seed tape & mewsings

Wanna  make your own seed tape? I never even considered it before, actually, I've never even heard of seed tape before, but I like it and I'd be inclined to make it myself, for sure!

The fine folks at SeedsNow.com where I bought my organic and non-GMO seeds show you how here and it's super easy.

(photo from SeedsNow.com)

On another note......

Meet Olive

She will be here tomorrow. Her current people are very sad they cannot take her with them to their new assisted living facility.  She reminds me a little of Myrtle. Mostly because she's stripey. I know Baxter misses her, she's been gone a little over a year now.

I hope Olive and Baxter become friends. 

Myrtle

Myrtle & Baxter 

Myrtle & Baxter with Squeek sneaking up the steps...

This is Squeek, who lives in my yard and is a bit wild. He and Olive seem to have similar markings. With any luck, Olive will rule the roost. When Myrtle was around, she was Queen Bee, and Baxter was fine being outside. Somehow, she kept the peace. Baxter rarely goes out now. Perhaps the order will realign with Olive's feminine energy:)

Time will tell......

well, it's Friday again.

Sometimes I feel like there is so much going on and nothing at all.

Lots of my projects are in the works, but very little to show for at the moment.

I am looking forward to a visit with friends from Dallas this weekend. They are driving up here on a very important mission to deliver precious cargo.

More to follow.....

seeding and potting

In the last few days, I've been repotting plants that have suffered from being inside all winter and seeding for my vegetable garden.

I'm using these handy seeding pods.

it's quite satisfying to watch them puff up in water.

popsicle sticks make good markers.

They are currently in my studio, 3 trays, covered with plastic wrap for a makeshift greenhouse effect. some have already sprouted!

I got a little excited and planted some strawberries in the baskets outside my back door. It's supposed to be very cold the next couple nights so I've got them covered with a towel and I hope they don't freeze. (The potted strawberries are inside tonight, but the baskets are attached to the railing so I cannot bring them in.) I bought them on a whim and I kind of forgot it was probably going to freeze again before the end of April. Sigh.

rocks and birds and herbs

Today is the Vernal Equinox. Yay! for the 1st day of spring, and it was actually warm and sunny and springy. Such a welcome event.

I did some treasure hunting last weekend and got these lovelies...

I'm obsessed with the cover art on this rock book

and this!

a fitting name for the author of an herb book, no?

Still working out the details of my raised bed.....

Mystery plant update:

I had a suggestion from one of my favorite people that it may be a frangipani, but upon closer research, I am not sure that it is. I kind of wish it was, though, because they are so beautiful. I have another feeler out, sent a photo to a friend who has a friend who is a horticulture expert so I may be closing in on it.

name that succulent

I rescued this GIANT succulent from an estate sale about a month and a half ago. I got it for $6 and the people didn't know what it was or even if it was alive. It had not one leaf, and was so strange and stick like, I really had no clue how it would go. Since I am totally obsessed with succulents, I gambled on it. I brought it home and cut off 2 obviously dead limbs and watered it really good and even gave it a little plant food. Nothing. About a month later, I moved it to my studio that gets lots of sun, even in the winter, and about 2 weeks later....

 leaves, glorious leaves!!!

Ok, overall it doesn't look like much, but just wait. I have a feeling it's really gonna do something amazing. Other than grow leaves, which IS amazing. Does any one out there know what kind of this plant is?

On another note, I have decided on my raised bed design, been shopping around and gathering info on pricing etc. I'll tell you about it next time.

Till then, then.

Have a great weekend!

treasure hunting

I went to a rummage around a local thrift today and found some real beauties.

What came home with me:

one can never have too many hanging wire baskets

a perfect shirt to wear while painting

it is hand made and the fabric looks like watercolor

What did not:

hand painted portrait of Liz Taylor

hand painted portrait of Robert Redford

wtf.

These 2 tiny (5 inch!) looms were very tempting:

strawberry crumble

It seems that winter isn't ready to leave. I had some strawberries but really wanted something warm and cozy and sweet. I have made many rustic tarts with fruit, but this time, I didn't want pastry, I was craving something more cobbler-like. My mom used to make an apple crisp, and I made a mixed berry crumble when I worked at the Quay Co-op in Cork, Ireland. I'll have to tell you about that sometime. It was my 1st job as a baker and everything was at least vegetarian, and often vegan. I learned so much while I was there, and it was one of the best experiences of my life!

