Our New Yard...in White

 

I wasn’t really prepared to do a post about our new yard, just yet, but I couldn’t resist sharing this!

This is part of the front and side yard- in the left-hand corner, you can see a small pond.

 

Part of back yard. Now that’s what I’m talking about- a storm and then sun!

More will follow, so stay tuned!

Happy Gardening,

Tessa

Windy with a chance of trees

 

This week we had quite a surprise!

 

I know it’s fall...but come on!

Our old pear tree that died a while back finally fell- and it broke right at soil level! It fell perfectly...and didn’t hit anything (thank God!). We couldn’t have planned it better :). We left it because the squirrels used it, silly I know! The really weird thing is that normally this time of year the wind comes from the west- not the east. If it had come from the west it would have fallen on the house possibly or in between our house and the neighbor’s house maybe. In hindsight, it was probably (probably?;) a bad idea to just let it be- I’m just thankful that no one was hurt!

See what happens? You don’t hear from me for a while and WHAM! As busy as I’ve been lately with sorting things in the house, I had to report this one! I’ll post as I can, but know that it will be hit and miss for a while because of our moving- stay tuned, though as I’ll be sure to keep everyone posted on what’s going on in that department!

Some of you have asked how the healing is going from surgery, and I wanted to let you know that it is going well (but too slow for my taste!). Thanks so much for the emails! I tire easily and from what my doc said, that is to be expected for quite a while- blah! I do a little more every day sorting, packing, etc.

Last week, while we had some sun, we packed up what we’re taking that is outside and moved it to the garage. Everything but the greenhouse and what is in the small shed is packed up- anything that we didn’t want getting wet, in other words. I was sad to find out that my potting bench will have to be left- it is just to weathered to make it. I love my potting bench! I hope the next family to live here will find it useful!

Very sad!

I hope you are all enjoying your fall weather and as usual,

Happy gardening,

Tessa

Basil- The Jury’s Back

 

Not too long ago, I did a post about our basil and the best way to dry it. I wasn’t very happy with the results of drying it on my new soil sifter (thanks dad!;), and it was in the heat of summer that I tried it that way even though it was in dappled shade. I decided to dry my basil 3 different ways (thanks to hubby) to really get an idea of how best to go about it. I want my dried basil to end up with good flavor, and be fragrant too- unlike store bought, dried basil.

So, the results are in. I tried drying it on the soil sifter, as you remember. Then I tried it in the dehydrator, and the third choice was to hang it in a cool, dark place in a mesh-type bag. I chose to use the little bags lemons come in. To start off, I was so unimpressed with the basil I dried outside on the soil sifter, I tossed it. Now maybe if the heat hadn’t been so high that week, I might have had a different outcome- something to think about for next year, maybe.

The basil dried with the dehydrator left me a little disenchanted as well, but for comparison sake I didn’t toss it. I then grabbed some fresh from the garden and put it in a bag (lemon bag) and hung it in a cool, dark spot that doesn’t get disturbed much. I also left the dehydrated batch on a plate in the same location. You can see a picture of the sad outside, heat dried basil here, and read the previous post.

 

 

On the left is the dehydrator dried basil, the right is the air dried basil. I can say, without a doubt, that the air dried basil has a heavenly scent that causes my mouth to water! The color is a little brighter green, which is hard to see in this shot, but the scent is really strong compared to the other- which is almost void of any scent at all. The flavor is far superior as well...and just in time for some fall/winter dishes- Yum!

Now maybe I shouldn’t have dried the first batch during a really hot week outside. And maybe I over dried the second batch in the dehydrator- I think it was Daphne at Daphne’s Dandelions that warned me of the dehydrator being a tricky way to do it- maybe take a look at her comment on the previous basil post. All I know is that the 3rd batch that was dried in a cool, dark, indoor spot ended up the best- and that is how I’ve always done it, just with much smaller bunches. Next year, I plan on drying some in a dark, cooler area outdoors (a shed maybe?) and we’ll see what happens- this is all assuming I can grow it next year!

I hope you are all enjoying the days heading into fall- our sun is gone now and it looks like our typical, cloudy, dreary days are now upon us- and will be for quite a long time. Goodbye sun, it was nice knowing you.

Happy Gardening,

Tessa