum blossom came in the middle of a lot of rain, so I’m not hopeful about that, however the last of the blossom, the apples and pears, was only in the last few weeks during a hot dry spell so hopefully the bees have done their job and fertilised all the flowers. Not our bees of course as they had disappeared (again). However, before they left, they had been very busy, even in winter, and had left loads of honey stores for us. I took the empty hives and left them in the barn over the winter with the honey still in the capped frames. I took the frames back out recently and the honey seemed to be fine so I made use of the hot weather to extract it. We haven’t got any more bees this year but we are hoping to try them again but in a very different place next year to see what happens.

Of course we are still gorging on our home grown pork. We’re going to have a rest from pig rearing this year but I’ve modified the pig house and field for more roasties. As you can see from the before and after pictures below, I needed to rescue the house from the elephant grass first.

We got 11 chicks from the market and they will be ready for the chop in a couple of months. Interestingly the brown ones are supposed to be tastier but the white ones grow huge and fat quicker.

And talking of chickens, what about the title of this blog post? Well last week I heard a load of squawking and clucking from the hen run with the three of them running hither and thither in a frenzy of feathers. One had got a mouse and they were tearing it to pieces!!! Not satisfied with the the occasional snail, they seem to have developed a taste for bigger prey. Jackie is already a bit nervous about entering the run because of the attentions of the well-named ‘Pecky’. What next?

Carnivorous chicken on the look out for suitable prey

The green, green grass of home

April 21, 2013 Jackie Comments 4 comments

Thursday morning, 11 April, it thundered down with rain; great sheets of it squashing the irises. Come the afternoon sunny intervals and since then not a drop. It’s got sunnier and warmer each day, as I glance up now there’s not a cloud in the sky and it still feels strange after such a wet, wet spring. But of course every cloud has a silver lining and we now seem to be living in the Emerald City, the grass is sooo gorgeously green!

And it’s also meant that all systems are go in the garden and veg patch. There are now a million and one tasks that need to be done (including strimming and weeding of course) and prioritising them can be difficult. Loads of seedlings have been potted on, and I’m especially pleased that the leeks have done their trick. Having saved a few flower heads from plants last year, and kept them in the potting shed, there were plenty of tiny black seeds to sow. These have all germinated and there are now 50 leeklings (?) which is wonderful, no need to buy leek seeds from now on (I hope).

We have also been able to enjoy one of our favourite past times, ie the lunchtime barbie! Purple sprouting broccoli is up but I’m most excited about the abundant crop of asparagus.

Loads more to tell but back to the jobs and the evening sunshine now…

Aguaceiros – again!

March 19, 2013 Jackie Comments 1 comment

It’s almost impossible to realise that this time a year ago forest fires were rampant. Without any rain over the winter months the land was tinder dry and most days palls of smoke rose up over the hills, somewhere something was burning. My gardening diary for the month has a list of jobs to do, last year this included watering the veg patch!

Today yet another day with rain forecast, temperatures remain quite low at night and it all feels damp. Nevertheless, the polytunnel is slowly filling up with seedlings. Good use is being made of toilet rolls, yoghurt pots, crème fraîche tubs, meat trays and, I’m pleased to discover, the clear plastic pão de chocolate boxes make perfect mini propagators (we’ll have to buy more of those).

I’m also pleased to say that the polytunnel is still standing. We’ve had incredible winds, one morning the back had flown off but, newly patched, it’s coping with the recent gusts. Whether or not the latest structure in the veg patch will last long is another thing. Having cut down the willow and made a few baskets I was left with some very large, long poles. It’s amazing how much grows in a year. So, always willing to try something new, I’ve made a kind of tunnel come bean support:

The idea is that the beans grow up and over and are much easier to pick than the wigwam efforts of previous years. I may make a smaller one for the cucumbers. Meanwhile one of our chickens became very lethargic, not wanting to eat, drink or move around much. As a precaution she was separated from the other two but we soon realised that my goodwill to provide lots of grass cuttings from Richard’s strimming was the cause. Doses of Eno, activia mashed with powdered pellets and the world’s longest grass poo later (Richard pulled it out!) she was much better.

At least someone is still enjoying the wet weather.

Winter wild flowers

February 21, 2013 Jackie Comments 2 comments

From giant to lesser to the unnamed, the wild flowers are slowly but surely appearing. Each year I say we should have a photo collection of all the flowers in and around our garden, I started something last summer but am determined to try harder this year. After months of flowerlessness (?!) it’s great to see some colour at last. We’ve already mentioned the chamomile but here are some more plants that have recently appeared.

