Some berry bad news

My blueberries did not bloom this year. Boo.

Last year, I had a small, promising harvest. This year I just have stems and leaves. What happened? I have several theories:

  1. Winter injury: Usually, I protect my blueberry bushes in the fall. I surround them with four-foot chicken wire and fill them with bags of oak leaves from a neighbor. Last fall, I was crazy busy with work and only got the chicken wire up. I thwarted the rabbits, but not Old Man Winter.
  2. Frost exposure: We had lots of snow for protection, but maybe the blooms got damaged during our spring freeze/thaw cycle. A well timed frost could have killed the blooms.
  3. Not enough sun: My blueberries are planted near my Colorado Spruce. Blueberries will tolerate partial shade, but as shade increases, plants produce fewer blossoms and fruit production declines. Time to get out the PlantSmart and test how much sun my blueberries are actually getting.

What can I do this year? According to the Extension service: Water, fertilize, prune back the dead wood, and mulch, mulch, mulch in the fall.

What garden disappointments have you experienced this year?

QR Codes in the garden? Really?

The back of a plant tag found in my container of basil. Do you think it uses a smart phone, too?

You’ve seen them around town — on billboards for Chino Latino, at the bus stop on Medica ads, and in trendy metro magazines. Snap a pic with your smart phone, open your QR app, and you instantly have mobile access to something magical… well, sort of kinda magical if you enjoy browsing the web with your mobile device.

In Europe and Asia, QR codes are everywhere. The cool kids are using them on their business cards. With a touch of a button, you can instantly upload and save their contact information to your phone. In fact, as a freelance web designer, I just finished my first QR project — and still need to delete two dozen test codes from my phone.

As both a garden and web enthusiast, I’m always curious about where and how the natural world and the tech world meet. For Christmas, my husband bought me a Black & Decker PlantSmart (more on this in a future post). It is useful, informative, and most of all — fun.

In the garden, however, smart phones really aren’t fun. First, dirt and water have a nasty habit of destroying expensive communications devices. Second, my yard is my escape from the demands of people and technology. I will not answer your call or your text until the weeds are pulled and the compost is turned.

But would I take the time to use a QR code? Do I need to save contact information for a container of basil?

But, maybe in this case someone is smarter than me. Maybe this QR code adds some sort of value to buying this plant other than a summer full of homemade pesto or caprese…

My inner web geek needed an answer and snapped a pic. Could a QR codes make a plant tag more fun? More importantly, should plant tags be fun?

In this case, the answer was a big fat NO. The QR code had nothing to do with gardening, basil or even the company who grew tha plant. It was just a marketing ploy for DinnerSpinner Pro, a web app from allrecipies.com. To add insult to injury, the app was only for the iPhone. I use a Droid.

Thank you, Bachman’s

This weekend, Bachman’s and the Minnesota Nursery & Landscape Association (MNLA) joined forces to recycle plastic plant pots.

I loaded my Prius with three garbage bags of unwanted plastic. My garage and my husband we’re thrilled.

A trunk full of plastic

Full recycling bin at Bachman's

Did you miss the event? Don’t worry. They’re hosting another on September 17-18.

Brugmansia watch, mid-June

A few weeks ago, we hauled this giant plant up out of the basement.  I gave it a nice long drink of fertilized water to wake it up and then braced myself for the amazing growth of this tropical giant!  If you recall, this is what the plant looks like dormant:

Dormant BrugmansiaAnd here it is, after just 3 weeks in the sun:Brugmansia June

This plant will grow to be over 6 feet tall with giant tropical blooms that smell heavenly. It’s an incredibly rewarding plant but requires serious maintenance: daily watering and weekly fertilizer.  I love it, though, for making my deck feel like the tropics and adding an exotic element to my garden.

Crafty Corner: Painting Terracotta Pots

I’ve always loved the look of painted pots but they can be so expensive.  Did you know you can make them yourself from cheap terracotta pots?

