I had to go around the garden yesterday and take some pictures of what is bursting forth. Just a few hot days and the garden is now really putting on a show. It always makes me wonder what else can possibly bloom after the array we have at present, but we will have many more flowers that will show up at different intervals. I thought I would post a visual as a picture they say "is worth a thousand words".
I have decided to share some of our flowers as they appear. We have so many and each one is more beautiful than the previous. I often say, "This is my favourite flower." The following week I find myself admitting to the same thing about another one. Bleeding heart definitely fits in this category as I am always reminded of the parts described to me by my Great Aunt Edie who lived with us when I was a child. Two rabbits A pair of slippers A pair of earrings A bottle of champagne We never had the white one when I was a child but we do now and it is equally as delicate. This is turning out to be an incredibly busy week here. The grass is growing madly, and the weeds are as well. The nice thing is that the flowers are all bursting forth in full bloom. Every year I think the same thing. It seems that there is nothing and then everything shows up at once. Fortunately we are having a cooler spell right now that will keep some of the earliest bloomers looking good while the next phase pops out. We have also been on a tight schedule as we want to get the floor stained in the south parlour. It has been empty for several months now and we have got it all prepped for the stain, but then we got caught up in other things. Once that is stained it will take a several days to dry before we can put the varathane on. I can hardly wait. Then paint the walls and the trim, move the furniture back and it should look like a million dollars. Today they do not predict rain but it is very cloudy and if it just gives us enough time to mow the lawns then we will welcome the rain. That way we will not have to set up the pump to water the vegetable garden. Keeping my fingers crossed.
The final pictures are of my 1. "Northern Lights" Azalea with a Purple Mullen, 2. Rhododenron (rescue plant first year bloom) 3. Pink Lupin 4. Purple Lupins. Today is the day we plant this years garden. It will be much smaller than other years. Just don't have as much need or energy for that matter.
We got the garden plot tilled and ready for planting. Hope the rain holds off for awhile so we can get the seeds in the ground. There are already lots of things growing. We have a few strawberries and other perennial plants like mint, chive, thyme and the lot. We also have a row of raspberries, black raspberries and blackberries and half a row of black and red currants and half a row of asparagus. The garlic and french shallots have been in the ground since last fall and will be ready for harvest late June or early July. I anxiously await the garlic as we ran out this year and I prefer what we grow to anything we find in the stores or market. This year the garden will consist of one row of potatoes; fingerlings, green mountain and butterball. We plan to have some peas, green and yellow beans, carrots, beets, leeks, eggplant, zucchini, cukes and of course tomatoes. We always plant our old variety of plum tomatoes to make sauce in the fall; and we will have a good sandwich tomato and some smaller deep red (almost black) ones this year. Don't forget the cherry, a plant of yellows and reds. We still have a few annuals to plant. Last year the cosmos were so beautiful we decided they will be a mainstay down by the pond. We also planted some okra, not for the vegetable but for decoration. The leaves are dark green veined with red and the flowers creamy yellow. The lantana and banana trees have been dragged out from the basement to adorn the deck as soon as we get a last coat of stain on and the begonias have been potted up for the side of the house. Well this day is done and we still have some planting to do. I did get to have a visit with a friend in town though and also do a bit of research at the library. Well it is already tomorrow. Today we finished the planting for this year. Now we weed and watch it grow. They are calling for rain tonight which would be perfect. We will have to get back out in the next couple of days and mow lawn however as it is growing quickly. Yesterday was a day spent picking stones from the garden rows. If the weather remains dry and windy we should be able to till the garden and get the plants in. They are crying for more space. The one saving grace has been that if we had put them in earlier they would have had a big setback as we had frost last Saturday and in general the weather has been cold.
Off to have the car serviced this morning. It is a year ago we bought it. How time flies. Fortunately it is just an oil change so I should be done in about an hour. The cold weather has slowed the asparagus and this gives us a bit of a break from it. We have eaten asparagus in some form everyday for the last week. Flowers are starting to appear everywhere in the gardens. blue and white iris, bluebells and our fern leaf peonies (paeonia tenuifolia) are just starting to bloom. In a few more days the cherry and pear blossoms will be finished and the apple blossoms will be in full splendour. The lilac buds are loosening and they should be filling the air with their glorious scent in the next week. Just walking back from the mailbox today I got a waft of lilac so some have started to open. The asparagus just keeps coming. When this happens we have to take charge and so we did.