Two get a special mention: the giant orchid and linaria amethystea. The former you can’t miss, it’s big and brash and is the first of the orchids. The latter is a wee thing that you can easily miss, tiny compared to the daisies, but have a closer look; it’s just beautiful. It doesn’t seem to have a common name so I’m calling it the galega toadflax. And we’re really pleased that we have found this great site for Portuguese flowers. It tells you what you can see in each region, and there’s loads of photos and information about the individual plants.

There’s been a competition between the blossom in the garden as well. In the end the blackthorn won and now the spiky bushes are covered white, it almost looks snowlike. Second was our new almond tree but the ornamental cherry and apricot have a few flowers on now too. We made some sloe gin from the blackthorn last year (which slips down a treat in front of the roaring fire) so we’re hoping for a bumper crop this time.

And talking of booze and blossom I have now, at long last, bottled the elderflower wine that has been sitting silently in the pantry – since last May! I was pleased that it had cleared and has the most delicate of colours (Richard: pale pee), and in fact it didn’t taste too bad – it actually tasted of wine! (Which is more than can be said for the quince effort). Really looking forward to sipping that when the warmer weather eventually gets here.

Meanwhile, on with the wellies and waterproofs…

Harbingers of Spring

February 6, 2013 richard Comments 2 comments

In spite of the doom and gloom of the last post, January actually went out with a bit of sun. Enough for us to enjoy our first barbie of the year – ah the pleasures of a glass of chilled white wine and the aromas of fresh fish on the barbie… We also had a day at the beach which of course the dogs absolutely loved.

Jackie was actually boiling in her heavy coat which was soon removed as we tucked into a delicious seafood lunch with the sun on our faces.

It is a bit strange that there are signs of deepest winter all about – the recent storms have made sure the deciduous trees are now ompletely bare (including our little plane tree in the courtyard) but there are already signs of spring. We have had daffodils for some weeks but now buds are appearing on the fruit trees. I think the almond (pictured below) will be the first, but this will soon be followed by the blackthorn and the plums are not far behind. In addition we have also found some wild lillies (also pictured below).

Here’s to Spring!

A January to forget

January 21, 2013 richard Comments 7 comments

I know January is only two thirds over but we’ve had enough already! Although not as bad as the UK, we’ve had rain, rain, rain, culminating in storms this weekend which knocked the power and water out for three days. And there are more thunderstorms to come. Every cloud has a silver lining and I think we were lucky to escape much of the damage. We had an olive tree fatality and a tile off the roof but the polytunnel and the shed survived (thanks to a high quality build I reckon!) and the well is now full to the brim. And our chest freezers full of pork managed to avoid defrosting.

The local bus stop was not made of sterner stuff however…

However, our bees have once again absconded. They disappeared this time last year and it is just as perplexing this time around. Last week they were still out and about collecting pollen ( I posted photos here) and there is plenty of pollen and honey in the now empty hives. We think that living in rural Portugal we have ‘got away from it all’ but I guess even here we cannot escape man’s degradation of our natural resources. They are saying that the honey bees abscond because of pesticides and I have to say that the locals seem to use them indiscriminately here. Perhaps that is the cause, we just don’t know.

We also had a bit of a shock with Betty. Previously known as Lucky – as she was saved as a puppy wandering lost in the forest, she was very well named. She certainly has a wild spirit about her as she likes nothing better than to tear off out of the garden chasing after goodness knows what, only to come back three or four hours later covered in goodness knows what! However, she always comes back, eventually. Even if it is three in the morning when she announces her return by howling outside our bedroom window. This time was different. After she had been gone for two days we thought the worst. However, on the third day there was a scratching at the door. She was filthy and half starved but of more concern was a huge gash around her stomach. We think she had been caught in a javeli ( wild boar) trap, which is made of thin wire. We cleaned her up as best we could and took her to the vet. Suffice it to say, after a coarse of antibiotics (intravenously administered by our good selves!) and some tlc, she is already back to her worst.

Despite all the doom and gloom it’s not all bad. After all, during our electric-free nights, I managed to beat Jackie at scrabble and cribbage and we have our first daffodils of the year – in fact they’ve been in flower for over a week, as well as a clutch of pretty crocuses.

