Woman vs Wild

Are you familiar with the tv series - Man vs Wild? Well, I don't know much about it but I adopted the name for this post because I thought it to be very fitting for my experiences while in my yard and garden. Now for a person who enjoys being out in nature so much, I am such a scary cat!! If a leaf moves too quickly, I'm jumping and flinching. If something buzzes by my ear, my neighbors probably think that I am doing the latest dance move. Well, because I live in Southern California where it can get quite warm, we have lizards that come visit our yard during the spring/summer months. Since last week I have been seeing a couple of lizards hanging out on the side of the house where the trash cans are stored and also where the side entrance door to the garage is located. I was about 20 feet away as I approached the side of the house one day and I saw a lizard, I stomped my foot and noticed he moved towards the fence that is draped with ivy but his tail was still sticking out. I threw rocks towards him and he did not move. I decide to go through the back patio door to enter the house and then go through the garage to lock the side door. When I open the door there are now two of them!! I decide to spray one of them and he barely budged! I gave in, locked the door and decided it wasn't that important to dump the recyclables that day.

So now comes the hysterical part, I'm doing my thing in the front and back yards this morning; it is June gloom overcast weather so more than likely I won't see a lizard. I go into the garage to get my rake and dust pan. (Now, has anyone ever seen that post office commercial where a family is standing by their front door talking to the postman about the need to return an item? The camera pans over to this clown sitting in the living room, the postman just casually tells them basically that the process of returning is simple and then all of a sudden he looks down and the clown is standing right there in the doorway and startles him!) Well, that's the way I felt when I turned to leave out of the door and there standing in the doorway is this lizard! He did not budge!! I ended up slamming the door in his face!

I don't have an actual picture of this evil lizard but I googled an image of what he looks like.

Can you identify this edible flower?

I was in my garden last week and noticed this cute little flower blooming from a plant that I never would have imagined would bloom and to bloom such a cute little petite flower. I was equally surprised when I researched this plant and its delicate foliage to learn that the flower is actually edible. So, do you know what plant produces this flower? Hint: It is an herb.
 Give up?

Well here is the plant. Can you identify it now? 

If you guessed chives, you are right. Chive is a mild herb used for seasoning dishes. It belongs to the same family (Allium) with onions, leeks, garlic, shallots and scallions. They supply the same healthful nutrients as their cousins; although in smaller amounts. The antioxidant compounds present in chives may help boost immunity and protect you from chronic conditions such as heart disease and cancer. Chives go well with potatoes, fish and egg dishes. It makes a flavorful seasoning for homemade salad dressings and dips.

Health & Nutrition Benefits of Eating Chives

 

• Chives, when finely chopped and consumed with food, are said to aid digestion and stimulate appetite.
• Consumption of chives has been found to be beneficial for the respiratory system of an individual.
• It has been seen that chives can help the body in digesting fatty foods, such as cheese.
• For those suffering from tiredness and fatigue, consuming chives can serve to be a good remedy.
• Since chives have been known to have diuretic properties, they can reduce obesity and fluid retention.
• Researches have revealed the result that chives help reduce the risk of prostate cancer, by as much as 50 percent.
• Chives have been found to comprise of mild anti-inflammatory properties.
• The oil of Chinese chives is believed to help heal bruises and kill germs in the intestines.

If you are considering starting a vegetable garden or an herb garden, this would make an excellent addition. It is easy to take care of and grows well in containers.

Here's a recipe I plan on trying real soon to use some of the fresh chives in my garden. This recipe is from a site that I absolutely love! The recipes are delicious, easy to make and most importantly healthy. If you are on Weight Watchers then you must visit this site. The whole premise behind this site is that the author take recipes and convert them to be Weight Watchers friendly. She even gives the point values. I don't do Weight Watchers so I'm not that into the points but I am into healthy eating and a healthy lifestyle.

                                     http://www.skinnytaste.com/2011/02/baked-potato-soup.html

If you try this soup, let me know how you like it. There is also a Chicken Enchilada Soup that looks amazing. I don't know which one I want to make first. http://www.skinnytaste.com/2011/12/crock-pot-chicken-enchilada-soup.html

Peaches

If you were a follower last year, you may recall that we planted a peach tree in May. It was a very young tree and as the grower explained to me, the first year do not expect any fruit because its energy is being spent developing a root system and getting adjusted to its new environment.

Well, this year the tree has produced tons of fruit, so much so that the branches started to bend and came close to breaking. I had to remove some of the branches. I kept waiting for the fruit to get larger. I noticed that they were getting their color but not really getting any bigger. My research taught me that I should have removed some of the peaches when they were small buds so that they would not be so cramped on the branches. Also, as my husband pointed out the other day, at this stage the tree is not strong enough to carry really large fruit.

So, after picking a couple and trying them out, I realized that they are ripe. What I decided to do because there are so many is to freeze some of them. I have a new vacuum sealer; which I absolutely love, so I can freeze these for use this fall or winter and they should taste like fresh ones.

Actually because the vacuum sealer pulls all of the air out, these should be fresh for at least a year. I also use it for my meats because I hate pulling out freezer burned food to serve my family.

My daughter wanted me to use them to make a peach cobbler, however, I would have to use so many of them because they are so small I opted not to use them for that purpose. I'll just buy canned ones until the tree gets larger and produces bigger fruit.

Rosemary

Last year I purchased a few herb plants because on the Food Network and also when chefs visit The Today Show, they are always talking about using fresh herbs. Now mind you, I am not much of a cook and so this is all fairly new to me. But because I am very interested in cooking healthier meals, I'm trying to learn as much as I can from the experts. Anyway, I was just looking at my rosemary plant this morning and noticed that it is really starting to spread and I realized that I have not used it at all for cooking! Not good. So, I did a Google search for recipes using rosemary and naturally found a bunch. This one in particular caught my eye and I plan on cooking it this week:  Black Lemon Chicken
Here's my rosemary. The aroma is so divine.

