Search Results

Happy Sunday! Have you had a hard time adjusting to the time change? I stayed up late last Saturday, watching 'The Whale', and so relished that extra hour of sleep in the morning. It seemed to help me get on track pretty much right away. Have you watched that movie? The dogs are still messed up a week later. They sit and wait, wondering why I am not getting their supper ready, when their bellies are saying it is well past suppertime. In the mornings, they watch and wait for me to get up, popping their heads up each time I move a muscle, thinking 'this is it, she is finally getting up', only to be disappointed when I just roll over. Daddy would get up with them if he were home, he is much nicer about less sleep than I am. Then again, they are ready to start the bedtime routine at 8pm.. too early, even for me! Yesterday was Remembrance Day here in Canada, Veteran's Day in the States. I think, when people today think about Remembrance Day, they mostly think about the ones we lost in World Wars I and II, but forget that we still have soldiers today. The husbands/wives, dads and moms, who are away from home months and months out of each year, training and preparing for when they go away to far away places to fight for peace... and then sometimes come home a little bit broken, and some not at all. My husband was in the Forces for 20 years, an army man. On Remembrance Day, I think of all the men and women lost over the years, including my brother from another mother. Here's to Mikie, a good man, a fine and proud soldier to the very end, but most of all, a really great friend. A man who would walk through fire for his family and friends. Never forgotten, buddy. Miss you always, you sarcastic, crazy, funny son of a gun. Rest easy, soldier. Gardening Bits I only have one Gardening Bit today, a read with some really nice pictures. You know how I love looking at pics to get garden ideas. In this read, 7 Things People Do Not Tell You About Designing a Landscaping. I love the shade pergola the most. I am trying to find the best way to create shade on my patio, without making the yard look closed in and small. Decor Bits How to make a gracious guestroom. Love these ideas. My guestroom is pretty basic, I really need to up my game! The holidays are coming up fast, just 43 days left till Christmas! This Forgotten Farmhouse is pretty spectacular. Love the sink. Not sure I want it but I realy love it. How do you feel about marble sinks? Oh, and I need you to check out the paint on the pantry door wall and tell me what you think of that idea. Another super cute cottage. You know how I love them so much. This one is only 656 square feet. How did they make it look so roomy? This eating nook. I love it. I am always looking for ideas for what to do with mine. Really love the cafe curtains. Making a great bow is quite the skill! One that I need to practice at and relearn each and every year. I remember one year, when I was working at Hole's, a large greenhouse by Edmonton, I had to cover for the ladies in the indoor plants section while they attended a meeting. This was at Christmas time, so we offered a seasonal prettying-up of the poinsettias and potted plants. In other words, we added bows, lots and lots of bows. These ladies made bows all day long. There were other things but they were easy, decor on sticks and such, but bows were my nemesis. The ladies premade a few bows to get me started, set me up with the supplies, gave me a quick tutorial, and then left me alone with fear crawling in my belly. I kept saying 'please don't ask for a bow, please don't ask for a bow' as a mantra (not out loud, lol), while practicing my bow making. When the ladies returned an hour and a half later, I could make a semi decent bow. While my bows were nothing to write home about, I was proud as punch. Here are two lovely reads about how to tie a bow. This one is so good, she is such a fantastic story teller. This one has really great pictures to show you exactly what she means, very pretty and inspiring. I am in love with that blush hue (may just make it my colour this yuletide ; ) Recipes & Food This cranberry apple pie! Fruits and pastry cream in a flaky crust. I may have to get my daughter or hubs to make this one, as I cannot make a good crust to save my life. I love bread. I love eating it, but also making it. I have yet to learn the art of sourdough but hopefully some day. Honestly, I am afraid of having to take care of this thing and feed it, haha, so one day I may overcome that fear. For now, check out this great ciabatta bun recipe! So good. I made the biga last night and look how lovely it is this morning! Holiday Bits I have two posts about how to dry citrus for the holidays... This one that I also posted last week, about how to keep the colour vibrant, and this one has such great photos of the oranges, and the process. The best food gifts to give on the holidays. I think you will really like these gift ideas. Lots of new ideas, not the norm. Hearts for the holidays. A how-to for making your own hearts. I love hearts, and actually make lots of them... some garlands, some bigger ones to hang about, and little ones to put in bowls. I just love 'em! In fact, I have a heart giveaway coming up soon, so stay tuned! Fun sustainable gift wrapping ideas. You all know how I like kraft paper, handmade tags, anything a bit shabby chic or retro... Happy Crafting! Have A Lovely Sunday, Friends ~ Tanja

Three weeks ago, we were told the snow was coming on Monday, so the Sunday prior, everyone was rushing about with their last minute fall chores. Everyone in our neighbourhood was out, raking, cleaning, putting away patio furniture, mowing. Getting ready for winter as sometimes when snow comes early, it stays till spring. I was pleased as punch on that Sunday, thinking I had everything good and ready. However, the next day, as the snow was falling, I noticed the big stack of flower and veggie seeds sitting on my desk. Oh, no! I was pretty gutted. Some flower seeds, like the beautiful Larkspur I love so much, are sown late in the fall/very early spring, as they need that cold spell to germinate. Luckily, the snow slowly melted away and was completely gone a week later. The days have been sunny and warm since then, a really lovely November. So, I went out and raked smooth the beds, scattered the flower seeds, sowed the veggie seeds in nice rows, tamped down the soil, and walked away knowing that this time, I truly am ready when winter weather arrives. It took me no time at all and feels so good! Sow flower seeds in fall! You'll be amazed at how much earlier they bloom in spring. These seeds can be sown now the prairies, and also in warmer climates, for my followers from the island and west coast. What flower seeds can be sown in fall? Bells of Ireland (sow now as they can be difficult to grow if sown in spring) Delphinium Calendula (definitely sow on the coast/warmer zones, is a trial for me here on the prairies) Cosmos Hollyhocks Larkspur (my favourites!) Lupins Poppies, including edible poppies Snapdragons Sunflowers Sweet Peas (these will blooms many weeks earlier if sown in fall!) Veggies to sow in fall? Harvest will be 2 to 4 weeks earlier than if sown in spring. Sow a little bit heavier as germination may vary. Plant seeds just a little bit deeper than spring sown. Carrots - (sow in December on the island, you don't want them to germinate till late winter). According to Lois Hole, the guru of prairie gardening, sow carrots a bit heavier in fall. Chard Lettuce Onions Parsnips Spinach Back when I lived in the Edmonton area years ago, I used to sow lettuces beside the east facing garage wall. This flower bed was always the first one to thaw out in spring, so I had new leaf lettuces while much of the yard was still covered in snow. Try different areas with your sowings, see where works best in your yard. Here at this house, my lettuce, spinach, and onions are in the raised bed on the south side of the house, where the grape vine grows. It is a trial. It will thaw out early but it also gets zero moisture as it is under the overhang of the house. Will see how this area fares. I have also sown some by the patio, a safer bet. My guess is that the ones in these beds are a few weeks later than the grape bed, but last longer, do not bolt. Ready for spring, let's see how it goes. If you are wondering where to sow in your yard, I would always pick the most sheltered area for fall sowing here on the prairies. Questions? Message me or put them in the comments : ) Happy Fall Sowing ~ Tanja

Happy Sunday, friends! What a great weekend I've had.... though I have achieved almost nothing and had no one to enjoy it with, hah! The family is busy with hunting season, away on holidays, or working... something. So it's just me and the pets here at home but we've had a nice time. The sun is shining, I watched The Whale movie, drinking a lot of tea... I've been doing a lot of planning and thinking up ideas. That seems to take a while, burn the daylight hours faster than I can keep up with. I am trying to stay really busy as I recently started intermittent fasting and am starving by the time I break my fast in the late morning. I'll fill you in on that in another post coming up soon. But hey... I have such a lot of fantastic links for you today! Look forward to hearing your thoughts on some of these Bits! Gardening Bits Winter composting. There is really great information in this read, but I am going to say right now that there is zero chance that I will be storing scraps in my freezer till spring, hah! If I cannot fit it into my composter, into the green bin it goes ; ) It's a great read though, enjoyed the rest of the ideas. I have one of these black tumbling composters, and I must tell you that I love it so much. I will be picking up one more as I think I can fill both to have a constant supply of homemade compost on hand. I will know exactly what went into it so is far better than any purchased compost. The premise is that you fill up one side and then add nothing else to it so it has time to break down all the goods without you always adding more. This means it makes finished compost in just 6 to 8 weeks. Amazing, right? Both of my sides are full right now. One is 90% ready and the other side is about 70% ready. Just needs a few more weeks in spring and then I will have my own compost to feed my spring and early summer plantings. Oh, and these chambers hold much more compost than you would think! These fall garden tasks... I just really enjoyed the pretty pictures, but the tasks are good, too. Gardening - Zone 3 fruit growing information. Of course, you can buy these plants for warmer zones, too, it's just that they are hardy down to 40 below. Fruit trees that are hardy to this zone. I thought this was a really good read! Also several links for where to buy these hardy fruiting trees and shrubs. Fruiting berries for a