Poinsettia Season... And a Happy New Year!

Poinsettias are everywhere this month, and they make a pretty and easy gift.
I bought 3 small poinsettias very inexpensively.  I  re-used a woven wooden basket as my planter.  A plastic garbage bag works as a liner; I simply cut it down to size. After arranging the plants in the basket, I added a few pieces of wet floral foam block before filling in the rest of the basket with extra potting soil. This flower arrangement is destined for my mother-in-law's nursing home, and the foam pieces help hold the moisture in this dry environment where watering tends to be sporadic. Once the planting is complete, I roll the extra plastic into the inner edge. Spanish moss around the edge is the finishing touch; it hides the plastic and gives a nice finished look.  Voila! A good looking planting for my mother-in-law for less than $10.

We've always had good luck with poinsettias. See Poinsettias in July 

Our oldest, biggest poinsettia has not sprouted any red leaves so far this year. However, another smaller one that we summered over on the patio has.  All it takes is a couple of small red leaves to get us very excited.  And not to worry about the big poinsettia... it's an easy fix.  A couple of large artificial branches and it's a big, beautiful, blooming poinsettia!






Last year's poinsettia sprouts red leaves again!



The poinsettia plant is real; We've been growing it for years. It didn't sprout red leaves for us this year, so I added a few artificial flowers.  Problem solved!  :)

Santa Arrives with Our Greenhouse!

Merry Christmas to us! Our new Cedar-Built Greenhouse has arrived! Ordered the first week of September... expected to arrive late October... came yesterday, Dec. 13th, in a snowstorm, of course.  The "...between 2 and 4 pm..." delivery time turned out to be at 12:30 just as I was getting in my car to go to my December Quilt Club.  "I'm at the intersection of Rt.219 and 39," said the truck driver. Yikes! That's 5 minutes away, and there is no one here to unload, but me! Twenty minutes later, after some hasty phone calls, DH, his brother, and another nice strong 20-year-old with a pickup truck came to my rescue.

We live on a little dead-end side street, so the semi-truck had to back down our street to the end of our driveway. Six large and very heavy crates needed to move from the back of the semi, up our driveway, and into the garage.  No automatic lift-gate in this truck; it would take strong backs and pure muscle to do the job.  We needed a plan.  First crate: let's balance it on the garden wagon, and pull it to the garage with the lawn tractor. Okay, that kind of worked, but that was the smallest crate.  Can we get the larger ones onto that little wagon?

Thank goodness for Joe, the 20 year-old, and his pickup truck.  New plan: let Joe back up to the semi. Move the crates, one by one, into the pickup bed, and drive them into the garage.  "Now we're cooking... Don't drop'em boys... "  Thirty minutes, and a couple pinched fingers later the transfer was complete.  Thank-you, thank-you, thank-you, brother and friend! There's no way we could have done it without you.

Off I went to my Quilt Club, and DH spent the rest of the afternoon uncrating the greenhouse.  Of course, this means we will only be able to park 1 of our 2 cars in the garage.  One car (my car) will be sitting out in the snow until the greenhouse gets built.  (I see a lot of snow scraping in my future. Ugh!) 

The next step in this greenhouse adventure will be staining all the wooden pieces - no small task. I'm usually the painter of the family, so I've offered to take this on.  The garage can be heated, so as long as I can bear the fumes, I can get to it any time. My goal is to do a little at a time, but to have it finished in 1 month.  There's no real rush; it's not like we can beat the snow anymore. If our present winter weather continues as is throughout the season, we will be looking at a March greenhouse raising at the earliest.  Stay tuned:)

Cedar greenhouse- all in pieces waiting to be stained.

Winterize Your Rainbarrel & the Greenhouse Arrives Tomorrow!

Yikes!  Winter has arrived with a fury after our lovely mild autumn.  We've had several winter storms in the last 2 weeks.  My DH's hometown (25 miles SW of us) got socked with 4 feet of snow just a week ago.  We got about a foot or so. Temps have dropped rapidly, and we'll probably be back in the teens tomorrow with ice, wind, and more snow.

The only problem with our mild November is that we were lulled into forgetting Mother Nature's fickle personality. DH did not put up his Christmas lights Thanksgiving weekend when it was 50+ degrees.  No, he finally got to it this weekend in the wind and 20 degree weather.  Nothing says Christmas like "Griswalding" your home in a blizzard.

