Santa Fe, Mrs. Bobbs Garden

What a wonderful trip I had. The Sangre de Cristo Herb Society of Santa Fe hosted me as a speaker for Herbfest. They were delightful hosts and one evening I even got to see a jack rabbit! I haven't seen one since I was a teenager as all of them have disappeared from Missouri decades ago.

Garden of Elspeth Bobbs, Santa Fe

You may recall how much I enjoy getting to visit other people's gardens when I travel and I was thrilled and honored to get to visit Mrs. Bobb's Garden in Santa Fe. The 2 women who gave me the tour kept saying how they wished I could see it in summer, and I know it is even more intriguing then. But I love seeing a garden when you can see the ribs and backbone, the design of what's there.

Elspeth Bobbs

Elspeth was very gracious in allowing me to see her garden. We sat and visited for a few minutes. I'm afraid I was gushing. The garden is lot to see, and what struck me was how gratifying it is to meet a gardener who is both serious about gardening, but doesn't take the garden seriously. Let me show you what I mean.

Stepping stones with thyme.

 This is how stepping stones should be. None of those spaced-out steps that you have to leap from one to the other (a pet peeve of mine) but actually walking space, with wonderfully aromatic thyme growing between.

Espaliered apple trees divide 2 different garden areas.

Now hold on to your hats. Here's where I started spinning in place like a top. This garden is so much fun I just wanted to stay and play.

Fung-shui becomes Funky-Shui here!

A train, a pool and a mural, from sea to shining sea in the background.

Homage to A. E. Housman Garden

Some of the terrace gardens.

I didn't pass the test - I've forgotten the dragon's name!

King Arthur's Sword in the Fantasy Garden

Mother Bee

When one of the trees fell on the property, there was a bee colony inside. This is Mother Bee, in memory of the tree and the bees.

Blue Gate into the Vegetable Garden.

The zig-zag fence - more room for roses!

The mischievous couple in the garden.

Resting Compost.

A memorial to all of Elspeth's pets over the years, all listed there.

Children Bench

I replayed in my mind all I saw in Elspeth's garden as I drove the 18 hours home from Santa Fe. I loved that she had fun with her garden. She has a remarkable collection of herbs, vegetables, flowers, perennials and some fruit trees that are well over 100 years old. But, plant lover that I am, what I brought away from my visit was the pure joy of place, the excitement and thrill of making the garden a fun place to be. I was inspired by this garden in ways I haven't found inspiration in a very long time. I may have to go out and play in my own garden in some new ways! Thank you Elspeth and your wonderful garden crew! Yours is a garden I will remember fondly.

Homemade Crackers with Herbs

Tomorrow I've a newspaper reporter and photographer coming to do a story on the garden and Long Creek Herb Farm. There's not much to see in the garden this time of year, just empty beds awaiting summer vegetable and herb plants. We have frost predicted for later in the week, so even basil, corn, beans and tomatoes can't be planted yet.

Any time media people come, I always strive to feed them lunch. I believe if a reporter tastes what's from the garden, they will better understand why I have such extensive gardens.

I have an attitude about gardening and it's summed up in, Why garden if you can't eat what you grow?
How that plays out for me, is expecting plants to justify their space in my garden. To be green and put up a flower now and then, may or may not pay the rent on that space. With an iris, the enchanting fragrance evens the debt for space. A Japanese yew, however, does nothing be exist in its green-ness and it's only in the deadest of winter when I crave something, anything green, that it barely squeaks by.

But caraway, dill, poppies and cumin, those pay the rent on their space twice. Once with flowers or herb leaves, and second by their seed. It's the seed, this time of year that I appreciate most, in making homemade seed crackers. And the hot peppers I've been drying, also earn their keep in my Cheddar Jalapeno crackers (any hottish pepper will work for this). Here are the steps for the Cheddar Jalapeno crackers, from my book, Making Homemade Crackers Using Herbs ($5.95 plus postage, from LongCreekHerbs.com).

