Making Apple Chutney
About 10 years ago my brother, Ken, bought me a Cox’s Orange Pippin apple tree, grafted to keep it small enough for my small garden.
Over the years it has basically looked after itself with little or no pruning, but each year it produces a number of apples which I usually forget about and end up as food for the birds.
This year I decided to harvest the apples whilst they were still on the tree and in good condition; this resulted in 13lbs of lovely, good sized apples.
Great, lots of apples! But what would I do with them all?
I’ve made chutneys and marmalades (take a look at my Calamondin Marmalade recipe) in the passed so a quick google search confirmed that I could indeed make an Apple Chutney and there were lots of recipes to choose from.
The recipe I settled on was Apple and Raisin Chutney from the BBC Food Website.
Here is the recipe:
Ingredients
- 1.8kg/4lb apples, peeled, cored and chopped
- 4 medium onions, peeled and finely chopped
- 2 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
- 1 lemon, juice only
- 1 tbsp mustard seeds
- 900ml/1½ pint vinegar (cider or malt)
- 450g/1lb raisins
- 1 tbsp ground ginger
- 2 tsp salt
- 900g/2lb soft brown sugar
Preparation method
- Bring the apples, onions, garlic, lemon juice, mustard seed and 590ml/1 pint of vinegar to the boil.
- Simmer for 1 hour.
- Add the raisins, ginger, salt, sugar and the rest of the vinegar.
- Simmer until thick.
- Pour into clean, hot jam jars and cover as usual. Store for 6-8 weeks to allow the flavours to develop.
The recipe calls for 4lbs of apples so I had to multiply the volumes up to use my 13lbs so it was at this point I realised just how much chutney 13lbs of apples would make so I decided to use just half of them and make puree with the remainder which I can use in other recipes.
Everything was going well until I had to simmer it until it thickened. An hour later it still hadn’t thickened so I turned up the heat; bad move, it had stuck to the base of my favourite pan. I decanted the mixture into two smaller pans to finish it off and spent a good half an hour trying to get the burnt on mixture off the pan. Mr Muscle Oven cleaner worked brilliant in the end and my pan is as good as new.
The mixture turned out OK in the end with no burnt taste, so it’s now been potted up and will be kept for the required couple of months to let the tastes develop; ideal timing for Christmas.
Take a look at an article I did last year on how to Harvest and Preserve your Garden Produce with some great products from Lakeland and Harrod Horticulture.
I have got most of the equipment needed to produce jams, marmalades and chutneys but how I struggled this time was in preparing the apples.
For some time now I’ve been having problems with my right thumb and peeling potatoes and now apples really hurts and takes ages because I keep having to stop.
Having recently watched Steven Fry’s 100 Greatest Gadgets I noticed that number 9 was an apple peeler. At the time I didn’t think much of it but now having painfully peeled and cored 13lbs of apples I will be ordering one of these wonderful gadgets from Lakeland – click for more information about Apple Master.
Harvest and Preserve your Garden Produce
August 9, 2010 by Linda
Filed under Preserving
Make the most of your gardens soft fruit and tree fruit my turning it into jam, cordials and preserves.
You can eat your produce immediately or keep it to eat throughout the autumn and winter or you can dress them up and hand them to friends for Christmas presents.
The best time to gather your fruit is on a dry day and choose berries which are just under-ripe.
Lakeland have all you need to harvest, prepare and preserve your produce. Everything from the new Berry Picker through to an electric Jam Maker and the humble Jam Jar.
Harvesting and Preparation made easy
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| Berry Picker | Berry Sieve | Berry Press | Apple Master |
Preserving Products
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| Electric Jam Maker | Maslin Pan | Silicone Jam Funnel | Muslin Squares |
more preserving products from Lakeland …..
Do you have a glut of apples or pears? If so you may want to consider pressing, or juicing, your fruit for either drinking, making cider or for freezing for another day.
Harrold Horticulture have a great range of crushes and attractive traditional fruit presses from just £229.95. They are very easy to use and come with an instruction booklet to get you started.
Take a look at this short video to find out more.
Worms in Plums
Question:
My grandmother has an allotment and grows many fruits and veg. She does though have a problem with worms inside her plums, there is not even always a visible entry point. What can she do to eliviate this problem?
