It’s time to garden. But this year instead of getting my hands dirty with soil, I’m getting my hands dirty with gouache. 2014 is the year to experiment, the year to see what happens, so I am just letting things flow to see where life takes me.
Tag: vegetable gardens
A wreath of a different sort
Dried leaves piled into a bowl have that holiday spirit. I picked leaves off my fruit tree and dried them under a heavy sheet (that allowed the edges of the leaves to curl a bit, giving the leaves a holly feel). They are too delicate to string into the garland, so the alternative is this arrangement that reminds me of a wreath. Love!
Beets with lemon, cilantro and mint
mmm…I made this with beets from the garden. I pulled some young beets to use their greens for the salad. The colors are delightfully festive! The recipe is from my favorite veggie cookbook, Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone by Deborah Madison. If this cookbook isn’t on your bookshelf, you must get it! The information about how to cook veggies to their best is worth the cover price, not to mention the recipes are all fantastic.
Halloween craft idea #18: butternut squash, black bean soup
Soup season is here! This is my favorite soup to serve at the Halloween party, and it is always a hit. Plus, if there is any left over it keeps for days. I topped the soup with sour cream and dried flat parsley (which I blogged about here>>)
Jar labels for canned garden goodies
We have a wonderful garden and sometimes it grows faster than we expect. One day we think we have it all under control~the next there are dozens of veggie varieties ready to pick.
I quickly gather our bounty and start canning. For this label (pictured) I used the Cricut Expression and the Preserves cartridge.
These make great gifts and the savory ones are especially appreciated during the sweet-sweet Holidays. You needn’t have a garden to make great foodie gifts…Buy local, organic veggies and can for yourself or for gifts. You’ll be a star among your friends and family. Those of you in the cold parts of the country better get on it…soon your local farms will be shuttered for the winter.
Speaking of the Holidays~October is just around the corner and that means Halloween is almost here! I’ll be spending the entire month~starting October First~making fun stuff for my favorite Holiday. Tune in for great ideas leading up to a stellar party!
Wool sweater sleeve covers a flower pot
September is a busy month for birthdays. That means I am extra crafty this time of year. My awesome mother-in-law’s birthday is today and I whipped out this cute little thing in under an hour. She loves to have herbs on her sill for easy picking, so I think she’ll be thrilled.
I used a wool sweater that didn’t end up felting in the wash. What you see here is the end of the sleeve (the cuff is at the bottom of the pot.) It’s easy to do. Find a pot that fits into the arm hole of the sweater. It could be any sweater, actually, not just wool. Slip the pot in, and cut the arm high enough so it tucks in but doesn’t hit the bottom. Then, drop in a small potted plant. This Sage plant was purchased at a local nursery.
I had to add a little something special, of course, so I needle felted two mushrooms in her favorite colors.
Carrots from the Garden
It took a long time to get these babies to grow, but am I glad I planted them. I pulled up this bunch to throw into the mix for dinner and they were superb! I know carrots are good for you and me, but I wanted to share a bit of knowledge from the smart guys over at Organic Facts. The health benefits of carrots include reduced cholesterol, prevention from heart attacks, warding off certain cancers and many others. Whew! I feel better already. So~get out there and get you some carrots!
If you want to read all the good stuff, go to Organic Facts page on carrots, here >>
Victory Garden a Small Victory
Erik decided years ago he wanted to plant a veggie garden, but never had the time to invest. I have had run of the property with my flower beds, pots and xeriscape specimens for years, and finally this year he decided he wanted in on the fun.
The only patch of our yard left without something green growing in it (and with enough sun to make it usable) is the west side of the house, a 12×20 foot area. This was where we threw all the old lawn furniture, leftover construction materials, and empty flower pots. Luna the Chicken would roll around in the loose dirt on occasion just to take a bath. Other than that, it was pretty much the forgotten corner of the garden.
The first thing Erik did was to buy and read cover-to-cover The Vegetable Gardener’s Bible by Edward C. Smith. The first instruction was to dig down into the soil 6-10 inches then build a 12″ raised bed. With our hard soil, Erik had to go at it with a pick. It was not easy work. He ordered a few yards of sandy loam and filled his 6×14 foot raised bed. It was time to plant the seeds.
This was back in January. And while Phoenix weather is pretty much perfect that time of year we weren’t getting enough sun to grow the plants in a satisfactory time-frame. It’s now the end of May and finally we are enjoying my favorite of root vegetables, the Chioggia Beet. This tasty treat is sweet as sugar when roasted and absolutely superb when added to a salad.
This evening I wilted the greens and tossed them with the cooked beets and a dressing made with lemon zest and juice from our Meyer Lemon tree, as well as mint and parsley from the garden. It’s been a long five months waiting and watching these beauties grow, but it was worth it. The next crop should be ready in a few weeks. I can’t wait!
