Garden Update

I've blogged before about my wonderful garden.  This is the first true veggie garden I've had in years.  (Uh, about 25 years.)  I planted my little plants and lovingly nurtured them. (This picture was taken in June, before everything took off!) 

Of course the first assault on the garden was the hail storm.  For about 15 minutes my little garden was pelted first with huge raindrops, and then huge hailstones.  I feared my little heirloom seedlings were doomed--likewise the beans.  (Those are bean leaves to the left.)  The broccoli and Brussels sprouts had huge holes in the leaves, but they, too, survived.

Then just as the Brussels sprouts were starting to form, we had a visit from Mr. Groundhog.  Mr. Groundhog roared through my little garden like an angry tornado, eating the broccoli and every leaf he could reach on the sprouts. (That poor first plant reminds me of a very skinny person with a big mop of hair.)

Since the beginning of the summer, I'd heard horror stories about the tomato blight, which is actually a mutation of the potato blight that devastated Ireland in 1844.  Word on the street was that the blight was attacking plants from big-box stores.  Whew!  I bought my plants from a small farm market, and grew my heirloom tomatoes from seeds.  I was safe.

NOT!

Last week I noticed the leaves on the tomato plants were turning brown.  Since then, some of the tomatoes have spots and some are just falling off the plants.  Boo hoo hoo!  All my hard work--and the blight still got my darlings.  Still, we are eating the tomatoes (and cutting off the bad bits) and they are soooooo much better that those hothouse ones at the grocery store.  And hopefully, I'll have at least a couple of heirloom tomatoes, too.

Gardening can be heartbreaking.  But I'm already making plans for next year's garden.

The beginning of the end?

I’m convinced this summer was cursed—at least as far as yard sales goes. But this weekend I did better than I have in almost a month. I scored at the very first sale of the day with two cute little picture frames I have a special use for. Also, I got a CD of the best of Gershwin for a mere 50 cents. (Have been wanting to hear Rhapsody in Blue after rereading Jeanne Ray’s wonderful novel EAT CAKE. That tune has a special place in the book and it just seemed fitting to get the CD.)

But the prize was the hand-painted salt and pepper shakers. I thought they were pretty and at only a dollar, a bargain, too.

We left our comfort zone and traveled a good part across the state because we wanted to go to lunch in one of our favorite Irish pubs (Coleman’s in Syracuse. I had the chicken pub pie. De-lish!). There seemed to be a lot more sales in Syracuse than in my area, so I went to as many as I could. Of course, by the time we got there, most of the sales had been picked over. But I still got some Made In England cork coasters (from Harrod’s no less) with views of London.

I also got a very cute butterfly hairclip for the vast fortune of ten cents, and this lovely little rose bowl—which cost only a quarter, so I can’t say that the prices weren’t right.

But all and all it was yet another disappointing “junking” weekend. Labor Day often means the beginning of the end of yard sale season in this part of the country. 

Bummer.

Mr. Groundhog Returns

Much as I'm a fan of the movie Groundhog Day -- I am NOT a fan of groundhogs.  Let us walk through the mists of time to remember what happened about a decade ago . . . (insert a little harp music here).

All those years ago, we had an unwanted visitor in our garden.  He would take a dip in the pool, walk up the steps, walk around the pool, and sun himself on our little garden bench.  We thought this was kind of cute . . . until he started eating all our flowers.

It turns out, Mr. Groundhog lived in a hole in the arborvitae that grows on the west end of our yard.  My husband Frank was furious--as at the time, the garden was his domain.  We live behind a farmette and Frank passed through the magic door (a space between the arborvitae) into the farm and found that Mr. Groundhog had been feasting on their crops.  One phone call and an hour later, a Havahart trap arrived behind our yard.  An hour after that, Mr. Groundhog had been captured.  He was taken away and we never knew (but did suspect) his fate.  And our flowers flourished for the rest of that season.

