Let the Harvest Begin
I’ve been harvesting a few small cherry tomatoes here and there, but have been waiting for my main crop of canning tomatoes to ripen. That happened this week. Since I’ve been feeling under the weather, I let them sit on the vine. Thankfully, they kept very well, but were in need of harvesting. Along with the tomatoes I picked basil, thyme, rosemary, oregano, and parsley for my batches of passata. My harvest ended up being about twenty pounds yesterday, that should make four batches of passata.
I’ll also add onions and garlic to the mix along with salt, pepper, and a little olive oil. Everything will be slow roasted in a low oven until the tomato sugar slightly caramelized and everything gets jammy. Then I’ll put it through the food mill and can it in pints. This type of sauce works for everything from pizza sauce to a savory tomato soup. If I have time I’ll write up the recipe next week, it’s definitely one of the few I make now.
What are you preserving from your garden this weekend?
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Teeny Strawberries
I’ve grown strawberries from seed a few times before, it’s the only way to acquire some varieties for your garden unless you’re lucky enough to know someone else growing them that will give you plant. Many years ago I started seed for golden strawberries and have had them in my garden ever since. Their tiny yellow berries have a tropical flavor and are quite good on salads.
I also started ‘Tarpan’ strawberries from seed many years ago and brought one plant with me when I moved. It produces beautiful pink flowers all summer long, the berries are also good.
This year I purchased strawberry seeds once again for ‘Elan’, which is a day neutral strawberry and ‘Gasana’ another day neutral variety with pink flowers.
Strawberry seeds are tiny, very tiny and there are usually only 10-15 in each seed packet.
I sowed them in containers and waited. Soon enough the tiny seedlings emerged. It’s amazing to see these little plants, the first set of true leaves look just like strawberry leaves but they are so very small.
I can’t wait to see how these plants produce next year. I’m always game to have new varieties of fruits and vegetables in the garden, especially when I can nurture a plant from a tiny seed.
Have you started anything interesting from seed this summer?
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Chiot’s Rest
Our gardens were named after Lucy, the original chiots. “The Chiots” name was inspired by the French section of the dog food bag and the name stuck. Chiots, which we pronounce “chee-oats”, means puppy in French. There were many nicknames: Stinky Chiots, Brown Chiots, The Brown Wonder, Big Brown, The Luce, etc. She was a large part of the gardens, always being out and about with me as I weeded and worked, following me here and there. Yesterday was her final day in the garden, now instead of our garden being a place where the Chiots can run, it’s a place where the Chiots can rest. A place where she can rest her weary, painful joints and enjoy peace.
Over twelve years ago we stopped the local dog pound on a Friday afternoon and spotted a lovely lab/hound mix with a few puppies. The puppies were born at the pound, their mama was dropped off a few days before she had them. We knew right away by the mom’s temperament that the puppies would end up being wonderful dogs. With all the craziness that is the dog pound, barking, jumping, running, whining, she was standing quietly at the front of her kennel watching us, almost begging us to take one of her babies to give them a nice home. That day a little brown chiots came home with us, she rode in a cardboard box on my lap and she whined the entire way back to the house. She was covered in ticks and fleas, so we settled her into a kennel in the garage.
At only 10 pounds and around 7 weeks old, she was a wee little thing. That night she got very, very ill with parvovirus. After reading that 95% of puppies with this virus die, we mourned the loss of our puppy and called the vet, who told us to try to keep her hydrated over the weekend and to bring her in on Monday if she survived. She managed to make it through the weekend and Monday morning found us at the vet’s office with Lucy in a box. They kept her for a few days and gave her IV fluids and we picked her up a few days later, full of spunk and energy. She only weighed 7 lbs at that point and was super skinny, but she had pulled through, we had our puppy. We knew then she was going to be a tough dog, and she proved she was, many times throughout her life.
