A Story - "Goals" and Mulberry Tree , and Dramatic Sunset

 A Story

Goals

"So much money, so much fuss. It's just a ball getting kicked around and maybe going into a net.  

Fine for kids but it seems a bit excessive for adults.  A lot of money changing hands though, what with betting being involved.

Oh well, let's watch the highlights of the Canadian game. TSN is putting up short videos on Youtube of the crucial moments.

It's surprisingly entertaining to watch the highlights of the game. Hum, maybe I could watch some other videos.  Soon I am familiar with the names of star players : Messi, Mbappe, Haaland.  I find out that Messi is 39 years old. That's impressive. I watch a video about his life and find out that he was a small boy from a working class Argentinian family. He was missing growth hormones and his family couldn't afford to pay for them. Eventually a soccer club paid for them. He grew to 5'7" - still quite short. He had to really develop his technique because he wasn't as big or strong as the other boys. In 2022, he helped Argentina win the World Cup. Honestly, his life is like a Disney movie.

Maybe I'll find out more about Mbappe and Haaland.

Now the games are not just about a ball whizzing around a field.  It is about real people with dreams, gifts and challenges.  It's about life. "

I discovered a while ago that we have a mulberry tree on the property.  I cut away some buckthorn from one side and now you can see the lovely graceful shape of the mulberry tree.

The tree is full of berries.  They ripen gradually over time and most of the ripe ones have been picked off by the birds and squirrels.

Here you can see the deep purple colour of a ripe mulberry.  I tried one and it tasted a lot like a strawberry with a hint of raspberry.  No wonder the birds love them so much.

Here is a robin, who blends in quite well with the tree, having a snack. We have a pair of robins that live in our front yard.  We see them all the time, picking up bugs off the lawn and then flying over to the mulberry tree for dessert.

So many lovely sunsets at our house.  This one was especially striking.

A Story - "One Way to Get Paid for a Painting" and Snowdrops, Gerbera Daisy, and Vegetables for My Eyes

A Story

One Way to Get Paid for a Painting

Humming a cheery tune, Rebecca sauntered over to her photography studio that was tucked into her backyard. The sun had finally chased away the rainy weather and she couldn't wait to get going on her latest project.

But when she got to the door, she realized that something was very wrong.  The door wasn't fully closed. Apprehensively, she listened with prickling ears and when she didn't hear anything, she gingerly nudged the door open. No one was there, but someone had definitely been there. Several pieces of expensive equipment were gone. Her fear transformed to anger and frustration.  Gritting her teeth, she took out her phone to call the police and the insurance company.

As she spoke to her insurance agent listing what items had been taken, she glanced around the studio, and suddenly she smiled and gave a little giggle.

The thief had stolen her acrylic landscape painting that she had never been able to sell at any of her shows.

She wished the thief luck trying to sell it on. 

After a long dull winter, there is nothing sweeter than seeing the little snowdrops.  This little patch was under a few inches of snow one day, the next day after some warmth, they were uncovered, already blooming.  Amazing. Snowdrops are very hardy and will slowly spread.  So far nothing has been eating them unlike the crocuses that chipmunks like. This patch is a double variety which you can't really see unless you tip the bloom up. 

Another gerbera daisy bloomed. This is the third one out of the six that I have been over wintering in the basement that sent up a flower shoot. All six plants have survived.  I kept them barely moist.  They look scraggly right now but they will perk right up when it's warm enough to put them outside.

Because macular degeneration runs in my family, I am making a more concerted effort to eat food every day that contain lutein and zeaxanthin, two nutrients that are suppose to help keep the macula healthy. In general, dark leafy greens, orange and yellow vegetables and fruits contain lutein and zeaxanthin.  So in my garden I will include beets (for the tops that I eat as greens), lettuce, peppers (Just Sweet in the photo), squash (butternut,  yellow and green zucchinis), cucumbers, broccoli, and hopefully cantaloupe.   Other vegetables that are good but that I can't grow in my garden are corn and sweet potatoes. 

A Story - "Pop Quiz" and New Seed Starting Set-up

A Story

Pop Quiz

Dr. Masters greeted Debra with a smile, but her eyes were wary.  The appointment would be straightforward.  A clear diagnosis and simple treatment were being reviewed.  Why did this older woman make her squirm?

Debra waited for the doctor to start the conversation.  She nodded her head and agreed that she had looked up her condition on the Internet.

