Garden Update: How's it Growing?

I took some photos today to share our progresses with you! We are very close to summer. Historically, there is no risk of freeze after June 1st here, but there is lots of warm sunshine in my Southerly Exposed picture windows so the seeds that were started in March are getting kind of big. Hang in there, little fellas!

The herb garden. Planted March 8th. The dill and sage have been very abundant so far. The basil and oregano, not so much. The chives not at all. Strange they grew in order like that. I turn the pot daily so it gets even sun.  I finally gave up and  I replanted chives about 2 weeks ago but still no show. The front row is all calendula. The two outer plants were planted Mar 8 along with a bunch more that never germinated. The little ones in the middle were planted about 2 weeks ago and started just fine. Beats me.

Chamomile, planted April 26. The seeds are like dust and the starts are so wee and cute!

I filled some empty coconut shells with dirt and started more calendula there. I'm hoping to get plenty of flowers.


Note to the vegan police :) Yes, the planter next to says "ice cream". Sadly, I do NOT live in a vegan world no matter how much I want it. Luckily for me there is no cooking of animals in THIS house but the guys still eat animals products such as ice cream and I can't bear to throw those perfect plant starting boxes out. I don't eat the products, but I AM in charge of waste management in this house and I re-purpose some of the trash that is created when the people I live with buy and consume animal products. I have thought hard and I feel very deeply about this and I think using the containers to grow plants is the best conclusion to two bad situations: the eating of animal products and the disposal of the wrappers that they come in.

The cucumbers have flowered. Is it just me or does that sound like a spy identifying to another spy?

There are actual BEAN PODS on my bush beans.

 This is a tomato I started last year. It gave me HUNDREDS of cherry tomatoes. I grew it in a pot. I brought it inside and cut it back at the beginning of winter except for one branch that was still flowering, I let it continue. Immediately it leaves branches and tiny flowers that didn't produce started growing back. I kept watering and feeding it rocket compost all winter in the warm, sunny window and now it has three wee tomatoes and lots of flowers on it!!! Has anyone else ever had a tomato plant grow for more than one season? I didn't think it was possible.

Here is a full view of the 2nd season cherry tomato:

See the stumps where it was cut back?

Ahoy! Cilantro!

More basil.

I want to have too much basil this year. I don't think it's going to happen but I will keep planting.

Bell Peppers. I hope I have as good of luck with peppers this year as last.

Flax and fenugreek in the yellow pot. The pods are fenugreek.

Orange pot is pumpkin which is also starting to bloom.

I put some fennel seeds to germinate April 27 but I don't see anything yet. I know from sprouting them that it takes a while.

There are more but uploading is a... very slow thing so that's it for today.

1 more month until we begin planting outside. I'll post another garden update around that time. So, how's things growing with you?

My first seedling popped up today

Ruby Swiss Chard

Planted on March 8, showed his lil head March 14.
I'm going plant the chard in pots and grow them inside until it's hot out. Last year I bought a bunch of them already started and planted them in big pots. This is the first time I've started them from seeds.

Making RAW Pickles: Spicy Garlic Mixed Vege Pickle Recipe!

I harvested the last of the jalapenos today. Even the little green one. What to do with all those jalapenos?


Why, make Raw Pickles, of course!














The longer it sits, the better the pickles taste, but if you start this recipe at 7am it can be ready for dinner at 6pm.

Spicy Garlic Mixed Vegetable Pickles

Ingredients:

2 med Cukes sliced into 3/4" coins,
1 med carrot sliced into thick matchsticks,
5-6 cloves garlic, peeled and cut in thick slices,
6 red and 1 green jalapeno, chopped,
1 yellow bell pepper, cut in strips,
2 tsp salt,
one fresh lemon, juiced.

Instructions:

Cut up enough veges to fill a wide mouth, lidded Mason jar.
Pour the veges from the jar into a large bowl.
Add salt.
Stir occasionally. Liquid will start to collect at the bottom of the bowl.
Keep stirring occasionally for about an hour or until all the salt is dissolved.
Pour the vegetables and juices back into the jar.
Put a lid on the jar and let it pickles "cook" in their juices for up to 6 hours at room temp.















