I recognize that I am still relatively new to the gardening thing, having only gardened for about 12 years. Yet in that time, my approach to gardening has evolved. Cycles of hot-dry, cold-wet weather teach you a lot about gardening for the long term as do the natural evolution of knowledge that comes with experience… Read more »
Yogurt Pecan Soy Waffles
My sons love waffles for breakfast and while I have no objection to the amount of maple syrup we seem to consume, I was not happy with the ingredient list in frozen waffles purchased from the grocery store. In my continuous effort to reduce the amount of packaged foods we eat, I came home one… Read more »
Sun Begonias Deliver In The Heat
My new favourite annuals are sun begonias. I’ve always liked begonias but with very little shade, and our hot dry and often humid summers, they just don’t do well in my yard. Enter what to me are new sun begonias. I picked these up at a local greenhouse this spring and have not been disappointed.… Read more »
Growing Celery – The Grand Experiment
I first outlined our plans to grow celery in our garden in my Growing Celery in Ontario post in early May. Well I’m happy to say that the experiment in growing celery our first time has been a huge success. Everything I researched came up with four main themes for growing celery: Celery is a… Read more »
Rabbits in the, uh, garden?
Here’s one way to perhaps feed the rabbits and keep them out of the garden. I woke up one morning this week to find this fellow in a bucket that I use to collect pruned and deadheaded materials before taking them to the compost. Better that than my lettuce!
Sausage Stuffed Zucchini
It’s zucchini season and I’m once again ‘blessed’ with a plethora of zucchini. So looking for new ways to use up what’s current in the garden I decided to create my own version of stuffed zucchini for dinner one evening. My husband said it tasted like a meatball sub — and as he has given… Read more »
Wind-proof Umbrella Stand
Living in the country has its unique challenges and one of them is wind. Even on a rather normal summer day, gusty breezes come up quickly, making it almost impossible to maintain an umbrella in our wide open pool area. We’ve tried several approaches — bigger stands, rocks on top of the stand, bungee cords… Read more »
How The Garden Fares And What I Have Learned This Year
I can’t believe it’s mid-July already. Yet here we are, already beginning the height of the season. Like most gardeners, I’ve been busy with spring planting, pruning, weeding and watering. It seems like there is something to do every day — but that is the joy of it. While gardening on a two acre property… Read more »
Maple Trees Will Grow Almost Anywhere
I love my maple trees — whether the majestic red and sugar maples in our back woodland, our small hedge maple which provides shade near our patio garden or the even daintier red japanese maples that can survive the winds in our country property. But what I don’t like are the multitude of maple keys… Read more »
Kale Chips
It’s early July and the kale in our garden is growing like gangbusters. After reading several recipes on the internet, I decided to try and make my own kale chips. While they won’t replace potato chips (especially for my kids) I really liked the slightly nutty flavour and the crunch followed by chewy texture. The… Read more »