Dr. Masters felt like she was back in high school facing a pop quiz.  But she was the doctor, she was the one who had studied medicine and had years of experience.  Was that a look of skepticism when she mentioned the dosage of medication?  A quick pivot, and she thought she saw a softening in Debra's face.

The appointment was over.  Debra smiled and thanked the doctor.

Dr. Masters took a deep breath as she left the examination room.  She felt that she had barely squeaked through the test.

 

My son gave me a new seed starting set-up. It's pretty cool and well designed.

I really like the flexible cells. The upper rim and bottom are firm but the middle is rubbery. It will make popping out the seedlings super easy.

There is a water reservoir in the bottom. A plastic stand supports a black felt wicking mat that soaks up water and keeps the cells moist. I found it kept a very steady level of moisture in the soil. I also like the fact that the dome is quite high so air circulation is good. I use rainwater or melted snow for my new plants as our untreated well water is very hard and the treated water has salt from the water softener.

I only planted 4 pepper plants in this tray and they have sprouted now.  I kept the tray about 4' away from our propane heater so that it would stay warm. Yesterday, I planted some tomatoes in the empty cells. I remembered to label them.

The set-up comes with LED lighting built into the green cover plate.  The light  has a USB cable that I have plugged into a small external battery pack I have. The green cover plate swivels so you can close the holes or open them for more air circulation. I have kept the holes open and the soil has still stayed evenly moist.

I think this set-up would work  very well for starting flowers that often take a little longer to get going.

I will have to transplant the peppers and tomatoes after a few weeks into larger pots.

This is the box it came in.  It was bought from Amazon. It doesn't have a company name on it.

A Story - "Body Breakdown" and Growing Onions

A Story

Body Breakdown

Sitting on the couch at 2 am, Penny tried to remember how to activate her leg muscles to stand up.  Her sore wrists, hands, shoulders, hips and back had kept her awake and she wanted to get up and pace the floor to ease the stiffness and pain.  Marshalling her brain, she gritted her teeth, pushed on the arm of the couch and staggered to her feet.  She shuffled forward, walking slowly up and down the length of the living room.

The suddenness of her new incapacity had been startling.  Almost overnight she had gone from being strong and active to being stiff, sore and weak.  Polymyalgia rheumatica, the doctor diagnosed.

Thankfully, medication brought the storm under control.  Hope and relief came flooding back.

For my zone 4 garden, I need to start my onions in February.  In my region in Ontario, it's important to buy long day onion seeds.  I have an inexpensive grow light that I can put the seedlings under to help them get through the dull winter days.  Even still, they are floppy.  It won't matter though and once in the garden they will straighten up.  They will be planted outside in early May.  By the end of July, they will be ready to harvest. Last year I planted some yellow onions and some red onions.  Both varieties kept well and I still have one red onion left that's in good shape. I just stored them in paper bags in the dark at cool room temperature. I have about forty seedlings in these pots and that will do me until this time next year.

A Story - "Christmas Break" and Festive Beet Parsnip Soup

A Story

Christmas Break

"Help!" screamed the cashier as Tom crashed to the floor.

He regained consciousness in the ambulance.  His head pounded, his hip shouted.

"You fell when your hip broke.  You hit your head hard on the floor.  Sadly, you'll still be here at Christmas."

Tom settled into the hospital routine.  The nurses were kind.  The housekeeping woman shared stories about her silly cat.  Volunteers stopped by, sang carols.  A friendly therapy dog greeted him.

Christmas morning, he sipped his coffee, nibbled his toast.  He was thankful he's broken his hip.

For the first time in many years, he wasn't celebrating alone.

I had some beet parsnip soup at a lunch lately and thought I would give it a go.  The soup I made is thinner  but I find parsnip is a potent flavour and I wanted a soup that was milder tasting than the one I had at the lunch. The photo makes the soup look like the colour of tomato soup but in real life, the soup is much pinkier - a very pretty shade.  You could swirl in a bit of sour cream to jazz it up.

Festive Beet Parsnip Soup

2 medium beets (1 1/2 to 2" in diameter) - cooked and diced.  I boiled mine but you could also roast them. You could also used canned baby beets.

1 fairly large parsnip - peeled and cut up.

1 apple - peeled or unpeeled.  I used Mckintosh but any kind would do.