And somehow we neglected to empty and winterize the rain barrel. Not good.  How did it freeze so quickly?  Too late now.  Not only was it frozen solid, but the bottom had already cracked open.  There will be no saving this rain barrel.  How sad.  We'll thaw it out, cut off the top, and try to turn it into a "ball barrel" to hold kickball, footballs, basketballs, etc. in the garage.

On a more exciting note.... the long awaited greenhouse is due to arrive tomorrow.  It was shipped from the factory in Vancouver, Canada a week ago, and we've been tracking it's journey across Canada on the internet.  What an amazing time we live in; to be able to see where the truck was each evening was fascinating. Once it crossed into the U.S. it continued on to NY City.  "No," I wanted to shout! "We're only 50 miles from the Canadian border; we're 10 hours from NY City.  You're just going to have to turn around and come back to western NY."  But the shipping companies have their own way of doing things. I believe the greenhouse was transferred to a more local trucking company in NY City, and back it came to Buffalo, NY.  We got a call on Saturday asking us to have 2 or 3 strong men here on Monday between 2 and 4 pm to help off-load the greenhouse.  It will be packed on 6 pallets. It will have to go into the garage until I get it stained and the weather moderates.  More on this tomorrow.  What an exciting Christmas present!

"Oh the weather outside is frightful, but the fire is so delightful..."

The Winter of Our Lives

This has not been a good week.  Two unexpected deaths have left me feeling rather numb.  One was a young girl - former student of mine - with her whole life in front of her.  A tragic car accident leaves a giant hole in her family. Too young, too needless, too hurtful. And Jack - good friend, fellow teacher, newly retired with me - What? Where are you? You can't be gone. You have too much life in you. Lynn needs you. We all need you.

First snowstorm of the season happened yesterday.  More predicted for today and tomorrow.  Fits my mood.  Cold, windy, slippery, cloudy - where's the sun? DH says, "Go take some pictures for the blog." What the heck.  Nothing looks pretty to me right now, but sometimes the camera can help me see things I miss otherwise. 

The wind socks make me think of flying with Jack.  Jack, I was scared to death, but your enthusiasm and confidence was enough for both of us.  It was unforgettable - all 3 trips! You were a man of adventures; thanks for including me in the flying adventure.

Look how the snow blankets the trees.  Sometimes you just have to huddle down and wait for the storms of life to ease.  Jack knew that also.  He never was too busy at school to check on his friends. He was a high school teacher; I was down in the elementary. Sometimes there is a gap between high school and elementary staff even though our school is all one building.  Not so with Jack; he came to the elementary wing regularly to check on his friends - of which he had many. Thanks for the caring; it blanket-ed us many times in the storms.

Right today everything looks cold and grey. These are not black and white photos, but when I first looked at them, I thought they were.  Look carefully at those branches.  There is color there. "Wait," they tell me; storms, nor winter, last forever.  The sun will come back; life's colors will shine again. Memories will last; the sting will fade.

There is a N-E-S-W compass rose behind the bird bath. It's hard to see today because of the snow. But the snow will melt, and the way will come apparent again, thanks in part to the life lessons I've learned from Jack.  Be happy; care for others; be adventurous; learn something new; don't be too serious; a little romance is a good thing; live every single day.  You will not be forgotten. RIP.

Thanksgiving Cactus

I planted this succulent basket back in September. See Succulent Container Garden . The cactus is apparently very happy with its new home because not only has it grown new leaves, it is now in full bloom.  Beautiful!  That's why I've re-named it Thanksgiving Cactus.

Speaking of Thanksgiving, I'm planning my menu for both the traditional feast in the early afternoon, plus hor d'oeuvres and desserts for later in the evening. Just how much of my own garden produce will I be using?

• onions and a carrot for the dressing
• green beans with butter
• pickled beets
• butternut squash
• blueberries for a tart & blueberry nut bread

The rest of my produce will come from the store - locally produced whenever possible:

• roasted sweet potatoes and cauliflower
• pickles and olives
• mashed white potatoes
• pumpkin for pie
• celery for dressing & raw for snacking
• cranberries, apples, & celery for cranberry jello

Yes, there will also be a turkey. Now that's a feast.

Happy Thanksgiving to all my readers.  I really do appreciate the time you take to visit my blog.  I leave you today with a close-up of my Thanksgiving Cactus turned into pastel artwork via Corel Painter 11.

