iron | Winkypedia

A recent trip to a wedding in Cork, Ireland, led me to a lovely beach which has a bed of seaweed. To our delight, we discovered lots of winkles under the rocks.

We stayed in an amazing hotel called Ballymaloe, which has been run by TV chef, Rachel Allen’s family for decades. We were well fed with great food though could not stop feeling peckish looking at the freshly collected winkles.

We just HAD TO eat them!

The lady at the reception told us we could not have a kettle in the room so we could not cook them by boiling. We pretended we would like to have tea in the bedroom but were told there was no kitchen in our building- so blanching/poaching could not happen either.

Luckily, as hotel guests staying for a wedding, there was at least one allowable heat source- an iron!

Upside down iron = Hot plate for searing winkles? We decided to have an experiment…. Continue reading to see how we cooked the winkles on a hotel room iron >>

I love it when it rains as it saves me from watering my plants. Though one annoying thing that comes with the rain is slugs and snails- they eat my crops!!!

If I see a slug, I usually use salt to kill it. But it is not an effective way to protect my crops as I have to stand in the garden and wait for the slugs and snails to show up.

The traditional way to kill slugs and snails is to put beer in a jar and use it as a trap. Though I had a friend who mistakenly poured beer into the soil and drew all the slugs and snails to her plot instead. (!)

For a more effective approach, I use Growing Success’s Advanced Slug killer. According to the manufacturer, it is certified for organic use and is safe for using around edible plants, children, animals and wildlife.

I usually scatter the pellets around the crop during late evenings or early mornings when slugs and snails are most active.

The pellets contain ferrous phosphate (iron phosphate – which is an organic compound) and a bait, thus making them attractive to slugs and snails. The slugs and snails are attracted to the bait, ingest the pellets and then crawl away to die, leaving no dead slugs or snails around and no unsightly slime. I like the fact that the uneaten pallets break down rapidly to iron and phosphate which are nutrients to the soil.

The pallets are light blue in colour. If they end up getting onto your crops, you should be able to recognise them easily.

I usually get my pallets from Captial Gardens. £5.21 for 750 gram (treats up to 155 sqm). It is a bargain!