Step 1: seal the inside of the pots.  I used Thompsons Waterseal in a spray can.  easy!

Step 2: paint the outside of the pots.  I used Martha Stewart high-gloss outdoor paint.  A little goes a long way so you only need a quart.

Step 3. shellac.  I used a spray shellac.  This can have a yellow tint but I actually like the look it gives. Did you know shellac is made from the secretion of the lac bug and is therefore food-safe?

Done!  Here’s a look at my pots, after one coat of paint. I can’t wait to fill them with herbs and flowers.

painted pots

Got Rhubarb? Make some crumb bars.

We got rhubarb in our CSA this week, and I’ve already made this crumb bar recipe twice. I’m not a big rhubarb fan actually, but these are delicious, especially with a little fresh whipped cream.

Of course, I couldn’t just go with Martha’s recipe as written.  I substituted fresh ground flax for half the flour in the streusel.  You know, so it’s healthy.

Rhubarb Crumb Bars

"healthy" rhubarb crumb bars

I also made rhubarb syrup, for rhubarb-spiked gin and tonics.  If it turned out good, I’ll report back and let you know how it’s done.

There’s always something

Every year,when I finish some moderately challenging project—a new garden bed, digging up and re-seeding an area of lawn that’s infested with a terrible weedy grass,
creating a seating area, arranging for dying shrubs to get taken down, then
moving everything around because there is no more shade—I think to myself, “I’m
super glad that’s over. Next year, all I’m going to do is do the spring
clean-up, plant out my goods and enjoy.” I’ve been waiting for that season for
about seven years now.

This winter, our curly willow succumbed to a very heavy snowfall; most of its major branches broke and there was no way to salvage it. I’d planted this tree in 1995 when I
bought my home. It was about five feet high and adorable. As it grew, I realized
I’d sited it too close to a neighbor’s tree, so it leaned a bit to catch the
light. It grew to about thirty feet and was unusual and pretty. Friends and I
gathered the curly branches for decorations—crazy cheap, when five of them go
for between seven and ten bucks depending on where you shop.

An old friend, fallen

I wasn’t too sad to lose the tree, even though I really liked it. After a brief mourning
period of about half an hour, I began plotting. I could get a different tree,
something small, planted away from the neighbor’s tree, and make it the star of
a new bed of shady plants! Winter went on and my garden mind slept. In early
April, I got a notice about the Tree Trust program in Minneapolis. You can buy a tree for $25.00, part of an effort to get more trees in the cityscape. I checked out what they
were selling and found it: The Perfect Tree. Ok, the Really Most Perfect Tree
would be a fast-growing magnolia, but they don’t make those. Look, I’m 46 and
don’t feel like I have time to wait 15 years for a tree to do its thing. What I
bought instead is a serviceberry tree, or Amelanchier canadensis.  They grow to about 25 feet, have clouds of white flowers, purple berries that feed birds and stupendous fall foliage.

The pile of soil, waiting to be shaped and raked. The dog was included at no extra charge.

I also became determined to have one of those nice orderly beds that has space between the plants.  This is a very different approach—my usual m.o. is to buy plants that I like and cram them in where I find space. This results in a garden full of really cool things, but a very full, some might say, chaotic look. This time, I really, really promise I will stick to my plan. The bed will be an oval, about fifteen feet by five at its widest. I’ve picked
out three big hostas to put at one end, two bleeding hearts, maidenhair ferns,
Heucherella ‘Stoplight’ and Brunnera ‘Jack Frost.’ I’d been thinking about the
bush quince, Chaemoneles ‘Camille’ but I think it’s too weedy looking overall.

You can just make out the tree

This was to be quite the project: after getting an estimate for sod removal, I decided I was going to dig that out myself. Then I thought about that some more, and paid the guy. Also, when you plant a tree, you have to dig a hole three times the diameter of the root ball so it grows really well.  Thankfully, you only dig as deep as the root ball. I also decided that a raised, mounded bed would look really pretty, so I got a bunch of soil—a cubic yard was perfect. Even better, my partner took pity on me and moved it from the alley to the front yard. She didn’t count the number of wheelbarrow trips.

