I'm so glad you could stop by. This is my personal blog of daily life and my journey through life. You will find a strong emphasis on family and friends as well as finding my ancestors through genealogy. Unlike my other blogs this blog is more of a catch-all so any topic is fair game.
Ok, so you have heard of chili heads but I am a true basil head. I love basil and good gosh one variety of basil is not good enough for me. I grow the common sweet basil as well as five to six other varieties both indoors and outdoors. Basil seriously rules as an herb! When we bought our vacation home in Florida, the first plant I bought was basil. I knew there was no way I could keep it alive when we weren't there but I knew we would enjoy fresh basil while we were there. Then we got to know our neighbours. Our basil plant goes to their house to be looked after while we are gone. The plant comes back to stay with us when we are here. They are great friends and basil brought us together. Basil rules...
Garden Gnome
©2006-2011
Sneaking a Kiss
October 3, 2011
Garden Gnome
©2006-2011
Old Glory
April 10, 2011
Garden Gnome
©2006-2011
This past week was one of discovery! We found an amazing organic farm within an acceptable driving distance of our house. The owners also have free range laying hens so we have secured another source for farm fresh, organic eggs. We aim to use local produce and foods produced within a 100 km radius of our home. We are very fortunate to live in an area with this is quite possible! Smaller farms especially organic ones are getting few and far between. Finding one especially of this size is quite the blessing! The owners are very friendly, down to earth people with many similar values to us. We've already emailed back and forth a few times. I can see us becoming friends as well!
Garden Gnome
©2006-2010
Three Sisters Garden Bed
July 28, 2010
A few days ago we visited an organic farm that like many home gardeners uses a variety of growing methods. Pictured is one of the
three sisters garden beds the owner had created. While I have read of this method of growing beans, squash and corn as companion plants I haven't tried it myself. I have added this project to next year's garden plans. Isn't the garden bed interesting? I like how the structural trellis feature becomes a decorative element in the garden bed.
Garden Gnome
©2006-2010
This past week really focused on the garden from cleaning out the beds and getting the gardens going to buying plants and planting. The weather has be quite warm with a fair amount of rain buy in between rain showers I go out to putter a bit more in the gardens. I love it when it rains just after doing a bit of planting as that saves me having to do the watering. The gardens have really changed within the matter of a few short days and they continue to evolve daily. I get such pleasure watching the changes. What a blessing it is to be able to enjoy gardening and reap the benefits of gardening!
Garden Gnome
©2006-2010
Lone Tulip in Bloom
April 28, 2010
Garden Gnome
©2006-2010
Willow BarkApril 1, 2010©2006-2010
Butterfly on Siberian Squill
April 2, 2010
We visited the grandbabies over the Easter weekend. Oldest grandbaby and I took our cameras out to take a few pictures. Between their house and the neighbours house there was a huge patch of Siberian Squill so we stopped to enjoy their beauty. A small butterfly flitted around the flowers then landed just long enough for me to get this picture.
Garden Gnome
©2006-2010
Sun in WillowApril 1, 2010Spring has definitely sprung in our little corner of the world. I was amazed that March came in like a lamb and left like a lamb! The spring is predicted to be warm and dry here which is not good news after a mild winter with below average snowfall. A few days ago I grabbed the camera to look for signs of spring in the gardens. The sun was peeking through the willow giving an interesting effect.
Garden Gnome©2006-2010
Fall Colours
September 13, 2009
Garden Gnome©2006-2009
Chili Sauce and SalsaSeptember 13, 2009
This is a very busy time of year for me in the garden and kitchen. The canner runs almost daily often several times a day. When the canner isn't running I'm dehydrating or freezing foods. During this time there are several trips to local farmers for produce I don't grow enough of or don't grow at all. At the same time the garden needs tending, fresh caught fish needs to be put up and hunting season is quickly approaching. If you haven't read my
cooking and
gardening blogs you will have missed out on a lot of this activity. So if it seems this blog has been a bit quiet lately you will know why.