Planting Grass in November

It just doesn't sound logical to me.  Planting grass? Now? We're here in western NY. The weather has been unseasonably mild; last week was 60's and sunny.  But still, now it is damp, cool, and windy; it never got out of the 40's today.  We've had snow by Thanksgiving many-a-time.  Can we still get grass sprouted before winter truly sets in?

I used the internet, of course, in hopes of finding good advice.  All About Lawns   recommends planting between August 15 and September 15 in a 4 season climate.  But they also say "Just because you've missed the August to September window doesn't mean you're out of fall grass planting options. You can always take your chances planting a little later, particularly if you're enjoying an Indian summer. Or you can wait until late autumn to spread grass seeds. They'll remain dormant all winter, but when spring returns they'll start sprouting, giving you a jump start on the next growing season. There are risks -- the seeds can be washed or blown away by harsh weather -- but it's a good option for those who don't want to wait."

Notice the com-poster next to the new greenhouse base.

I think this week qualifies as late autumn. But my husband wanted me to spread some grass seed on our trench lines (See Greenhouse - Step 2) , and so I did.  I assume the seed will rot on the ground, but maybe it will come up next spring.  This is just another learning by trial and error for us.  Stay tuned on this one also; I'll let you know what does or doesn't happen.

Meanwhile, when I got home this afternoon, there was a surprise for me on the back patio.  The empty compost barrel had blown off its stand, across the lawn, and onto the patio (a distance of at least 50 yards).  Yes, it was that windy today.  I stood it on end so that it would hopefully travel no farther.  Grass seed?  It's probably over on the neighbor's lawn.  :)

That com-poster barrel got all the way over to the patio by itself!

Greenhouse - Step 2

The excitement of our new greenhouse has been on hold since we ordered it back in the first week of September. We knew it would take 8 weeks to come from the factory in Vancouver, Canada.  Of course the wait has become even longer than that.  We might see it around Thanksgiving.

That's really okay, because it is taking us at least that long to get the prep work done.  We immediately took down the pine tree that was struck by lightning.  See Greenhouse - Our Big Fall Project  That is where we are locating the greenhouse.  Building permit?  No problem - DH is friendly with the building inspector; we had our permit in no time.  Then on to building the base. This didn't sound too complicated; we needed a footer of treated lumber set in a couple feet of crushed limestone.  But small projects have a way of growing and taking on a life of their own.

First, how to dig the base out?  The tree was gone, but not it's thousands of roots.  Digging by hand was impossible.  My son owns a skid-steer, but although he's only 10 miles away, he had no way of getting it here. Then DH started thinking about what he would need in his greenhouse to fully enjoy it -- electric and water.  Hmm.... that means laying lines to the house... 4 feet down.  Time to call in professionals.  Yesterday, our talented contractor came with a couple workers and a small excavating machine.  One solid day of work and now the base is ready to build upon. 2 trenches have been dug, laid, and filled - 1 for water and 1 for electric. (Yes, we considered putting both water and electric in the same trench, but that would have meant going through the patio, resulting in re-doing the patio pavers.  Please, not another project.)  Our contractor promised to return on a rainy day to finish the water and electric hook-ups now that the outdoor work is done.

FUN!  WOW!  Very tough on the back.

This greenhouse was supposed to be a "do-it-yourself" project.  Well, today we finally did a little ourselves.  Those trenches needed raking and readying for seed.  Two flower beds needed patching where the trenches chewed through them.  Lucky for us the weather is remarkable - high of 67 degrees and bright sunshine.  I'll admit it didn't take long before my back was screaming at me; thank goodness for DH! He was a workhorse today.

What's next?  The greenhouse should be delivered before the end of the month.  My first job will be to stain all the wood (cedar) parts.  I know I can do that myself.  Can we assemble it ourselves?  Stay tuned.  We'll give it a try. If need be, we'll call in the troops for a good old fashioned "greenhouse raising".

Greenhouse foundation - Water just outside greenhouse - Electric cable sticking up in the corner. We destroyed a huge section of our lawn for this small structure.  Hope it's worth it.

Gingered Carrots

Now that the growing season is officially over, I don't feel guilty digging some of my carrots.  Yes, they keep quite well right in the ground, but it's not so much fun digging through snow to get to them.  Right now, we have them mulched with leaves, mostly to keep the deer away.  It's still easy to kick off a few leaves and pull the carrots from the ground.  In the dead of winter you need a shovel to dig the frozen ground. Maybe I can use them all up in the next month or so, and beat the worst of the snow.