1/4 tsp ginger

1/2 tsp dried parsley or 2 tsp fresh

3 cups of liquid . I just used water but you could use chicken or vegetable stock.

Salt and pepper to taste.

Simmer together for 30 min. Blend into a puree.  Serve topped with parsley.

I hope you all enjoy this Christmas season in whatever way is meaningful to you.

 

A Story - "Soul Music" and Indoor Lettuce

A Story

Soul Music

The radio host tried to convince the audience that the song he was going to play was good, heartfelt, inspiring.  No, no, no.

I sighed.  Where was the emotion?  The joy, sadness, anger, love?  I missed the days of raw original music not generated by computers.

I pulled up to the church. A friend's son had died.

As a prelude to the funeral, a fiddler soulfully played Scottish laments.  Tears pricked eyes.  The older man next to me dabbed his nose with a tissue.

Old hymns were sung reminding us of grace, hope, love.

We left nourished, comforted, healed.

A couple of weeks ago, I noticed some lettuce seedlings in the garden.  They were in really good shape even though we have had some frosts.  I planted up a few of them  and put them under my small grow light. They grew so well I decided to plant some seeds in a container. They sprouted in a day and began growing really nicely. I won't have enough lettuce for a big salad but certainly enough for adding to sandwiches. I've already picked some leaves.  I fertilize with all purpose liquid fertilizer every watering - about once a week.  They are planted in garden soil not potting soil but any kind of soil would do.

I'm so pleased with how this is going that I plan on making regular seedings over the course of the winter. It will be nice to have some fresh home-grown produce and it will save a little bit of money.

This lettuce is a leaf lettuce with red markings that grows very well in the outside garden as well.
 

A Story - "Attack" and White Rose, Columbine, 3 Iris, Early Lettuce

A Story

This story is about how our immune system fights off infection. Inspired by Covid but based on research. Quite amazing really.

Attack

The scouts came back with alarming news.  The enemy had infiltrated their territory.  Quickly, elite first responders spread out, stealthily searching for and swiftly attacking the foe.  Messages zinged throughout the area co-ordinating the operation, and special coded signals were dispatched to confuse the enemy.

Reinforcements struggled to replace the injured and dead, so chemical warfare was released strategically lethally.  Special sharp shooters stalked and eliminated fortified pockets of the hostile force.  Massive units arrived to surround and destroy entrenched enemy strongholds.

The battle feverishly raged on but finally, victory.

The Covid-19 test was negative.

Blanc Double de Coubert is a hardy rugosa rose with a lovely fragrance.  Plant habit is kind of scruffy and the flowers are delicate but they are so elegant and smell so nice.  I have found a new Youtube channel for all my rose questions :  Fraser Valley Rose Farm. Very good presenter with clear advice. He also grows some perennials. Some of his plants can be ordered through the mail but most are only available in his location.

I got this columbine last summer when the plants were on sale.  I have already had both the blue and pink version of this double Winky columbine and found them to be durable and bloom well.  I bought four of them but one mysteriously died.  Not sure why. Maybe something ate the roots. The bees like these columbine even though they are double. They are best in a part shade location and are hardy to zone 4.

So I have three different kinds of iris blooming right now.  These ones are Siberian iris in two different colours. They like to be wet. I wanted them in a drier location so I just kept giving them a good drink every few days, plus we did have quite a few rainy days.

This little iris, Bristly Iris, is native to some parts of North America.  It is only about 16" tall.  It can deal with wet or dry locations.  This one gets rain off the roof and is in a partly shady spot.  I was surprised to see a bumblebee go to each of the three petal areas and then later a swallowtail butterfly was feeding at it.

Here is a standard bearded iris.  An old variety so it's not as flashy as some new cultivars.  Bearded iris like a hot, dry full-sun location with their tubers partly exposed.  If they are not in a suitable location, they may still bloom but will likely flop over.

 The first planting of lettuce is doing well.  I started it inside in April. The challenge for me is not to start too many plants.  Do I need twenty lettuce at any time? No.  The seeds germinate so well and you get so many in a package  I find it hard to restrain myself. Fortunately, Pepper, my horse, will eat over grown lettuce.  I have made a new planting as lettuce gets bitter once it has reached maturity. Successive plantings are the way to go with lettuce and allow you to have fresh lettuce up until frost.

