Sowing in Spring for the Hungry Gap

I was just watching Huw Richards latest video on becoming self-sufficient in salads (link at the bottom), and at the end of the video I was reminded of one of the most useful videos I watched last year when I was starting out about sowing now for food to eat this time next year. (For regular followers I will still be posting my 'What to sow in May' this week but just in the meantime.....

I can say from experience (now) that it works! I tried some (not all) and had successes with some (not all). Here is the video:

The plot is still abundant with food. Here are some pictures from this week (22 April).

My April (beginning of the Hungry Gap) harvests so far.

Here is Huw's new salad's video. There are some lovely principles that resonate for me in this video. Forage first create later - pick stuff then use that as the driver to design a meal; Choose your bulk ingredient - and it doesn't need to be tomatoes and lettuce; Flowing shoots - so many are edible that I didn't realise; Aromatics - using herbs to 'pack punch' to your salad; Texture - for crunch, also adding some things like part cooked veggies, pickles and preserves; Fats being a conduit for aromatics and finally edible flowers for eye appeal.

Flowering kale shoots have been a bit of a revelation for me this winter, as has (all year really) the marvellously lemony flavour of sorrel, which is also a perennial. I have been delighted by my long lasting curly parsley this winter and the yummy mustard salads of Red Giant, Red Frills, Misuma and Mibuna along with the peppery Land Cress and Rocket with the added aniseed flavour of Chervil and Fennel. When added in with some young perpetual spinach leaves this has really meant some tasty salads all through the winter.