Now that’s a garden!!

My neighbor and my go-to person…  I guess you would say “mentor” with this whole gardening thing!

                 

A quick trip to the garden!

Get the juicer and dehydrator going!! 

Peach leaves… edible!

Peach Leaves
Who knew that peach leaves could be edible? Well maybe not edible, but useful in flavoring what you are about to eat. Someone, at some point found out that peach leaves impart a beautiful almond and floral flavor to whatever they might be steeped in. You can pick a few brand new tender peach leave to steep in milk for about five minutes and use that milk to make ice cream or a peach leaf custard.

Peach Leaf Custard

Every European country has it's own version of custard. And why not? Little children love it. It is easy to digest and very delicate. The ingredients are always on hand. Here is a version Nona Zurlo made occasionally. It no doubt hearkens back to a time when flavorings did not come in little bottles. Whenever we paid a call on anyone, Nona would invariably ask her hostess for a tour of the garden. Little "slips" of flowers and shrubs would always be requested and if there was a peach tree a few leaves would be tucked into Nona's bag. The taste is delicate and unique. If you are having John Ash or Martha Stewart to dinner sometime we guarantee they will be asking you for this recipe and wondering about the source of the flavor.

2 1/4 cups milk
6 fresh peach leaves, washed and dried
5 egg yolks
7 tablespoons sugar
pinch of salt

Crush the leaves a bit to release flavor.

Heat milk and peach leaves to below boiling.

Set aside for 60 minutes.

Beat egg yolks with sugar and pinch of salt.

Strain into milk.

Heat over double boiler until thickened, taking care that the mixture does not boil.

Remove from heat and let stand in a pan of ice water.

Remove leaves. Pour into serving cups or glasses.

A baby OAK tree!

 

Must have been planted by a squirrel!  It’s right in the middle of the path where we walk!

Blueberry Plants Productive When Beds Get A Raise

Right down my alley….  I think the blueberry bushes are going to get a raise!

The practice of growing fruits and vegetables on raised beds has proved to be successful for blueberries, providing growers with a cheaper, more beneficial alternative production method.

Ohio State University research has found that blueberries grown on raised beds produced comparable yields to blueberries grown on flat, tile-drained soil.

"We can say with 90 percent certainty that raised beds are sufficient for blueberries," said Dick Funt, an OSU horticulturist. "There's no need to install a costly tile drainage system when a grower can get equal or better yields on raised beds."

I know how to make it rain!

….water plants really good and hang clothes out to dry!!!  

If that’s what it takes – I’m THERE!

Ta DA!!

Back to Waupaca today to a class to make Jam… and it was BLUEBERRY jam!  I brought the carrots and tomato jars from yesterday home along with the blueberry jam which is half gone already!!!!

Pears… getting big!

The tree hasn’t died after falling over!! 

 

Wonder why my fingers look pink..  they weren’t!

Oh no…

What’s wrong with the tomatoes?  Pretty on top – ugly on bottom??

See…

Green Bay 1.79 inches of rain
Fond du lac 2.94 inches of rain
Appleton 0.04 inches of rain

Learning to can…

Here I am in Waupaca at the UW extension at the courthouse learning how to can… it was hands on…  very cool!   Carrots and tomato sauce!

….and this was the temperature when I got in my van to come home…  and it stayed that high!

morning and evening… misses again..

 

Look what else I found…

….in the back yard…  wonder what it is??

Even more weeds…

are dying….

Still going strong…

… with no water or care…  go figure…

Is it heading our way???

NNNOOOOO…… out to water AGAIN…

Now these look pretty!

 

100 degrees today…

…well 97 but heat index over 100…  I’m glad I got up and watered my plants at 6am…  where DO we live…  certainly NOT in WI!

This help I don’t need…

So I turned the water on so the soaker hose would start watering the tomatoes and then I left for a bit to check on my neighbors puppies.  When I returned Jake had escaped from the house by moving a board I had blocking the dog door and was having a blast with the hose.  He had ripped the one side out creating a stream of water which he was playing with…  it could have been worse..  the water could have been going on to the tomatoes which I’m sure then that is where Jake would have been!   Brita was new to the mess as I brought her out not realizing that the trouble maker was already out!

      

    

Rain…

ok…  this is the 3rd day this week that rain was heading toward us and it either never got here or sent south of us….   Out to water again…

Look what popped up ….

…in the driveway to the side yard….  must have been from the pumpkins and squash I threw on the hill above it because that was the only place the dogs wouldn’t get at them for a snack!  Looks like one bigger plant with a small one near it and then another one a little bit away!

        

OH NO!!

Sometimes you just forget the obvious…

Spent this morning trying to figure a way to configure my hoses so I only have to turn on one faucet and everything gets watered...  Thank you Ari for all the old hoses that were chewed in half that make great soaker hoses!  Forgot one important thing that I'll have to think through... 

…water does not run UPHILL....

Back to the drawing board!

Do I or don’t I?

….  wait to see if it rains or water the tomatoes??

  

Grapevines…

….but no grapes….

HHmmm……

I really should have labeled things better… these are in a raised bed… will just have to wait and see!

Another puzzle….

 

It’s REALLY dry….

When the forsythia bush and the milkweed are drooping…

Blueberry bushes…

So the grass was growing around the bushes – 2 of which were planted for me while I was in the hospital…  Someone mentioned cardboard around them so I soaked it in the pool and put it around the bushes…  so far so good!  And Brita was such a help!