Putting Food By

 

 

This year I decided to buy a small freezer to store in the garage so that I could save even more of the produce in my garden. Peppers, zucchini, broccoli, green beans and tomatoes are all being shredded, blanched or turned into sauce so that my garden will last all winter long.

 

Basil and garlic are the basic ingredients for the pesto that I will freeze and use in January when my palate gets lonesome for the taste of summer. The garden brings a taste of freshness all year long. Life is definitely good!

Canada in Bloom

 

 

Recently I was fortunate enough to take a trip with my sister and some friends to Montreal and Quebec City. What I love about Canada is that everywhere I went the flowers were just beautiful and the people there cared enough to keep them looking lovely, despite the hot summer we have had.

 

Here it is August and what I saw was beautifully maintained. Usually by this time of year my own garden is starting to look a bit rough around the edges. Not in Canada though. Everything looked lush and beautiful.

Whether the plants were on public property or privately owned, they looked wonderful. What a pleasure this trip was! Good company, wonderful friendly Canadians, and of course excellent food.

 

If you have never been there, I highly recommend both cities as a trip you will enjoy. So get packing!

Forellenschluss lettuce : Plant Profile

 

I bought these seeds from the Seed Savers Exchange this year and was quite pleased with this particular lettuce. There was no trouble with them sprouting (despite the lack of rain), they produced well, continued growing despite the heat and only just recently have the plants I didn't harvest gone to seed in the garden. This pot of Forellenschluss lettuce continues to go strong on the deck.

Forellenschluss lasts pretty well in the refrigerator and I expect to be eating it for awhile, even though this is August. What does this mean for the future? It means that I am going to try and save the seed and plant them next year. Any plant that has survived this summer in my garden is a keeper. A lettuce still alive in August, well that plant is not just a keeper, it's a winner.

Plants on the Loose

 

Okay, this is a case of do as I say, not as I do. There is a reason those seed packets tell you to space your plants apart at a particular distance. Just because they don't seem to take up much room in May doesn't mean your garden will look the same way in July.

 

My problem is I look through the seed catalogs during the winter and I want one of everything. I may not buy one of everything, but I make a pretty good effort at this. Unfortunately I live in the city on a small city plot and there isn't room for one of everything. But I start seeds from all the varieties I have and then make every effort to find room for them. This is not a good idea as zucchini tends to hide anyways, and if it hides too long, well, it might just grow to be bigger than you.

One way to grow more in a smaller space is to grow vertically. I grow my cucumbers on a trellis so there is room for more and also to keep the fruit off the ground. It works pretty well, but of course the zucchini which is planted in the same bed likes to mingle with the cucumbers.

 

Oh well, it's a jungle out there and I guess I am the queen. But queen of my garden jungle is the only kind of queen I want to be as it means I will be eating good once the fruit of the vine comes along.

Coreopsis : Plant Profile

A few years ago I started some Coreopsis by seed. Coreopsis is a perennial that loves the sun. I started a few plants and now I have plenty more. It is long blooming, providing continual flowers since the first yellow blossoms of June. 

And best of all, this variety called Sunburst is drought and heat tolerant. I have lost several plants this summer due to the drought and 100 degree temperatures, but not this coreopsis which just kept going, seemingly unaffected by the miserable weather. Coreopsis is definitely a keeper, and since I started it from some free seed, it's pretty darn cheap as well. The bargain hunter in me just loves this plant.

Here Come the Veggies. You be the Judge.

This past week I spent a few days in Hillsdale County, Michigan where my mother grew up. I was checking into some family history and met up with a third cousin, once removed. She had plenty of photos of the Riley family to share with me.

Mary is the daughter of a farmer, the granddaughter of a farmer and wife of a farmer. Her farmers have all passed on, but she is still going strong. We managed to talk about soy beans, plants drying up due to the heat and no rain and of course the harvest.

Today I managed to pick some peas past their prime, kohlrabi, broccoli, cucumbers and zucchini. Time to make some more humus so I have something to dip the kohlrabi in. And perhaps a broccoli rice casserole.

Or perhaps not. I sure don't want to turn on the oven today. Yes it is supposed to get into the 90s and although we did actually get a tiny amount of rain last night the garden is still dry.

Dry, but still producing, and that is what it is all about.

Gardener on the Roof

Last week I had the good fortune to meet some old friends for dinner at the Traffic Jam, one of my favorite restaurants in Detroit. This restaurant has been around since 1965 and includes a microbrewery, bakery, dairy and their own rooftop garden. The menu advertises ingredients grown on the roof, and if you ask them,they will lead you up a rather old staircase to the roof where you can see what they have growing up there.

 

Corn, tomatoes, peppers and herbs are all started in the recently built greenhouse that is also on the roof. And anything not growing up there, but still used in the restaurant is probably grown in the community garden that is visible from the roof down the street from the restaurant.

 

The dairy produces cheeses from local milk. And there is something on the menu for everyone, whether you prefer something vegetarian or a burger, you will go away satisfied. So the next time you are in Detroit and it is too hot to sit outside listening to a concert (what we originally planned to do), go out to dinner and put the Traffic Jam on your list of restaurants to visit.