December in the Gardens
By Molly Hibbert
Most of the leaves have fallen off the trees but tiny yellow crab apples still cling to the branches. The frost has separated the hardy from the not so hardy; the last lettuces were ruined but the Swiss chard has just about bounced back. The kitchen garden looks bare but we still manage a modest harvest of swedes, Peruvian ground apple or yacón, and cavolo nero for the Ox Barn kitchen. The Brussels sprouts are just perfect, soon they will be on the menu, served with brown butter and toasted hazelnuts.
It's cold, and more often than not, wet. I squeeze on three pairs of gloves: fingerless and furry, then a thin pair - good for fiddly jobs, and finally a waterproof set. Vic, the Senior Kitchen Gardener, jokes that I stick my hands into the leaf mould to heat up. We eat more chocolate biscuits than maybe we should, but, we reason, they are necessary to keep warm.