A Story - "Lake Swim" and Cabbage Beef Soup

A Story

Lake Swim

Savannah was delighted at the sight of the lake.  After easing herself down the ancient rock that hugged the lakeshore, she pushed off into the spring-fed water.  She gasped with the cold jolt but it helped her to refocus.  Quiet breast strokes sent her gliding over the pristine surface.  Floating effortlessly on her back, she soaked up the unlimited blue of the sky.  Slowly she let her legs sink, treading water in a circle of stillness.  Her mind serene, shivers finally sent her on shore.

Suddenly she shrieked in alarm.  A blood-sucking leech was stuck on her leg.

Winter isn't over yet for us here in Ontario so it's still soup season.                                                              

Cabbage Beef Soup

1 medium onion, chopped

2 cups cabbage, chopped

1 large carrot, diced

1 celery stalk, chopped

1 medium potato, finely chopped

1 apple (I used McIntosh), finely chopped

1/2 cup sweet pepper ( yellow, red or orange) chopped

1 cup cooked ground beef

1 tsp. black pepper

2 tsp. salt or to taste

5-6 cups water

Saute onion in butter or oil.

Add the rest of the ingredients including the water and simmer for 45 min to 1 hour.

Taste and adjust salt and pepper as needed.

 

A Story -"Indolent" and Easy Orange Chicken with Pecans

A Story:

Indolent

"Indolent!" his wife exclaimed.  "How does that word in any way apply to me?"

He looked at her slim body toned by regular trips to the gym, her stylishly cut hair and her tailored suit perfect for her position as partner in a progressive law firm.

"Definition of indolent: lazy, careless, slow-moving.  That is so not me."

"He didn't mean it as an insult."

"Well, it sure felt like one."

Her husband tried to look supportive but found it hard to dampen his smile.

"The doctor was just describing your cancerous thyroid tumour.  Be glad it's not ambitious."

 

Easy Orange Chicken with Pecans

1 cooked chicken breast cut into chunks

1 chopped onion

1 cup orange juice

2 tbsp molasses stirred into 1/2 cup warm water

1 tsp ground ginger

 

1/2 tsp black pepper

2- 3 tbsp chopped pecans

Saute the chopped onion in butter or oil.

Add the orange juice, molasses with water, ginger and pepper.  Salt to taste.

Add the chicken chunks and simmer together for about 30 minutes to allow the chicken to absorb the flavours.

Serve with rice and top with some chopped pecans. 

This makes two medium size servings.

A Story: "Adventure" - and Barley Carrot Soup

A Story

Adventure

Mary had discussed at length her possible adventure with her friends. It was all a bit confusing.

"We'll describe it as though it was the weather," said her friends.

"Lots of sunny days.  Balmy and warm," Gloria smiled dreamily.

"Oh, the hurricane was terrible! I was buffeted from all sides," quavered Cheryl.

"The rain just soaked down in dreary misery, day after day," sighed Donna.

"The breeze was so fresh and energizing. I've never felt so alive," enthused Moira.

"But how would I experience it?" Mary worried.

Only one way to find out.

Nine months later everything changed.
 

Barley Carrot Soup

This is a vegetable soup but you could add meat to it if you wanted.

Saute 1 chopped onion in oil or butter

Add 1 1/2 cups rinsed barley.  Cover with 2" of liquid, either broth or water.

Add 1 1/2 cup coarsely chopped carrot

Add 1/2 cup chopped celery

Add 1 tbsp chopped parsley, dried or 3 tbsp fresh

Season with black pepper and salt.

Simmer for about 30 minutes.  

Add 1/2 cup chopped green or yellow beans - frozen work well.

Simmer another 5 min. or so.

Serve with some parsley garnish.

A Story: "Rural Renewal" and Starting Onion Seeds with Recycled Stuff

A story:

Rural Renewal

Pine-fragranced air breezed freshly into Tara's lungs.  How robust she felt on her strong, sure-footed horse as he navigated the wild terrain of the trail to her rental cabin in northern Ontario.  Each swinging stride connected her to his energy.

At the cabin, she built a campfire.  Hot dogs, roasting on sticks, sizzled in the heat.  Steamy tea warmed her bones.  After, hot toasted marshmallows sweetly fuelled contentment.

Later, lying in bed, Tara gazed through the skylight at myriad stars sprinkling passionate light.  Billions of vibrant suns pulsated hope to her.

Tara smiled, cherishing life, defying her cancer.