I seldom write about either gardening or cooking here and when I do it tends to be rather about something interesting I discovered. So I thought I would share a picture of the canning my husband and I put up a couple of Sunday's ago (more
here). There were 55 jars total for one long day's worth of worth and while that may seem like a lot to some it isn't. We've been in this high gear mode for awhile now with dozens of jars of home canned foods being preserved daily. What happens is a lot of produce becomes ready for processing at the same time which is both a good and bad thing. There's no break during harvest season as we move from corn to tomatoes to peaches and apples with everything in between. It makes for some very long, tiring days but looking at a well stocked pantry and full freezers is well worth it :)
Garden Gnome©2006-2009
Heinz 1439August 25, 2009
My garden is growing nicely now and despite the cooler, damp weather there are no signs of the dreaded
tomato blight. The bad new is I'm battling tomato hornworms (more
here). A couple of days ago I removed 2 of these horrid little critters then checked the vines closely for signs of more. When I didn't see any more I breathed a sigh of relief. The bad news is yesterday it rained the entire day so I didn't get out to check the garden. Imagine my horror to find 7 of the critters happily munching on my tomato vines! All were removed and destroyed. I will be checking the garden quite often from now until sunset then almost hourly tomorrow and several times throughout the weekend. I just keep thinking what a disaster we would have come home to had we been away for a couple of days!
On the brighter side of gardening, I picked several Heinz 1439 and Sweet Million tomatoes today. The beefsteaks are looking good but no ripe ones yet. I also picked Hungarian wax and sweet banana peppers along with a handful of peas. I'm picking lettuces daily and herbs as I need them. Some of the herbs need a bit more clipping so I'll start drying some. So all in all not too bad.
Garden Gnome©2006-2009
Citizens on PatrolAugust 25, 2009A few days after moving in here about the same time we discovered signs that one or more rodents had been in the house we noticed a large white cat who seemed to be rather content to hang out in our yard. We have no idea who's cat this is but it is obviously well cared for. It is also quite apparent he is a natural born
mouser! He is rather fond of chasing the rabbits so that helps control rabbit damage in the gardens. On more than one occasion I have seen him proudly walking away with his catch of the day. Every mouse he catches is one less mouse that can get in the house.
The cat makes its rounds morning and evening usually coming from somewhere south of us. He stops at the two neighbouring gardens first then does a complete check of the hedges lining our laneway. Then he checks around the front garden before making his way into the area where the new vegetable gardens are. Finally he makes himself comfortable near the English ivy in the backyard. If he is unsuccessful he moseys along the bordering hedges making his way north to neighbouring houses.
Garden Gnome©2006-2009
I watched an episode of the 100 Mile Food Challenge. This series shows the ups and downs of a group of families trying to eat foods grown within a 100 mile radius of their home. Several times I just found myself thinking this is about the easiest challenge so why were the families finding it so difficult especially when locally grown foods constitute about 85% or more of the foods we eat. Then it dawned on me that your home location plays a huge role as to what you can get within a 100 mile radius. Within a 100 mile radius we can easily buy locally grown/produced: most produce (fruits/vegetables), mushrooms, table salt, curing salt, white sugar, honey, maple syrup, wheats (whole grain/ground), dairy products, eggs, beef, pork and poultry. In addition to that we grow as much as possible and we can fish right in our own backyard. Unlike the families who couldn't use yeast because it wasn't produced locally, I'd simply use my sourdough starter that is easily made by capturing wild yeast in your kitchen. We are also surrounded by an abundance of wild edible plants. What we can't get locally pales in comparison to what we can get! We are so very blessed to live in such an amazing area!
Garden Gnome
©2006-2009
Garden Visitor
July 19, 2009
I am by any stretch of the imagination a chronic muli-tasker to the point it is close to being a flaw. While muli-tasking allows me to get a lot done most days on an off day the lack of focus is rather apparent. As a way of
learning to be still aka
muli-tasking I have decided that television during the day has to go!
When I was growing up we got 4 channels on a black and white television. My Mom never had a colour television until she was in the nursing home and by then she had no interest in watching television. As newlyweds we had an upside down television that was rather unique looking with an almost round black and white screen. Somehow over the years television has whittled its way into our lives to the point now the kids have grown leaving us empty nesters I will turn the television on as soon as I get up out of habit. Now the television is simply giving the illusion of someone else in the house because I seldom actually watch it. I'm doing two things wrong here. First I am wasting electricity and even though the cost to operate the main television works out to 2¢ per hour it is irresponsible of me to waste any kWh. Every kWh counts! Second I really am over stimulating myself by the constant bombardment of noise and images. Even though I'm not actively watching the television the sensory stimulation is still registering in my brain. This more than likely creates sensory overload sometimes. In this case
learning to be still with a bit less sensory stimulation will be a positive change for me.
