Spot of Gardening

Late Azaleas

ryublade — Mon, 11 Apr 2011 16:34:35 +0000

As always, my azaleas start to bloom after everyone else’s have faded. It’s a mystery to me and all my neighbors who stop by to look at my front yard’s garden.

I’ve added some ice-plants and marigolds to the heart garden in front. The blooms for both are yellow but I’m experimenting with adding some touches of yellow since the irises growing in the heart garden turned out to be yellow irises. The daffy also have a yellow center. Hmmm, pink, white and yellow – I hope it works or else there will be major overhaul of that flowerbed.

And the winner is….

ryublade — Sun, 10 Apr 2011 22:56:13 +0000

Me!  I actually won the door prize from one of the booth’s at the LSU Garden Show. My mom & I had purchased some begonias from the Burden Center’s booth and the lady gave us some raffle tickets for a garden bag with some goodies inside. To tell the truth, I didn’t even look at the since I never win any of door prizes usually. I even jokingly told the lady I preferred a plant to a garden bag. What a surprise to receive a call from the Burden Center telling me I had won!!! Imagine my excitement when I went to pick up the prize. It was filled with amazing ergonomic garden hand tools. What a wonderful prize! Here’s a picture of the bag with matching umbrella, garden flag, and garden tools:

1st Tomato of 2011

ryublade — Sat, 09 Apr 2011 22:34:36 +0000

The 1st tomato of the season naturally is the red tumbler of the hanging basket. I plucked it from the hanging basket and onto a plate. With a little salt and pepper, it was a delish and savory bite of tomato goodness. I look forward to more cherry tomatoes to come until my other tomato plants come into it’s own ripeness.

Somehow, it looks almost artistic on the plate. 

Baton Rouge Orchid Show

ryublade — Fri, 08 Apr 2011 14:46:58 +0000

Last Saturday, it was a trip to the BR Orchid Show with Mom & Dad. There were some amazing displays. Naturally, some orchids came home with me. Dad’s pic was taken and published in the Sunday Advocate!

Back & Forward

ryublade — Fri, 08 Apr 2011 00:23:08 +0000

Time just slips by so easily. Again, life takes over and one realizes that all those pictures of your garden has gone unposted! Does one go back and post them or move on? I have chosen to move forward with some quick flashbacks for everyone’s perusal . LOL. Too lazy to back post; anyways I’d never catch up!

There are Plant shows galore around this season. Of course the LSU Garden show on March 26th was a must visit. I bought a chocolate bell pepper, Mexican bell pepper, mole pepper, habenero pepper, sugar snack cherry tomato, sweet baby girl cherry tomato, patio tomato, Mortgage Lifter tomato plant, red tumbler in a basket, a cold hardy kiwi, 2 female & 1 male kiwi (the brown kind you buy in stores), hibiscus, double blossom begonia in a basket, 2 fairytale eggplants & a sage. I totally went to town.

My New Back Porch – Phase I Complete

ryublade — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 00:49:10 +0000

Phase I of my new back porch is finished! Phase II will have to be put on hold for a while due to the intense summer heat but I love what I have. I’ve planted two hardy kiwi plants (hopefully 1 male & 1 female) and a Baronne Provost climbing rose to climb up the lattice on the side of the porch with some nice Vietnamese Perilla and a Stevia plant in the planter The Sushiman made for me.

A Visit to the Dallas Arboreteum

ryublade — Tue, 01 Jun 2010 01:40:45 +0000

While attending my lil’ sis’s baby shower two weeks ago, I went to visit the Dallas Arboreteum. They grow a wide range of plants that suit the dry hot Texas weather. My favorite was the flower house displays they were spotlighting for the summer. They were small houses with walls of hanging planters of vincas and begonias. They were pretty and I’d like to take the idea of a wall of planters and do something similiar in my garden. Hmmmm…. food for thought. Anyways, I have some photos of my lil’ sis’s baby shower display (which are not garden related but nice anyways) and some flower houses and a Japanese Windflower (it’s a beautiful mint green flower!)

Blooming Pomegranate

ryublade — Fri, 14 May 2010 00:22:39 +0000

My pomegranate tree is blooming. I wasn’t sure it would since I moved it from the side of the house to the pond in March. I needed something to replace the papaya tree next to pond. The Sushiman didn’t want to put another papaya tree there since it was so difficult to keep covering it every winter. I guess this spot is perfect for the pomegranate since it is happily growing there. For those who are interested in such things, the cultivar is Wonderful. The blooms are a beautiful crimson color, which my camera doesn’t quite catch properly. It looks more orange than red in the pictures. This shrub is drought- tolerant which is perfect when summer comes around. I feel that this summer is going to be a scorcher. Temps are already in the 90s and it’s only May. Meanwhile, I think I’ll enjoy the heat after such a cold winter.

Cilantro Flowers to Coriander Seeds

ryublade — Tue, 11 May 2010 03:58:46 +0000

Cilantro (Coriandrum sativum) is a funny plant. The plant itself is called cilantro but it’s seeds are called coriander. This annual herb grows best in cool spring weather around 50s and 60s. When temps reach the 70s, cilantro tends to start to go to seed. I love to use the leaves for cooking and garnishing. Lately, I have been using fresh coriander seeds as a garnish for various dishes. The seeds have a fresh herby taste vs. the nutty taste of dried coriander. Many trendy gourmet restaurants have added fresh coriander seeds to their dishes as a garnish, also. It’s a bit tedious to pick out the seeds one by one but worthwhile for the final dish. The flowers are also edible.

Happy Mother’s Day

ryublade — Sun, 09 May 2010 23:17:07 +0000

On Mother’s Day, we show our appreciation for mothers everywhere, especially our own. Since my mom went to Houston where my sibs will take my mother out and make sure my mom feels appreciated, the Sushiman and I are spending our Sunday with the Sushiman’s mom. I made a cake with whipped cream frosting and fresh fruits for the Sushiman’s mom. Unfortunately, the fruits are all store-bought except for the wild blackberries when I went berry picking.

For my own mom and mothers everywhere, Have a happy and blessed Mother’s Day!