I like to start some of my onions in January.  It's always a bit unpredictable as January can be sunny or cloudy, and if it's a cloudy month the seedlings don't do well. However, if the weather co-operates then I get larger onions in the summer from my January sowing.  I planted Norstar onions which are a long day variety.  In Ontario, you need to plant long day onions if you want to get any good sized onions in the summer.

I used an empty margarine container for the pot. The plastic clamshell, which works like a mini-greenhouse, is from greenhouse grown lettuce and the plastic tray underneath is from 
Ferrero Rocher chocolates. So my planting set-up only costs me the seeds and potting soil. I've planted about a dozen seeds in this container. 

Once the seeds sprout, I will open up the clamshell if it is sunny but close it up if it is cloudy to keep more heat inside.  By March, I will get rid of the clamshell to harden the seedlings off a bit.  I will also trim them to about 4 inches so that they don't flop over.

 

A Story - "The Next Chapter". and Beet Carrot Corn Salad

 This story is a Covid-time story inspired by outside church services that took place when people were not allowed to gather inside a church.

The Next Chapter

Puffed clouds nestled in the cerulean sky.  A breeze wafted by, uplifting a monarch butterfly and a sparkler of plant fluff.  Mrs. Graves sat in the shade of an ornamental crab apple tree polka-dotted with crimson fruit.  Spaced out around were her fellow church members.  The pastor's mellow voice blended with melodic bird songs.

Suddenly Mrs. Graves' chair crashed over; the pastor froze mid-word.

A few days later, Mrs. Graves was buried in the graveyard across the road among the mossy crooked tombstones that she had gazed at for weeks of Sundays, the next chapter of her life beginning.

Beet Carrot Corn Salad

1/4 cup chopped onion

1 1/2 cups cooked (boiled or baked) diced beets

1 1/2 cups cooked (boiled or baked) diced carrots. Only cook carrots until they are lightly softened - boil    5  min.

1 cup cooked corn. I used frozen.  Fresh or canned would work, too.

1/4 tsp ground cloves

1/4 tsp black pepper

Salt to taste

Mix all ingredients together and top with salad dressing such as ranch or vinaigrette.

This blend of vegetables is also tasty heated up and served as a warm vegetable mix.

A Story - "Waves" - Spiced Carrot Sweet Potato Soup , dried Parsley

 A Story:

Waves

Life was so grey.  Work so dull.

Alicia hoped a Maine seaside holiday would recharge her.  Today the ocean, at high tide, was calm, and the hot sand had warmed the water enough to make it swimmable.  She swam lazily, the gentle waves rocking her, the saltwater buoying her.  But she didn't want to be lulled, she wanted excitement.

A plastic bottle, something inside, slowly drifted near her.  Curious she grabbed it and swam to shore.  She extracted a note: "The waves will find you, my special love.  Call:  Liam, 222-333-444

Alicia gasped and whipped out her phone.

Spiced Carrot Sweet Potato Soup

1/2 medium onion, chopped

3 medium large carrots

1 sweet potato

1 tsp ginger

1 tsp cinnamon

salt and pepper to taste

Parmesan cheese

Saute the chopped onion in oil or butter.

Add 3 cups water, carrots (peeled and diced), and sweet potato ( peeled and diced)

Simmer until the carrots and sweet potato are soft - about 20 min.

Add the ginger and cinnamon, salt and pepper, and simmer for another 10 min.

Blend with a hand blender or mash with a potato masher.

Ladle into bowl and sprinkle Parmesan cheese on top.

This soup is creamy and smooth and taste a lot like pumpkin pie.

I like to dry my parsley in the refrigerator.  After rinsing it, I place it in a paper lunch bag or, in this case, some paper towel.  The parsley keeps its dark green colour while it dries. I find if I try to dry parsley just by hanging it in the air, it gets yellow.  In the fridge, it will take the parsley a couple of weeks to be fully dry. When I use a paper bag, I make sure that I don't overfill it. If I have lots of parsley, I use multiple bags.

A Story - "The Well-worn Shoes" and Lentil Vegetable Soup

A story:

The Well-Worn Shoes

The white sneakers were noticeably creased, grass stained, scuffed toed.  Marley picked them up, studied the worn soles.  The shoes were a testament to a life lived richly, generously, fearlessly.

