It's a Beautiful Thing

Over the weekend we planted a very small garden…and it was beautiful. The process began earlier last week when two of my brothers came to work up the grass and get it ready for planting. With a rototiller, peat moss, and shredded mulch, the two guys worked in the hot sun with sweat dripping off their faces. After two days, they presented us with a gift of a garden ready for planting in a few days.

One morning was spent gathering seeds and plants from a greenhouse and a big box store. Then, as the hot sun waned on Sunday evening, we planted tomatoes and a companion plant to keep them company, marigolds.

On Monday morning, out we went to the early morning cool, pulled the hoe creating a ditch, and tucked in green bean seeds. Next, a hill of jack o’lanterns for the little guy took up residence next to a row of mammoth sunflower seeds ready to sprout and grow. Close by another row of ornamental sunflowers, low-growing and colorful sleep beneath soil anxious to awaken. Two hills of summer squash, a family favorite, took center stage. A container of fennel to attract butterflies and two clay pots filled with nasturtiums stand guard around the garden.

On the back patio, another pot of short stocky, shaggy yellow sunflowers were planted. Rosemary is happy and content outside gracing the corner, close enough so I can pamper her when needed. And because in my world, a garden without herbs lacks an essential ingredient, I planted pots of parsley and dill with thyme, oregano, and lavender to follow soon.

It’s been over ten years since I last planted a garden of any kind. Oh, I’ve had pots and container grown plants, but it’s not the same. There is something about seeing those rows of sprouts breaking the earth, peeking at the world, and reaching for the heavens. A smile of satisfaction when a row is hoed and free from weeds reveals gardening pride. Picking, savoring, and putting up cans of freshly picked green beans or tomatoes offers a sense of security. Yes, to have a garden is indeed a beautiful thing.
 
Thank you B & P!!! 
 

You Simply must Plant a Garden

I’d been married a week or two when my mother-in-law showed up one day in mid-June, with trowel, spade, hoe, markers, and a basket full of seeds. She’d ordered my father-in-law to plow up a small space in the yard earlier, anticipating that I’d give-in to her statement, “You simply must plant a garden now that you live on a farm.”

She set about explaining seeds, the information on the packet, and how to hoe a row. I’ll be honest; I was not all that interested. I thought I was way too young to care about gardens, vegetables, and canning, but whether I liked it or not, a vegetable garden was going to be part of my life. That first garden was a complete disaster. I avoided it as much as possible, making no excuses for the weeds choking the plants. The only thing that really grew well in my first garden was a yellow crookneck squash that I had no idea what to do with, so I peeled it, fried it, and ruined it.

The next year, my parents and my mother-in-law saw to it that I planted my garden earlier. Peas in the ground on Good Friday, followed by lettuce, green beans, sweet corn, tomatoes galore, beets, carrots, and that pesky yellow crookneck squash went into the ground. This year my parents made certain I weeded and hoed it every once in awhile. I’m sure they visited so often that summer, with hoes in hand, to keep the garden respectable…well as much as possible.

Gardening was growing on me…a little.

My mother-in-law saw to it from day one that a few flowers were included in the garden. Old-fashioned annuals, like zinnias, calendulas, cosmos, bachelor’s buttons, and marigolds, grew courageously amidst dock, milkweed, and all the weeds that found a hospitable home in my garden in those early years.

One day my mother-in-law stopped by and said, “You simply must join garden club.” I politely turned her down deciding that growing a garden was enough. Anyone who ever knew my mother-in-law would all agree that she was a stubborn woman. Every once in a while she’d say…”You simply must join garden club.” She finally talked me into going to a holiday flower show and suggesting that I make up a couple arrangements, just for fun, of course. I won my first blue ribbon for an evergreen design on an old rug beater. I was stunned and hooked. I’d found a passion, beyond playing the piano.

I joined garden club, grew bigger and better gardens, and journeyed into perennials and gardens explicitly for flowers. At one point I had a large vegetable garden, herb garden, perennial garden, cutting garden, and beds of flowers and herbs.

