apples and peas

May I ?

2009-05-31T18:35:00.004-04:00

strawberries are awesome! what a way to start the day. last year we planted eight strawberry plants and I think we got to eat about 10 strawberries all season....but this year is a different story! Nothing like sharing a salad of fresh young greens, green onions, radish and strawberries to accompany an early summer barbeque. yum.

Fiddleheads!

2009-04-10T17:14:00.004-04:00

Fiddlehead ferns refers to the unfurled fronds of a young fern harvested for food consumption. The fiddlehead, or circinate vernation, unrolls as the fern matures and grows due to more growth in the inside of the curl. Fiddleheads are usually located by the bottom of a fern plant.

The fiddlehead resembles the curled ornamentation (called

a scroll) on the end of a stringed instrument, such as a fiddle. It is also called a crozier, after the cur

ved staff used byshepherds and bishops.

The fiddleheads of certain ferns are eaten as a cooked leaf vegetable; they must be cooked first to remove shikimic acid. The most popular of these are:

Bracken, Pteridium aquilinum, found worldwide
Ostrich fern, Matteuccia struthiopteris, found in northern regions worldwide, and the central/eastern part of North America
Cinnamon fern or buckhorn fern, Osmunda cinnamomea, found in the Eastern parts of North America
Royal fern, Osmunda regalis, found worldwide
Zenmai or flowering fern, Osmunda japonica, found in East Asia
Vegetable fern, Athyrium esculentum, found throughout Asia and Oceania

Fiddleheads' ornamental value makes them very expensive in the temperate regions where they are not

abundant.

Try this one yum!

1 pound fiddlehead ferns
2 tablespoons olive oil
Butter (optional)
2 cloves finely chopped garlic (optional)¼ cup pancetta or bacon, cut into ¼ inch cubes (optional)
Kosher or sea salt and ground black pepper

Trim the dark ends from the stems and wash the fiddleheads in a coarse strainer using a strong stream of water. Place them in a large bowl of water and swirl them around, rubbing off the thin flakes of chaff on the ferns. Drain and dry in a kitchen towel, rubbing off any remaining chaff.

Heat oil in a sauté pan over medium – high heat. Add the bacon or pancetta, if using, and cook, stirring until lightly browned. Add ferns and garlic and cook, covered, for 3 – 4 minutes. Uncover and cook

for an additional 3 – 4 minutes or until they are tender but still are slightly crunchy. Add salt and pepper to taste and swirl in some butter if you wish. Serve immediately.

Rare Bloom

2009-04-04T14:18:00.008-04:00

The Dwarf Lake Iris (Iris lacustris) is a tiny iris species endemic to the northern shores of Lake Michigan and Lake Huron. In 1998 it was designated the state wildflower of Michigan, where the vast majority of populations exist. The dwarf lake iris is also found on the Door Peninsula ofWisconsin and the Bruce Peninsula and Manitoulin Island in Ontario, as well as on smaller islands in both lakes. Iris lacustris is designated a threatened species by federal, state and provincial laws throughout its range.

and in my garden.

Sound the trumpets!

2009-04-04T13:35:00.005-04:00

And we're back! 2009 is gong to be a great year in the garden I can feel it. I thought this was a pretty good sign. I found it on a branch in the garden. It's an egg case from a praying mantis. They're good for the garden because they eat the caterpillars and beetles that I am not glad to see.