Add the juice of 1 lemon (about a 1/4 cup) replace the lid and shake.
Let it "cook" for another 6 hours or longer.
Shake now and then to make sure all the veges get equal time in the juice.
Add enough water to cover the veges and store in the fridge.
These will keep indefinitely in a lidded jar in the fridge but they never last long around here!



















These photos were taken before the lemon juice was added. I love to watch the veges "cook" in the salt.

Note: You don't have to use the same exact veges I did. I make this different every time. Sometimes with only jalapenos.

Sunday Brunch with Deer and Compost.

Dinner last night was roasted veges and stuffed squash
















Vegan Sunday Brunch:














English muffin bruschetta with tomato and avocado slices and red leaf lettuce. The bruschetta sauce we picked up at Big Lots. It's Cucina Toscana Artichoke Bruschetta

I looked out the window and saw this deer eating my compost.














































He's a young buck with little bitty antlers.


I updated the tutorial about crocheting plastic bags. Check it out here.

Garden Photos and Some News

First the news. We are moving. The house owner's wife is very ill and they want to move back into this house. So, like it or not we have to move from this lovely dwelling. In 27 days.

We have found a place we want so send me good wishes and hopefully we will get it. (hopehopehope)


Garden Photos!

Not much good zukes. (thanks, cocoabean. I will take your advice next year and maybe we will get some :)















I sure got a lot of pretty blossoms.
































It wasn't a bumper crop but I got a few good looking tomatoes















The lettuce bolted.



















The peppers are turning color. Hurry up, peppers!















Wee eggplants. There are three of them.















There are a few cukes but this is the best looking one.















Pretty tomatoes.
















Ok, I hope you enjoyed the photos and please send some good vibes my way. We will be packing, cleaning, searching for a new home (hopehopehope we get the house we need) remaining calm and loving at all times (yeah, right) ok, most times.

Garden Photos

Cucumbers in the sunrise...















The tomato on my skinny tomato plant is turning red!














The mosquitoes have lightened up a lot but now the air is full of tiny, tiny green midges. They eat the mosquito larvae which cuts down on the mosquito population dramatically. But they are so small they get in your ears, nose, mouth, eyes and every where else they can get in. I don't care, I love them because they eat mosquitoes :)

DIY Freegan Garden Bench Made from Pallets

Look at what my man built for me :)

He made the whole thing from pallets that we found in town.
I need to get more soil and pot the rest of the starts. I have zukes and tomatoes and eggplants that need permanent homes.

Now all the plants are up off the floor and that big white cat has a place to sit and watch the birds. See him there? He loves to watch the birds. He flattens out like a rug and thumps his tail back and forth, thump, thump, thump. I know cats are obligate carnivores but I'm not going to let him terrorize the neighborhood birds and most likely kill them when there is no need for that. I am glad there is a screen so he and can watch them all day in safety. Safety for him, too. I see plenty dead cats on the road and I don't want him to be one. He stays inside. MIL got him some fresh live catnip in a little pot. You can see it in the lower left. He chewed on it but he chews the onions, lettuce and the lily too, and I didn't see him get blissed out in any way so I don't think he's much of a nipper.

Sunday night. I should be on the mat and I will be later but I just had to post the photo of the wonderful garden bench that my man made for me out of pallets that we found. That means it was FREE!

Oh, and I got a jump rope. mmm, more exercise!

OOh, thunderstorm!!!

Tuesday Morning Smoothie and Wild Edibles Discovery in the Back Yard

1 handful of red leaf lettuce woot!
1 leaf curly kale
1 RIPE banana
1 RIPE kiwi
5 RIPE strawberries
2 tbs gr flax
1 tbs each e3live, RenewMe!
20 oz water
blend







Did I tell you the dryer got fixed? I think I will use the lines anyway. Use the dryer for some stuff and put most of it on the line

That screened porch we have is the best thing ever. There are tons of bugs here because we are literally right on the lake. That little 10x14 screened in box off the side of the house is AWESOME! We can leave the door open to get breezes and to let the cat in and out without a swarm of various flying insects coming in. The cat can sit out there and watch the birds right close up and they are both safe. It's a great place to hang laundry and to a fabulous area to grow plants! No deer is gonna eat my 'maters, no how! I love my little garden room.

