It’s a cold, wet, and chilly day in the garden. Pine straw and leaves are falling from the trees but there are still many plants blooming.
Ginger lilies (Hedychium coronarium)
Pineapple sage (Salvia elegans)
The pineapple sage grew much larger than expected! It’s about 5 feet tall and as wide. It has taken over the herb bed!
And the arugula seeds have germinated, too! I see a salad in my future!
I love the Fall changes in the garden!
Filed under General Gardening
On the last day of my staycation, it was time to clean up the vegetable garden. The cucumbers have been long gone. The tomatoes were hanging on -barely. Its time to replace the Summer veggies with Fall, cool-season, vegetables.
The trellises will be cleaned and stored in the garden shed.
The Buddha will keep a watch on them as I work on the beds.
A couple sweeps of the garden rake removes roots and weeds. The soil is leveled using the back of the rake.
The seeds are broadcast sewn. They will germinate within a few days if it continues to be warm.
Gus enjoys looking for any wildlife he can find among the azaleas and daylilies.
The daytime temps were in the 80s for the second day today. This will help the seeds to germinate but if it stays warm too long they my bolt, or go to seed too fast. This can produce bitter greens. Cooler temperatures are best to prolong the season. Some greens, such as collards, are best when they are nipped by frost at night!
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Filed under General Gardening, Vegetables
Ok, I can only spend so much time in the garden. After a few weeks of chilly Autumn weather it has warmed back up in to the 80s. A few hours of work in the garden and I am drained, sweaty, and dirty! I felt it was time to stay in for a few hours and only one place is better than the garden: the kitchen.
This is my basic tomato sauce. You can add herbs or chilies or even meat such as pepperoni to change the taste. It cans well.
Basic Tomato Sauce
Ingredients:
Olive Oil
5 cloves of garlic
1 (28 oz) Can of crushed tomatoes
1 (28 oz) Can of tomato Sauce
A few chilies
A few tablespoons of dried herbs such as oregano, thyme, and basil and fresh herbs from the garden. I used six or seven basil leaves roughly chopped along with a tablespoon of a herb mix of oregano, thyme and basil.
Salt and Pepper to taste
Instructions:
1) Coat the bottom of a pan with olive oil on medium high heat. I used a Dutch oven.
2) When the oil shimmers, add the garlic which has been sliced. Stir until the garlic has lightly browned – about 9 minutes. I added a few chilies for some heat!
3) Add the cans of tomato sauce and crushed tomato. Allow it to come to a boil.
4) Add fresh and dry herbs and stir thoroughly to mix. Reduce heat to medium low to simmer.
5) Cook until the sauce has thickened- about 20 minutes. You may leave the lid a little open so moisture can escape.
6) Salt and pepper to taste.
Top with cheese and add some Italian bread toasted with butter and sprinkled with the same herbs used in the sauce.
TIP: An easy method to chop large leaved herbs, such as basil, is to stack the leaves, roll them up, then chop working from the end.
Makes 8 to 8 servings or about 6 cups.
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Arthur in the Garden! 