A Long Winter's Nap

Perhaps
      what moves us in winter
 is some reminiscence of
      a far off summer.
                                   -Henry David Thoreau

  










 Now that our garden's have all been tucked in and put to bed for the winter it is time to relax a little and enjoy the stark beauty of a winter's landscape.

     I for one love the look of winter. The trees exposed in all their glory, showing us their true shape. Each one bare, you get to see each twist and turn of the branches and the trees true character.
 I also love that all the birds nests which are usually tucked away from sight, hidden among the leaves, are now exposed for all to see. I am always amazed at the size of some of them, so tiny and intricate.  
  And then there are the squirrels nests, mounds of leaves formed to provide warmth on cold winter days and a place to put their winter stash. They aren't to afraid of the cold and it is only on very cold days that they tuck themselves away. I am always amused by the way they scurry up and down the trees jumping from one to the next. It's like a jungle gym for squirrels.

  
  Hopefully, you had the chance to cut back your perennial's, cover-up any delicate plants and plant your spring bulb's. I for one did not get around to planting any spring bulbs. I had good intentions but delayed it to long. I will just have to plant extra next year. I always try to put at least a couple of dozen in each year so that I always have a lovely spring display. Bulbs get old or get replanted by some meaningful squirrels ( or so I like to think)  So, if you add some every year,  you will always have something blooming for you in the spring.














       I did manage to cut back all of my plants and put cones around my roses and more delicate plants. I know some people like to leave their clean-up until spring but for me I like to do it in the fall. One of the reasons is that I find, especially in the past few years, the plants are coming up early and if you have left clean up for spring they tend to get lost among the old garden waste. Also, there is always a lot to do in the garden in spring so why add to it. Having taken care of it in the fall you can get right to things without having to clean up first. I'm all about the easy, plus I don't really like old wet soggy leaves.














      So now that you have all that work out of the way you can use these cold winter months to sit back and start planning your garden for next year. It's a great time to flip through gardening magazines and books and think of the things that did or did not work for you last year. Keep a note book and that way you won't forget what you would like to add or change. I like to keep a garden journal, I actually have a couple, with pictures and notes.  It makes life easier and helps you remember what everything looked like thus making it easier to know what needs to be changed. If you find pictures in magazines of a garden, garden accessory or plant you like, cut it out and put it in your journal. Write down names of plants, seeds etc of things you want to have a look at, try or find out more about.

  











  I have been looking at a few food blogs and have decided I would like to try and add a few more vegetables to my garden. This will take a bit of juggling of plants but I have time now to figure out what I have to do to make it work. One of the blogs I was looking at is called 'dishing the dirt' and another is 'white on rice' both great blogs and worth checking out.
     So use your free time from the garden to plan ahead. Enjoy the winter landscape, take a walk and see what plants other people have that are adding winter interest to their yards. Take time to relax and enjoy the break and dream of summer days to come.

Happy Gardening! 

Autumns little glories

Halloween  display

"I love Autumn, the one season of the 

year that God seemed to have put

there just for the Beauty

of it."

                                         -Lee Maynard

                                    

Blooms from succulents

   In the Autumn when we start to see our gardens die off there are always a few plants that seem to hang on. This is a perfect time to enjoy those last few blooms by bringing them in. 

I don't know about you but I hate to see those beautiful flowers sitting out in the garden not being appreciated by anyone. Also it gives us a chance to grasp the last few days of summer by brightening up our homes. 

Blooms from succulents

Climbing Rose

     I always seem to have roses that want to hang on, not giving in to cold nights and frosty mornings, so why not help them out and let them thrive inside. This red rose below is that lovely rose of mine that has such an intoxicating scent, there is no way I could leave it outside given the chance of smelling it one more time. 

Shrub rose

Pineapple Sage flowers

  This bouquet is the flower of Pineapple Sage. Unfortunately it seemed to bloom very late this year and so when I started to clean up my garden it was just in full bloom. Instead of cutting it down I decided to bring it in and I do think it makes a lovely display. Just remember the ants love this plant and hide in the deep throats of this flower.
    So give them a good shake and check them carefully or you might have ants crawling about the house.



   And then there are the grasses. They make a great display for Thanksgiving and Halloween.  I love the Northern Sea Oats because you can bring them in, place them in a vase without water and they just dry beautifully. They add lovely colour and texture to your Thanksgiving display and will remain that way until you throw it away. Talk about easy. You can do the same with Hydrangea's and Sedum blooms which make a lovely fall bouquet and would look great among the Sea Oats.

Northern Sea Oats

   The tall grasses are perfect for Halloween, especially the ones with feather like blooms. Just cut them and place them where you want, as they dry they have more character so it's a good idea to cut them maybe a week before Halloween.
    I also left my urn with it's grasses out for Halloween which made a colourful and interesting and not to mention easy display. All I did was add a few plastic skulls and faux leaves and I was done.

