Els Engel

Back in circulation

A change of scenery in two weeks

Whaaaaat! So much can change in two weeks, it's unbelievable! When Saro and I entered the tent today after Christmas family visits, surprise after surprise greeted us.

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Oyster mushrooms in the aquaponics tent - Saro Van Cleynenbreugel

First of all, we hadn't seen the fish yet. They're such cute little things. I hadn't known how to imagine 350 fish in our tank, but now I know they have plenty of space they apparently don't need, because they crowded together in one corner. But they looked happy and lively. I think we might need an underwater camera to get a good look at them ;-)

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Baby catfish in the aquaponics system - Els Engel

The next surprise was the mint. I think it more than doubled in size since we last looked at it! We harvested some very big ones to dry above the radiator. Unfortunately, there were bugs on the mint as well. Aphids and white fly if I'm correct. We really need to focus on getting predators. More plants showed surprises: The watercress is peeping out, the pumpkin has flowers and the kohlrabi actually looks like one.

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oyster mushrooms in the aquaponics system - Saro Van Cleynenbreugel

And then, of course, the oyster mushrooms. There were so many of them we harvested an Albert Heijn bag full of them and you couldn't even see the difference. They were clean, thick, fleshy and most of all huge. Pity we don't have a bigger freezer. We have to organize a big mushroom party soon!