All the gardening and growing transformed into a business selling herbs, flowers, and all manner of gardening books, supplies, and designs. Windy Corner herbs & flowers became my escape. Life twists and turns like a hanging flower basket in a strong wind and for a while the garden gate slammed shut. A few pots of flowers on a deck or porch were my garden for several years.

I have my mother-in-law, a strong woman with character and substance and my gardening parents to thank for this growing passion. So this year, I simply must plant a garden and so I will.

What’s your garden story? Did someone influence you to plant vegetables, herbs, and flowers? Did you discover your green thumb as a child or later? Did you plan on gardening or stumble upon it? I’d love to hear your story.

 

 

All photos were taken by me last year and none are my garden, but I will be posting photos the brand-spankin' new garden. 

 

Brandywine Update

I am in love. Last night I feasted on cabbage rolls and fresh-out-of-the-oven Hungarian crusty bread with Paul. While we waited for the rolls to finish cooking, Paul sliced a Brandywine tomato. I took my first bite of the funky shaped, pink tomato. The flavor burst on my tongue, lingering with a satisfying tingle. Never in my life have I tasted a tomato that can only be described as vibrant. Eating tomatoes will never be the same, for I have tasted as close to tomato perfection as possible…at least for now.
I am happy to report that my container grown Brandywine sports a faint blush of pink on the cheek. Renewed hope, that I too will have the delectable tomato just outside my door, brings delight to my gardener heart.

A slice of tomato Nirvana.

Dreaming in Pink

I suppose it’s too late now to research the heirloom tomato, Brandywine, but what the heck…I did it anyhow. This spring I planted one Brandywine tomato in a container that sits in full sun on my patio. As I wait for my first ripe bite, I’ve become curious about the variety and I’m hoping the fruit of the vine holds up to the stellar reports that precede it. I'm having my doubts as I dream of biting into a luscious pink tomato. My first clue that maybe Brandywine’s would be less then pure should have come when every nursery and garden center started selling Brandywine plants.
Come to find out…it’s become such a popular tomato variety that there’s reason to believe that seed saving and sharing has developed sub-strains of Brandywines that may be less flavorful. Well…that’s what I get for waiting too long.

I started reading about heirloom seeds many years ago, but never took the next step, purchasing seed from the Seed Savers Program. When I lived on a farm with acres of tillable garden space, I was too busy raising herbs, flowers, vegetables and kids to delve into heirloom seeds. The PC and its quick research tools were in the future, so I read about heirloom seeds in garden magazines. The photos of black, pink, and orange tomatoes delighted my sense of color and I imagined tomato juice in deep, dark purple, whole pink tomatoes canned and standing on the shelf in the cellar, and slices of orange tomatoes for sandwiches and eating out of hand coming from my rainbow tomato garden.
Fast-forward a few hundred years (just kidding) and I have my first heirloom tomato, only to learn that it may not be the true, authentic, one and only Brandywine. Insert bosom heaving sigh here. My plant in a pot doesn’t look as good as my brother’s. His stands 8 feet tall, covered in green tomatoes getting bigger by the day. In comparison, my plant has about nine tomatoes developing. If I get nine tomatoes off that plant that taste as good as the marching band that goes before claims, I’ll be as happy as a plump, bursting with flavor, pink tomato on a healthy vine in August.

I discovered while researching the history of the Brandywine tomato that Seed Savers acquired the heirloom seed from a fellow in Ohio…Ben Quisenberry Mr. Quisenberry, now deceased, received seeds from Doris Sudduth Hill of Tennessee who claimed the seeds had been in her family for over 80 years. Sometime in the future I’ll do more research on Mr. Quisenberry and his Big Tomato Garden in Syracuse, Ohio. If you’d like in-depth history of the Brandywine tomato, check out Craig LeHoullier’s article on the Victory Seed Company’s website.

Lately, I feel like Linus in the pumpkin patch waiting for the Great Pumpkin to make his appearance with one difference, I’m dreaming in pink and waiting for my Brandywine tomatoes to turn red… I mean pink.

