No Dig Cookbook and 2024 Sowing Calendar, both signed
No Dig Cookbook
A unique cookbook, packed with recipes for seasonal vegetables as well as tips on how to grow them, using my fantastic and time-saving no dig methods.
It explains and develops the strong links you can achieve between garden and kitchen, which keep changing according to the season. The garden decides your menu!
The recipes are by Catherine Balaam, who cooks for day and weekend courses at my Homeacres no dig garden. Catherine has created and tested over 60 delicious plant-based recipes, inspired by the mouth-watering lunches created for the participants after an intense morning of learning in the garden. They are simple dishes bursting with flavour, from seasonal vegetables and herbs.
To complement them, I have written ‘Advice on growing your own’ sections throughout the book, in which I outline some key growing tips for many of the vegetables in the recipes. I also include my own recipe for no-knead bread, another great time saver.
We include ideas on how you can adapt recipes to your own harvests, using different vegetables that are similar to cook with.
Some of the recipes are how to ferment and store vegetables, so that you can use any gluts and enjoy them later.
Recipes are categorised as follows:
- Pestos, dips and sauces
- Ferments and vinegars
- Salads
- Cooked salads
- Roasties
- Stews and hot dishes
- Sweet treats
There are beautiful photos throughout, of the cooked dishes, a few including preparation, and also of my garden at Homeacres.
———
Catherine Balaam and Charles Dowding have produce a beautiful cookbook of recipes using everyday ingredients and fresh veggies from the garden. The recipes have gourmet flavours but are easy to make. Charles has included great growing tips if you want to grow your own veggies, using the no dig method, which is truly sustainable and rewarding.
LH, April 2023
———
Calendar of Vegetable Sowing Dates 2024
My best sowing dates to hang on your wall. Each month of the growing season has my favourite sowing dates for each vegetable, to increase the likelihood of successful harvests. Every date is based on decades of fine-tuning from observations and learning.
- Use these dates to help you enjoy a regular supply of fresh produce through all four seasons.
In this year's calendar, I share my tips for successful sowing. Enjoy more success.
We have also created a yearly sowing overview table. An overview of all the year, to help you plan which vegetables are best to sow at different and carefully selected times.
As well as sowing dates, I give a brief vegetable growing summary for every month, to help you keep on track. The calendar is also illustrated with beautiful and informative photos from my garden at Homeacres.
The sowing dates are for a Zone 8b climate in southern UK. You can use this calendar in different climates, with a little adjustment to the dates. If your climate is cooler, sow later by one to four weeks in spring, then sow a week or two earlier in summer and autumn, from the solstice onwards.
My recommended dates are not always the same as you will read on the packet of seeds! For some reason, they pay little attention to flowering dates. For example, I do not recommend sowing spinach, as in true spinach not leaf beet, from late April through to late July. That way you avoid its flowering season. By sowing either very early in the year or in August, you are far more likely to enjoy a long season of harvest. For a monthly summary of which seeds are best to sow when, in a temperate climate, see my sowing timeline. There is also a version for the southern hemisphere.
We also offer an advice newsletter, a weekly reminder of what best to sow, transplant, harvest and other jobs, for the week ahead. It's £5 monthly from February to October, and includes contributions from new grower Anna, who helped with this calendar, and from other no dig gardeners who are enjoying success around the world – see also our International page.
Climate plus natural growth cycles
My sowing dates are based on the season, the climate, and the natural growth cycle of each vegetable. For example, your peas will succeed much better when you sow in spring rather than summer. That's because peas grow most healthily and abundantly during months when the days are getting longer. Sow at the best time of year for each different vegetable.
Dates are based secondarily on moon phases. Within the best seasonal times, the moon cycles sometimes give even better times!
Solar and lunar
I combine two aspects of moon movements for calculating top sowing dates:
One is the phases of root-flower-leaf-fruit, based on whether the moon is passing through an astrological sign with earth-air-water-fire qualities.
The other is waxing and waning. Where possible, sow on a waxing moon for faster emergence and stronger growth, especially just before full moon.
Sun and moon give a framework of action, rather than a rigid rulebook. Many dates have sowing possibilities – there are few dates when all of the good aspects are present.
I have your calendar and I use a new one every year. It is the best one out there! It keeps me on track and motivates me to keep planting all year long. I am weeks ahead of all my neighbours using your techniques. David Donegal, 2023
The calendar is 36 pages and is A4, opening to A3. It is hole-punched, for hanging on a wall.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat. Aenean faucibus nibh et justo cursus id rutrum lorem imperdiet. Nunc ut sem vitae risus tristique posuere.