I strained my shoulder taking out my aggressions gardening. Maybe we should get a heavy bag... I found some kind of grape.































I cut the apple tree branches away from it so it can get more water and sunlight.














I see little tiny green grapes growing on it so I am very hopeful. This summer we should be having apples, cherries, plums, walnuts and now grapes growing wild in the yard. Oh, and nettles. I think our grocery bill should go down which is good, right?

Ok, I am gonna go rest my neck in bed for a while. It feels better than it did yesterday but not 100%. I hope to get some mat time in this evening if I'm feeling better. boo

Salad From My Garden

Red Chard and Red Sails Lettuce



The leaves are actually quite small, that is a 10" glass mixing bowl.

I grew them.

Juice Feast Lunch Starring Cantaloupe!

I feel GREAT! Juice feasting is fun. I never feel deprived, on the contrary, I feel quite indulged. All the juice I want? hehe. I wouldn't want to do it every day, I do enjoy chewing, but I don't see where the deprivation is there.

I finished my celery cocktail and put about a half hour in on the mat. It's getting easier every day, I know I have gained a ton of flexibility since I started. I also did some upper body work with the dumb bells and the flexi-ball. my chest muscles and arms are hurting. Please, no more push-ups, please?
Then after laying on the floor for a while watching old sit coms, I looked at the clock and THOUGHT it was noon, so...

I made a cantaloupe milk smoothie for lunch.

Blending















Straining in a fine mesh strainer or use a cloth bag















I push it through with a bamboo paddle until there is nothing left but seed husks.
















Then Put it in a glass and drink it yum!















But wait! I thought it was noon! It's only 11am! Dang it. I wanted to wait until noon to have my cantaloupe lunch. Ok, so I...



Took all the plants out and watered them and then jumped on the trampoline for awhile. Wheew! what a work out that is!
















Hung up the wash













I like that I can hang the napkins folded and they are ready to go on the shelf when dry. Bam.

Made some cooked vegan leek and potato soup for the omni's dinner














Yeah, I will probably have some.

I saved about a cup of chopped raw leeks, celery and garlic from when I cut them all up so I could have some raw in my salad while everyone else eats soup. I will probably have a small bowl, but maybe not :)

It is made from
1 leek
2 celery hearts that I saved from juicing this morning
1 quart of broth made from juicing pulp (a great way not to waste. Make broth from vege juicing pulp. I have even used fruit pulp mixed with vege and it's delish)
2 potatoes diced nice and small
2 cloves garlic, smashed and sliced
a wee bit of salt

I will cook it in the big soup pan on low all day but it's ready in an hour or so if you take the heat up to med. Stir occasionally.



Then I baked some bread for the boy













I made it in a pie pan for fun. The boy likes to eat the bread and I sneak zucchini in it like this

1 cup water
1 peeled and topped zucchini
2 tbs vinegar
2 tbs sugar
1 tsp salt
in blender until smooth, set aside

2 cups flour
2 tsp aluminum free baking soda
1 tsp baking soda
whisk together until thoroughly mixed then add liquid and stir.

Pour in greased pan and bake at 350f for 1 hour.

Cool and serve, yum, you love vegetables, don't you? yes you do!
ahem
The boy is in trouble for acting up at school. There was an electronic communications incident and he is grounded from all computer, video games, television (unless we are watching), and I don't know what else. A salad and a bath every night, lol.


I watched the birdies in the bird feeders for a minute














It took them almost a week to find the feeders but now they are all over them, yay!








You can't see but they are orange headed finch type birdies.






And then it was noon and I started sipping my wonderful Cantaloupe Milk Smoothie and composing this entry. Now I am done with both and I think I will put my butt on the mat for a while longer.

Remember: Cantaloupe on an empty stomach and nothing for about 2 hours after or risk the wrath of your belly!