You heard right- we've already been out there! Some warm weekend in March we raked out the corners and got most of the leaves out, cleaned up and debris from last fall and winter. Last weekend I mixed some peat and fresh compost into the new area I am planning for greens. Planted arugula, mustard greens, kale, radishes, spinach and snap peas. This year I am using inoculant on the peas and beans? we'll see how that goes. Also I'm not bothering with starting early seeds. I figured for all the trouble I have trying to keep them warm and damp, but not too warm and damp without a proper green house or sunny enough window for that matter and I don't have enough space to set up with lights....not yet anyway...so for now my method is direct seeding and starting trays outside once it gets warmer. For my small garden I figure I can grow enough stuff I like direct with great success and then purchase the few things I can't direct seed or start early enough like tomatoes, eggplants and peppers. I have planned to shuffle the beds around to hopefully fix the mistake I learned last year. A new corner for the greens that will be much more shaded in the heat of the summer, a sunnier spot for the cucumbers, more room for the squash and melons, more potatoes! Last years favorites, chard, leeks, cabbage, kale; we're also trying some new stuff like broccolini, bush beans, parsnips, turnips, asian greens and winter squash. Since I'm direct seeding I bought a soil thermometer and I'm taking weekly readings to know just when the ground is warm enough to germinate each seed. I'm psyched.

yum!

2008-09-26T21:45:00.002-04:00

garden of love

2008-09-26T21:30:00.003-04:00

I admit it....

2008-09-25T23:06:00.009-04:00

it's true I've been at the beach since July.....I apologize for my blog neglect but honestly it was a beautiful summer. I'm just not ready to let it go. Don't get me wrong, I love autumn. Ask anyone I am at my best in a warm sweater, sipping hot toddie, crunching through fallen leaves... but as for now I'm soaking up the very last bit of summer. I'll keep you updated.

Wowza.

2008-07-06T19:14:00.007-04:00

That's a word I learned from Stanley my first boss on Martha's Vineyard. I worked for him at the Menemsha Fishmarket, slinging lobsters and clam chowder. It is an quiet little fishmarket right on the docks of Menemsha. So beautiful. Stanley's fish market is first on the strip but it's not the only fishmarket- so to entice business he'll put up signs that say, "Wowza!" and "Lobsterzilla".
Who could pass up that. Silly but still, upon waking up this fine Sunday it was the first thing I thought, Wowza! look at that. I am so proud of it like it just had it's frist day of high school. It's getting exciting now! All sorts of goodies, plenty to share. Our tomato plants are as tall as I am. It seems like every day something new is blooming and fruiting. Our raspberries are just about red enough. While I was hanging beach towels out to dry I found a patch of low bush blueberries ready for picking. It was nothing compaired to our blueberry harvest in Maine last summer but delicious still and the high bush blueberries are just coming out too. I was totally surprised to walk into our deerfenced raised bed to see a ripe zucchini! I never even saw it coming along- but so begins zucchini everything! I actually have some really cool squash planted, an all white heirloom variety, a cool 'flying saucer' and some pumpkins that are already getting wild. I have a few watermelon plants that have yellow

flesh inside! I am enjoying this so much if you cant tell.... ahhh...well I must say we've been fortunate so far and the few pests we've had have been manageable, with the exception of whatever it is that is devouring my cauliflower...I sacraficed a few plants like the one you see here. I tried neem oil early on, a little safer soap, planted them with dill and nasturtium....

I am not discouraged,

just perplexed, glad it's only a small sacrafice,

hoping it is the worst of

our problems....happy for all the other joys I've found.

Fireworks!

2008-07-06T19:05:00.004-04:00

why can't it rain just a little every night?

2008-06-21T17:21:00.009-04:00

it would make watering the garden a thing of the past. watering. waking up and watering. well, at least things are growing! Can you see how big our tomatoes are? and snap peas, chard, strawberries and salad greens. it's great! and the weather here has been beautiful for days. At work we are approaching our July 4th deadline. everything must be fabulous. an extreme level of fabulous that seemed unreal to me, until now, that it is my responsibility.... Ah, my first summer on Martha's Vineyard. The streets and shores here are flooded with the kind of people that make me wince a little at first and then cock my head to the side in confusion. heels on the beach? full make up in the sun, riding a bike? so many 'dudes' in white caps and board shorts. armored SUV's screaming up old single lane dirt roads and me. it's alarming. I'm alarmed. but it's sooo beautiful that the reason the way too rich and used to be famous flock here it vibrant and clear each lovely summer day. I love the islands farminess, it's free spirit and it's community. I love that I can come home and watch my own garden grow- this is the first time for me and it's really something to tend a garden of my own- the rewards are many and the labors are done with love. and I'll protect my plot from the raging urban SUV drivers and wait for September when they all go home.