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No Dig Cookbook and 2024 Sowing Calendar, both signed
More information
No Dig Cookbook
A unique cookbook, packed with recipes for seasonal vegetables as well as tips on how to grow them, using my fantastic and time-saving no dig methods.
It explains and develops the strong links you can achieve between garden and kitchen, which keep changing according to the season. The garden decides your menu!
The recipes are by Catherine Balaam, who cooks for day and weekend courses at my Homeacres no dig garden. Catherine has created and tested over 60 delicious plant-based recipes, inspired by the mouth-watering lunches created for the participants after an intense morning of learning in the garden. They are simple dishes bursting with flavour, from seasonal vegetables and herbs.
To complement them, I have written ‘Advice on growing your own’ sections throughout the book, in which I outline some key growing tips for many of the vegetables in the recipes. I also include my own recipe for no-knead bread, another great time saver.
We include ideas on how you can adapt recipes to your own harvests, using different vegetables that are similar to cook with.
Some of the recipes are how to ferment and store vegetables, so that you can use any gluts and enjoy them later.
Recipes are categorised as follows:
- Pestos, dips and sauces
- Ferments and vinegars
- Salads
- Cooked salads
- Roasties
- Stews and hot dishes
- Sweet treats
There are beautiful photos throughout, of the cooked dishes, a few including preparation, and also of my garden at Homeacres.
———
Catherine Balaam and Charles Dowding have produce a beautiful cookbook of recipes using everyday ingredients and fresh veggies from the garden. The recipes have gourmet flavours but are easy to make. Charles has included great growing tips if you want to grow your own veggies, using the no dig method, which is truly sustainable and rewarding.
LH, April 2023
———
Calendar of Vegetable Sowing Dates 2024
My best sowing dates to hang on your wall. Each month of the growing season has my favourite sowing dates for each vegetable, to increase the likelihood of successful harvests. Every date is based on decades of fine-tuning from observations and learning.
- Use these dates to help you enjoy a regular supply of fresh produce through all four seasons.
In this year's calendar, I share my tips for successful sowing. Enjoy more success.
We have also created a yearly sowing overview table. An overview of all the year, to help you plan which vegetables are best to sow at different and carefully selected times.
As well as sowing dates, I give a brief vegetable growing summary for every month, to help you keep on track. The calendar is also illustrated with beautiful and informative photos from my garden at Homeacres.
The sowing dates are for a Zone 8b climate in southern UK. You can use this calendar in different climates, with a little adjustment to the dates. If your climate is cooler, sow later by one to four weeks in spring, then sow a week or two earlier in summer and autumn, from the solstice onwards.
My recommended dates are not always the same as you will read on the packet of seeds! For some reason, they pay little attention to flowering dates. For example, I do not recommend sowing spinach, as in true spinach not leaf beet, from late April through to late July. That way you avoid its flowering season. By sowing either very early in the year or in August, you are far more likely to enjoy a long season of harvest. For a monthly summary of which seeds are best to sow when, in a temperate climate, see my sowing timeline. There is also a version for the southern hemisphere.
We also offer an advice newsletter, a weekly reminder of what best to sow, transplant, harvest and other jobs, for the week ahead. It's £5 monthly from February to October, and includes contributions from new grower Anna, who helped with this calendar, and from other no dig gardeners who are enjoying success around the world – see also our International page.
Climate plus natural growth cycles
My sowing dates are based on the season, the climate, and the natural growth cycle of each vegetable. For example, your peas will succeed much better when you sow in spring rather than summer. That's because peas grow most healthily and abundantly during months when the days are getting longer. Sow at the best time of year for each different vegetable.
Dates are based secondarily on moon phases. Within the best seasonal times, the moon cycles sometimes give even better times!
Solar and lunar
I combine two aspects of moon movements for calculating top sowing dates:
One is the phases of root-flower-leaf-fruit, based on whether the moon is passing through an astrological sign with earth-air-water-fire qualities.
The other is waxing and waning. Where possible, sow on a waxing moon for faster emergence and stronger growth, especially just before full moon.
Sun and moon give a framework of action, rather than a rigid rulebook. Many dates have sowing possibilities – there are few dates when all of the good aspects are present.
I have your calendar and I use a new one every year. It is the best one out there! It keeps me on track and motivates me to keep planting all year long. I am weeks ahead of all my neighbours using your techniques. David Donegal, 2023
The calendar is 36 pages and is A4, opening to A3. It is hole-punched, for hanging on a wall.