Quick Update: Paul's Brandywines are turning pink.... mine are still

green.

Leave a Zucchini on Your Neighbor's Porch Day

It’s all about zucchini on garden blogs across the information highway. I happen to like summer squashes and make delicious side dishes with yellow crookneck or straight squash and zucchini. The great thing about zucchini is how many ways can you use the largesse from the garden. Boiled, broiled, roasted, toasted, chilled, grilled, in a casserole. Shred it, fry it, use it, never buy it. One year my garden provided so much zucchini it was coming out my ears. I made zucchini bread, spicy and chocolate, and froze extra loaves. The long green vegetable became boats with a mixture of rice, ground beef, and cheese filling it up. I went so far as to make zucchini burgers. After shredding a large zucchini, add egg, breadcrumbs, salt, and pepper to taste. Patty the mixture and fry it as you would a burger patty. My family was not thrilled….to say the least. Even on a bun with ketchup, zucchini burgers just didn’t quite tickle the taste buds in a good way. I tossed out the recipe, but who knows you may be able to come up with a workable combination for zucchini burgers.

Saturday, August 8th has been proclaimed, “Leave a zucchini on your neighbor’s porch Day.” Want more information? Check out Bloggers Unite for the objectives and more information. Why not lay a recipe under the zucchini you place on your neighbor's porch giving neighbors a new way to enjoy the excess bounty of your garden.

I found the following recipe in Early American Life magazine, years ago and it has become one of my family’s favorite side dishes.

Gratin of Summer Squash

2 pounds of yellow summer squash, zucchini, or a mix of the two
1 teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon sugar
½ cup onion, chopped coarsely (I cut a whole onion in half and then slice leaving large slivers of onion)
¼ cup butter, softened
1 ¼ cups sharp cheddar cheese
½ cup sour cream
1/3 cup grated parmesan cheese
¼ cup dry white wine (optional)
Salt & Pepper to taste

Topping
1 cup fresh bread crumbs
3 tablespoons melted butter

Place sliced squash in a double boiler top or steamer. Add the onion and sprinkle with salt and sugar. Steam vegetables until tender. Put steamed vegetables into an 11-inch gratin or casserole dish, add butter, and mash slightly with a fork. To the vegetables and butter, add cheddar cheese, Parmesan, sour cream, and wine. Season with pepper and stir until mixed. Melt 3 tablespoons of butter and toss with fresh bread crumbs. Spread the buttered crumbs evenly over the squash mixture.

Bake at 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes. The casserole should bubbly hot and the top a golden brown. This is an elegant side dish that can be mixed together earlier in the day and then baked just in time for dinner.

Get out there...share your zucchini and share a recipe.

Over Analyzing the Garden

I was having a chat with my brother, Paul, yesterday while looking over his flourishing tomato plants. We both agreed that some gardeners over analyze the garden. I’m not about to say that gardening is the easiest thing to do, but it’s not as complicated as some botanists, horticulturists, and avid scientific growers would have us believe.

I learned how to garden from my parents and my mother-in-law. Between them, they grew all manner of vegetables and flowers from kohlrabi to caladiums. I don’t think my dad ever tested the soil with a kit, yet he managed to raise lettuce, peas, green beans, carrots, radishes, sweet corn, beets, onions, broccoli, potatoes, and more. Dad left the flower growing to mom. She planted zinnias, morning glories, marigolds, petunias, fall bulbs, and the prima donna of the garden of the world, roses. How in the heck did they manage to get all those plants to grow without a book, the county extension agency, or the internet to guide them? They learned at the knee of their parents and through trial and error. My dad was a firm believer in planting cool weather vegetables like lettuce, peas, and radishes on Good Friday and unless it was still snowing, he planted on Good Friday. He must have had success because he continued to do it. Each fall, leaves and debris covered the garden and by spring, it had become part of the soil when Dad spaded the garden by hand. He might have looked at the Farmer’s Almanac once in awhile, but mostly he practiced experience and faith.

