Creativity and the Garden

My mantra is to celebrate creativity. My husband, Michael, finds his creativity in his expansive garden. It's time to share one of my favorite things he has grown this year. I asked him to find me a great spicy, but not hot, radish and so he did! He grew the French Breakfast Radish and I love it!

I have chopped these up and served them as a condiment with our scrambled eggs in the morning. One evening, I even sliced them and threw them into a tofu stir fry and they were delicious. I've read that enthusiasts even spread butter and salt on them, but I haven't tried that yet. 

They are a wonderful bright pink and white with bright green foliage. We have read that the leafy part is very good for you also. 

French Breakfast Radishes grow very quickly. Pick them small because if they grow to big they become hollow in the center. Having the hollow makes me wonder what they would taste like with a little creme cheese in the center?

Seeds for the French Breakfast can probably be found at the local home store, such as Home Depot or Lowes. Michael usually orders his. His favorite online seed suppliers are Johnny's Selected Seeds and Pinetree if you would like to check them out.  

Happy gardening and creative eating. I will see you Sunday with my regular style post.

GardenThyme-I Love My New Sloggers!

Earlier this week I was in my local farm and home store picking up some sweet feed for my critters. Yep, my sheep have a sweet tooth.  

As I was cruising down the aisle, my eyes caught something that made me stop.  Eye candy for my gardening feet. I  met my first pair of Sloggers. Needless to say, they were in my cart in a heartbeat. Did I mention that they are made right here in the USA (Georgia)?

My Sloggers-the actual shoe really isn't as bright as this picture, but bright enough.

Maybe for Fall? The boots are going to be hard to resist.

Don't like patterns-they come in solids also.

The soles sold me just as much as the tops of the shoes.

The Flip Flops are not high on my list, but I like a shoe with some surprises and this interior patterned sole does it.

The hat, probably not made in the USA-and a bit over the top-but it looks fun.

I had points saved up at my store, so my Sloggers didn't actually cost me anything. But if I get another pair,  Amazon prices are the best I have found. 

Now I know that my new garden shoes will not make me a better gardener, but it makes me a happier one.  I smile looking at my flowers and now when I look at my feet!

Garden Thyme-Tomato Sunrise

Even with the drought, because of his irrigation, Michael is hauling in the tomatoes.  One of our favorite summer morning drinks is a Tomato Sunrise.
Our last tomato juice was made from a beautiful Heirloom tomato named Cherokee Purple. 

Recipe

For every 1/2 cup fresh tomato juice add:

1 tsp. Worcestershire Sauce

7-10 drops of Tabasco Sauce (or to taste)

salt to taste

thin piece of celery to stir

Look familiar? It is just a Bloody Mary without the Vodka.

Too Much Wool & Not Enough Rain=HOSTA COZIES!

I keep sheep.  Sheep make wool and lots of it.  At the moment, I have WAY more wool that one human could possible use. 

Starting this summer, I have renewed an interest in my flower garden.  The Hostas for the most part have hung in there through two summers of neglect and now deserve to be pampered.

We live in the Midwest United States (Missouri), and it is very, very hot and dry this June.  

So I was thinking how I could combine my two interests. I now have Hosta Cozies around my plants.  I use white or off white wool in hope of white doing what it is theoretically suppose to; reflect heat away from surfaces and help keep the moisture in the ground.  It will eventually decompose and put nutrients back into the dirt.

Hostas are not the only plants that get Cozies

We will see how it works.  Michael (my husband) has seen seminars about using wool as mulch, so I know this is not an original idea.  I will keep you updated on how I think it works. 

Some of my gardening partners,  during the nice cool winter.

Garden Thyme-Hostas, Mason City, and Frank Lloyd Wright

I first fell in love with Hostas in Mason City, Iowa. We were touring the Frank Lloyd Wright Stockman  House, a preserved Usonian house.. All around the property were beautiful huge Hostas with dark blue green leaves.

For years after that, I would buy what ever Hostas Wal-Mart had on sale. Finally, I decided that if I wanted the big blues or "Blue Giants" I would have to search harder. I now have these beauties but it will take a few years for them to reach their full potential.

Hostas have always been faithful plants for me. I ignored them for a few years, and they kept on growing. They don't get ignored anymore. I have about 30 different types. Some I know names of, some I don't. Last fall, I planted some miniatures, Stiletto, Pandora's Box, Little Mouse Ears, and Brimful Cup. I will probably plant more miniatures this fall.

Garden Thyme-The Iris Legacy

I finally started paying attention to my neglected Irises. This is a transgression on my part when considered from where most of them originated. They came from my mother. The Irises have been tenacious and hung on until I could come back to them. Well, I am back and they and I are working together to create something beautiful.
I have a vague childhood memory of my mom bringing a grocery bag of Irises back from a trip to her mother’s. There is a good chance that she brought some of those to me. I planted new Irises this past fall so I could possibly now be in charge of a three generation Iris garden.

Garden Thyme-Alliums

The decorative onions. They remind me of sparklers, Mother Nature's sparklers. It's a good thing they look great because they smell, well, like an onion.