Just four days ago, her mother had died. In life, she had always taken her time lacing up her shoes as she pondered where they would take her, who she would see.  Her acts were lovingly thoughtful, appropriate.

Marley felt the weight of the shoes as her mind swirled with memories.  Her mother's legacy would always be with her.  Bending over, Marley put on her mother's shoes, laced them tight, and walked into life.

                                  The  amounts are suggestions.  Soup is very flexible.

 Lentil Vegetable Soup

1 small onion

3 medium tomatoes (I used frozen from my garden)

1/2 green zucchini

1 large carrot

1/2 cup sweet pepper - any colour

2 cups dried red lentils

Saute the onion in a tablespoon of butter or oil of your choice.  Add 3 cups water.

Add chopped carrot, chopped zucchini, chopped sweet pepper.

Add tomatoes - I would use peeled tomatoes. Canned are already peeled, and frozen are easily skinned by running them under hot water and slipping the skin off.

Bring to boil, then simmer for 30 -45 minutes.  Season with salt, pepper, and any herbs you feel like. I used Greek oregano but thyme, parsley, marjoram, sage would all work well alone or in combination.

Simmer a bit longer to let the herbs flavour the soup.

If the soup is thinner than you like, simply simmer until more water evaporates.

Pair the soup with a sandwich and you have a substantial lunch that will get you through the afternoon.

A Story - "the Unwanted Guest" and Cabbage Pear Salad

A story:

The Unwanted Guest

When they arrived, Joe wrapped Mom in a big hug, then exclaimed, "You look amazing."

Mom blushed and tittered.  Dad beamed, "Welcome, Son."

Sarah, Joe's wife, noticed the guest. "Bigoted man, drinking his Coke, judging us all. What a fraud."

Glaring at him, she strode to the table.  Joe helped her get seated.

After blessing the food, the unwanted guest prayed, "God comfort the sad, the frightened, the weary."

His heart's voice flowed like golden sherry. Sarah's face flushed.  Her heart gave a pound.  Her tears without warning spilled, erasing her make-up, exposing the purple and blue.

Cabbage salad 

 I'm trying out a new cabbage salad - my own version.  It has cabbage, pear, sunflower seeds and dried cranberries.

1 1/2 cup shredded cabbage

1 pear - any kind

1/4 cup sunflower seeds

1/3 cup dried cranberries

1/3 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

Mix together with mayonnaise to taste.

You could also add a little bit of green onion, some sweet pepper, and a mix of green and red cabbage would be nice.

Story: : "Entwined" and Butternut Squash

 Another story.

Entwined

The French fry bounced on the cold pavement.  On springy yellow feet, the seagull jabbed, drew back, swallowed.  He caught my eye but I turned away.  My heart was still thumping.  No more job.  Who was I?

He squawked as a heavy raindrop plopped on his grey back. I threw another fry.

Soon a rival came, then another.  Fries, more fries.  Scattered left, strewn right.  Finally, no more.  The challengers flew away.  He stayed.  We stared at each other; our needs entwined together.

"Thank you," he seemed to  say.

It felt good to feel needed.

This year is the first year I have grown butternut squash.  I didn't think I had enough sun to successfully grow them but I had some very healthy seedlings pop up in the compost and I couldn't resist transplanting a couple of them and see if they would produce fruit. I planted them in large pots by a trellis. I think the trellis was key to getting them enough sun.  They have looked ripe for several weeks but I read online that you need to wait until the stem goes brown for them to be mature.  I think they are finally ready.

Butternut squash is probably my favourite squash.  It has great flavour and the skin isn't too hard.  I can easily cut them into chunks and bake them in the oven, or if I am in a hurry, I microwave them. At this time of year, I like to make squash soup.  I saute some onion, add my cooked squash, enough water to make the consistency I want and simmer for half and hour or so. I flavour it with chopped parsley, marjoram, salt and pepper.  Just before serving, I add some milk and keep it on the stove until it is well heated but not boiling.

The beauty of soup is that recipes are flexible.  For squash soup, I might also add some carrot, or ginger, or even some red or yellow peppers. It's all about tasting as you cook and using the taste to determine how you will adjust your seasonings.

Potting Soil Matters

 It just so happened that when I was planting up the pepper plants that I had two bags of different potting soil.  I thought I would label the pots and see if there was a difference.  Well, it's obvious there is a difference.  The plant on the left was planted in Miracle Grow Potting Mix and the one on the right was planted in Organic Promix.  Not only is the right-hand plant taller but the stem is thicker and sturdier making it nice and straight.  It has several buds that are farther along than the one in the left pot. When they were outside for a few days a couple of weeks ago, the right-hand plant was able to handle some sun where as the other one was more affected.