   So before you start tearing your garden down, look around and see if there is anything you can bring in, allowing you to savour summer for a few more days.

Happy Gardening!

Porcupine Grass 

Zen and Now

If you are having trouble seeing clearly,

take a moment to relax

and just enjoy

the view from where you are.

Zen garden/ground covers

  I don't know if you remember me talking in a previous post about my Zen garden but I had mentioned the fact that it was a great deal of work. 

  As you can see in the pictures it was very full and required many hours of weeding to keep it looking good. Now being a Zen garden I found it was not providing me with tranquility but frustration at the speed in which the weeds would grow.

  Even though I did love the way it looked and all the lovely ground covers,  I needed to change something.  So as the garden season came to an end I decided it was a good time to do just that and make my life a little easier. 

Zen garden

   I decided to make good use of the space and at the same time retain some of it's character. I left quite a few of the grasses on the edge of the garden and also my new Japanese Maple.















  This is my now empty Zen garden, it makes me a little sad to see it this way but I know I will enjoy the extra time I will have to spend elsewhere in the garden.
  I managed to move quite a few of the ground covers to different areas of my garden so I will still get to enjoy them, just not in such abundance. I also managed to give away most of the grasses so I feel good about that. Waste not want not.

    And this is my new patio. I am so happy with the way it turned out and can already picture how it will look with my planters and furniture in the summer.  As you can see some of the grasses are still there but it all looks much neater. I love the way my Japanese Maple is centre stage and hopefully it will thrive in that spot.

 I also find that the patio makes the whole yard look bigger and the area itself looks so much bigger even though it is almost the same size as before. 

    In the spring I will use various planters to add colour and character to this new 'Zen' type patio. I plan to put my stone bench back, maybe along the window wall and hopefully add a water feature as well.

   I  am also really pleased at how well it works with the deck, especially the colouring. It has a nice flow and turned out just as I had pictured.

  One thing for sure is I already feel more Zen just thinking of relaxing in that spot rather that being on my knees weeding.







  So remember, fall is a great time for making changes and if you are planning something like this I highly recommend the fall. I was not anticipating the amount of dust that would be involved and would not want that in the spring if it can be avoided.

  Also, when the snow starts to melt and those lovely spring mornings start calling you outside, the work is already done.
  You can sit back, relax and watch your garden come to life once again.

  I think that 'Zen' is already working for me.

Happy Gardening!

Late Bloomers

Blanket Flower

                                                            " By all these lovely
                                                          tokens, September days
                                                         are here. With summer's 
                                                             best of weather and
                                                          Autumn's best of cheer. "

    One of the things I have tried to do over the years is make sure I always have something blooming from season to season. I guess that is really the idea of having a perennial garden, to have a continuous bloom from spring to fall.
  Even though a garden is never really finished I feel I have been somewhat successful in accomplishing a continuous bloom throughout the seasons.

Sedum, Blanket Flower and Helenium

  Fall has a lot to offer in colour and as we all know if you have trees then there is a guarantee of some beautiful fall colour. That aside there are lots of fall plants to choose from, a lot of  'late bloomers' so to speak.
  There's something to be said about being a late bloomer. They get to be the last hurrah of the growing season and usually require little care. They also add a splash of colour to an otherwise colourless dying garden. I also find I tend to be less fussy about my fall flowers. Maybe it's knowing that they are the last hurrah and don't have to look good for a couple of seasons, when it's gone it's gone. Whatever the case may be fall can be a rewarding time in your garden offering a comfort that we don't get in the deep heat of the summer or the toil of spring gardening.

Anise Hyssop and Hibiscus

 Another thing that is wonderful about fall flowers is that some of them such as Hydrangea's and Sedum's, can be brought in and left to dry in a vase where they will self preserve. If you like you can spray paint them and add them to your Thanksgiving or Christmas decor.

Hydrangea and Hibiscus

Sedum - 'Matrona'

 











  

  Holly is also one of those plants that you can clip and bring in to add to your Christmas decor, just be sure not to bring it in too soon or it will be dead by Christmas. You also need to have a male and female holly plant in order to produce berries. Mine has taken a few years to get to where it is but I also moved it several times, which they don't seem to like. Something to keep in mind before you plant a holly bush.

Holly- Blue Princess

 I have a list of some of my favourites and if you're out at the garden centre don't forget to look and see if they still have plants that they are trying to get rid of. They may not look very good but that is to be expected and you should be able to get them for a great price.

