Tag Archives: Green!

Fresh salad!

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Fresh salad, straight from our garden/yard. Yum! I needed to thin out the lettuce from the small garden, I picked some of the over-wintered-but-not-doing-so-well spinach from the big garden, and I found some dandelion greens in the yard. I had a head of purchased iceburg in the fridge and add to all that some borage flowers which just started blooming and you have a gorgeous salad almost too pretty to eat. Almost, but not quite. 🙂

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I love that dandelions are considered a weed, yet they are edible and good for you. And the borage is a volunteer which comes back every year.

Edit: For the health of you and your family, be sure if you are harvesting any wild edibles that they come from a trusted source not treated with any harsh chemicals! We don’t use any herbicides or pesticides or even any fertilizer on our lawn, so I know the dandelions are safe to eat.

Garden Update

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So, I went away for 10 days and came back to some radishes and lettuce ready to pick, or at least thin out (and eat the thinned one’s 😉 ). And just about everything too tall for the glass cover.

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Princess Girl was excited to pick some of her radishes, even though she’s not even sure if she likes them.

I’m not quite ready to leave the garden completely open to the cat, though. He likes to curl up in the warm sun, right on top of my baby onion plants. So, I’m thinking I’ll put another level of boards up around the garden and raise the glass that way. Then we can continue to let the chickens roam free too. Yeah, the chickens would decimate the garden right now. In fact, they were out and about while I was checking on the garden this morning and were VERY interested in what was in that box!

In other news, the spinach in the pots on the deck are doing much better than the boxes on the fence. I’m thinking the fence boxes might be holding too much moisture. Need to drill a few holes in the bottom and see if that helps. And I need to trim the honeysuckle already. It grows so fast, but I knew it would. Hmmmm, looks like I have some gardening work ahead of me tomorrow. Ahh, shucks! 😉

 

Harvesting Green Onions

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I went back to that park where the wild oinions are growing.

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All of that "grass" is onions!

I picked a large grocery sack full and brought them home. Kinda weird to be walking through the neighborhood with a bag full of produce which I had just harvested from the “wilds” of the neighborhood park.

Once I got home, Princess Girl and I got to cleaning.

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After cleaning, I ended up with what amounts to about 15 to 20 bunches from the grocery store.

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I gave them one last cleaning in the sink, then got to chopping. Once chopped I put 1/2 cup servings into small baggies.

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When they were all bagged, I labeled them with the what they are, today’s date, and serving size. I ended up with 22 servings (11 cups).

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All the little baggies went into a large baggie and into the freezer for future use

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We’re headed to Nevada next week (yay!), and when we get back, if the onions are still harvestable, I’ll probably do it all again. Visions of quiches and soups and all sorts of recipes are dancing in my head!

Maridy

“I lift up my eyes to the hills, where does my help come from? My help comes from the LORD, the maker of heaven and earth.” Ps 121:1-2

The city…grrr (And a garden update)

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City living can get me down sometimes. Sure, there’s beauty here. I run across it all around. Like this lovely little scene just down the street.

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Looks like a beautiful spot to explore and maybe have a picnic. Until you look to the side. And see this.

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I understand why they have to set boundaries and protect the natural places. But the limits can be stifling to this country girl. So, I come home to my little garden and try to shut out the sounds of the city and dream of the day we’ll be back at Castle Rock.

And speaking of my garden, here’s some recent pictures. It’s just about time to start thinning the radishes and lettuce. I actually picked and ate a couple of the lettuce seedlings which had somehow* gotten planted amongst some of the carrots. It was a delicious foretaste of the salads we’ll be eating in just a little while.

*somehow – like maybe because a two year old was helping me plant? 😉

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Seeing my little garden and how well it’s coming along helps me to better endure our time here. Gives me a purpose outside the house. And will eventually give us healthy food to eat. A win-win situation.

Spring!

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It’s officially Spring, and here in the Pacific Northwest it’s absolutely beautiful! On my re-entry walk the other day I took the time to stop and smell the roses. Well, the roses aren’t blooming yet, but I did stop to smell all the different flowers. And take lots (lots) of pictures. I’m not a good photographer and I don’t have a great camera, but I wanted to share with you all the beauty which helped me again focus on the good around me, rather than the annoying parts.

I don’t know many of the flowers, but it’s a good thing that you don’t need to know the names to enjoy the beauty.

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20150319_182658Candy Tuft

20150319_183120Almost looks like snow on the ground!

