Rasperry Ice

One of the most delightful things about a garden is the anticipation it provides.
~W.E. Johns, The Passing Show

Berry season is upon us! I just love going out into the garden and picking a basket full of berries. Most don’t make it into the basket cuz my mouth gets in the way, but those that do make it to the kitchen counter are destined to become something yummy like raspberry sorbet or blueberry grunt. Grunt? What’s a grunt you ask? That’ll be a topic for a later post, when the blueberries are ripe. But for now…it’s raspberry season!

I’ve tried several varieties like Royalty, Munger, Fall Gold and Heritage, but currently Willamette feeds our cravings. All the other’s have slunk away while Willamette stays strong, so I think rather than more experimentation, I’ll transplant suckers from this plant to increase our crop. The picture above is our Willamette. Our honey bees and the local bumblebees did a great job pollinating it this year, so there are loads of berries. The only pests I’ve had problems with are squirrels. The birds don’t seem to get to my berries but a squirrel has gobbled more than I care to share.

Raspberries need full sun and good drainage. There are dozens of varieties, many with differing pruning requirements to ensure healthy crops. I highly recommend you purchase your raspberry canes from local, reputable, knowledgeable fruit and berry growers/retailers so you be sure to get the correct information on how to establish and prune the variety best suited for your area. Many of the US fruit catalogs don’t include enough information leaving you to pick from pretty pictures without knowing if the variety will thrive in your region. The local retailers should know which varieties have proven to be reliable in your area. The USA is big with vast climatic differences, and yes, this matters when we are talking about fruit set, pests and disease.

One of my favorite ways to enjoy raspberries, other than straight off the stem, is as a sorbet. And it’s not difficult to make your own.

The typical fruity granita recipe calls for pureed fruit or fruit juice of your choice, optional sweetener, something to freeze it in (a 9x9 glass dish, freezer safe), and a fork to scrape it. After pureeing the berries and straining the seeds (optional), pour the liquid into your freezer safe dish. After freezing for a few hours, it should be frozen firm but not rock hard. Now scraping thin layers with a fork will yield loads of icy, fruity crystals for a refreshing dessert.

I’ve put an ice cream maker to work for this, making it even faster.

This Donvier Half Pint Ice Cream Maker is indeed ancient. My hubby acquired this jewel in his bachelor days. An ice cream maker for two, this little half-pinter makes impromptu fruity sweet cravings easy, dairy free and healthy to satisfy. Needing no special rock salt, all you do is put this little gizmo’s inner cylinder in the freezer for a few hours prior, puree some just picked garden raspberries and in15 minutes sorbet is ready. Pour ¾ of a cup of the puree into the frozen cylinder, turn the handle frequently for 10-15 minutes and it is ready. The frozen puree will increase in volume by 25%, yielding a nice cool treat for two. In summer we keep the cylinder in the freezer all the time so it’s ready at a moments notice.

These little Donviers come in bigger sizes too. Such a naturally sweet way to keep cool in the summer heat! 

In Bloom In My Garden Today: Purple Poppies, Borage, Phygelius, Echinacea, Lobelia, Mullen, Nigella (Love-In-A-Mist), Thyme, Lavender, Thalictrum rochebrunianum (Meadow Rue), Lavender ‘Hidcote’, Digitalis, Begonia ‘Bonfire’, Penstemon schmidel ‘Red Riding Hood’, Salvia officinalis (culinary sage), Salvia nemorosa ‘Viola Klose’ and 'Hot Lips', Astilbe ‘Bridal Veil’, Tomato ‘Stupice’, Hardy Geranium, Peas, Rose, Nepeta ‘Six Hills Giant’, old fashioned Coral Bells (Heuchera), Alpine strawberry, Daphne caucasica ‘Eternal Fragrance’ and ‘Summer Ice’


Authors photos

Pathetic Peas

There is no gardening without humility. Nature is constantly sending even its oldest scholars to the bottom of the class for some egregious blunder.
~Alfred Austin

Well, it’s to the bottom of the class for me today!

Last year I bought a packet of snap pea seeds. I love the snap pea varieties. No shelling needed and incredibly sweet pods surround delish peas. With my small veggie garden a packet often yields me two seasons of sowing, so this year I planted again from the same packet.

Last year my peas were truly pathetic, the vines barely getting more than 1 foot (31 cm) tall and producing just a handful of sweet snap peas. Not enough even to get past my mouth and make it to the kitchen counter. I blamed it on the unseasonably short, cool spring that too quickly turned hot. Not very pea friendly, too much heat makes peas stop flowering. No flower, no vegetable.