Cheddar Jalapeno Crackers
1/2 cup, or about 3 ounces cheddar cheese cubes
1/2 large, fresh jalapeno, seeded (or use 1 tablespoon crushed cayenne or similar)
1/3 cup butter
3/4 cup flour
1/4 cup cornmeal
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon chili powder
1/4 teaspoon dry mustard
4 (about) tablespoons cold water

Step 1, put everything into the food processor and pulse blend

Step 2, roll out the dough, wrap in plastic wrap and chill for 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Step 3, roll out the dough very thin on floured surface.

Step 4, use a knife or pizza cutter and cut the dough into cracker sizes.

Step 5, prick the crackers with a fork. Bake on an ungreased baking sheet until crisp, 10-12 minutes.

Step 6, cool crackers on baking rack. When cooled, store in air-tight bag (they also freeze well).

Jalapeno Cheese Crackers, ready to eat. They won't last long, these are good!

Jalapeno Cheese Crackers and Herb Seed Crackers.

 

Exciting Plants for You This Spring!

Babaco Papaya - "Mountain" Papaya

How about growing something new this year? Of course, we're all gardeners and we always try something new each year, right? But this sounds like fun. I learned about this from Randy Schultz's Garden Cuttings newsletter. It's a papaya that is hardy down to almost freezing. It grows from 4-8 ft. tall. Unlike most papayas that suffer if temperatures drop below 60 degrees F., this one can remain outdoors in moderate areas, or is small enough to bring indoors in winter. It starts fruiting at about 2 ft. in height, and the seedless fruits are 8-10 inches long with intense, delightful fragrance and flavor. It's not cheap - $29.95 for one 4 inch potted plant, but hey, you could be the only one in the neighborhood harvesting your own papayas! Here's the link at Logee's.

Did you know you can grow micro-greens on the kitchen counter? Sort of like growing sprouts, but leafier. Botanical Interests have special greens mixtures that you can grow in a shallow tray on a windowsill or kitchen counter. Grow your own salads, greens for sandwiches and more. There may be nothing more healthy and delicious than freshly grown sprouts, and they can easily be grown on a kitchen counter. The Micro Greens Savory Mix from Botanical Interests includes a tasty mix of nine different types of sprouting seeds including beet, Swiss chard, cress, mustard and kohlrabi. All of the seed varieties in the Micro Greens mix are non-GMO seeds, because Botanical Interests is committed to natural and organic seeds. Use these sprouts to liven up sandwiches and salads. There are 10 easy serving ideas and a recipe for Tomato, Micro Greens and Mozzarella Salad on the inside of the seed packet. A large packet of Micro Greens Savory Mix seeds sells for $3.99.

Rosella Purple Tomato

For a new take on a great heirloom tomato variety, consider growing Rosella Purple. This is a new dwarf tomato variety that produces fruits similar to Cherokee Purple but on short plants, making this variety ideal for container gardening. (Cherokee Purple is one of my favorite tomatoes to grow). This dwarfed variety was bred by the Dwarf Tomato Project, an international group of tomato enthusiasts devoted to breeding short tomato varieties with great flavor, Rosella Purple fruits weigh 6-10 ounces and feature a delightful deep purple color. The productive plants grow to about 36 inches tall and benefit from some staking to keep them upright and to protect the fruits from sun-scald. These determinate plants produce fruit 65 days after transplanting. A packet of seeds sells for $3.25 from Southern Exposure Seed Exchange.

And if you hadn't noticed, my newest book is on our website. Several of our wholesale customers are already stocking it, as well and I've been pleased at how fast the book is selling. It's full of my favorite hot sauce recipes. If you grow hot peppers, love hot sauce, or like to make things for gifts, you will like this book. Last fall I made gallons of my different recipes, testing and adjusting, sending out samples to friends for critiquing. This book is the result. It's a little book (40 pages) with a lot of heat!