No Dig Cookbook
A unique cookbook, packed with recipes for seasonal vegetables as well as tips on how to grow them, using my fantastic and time-saving no dig methods.
It explains and develops the strong links you can achieve between garden and kitchen, which keep changing according to the season. The garden decides your menu!
The recipes are by Catherine Balaam, who cooks for day and weekend courses at my Homeacres no dig garden. Catherine has created and tested over 60 delicious plant-based recipes, inspired by the mouth-watering lunches created for the participants after an intense morning of learning in the garden. They are simple dishes bursting with flavour, from seasonal vegetables and herbs.
To complement them, I have written ‘Advice on growing your own’ sections throughout the book, in which I outline some key growing tips for many of the vegetables in the recipes. I also include my own recipe for no-knead bread, another great time saver.
We include ideas on how you can adapt recipes to your own harvests, using different vegetables that are similar to cook with.
Some of the recipes are how to ferment and store vegetables, so that you can use any gluts and enjoy them later.
Recipes are categorised as follows:
- Pestos, dips and sauces
- Ferments and vinegars
- Salads
- Cooked salads
- Roasties
- Stews and hot dishes
- Sweet treats
There are beautiful photos throughout, of the cooked dishes, a few including preparation, and also of my garden at Homeacres.
———
Catherine Balaam and Charles Dowding have produce a beautiful cookbook of recipes using everyday ingredients and fresh veggies from the garden. The recipes have gourmet flavours but are easy to make. Charles has included great growing tips if you want to grow your own veggies, using the no dig method, which is truly sustainable and rewarding.
LH, April 2023
———
Calendar of Vegetable Sowing Dates 2024
My best sowing dates to hang on your wall. Each month of the growing season has my favourite sowing dates for each vegetable, to increase the likelihood of successful harvests. Every date is based on decades of fine-tuning from observations and learning.
- Use these dates to help you enjoy a regular supply of fresh produce through all four seasons.
In this year's calendar, I share my tips for successful sowing. Enjoy more success.
We have also created a yearly sowing overview table. An overview of all the year, to help you plan which vegetables are best to sow at different and carefully selected times.
As well as sowing dates, I give a brief vegetable growing summary for every month, to help you keep on track. The calendar is also illustrated with beautiful and informative photos from my garden at Homeacres.
The sowing dates are for a Zone 8b climate in southern UK. You can use this calendar in different climates, with a little adjustment to the dates. If your climate is cooler, sow later by one to four weeks in spring, then sow a week or two earlier in summer and autumn, from the solstice onwards.
My recommended dates are not always the same as you will read on the packet of seeds! For some reason, they pay little attention to flowering dates. For example, I do not recommend sowing spinach, as in true spinach not leaf beet, from late April through to late July. That way you avoid its flowering season. By sowing either very early in the year or in August, you are far more likely to enjoy a long season of harvest. For a monthly summary of which seeds are best to sow when, in a temperate climate, see my sowing timeline. There is also a version for the southern hemisphere.
We also offer an advice newsletter, a weekly reminder of what best to sow, transplant, harvest and other jobs, for the week ahead. It's £5 monthly from February to October, and includes contributions from new grower Anna, who helped with this calendar, and from other no dig gardeners who are enjoying success around the world – see also our International page.
Climate plus natural growth cycles
My sowing dates are based on the season, the climate, and the natural growth cycle of each vegetable. For example, your peas will succeed much better when you sow in spring rather than summer. That's because peas grow most healthily and abundantly during months when the days are getting longer. Sow at the best time of year for each different vegetable.
Dates are based secondarily on moon phases. Within the best seasonal times, the moon cycles sometimes give even better times!
Solar and lunar
I combine two aspects of moon movements for calculating top sowing dates:
One is the phases of root-flower-leaf-fruit, based on whether the moon is passing through an astrological sign with earth-air-water-fire qualities.
The other is waxing and waning. Where possible, sow on a waxing moon for faster emergence and stronger growth, especially just before full moon.
Sun and moon give a framework of action, rather than a rigid rulebook. Many dates have sowing possibilities – there are few dates when all of the good aspects are present.
I have your calendar and I use a new one every year. It is the best one out there! It keeps me on track and motivates me to keep planting all year long. I am weeks ahead of all my neighbours using your techniques. David Donegal, 2023
The calendar is 36 pages and is A4, opening to A3. It is hole-punched, for hanging on a wall.
