I watched the heaving black mass for a minute. Shuddered a little and averted my eyes, hoping I’d imagined it as I slowly turned back.
Alas, no. There they still were, running the chive gauntlet, acting all busy like. Busy with what you say? Sucking the life out of my chives it seems.
My tiny potted permaculture garden had been doing reasonably well, condsidering all the growing conditions. At a distance everything looked pretty healthy and well tended. Up close, it was a little different though. The mint was munched, the lemon balm looked a touch fried and the chives well…were a black heaving mass. A black heaving mass of which I wanted no part of.
I noticed them, I observed them, I squished them between my fingers, I thinned the chive cluster out a little, I squirted high powered water on them. They seemed to love every second of their well tended honeymoon and bred like bloody aphids. I watched a little more, the ants below ‘farmed’ them, making sure they were ok, feeling loved and nurtured. No more, I muttered, it’s you or me… and quite frankly, well it really has to be you.
I pulled them all out, bar a few sad loners that the aphids weren’t partying on yet. My perfectly balanced permaculture pot was now looking a little unbalanced. But at least the black heaving mass was disrupted and I could once again think about eating chives without wrinkling my nose and furrowing my brow.
Sour cream and Chive Scones
250g sour cream
250mls water
one large handful of finely chopped chives, (optional black aphids)
1 tsp salt
whisk these ingredients together in a large bowl and then add
2.5-3 cups self raising flour (375-450g)*
mix through with a butter knife
tip out on to a lightly floured bench top and knead quickly with finger tips, pulling it together to a light dough.
Cut shapes, onto a tray and bake at 220 for approximately 20 minutes (depends on their thickness.)
These look delicious Brydie (the scones, not the aphids). My chives are, at present, aphid free, so I just might give them a go! The good thing about chives is that they will always grow back. My lemon balm is self seeding in the cracks between the brick pavers after looking a bit sad last summer, and my neat courtyard herb garden is starting to take on a slightly untamed, permacultured look. Lemon balm scones, perhaps? x
LikeLike
“my neat courtyard herb garden is starting to take on a slightly untamed, permacultured look”… I love everything about that sentence, (I also love seeing things pop up in unlikely places like between brick pavers, I hopefully mine will bounce back.)
LikeLike
Your scones look delicious Brydie. I hope the aphids move on soon. It’s a jungle out there isn’t it? x
LikeLike
Considering the teeny tiny garden space I have…yes, but still an absolute jungle!
LikeLike
Yeah, I did the same last year – I got sick of reapplying soapy water to temporarily dampen their party, only to have them back within a couple of weeks. Fingers crossed it doesn’t happen this year!
LikeLike
I wonder what’s so appealing about the chives?
LikeLike
I found that if you plant Yarrow nearby, the aphids like that more so than the chives! Of course for me, Yarrow is a favorite herb and I had to do battle with them for that reason and the chives were fine!
LikeLike
I’m not familiar with yarrow at all and just looked it up now…Nose Bleed Plant, quite an alternative name.
How do you personally use it? Cooking or medicinal?
LikeLike
I use it medicinally… the aerial parts are used. The leaves are crushed and can be used to stop bleeding. You apply them as a poultice. This is a civil war medicine. Yarrow is edible, but it is a bit bitter. The flowers are used as a cold medicine. Yarrow has the same active constituent as Chamomile (they are in the same ragweed family… so if you are allergic to Ragweed do not ingest either) both have azulene (Chamomile more so than Yarrow). Yarrow will help in the reducing the production of mucus in the nasal cavity. Oh on a side note about aphids, read my post on “Learning to Love Gardening”
LikeLike
Don’t worry Brydie, the aphids will add protein 🙂 Just grind in some black pepper and you won’t notice them at all! My poor eggplants and tomatoes got terribly frost burnt this week with minus 2, but tomorrow it will be 32, so they’ll probably get sunburn 😦
LikeLike
The weather is so up and down at the moment isn’t it, your way would be even more so than here.
Aphids for extra protein eh? I wonder if they would have a taste. When you squish them they leave a purple mark, maybe they could be used like the cochineal beetle? 🙂
LikeLike
There are definite downsides to gardening sometimes. Watching your produce being eaten by bugs is one of them! I’m glad you’ve won (for now anyway!) and these scones look like just the way to celebrate.
LikeLike
It is a little gutting when the area is so small. But…it was planted to protect the cumquat anyway. So I’m still happy the cumquat is fine, (otherwise there would be tears!)
LikeLike
surely those aphids are only swarming over the chives as they are hoping to get your attention and be invited in for some of your lovely scones 🙂 seriously they sound like a pain but glad you aren’t letting them get you down
And I have nominated you for a meme if you have the time and inclination – http://gggiraffe.blogspot.com/2013/10/a-z-bookish-survey.html
LikeLike
Oh thanks lovely, I shall pop over 🙂
LikeLike
Perfect timing. I have sour cream in the fridge that I was trying to work out what to do with. That’s tomorrow’s afternoon tea sorted! Thanks. X
LikeLike
your most welcome BM. Hope you all like them.
LikeLike
Free protein! I guess the sour cream would count as protein as well but it wasn’t free like those aphids 😉
LikeLike
I wonder if they would leave a little crunch like mini cocoa nibs…
LikeLike
Probably not big enough but if you include a few of their ever loving ants… 😉
LikeLike
Urgh – that happened to my chives last year. The WHOLE plant was literally a black heavy mess. So gross.
LikeLike
When I was googling my problem, yours actually came up too Miss Piggy. Ick!
Did you grow them again since?
LikeLike
I’ve never seen so many insects on one pot of chives. What to do about them! I love how you at least managed to salvage a few chives to turn into these lovely looking scones xx
LikeLike
These look wonderful – suddenly Im thinking I need to make some chive scones to go with our chili tomorrow night.
LikeLike
This just happened to a friend of mine. Her’s didn’t seem so bad, what a bummer that you had to pull them all out.
LikeLike