It's cold, it's wet and most of the plants are hunkered down for the winter. Were it not for this one little Chinese Lantern (Physalis Alkekengi), the view out my office window would be very earthtone.
Finding things to do with all the herbs, fruits and vegetables Sage grows around here, can be a challenge (what does one do with a pound of Borage?), but one use that’s always guaranteed to be a big hit is fresh rosemary from the garden in my homemade rosemary bread. It’s actually a simple bread recipe, but when it’s spiked with a little biga and finely chopped fresh rosemary, it makes a nutty, woodsy, slightly chewy bread that’s great all [keep reading...]
I know it's dorky, but I am totally geeking on the new 2020 Avian Health calendar I got from the feed store today. It's free from the California Department of Agriculture, so I may get another one to put up in the coop for the roosters. They dig pinup chicks.
The secret to great bread is old dough. Not the “hey, I found this package of ready-bake biscuits at the back of the fridge” type of old dough, but the kind that turns a pretty good loaf into a delicious toasty, tangy, chewy, sensory delight. Old dough is the magic behind sourdough as well as many Italian, French and other breads and goes by names like “biga”, “poolish” and “starter.” Bakers call these “pre-ferments”, but it’s more accurate to call [keep reading...]
Another 3" of rain and continued cool weather this week, but the keyhole garden continues to thrive. The broccoli (rear of the garden) is doing well, the romaine lettuce (right side) is doubling each week. We were even able to harvest some cilantro yesterday for enchiladas the mrs. is making.
Here it is, week 12 since I started the peppers fermenting. I don't know how it's possible, but the Hidden Lake Hot peppers in the garden are still hanging in despite heavy and 40 degree temperature swings between night and day. I managed to pick about 2-3 ounces of fresh pepper for a new addition (along with 1/4 teaspoon of salt, but no additional water), and will probably get 2-3 ounces more based on the number of peppers and new [keep reading...]
Rain and wind make for terrible growing conditions around the acre for everything but the citrus. For the first time in several years it looks like all the trees -- navel orange, grapefruit, mandarin and tangerine -- will be full of fruit this winter. All well and good. Not only do us people enjoy the fruit, but the ducks are big fans too.
Until November 27th, we hadn't had any rain in 186 days. Then the Thanksgiving storm rolled in off the Pacific and proceeded to dump so much water that the dry creek in my lower yard flowed the earliest it has in years. Normally we don't see water in it until late January or February. Guess it's going to be a wet year.
Second week of the keyhole garden's winter plantings. We had 3 inches of occasionally heavy rains which could have easily pounded the young herbs and vegetables into the mud. Instead, the garden absorbed the water and drained it away beautifully. Even though it's cool and cloudy, the plants are doing beautifully.
