I guess even garden girls can suffer from writer’s block. While I really love the rain and the cooler weather, it’s does rather put a bit of a cramp in the inspiration one has for digging in the dirt and watching things grow since all of that gets curtailed with this weather change. Bear with me while I meander around, hoping to provide you with something worth your time to read…
First off, October 12 has been tagged as “International Scream of Frustration Day.” Might be a useful bit of information, if your life has been going anything like mine. October also happens to be Spinach Lover’s Month, Vegetarian Month and Celebrate Sun-Dried Tomatoes Month.
Since we’ve arrived at autumn, many of you have tomato plants that are on their last legs. We don’t want to waste those last ‘maters, but what to do? Sun dried tomatoes are not only tasty and dense in nutrients, but are easy to prepare as well. Anyone who has purchased these from the stores knows that they aren’t exactly cheap.
Here’s the quick way (OK – so they aren’t “technically” SUN-dried) to make sun-dried tomatoes in your oven. Roma tomatoes are really the best for drying because they are more solid and have less seeds than other varieties. You can totally use any of your favorite homegrown beauties.
First, cut off the stems. Then, cut your ‘maters in half lengthwise and scrape out the seeds. Put them on a cake rack on a baking sheet with the skin side down and sprinkle them with salt and pepper, if you wish. Bake them in the oven at 200 degrees for 8 to 12 hours. Whatever you do, don’t leave them unattended. Check on them to make sure they’re not turning into crispy critters. They should be shriveled up but still soft, like raisins.
Once they’re cool, pack them in freezer bags and store them in the freezer for up to a year. If you’ve got a Food Saver or Seal-A-Meal gadget, vacuum pack them. You might also want to store some in the fridge, packed in good quality olive oil with some minced garlic, fresh thyme or basil. Packed in oil, they’ll be good for around 3 months.
If you happen to have one of those stackable food dehydrators, then you’re way ahead of us – certainly light years ahead of me – and don’t need any of these instructions.
Last week I mentioned botanical or “species” tulips. Lots of folks view the tulip as the Queen of the spring blooming bulbs (I like fritillaries, but I digress). A hundred years or so of hybridizing has given us as many hybrids as there are years of the process. We’re not talking about those.
In the wild, 100 or so species of tulips occur. These are not native to Holland, as most people think – they are native to the Eastern Mediterranean, Asia Minor and other points east. These climates are cool and wet in the winter and baking dry and hot in the summer. (Gee, sound just like the Rogue Valley!) In most gardens, we don’t have those kinds of conditions, so those tulips that want the baking summers are not generally or easily found. There are, however, enough botanical types available for us to explore and be quite pleased with.
The botanicals are somewhat shorter than the classic Dutch tulip and usually live longer. They are best planted in groups of 5 or 7 and look great in rock gardens or in the front of border plantings.
The earliest of the botanicals to bloom are known as water-lily tulips (t. kaufmanniana). The popular hybrids of this botanical are ‘Ancilla’, ‘Concerto’, ‘Fashion’, ‘Heart’s Delight’ and ‘Stresa’ and run from white and cream to red and bright yellow.
T. greigii, another botanical, bears blooms that are quite large in relation to this size of the plant. The wild version of this tulip bear Vermillion-red blooms, but the modern hybrids boast blends of red, orange and yellow. They are quite striking.
Emperor tulips (t. fosteriana) are very popular and most closely resemble the classic tulip except that their blooms are more elongated. Emperor hybrids come in the color range from white to red and variegated. All three of the tulips described above bloom just before the standard tulips.
True species tulips range from easy to grow to…um…royal pains…er…rather challenging. A couple of the qualities of species tulips that I really like are that they seem to multiply rather quickly through bulblets and seed. Also, the bulbs produce clusters of two to five blooms! Definitely more bang for your buck! T. Turkestanica produces lovely star-shaped flowers in clusters of up to 12! How cool is that? The colors…well, they are generally pretty vibrant and unique in their combinations. Fluorescent orange, orange-red with white variegation, magenta-pink or red-orange with blue centers.
While the botanicals are not as classic in appearance as the hybrids of today, they are certainly unique and worth a look and a go.
October 21st is Apple Tuesday. In 1905, the New York Fruit Growers Association tried to get the 3rd Tuesday in October set up as a national holiday in the hope that every American would eat at least one apple on that day. Well, it didn’t work out that way, but it should have! Support your local grower on that day, or better yet…plant an apple tree of your own!
Really, the best apples are the ones you pick yourself, right off of the tree. The question I hear a lot is, “How do you know when they’re ripe?” Well, if it’s a red or pink variety, it’s pretty easy to tell. Some stay green or yellow, so color isn’t always a reliable indicator.
Lois Tilton tells us that observing the seed development is a very reliable method. Check the progress of the apples and look for changes in color. Nearly ripe apples are tart, but edible and the seeds are white. When the seeds start to turn dark, they are almost ready and when they are completely dark, it’s time to start picking. Also, if you can lift an apple off of the tree without pulling hard or twisting it off, that’s ready to pick.
When you’ve picked your apples, be gentle with them. Don’t plunk them into a bucket or sack. Ripe apples are easily bruised and bruised apples may rot.
These days, most of us grow dwarf fruit trees so we can get to the fruit without a skyhook and a trampoline. However, even these trees can grow taller than you expect. If your apples are growing out of reach, a stepladder is useful. For heaven’s sake, don’t stand on tippy toes on the top of the ladder to reach that one apple – usually the most attractive one on the entire tree – that hangs just…out…of…reach. We don’t want to be reading about you in the fire calls, with an apple induced broken arm. It is frustrating to see your fruit so high up in the tree and sometimes entirely out of reach. The solution may be to prune back the tree instead of climbing higher. Be safe and enjoy the fruits of your labor.
