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Best Pepper Pickling Recipe
Pickling your peppers, whether sweet or hot, is a great way to preserve their flavor and be able to enjoy your garden bounty long after the season is gone
How the Herb Garden Grows
In early March I decided to create an herb garden by rounding up a bunch of plants that were growing wild in various locations around the yard. To start I moved a catnip seeding, some oregano and a parsley volunteer. A month later I added some thyme, summer savory and a sage. And a month after that I added a tomatillo volunteer and and a marjoram shoot I found. At some point in May, a Blue Jay decided to add a sunflower or two (scrub jays are famous for stashing seeds and forgetting where). Looks like everything is [keep reading...]
Perlette Table Grape
I bought a dozen 1 year old table grape vines from Peaceful Valley Farms last year (a real deal at just $5 a vine). Last year they didn't do much. I let them run wild and get established. This past winter I pruned and trellised them and have tried to keep them trained on the trellis. Looks like the work is paying off. This is a bunch of Perlette table grapes. I've also got Concord and Black Monukka clusters ripening away. Can't wait to try them. Next year I'm going to see about investing in some wine grape stock. A [keep reading...]
Alstroemeria gone wild
Several years ago my wife was given this Peruvian Lily as a houseplant. It didn't do particularly well in the house (in fact, I thought it was dead), so I dumped it into the garden near the strawberry planter. Not only was the plant not dead, but it thrives in the dry soil and treats us to this show every spring through autumn.
Red Onion Harvest
The ruby ring onions I planted this past winter ready to harvest. I pulled them up and will allow them to dry before tying them up. In total I got about 50 really nice red onions. Considering I bought this seed on sale for 99 cents, I got a real nice return on my investment.
Trailing Blackberries
This is a native trailing blackberry. Usually you find it down along the creeks. I transplanted a few along my lower fence line 20 years ago and the blackberries have never looked back. Tis year the ground squirrels and I are in a battle to see who will get to eat more of them. So far the squirrels are winning.
Hydrangea All Pink this Year
Last fall I put up a rain gutter that redirected water from the roof to the camelias and hydrangea on the side yard. Whatever is in the roof runoff, for the first time all the hydrangeas blooms are pink this year.
Cleveland Sage in Bloom
One of my favorite native plants, Cleveland Sage (salvia clevelandii), which gets its name from the nearby Cleveland National Forest. Looks great, smells great and requires close to zero water and maintenance.
The Eagle has landed.
Okay, it's not an eagle, but a young Cooper's hawk who happened to be perched on the no parking sign just down the hill. He let me get just ten feet away to take this photo. After posing he dove into the brush for breakfast and then flew off.
Sweet Corn by Memorial Day
It's only Mid-may and the Bon Apetit Sweet corn is going gangbusters. I wouldn't be surprised if there's fresh corn on the BBQ this Memorial Day. (Note: this photos was taken less than 3 weeks after this one).
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