zone 3 garden. I like what they say about the Haskap. I agree and so will not grow them myself. I grew them years ago and am just not a fan. The other ideas though! Great advice. Time to go looking for a black raspberry ; ) Growing grapes in a cold garden zone. I really want to try this Sommerset grape. Think I will put one in the greenhouse, right beside the edge as they suggest. My Valiant is doing great outside on the southside of the house. It was here when we got here so cannot take any credit. Gardening ideas for November from Monty Don. These are for those of you in warmer climates. We prairie folks have most all of this done, had to get our wiggle on two weeks ago, but you all still have time. I always love to look at Monty's garden ideas! Growing great blueberries. My tips from when I grew two long rows of them on the island... Plant in good soil, check the mature size and plant accordingly, spaced far enough apart, water weekly the first year, taper off to twice a month, mulch them up to retain moisture. Feed with manure at the drip line in early spring. Water deeply once a week while they are making flowers and fruiting, for lots of berries that are big and sweet. Check out the blueberry fertiliser mentioned below to feed yours if you feel yours need a boost. Can be applied now or in spring. Blueberries are hard to grow here on the prairies, as our soil is so alkaline, and the weather is harsh... but I'm a diehard fan, so I keep on trying. The two bushes were planted into nearly pure peat moss that we dug into the bed last fall. I don't buy peat moss usually, but it is the pretty much the only way to plant blueberries here so that they get off to a good start. I will also be trying the organic fertiliser for acid loving plants that the author recommends (find the picture at the bottom of this post) in that blueberry article. Will feed it to my 2 little blueberries, my dwarf evergreens, and all the hydrangeas I plan to grow next year, hah! It's a bit pricey, sigh, but I like the organic ingredients. Jade Plant Care Guide: How to Care for a Jade Plant | The Old Farmer's Almanac. I have a great affinity for Jades. I had a really big one in my greenhouse that stayed out there year round, in the SE corner, to bring luck, friendships, and good business fortune. According to feng shui, that is. It certainly seemed to work as I met so many lovely people through the greenhouse who became my friends, and the business thrived. My Jade here at the new house, is in the SE part of my living room. They say you can place in in either the SE corner of your house, or the SE side of your room. I went with the living room as it is closest to the front door which is said to encourage friendships, and bring good luck, of course. Even if you don't believe in feng shui (not sure that I do either, lol) it cannot hurt to place it accordingly, right? Btw, giving a Jade as a housewarming gift is the perfect gift to bring your friend happiness and luck in his/her new home. Turn Your Raised Garden Bed Into a Cold Frame - Dave's Garden (davesgarden.com). This is in my plans for next year. Will extend my season in both spring and fall. The plan is to first put bug mesh on the bed to keep the pests off of the brassicas, and then top that mesh with poly in spring and fall, to extend the season by a few weeks. In warmer zones, you can do this for all your winter growing. Sunday Decor Bits This Swedish apartment is so lovely. So smart, too. Love the way they fit in a table in that wee kitchen! I'm not sure that I could ever have figured out how to use that space so cleverly. Would love to sit there for my meals. The ceiling to floor drapes in the bedroom, the lovely dining area. Well, I just think the whole place is so perfect. I can't believe the difference in the before and afters. Some folks are so amazing, to be able to take it from what it was to what it is. Check out this cottage renovation. If you are on Insta, you can also follow along here, or just check out all the pictures in more depth. This adorable rental cottage. This pretty green and white kitchen! It's a smaller kitchen, just a bit bigger than mine, great layout, great ideas, and I sure do love that ladder. No to worry, you can hang up the ladder, out of the way (by the door). But, oh my... check out this craftsman style kitchen. So perfect! See it in the picture above. Those tiles, the green, the hood fan! How do you feel about wooden counter tops? I really wanted to put one on the island but hubby vetoed the idea. Said that it would get too scratched up, banged up, damaged, as we are not careful with our surfaces. He may be right? But I sure do love them. Check out that draining board idea. These window films are so pretty! We have one on our front door and also in the sauna room but mine are not nearly as pretty (bougie!) as these ones. Check out the antique mirror one! Diy Bits How and why you bake your pinecones before crafting. Most all the snow has melted away so I am going to go pick up my spruce cones to do some kind of crafting with... not sure what yet, but if nothing else, a simple bowl of cones is so pretty. Check out this how to decorate your home for winter with non-Christmas ideas. How to dry oranges and keep them looking bright and vibrant. Recipes Mmm! Sweet and salty caramel sauce? Yes, please! If you have never made this no-knead bread, you have been missing out. It is the best artisan bread ever, is even better than the Peasant Bread but takes so much longer that I make both. This cider punch comes as a cocktail or a mocktail. Thought I was a lovely fall bevie idea. Going to try that alcohol free version. This alcohol free wine trio looks amazing, too. Christmas... I put Christmas on the bottom as I know not everyone is really ready to start planning. I am not a big Christmas person, do not go all out, but I like to plan the little things that I do do, like planning a colour scheme to pick up paper and such, picking pinecones, and drying oranges. The little things. So, here are some of the ideas that I have pinned on my (secret) Christmas board. Keeping it Secret because I also pin gift ideas for the 'kids'. It is exactly 4 weeks till first advent! Can you believe how fast that happened? This lovely advent wreath in a bowl idea. Plus the bits of greenery and candles, of course. It is no secret that I love candles. I have candles for decor that I never burn, I have candles for all the seasons, I have scented ones that I burn to freshen the house or get rid of the wet dog smell... well, I just love candles. It is a very Scandinavian thing. I just grew up with candles everywhere, for every occasion. I recently read a candle bashing thread. Yikes! It gave me pause, for sure. So, if you are worried about the possible toxins that occur due to burning candles, here is a nice, healthy way to freshen up your home with a simmering potpourri instead. You can do it with anything that has a nice scent, though, even kitchen scraps like orange peels, rosemary stems, thyme... work so fine! Happy Sunday! Wishing you all a perfect day~ Tanja *Disclaimer. There are a couple of Amazon links on this post. As an affiliate, if you were to purchase an item(s) from one of the links, I get a wee small amount of money to support my blog. It does not cost you any extra to purchase through my link than if you went there on your own.

I still remember the joy and hope I felt when I made my seed order list and garden plans back in January. Don't you just love making garden plans? Here now is the score card for how those seeds performed, and a garden recap for my first growing season back on the prairies. All in all, I would say that my first gardening year back in a zone 3 (after 15 years of being away) was a huge success. Did everything thrive and be it's awesome self? No, of course not. That never happens, no matter where one gardens. There are always curve balls from mother nature, or something else. However, for the most part, more things thrived than didn't, so it was a big win. If you are new to the blog (welcome!), here's the scoop. Up until fifteen years ago, I lived, gardened, and worked (at a large greenhouse) in the Edmonton area. I am very familiar with growing potager style food gardens in a zone 3. But then, we then moved to Vancouver Island, a gardening zone 7, where I opened up my own wee greenhouse business, grew lots of food, turned the acreage into a wildlife friendly potager, and ran workshops to teach folks grow their own great, organic food. A whole different gardening world. Last summer, we moved back to the prairies, back to my home town and Zone 3 gardening, where I am still growing food potager style, and gardening, but not on an acreage this time. A lot of relearning to do and changes to make. So, I am thrilled with the way this first growing season went. The hardest part was less the weather and timing (though not all of that was perfect, by any means, hah!) but more knowing the different zones in my yard. After watching things grow this summer, I now know which areas get 8 hours of sun, which areas only get 6 hours. We've already changed things about and added new beds to take better advantage of these different growing spaces. Here is the vegetable seed score and garden recap ... a seed report card, so to speak. Some veggies were just fine, some were exceptional. In general, I put most of the results down to the soil. We just had a really bad batch of soil in the greenhouse and around the patio. (To see the original seed order list, find that here.) * (HH=Heritage Harvest), (RENEE =Renee's Garden Seeds), ( T&T Seeds), (OSC Seeds) Everything in the tall raised beds grew really well. They were/are amazing. These were my main growing beds, where I grew the majority of the veggies. The beds were lasagna filled last fall (straw, twigs, branches, grape vines, leaves, garden clean up debris) and then topped with about 10 inches of compost this spring. The soil sank 6 or more inches this summer, as the lasagna stuff composted down. This did not affect the veggies at all, although most all of my companion flowers were hidden beneath the veg. The bees found them just fine, luckily. We have filled up the beds for next spring, ready to roll again. The garlic, cucumbers, baby squash, beans, and peas, were all grown around the patio. The soil here is very poor, which affected how they grew. You know what they say, feed your soil to feed your plants... I'm working on it ; ) The covered tomato bed was a wild jungle of food. What a fun experience that was! Food and flowers everywhere. Here is the tomato seed score. Tomato seeds = Yonder Hill Farm, TomatoFest, Baker Creek, Heritage Harvest, T&T Seeds. Here is the link to how and why I chose these tomatoes. This year the tomatoes were a big trial to get to know where in this new yard to grow the best tomatoes. Tomatoes will grow and taste different in different climates. Not all