Allotment Gardening Advice Help Chat
Chatting => Design and Construction => Topic started by: Learnerlady on October 17, 2020, 15:19
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Hi,
Just wondering if anyone had used the stems of these plants to make a woven fence, like you make with willow?
They've been a bonus as a natural wind break but wondering if I could get even more use. TBH im not that keen on the tubers but only tried one way so far and they were planted by previous plotholder.
Other suggestions welcome Thanks
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The stems break down fairly easily in the compost so being similar to sunflowers I'd guess a woven fence would last maybe a season at most. Regarding different ways to eat the tubers, sliced into 6mm discs and thrown into a stir-fry right at the end makes a passable substitute for water chestnuts (barely cook them though or they lose their crunch) or half lengthways and oven roast with flaked sea salt to bring out their smoky nutty taste.
I grew them for a while, loved the taste but finally gave up due to the gastric side effects.
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Hi Blewit,
I thought as they are solid they would dry and be ok but even one season may be useful. Will give it a go and if not good I can still compost. I had soaked cut tubers overnight in salt water as i was concerned about the gastric effects and seemed ok but think i roasted too long. Stir fry sounds promising. Thinking of saving and growing just for the windbreak as quite an exposed site. Thanks
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Making a windbreak out of something that makes you break wind! There's poetry in that :nowink:
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Methinks that's fart-too much information! :lol:
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Hi,
thought I would give an update on this, didn't spend a great deal of time so could improve construction but impressed that still standing given the gales and exposed site. Little concerned that black mottling may be detrimental to plants though !
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I wouldn't have thought you need to worry too much about the mottling. Bugs are often host-specific rather than generally infecting anything.