First off, October 12 has been tagged as “International Scream of Frustration Day.” Might be a useful bit of information, if your life has been going anything like mine. October also happens to be Spinach Lover’s Month, Vegetarian Month and Celebrate Sun-Dried Tomatoes Month.
Since we’ve arrived at autumn, many of you have tomato plants that are on their last legs. We don’t want to waste those last ‘maters, but what to do? Sun dried tomatoes are not only tasty and dense in nutrients, but are easy to prepare as well. Anyone who has purchased these from the stores knows that they aren’t exactly cheap.
Here’s the quick way (OK – so they aren’t “technically” SUN-dried) to make sun-dried tomatoes in your oven. Roma tomatoes are really the best for drying because they are more solid and have less seeds than other varieties. You can totally use any of your favorite homegrown beauties.
First, cut off the stems. Then, cut your ‘maters in half lengthwise and scrape out the seeds. Put them on a cake rack on a baking sheet with the skin side down and sprinkle them with salt and pepper, if you wish. Bake them in the oven at 200 degrees for 8 to 12 hours. Whatever you do, don’t leave them unattended. Check on them to make sure they’re not turning into crispy critters. They should be shriveled up but still soft, like raisins.
Once they’re cool, pack them in freezer bags and store them in the freezer for up to a year. If you’ve got a Food Saver or Seal-A-Meal gadget, vacuum pack them. You might also want to store some in the fridge, packed in good quality olive oil with some minced garlic, fresh thyme or basil. Packed in oil, they’ll be good for around 3 months.
If you happen to have one of those stackable food dehydrators, then you’re way ahead of us – certainly light years ahead of me – and don’t need any of these instructions.
Last week I mentioned botanical or “species” tulips. Lots of folks view the tulip as the Queen of the spring blooming bulbs (I like fritillaries, but I digress). A hundred years or so of hybridizing has given us as many hybrids as there are years of the process. We’re not talking about those.
In the wild, 100 or so species of tulips occur. These are not native to Holland, as most people think – they are native to the Eastern Mediterranean, Asia Minor and other points east. These climates are cool and wet in the winter and baking dry and hot in the summer. (Gee, sound just like the Rogue Valley!) In most gardens, we don’t have those kinds of conditions, so those tulips that want the baking summers are not generally or easily found. There are, however, enough botanical types available for us to explore and be quite pleased with.
The botanicals are somewhat shorter than the classic Dutch tulip and usually live longer. They are best planted in groups of 5 or 7 and look great in rock gardens or in the front of border plantings.
The earliest of the botanicals to bloom are known as water-lily tulips (t. kaufmanniana). The popular hybrids of this botanical are ‘Ancilla’, ‘Concerto’, ‘Fashion’, ‘Heart’s Delight’ and ‘Stresa’ and run from white and cream to red and bright yellow.
T. greigii, another botanical, bears blooms that are quite large in relation to this size of the plant. The wild version of this tulip bear Vermillion-red blooms, but the modern hybrids boast blends of red, orange and yellow. They are quite striking.
Emperor tulips (t. fosteriana) are very popular and most closely resemble the classic tulip except that their blooms are more elongated. Emperor hybrids come in the color range from white to red and variegated. All three of the tulips described above bloom just before the standard tulips.
True species tulips range from easy to grow to…um…royal pains…er…rather challenging. A couple of the qualities of species tulips that I really like are that they seem to multiply rather quickly through bulblets and seed. Also, the bulbs produce clusters of two to five blooms! Definitely more bang for your buck! T. Turkestanica produces lovely star-shaped flowers in clusters of up to 12! How cool is that? The colors…well, they are generally pretty vibrant and unique in their combinations. Fluorescent orange, orange-red with white variegation, magenta-pink or red-orange with blue centers.
While the botanicals are not as classic in appearance as the hybrids of today, they are certainly unique and worth a look and a go.
October 21st is Apple Tuesday. In 1905, the New York Fruit Growers Association tried to get the 3rd Tuesday in October set up as a national holiday in the hope that every American would eat at least one apple on that day. Well, it didn’t work out that way, but it should have! Support your local grower on that day, or better yet…plant an apple tree of your own!
Really, the best apples are the ones you pick yourself, right off of the tree. The question I hear a lot is, “How do you know when they’re ripe?” Well, if it’s a red or pink variety, it’s pretty easy to tell. Some stay green or yellow, so color isn’t always a reliable indicator.
Lois Tilton tells us that observing the seed development is a very reliable method. Check the progress of the apples and look for changes in color. Nearly ripe apples are tart, but edible and the seeds are white. When the seeds start to turn dark, they are almost ready and when they are completely dark, it’s time to start picking. Also, if you can lift an apple off of the tree without pulling hard or twisting it off, that’s ready to pick.
When you’ve picked your apples, be gentle with them. Don’t plunk them into a bucket or sack. Ripe apples are easily bruised and bruised apples may rot.
These days, most of us grow dwarf fruit trees so we can get to the fruit without a skyhook and a trampoline. However, even these trees can grow taller than you expect. If your apples are growing out of reach, a stepladder is useful. For heaven’s sake, don’t stand on tippy toes on the top of the ladder to reach that one apple – usually the most attractive one on the entire tree – that hangs just…out…of…reach. We don’t want to be reading about you in the fire calls, with an apple induced broken arm. It is frustrating to see your fruit so high up in the tree and sometimes entirely out of reach. The solution may be to prune back the tree instead of climbing higher. Be safe and enjoy the fruits of your labor.
Anyone interested in a very simple apple crisp, cooked in the crock pot, can email to thegardengrrl@gmail.com, with APPLE CRISP in the subject line. This recipe is simple, super tasty and makes your house smell divine.
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