Bunnies have been the bane of my bean crops, eating them down to the dirt.  But this year, we sprinkled (and rather liberally) dried blood and consequently are having the best pole bean season ever.

All was well until last night.  I was sitting there reading in our enclosed porch when Chester jumped onto his little box all attentive.  Omigod!  There was a skinny groundhog walking on the concrete deck, heading toward MY CROPS.  I shot out of my chair, hands clapping, and new Mr. Groundhog fled into the arborvitae and I flew out the door to reassure myself that all was well in the garden.

IT WAS NOT.

The pride and joy of my Brussells sprouts had been severely chewed!  And, in fact, one of the leaves had been ripped from the plant.  As it happened, I'd been bragging to my Dad earlier in the afternoon that the first plant was growing by leaps and bounds--and that it was nearly four feet tall.  We had been out picking beans just a couple of hours before I discovered my poor sprout plant had been savagely CHEWED!!!!!

As we looked closer, we saw that one of the broccoli plants had not only been chewed, it had been stripped!  Yum-yum!  Mr. Groundhog had been having a lovely vegetarian dinner and apparently enjoying himself immensely--hence his return for a second meal of the day.

Look at the close up of my Brussels Sprout plant (my pride and joy) where he ripped off the leaf--and note the sprouts are just starting to form.  (Aren't they cute?)  Leaves are one thing, but he'd better not nibble my sprouts.

Of course you know, this first offense will not be taken lightly.  This means war!  First, the last of the dried blood has been spread.  Next up, taking a look at the farm behind us.  If their crops have been decimated, another call to the owner is in order.

Mr. Groundhog, you are no Punxsutawney Phil and this is not Gobbler's Knob.  If you know what's good for you, you will make like Elvis and leave the area.

For good.

And what critters are dining in your yard?

UPDATE:  Mr. Groundhog returned later this afternoon and completely destroyed four of the five Brussels sprouts plants.  We are buying a trap.

Where have I been?

I haven't posted much this summer.  In addition to there being very few sales--and therefore I've bought very little . . . I've been preoccupied with  other matters.

The biggest being my elderly father being admitted to a nursing home.  Why is he there?  He went to the hospital in early July suffering from dehydration.  That small problem escalated and during the 17 days he was there, he developed severe bedsores--FIVE OF THEM.

Now, he's in a nursing home.  My mother stays with him from 8-10 hours a day.  In the meantime, I'm taking care of their home, their errands, their shopping, their laundry.  Did I mention I have a home of my own?  Oh, and I have a job, too.  (Luckily it's a job with flexible hours.)

So I haven't posted much.  But I'll try to do better.  And will post something else later today.

What happened to all the sales?

The yard sales have been a huge disappointment this year.  We're talking TERRIBLE, which is why I haven't posted in a while.  So is it any wonder that sometimes the best thing I can find on my weekly travels is a vegetable?

Last week, after wasting too much gas and not finding anything fun at the yard sales, we stopped at a farm stand and found the world's most perfect cauliflower.  Even better--it was only a dollar!

I LOVE cauliflower and I have a really easy recipe that uses only three ingredients.

Boil as much cauliflower as your family can eat.  When it's almost done, remove it from the boiling water and place in an oven proof dish.  Sprinkle (or dump on) it with your favorite cheese.  (I've used Parmesan, cheddar and mozzarella), and then sprinkle (or dump on) seasoned (or unseasoned--depending on your preference) breadcrumbs.  Bake at 360 until the cheese melts and the breadcrumbs are golden brown (10-15 minutes).

Yum!

A PIECE OF THE PAST

You never know what you're going to find when you go out junking, and lately the pickings have been mighty slim. But last weekend I found a piece of Western New York history in the little town of North Rose (which is NOT in Western New York).

One of my favorite hunting spots is a little church-run thrift shop. Okay, I haven't found anything spectacular there, but they always seem to have something I need or, more importantly, want, and for not much money. Last week's gem cost me all of a quarter.