I have opened a Youtube channel :  Pint-size Stories.  The first video is titled: Home Away from Home.  As well as narrating very short stories (Flash Fiction type), I will provide tidbits from the garden and nature. I hope you will take a look at the Youtube channel and, if you like the idea of it, subscribe to it. The first video is very short but I plan to make them about 5 minutes long - easy to watch as you sip your morning coffee.

Over Wintered Seed Potatoes

I grew quite a few potatoes last year and was very pleased with them.  I ordered the seed potatoes from Eagle Creek. I thought I would try overwintering some of them to see if I could use my own potatoes as seed potatoes.  These potatoes are in perfect condition.

I harvested them later in the season and put them in a sandwich bag that I cut slits in. I stored them in the vegetable crisper drawer of the fridge .

 I still ordered a good supply of seed potatoes from Eagle Creek this year as I didn't  save many potatoes and wanted to make sure I have plenty for this year's garden.

These ones were harvested a little earlier but my mistake with them was that I had them at room temperature for a couple of weeks before I put them in the basement where it is about 15C. I stored them individually wrapped in paper towel inside an empty cereal box.  They were fine until February when they started to sprout.  They are quite shrivelled at this point but the shoots look fine so I planted them today in the garden.  Next year I will store all the potatoes saved for planting in the fridge. 

I was pleased at how well the home grown potatoes lasted.  Even the ones stored in the kitchen were firm with no sprouts in December. I had also parboiled, diced and frozen some of the potatoes and that worked well.  We had some just recently.  Very tasty fried up with some butter.  

 Plants I started inside are being hardened off.  The lettuce in the green pots will stay in the pots. I have found that three lettuce plants can grow quite nicely in an 8" pot if you fertilize them. This way if we get a sudden late frost I can bring them back in the house.  I planted some seed in the raised bed today so they will be ready when the potted lettuce is finished. The deck faces east which is perfect for hardening the plans off as they get the morning sun but not the stronger afternoon sun.

Zinnias, Pole Beans

This is the most vibrant zinnia I've ever had.  It is from Baker Creek Heirloom seeds in their Candy Stripe mix.  I wish they sold it as a single colour.  In the mix, most of the flowers are pink and white with just a few orange/yellow and red/white.

The pink/white is also pretty.  Because they are an heirloom variety, there is some variation in flower form with some being not as nice or regular as others.  The plants themselves grow well and mine stayed healthy.

Here is a bumblebee having a snooze on a small zinnia.  It's chilly this morning and what better place to have a sleep.

Zinnias are funny flowers as they have quite a few different forms.  These small orange ones and the red one below have a very prominent centre.  I really like the intense colours of these zinnias.

This peachy zinnia came in the same mix as the ones above.  A much more subtle colour and the centre stays flat and frilly. It's also small - about 2" across.

The purple pole beans are coming along nicely.  Not sure why the daddy-long-legs are interested in them.  I like to grow some kind of pole bean as they produce later in the summer after my bush beans are pretty much finished.  Usually I grow scarlet runner beans but I happened to have some left over purple beans so I went with them this year.  They are climbing up the lilac bush.

It's always rewarding at this time of year to be harvesting vegetables and enjoying the bright flowers.
 

4 Hours of Sun - Veggies

 I am so pleased with the results of my 4-hours-of-sun vegetable plantings.  As you can see, I have some lovely big tomatoes, ripe peppers, cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, potatoes, purple beans and zucchini.  The location of this patch gets full sun from 10:00am to 2:00pm so it gets strong sun when it gets it.  The shade is from deciduous trees so it is not as deep shade as you would have on the north side of a building or fence,  or even in the shade of cedars or conifers.  The tomatoes are producing less than in a full sun location but the peppers in the shade are producing as well as the ones in full sun.  Both  tomatoes and peppers are taking a bit longer to ripen.  I have tons of zucchini and the potatoes are producing well.  The beans also doing as well as in a sunnier location.

Of course, I could easily grow lettuce, celery, spinach, Swiss chard in the shadier spot.  Next year, I will plant some brassicas there and see how they fare.

Happy gardening.