Today, gardeners scurry to the internet or tune into a garden show on TV where loads of information, varying viewpoints, and scientific data on how to rid the garden of pests leave gardeners confused and trying to analyze which method to use. One summer I kept a coffee can with a tight fitting lid ready to go. I poured about two inches of beer into the can and drank the rest. Each morning the “beer can" accompanied me to the garden along with nippers and a basket filled with gardening paraphernalia. I’d push Japanese beetles off plants with nippers and into the waiting beer. I’ve never needed to know garden chemistry because I’ve never used chemicals in my garden. If I found a toad hopping about, I accommodated it with a turned over pot, enticing it to stay. Praying mantises and real ladybugs, not the nasty orange beetles dubbed slut bugs because friends, they ain’t no lady, were welcomed. I never rid my garden of black and yellow garden spiders, instead I let them weave their magic and eat hearty at the garden pest buffet. These were my garden friends and allies long before it became garden pest de rigueur to let them do the work for you.
I don’t hate weeds. In fact, many of the so-called weeds are lovely to look at. Chicory lining the road gives the world a beautiful flower border to look at while driving in the country. I don’t mind dandelions in my yard and white clover entices honeybees to forage and find. Queen Anne’s lace placed in colored water magically changes delighting children and yes, I confess, me, too. I don’t want to analyze my garden for the best weed protection. If it doesn’t look like what’s been planted, I pull it out. End of story.
I lived on a farm for 20 some years and the amendment to soil was cow or horse manure, aged in the barn. I’ll be honest; I’ve never tested the soil in any garden.

Yes, I get frustrated when I find pests munching their way through a rose bush. I know that weeding a garden is back breaking work, but do we really need to analyze every inch of a garden? Why not just tuck a seed or plant into the soil in spring and see what happens? There’s something to be said for faith that it will grow and turn into exactly what it’s expected to be without over analyzing the garden.

Garden in July

Whooohoooo! The first vegetable of the season in my container garden is a Hungarian wax pepper. The yellow-green finger sticks straight up among leaves and more blossoms ready to develop and end up in my kitchen. I had my first Hungarian wax pepper a few years ago when my brother Paul brought the peppers stuffed with cheese to dinner one evening. The peppers were a hit and I can't wait to try my hand at stuffing a few.


I’m so excited about my container garden that I’ve been dreaming up ways to grow even more in containers. I’m thinking next year…galvanized tubs bought for cheap at auctions and yard sales would make great containers for lettuce, peas, green beans, radishes, and green onions.


Bill & Judy’s July Garden

Bill and Judy have been broccoli busy. The huge heads just keep coming and then heading into the kitchen to be eaten or frozen for later. The tomatoes look lush, healthy, and loaded with blossoms. Bill was cutting lettuce and Swiss chard when I arrived. Later, a family favorite dressing would cover the crisp salad.
I was surprised at the height of the sweet corn. My father-in-law insisted that corn grew best on hot nights when you could hear the crackle and pop of stalks growing. This summer has been cool and wonderful for everyone, except plants that prefer heat and lots of sun, but that hasn't stunted the growth of Bill & Judy's sweet corn.
Judy planted sunflowers along the side of the deck fence. The gigantic buds smile from tall stems with irresistable charm.

Beneath a tree, a cluster of wildflowers surrounded by rocks greets visitors to Bill & Judy’s home, along with two big, boisterous, but lovable dogs. Otis takes a breather from romping along side the bed of wildflowers.

The garden’s lookin’ good, you two!

Now get out there and nibble on a crunchy green bean while harvesting.

Garden Supper

The burst of chrysanthemum fireworks in night skies punctuated the Fourth of July marking the middle of summer. July means green bean picking, yellow crookneck squash ripening, and beets pulled from the ground. It’s the height of the vegetable garden and there’s so much to do…picking, weeding, picking, hoeing, canning, picking, freezing, picking, and drying.

