Quote of the Day: Joe Eck & Wayne Winterrowd
Having time at one’s own command is perhaps the greatest luxury any human being can enjoy. Most people wait for it until the end of their working lives; too often, then, the special savor of it is brief or already lost entirely.
Joe Eck & Wayne Winterrowd in Living Seasonally: The Kitchen Garden and the Table at North Hill
I was thinking about this quote earlier this week as I took a few days of much needed vacation. In fact, it was so much of a vacation, I didn’t even check my e-mail for 2 entire days. This never happens, even when I’m traveling on vacation.
What did I do with my days of vacation? I spent time with a friend, we drove to a few lighthouses nearby and we took a day trip to to Acadia National Park.
After a very hectic and busy spring, a few days of time away were very nice. Too bad it couldn’t have been more, I opened my e-mail yesterday to find many pressing things that needed added to my to-do list for this coming week.
What would you do if you had time at your own command?
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The Sweets
A few of you have been asking about the little black feral cat that made the trip with us. She was kept in the house for two weeks after we arrived before being transitioned to the garage. She adjusted very well, making herself right at home. We didn’t see her much at first, she was a tad timid in her new environment. After a month or two she was back her usually self.
I’ve been seeing little offerings of moles in the driveway and tiny mouse heads in the garage, so I know she’s working hard. Now that spring is here and I’m working the garden, she’s usually close on my heels hoping to get some attention while I’m working.
While she’s partially tame, she still retained her wild feral roots. If you’re just visiting you’ll probably never see her, in fact she’s even timid around Mr Chiots. She is tame enough to want to sit in my lap on a rare occasion.
Have you ever had a feral cat?
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Friday Favorite: Greens
I have to admit, I used to be among the folks that didn’t like cooked greens. Fresh salads have always been welcome on my plate, but cooked greens were too slimy for me. That is, until I cooked them myself, in the proper way.
There really is nothing better than garden fresh greens, cooked the right way with butter and garlic. Earlier this week we enjoyed cooked mustard greens. They were so good I could have eaten a whole plate full. Since I grow mustard as a cover crop in the garden, there’s always a nice crop of it somewhere. It’s quite easy to mow off the top of the patch with a knife for a meal.
How did I make them? I harvested a couple pounds worth, boiled it in salted water for 5 minutes, dunked it in cold water to stop the cooking, then into a colander it went. After a bit of squeezing to remove most of the moisture, into a cast iron skillet it went which already contained minced garlic that had been fried to a golden grown in a few Tablespoons of butter. A quick stir to warm the greens and they’re done. Easy Peasy and so delicious.
Do you like cooked greens?
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In My Library: Birding Books
Many of you are avid readers, like me, you are probably interested in what other people have on their bookshelves. While I was looking for a book the other day, the thought hit me that you might be interested in seeing what books I have gracing the shelves in my home. This will be a series, every now and then I’ll feature a few of the books on my shelf and tell you about them, where I got them, if I love them, etc.
Growing up, my parents were interested in birds. We had a bird book in the house and I can see where sightings of different birds were jotted down in the back. My parents gave us the book, but it was old and the photos were fairly faded. Proper identification was difficult at times. As a result, Mr Chiots and I have purchased a few new bird books to help up identify the feathered friends we see.
These books go with us as we travel, just in case we spy a new and interesting bird. They certainly come in handy. We love them both for different reasons. Stokes Birds is full of vibrant photos making it easy to identify birds. Peterson Field Guide to Birds of North America is filled with detailed drawing that note the differences between birds of of the same family groups. We also have a bird ap for our iPad, we use it often when searching to identify birds we can only hear.
Do you have any good identification books?
The Series:
In My Library – part 1
In My Library – part 2
In My Library – Part 3
In My Library – Birding Books
In My Library: the Edible Garden Edition
If you do want to purchase any of these books or anything else from Amazon, use my Amazon Link, I’ll earn a few pennies to help pay for my now outrageous hosting bill for this blog!
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Planning
This is the fourth installment in the 5×5 Garden Challenge Series. Every Wednesday I’ll be posting about the challenge, covering topics that will help all the new gardeners get started. If you haven’t heard about the challenge head on over to the 5×5 Challenge Website, we’ll also be putting up a page here that pulls in all the 5×5 Challenge posts.
When it comes to gardening, taking the time to plan where everything goes will save you some hassle and confusion in the future. If you’re new gardening and you only have a small space it’s not quite as necessary, but it’s a good habit to get into. That way you don’t end up with too many plants for the space that you have. It also helps you to take into consideration the area needed by each plant.
Last week I sat down to plan out where everything would be going in my 5×5 Challenge Garden. I put the tall tomato vines in the back with the zucchini plants going in front of them. If I have space I’ll tuck basil on the sides of the bed beside the zucchini.
Planning things out will also help if you want to plant in succession. So when the scallions are finished producing in summer, you can plan on planting lettuce or spinach in their place. When the lettuce is done in early summer, perhaps beans or radishes can be planted in their spot. Taking a little time to plan will save you much frustration and streamline things later in the gardening season.
Do you make a formal plan for your garden?
