I've been on a harvesting spree for the last six weeks -
1. Passionfruit for jam and cake and smoothies.
2. Roma tomatoes for sauces and soups and slicing tomatoes for sandwiches, salads. Cherry tomatoes for snacking.
3. African Blue Basil - I discovered that the dried flowers (dried on the stalk and then stripped off) look like seeds/seasoning and taste like basil heaven.
with a few drips of olive oil over sliced mozzarella and tomatoes - perfect Caprese salad. Flavorful and slightly spicy peppery - not hot.
4. Finally found a good Genovese (taste) basil that is still producing - classic flavor, love!
5. Peppers - I got a little carried away this year trying out eleven different varieties - all of them producing like crazy.
As the tomatoes are slowly on their way out - the peppers are still pumping and gearing up for the bumper crop award:).
Next on the agenda is pickling some cherry tomatoes and peppers for a change, usually I just freeze any peppers I don't use right away - we'll see how it goes, it sounds like it will be quite easy and quick to do.
6. Herbs for cooking and tea...organic and gourmet - fancy dinners at home, because I can and I enjoy both gardening and cooking.
Herbs for Aromatherapy, sachets, cleaning products and medicinal use - I got them all:).
The last two years I tested a lot of different basils - one of them a Tulsi (holy basil - medicinal) which turned out to be a true Vana - a tree basil.
The damn thing is at least seven feet tall and apparently perennial in our climate. I almost pulled it out of the tomato pot thinking it was a weed, but once I sniffed the leaves and saw the flowers I knew it had to be a basil.
Now that I know what it is, I planted one in the garden, but I still have two more (from seeds) that are in way too small pots - so maybe I'll have a mini Basil forest:) in my garden.
I think the Tulsi I really want to cultivate is the Rama for a cup of medicinal tea now and then. It did fine in a pot until I planted it in the wrong spot-oh well. Ugh - it isn't easy to find good, reliable information on herbs, especially the rare or medicinal ones.
7. BANANAS - oh my, I never knew bananas could taste this good!
We have Ice Cream Bananas - somehow deliciously creamy. I told Mr. R. there would be a banana cream pie/parfait in his future.
I'm not a fan of banana cream pie but these bananas, it would be a sin not to play with dessert recipes.
Got a batch ripening in the carport and another not yet ready to be harvested off the tree.
8. Kale... yeah, well, I made my first-ever batch of Kale chips from the dinosaur kale with the guidance of a young friend. Tasty! Mr. R. approved - apparently a good snack while watching baseball.
Then I made a kale salad with bacon and garlic chives from the garden ...
9. ELDERBERRIES - I will have to hurry up and harvest the Elderberry flowers to make Elderberry Champagne before they all become berries.
Now that my row of Elderberries is well established I'd love to have a bouquet of the beautiful Elderberry flowers for our table, just once.
I may have to wrangle the birds for enough elderberries to make a tincture.
10. Just for FUN - This weekend I plan on making some Mojitos for us to enjoy in the gazebo with my own Mojito mint - maybe I'll look into planting a few sugar canes next year too.
I could go on but let's just say
Our kitchen and dining area are fragrant with the scent of herbs.
In fact, one might think a witch lives here -
hanging drying herbs and baskets and bowls of produce everywhere, seedlings in the window, and tomatoes lining the window sill with more herbs hanging from the curtain rod.
I may start to cackle anytime now and use terms like Dearie).
The dining table is scattered with garden books and seed packets...
The end, until next season:).
This season's harvest has been bountiful and the new wildlife area I started last year is a wonderful success, better than I hoped for.
The garden is teeming with wildlife and you can feel the vibrant energy. We have more critters, frogs, butterflies, dragonflies, and birds than ever.
There is a line for the birdbath - can you believe it?
Oh! And... did you know there is a chocolate-scented daisy? Truly smells divine like real good quality cocoa or the best European chocolate truffles.
Not only did I find a plant at a garden festival but I scored a package of seeds online.
PROJECT - mostly free
I still need to install the outdoor shower I got last year on sale at Amazon - eye-roll. So I plan to guilt Mr. R. into helping me set it up this weekend (hence the Mojitos:).
I've saved two aluminum doors from an old shed to become the sides of the outdoor shower for privacy. I have metal fencing stakes that I got for free, I figured I could place the aluminum doors in between and screw them in at each end. Using an old concrete AC foundation for the floor - broken up to suit the space and stenciled/painted with a palm leaf design. We have palm leaves (aka free stencil) and leftover paint.
Then next week I'll work on moving some of my ferns and other tropical greenery to give it some tropical flair and play around with a few Pinterest and YT-inspired ideas.
Have a great Memorial Day weekend if you happen to live in the States :)!
We'll be hanging out in the garden.
Topic: What small things did you do TODAY to save money? (Read 8075816 times)