Answer:
This sounds like plum curculio which is a weevil which infests plums, apples, peaches and other fruit. Females lay eggs in the flesh of very small fruit, the eggs hatch inside the fruit and eat away from the inside. As the worms develop they burrow out and fall beneath the tree where they pupate into adults. Fruit is often picked before the worms find their way out.
The only real control is to stop the next generation being born by removing and destroying (not composting) all the infested fruit from the tree as well as all the fruit which has fallen to the ground which may still contain the worms. Doing this will stop the worm developing into adults; you may have to do this for a couple of years until the cycle has completely stopped. It is very important not to let fruit sit on the ground around the tree as this is ideal for developing weevils.
Another method is to catch the adults before they lay their eggs. When the petals begin to fall tap the branches during early morning and catch any adults which fall from the tree. These then need to be destroyed.
It is very difficult to control this pest with insecticides but if you decide to go down this route then make sure you spray after the petals have fallen to ensure you don’t kill the bees in the process.
Questions for April 2008
Question
I am not sure if you can help but I am looking to buy some coprosma evening glow or/and coprosma fire burst so far I have had little luck I have tried googling it but very poor results none of my local garden centres stock it I bought some last year from a local market and would like to get more I really want a fairly well established rather than a small gutting that needs to be grown on do you know of any online nurseries that would sell this also regards dogwood I really like the look of this but again not been able to find it in my garden centres does this come in the form of a shrub or bush has its something I am not familiar with thanks for any help you can provide
Answer
I have to admit to not knowing about Coprosma but I have managed to find a company who sell a few varieties. Click on this link: http://www.burncoose.co.uk/site/plants.cfm?pn_id=176. There are several types of Dogwood (Cornus) so I have added a link to a few at Crocus for you to look at.
Question
We have a well established pear tree in our garden. The problem is that is has grown lopsided / horizontally right across the garden, so much so that it is obstructing the garden path. I would like to keep the tree but would like some advice on how to prune it to encourage it to grow upwards rather than outwards.
Answer
It is possible to do what you are asking but it will need to be done in stages as to reduce the stress to the tree. I think the best thing for you to do is to follow RHS advice on this matter so I have included a link below on Apple and pear tree renovation: http://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profiles1101/fruit_tree.asp
Question
I have what seems to be three different type of spotted laurels one is dark green in colour the other light green with what seems like the beginning of possibly some flowers the other is the same colour light green the first two were planted around a month ago and around 2 3 ft the last one was planted last summer and has hardly grown at all I did read for these to produce flowers you need a male and female like a holly and I thought they were very quick growers I have seen some has high has well over 20foot round where I live they seem to get bigger every year mine are planted in full sun in a good quality compost any information on this plant would be welcomed thank you. I bought a shrub called a beauty berry in October last year it had a abundance of purple berries which have gradually dropped of I believe it is suppose to have pink flowers in summer but at moment I have just a bare shrub is this normal
Answer
Regarding your laurels; do you know which variety you have? I have detailed three of the more common ones below and as you can see their sizes and flowering requirements do vary. If you can find the actual varieties I can do more research for you.
- Aucuba Japonica Crotonifolia. Evergreen, bushy, dense shrub with stout, green shoots. Large glossy, dark green leaves are heavily mottled yellow. Grows in sun or shade and well drained soil. Height 1.7m Spread 1.7m. Male.
- Aucuba Japonica Rozannie. Very handsome shrub which has large, toothed and leathery green leaves. This all green form is self pollinating and produces large red fruits in winter. Grows in any situation and any soil to about 1m. Male.
- Aucuba Japonica Variegata. Evergreen, bushy, dense shrub grown for its yellow spotted leathery leaves. Height 7 ft. Spread 7 ft. requires any reasonable soil. Will thrive in sun or shade. Plant with crotonifolia for berries. Can be kept as a colourful hedge or as a specimen plant. Female. As regards your Beauty Berry (Callicarpa bodinieri var. giraldii Profusion). The lovely purple berries will gradually drop off, or get eaten by the birds, before the end of the winter which is normal. It will remain bare until it begins to produce its leaves then small pink flowers around July.
Question
I have got some branches on our pear tree where the buds are not opening – should I cut them back or just leave it?
