Monday, August 26, 2019

Saving Seeds and Sowing Seeds

The summer garden is done, with the exceptions of peppers, and it's time to start thinking about fall and winter gardening.  That's kinda hard to do with the temperatures still in the 90's!

As the old beds get cleared out, it is prime time to save seeds.


I intentionally leave some of the vegetables growing during summer to harvest as seeds later.  It's so simple to do, just ignore them!  Mother Nature allows the vegetables and fruits to ripen, mature the seeds stored inside, then dry up or decompose.  You gather as many seeds as you like!  Above are my beloved Emerald Okra.  With just TWO PODS, I got more seeds than a whole pack from the store and they were FREE!

My most beautiful zinnas for seed.

I read an article once that said if you can repeatedly save seed from your plants and sow them for three years, you'll be virtually pest and disease free.  Plants have the capability to learn.  They can fight predators and some diseases, and by sowing seeds year after year,  you can continue to breed those good traits for your area.  I'm currently seeing if that theory is true by saving as much seed as possible for future gardens.


And what I can't save, I buy!
I get absolutely giddy flipping through seed catalogs and planning for future gardens.  These are just some of the fantastic seeds from Baker Creek seed company that will be in our fall/winter gardens.

There is just something about September!
A new school year, changing colors, falling leaves, a crispness in the air, and the anticipation of the holidays.
I'm ready to settle down and NEST.
But first, I'm saving and storing away what's left of summer.

Wednesday, August 14, 2019

Tea Time!

I really love a cup of hot tea with honey and lemon!
This summer I set about making my own tea blend with herbs already growing in my garden.  You can make a tea from almost any herb you can grow, and I think I've found a winning combination.


Lemon balm, bee balm, lemon basil, holy basil, and blue hyssop leaves were dried in the dehydrator.  Then I added dried lemon, orange, and ginger to the mix.


Bagged them up in cotton tea bags, 
and they're all set to enjoy this winter!


That is, if winter ever comes!
Today's heat index in south Texas was 109...
I guess I could always enjoy this tea over ice!
LOTS of ice!

Friday, August 2, 2019

Happy Birthday, Kyle!

Our sweet Kyle turned 22 this past week.  He had spent the day in Houston with friends and came home pretty late.  I had made his favorite peach cobbler for his "birthday cake."  So we waited up for him, sang him Happy Birthday, and before we even finished the first verse, the following series of events happened...




It was a SMASHING good time!

That boy loves peach cobbler so much that he stayed up and made another one.  And you better believe we stayed up until 11:30 to eat it right out of the oven!