Green
Finally – rain. Gentle, slow, soft, over the course of a few days. A the end, it did not add to that much altogether – maybe 1/2 inch (as measured by my hand thrust in a bucket that was left out). Nonetheless, it was rain …
Author: sylvie
He Likes Duck Fat
Potatoes fried in duck fat, with garlic & parsley, a very fresh green salad (with not a leaf of lettuce in sight) topped with a little bit of duck breast – a perfect lunch for this blessedly rainy Sunday. Obviously, he thought so too (and …
The Ides Of March
Something softly went through the hollow last night, dropping huge handfuls of wet snow all over. The snow on the ground was gone by mid-morning, but wads of sticky whiteness remained in shrubs and dry grasses – looking like cotton candy.
Meanwhile, inside under the shop lights, seeds planted earlier this month have germinated, true leaves starting to show.Soon to be moved to the greenhouse, thinned and even up-potted.
and then… peep peep… arrived today, brought by a big stork…peep peep
Making Yogurt
It only took me 15 years. I used to make yogurt. Really, I did. I had one of those nifty little machine with individual glass containers. You prepared your yogurt mix, pour it into the little glass jars, nested the jars into matching holes in …
A Potted Kitchen Garden
Do you do pot? Not that kind of pot, silly! But “pot” as in food grown in a container… Virginia Rockwell asked me in a comment on the post labeled “Eating Local in the Northern Piedmont in Winter” if I have “any tips for newbies …
Sigh
Today, we are not planting potatoes in the cold frame.
View toward the upper garden
and view toward the lower garden (from the safety of the porch)
and the seed starting area in the house…
On the other hand, it would be a good day to go scatter seeds of Shirley poppy, nigella, chamomile, and all those hardy annuals that bloom in early summer, really prefer some cold while they are seeds, and want surface sowing. Just a thought… in case you did not scatter them last fall.
I am actually glad of the snow covering since the forecasts are calling for single digit temperature tonite (in F! in C, that’s -13° to – 15°). At least the snow blanket will provide some insulation from the biting cold. And we surely need the water (although 4 inches of snow is not a lot of precipitation).
But we take what we get, and we say thank you.
Postcard From The Meadow
Yes, this is a food related post. Look closer… can you find the honey bee? her butt sticking out from one of the snowdrops? “her” indeed… they are all “she”, you know. ah… honey: the food of the gods! bee barf! On warm sunny days, …
Lovely Lemony Sorrel
There are indubitable signs of springs out there (besides the 2 minutes of additional daily daytime we are getting now). For once, the snowdrops are nodding their tiny white bells in the still blustery gusts of wind and then, then!, yellow IS swelling the buds …
Upcoming Workshops
OK! commercial plug for … me!
Those in the Washington DC area, Charlottesville area and in the Piedmont, who are interested in cooking or kitchen gardening may be want to take a look at my upcoming cookery and kitchen garden workshops in Washington, VA in Rappahannock County. Also listed on my web site here and here. Attendance (especially in the cookery workshops is limited, so register early if you are interested.)
- Gardening Workshop: Start Your Own Vegetable & Fruit Transplants from Seeds.
Offered on Saturday February 28, 2009, 2:00 to 4:30 and again (same class) on Wednesday March 11, 2009, 1:00 to 3:30 PM.
Learn when and how to start specific seeds indoor in flats and pots for later transplanting and which ones are better direct-seeded. We will review sowing calendar for various plants (vegetable, fruit, herbs and even some edible flowers), appropriate soil(s) to use, germination conditions, light requirement, care after seedlings emerge, how to harden seedlings off, good transplanting techniques, fertilization practices, pest and disease control. Participant will choose seeds from the instructors’ collection to start up to two flats. They will take their flats home to tend and transplant at the appropriate time. Handouts will be distributed. All supplies (flats, pots, seeds, soil) provided. Bring your own apron & gloves! $45 person / $75 for 2 people sharing trays.
- Cookery Workshop: Provence in Rappahannock/ Saturday March 14, 2009, 10:00 AM to 2:30 PM.
Learn to prepare a festive Provencal style Sunday lunch (a meal suitable for dinner too, of course!) using ingredients readily available in late winter: Cream of Leek and Potato Soup; Roasted Duck with Olives; a Provencal Vegetable Gratin; Winter Mesclun Salad; Fresh Lemon Tart. Then sit-down to enjoy lunch of the just-prepared dishes. Printed recipes provided. $75/ person Continue reading Upcoming Workshops
Of Seeds And Mice
Swiss Chard and Cardoon. Cardoon!!! Since those two are not interested in mice hunting in the greenhouse (only the great outdoors)… … we had to resort to those: …baited with organic peanut butter – no less. Round 2: minus 2 mice. Ungerminated flats also moved …