Answer
If the tree is the right size and shape for you then I’d leave it. However, you may want to read the RHS article below for information on how to prune your tree should you wish. http://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profiles1101/fruit_tree.asp
Question
Now that the buds are out on the roses does this mean that I can cut them with an outward facing slope away from a bud at a height of 6 inches from the base now? Can I cut the honeysuckle back to 6 inches as well now?
Answer
I would wait until all risk of frost has passed because if you get a hard frost it can cause the tips of shrubs to die back. This die-back can be trimmed off but if the shrub is at its lowest height you will have nothing left to trim away. You should be OK to do it at the middle of April. You will still get a good display so don’t worry, you’ll be surprised how quickly they will grow from May onwards. You method sounds good but don’t forget to give them a little feed of fertilizer. You can buy one specifically for roses or you can use blood, fish and bone meal which can be used on all your plants. A mulch of well rotted manure around the base will also be good to keep down weeds and help improve the structure of the soil.
Question
Leaves on the hyacinth are going yellow. Can I cut them to the base; remove bulbs from the indoor pot and plant in the garden now? Any thoughts as to where best and how i.e. depth etc to plant them?
Answer
Yes you can cut them back and plant them out in the garden. Here’s a link to my Bulbs page which should help you when planting but the general rule is three times its own depth in a sunny position. http://gardeningregister.co.uk/NonProductPages/Articles/bulbs.htm
Question
I have recently bought some of the pretty flowering heathers you see at this time of year but know little about them I did hear that they need to be planted I the special compost you use for azaleas and rhododendrons also how long do they flower for I am told the ones you see in the garden centres are all forced has I believe they do not flower until early summer do I prune them when they finish flowering and when should I feed them thank you for any advice you can provide
Answer
There are two types of heather so I’ll give you the details for both. The first type is the “Erica” variety. These heathers do prefer acid soil but they will tolerate slightly alkaline soil, either way it needs to be well-drained and placed in a sunny spot. If you don’t know how acidic your soil is then it would be best to plant into pots using Ericaceous compost although it’s not essential. This type of heather flowers January to March and should be trimmed after flowering with shears or secateurs to remove the dead flowers and encourage bushy growth. The second type is “Calluna”. They like full sun and well-drained, humus-rich, acid soil or ericaceous compost. They flower July to November. In March or April cut back the flowered shoots to within 2.5cm (1in) of the old growth.
Question
My husband would like to know are than any certain types of methods used to make top soil more firm? He’s clearing out some land and the soil is too soft to hold weight.
Answer
I’m not entirely certain I understand exactly what the problem is but I think it is one of the following. The top soil may be too “soft” meaning it is not compacted enough. If this is the case then you should be able to carefully tread down the surface by slowly walking around until it is firm. However, the problem may be that the soil is too sandy, meaning that it has no substance and keeps falling apart. The added problem here is that it will also be very poor making it difficult to grow anything. If this is the case then you need to improve the structure by adding lots and lots of well rotted organic matter such as horse or cow manure. This can be bought in bulk or, if you live near a farm or stables, you may get it for free if you agree to collect it. If you have to go this route then it will take some time for the soil to change and become more substantial, perhaps as long as a year. To avoid weeds taking hold while you’re waiting you could grow some green manure which will subsequently be incorporated into the soil, again adding goodness. Here is an article which might help. http://gardeningregister.co.uk/NonProductPages/Articles/soil.htm#Green_manures0
Questions for August 2007
Question:
I bought a lavender tree lavandula dentata I planted about 6weeks ago it does say its hare had only the odd night of frost but don t expose to prolonged frost we have had only the odd night of frost since I bought it I have noticed today there are one or two brown spikes on it and the rest seem to be drooping I have given it a feed of miracle grow rose and shrub food I am been unduly concerned will it perk up when the weather gets warmer and is there any thing I can specifically do to help it.
Answer:
Unfortunately Lavandula dentate (French Lavender) is not hardy in the UK so should be kept indoors during the winter. You could try bringing it in now, keeping it warm for the next few weeks to see if it perks up. Don’t cut off the brown spikes just yet. If you still have some green growth by the end of April then prune it back before placing outdoors for the summer. Be careful not to prune into any old or brown woody parts of the plant as it will never re-grow from these areas.
