Posts Tagged ‘garden’
Tendrils
My cucumber vines are still thriving …
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And the tendrils are still so charming!
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This one wants to pull up a chair!
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On Friday, I had my first cucumber salad from my vines!
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Copyright 2017 Jane Tims
finally !!!! spring
Finally, spring!!! The last bit of snow is melted from our lawn (although there are still patches of snow in the woods) and I have crocuses in bloom!
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This past weekend, I attended a strategic planning event at Falls Brook Center in west-central New Brunswick. Falls Brook Center is a non-profit group working within the community to teach skills for more sustainable living.
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Setting goals for an organisation is never easy and we enjoyed a welcome break from all the group discussion and brainstorming when one of the program coordinators gave us a short workshop about how to make seed sprouters from newspaper. In the past, I have often used peat pots, milk cartons and even Styrofoam cups to start my seeds. Making plant pots from newspaper is easy, saves money, and reduces waste! And making the pots is fun!
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We used PotMaker® to make our seed pots. PotMaker® is made in Canada by Richters (Goodwood, Ontario, L0C 1A0) http://www.PotMaker.com . The kit includes two wooden shapes, one to wrap the newspaper into a tube, and the other to ‘crimp’ the lower part of the tube into a closed pot.
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This morning, after a few minutes of rolling newspaper strips and tucking ends, I have enough pots to start a new batch of herbs for my kitchen window garden! Now, all I have to do is fill the newspaper pots with some planting mix and sprinkle some seeds. The pots support one another and keep their shape even wet. They can be planted directly into the garden … the roots grow through the paper and the pots disintegrate.
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greenhouse, early spring
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dead plantings rustle
skeletons brittle
pods and packets rattle
whisper me to the greenhouse
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weak sunshine warms the glass
my prints a path on late snow
meltwater sinks into grass
soaks into clay
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bits of crockery
wooden handles
leaf mould and sand
soil pressed into pots
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the gardener
awakened from winter
rooted in moss and clay
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Published as ‘greenhouse, early spring’, Canadian Stories 15 (87), Oct/Nov, 2012
Copyright 2014 Jane Tims
the color of September #4 – a toasted tomato sandwich
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Of all the produce of September, I think I enjoy tomatoes the most. I like fried green tomatoes, tomatoes in chili con carne and toasted tomato sandwiches. If you have never eaten a toasted tomato sandwich, you should try one. Toast two pieces of whole wheat bread, slice the tomatoes very thin and add mayo, salt and pepper.
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Now that I have finished my watercolor of tomatoes, and they are no longer needed for the still life, I think I’ll have another sandwich …
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September 14, 2013 ‘tomato red’ Jane Tims
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Copyright 2013 Jane Tims
the color of September #2 – bunches of radishes
The reward of a recent visit to a local farmer’s vegetable stand – bunches of radishes.
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Painting with red is very rewarding. First, a little color goes a long way – I am still working with the small tube of paint I bought back in early June. Second, red wakes me up the way no other color can.
I did two paintings, one of the bunch of radishes, fresh from the vegetable stand, and one of an individual radish, fresh from the ground, dirt washed away. Hope you like them!
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August 31, 2013 ‘a bunch of radish red’ Jane Tims
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September 1, 2013 ‘radish red’ Jane Tims
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Copyright 2013 Jane Tims
bringing nature into the town
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rows of trees and flowers along la Place de la Mairie in Saint-Hilaire-la-Palud (image from Street View)
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map showing distance travelled (map from Google Maps)
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On my virtual bike trip on April 3, the images made me think about how we bring nature into our cities and towns (or allow it to stay!). Sometimes, the only bit of nature is a stray weed, growing in a crack in the pavement…
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streetscape in Grande Rue, Saint-Hilaire-la-Palud – actually, there is lots of greenery in other parts of the town (image from Street View)
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Sometimes, property owners try to leave trees, only to have them toppled – perhaps a wind storm blew through Saint-Hilaire-la-Palud …
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toppled tree (image from Street View)
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Sometimes people bring the country into the town – all part of eating local …
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this is the first time I have seen chickens in a yard in a town on my virtual bike tour (image from Street View)
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Of course, I have seen a lot of vegetable gardens in France, planted in every available corner …
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vegetable garden in Saint-Hilaire-la-Palud (image from Street View)
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Best View: a small yard overflowing with greenery in Saint-Hilaire-la Palud…
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Copyright Jane Tims 2013
the case of the missing…
My Mom always loved her belongings and kept excellent care of them. She also tried to keep track of them, but with four children (especially me), occasionally items went missing.
Once she called me in great distress. She had been all over her property and could not locate the second wheel from a pair of wagon wheels she knew she had.
I said she didn’t have to worry. I had taken the wheel as a decoration for my yard.
Today, I can look out at my winter garden, and see Mom’s missing wagon wheel.
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Copyright Jane Tims 2013
the growing part of ‘growing and gathering’
So far in my posts, I have talked mostly about harvesting wild edibles. I am starting to get a little produce from my garden, so I thought I’d do a post for the ‘growing’ side of ‘growing and gathering’.
I have only a small garden, laughable by many standards. We have too much shade and since I won’t allow the nearby trees to be cut, I must be content with spindly carrots, sorrowful pea vines and a plethora of slugs. However, I also have lots of perennials and a small herb garden, enough to keep us in regular small harvests of additions for our dinners.
On Monday, I decided to prepare my favourite lunch, couscous, with a gathering from my garden. I used:
~ a handful of black and red currants (just ripening this week!)
~ a sprig of thyme
~ a few leaves of oregano
~ a small spray of parsley
~ a handful of chives
~ one clove of garlic from the shadowy garden.
To this I added a small purple onion from the grocery store…
I chopped the onion and the herbs quite fine…
I sautéed everything in olive oil, very briefly (to keep it all crisp and keep the currents from going mushy)…
and added the mixture to my couscous, prepared with boiling water and a quarter teaspoon of powdered chicken bullion.
A delicious dinner, a little tart, but perfect for my taste buds!!!!
© Jane Tims 2012
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