Health Benefits of Rosemary

Note: This information was obtained from NaturalNews.com

Rosemary contains caffeic acid and rosmarinic acid, both of which are potent antioxidants as well as anti-inflammatory agents. Rosemary is also a good source of antioxidant vitamin E (alpha tocopherol) and other important antioxidants.

In addition, rosemary contains 19 chemicals with antibacterial action and a number of volatile oils which reduce the airway constriction induced by histamine - the chemical culprit of asthma and other allergy symptoms. Notably, rosemary has long been used to treat asthma.

The volatile oils in rosemary also help reduce inflammation that contributes to liver and heart disease. Herbalists think that rosemary may also help ease breast pain by acting as a natural drying agent to
 fluid  filled cysts.

Some other important health benefits for rosemary are:

*Due to its antioxidants, rosemary can help prevent cataracts.

*The natural acids present in rosemary help in protecting the body`s cells and DNA from free radical damage.

*Rosemary stimulates liver enzymes which help inactivate estrogen hormones, which can  cause breast cancer.

*Rosemary extract helps prevent age-related skin damage such as wrinkles.

*Rosemary encourages enzymes which flush harmful toxins out of the liver and the body.

*When consumed on a daily basis, rosemary extract can improve kidney functions, increase urine flow and preserve essential minerals such as sodium and potassium.

*Rosemary oil is used to stimulate hair growth, boost mental activity, relieve respiratory problems and pain, and reduce disorders in menstrual cycle, menstrual cramps, peptic ulcers, urine flow, prostate, gall bladder, intestine, sperm mobility, leukemia and kidney stones.

Cautionary notes:

*Medical professionals have recommended to not exceed two 400 mg rosemary capsules up to three times a day.

*Pregnant and breastfeeding women should avoid large quantities of rosemary. Rosemary has been known to affect the fetus and lead to miscarriage.

*Rosemary oil can be allergic, thus it would be advisable to consult with a qualified naturopathic professional before using it.

*People who suffer from high blood pressure or epilepsy should not take rosemary supplements.


Learn more:http://www.naturalnews.com/030814_rosemary_herbs.html#ixzz1vRIEbmOL

A New Season

Hello all:
It's been a while since my last post. I was pretty pleased with my first serious year of vegetable gardening last year. I learned a lot and have some new ideas that I want to implement this year in hopes of having more success than last year. I just completed a 170 page design project. I am relieved and ready to get back to my gardening and blogging. One of the things that I have done which I'm hoping will really help is that I got rid of this bush that was not very attractive and took up a lot of useful ground space. I now have an area to plant my zucchini's and tomatoes in the ground. Also, although we were not very happy when our neighbors behind us had to cut down some really tall trees that provided so much privacy for us, my garden is now getting all of that morning sun that it so needs.
In case you missed the post last summer, I planted a peach tree. I thought that I would have peaches last summer but as the grower explained to me, the tree spends the first season developing it's root system in its new home and that's where all of its energy is focused. This year I am happy to say that I have tons of peaches! So much that I had to cut off a few branches that were loaded with young peaches. The reason for cutting them was that they were so heavy they almost broke the main branches. This morning I also had to place a net over the tree because the fruit as it matures is getting softer and now the birds are getting to enjoy them before we can. The peaches don't seem to be getting very big, my guess is that in a season or two as the tree matures they will get larger. (I will have to do a google search for more details on growing peaches.) I'm looking forward to fresh peach smoothies and I also saw on the Today Show once before a chef was grilling them. Sounds delicious, huh? Here are some photos of my little peach tree.

The tree in early February started blooming. 

These are the fruit in April.

Lots of color. Getting sweeter, so the birds
are enjoying.

Placed netting over the tree this morning to
 protect from birds and possums.

Apple Walnut Pancakes

I've been preparing apple pancakes for going on a year now since I bought this new blender from Costco. It came with a recipe book and in it I found the recipe for whole grain apple pancakes. The reason I'm writing this post this morning is because for the first time since I've been making these pancakes, I was able to use apples that we grew! I was thinking as I was preparing the mixture this morning, how rewarding it is to prepare meals with fruit and vegetables whose origins you are responsible for. When I looked at the apple as I washed it and sliced it, I thought about the trip my husband and I made to Target (that's before they gave up their garden department), how we wrestled it into the back of my mini-van and how we watched the little white blossoms change into the cutest little apples. I also enjoy being able to share my fruit with friends and family. One thing about it however is that the tree produces a certain amount of fruit at the same time and once that batch is picked, there are no more until this time next year. :(  I have friends that come back to me after tasting my apples wanting more, but sadly most of the time I have to tell them that there are no more to share.

Here are the whole wheat apple walnut pancakes that I prepared this morning. If you are interested in healthy living/eating I encourage you to try these. Keith loves them (so do I) and we can enjoy them guilt free several times a week and the best part for me is that they are quick and easy to make.

My Bounty

The summer is winding down and soon some of my plants will no longer produce veggies/fruit.  It has been a great learning experience and something I plan to continue doing.  I will start researching to see what types of veggies I can grow during the fall season.  In the meantime I have many of my plants with fruit and vegetables ready for picking so that's what I did this morning.  My veggies are not the biggest but the fact that I grew them makes them so very special.  Take a look at the plate of fruit and veggies that I picked today and see how many you can identify.

For tonight's dinner I will be using 4 of the items in this picture.