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Garden Dreaming

January 21st, 2009

‘Tis the season for seed catalogs. I don’t get too many in the mail because I’ve opted for most of them on-line, but I still get a few.
seed-catalogue
Nothing quite beats leafing through the glossy pages looking at all the new and improved flowers and veggies. I always have a few things I circle in hopes that they’ll flourish in the gardens here at Chiot’s Run.
bells-of-ireland-in-catalog
I’m going to be focusing on edible plants again this year, so only a few new flowers will be welcomed. I’m going to go all green (you remember my love of green). Hopefully some Bells of Ireland and Envy and Tequila Lime Zinnias.
zinnia-in-catalog
I’m also going to be adding a bunch more herbs to my gardens, especially lots more thyme (remember it’s my favorite herb). I really like to order herbs from Richter’s, a Canadian company that specializes in herbs. They have pretty much any herb you could want, it’s the one place I have found a few obscure herbs I’d been hunting for. I’m sure I’ll have a pretty good sized order from them; including a few new kinds of thyme, the Caraway Thyme sounds delightful as does Orange Spice.
thyme-to-order
Since I’m focusing on edible plants this year, those will take up most my seed buying budget. I’m trying to order mostly heirloom plants, particularly the vegetables. Those will mostly likely come from Seed Savers or some other on-line site. I can’t really order those yet though because I haven’t planned out my edible garden spaces. I’m sure that will happen here in the next week or two. I need to go through all of my seeds leftover from last year first.

Is anyone else still planning this summer’s garden, or am I last one? Does anyone have any great sources for heirloom seeds?

Help Around the House

January 20th, 2009

It’s a good thing I have these pets to help me get my housework finished, I couldn’t do it without them. Soafie LOVES clothes fresh out of the dryer. I always carry them all to the bedroom and fold them on the bed. She’s usually in the middle of the pile soon after I arrive. This day I took half the load and when I returned there she was, keeping them warm so they wouldn’t get wrinkled.
cat-in-dryer
This is also the cat that loves to snuggle under the blankets. I think it’s the warmth she likes.

Do your pets help?

Check out the new poll (on the right): What kind of pets do you like?

Nature’s Fingerprint

January 19th, 2009

During the gardening season I took tons of photos because I knew in the dead of winter when everything was covered by a blanket of snow, I would enjoy looking through all my beautiful garden photos.
blanket-of-snow
Since this is what I’m seeing out my window at the moment, I’ve been spending some time every day looking through all of my photos from the summer. I came across this gem the other day. The intricacy of nature is amazing, something I have noticed even more as I garden.
squash-stamen
I noticed the pollen pattern on this zucchini blossom while I was pollinated one day. It’s like it has it’s own fingerprint. Amazing.
squash-curl
This is a little curly that the squash/pumpkins vines put out to grab onto stuff.
echinacea-center
The center of an echinacea bloom, how vibrant!
asian-lilly-center
An Asian Lilly loaded with pollen.
hollyhock-bloom
A double hollyhock blossom getting ready to burst into bloom

What intricacies do you notice in nature?

Chiot’s Nose

January 18th, 2009

I realized I haven’t posted very many photos of the garden’s namesake. Lucy spends all her days in the summer laying outside on the front porch or the back driveway. She follows me around while I’m working in the flowerbeds. Here’s one I snapped while we were out gardening one day this summer.

Lucy likes the winter as well. She loves snow and gets all excited the first snow she sees in the fall. She also loves sunny winter days, she lays in the sun by the front door and even wants to go outside to sit on the porch.

A Day at the West Side Market in Cleveland

January 17th, 2009

Yesterday, Mr Chiots had a meeting in Cleveland, so I took advantage and tagged along so I could go to the West Side Market.

