beet greens .....

We were at the community garden this morning to mow the lawn and do some weeding and I came across a plot with these beautiful beets......and the beet tops are so gorgeous !!! I just needed to share this great shot!

gardening blessings,

Maggie

Trumpet vine......

This plant came creeping over the fence from my neighbour's side this year and just in the past couple of weeks it began to bloom! First these clusters of buds showed themselves and then the beautiful trumpet flowers bloomed! Mother Nature designs the most amazing plants and I'm not sure that we take note of this often enough. I had never seen anything like this before and I had to get a close up look at it immediately. The shape, colour, texture and it's design is incredible! I had no idea what is was and after a quick internet search I found out it is called a Trumpet Vine and also a Hummingbird Flower. So apparently they attract hummingbirds and coincidentally this is the first year I have  had a hummingbird feeder in the yard and just on the weekend we had our first little fellow show up for a drink! What a gift that was to see! We were thrilled! Back to the plant.....it has quite dense foliage and therefore can house bird nests well. It is also though apparently quite invasive and can crowd out other plants, so we will have to watch for this although its root is not in our yard, but it might trail itself underground into our yard. We will keep a watchful eye. 

All in all I am pleased to share in it's beauty. It reminds me that I must appreciate the beauty that Mother Nature provides for us each day.

Blessings,

Maggie

our small harvest......

I have a community garden plot with my partner Kelly and we tend to it lovingly and watch it grow daily. We have had our challenges with the rabbit and the deer that like to come and visit and nibble on our lettuce, beans, beets and peas. We have decided that these plants won't be able to be a part of our garden next year as they are food for the animals and we never get to have much of a taste. The lettuce are the only plants that we have been able to harvest from. Our tomatoes are fine as are our carrots and radishes. It's been a learning curve for us but that hasn't kept us from enjoying a tasty salad!

I am also on the committee for the community garden and we held our meeting at the garden site last evening. After the meeting I picked some lettuce and basil and took it home to share on our table. It's just the best thing to be able to pick your own food and have it fresh to eat. From garden to table is the best way. I do wish I had a larger garden and I wish it was at my home, but since I live in the city my yard doesn't allow for that. Next year we will have some containers on the deck that we will use to grow the plants in that the deer seem to love. We will simply work around the deer problem.

Here is a pic of my harvest from last night.....I just love it!

Red leaf & oak leaf lettuce as well as basil...

And I just couldn't resist sharing this pic! I just think this cabbage is a thing of beauty!!! It's not from our plot, but it's awesome looking!!

I hope your garden is growing and that you are enjoying yours as much as we are. Ours is only a small 10 x10 plot but we love watching it grow our own food! 

Blessings to all,

Maggie 

lavender time........

My lavender.....so pretty!

There is an area of my garden that stands alone in its beauty. It ranks above all other in colour and scent and it was recently in full bloom. It is my border of lavender that I have cultivated over the last several years. I began with only a couple of plants and it has now expanded to a full border along the back of the deck. Each year as spring begins I await its recovery from winter  as it can look rather bereft from the wind and cold temperatures of the season. It was with some concern this year that I kept a watchful eye on my precious border of lavender. It seemed to have a bit of winter kill from the cold, but alas as the temperatures warmed and as the sun began to shine it came alive and grew to fill in where the winter cold had left barren places. Tender young shoots of delicate pale green sprang forth and soon filled in those empty places. I was able to enjoy it as the border was filled with the palest of lavender buds and then the flowers began to bloom! The pale lavender turned to bright purple yet it still had a softness to it. I loved being able to show off the blooms in a small vase and even the buds were beautiful in a small crystal dish.

I found a recipe for a Lemon Lavender Shortbread and decided that we needed to give them a try. The recipe was not only gluten-free, but dairy free also. They were a great treat and I have saved a small mason jar full of buds so that I can make them again. Here is a photo of how they turned out!

Lemon Lavender Shortbread Cookies

I had planned on making a lavender & lemon verbena tincture but the rains came and the blooms were not looking the greatest so I will wait until next year to try again.

I had a small garden statue of St.Francis that I decided this year to move to another location. There was a perfect spot in the middle of the lavender border and I think he looks perfect there! Somehow it just seems like home for him......and when the sun shines early in the morning he looks quite heavenly.

St. Francis in the garden

The time has come when the border now needs to be trimmed back. I managed to keep some lavender buds and will use them for the cookie recipe in winter and recall the beauty of the flowers that sprang from the buds and bloomed beautifully while surrounding St. Francis.

I hope you enjoyed my lavender journey as much as I did. I already can't wait to see it begin to bud again next spring.

Blessings to you,

Maggie

Garlic scapes.....pickled!

Garlic scapes are relatively new to me. It was only a couple of years ago that I was introduced to them at our local farmers market. I love how they curl themselves into a spiral and then it ends with the flower bud wrapped in what looks like tissue paper. Nature has such an interesting way of presenting itself! I love it! So, I have sautéed garlic scapes, but apart from that I really didn't know what to do with them. We have a huge plot of garlic at our community garden plot and I managed to get my hands on some scapes this year. I was looking in my new canning book, Food In Jars, and I found this garlic scape pickle recipe! I just had to try it and so yesterday I set out to pickle my garlic scapes. I think that they look great just in the jars, let alone how great they will taste when we open the first jar! Once I open them up and have a taste I will let you know how good they are! 

 I hope that you might be inspired to look for some garlic scapes in your local area. Please shop locally. It's really important for your local economy and keeps the world healthier in a lot of ways. 

It's my last post of the week and I need to shut things down now. The morning hours come early and I have to work one more day before having a few days off. 

Good night all.......

Maggie

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the garden keeper........

I found this little guy on a weekend trip to Ottawa! I just couldn't resist him and had to bring him home to our garden........ he's the official keeper of the garden ! 

I love a little whimsy in my life!! 

Blessings, 

Maggie

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