One of the summer traditions in my kitchen is a garden supper. Everything on the table starts in the garden except the meat and when I lived on a farm, often the meat began in the pasture that surrounded the house. Early in the day, I’d venture out to the garden with a market basket that I’d been lucky enough to acquire at an auction. I’d pick it full of supper fixin’s…crisp green beans, yellow crookneck squash, and tomatoes. Who can resist one of the simplest summer delights while picking vegetables in the garden? Just pick a big ripe tomato, wipe off any dirt and sneak a bite. The sweet flavor makes the dripping mess running down the chin worthwhile.

Before cooking a garden supper, wash, slice, dice, and snap vegetables. The children often helped me snap beans while rocking gently in the porch swing talking about Little League baseball or gymnastics. After a good rinsing, the green beans drip in the sink while the rest of the supper takes shape.

The task of frying a skillet or two of bacon starts supper in earnest. Set aside drippings for later use. Add a couple tablespoons of bacon drippings to a large pot. Toss in a diced fresh onion along with the fresh green beans. The onions and beans simmer on the back of the stove while squash is cut into thick slices and dredged in flour. Fry the squash slices in a hot skillet with bacon grease adding flavor and a crisp outside to the squash.

Wash, slice, and arrange fat tomatoes on a plate showing off the meaty goodness. The only thing left to do is prepare BLT’s for each person. A few slices of bacon crumbled over the bowl of hot green beans and onions add the finishing touch.

Garden suppers vary depending on vegetable availability. When the sweet corn grows milky plump, a platter of golden ears set in a pyramid on the table makes mouths water in anticipation. Cucumbers, broccoli, beets, and a variety of squash are garden supper possibilities. Green peppers become vessels holding a mixture of rice, meat, and cheese. Watermelon, blackberries, blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, or chocolate or spicy sweet bread made with zucchini ends the meal on a sweet, yet fresh note that continues the theme.

If you’ve never made a garden supper, give it a whirl. Pride, satisfaction, and gratitude wash over you when nearly everything on the table began in the garden.

Ingredients for a garden supper? Everything and anything fresh from the garden.

Now get out there and pick vegetables for a garden supper.

July Photo Fun Updated

The 4th of July is upon us. While you're adding a bunting to the front porch or sprucing up the garden and yard for the celebration, take a few photos and send them in to be included in the July slideshow.

Denise, from Ohio, sent me a photo of asparagus gone wild. It looks like an alien creature crawling through the backyard. Take a peek at the slideshow and ponder the possibility of a B-horror flick called...Attack of the Asparagi!

Now get out there and take photos of your favorite garden spots, but in the mean time check out the updated slideshow, July Photo Fun!

June in Bill & Judy's Garden

On a drizzling evening, I headed over to Bill & Judy’s home to catch up on how the garden is doing. The raised beds look great with some little additions that make the garden handy.

Numbered Beds
B & J added black wrought iron numbers to each bed. Numbering beds makes keeping track of what’s planted where in a garden journal simple. Notate in the journal how a specific performed. A quick look at was in the bed the year before allows for vegetable rotation that keeps specific varieties of plants from depleting the soil of minerals and nutrients.

Solar Lights
Solar lights, allow for early morning or late evening weeding or harvesting. A solar light inserted at the corner of each bed lights up the garden, allowing for early morning or late evening weeding or harvesting. Of course, lighting also means the ability to show off the garden during the night.

Toolbox

Bill built a toolbox on a post for Judy. It’s a handy addition to the garden that provides storage for garden gloves, trowels, hand-held diggers, and clippers. The rolling garden seat sits beneath the toolbox and a hose reel on the back of the post.

The Vegetables
Bill & Judy, a couple with a passion for cooking and entertaining, chose vegetables that meet their discerning tastes. Old stand-bys, like carrots and lettuce, grow along side less popular vegetable varieties. As pepper lovers, growing eight different varieties that range from mild red and green peppers to hot habaneros, adds spice to their culinary repertoire.

