New Storage Space

I have decided to use my veranda ceiling for stoarge. When we first moved here I had grand visions of filling it with dried herbs, sunflowers and beautiful things like that, just hanging there drying like an old fashioned farm.

I took a few days and strung the wire using U-nails. I stretched it all the way down the entire vernada roof.

I put three strands of wire across the entire lengh, skipping the part just over the front door. I figured that visitors wouldn't want things like dried herb leaves and flower petals falling on their heads. Who wouldn't want lovely smelling dried herbs and flowers falling on them?

This year I decided to use it. I hung all my grapevine wreaths and hanging pots up there when I tidied the porch. I intend to hang sunflowers and herbs up there to dry! I might also use it to dry tobacco and other useful things.

It makes a good storage space for anything else I want out of the way. I completely ignored it for two years! I can't believe I didn't take advantage of such a useful storage spot before now! I could hang all my useless junk up there and have a redneck porch...uh, maybe not.


I made this handy hook out of a mop handle. I got the idea from a Martha Stewart magazine. Can you believe that! Martha Stewart and I think alike! (No, really. You can quit laughing now.)

It just hangs up there out of the way until I need it.

I bet you thought the snow had killed me off, didn't you? It almost did!

Snow In May!

Well, I woke up today, on Mother's Day of all days, to snow on the ground! Can you believe it! Snow! In May, for Pete's sake! Never before in my lifetime have I seen snow past mid April, never!

The picture above is my beloved berry garden covered in snow :-(
I was going to pick more dandelions and cut the grass...

One would think that we would be so used to 3 feet of snow that it wouldn't bother me, but this is not the case. I think that we here in the Great Lakes snow belt have so much of it all winter, that we rejoice in its absence even more when spring finally arrives, supposedly for good. One cannot spend two weeks in bare feet and flip flops to suddenly be immersed in winter boots and coats again. ITS NOT FAIR!!!!

The pups seem undaunted by the snow. Jake ran along the ground with his tongue out, licking it up. They are still jumping and playing out there, but I have noticed that they spend more time snuggled together in their large, warm doghouse on the porch than they did in the warm weather. Great Pyranees dogs have a double coat with a down like fur against their bodies, for the coldest winters. Adult dogs will often sleep outside in the snow, but these guys are just babies and are not used to it.





This is my deck and Barbecue. It doesn't look very inviting, does it?

Last, but definately not least, is my little greenhouse. The temperature is forecasted to be at freezing tonight (0c, 32f). Will my seedlings be ok out there? Should I bring in my favourite peppers. sweet potato and tobacco seedlings? I think I will do that today. Everything looks ok in the greenhouse but I don't want to take chances with my best stuff.

The coldframe is completely buried.
We won't even go there :-(

A Gift From My Wonderful Son!

My son works for a landscaper and they are doing a major commercial planting right now. He brought all of these home for me today! He said that it is about 1/10th of what they threw away yesterday :-(

I am so thrilled!

These square pots go in those trays behind them.

These round pots go into this tray plus a stack of larger round pots!

Haven't I got a marvelous and thoughtful son??

Our Asparagus

Our asparagus is finally ready!

Its really past ready as you can see. I cut it about three days ago then got busy. Oops! Looks like I am one day too late for a few of these. Oh well, I need to let 3-4 stalks grow to maturity for the health of the plant.

I did cut a good bunch today. I cooked them slightly, cut off the tips and put them in a salad for dinner. I wolfed down the bottoms. They were so good with a pinch of salt! I like cooked vegetables in tossed salad. I put all the left over vegetables in a salad the next day. Its all good!




The above photo is the older end of our asparagus bed. This is the new end. I planted these from seed three springs ago, so these are three years old.










Some have pencil sized stalks and so could be cut, but most are still too small. I moved them last summer when they were still growing, so they suffered a bit of a setback. We get a few meals worth of asparagus from the older bed anyway, I just wanted to add to it.



Seed is by far the cheapest way to grow things, if you have the time to wait for it.





The older bed was here when we moved in. It is not a wild bed because it is planted in a circle and has purple tipped asparagus. The best kind! You can sometimes find a wild asparagus bed along the sides of a country road or in a field, but they are rare here.



Fresh spring asparagus is one of my favourite vegetables! After a stale winter, a fresh picked veggie of anykind is very welcome!