the ones that grew well and tasted great on the island do so here on the prairies. For example, the Red Fig's that were so sweet and tasty there... not so sweet here. I will grow the Pink Berkeley Tie Dye again, the same pastes, but trial different slicers and more beefs next year. I'm going to lean heavier on Heritage Harvest Seeds as they are in a similar zone, but will always try new-to-me varieties, it's how I roll ; ) The Greenhouse - My most underutilized area this year, the part that needs more time on my part this fall and next spring. The greenhouse was basically neglected, ignored, certainly not used to it's full (of even half) potential. This is on my agenda to improve for next year. What went wrong? The biggest issue was that the soil was very poor so nothing thrived. We got a poor batch of soil last fall. As an organic gardener, it is really hard to change things during the growing season as the mantra is to 'feed the soil, not the plant'. It is the entire foundation of organic agriculture, whether in a garden setting or a farm setting. So, once things were growing, other than an occasional water in with liquid seaweed or kelp, there was little to do and quite honestly, I gave up caring, hahaha. Pick your battles and all that. The flowers were great this summer, both the zinnias and the potted plants. A+ The baskets were just okay - I give them a B+ this year. The dahlias, however, were a bust. They were planted in the ground, beside the patio, where the soil was poor, so they did not thrive. They get a C this year. Those potato beds (behind the potted plants) did okay, considering how shallow they are. We moved those shallow beds to beside the fence and built news ones there that are deeper and a bit wider. This is where the zinnias will grow next year, some dahlias and cosmos, too. The shallow potato beds were moved over to the fence line where they are open to the ground and will grow brassicas and who knows what next year. All the plants (flowers, cucumbers, mini squash) that were grown beside the patio, will be grown in these beds next year instead. The bean tower was a big success. So many sweet, tender beans from this one bean tower. That was my first garden season in a nutshell. There were so many great moments, I can't possibly show them all, but it truly was a great and bountiful summer. I am already planning for next year. Happy Garden Planning ~ Tanja

My beautiful zinnia bed has now been turned into a fantastic garlic bed. This is a much better purpose for it as the bed is in the side yard, along the pathway from the front yard to the back, and cannot be seen from anywhere else. The zinnias were spectacular this summer... but were out of sight. So, the flowers will be grown near the patio next summer, while the garlic will grow happily in the side yard. Luckily, garlic thrives on neglect. Garlic, once planted, is super easy to care for. Water once a week, keep the bed weeded for the biggest and best bulbs. That is about it. Harvest in July on the west coast (zone 6 and up), but late August or even early September here on the prairies (zone 3). Why would you bother growing your own garlic, you ask? Well, the most important reason is that you don't know how that grocers garlic was grown, but most likely not organically, at worst it may have been grown in nightsoil. Check that out if you want to get grossed right out. At the very least, it was bleached and sprayed with chemicals to prevent sprouting. Second, well, you know... anything homegrown tastes amazing, including garlic. It is so much better than the dry stuff at the shops. No idea how old that stuff is, but fresh, homegrown is juicy and has rich depth of flavour. Third - It is inexpensive, super easy to do, you can pop in a couple of cloves, or a whole bunch. Planting is done anytime between mid-September and mid-November in the PNW, though I have planted as late as December and noticed no difference in the harvest. Here on the prairies, the planting window is shorter. Early October seems to be the preferred time, but anytime late September to late October works just fine. If your garlic sprouts in fall or winter, not to worry, they will be just fine. Garlic Planting How-To Bed Preparation - The bed was emptied of flowers (weeks earlier than I would have liked) so that I could prep it ready for planting. Isn't it spectacular with all those blooms? We added a good 2 or more inches of compost, filled it to the brim. You always want to start with really great soil. The garlic will be in that bed for a long time, a good 9 or 10 months, so needs a lot of nutrients to grow into a good sized bulb. To avoid worrying about the spring freeze and thaw that often kills plants here on the prairies, these garlic cloves were planted at the very bottom of this bed, pretty much directly on top of the ground. *note - winter growing in raised beds can be problematic in central Alberta because we get Chinooks (warm spells ) that can thaw out the soil in the beds, and then they refreeze when temps go down again, which turns roots and bulbs to mush. This is not a problem in the warmer gardening zones, free to plant in any kind of raised bed without worry. The recommended spacing for growing large garlic bulbs is 6 to 8 inches apart, though some will do as much as 9". Farmer Guy uses 7" spacing, so that is how I roll, as well. I figure if it is good for the professionals, it is good for a home gardener. Closer spacing is just fine, if you have limited space, but tends to result in smaller bulbs. Break your bulbs into cloves. If your garlic has lost some of the papery skin, it open to pathogens and less likely to thrive. Use it for cooking instead. I planted this one anyway, hah. It either thrives or dies. I bought 5 bulbs from a local garlic farm this year to add to my stock. The ones in the bowl were all from the ones I grew myself, bulbs I brought from my garden in BC. These new ones originate from this garden zone, so should do well. They're German Red and Russian Red. One of the bulbs was mouldy. Do not plant garlic that is soft, mushy, blemished, or covered in fuzz, like this one. To prevent mould when I harvest my garlic, I clean it up right away rather than letting it sit and cure first. I remove roots, soil, and a layer or two of skin. These white, soft outer skins will turn papery and dry in a matter of days, not to worry. I have not lost a single bulb to mould or rot since I started doing this. The other bonus is that both the roots and the skins are much easier to remove while they are fresh and soft. My arthritic hands rejoice. To make the planting go faster and easier this year, I used this bulb auger. You can get one with a long shaft or this shorter one. I like this one as I have to get right down there to plant the bulbs anyway, to make sure I get the clove where I want it, with the pointy end up. Here is the link for the longer one, if you prefer to stay standing and just drop the cloves (or bulbs) into the hole (or get a grandie to pop them in) . For an affordable drill, this Black & Decker would make a great garden and yard drill. I added a wee bit of Acti-Sol Hen Manure, too, as an extra boost of nutrients for the cloves to grow up big and strong. Check out the size of these German Reds! They are ginormous. Hopefully that results in enormous bulbs next year! Plant them in the soil with the pointy side up. In warmer zones, like the rainy coastline, you want to plant your garlic just two inches down, with the top just an inch below the surface. You need a bed with great drainage or your garlic will rot. In our zone 3 garden, we are going 4 to 6 inches deep. That is it for planting. Good soil, seven inches apart, 5 inches down. Cover with cheap trellis from the dollar store to keep the cat and dogs out of the bed. If you are having a warm, dry autumn, water in the garlic. Do not fret if you did not get to it, though. On both the coast and the prairies, they will be just fine even without this step. Once the weather turns cold, before the garden freezes up, mulch the garlic bed with several inches of straw. No need to do this on the west coast as it just harbours slugs and snails. In spring, as the garden begins to thaw out, remove the straw mulch. Honestly, no recollection of why I had these ice cubes in my garden bed. Cleaning out the ice cube bins, perhaps? Three or four weeks before harvest, the garlic will make scapes. Remove the scapes as it directs the energy into growing larger bulbs, rather than making seeds. The scapes are edible, taste very garlicy, are a bit like green beans in that they are crunchy. Add to stir fry's, bbq's, potato dishes... anywhere that you would add onions or garlic, you can add scapes. 4 weeks after removing scapes, when the leaves are dry halfway up the stem (just 3 or 4 green leaves left), lift the bulbs, clean them up, remove the roots, remove a layer or two of skin... place out in a shaded but airy area to cure. I hang mine from the shed as it has a bit of a porch for shade. See how the skins have turned papery already? Does not take long. I leave my bulbs out to cure as long as I can, while the weather is warm, but give yours at least 3 weeks to dry and cure. If it has been rainy or humid, leave for longer. Well cured garlic lasts for a good 8 months. If your weather is really rainy, bring them in the garage or similar, lay them out on a table or hang up, and then run a fan over them. The curing process is crucial to long lasting bulbs. When well cured, stalks completely brown and dry, cut off the stalks, leaving just a bit of stem so that you have something to use as a crank to open it up to get at the cloves. If well cured, your bulbs (depending on variety) will last till spring next year. Share with friends, family, neighbours, and the food bank. For more detailed planting instructions, please see last fall's post here. Happy garlic planting ~ Tanja Regarding the links.... I have finally become an Amazon affiliate so I can share my favourite things with you all. The auger bit is the best thing I have bought in a long time. It made the garlic planting a breeze, but best of all, planting all those tulip bulbs in my hard clay soil was super easy. User Tip... go slow and steady, do not fast or the soil will fly everywhere and the drill may roll about in your hands. If it does not want to go into the soil, go to a different area. Do not try to drill through obstacles like tree roots or rocks. If the bit does not want to go in, go get a shovel. Do not use an impact driver. Not sure why, it just says not to. Here is a link for an affordable drill that you can use for your garden and yard. DISCLAIMER - On this blog, I may sometimes use affiliate links, which means a small commission is earned if you make a purchase via the link. The price you pay will be the same whether you use the affiliate link or go directly to the vendor’s website using a non-affiliate link.