This year's carrots grew very nicely.  They are long and straight with very few blemishes.  Nice.  We've learned the hard way that thinning the row of carrots early in the growing season is essential.  If they are not thinned, they twist around each other becoming stunted and deformed.  It's doesn't feel good to pull up perfectly healthy little plants, but you've got to do it.  We try to leave 2 inches between each carrot.

Carrots are a basic vegetable for me, almost like onions.  A carrot here, a carrot there - they go in soups, stews, salads, casseroles, and of course, raw with dip.

Today I'm using "Grandma Hill's" Ginger Glazed Carrots recipe. She was a great cook. I still enjoy using some of her recipes and remembering days past.

Ginger Glazed Carrots
1 pound carrots
2 Tablespoons butter
1 Tablespoon minced ginger, or 1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 Tablespoon brown sugar

Peel and chunk carrots into uniform pieces. Heat all ingredients + 1/3 cup of water to boiling in saucepan.  Cover and simmer until carrots are just tender. (About 8 minutes.) Remove cover and continue cooking, stirring    gently until liquid evaporates and carrots are glazed.

Jack Frost Makes His Appearance

I woke this morning snug in a warm bed within a cold room - my favorite. It makes it hard to get up however, so I waited until I could see a pink sky peeking in my window. This was followed quickly by a happy sun and a bright blue sky.  The lawn, the bushes, and the trees all sparkled with a shiny coating of frost.  The thermometer read 22 degrees.  Brrr. 

Since this was the first heavy frost of the season I was motivated to get out with my camera.  It made me think of the many early morning sunrises with shimmering frost on the roadsides that I've enjoyed over the years.  I always wished I'd stop for pictures, but the work schedule called and I didn't.  Maybe this year I'll make the drive a few times solely for the pictures.

Here are a few beauties from this morning's backyard.

Asparagus

Redbud tree

Blueberries

Honeymoon Salad? - "Lettuce Alone"

Happy Halloween!

It's the last day of October and we still have lettuce growing the the garden.  It's amazing!  It was planted at the end of July.  Even though we've had a couple of frosts, I covered it with a tarp on those few nights, and the temps did not get low enough to kill it.  We've been eating it since early September.  My DH planted it, but doesn't remember the variety. It's very much like Romaine lettuce - great for salads and in sandwiches. I've given it to neighbors and family.  It's been tender and delicious.  Now a hard freeze is predicted for tonight. It's fully mature; for the last week or so we've been eating the inner leaves.  I think I'll let it go tonight, but I say goodbye reluctantly; it's been a great crop.

Does this mark the official end of our 2010 vegetable garden season?  I guess, although we still have carrots, beets, and parsnips covered with leaves that I can dig as needed.  We harvest these root crops throughout the winter as long as the snow doesn't get too deep.  Of course, if we wait too long the deer will beat us to them.  I don't feel that bad if they eat the beets; I prefer them small and tender in the summer.  The carrots I've been digging a few at a time for the last month or so.  Parsnips we leave alone until after the first snows.  The cold weather seems to bring out their sweetness.  I've tried them earlier in the season, and they just don't taste the same.



This has been a wonderful crop of lettuce.



Animal Mysteries

A couple of mysterious happenings in our yard have made me pause and realize that my DH and I are not the only creatures enjoying this habitat.  In fact, as much as we consider this home, we're really just visitors.  Our yard is home to many creatures.  Here's a list of some of the animals we've observed in our village yard:

squirrels

chipmunks

moles

rabbits 

ground hogs

opossums

skunks

deer

fox
bear (We didn't actually see it, but he left his scat, and neighbors saw it 1/2 mile from us.)

toads

snakes

bees of several kinds

bugs of all kinds

butterflies

and birds, too numerous to list

The first mystery appeared on a pin oak on our back line.  Something has damaged the bark; it looks like it has been rubbed off.  We suspect the deer family that has been using our yard as their daily trail.  I hate to have them kill this tree, so I guess it needs fencing for the winter.

DH gets excited every single time the deer cross our yard; he's just like the dog in the movie "UP".  "DEER!" he yells as he runs to a window.  This occurs almost daily - sometimes 2 or more times. He's been trying to catch them on his Bird Cam; so far no luck.  I'm glad he gets such enjoyment from the deer, but they cause a lot of damage to my flowers, my bushes, our vegetables, but surprisingly not the blueberries.

