I love pickled beets but had never made them before we did this. So I was excited! It all starts with the real thing, of course, fresh from the garden! We dug up three rows of beets, each about 15' long. Needless to say, we had a wagonload of beets!BELOW: After separating the tops, hosing down the dirty beets and then giving them a quick scrub, we popped them into big pots of boiling water. There they cooked until tender. After cooking and a cooldown, the skins slipped right off without even ... Read Full Story
This particular idea for what to do with our several frozen gallon bags of delicious Italian plums came from Carol's wonderful Aunt Shirley. We were searching for ideas of what to do with the delicious, fat, sweet pear-shaped plums that did not involve making them into (tiresome) jelly. "Why not make plum leather?" She suggested. Great idea, Aunt Shirley -- thank you!! (Puzzled? Plum leather is what many people think of as "fruit roll".)BELOW: Here are the fat little plums cooking down in the... Read Full Story
My heart skipped a beat to see this huge Sourwood tree (Oxydendrum arboreum) on a recent road trip to Centralia, WA. It is growing in the township of Deer Creek along Highway 3.Panicles, panicles!!! The white parts are bracts that will hold pretty white flowers next Spring. The panicles stay on the tree for a long long time and contrast nicely with the red Fall leaf color. I LOVE this tree!!!Ooof, gorgeous!Here are a few current shots of my little superstar in the garden, the yard-tall Sourwo... Read Full Story
This awesome shark that my husband just made is about 6 feet long! It's mounted up on the barn wall.He started with a big piece of driftwood that I dragged home from the shore of nearby Dabob Bay. At first we were not sure if it would make a better wing, or a fish. The shark's fins are pieces of pressure-treated wood left over from making the front steps. I absolutely love it!!! Read Full Story
I would be remiss in not mentioning my little pride n' joy Katsura tree! The small heart-shaped leaves just make me happy. It's a bit leggy yet, being a 'tween youngster. But hopefully it will filling in as it grows up. Nice peachy bronze leaf colors.The Kwanzaan Cherry tree is looking great too! Beautiful golden plum colors on the handsome spearhead leaf shape. The tree may be fruitless, but it's not pointless! I'm looking forward to a big bloom in spring, happening a little later that the o... Read Full Story
Look what's busting through the hard-packed gravel logging road where I walk the dogs!Oh my goodness.There's no keeping these little mushrooms from making it up through the road bed!The older clump of them has died dramatically into a rather slimy black mess.Any idea what kind these guys are? Not to worry, I would never eat or pick them no matter what they are! I already heard a suggestion that they are "magic" mushrooms - ??? Read Full Story
Here's a plain ol' Lilac from Costco, pulling on some pretty good golden color! None of the other Lilacs here have the idea... That's a Philadelphus next to it, quite green yet. Down low in the shot is a golden Spirea, showing a mix of subtle rust and wine tinges.BELOW: The ubiquitous dying fern... These are everywhere here, lending a rusty hue to the whole local landscape. Here's a link to pics of the process starting.BELOW: Fireweed! I love this stuff. The flowers are festively tall and pur... Read Full Story
I wandered around taking shots of things showing Fall color changes. Here's my chorus line of baby Witch Hazel trees, showing a nice lemon-lime effect. That's a little Rose-of-Sharon joining in at the right.BELOW: Oceanspray, too young for blossoms, seems to be focusing on beautiful color instead. None of the mature Oceanspray here have colors like this now.BELOW: I think this is Crape Myrtle, and boy is it pretty right now. I know I got some Crape Myrtle from the Arbor Day Foundation at some... Read Full Story
Time to put the garden to bed for the season. Sort of sad - but necessary, as freezing temps are just around the corner now.It's been a wonderful garden and a fantastic classroom for me. I had many dreams of a place like this, but I never realized that it could be right next door to me. Awesome!In case you missed the pictures, here is my post about the garden in it's summer heyday. Currently the carrots and beets are still in the ground to get around to later, and the garlic has been planted,... Read Full Story