Bouquet Garni are little herb bundles that you toss in your soups, stews, and stocks to implement flavour. The herbs are tied together in a bundle so that they are easily retrieved from the stock pot afterwards. Some bouquet garni are wrapped in a leek leaf before they are tied, while some are placed in cheesecloth just to keep everything together. The classic French recipe is made with parsley, thyme, and sweet bay leaves. Chervil and tarragon can also be added. To make a bundle of Herbs of Provence, you would bundle up some sprigs of thyme, oregano, and savory. An Italian seasoning bouquet would contain basil, oregano, and rosemary, perhaps a bit of thyme and marjoram. They can be made with fresh or dried herbs, can even be made with dried, ground herbs in a cheesecloth bundle. At the end of the gardening season, I like to make the wee bundles, let them dry, and place them in a mason jar for use in winter, or to gift to friends and neighbours. The fresh taste of summer, even in winter. If you make several kinds of bouquet garni, write the name of the herbs you used on the back of the tag. Place the tag around each bundle, or around the jar if they are all the same. Check out these super cute tags you can get with hearts on them! I have my own tag maker but boy, I sure do like these! This set is also super cute. Brown and white tags for gifting. This is an amazing price right now! This is the stamping kit that I bought myself a few months back. It has 70 stamps, all the letters in caps and lowers, numbers, and some symbols. However, this is even better deal than I got! It also comes with all these colour stamps! Great for stamping on paper tags, gift tags, plant labels, etc... Note that those stamps with the kit do not stay fast on fabrics! They will disappear in the wash. If you wish to stamp on fabric, you need to use this StazOn ink if you want to make bread bag stamps, or gift bags, labels for clothing or crafts... It comes in many colours. *Disclaimer - If you purchase any of the items from my links, I make a wee bit of money to support my blog (thank you!) but it does not cost you any more than it would if you were to go there on our own, without my link : ) Growing your own herbs is super easy, all you need is a pot! You do not need a large plot of land or a garden bed, a pot will work just fine. Fill it with your favourite herbs. Mine are rosemary, chives, thyme, parsley, and oregano. I grow mint, too, but in a different pot as it spreads so. Clip the herbs as needed and sheer them down at the end of the season to make your little bundles of Bouquet Garni. These little bundles would be nice to add to your simmering potpourris, as well. Happy crafting, and cooking, too... if you like that kind of thing ; ) I don't do much of the cooking stuff but love to make these for hubs, and to give as gifts ~ Tanja

Eek! Are you guys all ready for winter? Have your garden stuff cleaned up, put away, everything tidied up? Oh good, me neither! I have been busily working at fall clean up since mid-September. I started this post a couple of days before the snow came. We now since had snowfall and are looking at minus degrees for the high temp each day this week. Brr! A couple of inches of snow covers the yard and garden beds so is a real good thing I got the garlic and those flower bulbs in the ground on time! Some parts of Alberta are going back up to plus degrees next week, so hopefully our wee town gets some of that. Innisfail and Red Deer are kind of in the middle of all the crazy weather stuff. Edmonton goes into winter mode and stays there till spring. Calgary blows hot and cold, gets chinooks during the winter that warm things up so that snow melts and ground thaws. We are in the middle of those two cities so sometimes get those lovely chinooks but sometimes get the stormy weather of the north. You just never know which way she's going to go. Anyway... regardless of where you are, winter is nigh! This is what to think about in your winter prep.. So, what's happening around the potager? Trees/Shrubs - I gave them all a good drink of water the other day. This is not necessary in the rain belt unless your plants are young or newly planted, haha, and is likely too late for us here on the prairies, but if you live somewhere that is still nice and can get to your hose, give your perennials, trees, and shrubs a drink before the snow flies. I put large tomato cages around the shrubs to keep the dogs from trampling them in winter, while they are covered in snow. Last winter, Berkie nearly destroyed my little hydrangea. Luckily, that is one shrub that can die to the ground and come back again. Whew! Not letting that happen this year so everything has a tomato cage this year ; ) If you have tree form roses, hydrangeas, or willows, anything that may snap under a heavy snow load, give them some protection with a tomato cage or something that will not allow that top heavy bit to snap from heavy rain or snow. I lost all my tree form roses one winter, after an unexpected snowfall on the island. You know those white spiral tree guard thingies, or the white tubes, that come with your trees when you buy them? Keep them and put them back on for the winter. I removed mine for the summer but if we had planted it in the lawn where hubby uses the weed whacker, I would leave it to protect the trunk from accidental injury. In fall, put it back on to protect it from the winter sun that may cause cracking, and also to protect the trunk from rodents (voles, mice, rabbits) that might nibble on it during the winter months. If you leave it on year round, check on it now and again, to make sure it is not growing into the trunk or impeding the growth of your tree. (this applies to those name tags, and anything hanging from a branch, too). I was waiting for this zinnia to die back, at least some of the flowers, so I could harvest the ripe seeds... to no avail, it seems, as it just keeps on looking terrific. I had to pull it and do without seeds as it just did not want to stop looking amazing! The Bishop's Children dahlia behind it was run over by the dogs before I got to take pictures of its' lovely orange flowers. These are my two little blueberry plants. They were planted in spring and hidden in behind the sea of borage all summer. I am waiting for my two small bales of straw from Farmer Jason to arrive so that I can stuff more protection in those cages. This blue flowered bee magnet ( you know the saying... bees love to forage for borage) was buzzing right up to the very end. We left it as long as we could to feed all the wee little insects. It also protected my blueberries from Berkeley as that is her favourite bed to lie in for some odd reason. I also planted the Honey Queen raspberry canes that I was gifted by another gardener this summer. He had a gorgeous, wide patch of them, all along his back fence, in the back alley! It was a sight to behold. I have just two plants, hah, but two will sucker and become more. I've been saving seeds, making my own flower seed packets for planting in spring, and gifting to friends/neighbours. I must say, this has been one of my most favourite things I've done this fall. Saving seeds, placing them out to dry on any flat surface out in the yard, making the little seed packets. Such a nice way to spend my days! Will be doing lots more of this next year. I saved only the pink, peach, purple zinnia seeds this year, am wanting to grow a pastel zinnia patch one of these days. It's going to take a few years to save enough of my own to have a lovely pastel patch. Zinnia seeds are the little arrows at the bottom of the flower petals. I found myself liking the solid blocks of colours this summer more than the mixes, so next years bed will be sown like a rainbow, with blocks of colours sown from light to dark. That is the plan at the moment (and what I wrote in my journal) but you never know where my fickle mind will go in spring. Anyway, the plan is to buy seed coloured zinnia packages to make this rainbow. I also made my own Bouquet Garni.... little bundles of herbs to put into soups, stews, broths. This is such a super simple way to use those herbs at the end of the growing season. They are being cut down anyways, so bundle them up, leave them out to dry, then place in a jar to use as needed. Fresh taste of summer. The Gardens were tidied up from weeds but flowers were left standing to feed the birds and offer wildlife a place to hide and sleep for winter. The leaves were also left alone, they mostly just blew in under the shrubs so that was perfect! They are feeding the soil life! The greenhouse was cleaned up of plants, there will be about a million signet marigolds growing in there next year. Yikes, lol. We have put a table and metal shelving in there for me to work at next spring but the rest is jam packed with our patio furniture and flower pots as we have no place else to put them yet this winter. Next winter will be better as the shed will be organised and we will have shelves made, but till then, we do what we gotta do. The carrots have been harvested, tops removed, washed and dried, and then placed in ziplok bags with a paper towel to keep them from going soft, and are now in the mini fridge. If you have a spare fridge with crisper drawers, put them in those! Check them once a month, replace the paper towel. They should keep nicely for many months. To read about how to grow great carrots, see that post here. Spring flowering bulbs - I planted nearly 200 tulips and another couple hundred of the small bulbs that perennialize (muscari, squill, crocuses, and glory of the snow). They are all beside the patio, along pathways, adding to the ones I planted last year for (eventual) carpets of colour in spring. I also planted some pink oriental lilies beside the patio and throughout the yard, for both colour and fragrance. I used hubby's drill and my new auger bit, got them all in the ground lickety split. The ground here is hard, very heavy in clay, super hard to dig into. With a shovel, it is nigh on impossible to for me to plant into, but with that auger bit? I tell you, I feel like a rockstar, I can do anything! I will add the link at the bottom of the post, in case you are wanting one, too. We can be rockstars together : ) The garlic is planted, is covered in both leaves, and now straw, too. I just got the straw from Farmer Jason so had to wait a few days to spread it out on the bed. If you follow me on fb, you know about this lovely find! While I was raking leaves into the raspberry bed, I started raking between the bed and the vine... and unearthed these lovely stepping stones. We knew we had a few of them, of course, in the middle of the pergola, but did not know how many there were! What a find! They had a carpet of thyme growing here but most all of it died last winter (perhaps because we dropped near 40 degrees overnight?). Not sure why, but only small bits of it remain now. I moved some to a more sheltered area to see if I can get it to take hold and move it back here next summer, and I was able to save some. But... I sure do love this flagstone area I unearthed and cannot wait to plant it up. Journaling! I am writing down all sorts of things at this time of year. What I liked and did not like about the yard, gardens, flowers this summer. What I will change, do differently. Plans and ideas for next year, plus adjusted my planting times for next year according to what I learned this year. Being it was my first growing summer on the prairies in 15 years, I'd say it all went really well. What I Look For In A Journal... 