You'll learn how to can hot sauce, freeze it, tips for making it hotter, or less-so, a guide to the various kinds of peppers that work best in hot sauces and a whole lot more. You can order it here on my website. $6.95 plus $2 shipping. It's in its second printing already!

Kale Soup with Bruschetta

This is my season, springtime, when the world comes alive. Peach trees are ablaze in ruffles of pink, the first tulip appeared today, daffodils are in their full glory and the birds are setting up house-keeping. To celebrate spring today, here's what's on the menu at our house.

Kale soup, broiled fish with Cajun spices and homemade bread bruschetta. It's a simple meal but worthy of spring. Last year's kale lived over and we've been picking it all winter. Josh picked a big batch for the soup and there's still plenty left in the garden. Kale is amazing, it just keeps on producing for months.

It takes a big bowlful to make the soup. I'm guessing this is a pound, at least. The method is simple: slice up half an onion and 4 or 5 garlic cloves and saute them in olive oil in a cooking pot. As soon as the onions are turning transparent, pour in 1 quart of chicken broth and bring it to a boil. As soon as the broth is boiling, add the kale to the pot.

The cooking pot will be nearly full of the fresh kale. Put a lid on the pot and let it come back to a slow boil. Push the kale into the hot liquid and let it simmer for about 15 minutes, or until the kale is tender. Working in batches, puree the kale in a blender, adding additional water as needed. When the kale and liquid is all pureed, pour it back into the cooking pot. Bring it back to a simmer and add either 3 cups of whole milk, or 1 cup of half and half. Serve hot.

Kale soup, ready to serve.

Josh made a loaf of sourdough French bread so I could make bruschetta to go with the soup. Sourdough, if you don't know, is better for people with diabetes than regular bread, so I indulged and had 2 slices!

Perfect loaf of sourdough French bread, right out of the oven.

The Bruschetta is simple. Dice a couple of Roma tomatoes. To that, add 2 diced green onions, 3 cloves of minced garlic, 1 tablespoon of fresh basil, 1 teaspoon marjoram and a tablespoon of balsamic vinegar, with a dusting of salt. Mix lightly and set aside for at least an hour. To make the Bruschetta, cut 4 slices of French bread and brush them well on one side with olive oil. Toast the bread slices until brown and bubbly around the edges. Divide the Bruschetta mixture between the 4 slices of bread, piling it on top. Serve immediately.

Bruschetta, ready to serve.

Where did the fresh basil come from this time of year? Josh's mother had left us with her AeroGarden and it's great for growing herbs indoors. We've been harvesting basil all winter long.

The assortment of herbs growing in the AeroGarden.

That's Cricket, investigating every aspect of springtime, even the bees, lizards and flowers. Happy spring to you!

Fun Garden Ideas for Spring

I was in Sioux City, Iowa for the past several days, as one of the speakers at the Siouxland Flower and Garden Show. It was a small show in size but it made it up in quality. I've almost quit speaking at such shows because so many consist of rows and rows of gutter sales booths, siding, hot tubs and driveway paving supplies. This show was different - it had all sorts of things for the garden. There was a big line-up of excellent speakers, as well.

Jack and Jane Hogue

Our long time friends, Jack and Jane Hogue, of Prairie Pedlar Herb Farm in Odebolt, Iowa, were the ones who arranged for me to be there. Besides herbs, they grow corn for Jolly Pop popcorn, host weddings and raise lots of pigs.

Jane is highly creative and she's standing next to her sedum garden, made from a pallet on which she has nailed cardboard corners from shipping cartons. Very cool and perfect for a sedum collection!

This was my trade show booth, above. I'd taken along lots of books and a few other products. I was pleased, even in a northerly state, with snow blowing outside, the new Hot Sauce book sold very well!

Like any good garden show, this one had a Kids Corner, where kids were given lessons about recycling, about where garbage goes and how they can help. It was actually pretty cool in how they'd made it fun for kids while teaching responsibility.

There were lots of "Make and Take" projects for the public including make a rain barrel for your home. And this planter, above. It's made from another pallet, with pieces of metal gutter screwed on. You simply fill the gutters with potting soil and plant herbs or flowers!