Free Tibet/Flower Power

2008-06-04T16:07:00.008-04:00

Yesterday was gorgeous! Inspiration flows readily on a breezy 80 degree island day. As I stepped back to survey my latest work I thought 'I love this.' I'm feeling proud and accomplished as I'm leaving and I run into a fellow green professional who tells me that in Buddhism it's believed that the purpose of flowers is to increase our ability to love. Jeez.

Those Buddhists with their non-violence and flower love....it sort of infused me.

June is when it all starts happening man-now my little veggies and friends are pouring from the earth! I am totally stoked every time I notice a new bud or bloom or baby seed head poke out from the soil. It's just a nice feeling knowing that the seed you plant will grow. I've started them, or purchased them, planned for them, planted them, watered them, watched them, cared for and protected them....I love these guys...

Lady's slipper

2008-06-01T09:27:00.004-04:00

I found this beauty in the woods right near our raised beds. They are all over the woods in West Tisbury.

Cypripedium is a genus of 47 species from the orchid family (Orchidaceae) and the sole genus of the subtribe Cypripediinae. Its abbreviation used in trade journals is Cyp.

Its members are terrestrial hardy orchids that grow primarily in colder climates of the Northern Hemisphere, in North America, Europe, andAsia. Some grow in the tundra in Alaska and Siberia, which is an unusually cold habitat for orchids. They can withstand extreme cold, growing under the snow and blooming when the snow melts. But, in the wild, most have become rare and close to extinction, due to an ever shrinking natural habitat and overcollection. In the late 20th century, only a single plant of Cypripedium calceolus survived in Britain.

Common names include slipper orchids, Lady's Slippers, mocassin flowers, camel's foot, squirrel foot, steeple cap, Venus' shoes and whippoorwill shoes. The genus has a long history of use, dating back 2500 years to the Far East, where they were used medicinally.

Dinner time!

2008-06-01T09:00:00.003-04:00

There's our Kale growing away. I planted it with dill to keep the pesties away-yum dill- and also with nasturtiums because I read in 'Carrots Love Tomatoes' that nasturtiums will begin to yellow if the soil ph lowers and that tells you to add more lime. So far so good.....

Dinner time! Camper style- delicious Kale prepared with love

Who loves homegrown kale? This guy does!

Pots pots pots

2008-05-31T08:52:00.002-04:00

Some purty pots

Pots pots pots

2008-05-31T08:33:00.003-04:00

This is what they pay the big bucks for :)

Spare time

2008-05-18T07:32:00.006-04:00

The weekend before memorial day is crucial. I've been potting annual planters for the rich and famous like a wild woman. Trying to create something stunning, long lasting and unique for each little picturesque pot. I found myself using some of the usual characters, petunias, coleus, geraniums and inpatients- for their dependability and charm- but this year I've been inspired by my own veggie garden and so I'm mixing in lettuces, artichokes, sages to some of my favorite annual combinations. Pictures to follow.
Erik is away this weekend. He went to the mainland to take a kayaking instructors, instructors course. It's amazing how much time presents itself in the absence of a lover....I've spent it all with the veggies. Our little garden is really becoming something! I've already been picking arugula for sandwiches and salads. The snap peas are beginning to climb, nasturtiums, kale, cauliflower, leeks, chard, strawberries, sunflowers, and all the root stuff. Who knew radishes were so cool!? They are compact and leafy, I get all excited every time I peak under the row cover. The Swiss chard looks like Swiss chard and the strawberries came up with more buds than leaves. I planted cucumbers and squash not too long ago so I'm still waiting to see them emerge. I started an early crop of cabbage that is ready to be transplanted. I also started eggplant- a really cool heirloom variety from Johnny's- but it's been a month and nothing...maybe I need a germination pad? So that was a bummer, but I haven't totally given up hope on them. I'll keep you posted. I am in and out of the garden centers so often, I am always tempted to bring home some new and delicious seedlings to plunk in the ground. I am fearful that come July their won't be any room to move in there. Alright well, I am going to play in the perennial beds for a bit I'll let you know how it goes.