1. I buy a new planner each fall when the kids are going back to school. There are tons of options at this time, and all sorts of price points. I have bought pricey ones, I have bought super cheap ones. Guess what? They both work fine. 2. I prefer the wire spiral binding so that it lays flat/stays open. 3. I want the two year journal - (summer 2023 to at least September 2024, or longer) as I take notes about this year's growing season as well as planning for next year. 4. The month at a glance - the whole month open for me to write seeding dates on it. 5. Monthly tabs are a must, of course. 6. Extra notes pages - I need these! I use them to draw out garden design ideas, garden plantings, sketches of any garden plans, greenhouse plans, or things I want in or outside the new shop. 7. A pocket is helpful, though not necessary. The pocket is handy for keeping plant labels/tags to know what favourites to buy again next year, and for keeping track of guarantees/receipts. 8. I like hardcover but not necessary. 9. The pages of a week at a time are for when I have lots of notes to take, how to do something, etc... but I am not too worried about how they are laid out or how big the daily block is. Many weeks, the only thing written on it are the daily high/low temps. If you do not yet have a good journal, here are a few that I like. Any of them would work just fine. None are pricey. The reason that I do not use a garden planner is because they do not do the 18 months thing. *Disclaimer - if you buy something from any one of these Amazon affiliate links, I make a very wee bit of money to help support my blog, but it does not cost you a penny more than if you had gone to the Amazon listing on your own, without my link. This one is my favourite out of the picks. It has all of my wish list except the hardcover and has no pocket. It does, however, have extra pages that I thought were cool - holiday list, passwords page, future planning, plus lots of notes pages. This one is also nice. It is an 8.5 x 11, like a sheet of paper size. So, is good if you like a larger book, use it mainly at your desk or maybe in the greenhouse. I changed my mind (hah!), I am pretty sure I like this one the best. Has the elastic band to save your page and has a pocket in the back! Plus, two covers to choose from. It is a bit smaller than the last one. Oh, it comes with stickers, too, if you are a sticker kind of person. Love that tree cover page. And just one more for you to contemplate. This one has a 'vegan leather' cover, an elastic, a pocket, notes pages, and even an expense page, in case you want to keep track. Eek! It comes in several solid colours, like this navy blue, and two sizes. I really like this one, too. Oh, how will you decide? Here is the bulb auger bit that I used to plant all my flower bulbs and the garlic, too. It worked like a hot knife through butter. Highly recommended, especially if you have arthritis, as I do. No more digging. Here is the link to the longer one, in case you wish to remain standing and just drop the cloves or bulbs into the hole... or get a grandie to pop them in for you! I am thinking about getting myself one of these pink drills to use with the auger bits. Maybe a Christmas gift to myself? Last time I used hubby's but sure would like to have my own. The last time he bought me a nice light one to use for my bits and bobs, it ended up in his workshop rather than my tool drawer. He would never take this one ; ) That is it for my late October gardening bits : ) November is just 2 days away, on to other things and thoughts. I will post a 'report card' soon, with my thoughts on the veggies I grew from seed this year. Hoping you had a wonderfully fruitful garden year ~ Tanja

It's hard to believe that we went to this (which the dogs just love) ... From this. This pic was taken last Sunday, when we were finishing up the yard clean-up in readiness for the snow. Good thing we did! As the weatherman was right. Sadly. Hah ; ) Plus degrees coming up this week they say, so with any luck some of the snow disappears. Gardening & Growing Bits That said, I now have time to work on other things as gardening is off the roster for now. That does not stop the planning and dreaming though. Don't forget to write tips and ideas in your journal or daytimer so that you don't forget to do the things when spring comes a long. I buy a new daytimer each fall so that I can plan ahead for the following year, keep track of things from this year, and write notes of what I want to do next year. The one I found this year has loads of pages for notes at the beginning of each month so I can fit ideas with the appropriate month rather than at the back of the book. I am also keeping track of weather... or trying to remember to do so each month. Starting with this great idea. It is an alternative to the poly framed low hoops for winter gardening, or the poly covered cold frames. I liked this idea a whole lot, but not necessarily for winter food growing. Doesn't it look like it would be a great idea for bunny or deer protection? Plus it looks so good, to boot... but then again, I like anything rusty or rustic. Check out the article for more deets about this project. If you recall from my posts in spring, my goal at this house has been to bring back the wildlife to this year, even the neighbourhood, if possible. I planted all sorts of berried plants, flowering plants, seedy plants, to attract birds, bees, and beneficials. I don't think we have a lot of snakes or frogs, but if we do, they are welcome here. It worked! These birds and bugs will keep my yard free of pests so I don't have to do a thing besides tend to my plants. Here are three great articles to give you different ideas on how to attract the birds and the bees, and how to make your yard environmentally friendly. Remember, this will not make your yard look messy, will really look no different than before.... but you will know it's better. This one is about the shelter, food, and water. Lots of nice tips. This one is 5 easy tips that you can apply to your garden to make it friendlier, but this article is my favourite! Check it out for the pretty pictures as well as the ideas! Really wonderful garden pictures. If you love English cottage style gardening, you will love this read. This article is for you citrus growers, or wanna be citrus growers. The best citrus to grow indoors, lots of fun ideas, plus tips on how to grow them. Homey Bits Some nice fall ideas for 'warming up' your home. The candle thing is so true! I have them everywhere. Are you all Chip and Jo fans? I would love to visit Waco someday, see the silos, shop the silos, lol, and while I am there, I want to stay at Chip and Jo's hotel! Wow, this is so beautiful and I love the 1920's charm. And you all know my love affair with kitchens... even though my reno is done and I love it so much, I still love to look at kitchens! I love the counter top cabinets in #3 but #5 is so beautiful! All those windows! Are you making a new office? Making changes in your office? There are so many great desk ideas and decorating ideas here! Makes me want to do something new with my office. Well, most of all it makes me want a new desk! Love those long, sleek ones that I could pile all sorts of things on! Wine bottles as water bottles for your dinner parties? Love these elegant bottles so much, think it is a fabulous idea. I don't usually share these but I love to read through a good gift idea list. This one has a few ideas that I really love and best of all, has a range of prices and is not catered to making big sales from any one store. I like to make up what I call 'care packages' that are different for each person, according to their likes and needs. Maybe pajamas or a throw, something nice and cosy, maybe a book, some fuzzy socks, maybe bath stuff, plus always one special something that I know they really want or need. So, check out this gift list, keep on reading past the ads and you get to more great ideas. I especially like the bespoke house sketch idea, the vintage games, and that mini heater! And, quite honestly, if I got a front door mat as the suggest for a grandparent, I would be thrilled! Just not a tacky one, lol. Recipes! Monster Cookies from Nigella! These are different than the ones I shared last week and contain peanut butter (so I will not be making them, hahaha). Regarding the monster mash cookies from last week. I made them but after reading through the comments, I made a couple of changes and they turned out really terrific. Hubby and I like them. I cut the baking soda from 2 teaspoons to just one. I did not add any baking powder at all. Other than that, make the cookies as the recipe states and you should have nice tasting cookies that are neither too flat, nor too cakey. After sharing this picture of our carrots (harvested straight out of the snowbank), I received tons of questions about how I grow such nice, big carrots. So, I wrote this post the other day with everything you need to know from timing to watering, types of carrots, and more. The main thing is great soil and choosing the right carrot type, but watering and timing are super important, too. Hope you are having a terrific weekend ~ Tanja

I found this great post about mulching with straw. How, when, and why. Here on the prairies, you want to mulch up your garlic pretty soon, before the ground freezes up. Luckily, we have lovely weather right now, perfect for fall chores. What to do with that straw in the spring? After you remove it from your garlic. I pile mine up and use it under strawberries and save it for adding to my tumbling composter each time I add veggie scraps. This write up about what do now to winterize your garden. How to store your veggies over winter! and this one has dozens of tips for storing your harvests, from dehydrating to canning and jamming, and more. Love some of these garden design inspiration ideas from the Chelsea Flower Show. Really like the rain chain idea... my head is whirring with an idea ; ) This craftsman house is so pretty! And check out this super pretty Pied a Terre, too. Wouldn't you just love to come back to this after shopping the markets? A girl can dream ; ) It's no surprise to anyone that I love the colour white. I love white.. well, everything, but especially walls. Here are the 10 best white paint colours according to designers. The 3 Benjamin Moore whites that I use the most are all on the list! How to plan a lovely gathering, big or little. Maybe just a little bit of fika? Lovely write up about getting together. This crafty idea for gifting paperwhites. Sweet idea but I really pinned it for the tag she made! Use these brown kraft paper tags to to make the cute gift tags with pockets. RECIPES Soup season is here! As soon as the temps dip a wee bit, I start thinking about soup and sandwich combos. Here is a lovely halibut chowder (gluten free). And this corn chowder recipe! This is one of my favourite soups so will have to try this recipe! Here is a bread recipe that I make all the time. I call it Peasant Bread rather than no knead bread, but it is exactly the same recipe. I change up the flour, sometimes white, something half whole wheat, sometimes multi grain.... It is simple and makes lovely, chewy, artisan bread in less than 3 hours. Goes perfectly with that bowl of soup! Check out this baguette recipe - I am going to try, too. This weekend is baking weekend, we have nothing in the house! I dislike cooking but sure do love baking.. and eating the baking is the best bit. Did you jump on the sourdough bandwagon during Covid? Have you ever made your own starter? I did not and have not so these easy to follow steps make me think that I can actually do it on my own, hah! Going to give it a go. Think I will use the discards to make that baguette! Also going to make these monster mash cookies! Holy doodle, this gingerbread cake from box mix looks amazing! Last but not least, as they say... I love everything apple and this yummy apple cake looks so good!

