More veggie cookin'

If you do all but the most minimal vegetable gardening, you will have to figure out what to do with all that you produce. One easy vegetable (actually a fruit, like many food we call vegetables) to process is winter squash (pumpkins, hubbards, crook neck, turban, delicata, etc). I used to follow the instructions from an old cookbook to process winter squash and make it into puree- cut the squash in half, remove the seeds, cut off the skin and simmer in water or steam, then puree it. Then I found out about roasting-cut the squash in half, scoop out the seeds, rub with olive oil, place cut side down on a cookie sheet and roast at 375-400 until soft. These methods are a bit difficult with a large and heavy shelled winter squash, however. Recently I heard about the easiest method of all, and the one that produces the best cooked squash. Wash the squash, take off the stem, poke a few holes in it near the top and roast it whole at 400 degrees in a roasting pan until soft. Remove it from the oven, let it cool, cut in half and easily scoop out the flesh and seeds. You can mash it by hand or puree it in a food mill, food processor or blender. This does take a longer than roasting a cut up squash, but is easier and results in a dense flesh that has cooked in its own juices, producing the most flavorful squash I have ever had. I was able roast whole a pretty large cheese wheel pumpkin (about 3 times the size of the largest one in the photo, maybe 20 lbs- in the photo are two small "fairy tale"-type pumpkins I grew, that are also now cooked and frozen...and some pumpkin pecan pancakes.). Now I have a lot of puree for pie, bread, soup, and eating as a side veggie. And I might even make a bit of pumpkin butter.
Happy gardening! And eating!

FROST FREEZE

Tonight is the first frost/freeze warning for the central VA area! Harvest any remaining above ground veggies (carrots and others underground can take frost) and tender herbs; take in any cuttings of plants you want to overwinter indoors (ornamental sweet potato, pineapple sage, passion flowers, coleus, geraniums [geranium cuttings need to be cured in air overnight, then put in water] and; take in any houseplants you had summering outside. Don't forgot to pick and bring tender flowers into the house to enjoy for a few more days! They may be gone tomorrow!

Happy brrrr gardening!

Greens...again

If you follow this blog, you know that I am sort of crazy about greens (this week’s photo is what I harvested this weekend, which included some lovely and tasty nasturtium blossoms and a few pimento peppers). This is the time of the year to plant and harvest great greens in central VA. I started planting some greens in August, and planted more every few weeks, up to a few days ago. I will continue to plant them every few weeks into December, maybe later. Of course, my greatest greens triumph this fall is arugula, which volunteered.

So, what am I planting? Pinetree Gardens winter lettuce mix and their standard lettuce mix, mustard greens, kale and chard. The plants look healthy, large and leafy and we have been harvesting them for about a month. It is not too late to plant more, especially if you can provide a little winter protection, like a clear, plastic sheeting tunnel, a cold frame or even a cloche for individual plants, made from a plastic soda bottle or milk jug (cut the bottom not all the way off, using the outwardly folded, but still attached, bottom to anchor the bottle in the soil with a landscape pin. Cover individual lettuces with the bottle cloche, making sure the cap is off. This will extend your season significantly).

What do I do with these greens? 1. I braise them in a heavy-bottomed pan: heat olive oil, add greens, garlic, chopped onions and ¼ cup stock, wine or balsamic vinegar. Put on the lid and cook until the greens wilt (you can caramelize the onions first, then add the greens, garlic and liquid for a different flavor). You can vary this by adding shredded carrot, mushrooms, celery. 2. Tonight I made orichette pasta by hand (you can use store bought). I took a glass baking dish, put about 1 T olive oil in it and put it in a warm oven. I sited onions, garlic, herbs and dried tomatoes (from the garden too!) in olive oil in a pan on the stove top. When that was done, I took roughly torn chard and arugula, put in the glass baking dish, added the onion mix, the cooked pasta and topped it with grated Parmesan cheese. I let the cheese melt and warm through-YUM! 3. I will often chop the greens and add them to soups near the end of cooking, finely chop them and put them under the tomato sauce on a home-made pizza, eat them in a salad, and sauté them and fold them into an omelet with cheese.

Happy gardening! And eating!

Fall color

(Photos: American beautyberry, daisy-flowered mum, bi-colored French marigold, crape myrtle)
This is a great time to go around your yard and garden and see what places have fall color and what places need more fall color (yes there is lots of fall color in the trees, like my lovely crape myrtles turning golden yellow, but you need to plan for fall color in the flower garden). It is also a good time of year to visit plant nurseries and botanical gardens to see what is dazzling in the fall. Last time I wrote about my beautiful pineapple sage, and how it is now giving a gorgeous burst of red bloom in the garden, when many plants are slowing down for the inevitable first frost. One plant I have fallen in love with, that gives exotic fall color, yet is a Virginia native, is Callicarpa virginica or American Beautyberry. It is an inconspicuous plant most of the year with small, unremarkable flowers and leaves. But in the fall, as its berries ripen to a startling light purple to mauve- it is a show stopper! It is an incredibly easy shrub, not needing much special by the way of soil conditions and I have never fertilized mine. I highly recommend this plant!

Mums are another reliable source of fall color and cuttings for the house. I prefer bi-colored and daisy-flowered mums (I like bi-colored anything...). I trim them back until June, then let them get just a little bit rangy and less controlled than plants trimmed to a later date in the summer- I think they look more natural in the garden this way. Here in central VA, I have had had good luck planting even what are considered "florists" mums, after I have enjoyed them in the house for a bit. Our climate is easy on these plants, but hardy mums would be a better choice further north.