The Arts and Crafts movement was very big in East Aurora, NY back in the early 20th century, thanks to Elbert Hubbard, a writer, publisher, artist and philosopher, and his Roycroft Press. The village became famous for its artisan shops, and the beautiful Roycroft Inn.

The inn originally opened in 1905 and closed in 1938. (It has since reopened (1995) and has rooms furnished in the arts and crafts style, and a wonderful restaurant.) It's lovely, as is the whole village. (Which is also the home of Fisher-Price Toys.)

What's that got to do with me? I've been fascinated with the whole Arts and Crafts movement (we have a lot of books on it) and so I was psyched when I found a Roycroft Inn butter pat, made by the Buffalo Pottery Company, and dated 1925. Just to have a piece of the not only the inn, but of the whole Roycroft past, is really cool. It just so happens I have a number of other butter pats and have hung them with mini plate hangers. This one's going right over my desk.

What pieces of history are you pleased to own?

Finally--Roses!!!

Several years ago, my husband bought me two climbing roses; one yellow, one red.

Mr. Yellow Rose never did very much, and, sadly, passed away after a valiant two-year struggle to live. Mr. Red Rose managed to hang in there, but never did very much.

Until this year.

My husband has been threatening to yank out Mr. Red Rose because I'd get one, maybe two blooms a year. Whereas my heirloom rosebush explodes into bloom in late June and keeps blooming (although not quite as enthusiastically) all summer long. In contrast, Mr. Red Rose was a real non-performer.

This year looks to be different. After an attack of aphids, I was afraid I wouldn't get any blooms. But, Mr. Rose has been diligent and rewarded me with the first rose of the season. And now there's a second one about to bloom. Not only that, but there are six more buds forming.

Wow--this is a real rose extravaganza -- or at least compared to years past.

Maybe I should threaten to yank all the non-performers. That might give them incentive to bloom, too.

THE BOOKS I BOUGHT

What's with the yard sales this year? Generally speaking--they suck warty pickles! With so many people in financial difficulties, you'd think that the sales would be full of stuff as people scramble to come up with money to pay their bills.

Apparently not so.

But I did get a couple of good things this week--books, probably the last thing I need--but something I always want.

As far as I can remember, I only read one Little House book by Laura Ingalls Wilder. That was in third grade. While I remember liking it, I didn't know there were any more in the series (apparently our school library didn't have them), and I was clueless until the TV series. By then, I was more into mysteries than "family fare."

When I had my booth at an antiques co-op, I sold a LOT of used books by Ms. Wilder. They seem to speak to children, or at least to parents or grandparents who wanted to share those stories with another generation. But I never kept any for myself.

Saturday, I came across three of the titles for 50 cents each: Farmer Boy, The Long Winter, and These Happy Golden Years. I may not read them until I get the rest of the series and then read them "in order." But they are now in the To-Be-Read pile.

The other book I got was "The Clue of the Broken Locket" -- a Nancy Drew book, a 1943 edition with, alas, no dust jacket. (But I found a copy of it on Wikipedia--isn't it delightful?) Confession Time: I have never read a Nancy Drew book, but I suppose there's still time.

What's in your TBR pile?

Time for tea?

Almost a month ago, Martha Stewart was making tea out of cow manure. I know it was before June 12th, because that's the last time I saw any daytime TV. You know, that's the day when TV signals went digital and that was the end of all my TV watching in the kitchen. (We do have a TV hooked up to cable, but we watch DVDs on that one.)

But I digress.

I'd heard about manure tea for the garden, because my parents had done it years ago. (Here's how.)

(Have you heard the really old joke: Do you put manure on your strawberries? No, we put whipped cream on ours.)

My folks had some work done in the yard last year, and the workman just about killed their beautiful clamatis. So in an effort to bring it back this year, they gave it some manure tea. Hot-damn! It said, and did come back. My mother also put the tea on the coneflowers. Holy crap! Did they love that tea. (Have you ever seen 4 foot coneflowers before? I never have.)

