French Kitchen Garden
Comments from the author:
“This article has been dragged, kicking and screaming, from the old BretonDiary.”
My kitchen garden consists of about a dozen plant pots (some big, some little) containing the following... Tomatoes (3 different types), peppers (both chilli and caspuscin), Basil, Rosemary & Thyme. To liven the place up there are also some fuschias, marigolds and heather. Round the side of the house, there is a small patch of garden where I have 3 rose bushes and more tomato plants and, of course, my courgettes. All my friends at work have kitchen gardens - even those who admit to not having mains verts. I think that it is part of being French.
Tomatoes.
This year I have got 11 tomato plants (3 different sorts). Some of them are in large plant pots at the front of the house - the rest are planted directly into the ground round the side. The ones planted directly into the ground seem to be cropping better but later than those in pots (the ones in pots get more sunshine). I am currently picking 4 or 5 cherry tomatoes each day and a couple of larger ones too. Every tomato that I have picked so far has been eaten raw (perhaps with a very light dressing of olive oil and ripped, freshly picked Basil) within 30 minutes of being picked - sublime!
As far as watering goes, I water heavily every evening (using a watering can). Madam (my landlady) uses a hose pipe with the end blocked up and holes pierced in it (thus giving the tomatoes a trickle all through the day). I'm not sure which is best but I like the ceremony of watering the plants - the cats follow me round whilst I am doing it, commenting on this and that.
Herbs.
In plant pots, stood on and around small garden tables, on the front (South facing) side of the house I grow Basil (3 different sorts), Thym and Rosemary. These are herbs that don't really work dried (unless as Herbs de Provence) and, as they are on either side of the kitchen door, it's easy to pop out and cut a sprig of this or that.
Courgettes.
I have 5 plants, planted directly into the ground, on the West side of the house. I didn't treat the ground before planting and bought the cheapest plants I could find (4 euros for 5 plants).
So far I have had 5 kilos of courgettes and expect at least that again before the end of the summer. And, what courgettes! I let them grow until they weigh about 1lb (or more) each - i.e. thick and fat rather than the cucumber sized ones you find in the supermarkets. Freshly picked, I sniff them - they actually smell like courgettes. Go to your local supermarket, pick up a net bag of courgettes imported from Morocco or Spain (i.e. picked too small, too young, having spent too much time in the back of a lorry and then, who knows how long, in a distribution centre before hitting the supermarket shelves. What do they smell of, these supermarket courgettes (although they're not really courgettes, just something that looks like them) - nothing at all - what's the point?
All of mine have either grilled and served on fresh, warm bread - yum, yum or, turned into a sort of spicy ratatouille that I eat hot one evening and cold (with Greek yogurt) the next day. Once again - yum, yum.