Question:
I would like to know if I could put my magnolia in a container as I am moving house and the garden is all slabs, it is around 2 to 3 years old and around 4 foot.
Answer:
My mum has successfully grown her magnolia in a pot for years and it always looks good. I assume it is in the ground at the moment so you will have to carefully lift it ensuring you don’t damage the roots. Make sure it doesn’t dry out before placing it in as large a pot as possible. Put lots of crocks in the bottom to help drainage and add a slow release fertilizer to the soil around the plant. Each year top off the plant with new compost and / or manure to keep the soil well fed. You may find it goes into shock this year but it should be OK by next year’s flowering season. You will find that the plant won’t grow as big as it would if it was in the ground and it may not live as long either.
Question:
I currently live in West Sussex and do hope that you can give me some advice on the Meyers lemon tree that I purchased last year. You see I am new to the way of gardening here in England, as I spent most of my gardening life in the tropical area of South Africa where it never gets really cold. As I have already mentioned I purchased a lemon tree, which I put into a huge pot on my patio, but now I see that during the course of winter it has lost all its leaves and a lot of the tips of the branches have gone brown. I did not place it indoors, as I do not have the strength to be lugging it around – nor did I cover it with anything. My question is do I throw the tree away or do you think it will pick up again in spring.
Answer:
Unfortunately citrus plants will not survive outside during an English winter. However, having said that, if you have not had a hard frost and it’s in a sheltered position then you may get away with it. I wouldn’t give up on it just yet. Buy some horticultural fleece (available from garden centres or the larger DIY stores, cover it for the rest of the winter and make sure it doesn’t get too wet. If it’s survived you should see new leaves appearing when the weather warms up during April/May.
Question:
Can you please tell me any plants besides Aubrietia that you can plant in the top of a walled raised bed to hang over or to plant vertically in the wall?
Answer:
Please find below some suggestions. Most of these are alpines and do require a well drained soil. Cerastium (Snow-in-summer) – colour: white Iberis (Candytuft) – colour: white Linaria (Toadflax) – colour: various – there is an upright version of this too Saponaria (Soapwort) – colour: pink. You could also consider planting a nice coloured, small leaved ivy to trail down and plant some low growing alpines, such as Thrift to add some height. If you don’t mind a bit of work you could consider planting trailing geraniums or other colourful annuals each year.
Question:
Our neighbours have just built an extension, the side wall of which overlooks our back garden. Unfortunately, a variety of bricks have been used and they haven’t been spaced out very well with the result that the wall overlooking our back garden is unsightly and also oppressive. We would like a fast growing plant which would hide the wall. The wall goes up to 310 cm in height. Please could you advise us as to what would be the best plant to hide this wall and which would grow quickly?
Answer:
My ideal would be ivy. There are lots of different varieties giving you a wide selection of leaf sizes and colours which are evergreen. Once established it is extremely fast growing and also has the benefit of being able to climb without support and will grow in any situation. The other is the Montana range of Clematis which again is very fast growing and has the extra benefit of fragrant flowers in the spring. However you will need to erect some sort of support structure such as trellis or wires before planting. A sunny site will give the best results. Which ever plant you choose make sure you don’t plant it too close to the wall as it won’t be able to get as much water as it needs. If you go to my Plant your Garden page http://gardeningregister.co.uk/NonProductPages/Articles/planting.htm. You will see an advert from Crocus. If you click the Climbers box you will be able to enter some information about the location and features required and receive a number of suggestions back.
Question:
I’ve got a question about holly trees that you might be able to answer for me…! As you know – you need male and female holly for the female plant to produce berries, but do the male and female plant need to be the same variety?? I have a silver queen (male) and a golden king (female) – will I get berries from this??
Answer:
I have double checked and you only need to have one male holly, of any variety, to pollinate several female plants of any variety. Therefore the two you have will do fine; the female plant will produce the berries, not the male. If you’d like more berries you could buy another female variety.