My bean crop is suffering. Between not enough rain, hailstorms, and too much rain, some of my plants are stunted.

Can you guess what is in their future? Yes! Cow manure tea! I'm also going to give my cosmos a shot, too. They've been in the ground for six weeks and they've hardly grown at all. Other people have cosmos and they're tall, willowy, and FULL of flowers. Not mine. Not ever.

Yup, today's the day for a nice cup of cow manure tea.

HAPPY 4TH OF JULY

Catching up

Last week the sales were really terrible. Maybe it's the continual wet weather we've had. It's been so bad, even my cat Fred has been hiding under an umbrella.

In addition to the flamingo, I did find a couple of other items. Man, you can't go wrong for a quarter. (Total expenditure this weekend: $1.75. I think I spent at least three times that much in gas.) I got a couple more nice baskets (no pictures of them) that I'll use at Christmastime. I like to make up gift baskets with edible treats, DVDs, books, etc. aimed at the victim . . . er, I mean recipient. They're more fun for me (although not necessiarly less expensive than some other gift), and lots of fun for the person getting it.

But I did get a couple of things for me. I love things from the Arts and Crafts movement from the early 20th century. And one of my favorite places to go for lunch is East Aurora, home of Elbert Hubbart. (Go for lunch or dinner: the Globe Hotel serves the very best fish fry in the USA.) I found this little Roycroft butter pat at my favorite little (church) thrift shop for a quarter. It was made by the Buffalo Pottery Company and is dated 1925. It probably came from the Roycroft Inn (which I believe burned in 1938). I've got a tiny plate hanger I got from Vidler's (a wonderful five and dime still running in East Aurora) and I'll hang it in my office.

The other quarter steal was this wonderful rooster newspaper stand. I often can't read the newspaper (no cracks about bifocals, please) and thought -- what the heck! Fold it up, put it on the stand and I'll have it handy (and taking up less space on the breakfast table, too).

As it's a holiday weekend, I expect there'll be less sales. I sure hope the ones scheduled won't get washed out.

In any case--have a Happy 4th of July!

SUMMER FUN

What is with the garage and yard sales of late? I've found very little to buy. But Saturday was a bit different. I finally found something I wanted and needed. And at 75 cents, what a bargain!

What fun thing did you find at the latest sale?

Mini Spinach Quiches

The sales this week really, really STANK. I went to at least a dozen sales and spent exactly $1. Nothing was worth taking a picture of--or blogging about. Last week, I mentioned that I bought a mini muffin pan so I could make mini quiches, and I promised to post the recipe. Well, here it is.

Mini Spinach Quiches

1 cup butter or margarine, softened
1 package (3 ounces) cream cheese, softened
1 cup all-purpose flour
3 slices bacon
¼ cup chopped green onion
2 eggs
½ cup half-and-half cream
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
¼ teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 (10 ounce) package frozen spinach, thawed and well drained (use your hands to squeeze out the water)

Preheat oven to 350º degrees.

In a skillet, cook the bacon until brown and very crisp; drain. Saute the onions in the same skillet with the bacon drippings, cook for 5 minutes, or until tender, stirring constantly; drain. Place the onions in a medium bowl. Crumble the bacon into small pieces, and add in with the cooked green onion. Add the eggs to the bacon and onions; beat well. Stir in the cream, salt, nutmeg and the Parmesan cheese. Add in the squeezed spinach; mix well to combine. Divide the mixture into crust-lined cups (do not overfill).

In a small mixing bowl, cream butter and cream cheese. Add flour; beat until well blended. Shape into 24 balls.

Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until puffed and golden brown. Cool in pan on wire rack for 5 minutes. Serve warm or cool. Store leftovers in the refrigerator.

Makes 24

And another summer treat . . .

Grapes.

Simple Summer Pleasures

Ahh . . . simple summer pleasures -- simple summer fruit.