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20150319_183639This flower looks exquisite, even though is only has a faintly sweet smell.

20150319_184027I’ve never seen so many different varieties of daffodils.

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20150319_184617A pretty little watershed in the neighborhood. Unlike some other places, this one has no signs telling you to stay out..

20150319_184727Strangely, these flowers smelled heavenly, though they don’t seem like they would.

20150319_184823Of course hyacinth have a wonderful smell, too, in moderation. Sometimes they can be overpowering.

20150319_184956The tulips are finally starting to blossom.

20150319_185113The tulip trees are ending their bloom, though, But I finally got some pictures.

20150319_185159Gorgeous purple blossoms. I think they are a magnolia.

20150319_185555More tulips.

20150319_185631Maybe a maple tree?

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20150319_185928Love the mosses and lichens here in the PNW!

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20150319_191158I actually love dandelions. Maybe it’s because I know they are edible. Maybe it’s because my girls still give me bouquets of them. Maybe it’s because they are so resilient. Either way, they always make me smile.

20150319_191235Not sure what this tree will end up producing, but it’s in a secluded area of a public park. I know somewhere in there are some fruit trees. Maybe this is one – maybe cherry?

20150319_191333Seclusion in the city.

20150319_193006It’s not very big, but it’s enough to “get away” for a little bit. I want to take the rest of the family there for a picnic on our next warm, sunny day.

20150319_193547Just love these purple blooms!

20150321_180500Our cherry tree is starting to blossom as well.

20150321_180535 The neighbor’s tree. Beautiful.

I hope if you are in a part of the country that is still bogged down in winter, these pictures will remind you that Spring is on it’s way!

Garden Plot Update #2

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20150217_101044Our first garden visitor!

So, I mentioned before that we planted our seeds on Feb 17th. What I didn’t show are our garden markers. I have used popsicle/craft sticks before with so-so results. Oh one hand they are cheap and easy to use. You write the veggie on the end and stick it in the ground. But I found that the sun and rain fades the lettering after a couple months. Just fine if you only want to know which row you planted your carrots vs onions in until they grow and you can tell them apart by their leaves. Not so good if you want to permanently mark your 4 different varieties of tomatoes so you can remember which type is which when it comes time for harvest. So, I thought I’d try a little experiment.

20150217_114825First, I wrote the info on the stick as usual. I used both sides. The front has what it is. The back has the expected harvest date so I can remind myself when I’m out in the garden and don’t have to refer back to my packets or journal

20150217_114854Then, I coated the end of the stick in clear nail polish. The polish soaked into the stick and dried very quickly, so I am hoping it will keep the letters from fading. At least until I can remember which variety of lettuce I planted where! I guess we’ll just have to see how it does.

20150217_123501And there’s the newly planted (and marked!) garden.

A friend of mine expressed some skepticism about planting so early in the season, but here’s one of the reasons I wasn’t concerned. I have shower doors! And they fit almost perfectly on my new bed. I guess this means I have a cold frame. I’m still working on a system to cover the gap in the middle, but for now, they work admirably.

20150221_132523They help heat up the soil during the day to give my little plants a boost, and they hold in just enough heat at night that the slight frosts we’ve had don’t touch the seedlings (even though everything that I have planted right now can tolerate lights frosts.)

20150221_184551And, if it gets really cold, the doors make it a cinch to cover the bed.

20150305_140335They are easily propped open so that I can work in there or to let out excess heat in case we have some really warm sunny days (hahaha! warm sunny days in the springtime in the Pacific Northwest? I crack myself up!)

20150304_103200Wait, what was I just saying about warm, sunny days??

At any rate, the shower doors also serve two more VERY important roles. One, they keep the free-ranging hens out of my seedlings!

And two, they provide the perfect table for a two year old to play with her dinosaurs and a pail of water. 🙂20150305_141309-1

Stay warm everyone. And God bless!

Growth!

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I have yet to write up a post about my garden plot and container garden plans, so I know I’m jumping the gun by showing you these pics, but I just can’t help myself. Is there anything as exciting to a gardener as the first sprouts?

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Do you have anything growing where you’re at yet?