Liloceris lilii

2008-05-14T19:26:00.003-04:00

The red or scarlet lily beetle (Lilioceris lilii) is a leaf beetle that eats the stems, leaves, buds and flowers of lilies, fritillaries and other plants in the Liliaceae family. It only lays its eggs on Liliuim and Fritillaria species [1]. It is native to parts of Eurasia. It is known to have been introduced separately to Britain and Canada in the 1940s, possibly on imported lily bulbs. It is now a pest in most temperate climates where lilies are cultivated.
The larvae have orange-brown bodies and black heads. They carry their excrement on their backs in order to deter predators. Adults are bright scarlet in colour and 6–9 mm long.
When the adult beetles are threatened they emit a high pitched buzzing from their abdomen.

bastards.

May Flowers

2008-05-14T19:16:00.003-04:00

The Other Neighbors

2008-04-26T19:14:00.000-04:00

Beech Weather

2008-04-26T18:33:00.006-04:00

It's been so warm here the past three weeks that even though it's still April I'm going to jump out there and say that we are past any real dangerous frosts (I hope). We've just had a full moon, and a red moon, and I heard an islander say that we're past the frost date here on Martha's Vineyard when the beech trees finally push off thier last years leaves with this years tender buds. They have. I went to town with the pretty stuff, my favorite! Morning Glories, Sun Flowers, Sweet Peas from seed and Pansies and Allyssum I picked up at the farm store with some strawberry plants. The flowers were an impulse to fill a void in my heart from when I saw that they also had little yellow chicks for sale, ready to come home with me and so clearly chirping my name. So I settled on the pansies and headed home to do some planting. Today I planted our leeks, potatoes and the strawberry plants. We've already got a plethera of yummies started and the soil is looking beautiful, just waiting to be planted.

Break on through

2008-04-15T22:33:00.002-04:00

April Showers

2008-04-04T18:17:00.005-04:00

When you're a gardener full time a rainy friday is a gift from the Garden Gods.

A day to sleep late, play with the kitties and have a leisurely lunch with a loved one.
A kind of reward for a weeks worth of hard pruning and raking.

A little thanks for staying out there even when the wind picks up and you start to get the sniffles.

There is life!

2008-03-28T08:26:00.002-04:00

Can you see it? the tiny speck of a lettuce sprout, the first of many.

the neighbors

2008-03-27T07:58:00.004-04:00

In the early morning light we watched a family of deer make their way around the whole yard. Red was trying to determine which one was a buck while I watched them sniff and nibble on every branch and plant as they passed.

He is getting excited now, "We are right in their regular route. They must sleep out under the white pines between here and cranberry acres. They probably come by here looking for food. I've got to get a tree stand in one of these trees."

I'm getting worried now, "Food, huh? Really, you think they come by here every morning and night? Do you think they'll jump into the garden? How much deer fence do you think we'll need? How can we keep them away?...."

No reply. I realize this isn't going to be easy.

"Hey, get away from the holly!"

