End of the Road….

Posted on October 3, 2012 by Deborah

For the Garden that is…sniff, sniff….

Spring time is my favourite time in the garden. I get to play in the warming soil, carefully prepping and planning what I am going to plant where. The days fly by into Summer and then I am cursing how fast the herbs can grow. Soon, I am able to start harvesting tomatoes, peppers and lettuce and the herbs are shoved to the back of my mind, until they rear their green tentacles once again to menace the garden.

Fall arrives and brings with it that nip in the air and I spend days … Read more...

Raising the Bed

Posted on October 2, 2012 by Deborah

This is not what you are thinking, I am not hanging my bed from the ceiling, hammock style, although that is not such a bad idea…..except for when it comes time to get in and out of it….

I am talking about a raised garden bed.

Up at the Homestead, I am limited on actual garden space due to something called a septic system taking up a good chunk of the flat/cleared land that makes up our plot. The remainder being very rocky, covered with trees and not much dirt. Don’t even try to dig through the moss and lichen … Read more...

Your Mini Virtual Vacation

Posted on September 24, 2012 by Deborah

Monday’s…you either love them or hate them. Me, it makes no difference as I work more on weekends than weekdays, but for those that hate them, sometimes a quick trip to Mexico is just what is needed on this day of the week.

So I am sending along something to brighten your day and get your week off to a great start. A small sampling of flora grown in and around the Mexican resorts. I gave up trying to think of the right word to describe them, as ‘stunning’ just doesn’t seem to do them justice.

Oh….and you are welcome … Read more...

Easy as Apple Pie

Posted on September 20, 2012 by Deborah

One of the best things about Fall are Apples. Apple season is now in full swing with lots and lots and lots of fresh, crisp apples ready for picking, eating, canning, juicing and baking. I am an Apple Snob though, only liking a few specific varieties to eat fresh. I do venture into other varieties for baking, as long as they stand up well to the cooking process.

Canadian Thanksgiving is approaching quickly and I am usually pressed for time in getting dessert ready in the days leading up to the annual food-a-thon. So this year I decided to venture … Read more...

Tomatoes by the BOATLOAD….

Posted on September 11, 2012 by Deborah

I think. Just maybe. I planted too many tomato plants. For one person. Me.

NAH……Impossible….

I have just cleaned off everything from all the plants (both regular and cherry toms) and sorted them by level of ripeness…..

A nice, pretty rainbow of tomatoes gracing my countertop.

The Cherry Tomatoes are representing the colours of Italy…or Mexico even.

I now have lots, and lots, and lots of tomato recipes to look through…. and use.

First up, roasting some more cherry tomatoes for the freezer (they are great as a topping on pizza, or tossed into an omelet).

Once the larger tomatoes … Read more...

Attack of the Aphids!

Posted on September 4, 2012 by Deborah

One day your plants are all happy and healthy with their flowers smiling towards the sun…the next day, they are droopy, with yellowed leaves and hanging their flowers like a dejected teen who has had his first go round of asking out a girl go horribly awry.

Upon closer inspection….. APHIDS!

Millions of the little suckers ALL over the leaves and stems sucking the life blood out of your hard earned efforts. Plus, here I was at the Homestead, 30 minutes from the closest store and I was refusing to jump in the car wasting precious gas and spending money … Read more...

How To Identify Poison Ivy…

Posted on August 16, 2012 by Deborah

BEFORE you come into contact with it…. Like my husband did….

One word for you…. I-T-C-H-Y!!!!!

As the Old Saying goes…’Leaves of Three, Leave them Be’.

The above plant is one of many on the Homestead, this one was trying to sprout where I planted Nasturtiums. It has since been eliminated. There are still many, many of them left around the property, but mostly in places we do not frequent (back bush area). We are now highly mindful of what it looks like and where it is growing.

Hubs was trying to pull out some maple tree suckers and weeds … Read more...

Vegetables That Look Like….

Posted on August 14, 2012 by Deborah

Human Body parts. I find it utterly amazing when you are going through your garden and you find some pretty freakish looking things. Mother Nature has an awesome, wacky sense of humour. Both of these were found on one of my Cherry Tomato plants.

This one looks like a perfect candidate to be a Plumber…..

And the one below? I shall leave that to your imagination….Does Size really matter? 🙂

Don’t Buy Cheap Crap….

Posted on August 13, 2012 by Deborah

Nothing is more frustrating than buying something, getting it home and within one day, it is in pieces. Not only are you pissed at yourself for buying the cheap item, but you are also pissed at the cheap manufacturer of said product.

That was me last week. I bought these Bypass Pruners for gardening, you know, when you need to trim your tomato plants, harvest your peppers or prune your wayward nasturtiums.

Within one hour of using these things…S-N-A-P goes one of the handles. Broke clean off….. Cheap piece of $#*%&!!!! I’ll give you one guess as to where they … Read more...

The Farmer in the…… Market

Posted on August 9, 2012 by Deborah

Nope, the Farmer isn’t in the Dell…he/she/they are at my local Farmer’s Market. I just love going to the market. Nothing screams summer like a Farmer’s Market chock full of fresh produce with Vendor’s hawking everything from cut flowers to ice cream… yes… ice cream and if it wasn’t for it being 8:10 in the morning when I arrived, I would have had an ice cream cone.

But I already had breakfast and was busy scarfing down some very yummy free samples of Smoked Salmon Paté on crackers. SO DEE-LISH…. and of course, I had to buy a small tub … Read more...