Maridy

“I lift up my eyes to the hills, where does my help come from? My help comes from the LORD, the maker of heaven and earth.” Ps 121:1-2

Beauty in the Interlude

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If you’ve been watching the tags on my posts (and I think I’ve mentioned it once or twice,) you’ll see that I’ve christened this time we are living here in Oregon as our Portland Interlude. It’s one way to come to grips with our time here and reminds me that this is temporary and eventually we’ll be back home on the homestead. And it gives me permission to enjoy the beauty around me, something I felt almost guilty about in the beginning. By recognizing that it’s only a break in our plans, just an intermission, or a commercial break, or whatever, helps me learn to let myself enjoy living here while still 100% eager to leave.

So, on today’s walk, Princess Girl and I saw some beautiful and interesting things.

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Beautiful early flowers in my favorite color!

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Stopping to smell the flowers.

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The small wooded park which I wrote about the other day.

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A cool little sidewalk lending library! Now I know exactly where I need to take my books when I’m done reading them!

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I hear that Dutch Bros coffee has made it all the way down into a town in Nevada where some of our relatives live. We also had a new one appear just around the corner here in Oregon. I am not particularly fond of their mochas (which are my guilty pleasure – every once in a while), but I enjoyed this bumper sticker. 🙂

And there you have it, just another beautiful walk in a beautiful suburb. I always said that if I just HAD to live in a big city, I’d choose the Portland area. And here we are. Just hopefully not for too long, Lord!

Maridy

“I lift up my eyes to the hills, where does my help come from? My help comes from the LORD, the maker of heaven and earth.” Ps 121:1-2

On my walk today…

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I’ve been trying to get out and go for walks every day. So far, so good. But it’s only been 4 days :-). Some days, like today, I can go about 2 miles in 40 minutes. Other times I take the girls with me and it’s sigificantly slower than that. In fact, yesterday’s walk was less than half the mileage in a longer amount of time because we were picking up trash in the neighborhood for a service project. (Ah, the joys of living in town.)

My plan when we lived on the homestead was to get out and go for hikes every day. No reason I can’t at least walk around the block here, other than the fact the view is less than inspiring. However, Hubby has been taking afternoon walks every day after work for about a month now and his persistence has inspired me to start doing the same. And what I’ve discovered is that our neighborhood has some fun little surprises. Like the wooded area with trails intersecting all the through it like a spider web. Sure, the sounds of the city were still there, but my feet were on a dirt trail and the birds sang over head. It felt somewhat secluded and peaceful.

And then there are countless pathways like this…

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…just waiting to be explored.

Or there’s the blueberry farm literally just down the street (coincidentally owned by the same people who own a u-pick oyster farm we discovered near Tillamook, OR around Christmas).

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Or, you see into the back yard of some house as you pass by and become instantly jealous.

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Look at all those raised beds! I counted at least 10, and in the far back corner is another raised bed with a small grape vine on it. Oh, if only we had that much land here! But then, if we did, maybe we wouldn’t be as anxious to get home to Nevada as we are.

At any rate, I plan to take pictures of interesting things as I find them to remind myself that there ARE cool things about living here.

Maridy

“I lift up my eyes to the hills, where does my help come from? My help comes from the LORD, the maker of heaven and earth.” Ps 121:1-2

I’m not ready for this!

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It’s February 2nd. And Spring is starting in the Pacific Northwest. Shoots are popping up all over the place.

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Grocery stores are selling blooming tulips, buttercups, hyacinths, primrose, and pansies. The trees are starting to put out buds.

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And this is completely normal. Back home in Nevada, the same thing is happening, but everyone there knows that the temps will dip again and everything will die back and wait for real Spring. Here in the Portland area, Spring really is on it’s way.

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It’s exciting, knowing that  our growing season is starting. My father-in-law and I were comparing seeds today. Later this week, we are going to break out the graphing paper and start plotting the garden. I may actually, finally, get a good pea harvest by starting early. But it’s a daunting task to be learning everything new. The climate here is completely different, and I have to learn a new plot of land: what’s the soil like, where does the sun hit in different seasons, where’s the best place for certain veggies, etc.

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I want to take advantage of the extended growing season here. If we were planning to stay long term, I would look into learning to grow year-round. In fact, I want to do that back in Nevada, too, it would just be easier here in Oregon. But we’re hoping this is our only winter here. So, as we head into spring, I want to take advantage of living here, get some things planted early, grow things that have a hard time growing back home because of the climate. But it’s only February 2nd and I already feel like I’m behind the curve. I’m not sure I’m ready for this. But I’m sure gonna try! 🙂

Maridy

“I lift up my eyes to the hills, where does my help come from? My help comes from the LORD, the maker of heaven and earth.” Ps 121:1-2