Green

2008-03-26T21:38:00.002-04:00

Last Spring

2008-03-26T09:19:00.013-04:00

This time last year we were in Europe visiting brother daniel in Wales. We flew into Birmingham and took the train to Aberystwyth where he was studying. I fell fast asleep once we got settled on the train but was soon woken up by the jerk of the train easing to a stop. Peeking through my sleepy half shut lids I saw rolling green hills speckled with tufts of cotton or more likely wool. It was lambing season and like a dream or a commercial for fabric softener or
something. The little lambs ran around like children at recess chasing the train as it passed. Wales was ethereal and so quintessentially spring. After a few days we traveled to London and spent Easter in Kensington Gardens. It was a stunning a sunny day, perfect for an English breakfast and a stroll through Hyde Park. Spring in London is supposed to be rainy but we lucked out with four sunny days. We were going to go to France next as this was intended to be a grand European museum tour to supplement brother daniel's art education. The fates intervened -France was foiled -we were going to Amsterdam! A few short hours later we were in the air watching the coastal islands pass below us. As we approached our destination the canals became visible. We looked out over Holland, the fields and canals looked like a sea of patchwork and ribbon. Squares of red, purple, yellow, and orange were all fields of tulips in full bloom!!! It was breathtaking. While we were in Amsterdam we visited the botanical gardens where saw my first Redwood tree! There were three tropical greenhouses ranging in temperatures, a butterfly house and acres to walk around and enjoy.
This Spring I am having fun watching the progress of a new garden and a new climate. In moments between the raking and the pruning I am revelling in the memories of Last Spring.

First Flowers

2008-03-24T08:12:00.009-04:00

There is no feeling of joy comparable to the feeling a gardener gets when the first sign of life springs from the cold ground. Especially in New England where the wintry weather seems to linger forever. Though the days are longer and the sun keeps shining and it feels as spring is on it's heels.

These are the first flowers I've found this

Spring. The snowdrops I saw in peggy's yard, they've been blooming since the end of February. Followed by the first white crocuses. I wonder why white varieties of bulbs bloom first? perhaps they are hardier and more able to take on the winter weather still lurking around. The next springtime spectacular was the witch hazel that is still blooming in the corner of Peggy's perennial garden. It was given to her as a gift when her mother passed away. What a joy to see bright golden yellow blooms against a blue sky, far before the forsythia's first bud cracks open.

Soon to follow will be the daffodils, tulips and Hyacinthe's. Daylilly stocks are pushing up and soon we should be seeing the sleepy eyes of the peonies beginning to wake up. Until then I'm enjoying the flash of green and the hope of what's to come.

Easter

2008-03-23T19:23:00.009-04:00

The first weekend of warm workable soil or should I say the first weekend the very cautious Rental Lady at Tilton's felt like the ground was dry enough to rent out her rototiller.
Ah yes, the tiller, we tilled a ton of new earth, built a composter out of pallets, a huge new raised bed and turned the old garden over. We transplanted some double fruiting raspberries outside our fenced garden and freed a young apple tree found on the property from the grip of a vicious vine that was sure to cause its demise.
The fact that I can outline all of this work in a paragraph gives no justice to the labor it took to accomplish these tasks. The entire Saturday before Easter was devoted to transforming the old garden to the new garden (or farm as we like to call it). We woke early and gathered provisions and breakfast sandwiches. Wood for the new raised beds was half price "hags" or junky boards and pallets from Cottle's Lumber. Red got soil and compost earlier in the week with the dump truck from work Our Farm consists of the wild apple tree and raspberry patch, fenced garden and new raised bed for vegetables, lettuce and greens bed, cutting garden and clover patch ( so Red can lure, I mean feed the deer). A modest garden for a small family of budding homesteaders. The soil in our West Tisbury 'farmstead' is a sandy composite of local top soil and aged island compost with a significant amount of lime added to encourage a host of natural bacteria to flourish and balance the soil ph, as the sandy soil tends to be deficient in natural lime. One might think it too early to start a garden, however this winter was very mild and the ground has been thawed for weeks so we've decided to get a jump on the preparations as to make it easier on ourselves in future weeks. Also I was feeling the pressure of early peas and lettuce to 'get on with it already' the seeds have been sitting in packets on my desk for a few weeks already. And I wont deny I crave the sight of something growing in the garden, it's Spring already! My favorite part? It looks just like I've planned it for the past two months- like my drawing came to life. I hope our hard work shows and that ultimately our garden is as productive as we are.
So with earth tilled and refreshed, weeds combated, beds ready and peas planted I'm ready for a beer...