The WEST SIDE MARKET, Cleveland’s oldest publicly owned market, began in 1840 when JOSIAH BARBER and RICHARD LORD gave OHIO CITY (CITY OF OHIO) a tract of land at the corner of Pearl (W. 25th) and Lorain streets with the stipulation that it always be kept as a public market site. Additional gifts of land enabled the marketplace to expand, and in 1868 the wooden, 1-story Pearl St. Market was erected on the site. As the city’s population increased, the markethouse became inadequate. In 1902 the city purchased a site for a new market across the street from the old one. A new $680,000 markethouse designed by the firm of HUBBELL & BENES was dedicated in 1912–a massive yellow-brick building with an interior concourse providing room for 100 stalls, an outdoor arcade with 85 stands, and a large clock tower.

buying-at-the-market
Going to a market like this is much different than going to a supermarket. People aren’t here to get the latest tasty boxed pre-made product made by company X. They’re here to get fresh ingredients to make delicious homemade meals.
shopping-at-the-market
The air is filled with respect and appreciation for good quality ingredients. The inspiration starts in the parking lot when you pull up to the beautiful old building with the big clock tower. It’s a beautiful building full of charm, just the way a market should be. No sale banners or carts in sight, just fresh food and a lot of reusable shopping bags.
west-side-market
It is also evidenced in the produce wing outside. All the fresh ingredients are lined up to show off their best qualities. Salesmen arrange their produce to look it’s very best, taking pride in their wares.
west-side-market-man
market-lettuce
There were potatoes of all shapes, colors and sizes; organic garlic and onions, shallots, lettuces, and exotic things from from afar. I saw kumquats, star fruit (carambola as we called them in Colombia), lemons, limes and every other kind of citrus; along with some delicious earthy mushrooms, shiitake, portabela and a few other kinds, just waiting to me make into the mushroom bourguignon I saw on Smitten Kitchen yesterday. You’ll be able to find pretty much any ingredient you need, whether you’re making humble comfort food or an exotic ethnic dish.
potatoes-and-onions-at-the-market
mushrooms-at-the-market
Once you head inside the building, you’ll be greeting by beautiful architecture that seems to silence the hustle and bustle of the crowds below. After you’re finished admiring the building, it’s on to the stalls to see what everyone has in stock today.
west-side-market-inside
You can choose from all kinds of meat not available at your neighborhood grocery store, like rabbit, goat, buffalo, ostrich (and I’m sure there are a few more); there is also the usual beef, pork and chicken galore. Any kind of smoked, cured lunchmeat or sausage can be found at the various stalls. Some apple cured bacon and ham made it into my bag.
cuts-of-beef
lunch-meat
You can buy sea creatures big and small, from fresh water lakes to the depths of the oceans; all strange looking creatures to be sure. I was hoping to buy a few things to make bouillabaisse, but I’m too busy for the next few days, so I had to leave that for my next trip.
shrimpprince-edward-island-mussels
fresh-oysters
One side of the market is filled with cheeses of all types; smoked, aged, yellow, white, green and blue. Many had odd names, but a few familiar ones could be found. You can buy fresh local milks, from pastured happy cows, along with yogurts and butters from near and far. They even had goat milk cheeses and butter from a small goat farm on the outskirts of the Cleveland. Some delicious aged provolone was a perfect match to the apple cured ham.
cheeses-for-sale1
irish-butterdanish-blue-cheese
The bakery stalls were brimming with crusty artisan breads, bagels, cookies, cakes (even a double stout Guinness chocolate cake) and every kind of sweet confection you’ve ever dreamed of. A few rustic country baguettes were the perfect accompanyment to our ham and cheese for our lunch on the go.
bagels-at-the-bakery
ciabatta-bread
Since I love to cook and use local quality ingredients this place is right up my alley, but even for the non-foodie it’s a fascinating place to visit. If you’re ever in Cleveland head on down to the West Side Market, you’ll be in for a treat.

We always try to find the local fresh markets when we’re on vacation in other parts of the country or the world. Pike Place Market is Seattle is a wonderful place, as is North Place Market in Columbus, and Findlay Market in Cincinnati. Whenever you find the local market, you’ll be in for a big treat. You may even find something exciting like the cayenne or salty caramel ice cream you can find in Columbus at Jeni’s Ice Cream.
market-web
pike-place-market-web
Mr Chiots and I took these photos of the Pike Place Market in Seattle on our honeymoon 11 years ago.

Is there a market like this close you your home? Do you visit it frequently? If I’m ever in your area I’ll be sure to check it out!

About

This is a daily journal of my efforts to cultivate a more simple life, through local eating, gardening and so many other things. We used to live in a small suburban neighborhood Ohio but moved to 153 acres in Liberty, Maine in 2012.

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