No Dig Cookbook and 2024 Sowing Calendar, both signed
No Dig Cookbook
A unique cookbook, packed with recipes for seasonal vegetables as well as tips on how to grow them, using my fantastic and time-saving no dig methods.
It explains and develops the strong links you can achieve between garden and kitchen, which keep changing according to the season. The garden decides your menu!
The recipes are by Catherine Balaam, who cooks for day and weekend courses at my Homeacres no dig garden. Catherine has created and tested over 60 delicious plant-based recipes, inspired by the mouth-watering lunches created for the participants after an intense morning of learning in the garden. They are simple dishes bursting with flavour, from seasonal vegetables and herbs.
To complement them, I have written ‘Advice on growing your own’ sections throughout the book, in which I outline some key growing tips for many of the vegetables in the recipes. I also include my own recipe for no-knead bread, another great time saver.
We include ideas on how you can adapt recipes to your own harvests, using different vegetables that are similar to cook with.
Some of the recipes are how to ferment and store vegetables, so that you can use any gluts and enjoy them later.
Recipes are categorised as follows:
- Pestos, dips and sauces
- Ferments and vinegars
- Salads
- Cooked salads
- Roasties
- Stews and hot dishes
- Sweet treats
There are beautiful photos throughout, of the cooked dishes, a few including preparation, and also of my garden at Homeacres.
———
Catherine Balaam and Charles Dowding have produce a beautiful cookbook of recipes using everyday ingredients and fresh veggies from the garden. The recipes have gourmet flavours but are easy to make. Charles has included great growing tips if you want to grow your own veggies, using the no dig method, which is truly sustainable and rewarding.
LH, April 2023
———
Calendar of Vegetable Sowing Dates 2024
My best sowing dates to hang on your wall. Each month of the growing season has my favourite sowing dates for each vegetable, to increase the likelihood of successful harvests. Every date is based on decades of fine-tuning from observations and learning.
- Use these dates to help you enjoy a regular supply of fresh produce through all four seasons.
In this year's calendar, I share my tips for successful sowing. Enjoy more success.
We have also created a yearly sowing overview table. An overview of all the year, to help you plan which vegetables are best to sow at different and carefully selected times.
As well as sowing dates, I give a brief vegetable growing summary for every month, to help you keep on track. The calendar is also illustrated with beautiful and informative photos from my garden at Homeacres.
The sowing dates are for a Zone 8b climate in southern UK. You can use this calendar in different climates, with a little adjustment to the dates. If your climate is cooler, sow later by one to four weeks in spring, then sow a week or two earlier in summer and autumn, from the solstice onwards.
My recommended dates are not always the same as you will read on the packet of seeds! For some reason, they pay little attention to flowering dates. For example, I do not recommend sowing spinach, as in true spinach not leaf beet, from late April through to late July. That way you avoid its flowering season. By sowing either very early in the year or in August, you are far more likely to enjoy a long season of harvest. For a monthly summary of which seeds are best to sow when, in a temperate climate, see my sowing timeline. There is also a version for the southern hemisphere.
We also offer an advice newsletter, a weekly reminder of what best to sow, transplant, harvest and other jobs, for the week ahead. It's £5 monthly from February to October, and includes contributions from new grower Anna, who helped with this calendar, and from other no dig gardeners who are enjoying success around the world – see also our International page.
Climate plus natural growth cycles
My sowing dates are based on the season, the climate, and the natural growth cycle of each vegetable. For example, your peas will succeed much better when you sow in spring rather than summer. That's because peas grow most healthily and abundantly during months when the days are getting longer. Sow at the best time of year for each different vegetable.
Dates are based secondarily on moon phases. Within the best seasonal times, the moon cycles sometimes give even better times!
Solar and lunar
I combine two aspects of moon movements for calculating top sowing dates:
One is the phases of root-flower-leaf-fruit, based on whether the moon is passing through an astrological sign with earth-air-water-fire qualities.
The other is waxing and waning. Where possible, sow on a waxing moon for faster emergence and stronger growth, especially just before full moon.
Sun and moon give a framework of action, rather than a rigid rulebook. Many dates have sowing possibilities – there are few dates when all of the good aspects are present.
I have your calendar and I use a new one every year. It is the best one out there! It keeps me on track and motivates me to keep planting all year long. I am weeks ahead of all my neighbours using your techniques. David Donegal, 2023
The calendar is 36 pages and is A4, opening to A3. It is hole-punched, for hanging on a wall.
No Dig Cookbook and 2024 Sowing Calendar, both signed
No Dig Cookbook
A unique cookbook, packed with recipes for seasonal vegetables as well as tips on how to grow them, using my fantastic and time-saving no dig methods.