Anemome - Queen Charlotte

Japanese Windflower - Anemome

Pineapple Sage - should be in full bloom this time of year.
Butterfly Bush - also still blooming
Coneflower - some will still be blooming, check bloom times
Fall Aster
Toad Lily
Sedum - at it's best right now
Japanese Anemome
Anise Hyssop
Sea Holly
Sweet Autumn Clematis - my absolute favorite
Holly
Hibiscus - amazing large plate size blooms
Chocolate Boneset - beautiful white flowers against chocolate colored leaves

 There are many more but those are the ones that I seem to have the best of luck with and they add a great punch of colour. Like most plants it's best to give them a try and see what works for you.

Borage

Also, don't forget about your herbs, such as  Lavender, Pineapple Sage, Borage, Nasturtium and Anise Hyssop which are all still in bloom in my garden. They add a great shot of colour and are easy to remove so you can leave them until first frost.

Pineapple Sage

    So even though we may be sad to see our summer come to an end, if we plan ahead we can have a beautiful fall garden, full of colour.
   Bring some of that colour indoors and enjoy all that Autumn has to offer.

Happy Gardening!

Toad Lily

Chocolate Boneset

Jam Session

Green Tomato Mincemeat

                                                   'Gratitude makes of each moment
                                           a feast for the eyes and a banquet for the soul.'

   I really liked the way my Lavender Honey and Nasturtium Vinegar turned out so I decided to try my hand at a few other things.
   I thought I would try a few different kinds of honey. The first one I made was Lemon Balm and Ginger honey and I have to say I think this is my favorite. It has such a wonderful flavour, both of the lemon and ginger. It is apparently a good honey to add to tea or to just take by the teaspoon full if you have a cold or sore throat. Either way it is very tasty. I also tried Pineapple Sage Honey, it's good but I don't find the flavour as strong as I would like. I think next time I would use more leaves and wait until it is blooming so I can also use the flowers. And of course there's the Lavender Honey which I made more of.  I love everything about Lavender but it is definitely an acquired taste and I find a lot of people don't like the flowery taste of Lavender.

Lavender, Pineapple Sage and Lemon Balm/Ginger Honey

  You can use these honey's where you would normally use honey such as on scones, muffins, toast, in tea and over fruit. You might also pair it with a strong cheese such as a blue cheese or cheddar.  You could also substitute it in a cookie recipe that asks for honey, especially the Lavender honey which would be wonderful in something like a sugar cookie or in shortbread. Use your imagination.

Herb Jellies

   The next thing I decided to try was Herb Jellies. The first one I tried was a Nasturtium Jelly and I am  very happy with the results but would have preferred a more peppery taste. As with the honey,  I think next time I would use more flowers and leaves and maybe steep it a bit longer. The recipe calls for you to bring the liquid to a boil and then remove it and let it steep for 10-15min. I think what I would do is bring it to a boil and then simmer it on low for half an hour and then adding more liquid if need be to have the required amount. The second one I tried was Nasturtium flowers with Rosemary and it has a nice earthy flavour. With this one I did steep it longer on a low simmer with much better results. They are both a beautiful colour and would look lovely sitting on a cheese platter pairing nicely with an assortment of cheese or with a roast of pork.

Tomato and Peach Jams

   I also tried my hand at some jams.  
  I first tried a Tomato Basil Jam at a restaurant in Burlington called the Alex. They served it on a Phyllo pastry crust along with Arugula and Goats cheese and if I'm not mistaken Caramelized onions. Amazing!!
  So, since I enjoyed it so much I decided to make some, I still had a lot of Tomato's from my garden and decided this was a great way to use them. I am very happy with the way it turned out and it also looks really nice speckled with chopped Basil also from my garden.
  It is best served at room temperature and also pairs nicely with cheese. Is there anything that dosen't??

   Next I tried my hand at Peach Lavender Jam with peaches that I bought in Niagara on the Lake. Now I'm sorry to say that although it looks very pretty it did not set. So not wanting to throw it away (and please don't ever do that unless it tastes vile) I decided to reheat it and add a little more pectin. Word to the wise, never leave it unattended even for a minute. It has a lot of sugar and yes will burn very quickly which is what happened to me. Lesson learned.
   If you don't want to go to the bother of redoing the jam if it dosen't set you can always use it for a topping on ice cream, pound cake etc. I wish I had decided to do that, I used my precious Lavender flowers in the jam and was so disappointed to lose it.

Green Tomato Chutney

  The next thing I tried was Chutney. Now I have not really had many Chutney's but again I had quite a few Green Tomatoes left and can only eat so many fried ones so decided on Green Tomato Chutney. It is really straight forward and dosen't need to set which is nice. After stewing all your ingredients together, pour into sterilized jars, follow the same rules as you do when canning and you're good to go. This pairs well with roast chicken or pork chops, you could use it as a relish on a hot dog or even with quesadilla's.