I posted this picture of my carrots the other day and got so many questions about how to grow good, long carrots. Even afterwards, as I talked with friends, growing nice carrots are the number one thing on everyone’s mind. It seems that getting them to size up properly is the main issue, many of you are getting small stubby carrots, wee spindly ones, or great tops but small bottoms. Here are some of the key things you need to know to grow really great tasting, long, straight, lovely carrots. All of these carrots in the pics are from my gardens… If I can do this, you can too, I promise! Soil Prep - Great soil is the key to everything…. Loose and friable soil - For long, straight carrot, your soil needs to be well-draining, loose and crumbly to a depth of at least 10 inches. You should be able to easily to push your fingers into the soil without meeting much resistance, no rocks or hard clumps. Here on the prairies, we tend to have heavy clay soil, makes it difficult for the carrot to grow through. The answer to amazing loose and friable soil is to feed your soil with organic matter once or twice a year. On the island, the soil is very sandy or filled with fillers, like wood chips, low in nutrients. The answer to that soil is also adding lots of organic matter. Feeding soil with organic matter feeds the soil-life (organisms, fungi, bacteria, worms…) that make your soil better. The soil-life breaks down that matter to give you lovely, loose, nutrient rich soil for healthy thriving plants. I feed my garden in fall, after harvest and garden clean up, but some prefer to add a bit in fall and then add more in spring. If you are having a hard time growing great crops of any kind, I highly recommend adding even more organic matter to your beds, copious amounts thereof. This will really increase the soil-life and the activity in your soil, which in turn improves the health and production of your plants. Organic matter is anything that breaks down naturally to feed your soil, like leaves, leaf mould, grass clippings, kitchen scraps, but the easiest to apply in large amounts is compost or manure. In addition, if you find that things are not growing as you like, before changing anything else or adding other amendments, first try adding organic matter of a different sort, or from a different source than you usually use. Manure - To feed my soil in fall, I add an inch/two of composted chicken manure on top of the beds. Chicken manure is a well balanced, relatively inexpensive, weed-free, soil conditioner. It is my top pick, with steer or mushroom coming in as next best. Adding a different manure on other years introduces new soil conditioners, and thus new soil life, to your garden beds. Switch it up from time to time. Compost- Sometimes to switch it up, we use a fish compost (such as SeaSoil) instead. This introduces new life to the soil, different micro-organisms, fungi, and bacteria. Any kind of compost is a fantastic amendment and soil conditioner, fish, green bin program, or homemade. Introducing new conditioners, and new soil life, to your garden beds annually … as Martha would say, it’s a good thing. At this new house on the prairies, my beds were built last year, filled about 3/4 of the way with a couple of bales of straw, a bag of potting soil, lots of leaves and garden clippings, branches, etc, from fall yard clean up. See how we built and filled these beds in fall here. In spring, we then filled up the beds with compost from a local landscape company. Judging by the bits we found in the compost, it comes from the green bin program. We did not add a compost garden blend but instead filled them to the brim with pure compost. I will admit to having a few qualms about how well things will grow in such a rich medium... but everything grew spectacularly well, including the carrots. Other Organic Amendments To Consider Carrots prefer a soil that is neutral to slightly alkaline, though will grow just fine if it is a bit off in either direction, alkaline or acidic. We tend to have slightly alkaline soil here on the prairies, while the west coast tends to be a bit acidic. Both are just fine for growing great fruits and vegetables. On the west coast - It used to be common practice to lime the garden beds annually, and some gardeners still do this. I am not a big fan of mucking about with pH, as going too far either way can really wreak havoc on your garden and be very difficult to fix. However, if you are having a really tough time with your carrots (beets and asparagus) and feel that you have good soil with everything else is growing really nicely, then adding a bit dolomitic lime to raise the pH level a titch is a fine idea. It also adds calcium and magnesium to the soil, both of which are great for growing amazing tomatoes and peppers, though not potatoes! Follow the directions on the bag for the correct amount to apply. Please do not do this on the prairies where our soil is alkaline already. Phosphorous for root veggies - Root veggies like carrots, beets, celeriac, radishes, etc… benefit from less nitrogen and more phosphorous and potassium, the second and last numbers on any fertiliser or compost bag (N-P-K). Nitrogen, the first number, gives you stronger above ground growth The middle number is phosphorous which makes more flowers and stronger roots. The last number is potassium, provides your plant with overall good health. For root crops like beets and carrots, adding bonemeal (phosphorous) and kelp meal (potassium) will boost root growth and overall health. Alternately, you can use an organic fertiliser with a ratio of 1-2-2 (or multiples thereof). Some of these fertilisers are called ‘bloom boosters’ but they also benefit food crops, so don’t worry about the name but concentrate on the numbers instead. Gaia Green has an organic product called Power Bloom which is a 2-8-4 that you can add to your root crop beds. They also have an all purpose 4-4-4 if you prefer to just feed the soil in general. Sunshine For big, sweet tasting carrots, you want a minimum of 6 to 8 hours of sunshine per day. The more the merrier. Sowing Seeds Here on the prairies, I sow carrots twice a year. In spring, I start in May but we can sow right up till early August. The later in the summer, the smaller/shorter they will be when we harvest in late October/early November. I sow another batch again in October, trying to show just shortly before first frost. This gives me bigger carrots earlier the following summer. On the west coast, I sowed three times a year. Spring (May), first week of July (no later! Sowing in August will give you small, hairy carrots), and around winter solstice (late December). As a general guideline that works anywhere, you want to sow 40 to 90 days before you want to begin harvesting. Warmer soil will give you faster germination and longer, bigger, better tasting carrots. Beginning your spring sowing when night time temps are around 10°C (50°F) is ideal. To grow in rows… make shallow trenches 1/4 inch deep that are 6 to 8 inches apart. Sow the seeds 1/2 inch apart and cover the seeds with soil. My raised beds are tall, about 2 feet high, so I lay the handle of a rake across the bed to keep my rows straight, use a small hand held hoe to make the furrows, and then cover. Tamp the soil down to firm the seeds in place or they may end up floating around when you water (especially if you are sowing in mid-summer, when soil sometimes becomes hydrophobic - repels water). To grow in blocks… Rake the soil surface to soften the soil down 1/4 to 1/2 inch deep. Scatter the seeds onto the soil’s surface. Try to scatter them so that they are an inch or two apart from each other. After sowing lightly sift soil over top of the seeds to cover and tamp down with the back of a rake, as above. Carrots are also sold in seed tapes that properly space the seeds, or in pelleted form to make it easier to sow them the right distance apart. They cost more and you have less varieties to choose from though. Thinning seeds- Once your carrots tops are an inch tall, you will likely need to do some thinning out. Your carrots will be small, will not have room to size up if they are too close together. Thin them out so they are at least 2 inches apart from each other. I do not thin mine. I try to sow my seeds an inch apart so that I do not have to. For one thing, it is an onerous job, no fun at all, hah! For another, each time you disturb the carrot foliage, you run the risk of attracting carrot rust flies. Watering When you first sow your carrot seeds, you will be watering them daily, if not twice daily. Carrots (and parsnips) take anywhere from 5 to 21 days to germinate and must be kept moist until you see the greens popping through the soil. If they dry out at any time during the germination process, the seeds will die; they will not recover if you start watering them again. They germinate faster in warmer soil. Sow the seeds, water thoroughly with a watering wand until the soil is damp well below the seeds. Covering them with burlap sacks helps the soil stay damp longer. Water the sacks down really well after sowing, and daily thereafter. I lift the sacks to make sure that the water is indeed going through and soaking the bed. After a week, begin to check for signs of germination, remove the sacks when you see some greens popping through. The rest will soon follow. If you are sowing in summer time when you soil is so dry that water beads up on top, water the furrows before you sow, then water again as above. If you prefer to scatter sow your seeds to grow them in blocks, water the entire area down well first, then sow your seeds, sift soil over top to cover, water as above. After the carrots have germinated and you can see the wee green tops, slow down the watering to one or two deep soaks a week. Over-watering may result in small carrots, carrots that split down the middle, or hairy carrots that do not taste great. Carrots want sunny beds, rich, loose soil, and a good, deep watering once a week. I use weeping hoses in my beds to deep soak the beds about every 5 to 7 days. You can do the same with drip tube systems. Deep, slow watering less often will always give you better crops than hand watering with a wand or can. If you have to do your watering by hand, it is going to take you a really long time to get that water down deep enough to make nice, big, long carrots. Use many cans of water per row. Shallow watering will stress out the plants, resulting in small carrots that are less sweet, and may be woody. Carrot Rust Fly The only real problem we tend to face with carrots is the dreaded Carrot Rust Fly. This fly will lay its eggs at the base of the carrot, the larvae will soon emerge from the eggs to begin feeding on your carrots, leaving ugly black trails and holes throughout the roots. These flies will be present from spring till frost so can affect your crop at any time during the growing season. To organically prevent this damage, there are a few things that you can do… As it is a fly, you cannot spray for it or pick it off. The best and most effective way to prevent damage from these guys is to net your crops. A bug mesh works best because it breathes, water goes through it, sunshine goes through it, but the mesh is so tight that the flies cannot get in to lay their eggs. You can also use a lightweight white garden fleece but it tends to hold in the heat so is less desirable for summertime growing. Whatever type of cover you use, make sure to pin it down well on the