List of Vegetables

• Black Seeded Simpson Lettuce
  
• Burpee's Hybrid Carrot (Zanahoria)
  
• Burpee's Evergreen Long White Bunching Onion
  
• Yellow Onion
  
• Leeks
  
• Burpee's White Giant Swiss Chard
  
• Early Extra Sweet Corn
  
• Illini Extra Sweet Corn
  
• Black Beauty Eggplant
  
• Self Blanched Cauliflower
  
• Broccoli
  
• Burpee's Everlast Tomato
  
• Burpee's Big Boy Hybrid Tomato
  
• Roma Tomato
  
• Burgess Tomato
  
• Rutgers Tomato
  
• Cherry Red Tomato
  
• Sweet Banana Peppers
  
• Long Red Slim Cayenne Peppers
  
• Asian Peppers
  
• Red Beauty Bell Peppers
  
• California Wonder Green Bell Pepper
  
• Golden Wunder Peppers (yellow)
  
• Hungarian Wax Peppers
  
• Habanero Peppers
  
• Jalapeno Peppers
  

Now get out there and keep those weeds at bay!

Bill & Judy’s Garden: It’s all about Beds

In the last two weeks, Bill & Judy took advantage of sunny days and built four beds for growing vegetables and herbs. While I love gardening, I am no carpenter or even close to being handy…I still don’t know the difference between a Philip’s screwdriver and the other one. Luckily, two handy people who know what they’re doing built the beds. Kudos to Judy for being pretty darn handy. Let’s go step-by-step and see just how they built four raised beds for their brand new garden.

Supplies
Linseed oil
Sprayer or cloths
Sides: 2” X 6” X 12’ boards for the sides, as many as needed
Ends: Ends of the beds were built to be four feet across
Corner stakes: 2” X 4” X 36”
Each finished bed will measure 4 feet across, 12 feet long, and 12 inches deep.
Hardware: 2 ½” deck screws
Tools: Circular saw, level, string for positioning level, sledgehammer, regular hammer, screw gun, bar clamps, wheelbarrow, and cooler
Refreshment: A six pack of your favorite beer
The number or amount of supplies needed depends on the number of beds being built and how thirsty the builders get.

Building the Beds
1. Place beer in cooler along with plenty of ice

2. Before building, Bill and Judy treated the lumber with boiled linseed oil. You can find linseed oil at your local hardware store. Apply the linseed oil with a cloth or by spraying. Bill sprayed the boards and then relaxed with a beer while the boards sat for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, he wiped the boards with a cloth, removing excess oil.

3. Now the fun really starts. Bill & Judy cut boards to the following dimensions: 2” X 6” X 12’ with the result being double stacked beds achieving the height of 12 inches. Each bed took between 2 ½ to 3 hours to build plus beer breaks.

4. After building the beds, they took them to the garden to be positioned. Stacking two beds created the 12 inch depth. Once the position of the bed satisfied them, they cleated the two beds together. Finally, a corner stake was hammered into the ground until the top was flush with the bed.

Filling with Soil
Bill & Judy ordered ten tons of soil from a local source allowing approximately 2 tons of soil per bed. The soil mixture consisted of topsoil, mulch, and humus. They added any remaining soil to the sweet corn patch.

The topsoil was dumped near the beds to eliminate a long trek from soil mound to beds. The backbreaking work of loading up a wheelbarrow of soil and unloading into the beds took the couple around ten days to complete.

Thoughts
The next time Bill & Judy build a bed they’ve decided to kill the grass first with an herbicide like Round-Up. Renting a Bobcat to move ten tons of soil from pile to bed would alleviate nights dealing with back pain and get the job done quicker, saving money on beer.

I arrived just as the last bit of dirt was being added to the last bed. The pile of dirt didn’t look so intimidating, but I wasn’t leaning on a shovel while massaging my lower back with my other hand. The four beds look great. Congratulations, Bill & Judy…your garden is off to a good start. I can’t wait to photograph the rewards of your hard work later this summer. I’ll be around soon to take a few photos of your fledgling plants, so have a beer ready…oh and I prefer a frosty mug, please. One more thing… if you could provide a comfy chair and…