Question:
I am the General Manager of a psychiatric unit in London. We have recently built a secure steel balcony to provide additional outdoor space to one of our first floor wards. The construction is a ‘metal cage’ with a very raw look to it and I would appreciate it if you could give me some ideas on the types of plants we would use to brighten up the area. The balcony is south facing and I would preferably like ones that are easy to manage and stay evergreen so there is colour all year round. Have you any suggestions. The main problem is that for safety reasons we can not use climbing plants as patients could use these to climb up and fall, we can not use plants that have poisonous leaves or berries as patients could eat these and we are unable to use plants that have sharp edges as patients may use these to self harm or ones that attract bees in case of allergic reaction to possible bee stings. In addition, we would require the plants to be in pots that are too heavy for a patient to lift in case they throw them. As you can see from a non-gardeners point of view I am struggling to find the appropriate plants and your assistance and advice would be very welcome.
Answer:
I’ve come up with some ideas and attach an outline of a plan which may be of interest. My first thought was to fit a bench across the left-hand 2.4m section. This could be attached to the balcony and would allow seating for a few people. I have also left room for quite a large table and six chairs. Your idea of galvanized containers screwed into the patio seems a good idea and I’ve found a couple of sites which may be able to provide them. and http://shop.theurbangarden.co.uk/product_select.asp?prtID=49&d=planters. The alternative is to have a raised bed built into the corner which is also attached to the balcony as per my plan. You could have it built as one big “box” or if you had six separate boxes they could be tiered so that the outermost ones are lower than the top ones. This would provide more interest and allow for plants to cascade the corners of each “box”. As for plants. My initial thought is to use Herbs. These are usually soft and are, of course, edible. For added interest I thought a few grasses. I have found a few examples of my thoughts on Crocus.co.uk and have attached a link to their page so you can find out a little more about them. Fennel (especially Bronze which is a lovely colour) these grow to about 1.8m but not very wide so you could fit in quite a few. They are light and move with the wind giving a feeling of movement. I find it best to snip off the flowers to avoid them going to seed and ruining the look. Also, they will die down for the winter but this also means it doesn’t take over. To compliment the colour and movement of the Fennel I thought a few soft grasses would be nice. They tend to give great autumn colour and if left over the winter they provide structure and look nice when frosted. They will have to be cut back to allow the new growth through but it’s not a hard job. Here are a couple of examples. For an evergreen look I think Rosemary would be good. They can grown quite big so may need keeping in check but they are very hardy and don’t require much maintenance. They are usually a rich dark green with lavender/blue flowers during the summer. To compliment the rosemary how about Lavender. There are lots of varieties around but you need to have a good hardy one to see you through the winters. To break-up the front of the containers/bed I suggest planting a few “lesser” periwinkles. These come in white, lilac or purple in lots of different shades. The leaf colours also differ so you could find one you like. The “greater” periwinkles have bigger flowers and grow too big and fast for containers. Just tuck them into the corners of each “box” and let them hang down. They do spread so you may need to pull them up to avoid them taking over the whole container. Finally, I thought the little space near the entrance could do with something. Mint is a great herb but extremely invasive so it is ideal in its own container. There are lots available, such as pineapple mint and apple mint so again you should find some you like. They will die down for the winter but will come back each spring. Regardless of the containers you use you will have to ensure that there is adequate drainage in the bottom. Punch some holes in the base of the containers and lift them slightly off the floor. To help the drainage and keep the weight down fill the bottom of the containers with a good layer of polystyrene which you get in packaging. Use good quality compost and add some vermiculite which will also help keep the weight down but will also aid drainage. I would also add a slow release fertilizer and some water-retaining granules. You won’t be able to use hard mulch so I would top off the planting with a good layer of well-rotted manure. This will help retain moisture, keep weeds down and add goodness to the soil. Each autumn you should add another layer.
Pruning Fruit Trees
Question:
Is it OK to prune unwanted limbs off a pear tree after is begins to bloom. One of my trees is an eating pear and the other is a canning pear. Has not been pruned in years and need to get rid of dead limbs and cross overs.
Answer:
Apple and pear trees should be pruned every winter to ensure a good crop of fruit the following season.
This should be carried out when the tree is dormant, between leaf fall and bud burst (usually between November and early March).
If yours has already started to bloom you may be best waiting until next winter.
However, you should be OK to cut out dead or unwanted branches but pruning branches which you want to produce fruit is not advisable.
Here is a link to an RHS article about renovating older tress which may be of use: http://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/profiles1101/fruit_tree.asp.