A tale of two herbs

January 16, 2013 Jackie Comments 3 comments

You’ll remember that I gave the humble leek the plant of the year award. While browsing through the seed catalogue I came across the plant that has to be given the thumbs down award, just looking at the pictures and reading about how wonderful it is fills me with a heavy heart, why or why can’t I grow it here? I’m talking about basil, my top favourite herb along with coriander. Three years I’ve been trying to grow it here in Portugal but each time something goes wrong. The plants themselves thrive, growing under the tomato plants they become enormous, taunting me with their huge leaves. The problem? The taste. I just can’t seem to grow basil any more that doesn’t have a horrid, bitter taste; even as tiny seedlings I can detect the bitterness long before there’s any hint of flowers. I grew basil in Jordan and we had loads of huge plants, both growing in pots and in the ground, that gave us wonderful salads (how can you eat a tomato without chopped basil?) and pesto galore. I used the same seed packet the first year here, and have bought numerous others, but without success. I have to confess at this point that I seem to be more sensitive to the taste than others but it is so bad for me that I have to spit out the offending leaves. If any one reading this can help – please do!

Back to the catalogue: I have decided to try some Thai holy basil, fingers crossed. And also, having gone through all my seed packets, I only need to replace two: buttercup squash and cucumbers. Which means that all the produce we get this year is ‘free’, well, that’s what it feels like! Mind you, many of the packets are out of date a touch but, so far, this hasn’t been a problem. I’ve even managed to get parsnips from seeds a few years old even though the ‘experts’ insist it should be bought new each year…

Meanwhile, the olive groves, vineyards and pastures are covered in white flowers. These I have always called ‘daisies’, which they are but after walking over a patch with the dogs I realised they were so much more than daisies. Reaching my nose was the heavy, unmistakeable scent of chamomile. It seems that chamomile is native to Iberia which is why they are thriving here. I have decided these are just what we need in our garden so I have been going out with a trowel and digging up little plants with the idea that, in a year or two, we too will have wonderful white patches of flowers. Plus there’s the added advantage of just popping outside to get the flowers (which can be used fresh as well as dried) for a cup of chamomile tea. Perfect!

Happy New Year

January 5, 2013 richard Comments 1 comment

I can’t believe this is our 4th New Year in Portugal! Our first new year was spent awaiting the builders to start work, our second saw the hens lay their first egg, our third we were looking forward to operation porco, and our 4th? Well, our house is built, we’ve had over 2000 eggs and operation porco has been and gone and we will be enjoying the pork for quite some time.

As our ‘to-do’ list continues to grow, this year I think, will be one of consolidation. Hopefully the laydies will keep on doing their stuff and no doubt we will get a few more roasties for eating. The bees are still here so hopefully more honey and of course Jackie is already busy ‘na horta’ making preparations for this year’s crop of goodies. Having said that, we still haven’t finished the spuds from last year and the caulis, calabrese and leeks are still going strong.

Talking of bees. Yes they are still here (they buggered off last year and I had to restock the hive). But nevermind that: they are still out and about foraging for pollen as can be seen below.

Interesting that they’re collecting orange and yellow pollen. I don’t know where from.

I’ve been busy with the hammer and nails. I took apart a couple of old pallets and made a small table cum footstool for the lounge and a storage box for the bathroom .

Jackie has also been busy and although a bit late for Christmas, here I am proudly wearing my new jumper. Very nice it is too.

Plant of the year award

December 27, 2012 Jackie Comments 4 comments

Rain, frost, wind and thick morning mists – the winter is well and truly here. All the leaves have fallen off the plane tree in the courtyard, the less hardy potted plants are in the barn or polytunnel and little is being done in the way of gardening although a number of (rainless) days have been spent weeding and composting the beds. We still can’t get over how green it is compared to last year but the downpours have seen to that. They’ve also brought out the snails and slugs that they slither towards the baby turnips and swedes. One evening spent collecting the little blighters in a bucket was enough to fork out on some horticultural fleece which is certainly doing the trick.

The veg patch is actually looking quite good at the moment, with most of the beds full or covered in compost. We’re still eating our own potatoes, the colourful chard is going strong and at last some sprouts have formed. Plus the calabrese and cauliflower are ready now too so there’s more variety on our plates at the mo.

But as I walk down the beds in the winter sunshine there’s one plant that beats them all, yes the humble leek is crowned queen of the veg patch. There’s lots of reasons why: firstly, I’ve been growing them from seed for three years now and they’ve never failed. Every little leeklet grows, some bigger than others, but grow they do. Secondly, they take very little looking after. They need watering and weeding but that’s it – no pests to worry about, no supports, no pruning… Thirdly, they stay in the ground for as long as you need them. No need to worry that they’ll be past their best if not pulled out in time, so no storage problems either. In addition they’ll happily put up with whatever the winter throws at them. Plus they’ll reproduce from their own seed so no need to buy any more seed packets. Next year is the first time I’ll be trying this, I have a couple of dried flower heads from some plants left in the ground over the summer so with luck they’ll germinate in the spring. So all in all a fuss free, hardy, reliable cropper. Oh, and they taste good too of course! Long live the leek!