Anyways, I decided to try my hand at a strawberry crumble. This is the first time I've created a dessert recipe from scratch! I'm pretty excited about it. I have followed many recipes over the years, so I thought this might be an easy start. It is so stinkin' good, and I'm a little bit proud of it. It's the perfect combo of sour, sweet, warm, crumbly goodness. It'll definitely go in the book!

STRAWBERRY CRUMBLE

Ingredients:

for the fruit mixture:

1 pound of strawberries,  cleaned and sliced
1 granny smith apple, washed, cored and chopped small (I leave the skin on)
1 c coconut sugar
a couple shakes of ground cinnamon
2 tbsp chia seeds
3 tbsp almond flour
juice of 1 lemon

for the crumble:

10 dates, pitted
1/2 c coconut oil (it's winter so the oil is hard: if it's summer and it is soft, put in fridge for a few minutes)
3/4 c walnuts
1 c rolled oats
1 tbsp flax seeds
4 shakes of ground cinnamon

Method:

heat oven to 350 degrees

Using a large bowl, stir together the ingredients for the fruit mixture. Place into a baking dish.

Using a food processor, chop the dates. They may be super sticky, I had to stop and break them up a bit once or twice.

Add the FIRM coconut oil and walnuts and pulse chop.

Add the rolled oats, flax, and cinnamon and pulse chop one last time.

It should be a nice crumbly mixture. It'll be a little sticky still because of the dates.

Layer the crumble on top of the strawberry mixture.

I baked mine on a jellyroll pan incase it bubbled over, but it didn't. But it also makes the dish easier to take out of a hot oven when it's done.

Cover with aluminum foil and bake for 35-45 min, then remove the foil and let the top brown for another 15 minutes. I kept my eye on it so it wouldn't burn, but it was fine. Ovens can cook differently, so you might need to adjust the times to suit.

I dug in immediately!

PS: It was delicious the next day for breakfast, and I took some to the office today for a little between client energy boost!

If you need it to be gluten free, substitute the oats for gluten free oats. Adjust it to your liking. I think I'll experiment some more with this basic recipe.

Enjoy!

tuesday

I love how these little purple flowers continue to bloom all winter.

There's an herb garden under all that snow.

I did some cooking yesterday. Made another version of the Spring Green soup. I had some dandelion greens and some broccoli so added that to the mix. The dandelion greens gave it a really deep earthy green color. 

This was so delicious! Btw, I have been keeping up with the Daily Water Quota from my cleanse and it's amazing! I had a green smoothie yesterday so need to have 2 more this week. I think when the weather turns warmer I'll up that number. 

I was also craving something sweet and warm, and needed to use some strawberries. I can't wait to show you what I came up with in tomorrow's post!

a touch of spring on a snowy day.

I read that you can start a celery plant from the bottom cut of a celery stalk. Turns out you can! This is the 2nd one I tried. I did this last summer, but I think I put it in the ground too soon and it just withered away. Maybe it was too hot or needed more shade or sun...This one has nice little roots on the very bottom and as you can see, a healthy foliage! I'll have to do a little research to figure out the planting, but I have plenty of time since it's snowing here. Again. 

Sigh. 

I guess that dang groundhog was right.

If anyone has tips on growing celery, I'd love to hear from you.

On another note, Sumo oranges are here!!!

I LOVE these. They will only be here for a short while, much like mineolas, which I also love. (But I think I like these better!) It's interesting because I am not such a fan of orange juice, but I love an actual orange. 

I have been wanting to grow citrus so bad and have decided on the type. Meyer lemon dwarf. All the suppliers that sell the organic trees are sold out. Apparently, everyone buys them in the summer. I'll have to wait. I have a friend who has a lime and lemon tree growing in pots inside her home and they are weighted down with fruit every December. I have a very similar room to the one her's are in with lots of natural light and I am sure it will work for me. I can't wait to get them!

Any of you grow citrus? have a variety you recommend? 

tgis

Enjoy the weekend and see you Monday!