Jetting off? I wish!

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How exciting it was, a few months back, to plant out my first three courgette plants. My sister said “you only need the one” – but of course I know better… Being a very keen cook, the prospect of harvesting courgette flowers (cover in batter and fry), green courgettes, and then some of the yellow (how pretty they’d look in a salad) was very alluring. It was a thrill to watch them grow, and grow, and grow, until finally I could see some courgettes appear on each plant. Overnight they doubled – every night! After a week, the first plants were ready for harvesting and I served the green and yellow courgettes raw (very thinly sliced into ribbons using a potato peeler, drizzled with lemon juice and olive oil) – they were delicious. Since then my enthusiasm has dampened down, with the constant stream of courgettes ready for harvest. I’ve swopped some for Stargazer lillies, given some away to friends, and I’m sure the local CCTV operators wonder why I sit in car parks, with the boot open, and then exchange packages with other people (veggie swops with friends, halfway between their homes and mine). I don’t want to eat another damn courgette until next year – when I shall grow only two; one yellow and one green. For now, I’m making courgette and ginger jam, courgette pickle, courgette…, well, you get the picture. If only the tomatoes were as productive!