After several feeds of the veggie, I still had 7 pounds and more on its way. This is a way to take care of some of it. Last Christmas we tasted some pickled asparagus at a neighbour's party. It was very nice so we decided to try it ourselves. Now 7 pounds sounds like a lot, but by the time you trim the asparagus to fit in the jars it goes fast. We decided to use some of the pieces as well from the trimmings. In all we had 8 jars. It is a simple process, but all canning takes some time. We cut the asparagus to the right lengths and boiled them for 2 minutes in the pickling liquid. In the jars, we placed 1 garlic clove, 2 pieces of red and green pepper, 1 tsp. each of mustard seed and dill and 1 hot pepper. The most difficult part was lining up the hot asparagus in the jars. Top with the hot liquid, clean the rims of the jars and process for 10 minutes. Now all we have to do is wait for the pickles to absorb all the flavours. Should be ready to eat in a few weeks. Brine 5 cups white vinegar 1-⅔ cups water 1-⅔ cups sugar 4 tsp. salt Bring to a boil and keep at a low boil for 5 minutes until all the sugar and salt have dissolved before placing the asparagus in the brine. Tomorrow I will drop of some of the asparagus we gathered to friends in town, then on to Peterborough with more for my sister, when I meet her for lunch. For the last several days the female oriole has been building a nest in our willow. We put out some string for her and were disappointed to see she was not using it. Then this afternoon I saw her with a piece of the string in her beak. She flew to the next site and began to weave it carefully into the nest.
It is amazing to watch her work. She is precise and diligent in her home building. The male on the other hand does not participate in the building of the nest. He does however, enjoy the pieces of orange that we have been supplying them. Lots of stems from the asparagus have been simmering in the pot this afternoon to make a broth for "Crème d'asperges". This will be a welcome meal come autumn when the weather cools. Served with crusty baguette. I make up a base by boiling the stems and some onion in chicken stock then passing them through a vegetable mill and freezing the purée in small batches ready to finish off when needed. Whenever I feel like a bowl of asparagus soup I just thaw one of these batches and add some heavy cream. Such a treat when asparagus is no longer available. Yesterday I was determined to catch this guy on digitally. We had seen him and his mate flying around the house but usually when I did not have my camera at hand or was busy with other things.
I knew you could attract them with oranges but it was not until my son sent a link about feeding orioles that I took action. We cut the ends off and orange and placed it strategically on a stand just outside the kitchen. Sure enough by the afternoon we had the male feeding. He was voracious and tore at the fruit in gluttonous fashion. It was only after he had his feed that the female arrived. She was somewhat shyer and startled easily but finally had her feed as well. We will replace the fruit daily to keep them here and if we are lucky we will catch some pictures of the babies once they leave the nest. Nature is joyous. Tomorrow is Mother's Day. There is not a day goes by that I don't think of mine. She died in 1998 in her 91st year. On her 90th birthday her daughters and granddaughters got together for a weekend at my sister's home to celebrate her wonderful life. Our gift to her was a memory book where each of her children and grandchildren told her what she meant to them. I think she thought it was the best gift she ever received. When her granddaughters from up north left that Sunday she told them goodbye and that she would probably not see them again. I guess she knew what was to come. This was my memory of Mom. A little piece of youJanuary 28, 1997 Mom's 90th birthday Thank you mom for all you have done. Not just for being my mother, but for being a special mother. You were always there when I needed you. You were always fair to your children even though there were times when I did not understand your fairness. I now look back and have acquired some of that wisdom in order to be fair with my children. You found it in yourself to be cheerful at times when I know it must have been most difficult. You helped me through some very difficult times in my life without interfering. You accomplished that through gentle persuasion and guidance. You gave me strength and beauty not just outwardly but also inwardly. You taught me right from wrong and allowed me to make my own mistakes. You were there to pick me up when I fell. Though there were many times when I did not understand your knowledge I have come to understand it and I thank you for that too. When I look back on my youth, I have so many fond memories. There were tears and hard times but many more times of laughter and joy. You chose a mate, my father, and together reared your family with love and respect. You also taught me to love and respect, those more fortunate, my peers, and those less fortunate than myself. For that I am truly grateful. Although it was probably not easy to raise me as I was a willful child, you managed. You always looked back at what must have been a disaster at the time, with a smile and even a chuckle. My thoughts of lipstick and playing maids comes to mind. You played games with me when I was small, baked cookies for me and my friends, warm from the oven when I came home from school. Other mothers were not so present. They bought cookies that probably remained in their cupboards because their children were at my house eating the homemade ones. Our family was most important to us and remains that way. We were so fortunate to have Aunt Edie with us while we were young and that was due to your kindness in inviting her into our home. I’m sure that she instilled in you some of the qualities you in turn gave to your children. When you had your last two children, you were not as young as most mothers but you remained young in spirit and body. I was more fortunate than many of my friends because I also had the wisdom of your life which took you many more places than their mothers could have possibly gone in their short years. We had the best of all worlds with our summers at the cottage and winters in Toronto. You made sure that I wanted for nothing even though I let you think that there were things I needed and didn’t have. At ninety years you still teach me things and I am no longer amazed by this. I guess I have come to expect it. I am who I am because you are who you are. You are my book critic, my mentor, my friend and I am so proud to say you are “my Mom”. Love, Tess |
Stephanie
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