I liked these little hand gardens, too. They're made of concrete mixed with perlite, poured into a rubber glove held in place in sand. When it sets up, the glove is removed and you have a lightweight hand for a planter.

This garden shed was made completely out of recycled materials. As people entered the garden show they were given cards to fill out for door prizes. This shed was the biggest door prize to be given away.

I thought the shovel being used for the door handle was a fun idea, too. The shed was constructed in such a way that it was unbolted, stacked flat and delivered after the show to the winner where it was bolted back together.

This quilt, made by a lady in the county Master Gardeners was a hit, as well. You probably can't tell from the photo, but each "jar" is made of fabric that has vegetable or berry designs.

My programs were: Growing the 10 Most Popular Herbs, a Salsa-Making demonstration and on Sunday, Pizza Gardening with Your Kids. This was one of the best flower and garden shows I've been to in years and I was pleased to be a part of it.

Best Gardener I've Known

Ester Shouse

I have to tell you about my life-long gardener friend who just passed on to the great garden in the sky last week. Long-time readers of this blog may remember when I posted about Ester Shouse back in November of 2008, after her house burned. Lots of readers sent gifts to Ester and her family, for which I am eternally grateful.

All that remained of Ester's house in 2008

Ester and her husband, Roy, were neighbors when I was growing up. My parents ran a rural grocery store and the Shouses were customers. More than that, they were friends. I remember when nearly all of their 9 children were born and I went to school with nearly all of them except for the youngest. The 5 boys and I swam and fished together. Roy took me hunting and fishing many times, always treating me like one of his own. They were always like the family I wanted to be a part of.

All that was left of hundreds of jars of canning, 2008.

Ester's was the kind of home where I always knew I was welcome, any time of the day or night. I didn't have brothers or sisters, so being treated like part of the family was a real joy for me. I knew if I stopped by for a visit, even well after dinnertime, there would be something cooking on the stove in the kitchen and someone would likely offer me some. That's how I was first introduced to hot peppers. (I dedicated my new book, Make Your Own Hot Sauce, to Ester, for introducing me to hot peppers all those years ago).

Ester's sons built a new house for Ester in 2009.

One night, when I was in my early 20s, around 9 or 10 p.m., I stopped by the house. One of the boys offered me a bowl of chili and I accepted. Ester didn't know I wasn't used to eating hot foods, but as my face turned bright red, she started laughing. "I should have warned you I always put hot peppers in my chili," she said. But I kept eating and the next time I ate chili at Ester's house, I knew what to expect. Over time I came to love hot food and started growing hot peppers for my own use.

There are several more shelves like these, all filled with 2012 canning.

Ester was remarkable in so many ways. She and her daughter, Ellen, came to visit every summer for the past several years at my home in the Ozarks. We'd sit on the porch and talk gardening and gossip about people we knew. It was there, sitting on my Herb Shop porch that I learned just how much gardening Ester actually did. I'd always known her as an outstanding gardener and had seen her garden many, many times, but over the time of our visits I learned that she planted 500 cabbage plants each spring and nearly all of that went into jars of sauerkraut. She told me how many potatoes she planted (two 100 pound sacks, as I recall). Five hundred onion plants, pounds and pounds of bean and corn seed. And the kids would come home and help her can and freeze what she grew.

One very small section of Ester's summer canning this year.

Ester died this past week, at age 83. She had 3 heart attacks, being taken by ambulance twice, helicopter once, to the hospital in Kansas City from her home in Rockville, MO. She came home a couple of times in the past several weeks to recuperate. Between her second and third heart attack, just 2 weeks ago while she was home "resting," with the help of 2 of her sons, Ester canned 123 quarts of pinto beans!

She was like a second mother to me, someone who always accepted me no matter what crazy thing I did. My own mother died in 1987, and so Ester became ever more important to me. We were friends, but more like family and I am so grateful to have known this amazing woman and courageous gardener.