This year however, our spring has been loooong and unseasonably cool. Very pea friendly. But wait…my pea vines, which should be 6’ (1.8 m) tall are still stunted, barely taller than last year. The only difference…more peas to munch on. What gives? I even moved this season’s crop to a sunnier locale and gave them an 8 foot (2.5 m) trellis upon which to produce their bumper crop. That and months of cool weather…what more could a pea vine want? I’ve been growing peas for years. My peas should look like Simon’s! Up to the front of the class, Simon. Ok, he does have a greenhouse in which to start his crops, but still…that’s only a covetous excuse when it comes to peas. It pains me to post this picture…to totally expose my pathetic pea crop…but alas one must remain humble. The bare naked fence should be covered!

Thinking perhaps my pea growing days are over because my lovely vine maple trees are making too much shade, I finally referred to the seed packet. ‘Sugar Sprint snap pea, edible pods’. So far so good. ‘Dwarf form of Sugar Snap, bear crunchy pods on 2 foot vines…”. DWARF! TWO FOOT VINES! How could I have missed that? I’ve got 8 feet of trellis attached to that fence! What a dunce! READ the packet, Joan! For two springs now we’ve missed out on a great pea crop because I missed the fact that I mistakenly bought a dwarf variety! Sigh.

I definitely won’t make that mistake again…I hope. Was I beguiled by the pretty picture on the front of the packet? Or was it the recipe on the back? Hmmm…Pea and Bulgur Salad. Yum. Fresh snap peas, grain bulgur, cucumber, sautéed onion, toasted pine nuts, chopped mint all tossed in an oil/vinegar dressing. Hmmm…maybe this seed packet wasn’t such a blunder after all. Unfortunately we’ll have to wait till next spring (and a new packet of seeds)mto make this wonderful salad from our own garden. But I will, mark my words!

In Bloom In My Garden Today: Purple Poppies, Borage, Phygelius, Echinacea, Lobelia, Mullen, Nigella (Love-In-A-Mist), Thyme, Lavender, Dutch Iris, Clematis, Bletilla (hardy orchid), Thalictrum rochebrunianum (Meadow Rue), Lavender ‘Hidcote’, Digitalis, Begonia ‘Bonfire’, Penstemon schmidel ‘Red Riding Hood’, Salvia officinalis (culinary sage), Salvia nemorosa ‘Viola Klose’ and 'Hot Lips', Astilbe ‘Bridal Veil’, Baptisia, Tomato ‘Stupice’, Dianthus (Pinks), Hardy Geranium, Peas, Heuchera ‘Palace Purple’, Armeria latifolia ‘Joystick’, Rose, Nepeta ‘Six Hills Giant’, old fashioned Coral Bells (Heuchera), Alpine strawberry, Daphne caucasica ‘Eternal Fragrance’ and ‘Summer Ice’


Authors photos

Pfabulous Purple Poppies!

Plants cry their gratitude for the sun in green joy.
~Astrid Alauda

Yay! Summer has officially arrived in my garden when the purple poppies pop! And today, July 5, is the day! Take a look-see at this beauty, the first of the bunch, just opened this morning!

Oddly enough it’s a long running grumbling joke among the locals of these parts that summer always arrives on July 5. This year it holds true. Yesterday's celebrations of America’s Independence and Freedom were greeted with cool cloudy weather, a few sun breaks and a spot of rain overnight. But now the weather forecasters promise that the heat for the heat seekers will arrive this week. With each day jumping 10 degrees, by tomorrow it is supposed to be in the low 80’s F (27C). Yesterday was in the low 60’s F (15C). Woo hoo!

In Bloom In My Garden Today: Purple Poppies, Borage, Phygelius, Echinacea, Lobelia, Mullen, Nigella (Love-In-A-Mist), Thyme, Lavender, Dutch Iris, Clematis, Bletilla (hardy orchid), Thalictrum rochebrunianum (Meadow Rue), Lavender ‘Hidcote’, Digitalis, Begonia ‘Bonfire’, Penstemon schmidel ‘Red Riding Hood’, Salvia officinalis (culinary sage), Salvia nemorosa ‘Viola Klose’ and 'Hot Lips', Astilbe ‘Bridal Veil’, Baptisia, Tomato ‘Stupice’, Dianthus (Pinks), Hardy Geranium, Peas, Heuchera ‘Palace Purple’, Armeria latifolia ‘Joystick’, Rose, Nepeta ‘Six Hills Giant’, old fashioned Coral Bells (Heuchera), Alpine strawberry, Daphne caucasica ‘Eternal Fragrance’ and ‘Summer Ice’


Author's photo