Garden Gnome©2006-2009
This year Mother Nature has thrown us a bit of a curve ball with the cooler summer temperatures and a lot of rain. I think the cooler, below average temperatures have been on everyone's mind this summer and they certainly are the topic for conversation. It's so easy to complain about the weather even though we can't do anything about it. But let's put the cooler summer temperatures in perspective. It is as if Mother Nature knows there is a recession and has stepped in a bit to help out! Despite a late start getting my new raised garden beds in they are looking quite lovely. I have a bumper crop of salad greens that usually by this time of year would have bolted (pictures here). I will also have peas this year later into the summer thanks to the cooler weather. At the same time with the cooler temperatures and rainy weather we have done less boating saving us a bit of fuel money. This has also resulted in a bit more time at home to get work done around the house and gardens as well as do a bit of troubleshooting. We've had more time to sit on the dock to marvel at the beauty of the water while enjoying the company of our neighbours. The stormy weather is not all that pleasant but it sure has saved on watering the gardens and as a reward Mother Nature has provides some of the most amazing sunsets yet! Cooler outdoor temperatures combined with cool breezes and lower humidity levels have kept the main lower living level of the house at a balmy 19ºC (67ºF) pretty much the same temperature we keep the house at during the day in the heating season. We are now half way through summer and have yet to turn our air conditioning on! So in many ways the cooler, rainy weather has been quite the blessing this year! Mother Nature sure is a smart, old cookie :)
Garden Gnome
©2006-2009
Chicago Cardinal RedJuly 15, 2009My garden despite a late start is growing nicely. We still haven't added the other raised beds which will likely be a fall project now. The past couple of years we have been dealing with mice, voles, centipedes, pill bugs and earwigs indoors. This is the year of the earwigs! So far the battle has been going rather good as we drive these critters further from the house. The massive sealing and removing any debris from around the house has been an ongoing project since we moved here as is ripping out idea rodent hiding spots near the house. On a larger scale of critters we have a family of swans that visit regularly. The mother Mallard and her seven little ducklings visited last night. The rabbits visit daily. We didn't see the skunk but knew he was there! We hear the raccoons chit chatting at night but have seen them yet and the possum that frequents the area hasn't been spotted either.
The first year we were here, it never dawned on me to treat the lower level as if we were camping. Four of the lower level windows are pretty much at ground level including the large kitchen window. The patio door in the kitchen in on ground level for the back of the property but well below ground level for the front of the property. The kitchen is tucked into one corner completely open to the family room. There is no way to get to either the patio door or window without going through the kitchen. I was watching television on the couch when I smelled the presence of a skunk. Now the kitchen window and patio doors were both opened and it doesn't take much for a hungry critter to get through the screens. The fresh apple pie I had baked for my husband was sitting on the counter cooling while the skunk more or less wandered between one screen and the next. The problem was there was no way for me to get to either to shut them without triggering the skunk. I used a broom handle to flick on the patio lights. Sure enough there was the skunk! Then I remembered a trick from our camping days. If you shine a light directly at their eyes they will mosey along. So I quietly got the big Mag flashlight and prayed that trick would work. Thank goodness the skunk headed towards the edge of the water. I could still seem him as I quickly shut the patio door. Had it been a raccoon instead of a skunk it would have been in the house after the pie! Come evening in the warm weather if the windows are open the patio door and kitchen window are shut to leave only an inch or two opening for air to get through but not the critters.
Yesterday I heard a bit of scratching in one of the upstairs rooms and discovered signs of something in the pantry. Nothing had been gnawed on that I could see. More than 90% of all the food is in glass, heavy plastic or metal containers but there are a few things a hungry mouse could get into. I did a walk-around and discovered a bit of wood coming out from under the eaves directly corresponding to where the noise is coming from in the house. So my husband is currently poking around in the attic to see if he can see anything. He'll put out more bait then get up on the ladder to see if he can get the hole plugged if there is one. What we think happened is we discovered a
mouse free-for-all run under the side entrance. Three bags of cement later that problem was solved. What it looks like we did was trap a mouse in the house and the mouse is trying to chew its way out. In the meantime it looks like I will be spending a bit of quality time in the pantry organizing and doing more rodent proofing.
Garden Gnome©2006-2009
Pretty in Pink
May 7, 2009
Garden Gnome
©2006-2009
Spring Blossoms
May 10, 2009
Spring is a
wondrous time that always signifies renewal not only for our surrounding environment but also the spirit. There's the new growth combined with cleaning off winter's grime. There's the anticipation of warmer weather to come. It is officially spring here even though it is still unseasonably cool. The cooler, wet spring has slowed progress in the gardens. Yesterday we woke to a good coating of frost. I acted on the previous day's frost warning so all my plants were protected so had very little frost damage.
Garden Gnome
©2006-2009
