I’m in Love
I posted on Sunday about how beautiful the flowering kale is in my front flowerbed after our cold weather. Every year at this time I notice flowering kale all over the place and make a mental note to plant some in the spring, then I completely forget until this time of the year. I must add them to my spring seed buying list so I don’t forget next year. I want to plant this particular variety.
I purchased these beauties at Local Roots in Wooster last Friday, they were only 5/$1. Since I can’t have them blooming in my garden I’m more than happy to have them brightening up my dining room.
I love that they look like roses, only I think they’re much prettier than roses. I believe they’re White Crane flowering kale, I found some seeds over at Territorial Seeds Company, a place I don’t mind doing business with. I’m thinking I would love to grow a few extras so I can incorporate them into my Christmas decorations, both inside and out.
One of the best features of a cut flower like this, is that they last forever in a vase. These should last a few weeks or more, that’s a lot of beauty for only $1!
What’s your favorite fall blooming plant?
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Loving the Local Life
It’s been a few years now since Mr Chiots and I started to focus on eating as locally as possible. In our quest we’ve discovered so many wonderful farmer’s markets, farms, stores and we’ve made so many new friends along the way. I especially love the Local Roots Market in Wooster, OH. They opened last winter and have been a wonderful resource for us, especially during those long winter months when it can be so difficult to find fresh local vegetables. I grow as much of our food as possible, but my small gardens limit me and sometimes there’s a lull in the harvests.
Last week I purchased these beautiful little heads of organic Banzhaf Red Lettuce “Roxy”. I got 10 small heads of lettuce for $3.50, which we ate up in 2 meals (the photos are of a few heads). We topped them with some homemade passion fruit vinaigrette, homemade cheese and some of those dried cherries I made.
I must buy some seeds for these as they’re quite beautiful and quite tasty, the texture is quite good. Since a local farmer is growing them, I know they’ll do well in my area. I love that they labeled the variety so I can grow them myself if I want to. I found some seeds for this lettuce over at High Mowing Seeds.
What local seasonal foods have you been enjoying recently? Have you ever started growing something you bought from a local farmer?
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Quote of the Day: Gene Wilder (Willy Wonka)
“If you want to view paradise, simply look around & view it”
~ Gene Wilder (Willy Wonka)
The flowering kale is particularly lovely after the frosty weather we’ve been having. It’s so amazing how a little cold weather makes them burst into color.
What’s particularly lovely in your area right now?
For the quote lovers among you I made a quote calendar as well (40% off coupon works for these as well).
Large 13.5 x 19 Inspirational Nature Quote Calendar
Small 11 x 17 Inspirational Nature Quote Calendar
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Visiting Four Season Farm
While Mr Chiots and I were in Maine, we decided to swing by Eliot Coleman’s Four Season Farm. I’ve read all of Eliot’s books, and find his work to be very inspirational. When it comes to winter gardening he’s pretty much the best there is. I wanted to stop by particularly during this time of year because I knew his fall/winter planting would be in full swing.
It was a gray rainy day, but that didn’t dampen our spirits. We were happy to walk around in the drizzle. We even chatted with Eliot for a while and Mr Chiots spent quite a while talking to one of the workers. Of course his gardens were all brimming with beautiful fall/winter produce; radicchio, lettuce of all colors shapes and sizes, lots of spinach, brussels sprouts, carrots, kale and a variety of other things. Here’s a look around the Four Season Farm in early October.
Of course I took particular note of all of the crop protection techniques he describes in his newest book The Winter Harvest Handbook, which I’ve talked about a lot here. It was very interesting to see them in person. They were actually building one of the big cold houses while we were there.
I also picked up a great idea while there: writing the panting date on the plant label. This is such a great idea if you forget to write it down in your garden journal as I often seem to do. I usually write the planting date on the back of my seed packets, but I often forget to write them down elsewhere.
We really enjoyed our visit to Four Season Farm. I was quite happy to see that my fall spinach looked just as good as his. I also noticed a few weeds in his garden *gasp*.
What do you think, impressive isn’t it?
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Friday Favorites: Fabulous Fungi
I couldn’t do Friday Favorites for very long without talking about mushrooms. I’m a huge fan of mushrooms, one of my favorite ways to eat them is simply sauteed in butter, I could eat them every day, and do several times a week.
I love mushrooms of all shapes and sizes from the regular old white button mushrooms to the lion’s mane and oyster mushrooms that I buy at my local farmer’s market. I think my favorite of all are crimini, or baby bella mushrooms. There’s just something about these little beauties. Recently I just discovered hen of the woods mushrooms and I’ve been enjoying them in some mushroom lasagna.
In the spring we hunt for morels, but not for any other varieties. This winter I want to spend some time reading about growing my own mushrooms and hopefully in the spring I’ll inoculate some logs and give it a go. I’m hoping to go visit our local mushroom grower to get some tips and maybe I’ll be able to buy spawn plugs from them.
One of the best parts about loving mushrooms so much is that they’re super good for you. Eating mushrooms regularly can help you fight off the cold and flu and help you fight all sorts of things like cancer, obesity, high cholesterol, diabetes, etc. Here’s an interesting article about mushrooms and immunity.
So what about you, are you a mushroom lover or a hater?