It explains and develops the strong links you can achieve between garden and kitchen, which keep changing according to the season. The garden decides your menu!
The recipes are by Catherine Balaam, who cooks for day and weekend courses at my Homeacres no dig garden. Catherine has created and tested over 60 delicious plant-based recipes, inspired by the mouth-watering lunches created for the participants after an intense morning of learning in the garden. They are simple dishes bursting with flavour, from seasonal vegetables and herbs.
To complement them, I have written ‘Advice on growing your own’ sections throughout the book, in which I outline some key growing tips for many of the vegetables in the recipes. I also include my own recipe for no-knead bread, another great time saver.
We include ideas on how you can adapt recipes to your own harvests, using different vegetables that are similar to cook with.
Some of the recipes are how to ferment and store vegetables, so that you can use any gluts and enjoy them later.
Recipes are categorised as follows:
- Pestos, dips and sauces
- Ferments and vinegars
- Salads
- Cooked salads
- Roasties
- Stews and hot dishes
- Sweet treats
There are beautiful photos throughout, of the cooked dishes, a few including preparation, and also of my garden at Homeacres.
———
Catherine Balaam and Charles Dowding have produce a beautiful cookbook of recipes using everyday ingredients and fresh veggies from the garden. The recipes have gourmet flavours but are easy to make. Charles has included great growing tips if you want to grow your own veggies, using the no dig method, which is truly sustainable and rewarding.
LH, April 2023
———
Calendar of Vegetable Sowing Dates 2024
My best sowing dates to hang on your wall. Each month of the growing season has my favourite sowing dates for each vegetable, to increase the likelihood of successful harvests. Every date is based on decades of fine-tuning from observations and learning.
- Use these dates to help you enjoy a regular supply of fresh produce through all four seasons.
In this year's calendar, I share my tips for successful sowing. Enjoy more success.
We have also created a yearly sowing overview table. An overview of all the year, to help you plan which vegetables are best to sow at different and carefully selected times.
As well as sowing dates, I give a brief vegetable growing summary for every month, to help you keep on track. The calendar is also illustrated with beautiful and informative photos from my garden at Homeacres.
The sowing dates are for a Zone 8b climate in southern UK. You can use this calendar in different climates, with a little adjustment to the dates. If your climate is cooler, sow later by one to four weeks in spring, then sow a week or two earlier in summer and autumn, from the solstice onwards.
My recommended dates are not always the same as you will read on the packet of seeds! For some reason, they pay little attention to flowering dates. For example, I do not recommend sowing spinach, as in true spinach not leaf beet, from late April through to late July. That way you avoid its flowering season. By sowing either very early in the year or in August, you are far more likely to enjoy a long season of harvest. For a monthly summary of which seeds are best to sow when, in a temperate climate, see my sowing timeline. There is also a version for the southern hemisphere.
We also offer an advice newsletter, a weekly reminder of what best to sow, transplant, harvest and other jobs, for the week ahead. It's £5 monthly from February to October, and includes contributions from new grower Anna, who helped with this calendar, and from other no dig gardeners who are enjoying success around the world – see also our International page.
Climate plus natural growth cycles
My sowing dates are based on the season, the climate, and the natural growth cycle of each vegetable. For example, your peas will succeed much better when you sow in spring rather than summer. That's because peas grow most healthily and abundantly during months when the days are getting longer. Sow at the best time of year for each different vegetable.
Dates are based secondarily on moon phases. Within the best seasonal times, the moon cycles sometimes give even better times!
Solar and lunar
I combine two aspects of moon movements for calculating top sowing dates:
One is the phases of root-flower-leaf-fruit, based on whether the moon is passing through an astrological sign with earth-air-water-fire qualities.
The other is waxing and waning. Where possible, sow on a waxing moon for faster emergence and stronger growth, especially just before full moon.
Sun and moon give a framework of action, rather than a rigid rulebook. Many dates have sowing possibilities – there are few dates when all of the good aspects are present.
I have your calendar and I use a new one every year. It is the best one out there! It keeps me on track and motivates me to keep planting all year long. I am weeks ahead of all my neighbours using your techniques. David Donegal, 2023
The calendar is 36 pages and is A4, opening to A3. It is hole-punched, for hanging on a wall.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat.
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Suspendisse varius enim in eros elementum tristique. Duis cursus, mi quis viverra ornare, eros dolor interdum nulla, ut commodo diam libero vitae erat.