sides. Just laying the fleece or mesh over top of the bed will not work, the flies will crawl underneath if they find any sort of access. Companion planting with strong scented flowers, veggies, or herbs to confuse the flies. Planting beside onions or garlic is helpful as they are strong scented. Calendula and marigolds are strongly scented flowers, or plant honey scented sweet alyssum. Crop rotation and weed control - Practice crop rotation to help prevent issues from arising or building up in the soil. Keep your bed well weeded and hoe through the top centimeter or two of soil in spring to uproot grubs, bugs, eggs for the birds to eat. Storage In cold zones where your ground freezes - Leave them in the garden till you have had a few good frosts to sweeten them up. Lift, remove the green tops, wash and dry really well, place in a plastic bag with a paper towel or two. Place them in the extra fridge crisper drawer to use as needed. Check on them once/twice a month and replace with fresh paper towels. In temperate zones - Leave them in the garden and harvest as needed. Try to use them all up before spring the following year or they will begin to get hairy, then woody, and then flower to make seeds. Types of Carrots There are basically 5 types of carrots. They are divided up into categories by their shape and size. Nantes - Nantes carrots were first mentioned in seed catalogues in 1885 as a carrot variety with nearly perfect cylindrical roots and smooth, almost red, skin that is mild and sweet in flavor. These are usually the easiest carrots for home gardeners to grow, always producing sweet, crisp, cylindrical roots, about 6 inches long, with blunt tips. Nantes carrots perform well even in heavy, rocky soils where other carrot types twist and fork. Starica, Bolero, Napoli. Imperator - The long, skinny, tapered carrots that you see in grocery stores. You need nice, loose, friable soil to grow these carrots, and they can easily grow 11 to 12 inches long. Atomic Red, King Midas, Triton. Chantenay - Before Nantes were developed, Chantenay was the best carrot for heavy or rocky soil. They are short and wide, shaped like a soil dibber, about 4 to 5 inches long. A great choice for those gardening in containers. The Chantenay is one of my most favourite carrots to grow as they are super reliable, need no peeling, are always sweet and yummy, great for fresh eating or roasting. Danvers - These carrots are 6 or 7 inches long and skinny, taper to a point at the ends. They originate from Massachusetts and grow well in all types of soil. This is the other carrot that you will often see at the grocers. Miniatures - These guys are the wee little guys… short or round mini carrots. They only reach 3 to 4 inches long, are typically served whole with the tops attached. Perfect for growing in containers or shallow garden beds. Varieties include Babette, Romeo, Paris Market. Other carrot information worthy of note… Containers -If you have poor or really heavy soil, carrots can easily be grown in pots. Just add some compost or manure to your potting soil for nutrients and they will grow really well. Trench Amending - If you have really hard packed soil, dig a trench, fill the trench with sifted black earth and compost, sow your seeds into that trench for nice straight carrots. Nitrogen - If you are getting carrots that are all twisted up, you likely have too much nitrogen in your soil or have been using a lot of manure. Compost tends to be a better amendment for carrots than manure. Flowering - If you have left your carrots in the garden in spring, you will soon find a flowering plant that looks a bit like Queen Anne’s Lace. That is the carrot flower. It is very pretty but will soon be covered in carrot seeds. Looks a lot like dill seed. To harvest them … cut and place into a paper bag… shake. Quite honestly, carrots are one of the must grows in my garden annually. We eat a lot of carrots ourselves, either fresh or roasted, but mainly, I grow carrots for the dogs. Our pups love them. We have never yet had a dog who did not come running when we offer up carrots. I have grown pretty much all the sorts, shapes, sizes, and colours. I am not a fan of the whites or yellows, though I like the reds and purples. Orange carrots are good for everything but taste great raw, while I think the reds and purples are a bit less sweet, and zingier? Spicier? so I like them best roasted with some olive oil and and Himalayan pink salt. We used to grow 300 to 600 carrots a year but now that we have a smaller potager and have to store them indoors, we've cut back to about 200. Happy sowing and growing, planning and plotting. Hoping that you all have really great carrots next year ~ Tanja

Are you going through your seed catalogues or on-line seed shops and finding your list getting longer and longer still? Finding so many things you want to try, that catch your eye but getting a bit over-whelmed and not sure how/where to pare it down? It is so exciting to see all the varieties and possibilities but is easy to get carried away so that you are ordering way more than you can grow. How does one decide what to actually purchase and what to leave behind? Here are a few things you should do beforehand to help you make those decisions. You need to make a list of what you want to grow this year so that you have that list with you when you go to Seedy days, to the garden centres, or when you are poking about on line. When you have your list, decide what you want to grow from seed and what to purchase as plants. How do you decide what to put on that grow list? 1. Make a list of the what veggies the family eats. 2. Consider what you want to do with the things that you grow. 3. Keep in mind how much garden space you have. 1. Look at your weekly grocery lists over the past year and make a list of all the veggies you regularly buy. These are all items that will instantly save you money weekly if you grow your own. Once packet of seeds to grow 50 heads of lettuce is $4 or $5, one head of lettuce is $5. If only one person in the family eats a certain veggie, it might be a better idea to buy that one item from the farmer's market rather than taking up garden space for it. I love parsnips, but no one else really does. They are all adults so they will (probably) try a little bit to be polite if it is offered at the Thanksgiving table, but growing more than a handful of parsnips is a waste of my garden space and time. Now, I just buy a handful at the market for Thanksgiving and use that space for something else. Only grow what your family eats. I cannot stress this enough. Don't grow it because it is something you think they should eat or you want them to eat. If little Johnny hates broccoli, sadly he will still hate it even though you grew it with much love. If it just ends up in the compost bin, it is a waste of space, money, and time. That is not to say that you cannot trial something new, something interesting, you definitely should if something peaks your interest! That is what makes gardening exciting. Try to keep your garden at 80% tried and true, 20% new and exciting. 2. Think about what else you can grow that will save you money. Think self-sustainability as well as fresh eating. Do you want to fill your pantry with canned goods and storage items? Grow all the things for a pantry full of 100% organic foods. Do your teenagers go through a jar of salsa at one sitting? Write down all the ingredients in the salsa and grow your own. One jar of salsa is about $5 at the shops. The money you will save by growing tomatoes, peppers, onions, garlic. Homemade is so so much healthier, too, all organic and a whole lot less sugar. We did this when our two kids were teens as they could go through several jars in one week. Make it as mild or spicy as you like. You can also make fresh salsas when tomatoes are in season, so good. Make a peach or mango salsa with Ananas Noir or your favourite sweet tomato for your fish tacos! Bruschetta made from homegrown tomatoes is amazing. Do you buy a lot of pasta sauce? Grow the ingredients needed to make your own. We make many jars of sauce, putting some into the smaller jars canning jars as I am often alone so the 500ml (pint) jar is just perfect. We sometimes add veggies (spinach, mushrooms, basil, garlic) to make a spaghetti sauce and other times make just a simple passata (tomato puree) that can be made into anything later. If you are health conscious and hate all the sugar in store bought ketchups, is super simple to make your own. Use a lot of canned tomatoes in soups, stews, chili? Diced, whole, sliced? Grow some determinate paste tomatoes and can them up. Each plant will give you at least 8 pounds of tomatoes, usually more. Don't know how, or have time, to can them? Remove the core of the tomato, toss them into a bag and into the freezer they go. Toss tomatoes into the pot of soups, stews, chilis, make spaghetti sauce, etc. Like pickled beets? Pickles? Pickled asparagus? Sauerkraut? Kimchi? You get the picture. Anything veggie related that you purchase often from the grocers is something that you can grow and save money on. If you only eat one jar of kimchi a year, probably not worth your while to grow the ingredients. Grow your own herbs and spices as they take up very little room. It is super easy to dehydrate herbs, garlic, onions, peppers, etc... and grind them to make your own homegrown spices. We make our own cayenne powder, paprika powder, chili powder, garlic powder, dill weed. You can make your own herbal salts, too. For storage, grow veggies that you can put in the pantry or store room as is, to eat throughout the winter. Things like potatoes, onions, squash, cabbage, carrots, beets. If in a warmer zone, you can leave some of these items in your garden to harvest as needed. Look at your list and decide if you want to grow everything on that list, or if it is more worthwhile to buy some items at the market and use that garden space to grow more of something else. So, if you only use a few peppers to add to your salsas but do not use it for anything else, grow more tomatoes and buy those peppers at the market. Support a farmer and get organic, locally grown. Everyone wins. 3. Keep your garden space in mind. It is super easy to get carried away and order all the seeds... but keep in mind that you only have so much garden space. Yes, most seeds will keep well for 3 to 5 years, but you're not saving money if you over-buy annually. Also, you may want to just buy seeds for things that can be sown directly into the garden and buy the plants for anything that needs to be pre-started. Do what is most practical for you! Here is my Veggie Grow List for 2023 So, this is my list and here is why I chose these guys.... the tomato list was done separately the other day, you can find that HERE! The flower list will be coming shortly, as well as the planning post. I focus mostly on things that I can pop into the pantry/store room for the winter than what we'll eat in summer. Pretty much anything you grow for storage, can also be harvested throughout the summer for salads and fresh eating. The onions were chosen as they are good storage onions. When buying your onions, keep in mind that not all of them are good keepers, so if you want a stocked pantry, you need to check. Sweet yellow onions will only last about 4 months max so maybe grow less of them and extras of the storage onions. I grow onions from seed as I know what I am getting and have a much bigger selection than I