Despite my complaints about the rain, ain’t it grand to live in zone eight? I must remind myself, I could be digging out from a snowstorm, like the folks in Calgary. Instead, I wander around the garden and capture its last hurrahs. Passiflora caerulea Eupatorium rugosum ‘Chocolate’ Rosa ‘Bonica’ Pernettya mucronata
Come again some other day
It’s definitely autumn in Vancouver. I can tell because my biceps are becoming nicely toned from constantly carrying an umbrella, the bottom of my pant legs are always damp, and all I feel like doing is staying inside, curled up by the fire with a book. We’ve entered monsoon season, and while I hate it […]
Mushrooms!
I have kind of a love-hate relationship with mushrooms. I grew up loathing them; being forced to try “just one more bite” before I could leave the table. Now I largely like them; shiitake, oyster, enoki… anything but the bland, styrofoamy “white mushroom.” Oh, and they all have to be cooked before they cross my […]
Seed saving
You Grow Girl, a website dedicated to – you guessed it – gardeners of the female persuasion, has a good blog. What’s neat about it is that it’s written by a dozen or so gardeners from around the world (well, North America, Australia and the UK anyway). The most recent post is about seed saving, […]
Apple time
Apple season is in full swing here in B.C., which brings loads of fresh apples to our farmer’s markets and grocery stores. If you came home with just two or three of the 30,000 lbs of apples that were sold at the UBC Apple Festival, you’re probably going to want to check out All About […]
Autumn Decay
Fallen Clematis seed head Naked Canna Scarlet Tired I’ve discovered the digital macro feature on our new camera! Now I’m starting to build my flickr library. Stay tuned for more images.
Peanut butter plant
Melianthus major (peanut butter plant) is a dramatic evergreen shrub with large, serrated leaves typically grown for its striking foliage. And yes, it really smells like peanut butter.
Eggling
From the Cute-but-impractical File: Egglings (from Japan) look and feel like a real egg, but are made of white porous ceramic. Kids (or adults!) just crack it open, add water and sun… and voila! Basil, thyme or Italian parsley at your fingertips. Plants grow for up to five months in the eggling’s fortified peat mixture, […]