The second mystery is this hole that appeared on the edge of the back lawn.  It looks almost like a woodchuck hole, but I don't think it is.  Notice the right side of the photo.  Yes, that is honeycomb.  It looks like an animal dug these bees from underground.  There are 3 big chunks of honeycomb with bees still crawling all over them.  I'm pretty sure the bees are yellow jackets. The comb is paper-like. The hole is deep and large - 12 inches in diameter.

Is this the work of a skunk?  What kind of bees live underground?  Will my DH be yelling "SKUNK" next?

In Search of Red

It was a lovely, warm autumn day during the last week of October, and I went on a hunt for red in my gardens.  I was pleasantly surprised with all that I found.  See for yourself:

The geraniums are still blooming.

Mums, of course

The blueberry bushes

The blueberry bushes really are lovely.

Dwarf rhododendron

A lonely, tiny rose .... yes, it is a rose.

A young pin oak

Okay, it's not red, but really -- petunias in the last week of October - they deserve a shout out!

My burning Bush!!!  It's turning red!!!  It's a miracle!!!

Butternut Squash

Here's my entire crop of butternut squash - 9 small squash.  I put the apple in the bowl to show just how small they are. Not too impressive.  I'm not sure what held this crop back this year, but I'll be thankful for what I have.  We like zucchini best of all the summer squash varieties, and we like butternut squash best of the winter squash varieties.

I like winter squash 3 ways:  boiled and mashed, chunked and roasted, creamed and pureed as soup.  Preparation begins the same for each.  First I cut the squash into manageable sizes. (I guess I can skip this step this year since the squash is so small.) Next I peel off the skin. Then I cut the squash into 1 inch chunks.

Now for roasted squash, I toss the chunks in a zip-lock bag with olive oil, salt and pepper.  Bake squash on a baking sheet in the oven, 350 degrees, for about 30-40 minutes until golden brown and tender.

For mashed squash, boil in a inch of water for about 30 minutes or until soft and tender.  Drain off the water and mash.  Squash varies in moisture.  Sometimes mashing with salt, pepper, and butter is all that's needed.  Other times the squash will seem dry, and then I add milk or cream just like mashed potatoes.  I actually like it best this way.

L to R:  Soup, mashed, & roasted butternut squash

For soup, boil the squash chunks (optional: with a onion) in about 1 cup of water (or chicken stock).  Use an immersible hand blender or your regular blender to puree the vegetables until smooth. Add salt and pepper to taste.  Add 1 cup or so of cream or milk. Sprinkle a little nutmeg on top when serving this soup.

Do You Think You Hate Brussel Sprouts?

Hate brussel sprouts? -A week ago my answer would have been yes.  Normally, I eat and enjoy almost all vegetables.  Kale, spinach, beets, parsnips... I'm good with all of these and many more.  But brussel sprouts - I've just never been able to warm up to these mini cabbages.  I've had them boiled or steamed, and the strong pungent odor forewarned me that I wasn't going to enjoy them.  The distinctive bitter taste of boiled brussel sprouts confirmed my prediction.

But never say ol' dogs can't learn new tricks.  Three serendipitous occurrences seemed to be sending brussel sprouts my way.  First, I happened to read a short newspaper article about this vegetable and it's healthy aspects.  Number 2, I came across a recipe that recommended roasting brussel sprouts for the best flavor and elimination of bitterness.  And number 3, there they were at Wednesday's Auction, fresh-cut from the garden.  I didn't know they grew on a tall, thick stalk!  Some of the stalks even had a Christmas tree shape.   The little balls of brussel sprouts looked like ornaments.  Who could resist? The stalks were just too pretty.

So for a mere $2, I bought a stalk and brought them home.  I roasted them exactly as recommended in this recipe: Roasted Brussel Sprouts  I'm glad the recipe told me to expect the sprouts to brown up; I might have thought I was burning them. They were fantastic!  I'm still amazed. I like brussel sprouts!  No bitterness.... salty sweet flavor... single leaves were actually crispy.... mmmm.   I even tried the left-overs cold as one reviewer had suggested.  Yes, they were even good cold!  I just wish I had thought to take a picture before I cut the sprouts off the stalk.  Oh well, that just means I'll have to buy them again next week. 

What have I learned from this adventure?  Never BOIL or STEAM brussel sprouts. Folks, it's all in the way you prepare them.  Roasting is definitely the way to go.

The stalk after brussel sprouts were cut off

Fresh brussel sprouts

Roasted brussel sprouts... and yes, they are supposed to be brown. Delish!