Those very tiny plants in back are the hostas. In three years, they will be giants

Spacing of plants has always been a challenge for me. I set the pot down, look, and think I’ve got it right. I plant. Then, and only then, do I notice I missed the plant 6″ to the right. (See tree story above. Although that took about five years to show.) I think I did all right with this bed. I also walked around it, as it will be visible from every side. Some of  it’s empty; I couldn’t find a white bleeding heart, and since brunneras are so expensive, I’m hoping to split mine next year.

I think I already know the next project: I have a shade garden filled with large plain hostas. Some of those have to go, to make room for fancier ones, as well as other shade plants, such as dogtooth violets, hellebores and anenomes. Yep, there’s always something.

What to do with your CSA this week: Make a savory tart!

This week’s CSA included saute greens, ramps, and parsnips.

I read somewhere that if you’re unsure about what to make to eat, just start caramelizing some onions and it will come to you.  That is such great advice!  Caramelized onions are good in EVERYTHING: grilled cheese sandwiches, soups, stir-fry, salads, on top of a main dish… I sometimes just eat them plain.

So last night I was thinking about caramelized onions and decided the perfect spring dinner would be a savory tart.  Here is how I made it.

1) make your tart crust. You can buy pre-made pastry crusts but it’s actually pretty easy to make your own. Just mix 12oz of flour* (about 1.5c), a stick of butter (oh yeah!), a pinch of salt, and about a 1/4c cold water.  Squish it around with your hands until it’s pretty well combined but don’t overwork.  Then split into two equal balls and put in the fridge.

2) caramelize onions. Cut up one white onion, heat up a chunk of butter (are you sensing a theme with these cooking posts?), and slowly saute the onions until they begin to caramelize. This is a good tutorial to those new to this.  I cut up a few ramps and caramelized them along with the onions.

3) add other stuff. What else do you like?  I sliced up some parsnips and chopped up some broccoli, saute greens, and brussels sprouts.  I also added a generous pinch of dried parsley from last year’s herb harvest.  You could also add nuts or other vegetables, I don’t think you could go wrong here.  I threw this stuff into my caramelized onion pan at the end to cook it a little but that probably wasn’t necessary.

4) build your tarts. Take your tart crusts out of the fridge, and smush them into roughly 10″ rounds on a floured surface.  At this point, I added some goat cheese as a base layer, then piled up the onions/greens/etc. mix on top.  Leave about an inch around the outside.  Then you can fold over the edges of your tart crusts and transfer them to a cookie sheet.  Oh, I sprinkled a little parmesan over the top as well. Totally optional.

5) Bake at 350 for about 35-45 minutes. That’s it!  Serve with white wine and a green salad.  YUM.

savory tart*I substituted some almond flour for my pastry crust, that’s why it looks a little darker than you’d expect.  It turned out delicious!  Just don’t substitute more than 1/2 of your regular flour.

My favorite groundcover

A few years ago, my roommate’s mom, an avid gardener, offered to come help me plant a garden at my [at the time] new house.  I knew nothing about gardening, so we sent her a picture of the yard, indicating what was sun and shade, and let her go to town at the garden center.

She brought us many things, most of which are still thriving today.  But perhaps my favorite is a tiny little pot of groundcover she brought called Sweet Woodruff.

sweet woodruff

The tiny 6″ pot has now expanded to cover much of the garden as groundcover. It has pretty green leaves, tiny white flowers in the spring, and is incredibly hardy. Some would probably call it invasive, as it has spread to cover at least 5 square feet of space, but I find it easy to control – so far it hasn’t spread into my lawn, despite being planted right next to the edge of my beds.

Woodruff is also a wonderfully scented plant which can be dried for potpourri, with a smell that is described as “new-mown hay.”  Yum!

1 … 4 5 6 7 8  Scroll to top