   I made two kinds of Green Tomato Chutney, actually one is called Green Tomato Mincemeat. The recipes is much the same except that you use brown sugar instead of white and eliminate the onion in the mincemeat. It seems to have a sweeter smell and is a nice dark color.
   I got the mincemeat recipe from a cookbook called Miss Mary Bobo's Boarding House Cookbook. It comes from Tennessee, home of Jack Daniel's Whiskey. A suggestion for the Green Tomato Mincemeat  is to add what else, Jack Daniels and walnuts, put into tart shells and there you have a great appetizer. Yum!! I will definitely give this a try.

Brandied Applesauce

  I also made Applesauce which I make every year. It is so easy to make and you get to control the amount of sugar you want. I always use brown sugar and very sparingly, along with that I add cinnamon and sometimes vanilla. This year I did make my every day applesauce but I also made one with a twist. Along with the apples, sugar and cinnamon I added dried cranberries and after cooling the sauce I added brandy. This makes a very tasty applesauce. It could be used along side pork or over ice cream or even as an afternoon snack. The options are endless.
 Maybe keep this one away from the little ones.

Anise Hyssop Infused Sugar

One of the last things I did was make flavoured sugars. This is such a simple process, just add Anise Hyssop flowers, Lavender flowers, lemon zest or what ever flavour you want, to the sugar. Place in jars and let sit for several weeks and there you have it flavoured sugar.

Ground Anise Hyssop Sugar

  Now you can use it just as is or you can do what I did and run it through a coffee grinder. Doing this you incorporate the flowers into the sugar and it turns into a fine powder. This makes it easy to use over fruit or to sweeten drinks, it would also
work for making a simple syrup.
You could also use it in cookie or pound cake recipes by replacing part or all of the sugar with the flavoured sugar. So easy while adding a lot of flavour.

  So before you put your garden to bed, look around your garden and see if there is anything you can use and would like to add to your sugar or infuse your honey with. Maybe you would like to use up some of your herbs by making a jelly or jam.
 You can also puree your herbs with a little olive oil and freeze them in ice cube trays and save them for a winter stew.

Whatever you decide to do, enjoy. You've earned it.

Happy Gardening!

Blades of Grass

Maiden Grass - late summer

     Who has seen the wind

            neither you nor I,

     But when the trees bow down their heads

            the wind is passing by.

     

                                                  -Christina Rossetti

Maiden Grass - Fall

  There is an ease and beauty to grass that no other plant seems to have. I'm not sure if it is the simplicity of grass in the sense that it grows upwards and in clumps or because it's not simplistic and offers us so much in a single plant.
   It carries us through each season and with each season brings us a different look. Take Maiden grass for one, it starts off as long thick blades of grass in the spring growing taller, busier and thicker until mid summer when it starts to flower. By the end of August it is tall and majestic with large plumes, reddish in colour and by the time October comes around they have become large and fluffy.
   I love the way the wind and sunlight catches this grass and it is even better in the winter time when it gives an otherwise barren landscape so much life and character.

Zebra Grass - early fall

Zebra grass is much like Maiden grass as far as height and character. It is tall and strong but as the name suggests, it has like a Zebra, a lovely stipe to it. It also has a nice large plume that is in full bloom in the fall.

Zebra Grass - summe

   Northern Sea Oats is another favorite of mine. It has tall thin blades of grass showing themselves in the spring and blooming mid to late summer when it produces little flat oats. This plant is amazing in the wind. Because of the oats it has a wonderful rustling sound as is sways softly to any breeze.

Northern Oat Grass - late summer

  It is in full bloom in time for Thanksgiving and makes a perfect fall display. What I like to do is place them in a glass vase without water where they just dangle, hanging their heads looking beautiful.
  All of these grasses also work really well in any Halloween decor, especially the Maiden and Zebra Grass because of its tall, strong stems.

Northern Sea Oats

  Grasses are one of the plants that give a lot of character to a winter garden so I don't cut mine back until spring. Sometimes in the spring you will find that the grasses have begun to grow before you can cut them back, I just cut them back as usual and have never had a problem especially with the tall grasses.

A variety of grasses.

  There are also many smaller varieties of grass and most of them produce small plumes or flowers. I have a few in my garden, one is Blue Eyed Grass which produces beautiful tiny blue flowers in early summer and if I'm lucky again in late summer. I love this grass, it has such a big punch for such a small plant. Where  a number of grasses can become invasive this grass is not therefore taking up very little space.
  Unlike the Black Mondo grass that I have, it is black with a small white flower, looking a little like Lily of the Valley. It is also a small plant with big punch but it can be invasive. On the positive side though it is easy to control and is well worth the effort of growing it.

Blue-eyed Grass

  There are also a number of annual grasses if you don't want to commit to the perennial variety. They are great in your garden and work well in containers adding interesting texture to both.

   So don't forget about adding grasses to your garden, they require very little care and give a lot of character to both your summer and winter gardens.  They dance in the sun and are music to your ears on windy days.

Happy Gardening!

Black Mondo Grass