Lucy was a terror as a puppy, as most dogs are, digging up flowers, making a mess and generally being way too energetic for her own good. I’d be up every morning walking with her for miles trying to use up some of her boundless energy. That never really happened until a few years ago.
Lucy was also a lover of cats, always enjoying when they slept and snuggled with her. She loved rubbing her nose in their soft fur. Luckily all of our cats have always loved Lucy, except Dexter, who was leery at first but learned that she wasn’t so bad after all since she warned of visitors and other things with her barks. Every now and then you can even find Dexter sneaking in a rub on Lucy’s legs.
Dressing up was also one of her favorite things, which is good because her cousins LOVED to dress her up. She had many costumes throughout the years and loved every single one.
Chasing and biting at snowballs was a favorite winter activity. She really enjoyed winter and seemed to have extra energy whenever there was snow on the ground.
Lucy also loved hanging out with her cousins (my sister’s kids). We got her six months after our first niece was born, they have known Lucy all of their lives and have loved playing with her. One of her most favorite things was to go trick-or-treating with them every Halloween. No doubt they will feel her loss deeply as she is woven throughout their childhood memories.
Lucy’s arch nemesis was the UPS man, she’d sit in the front yard all day waiting for him to drive by. When we finally came she barked ferociously and then jumped in his truck to greet him with glee. I’m fairly certain he liked her as much as she liked him. He had dogs of his own and we even gave him homemade dog treats every year at Christmas.
Lucy ended up being a large part of our lives. She traveled with us, walked with us and was involved in many of our adventures. She stole everyone’s heart when they met her “She’s the best dog” everyone always said after being around her. They all loved “The Luce” and so did we. Though we are sad she is gone, we are happy that she is no longer in pain. The last few months have been tough for her and for us. We knew when she stopped wagging her tail constantly that the pain was getting worse, even with increased doses of her pain meds. Last Friday she had a stroke or a seizure and it became very difficult for her to walk. We knew, and she knew. We gave her the weekend of her life, she feasted on bacon, cat food, popcorn and ice cream. She laid in the cool grass under her favorite tree and talked to her cousins via FaceTime.
We took her on a last car ride, something she loved very much. Monday morning our vet put her to sleep, right in the back of the car. It was fitting really as it was one of her favorite spots. “Wanna go to gramma’s” was one of her favorite things to hear. She’s get excited and jump into the back seat. Though for the past couple years there has been no jumping into the back seat, she still gets very excited when she thinks it’s time for a ride. She was laid to rest in one of her favorite spots, the very spot she’d spend hours sleeping while I worked in the garden. Next spring we will plant a tree here to always mark this special place.
So long old friend, we’ll miss having you in our lives. You were larger than life, woven through almost every memory we have from the last twelve and a half years.
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Hello Poppy
Yesterday I harvested seeds from my breadseed poppies. There weren’t tons, but enough for a recipe or two.
If you’d like to read a little more about growing your own poppy seeds, check out this article on the MOFGA website. I don’t usually bake with poppy seeds so I don’t know exactly what I will make.
What’s your favorite recipe for poppy seeds?
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It’s Not a Tractor, But It Will Do
After an unexpected rainstorm a friend ended up with a few hundred bales of mulch hay. I purchase 80 bales to help him out and because I wanted it to mulch around the apple trees and a few new garden areas I’m working on.
The bales were heavy since they were wet and pushing them up the hill in the wheelbarrow was proving to be too much work. So I hooked up the trailer and hauled hay behind my little car. It worked very well, though I had to dig deep to remember my trailer driving skills from college. With a little practice I was back in business and able to get the trailer right where I wanted it. I could have used the tractor, but it will only haul a few bales at once, I was able to fit 8 in my little trailer.
I use all the grass clippings from the lawn as mulch, but there aren’t enough of them for the areas I want to mulch so I’m always on the lookout for options. My friend’s misfortune provided me with something I needed.
What’s your favorite kind of mulch?