Some annuals really put their heart into blooming as the days get colder and shorter, like the French marigold that volunteer in my veg garden every year. Another easy to care for plant, that I also recommend. Oh, I know it is common and not trendy, but it is sturdy, reliable, pretty all season and self-sows...and is giving a burst of bloom right now!

So, spend some time walking the yard and plant nurseries and plan for fall color next year. When spring comes, you will be ready to start planting!

Happy gardening!

autumn

(One of two entries for this date)
Autumn
It is such a lovely and sad time of the year. That fevered springtime impatience to get into the garden is gone, the flushes of new green growth have given way to tired and sagging plants that want to sleep or die, leaving seeds or roots in the ground for next season. The weeks or months of picking and processing are over- we have a closet full of cases of home-canned foods, salsa, tomatoes, peaches, jams, pickles, and dried foods, mostly fruits. Some fall planting awaits, but it is much more quiet and less hectic than the spring, more contemplative and fits the time of year where the nights are getting longer, the days shorter. Even the nighttime and morning constellations of stars are shifting, Orion the Hunter hangs just above my driveway now in the early morning darkness…the Harvest Moon and the Hunters Moon are approaching…and the ground is dewy in the morning and the air damp and cool. The crickets are still chirping to let you knew it is still barely, just barely summer, but their rhythm has changed, languorous and slow, as if they know winter is coming. And the hummingbirds must leave very soon, on their journey to far-flung places in South America. Then add into the mix the school buses coming down the street, the ever taller and more mature kids in their backpacks and new sneakers walking toward their stops, the acorns are falling, the dry and dusty leaves on the trees are just starting to turn color. That’s fall…and it reminds me so strongly of all the cycles we live in and through and with…

Happy gardening!

Book Review: "Edible"

Book review “Edible”

[photo caption: Edible indeed- a papaya in full fruit at the US Botanic gardens, Washington, DC].

I received the book “Edible: An Illustrated Guide to the World’s Food Plants” (2008, National Geographic, Washington, DC) for my birthday this year. I have a strong interest in anything botanical (duh) and want to learn more about the world’s food crops, and plants used by certain groups, for specific cultural practices, as well as famine foods, those that sustain people in tough times. I enjoyed this book, though it left me with the feeling I have after I read an issue of National Geographic: excited by visually stunning photographs, but bored by the prose. I find it a rare National Geographic writer who can grab your attention, make you sit up and take notice and challenge your thinking…and that’s too bad, when you have the whole world as your subject matter. The other disappointing aspect of the book is that not all entries have an accompanying photograph! This is odd given the NG’s passion for excellent photography. I want to know what a nance or white sapote or an egg fruit looks like! They do give verbal descriptions, but one lesson of NG is that ‘a picture is worth a thousand words’ (sorry for the cliche´). Maybe I am being too demanding, but an illustrated guide should have illustrations.

The book starts with a brief history of plants being turned into food, trade and conquest, and the “green future.” Then it is divided into sections on fruits, vegetables, grains, nuts, herbs, spices, beverage plants and sugars.

So, would I welcome this book again? Yes, I would. I am happy to have it (and I did read it cover to cover). If I were the editor would I make some changes? Yes, indeed.

Happy garden reading!

Amaryllis

[Photo: pink amaryllis at the US Botanic Garden in DC]
It is just about that time of year to start forcing your amaryllis (you know, those lush, tropical flowers in pinks, whites and reds we see around Christmas time). I find it a deep pleasure to have something blooming indoors in the winter and have forced amaryllis and paperwhite narcissus for years. They are really easy to grow and you do not need a green thumb to do so.

Pick out an amaryllis that you like. I usually go to a plant nursery, a botanical garden gift shop or order one line, but you can get decent bulbs at chain discount stores (not the fanciest varieties, but pretty all the same- and they come with a pot, planting medium and instructions!). Pot the bulb so that the top third of the bulb is above the soil. This ensures that no water placed on the surface of the soil will go down into the bulb's neck and rot the bulb. You can use a general purpose bulb fertilizer under the bulb, but I never do this. Put a stake in the pot at planting time- some flowers are so large they may flop without support (if they do, you can just cut them off and enjoy them as a cut flower, though they won’t last as long). Water thoroughly this one time, then water sparingly about once per week, until the flower bud shoots up- then water once the top inch of soil is dry, say ever 3-4 days. Keep the plant at room temperature (it does not like the cold). You will be rewarded with a lovely bloom!

After bloom, I cut back the flower stalk and leave the plant inside, watering and fertilizing with an organic fertilizer occasionally. After the first frost, the plants live on my porch, gathering sunshine and building up the bulb. In early September, I cut back the leaves to about an inch, and tuck the pots under boxes in my garage to mimic dormancy-no water at this time! Around mid to late October, I begin bringing some of them inside to start forcing them (usually 6 to 8 weeks before you wan them to bloom) and I stagger the dates I start forcing, to have a lovely blooming plant through much of the winter (I have about 10 currently and recently ordered 3 more).

If your bulb does not produce flowers one season, it may need another season outside to build the bulb back up. Don’t give up! I have had plants like these successfully re-bloom the next season.

Happy gardening!