would from sets. Onion seeds do not keep so you may as well plant them all, some for cooking in summer, canning in fall, and some for winter storage. The cabbage should keep well in my store room just as is, plus the rutabagas (Swedes), potatoes, and pumpkins, too. I bought some burping jars to try my hand at making some sauerkraut for hubby. This will be my first year in forever that I cannot store carrots in the garden to harvest at will, so I will try some in a box in the pantry (it has to be able to breathe or they will go moldy), and some in the extra fridge. Parsnips would be the same. My store room is quite cool, by the way. We do a lot of canning so the tomatoes are grown mostly for sauces, salsas, passata, ketchup, chow chow, and freezing. The onions, celery, peppers, and herbs will be used in making these canned goods. I bought the cylindrical beets to slice for pickling. We may pickle some of the Lutz as whole beets but they were chosen mainly for storage and fresh eating. I will likely be buying more pepper seeds yet, once I find out what the mister needs for his hot sauce, or maybe the starter plants. The sweets are for salads and fresh eating, mostly for me, I love them and can eat them like an apple. The hot sunsets are going to be made into pickled peppers, a family favourite with everyone except myself. I am a heat wimp. The other hots for making into sauce. Feher Ozon is a lovely, tapered, long Hungarian paprika pepper that is sweet and tasty for fresh eating as well as grinding into paprika powder. Our peppers are grown in pots so they take up no garden space. We don't eat a lot of beans but really like them! Beans need a pressure cooker in order to can them properly for storage so we do not can them. Pressure cookers scare me, hah! Frozen beans are not the yummiest, so I grow a bit for fresh eating only. The Tall Telephone peas on my list are shelling peas for fresh eating and freezing. In my zone 7 garden, I would sow the peas in February on a nice day, March if I forgot. The snow would come, the rains would come, and then when the sun started shining, the peas would start to grow. Sow a few more in April for a succession crop. I will try them in March here in my zone 3 garden, if I get a day when the snow is off the beds, or April if not, with a later sowing for a succession crop. I also like the dwarf Little Crunch peas from Renee's (in the pic above) but forgot to order them this year. They stay short, are early, just cascade over the side of my raised beds. The eggplants are also grown in a pot, they grow better that way, so take up no garden space. I don't need many plants as is just myself and my daughter who like them so I just chose one variety this year. My favourite way to eat them is marinated in balsamic vinegar for grilled eggplant veggie sandwiches. I fell in love with these sandwiches when we had a little bistro in town called "Carrot On The Run', they made the most amazing lunch foods.You can make these sandwiches with meats, as well. Cucumbers - well, I have ordered a lot of seeds. Will be growing the two types of gherkins for pickling while the others are for fresh eating. I start the Long English types from seed in May and start a few more in early July. Cool weather veggies (radishes, greens, lettuces, radishes, cauliflower, broccolini, scallions, spinach) are grown in spring and again in late summer. The brussels are because we love them and must have them. They are long season crops, so planted in early spring and harvested for Thanksgiving dinner. They are fine even if you get an early snowfall. Anything listed as long season crops on the list are sown or planted in spring but not harvested till late summer, or fall. This list will have us in food from spring till fall. Our only hold back will be how soon we can get our beds finished in spring as we ran out of time in fall to get them filled up. I hope this post helps you decide what you want to grow yourself and what to buy at the shops. Some choose not to grow the brassicas as they are known for being buggy, but if you companion plant with flowers, bugs are not usually much of an issue. The flowers I am growing will be my next post, so stay tuned. Whew, that is a lot of information! I need to start some Zoom workshops, or something, as this is all so much easier to explain in person ; ) Have questions? Post them below or on my Facebook page. I love questions! I can talk gardening all day long. Happy ordering and dreaming ~ Tanja

Happy Sunday! Boy, have I ever made myself a long to-do list for today. The weather has been so windy and cold the past two days that I barely peeked my head outside. I can handle cool weather, you warm up as you work, but windy? Nope, I'm out. Today is not that day. It is gorgeous out there so my outdoor tasks are getting seen to! I am looking forward to spending the day soaking up some Vitamin D. - Bulb planting. - Chipping up the sunflower stalks and other garden debris. ( I have an awesome chipper/shredder that I will have to share with you all one day) - Raking/mulching a bit in the backyard. Not doing anything out front as the leaves from the shrubs have just fallen to the base of the shrubs, so there they will stay to feed the soil life. Bonus, eh? - Planting my golden raspberries. - Saving seeds. - Watering. On the wet, west coast, no need for this. Here on the prairies, water in your perennials, trees, and shrubs with a good soak once they have lost most of their leaves. For me, that is today. - Water my carrots so they don't get soft. Will be a few weeks yet till I harvest them. - Putting stuff away for fall (not really going to happen today, I leave that job for hubs). My apple tree is a multi-graft (just found out in August). Two of the varieties are ready in September, good-sized, good looking apples. One variety is ready in August. The apples are small, very yummy... for about 2 weeks. They go soft and mushy very quickly. We had a flock of grackles/starlings come through in early September. They ate all the yummy apples off my tree, and the neighbour's tree.... but left all the small, mushy ones! Wanting a new bed in spring? This article will save your back and the time spent doing it. Is easy and organic. Turn Poor Soil into a Thriving Garden with Lasagna Gardening (attainable-sustainable.net) Here are two articles about mulching with leaves and using leaves to feed your soil life in the garden. This one, and this one, too. Both are good reads. I use my leaves in the raspberry patch, on top of perennial beds, and basically just leave them be to do their thing most everywhere, except my veggie beds. (if you missed why, see that here) . Leaves make everything better. You want to know what kind of leaves you are getting though, and be prepared. I once got some bagged leaves from a co-worker of mine. They were maple leaves... with loads of the wingy seeds in the bag! I was pulling little maple trees out of my organic vegetable bed for a couple of years. Since then, I have preferred to put them in a pile to break down into leaf mould, haha. Oh, and I leave them whole. I do not shred them as many insects overwinter in them. Have you ever wondered what I am talking about when I say that I am feeding the soil life? Here is an explanation of the wonderous world beneath the ground, in your soil. Here is a growing guide to shallots. How do you all feel about shallots? I, personally, really love them. I would use them on anything and in anything calling for an onion, especially if the recipe called for a nice, mild, mellow flavoured onion. However, hubby, the chef, does not like them, never uses them, would never grow or buy them. Is a mystery to me. How to grow tulips, but also a guide to knowing more about your tulips. Which ones to grow for early, mid and late blooming. Plus, tulip problems. I used to get tulip blight at the acreage, out in the long potager beds. I now see that I should have been planting in November or December to prevent this fungal issue! I had no idea! These are terrific tips for your organic yard and garden. 10 Traditional Native American Gardening Techniques | The Old Farmer's Almanac Homey Bits Well, these laundry rooms are what dreams are made of. 8 Impressive New Laundry Rooms (houzz.com) Oh, and while on the topic of laundry... have you ever tried the dissolving laundry strips? This is on my list of things to look into. Apparently, although we all are busy putting those recyclables into the blue bins, most all of that stuff is going to the landfill. Yep, not actually being recycled. Yep, right here in Canada. I had heard inklings of this before but now it is official, they came out with a study that says only 22% of plastics are actually being recycled. Time to find new alternatives. First no glass recycled, now this. Anyway, laundry strips is just one small thing but the more alternatives we find for packaging, the better off our planet will be. Try this laundry strip or this one. *If you buy anything from one of my Amazon links, it does not cost you even a penny more than if you went there yourself, but it puts just a wee bit of money into supporting my blog : ) This chic Shades of White cottage in Sweden is divine. So cute, so serene. I could move in there today and not change a thing about it. I especially love that kitchen and the stairway. A dream of mine has always been to do up a cottage Scandi-style as a short term rental and maybe my own little getaway, too. Oh, that reminds me... those of you who shopped at my wee shop in Cedar, the new owners made the shop into a 2-bed rental cottage! My former selling area is now a kitchen and living room. How amazing is that, eh? I would love to stay there someday. This cute cottage is so pretty, I especially like the outdoor area (and love that sheepskin chair!). This cottage has such an amazing kitchen, and yet another lovely outdoor area. How they make the outdoor areas look appealing when the trees are bare of leaves, I don't know, but I want to go sit there! These natural linen napkins are super easy to make, and look so nice, too. I was just going to breeze on by this article but then I noticed that they are no sew, super fast, and super easy to make. Besides, linen just adds such lovely vintage charm to the table. I wish I would have had this for the thanksgiving table but Christmas is coming! Recipe Bits Here are 16 healthy grain bowls, perfect for lunches. All sorts of grains to use, top with a protein, veggies, and seeds or nuts... Here are two that I want to try....This quinoa, veggie bowl ( I will switch out the quinoa for a different grain though, and leave out the apple) and this Freekeh, haloumi bowl (I don't really eat cheese much but it I do, haloumi is my guiltly pleasure). How to make dehydrated tomatoes for that yummy taste of summer this winter. Use up those leftover late season tomatoes. Do you still have one or two zucchinis hanging around? Here is a loaf recipe that has oats in it. Oatmeal-Orange Zucchini Bread Recipe – Mother Earth News What about flourless, or low flour baking? These look good! Baking Recipes Low Flour Flourless | Almanac.com That's it, you guys. I gotta get outside! Have a great day and a great week! Happy Gardening~ Tanja Disclaimer* On this blog, I may sometimes use affiliate links, which means a small commission is earned if you make a purchase via the link. The price you pay will be the same whether you use the affiliate link or go directly to the vendor’s website using a non-affiliate link.