Bulb Update

After a week of vacation, here's what I came home to!




This miniature yellow bloom must have been stunted by all the disturbances, but I was happy to see it's cheery yellow face anyway. Two others are about to burst and more are still forming. I would say my experiment was a success!

I am so excited to write about all the beautiful flowers and foliage we saw on the verdant isle of Oahu. It was a horticultural paradise!

Forcing Bulbs

I did something a little crazy this week. I had a horrible itch to get outside, so even though the ground was still covered in white, I broke out some gardening tools!


I really wanted to force bulbs this winter and have beautiful blooms indoors to cheer me up. When I worked at the Noni gardens we forced hyacinths and amaryllis for the lobby area during the winter, and everyone oooh and aaaaahed over them. Unfortunately, you have to start the process in the fall and I was not thinking about gardening last fall (I was still sick as a dog with this pregnancy thing). It takes anywhere between 6 and 12 weeks of chilling for bulbs to be ready to bloom. But then a thought came to me the other day... I planted a bunch of bulbs last spring... and they have been chilling in the ground all winter... so why couldn't I just dig some up and bring them inside? It was worth a try!

After clearing the ground with a snow shovel, I chipped the frozen bark with a hand trowel and then dug down where I thought I remembered planting some narcissus.

Lo and behold... LIFE! I can't even describe how exciting it is to see green shoots in January. It reminded me why I love this gardening thing.

I potted them up and brought them into my kitchen to see if they would grow. They make me smile every time I see them!

So far the shoots are turning green now that they are exposed to sunlight (photosynthesis at work) and I swear they have grown a little taller. Sadly, I may have to put them in a darker, cooler room to slow their development for a week because we are headed to Hawaii in 3 days. Oops, bad timing! It will be fun to see how they have developed while I'm gone though!

Maybe next fall I will remember to do a real tutorial on how anyone can have beautiful blooming bulbs during the cold of winter!

Minestrone Soup

I used the last of my stewed tomatoes last week. I wish I had planted less cherry tomatoes and more of the bigger varieties so I could have done at least another batch. Live and learn.

This is what I made and it was prefect for a cold day. That's what I love about gardening... it can inspire your cooking even in the dead of winter! The colors aren't very pretty because I didn't have red kidney beans and I had to add water to make more broth. But it was tasty so I wanted to share the recipe (adapted from various ones I found on allrecipes.com):

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1/2 onion, minced
2 large carrots, diced
1 stalk celery, chopped
1 jar (can) stewed tomatoes
1 can kidney beans (used pinto)
1 can green beans
1 pinch dried oregano
1 pinch dried basil
1 pinch Italian seasoning
2 bay leaves
4 cups hot water
1 cup small pasta (I used wheat macaroni)
2 cups chopped fresh spinach

In a large soup pan, heat olive oil over medium heat. Mix in garlic, onion, carrots, and celery. Saute until veggies are tender. Add tomatoes, beans, seasonings, and water. Bring to a boil, then add noodles. Simmer until noodles are soft. Add spinach and simmer until wilted, about 5 minutes.

Hope this gives someone out there a winter meal idea!

Sweet Treats

Our neighbor Doris just celebrated her 88th birthday. We wanted to give her something specially hand-made and decided on our favorite paper flower bouquet. This would also make a great gift for little ones to make for Valentine's Day!

Fold colored paper in half and draw heart or flower designs. Have little people (if proficient in scissoring) cut them out.

While paper is folded make two little snips and slide green pipe cleaners in for the stems. Tie with a ribbon.

We also gave Doris some of this decadent Chocolate Body Scrub. I made this for all my girl family members for Christmas and fell in love! My mom called me after she used it and said she smelled like chocolate all day. The best part is you have the ingredients in your kitchen, and they are all natural. (Maddie will even tell you it tastes delicious... she licked the bowl!)

Chocolate Body Scrub Recipe

3 tablespoons cocoa powder
1 cup brown sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 tablespoons olive oil (I used a little less and like the texture better)

Make a batch for your favorite Valentine's, or make some for yourself and make a date to exfoliate!

Growth

It's a new year. That means a new growing season ahead and endless possibilities.

I took a little hiatus from growing green things the last few months, not only because of the dormant winter but because I'm growing another one of these:


It's a different kind of growth, but challenging and rewarding in it's own way. I am 18 weeks along now and in just two weeks we will find out who the little person is in there!

I am feeling much more like myself these days, and now that the holidays are behind us I am brimming with winter projects, Valentine ideas, garden plans, and more. Stay tuned for lots of good growing ideas ahead!

The Christmas Rose

In the spirit of the season, I wanted to share this beautiful story I came across about Helleborus niger, also known as the Christmas Rose.

According to legend, a young shepherdess named Madelon was tending her sheep one cold and wintry night. As she watched over them, a group of wise men and other shepherds passed by, bearing gifts for the newly born Jesus. Madelon wept, because she had no gifts to bring the Newborn King, not even a simple flower....

An angel, upon hearing her weeping, appeared and comforted her. In the snow where her tears fell, the angel revealed a most beautiful white flower tipped with pink - the Christmas Rose.

(Source)

Hope everyone had a very Merry Christmas.

Vinegar

I have been thinking a lot lately about cleaning supplies. I want to clean with substances that are effective but not harmful to my family. My sis-in-law Alison visited me over the summer and got me thinking about natural substitutes for harmful household chemicals because she is allergic to synthetics and very eco-conscious.

A few weeks ago I went to a church activity with classes on interior design and cleaning. The cleaning class was taught by a lady in my ward who owns a commercial cleaning business, so it was really interesting to hear what products she uses--mostly Pine Sol, soft scrub, and ammonia. I also recently went to an essential oils class and learned that lemon and melaleuca oils are very antibiotic and great for cleaning.

One day I decided it was time to tackle my kitchen, but I still hadn't decided what I was going to use. Then I remembered this book a friend recommended to me about vinegar. I am familiar with vinegar as a cleaner--my dad used to make me scrub the hard water sprinkler spots of my car with it. After doing some research on it I was amazed by its versatility and effectiveness!

I haven't read the book yet, but I found this website called Vinegartips.com with great information. And guess what--it really worked! It smells strong as you use it, but the smell dissipates quickly and leaves everything shiny and clean. The best part is that I don't have to worry about it being harmful to my family. Even if the kids found it under the sink it's edible... although I'm sure they wouldn't try it more than once!

I'm converted.