Leeks

Often when I am preparing food - I get distracted by the beauty of what I’m cooking. It happened when I was cutting up leeks. There was something about the way they were scattered on the cutting board…the change in color from almost all white to almost all green…the layers like tree rings....the outer layers sometimes separating from the rest.

I took a closer look at several cross sections with the 7x loupe. Even the rounds that were almost all white had some color in their centers.

The green ones have variation in their outer layer where the veins were still functioning. It is also noticeable that while the outer layers are a smooth oval - the inner ones are not. They are shaped like a green flame.

The colors of leeks are appealing too: green and white…in a nicely shaped package…and good to eat too!

3 Free eBooks - July 2014

It’s time again for the monthly post about eBooks that are freely available on the Internet. The three below are my favorites for July 2014.

Petrie, W. M. Flinders. Roman Portraits and Memphis (IV).London: School of Archeology in Egypt, University College and Bernard Quaritch. 1911. Available from Internet Archive here.  Because most of the portraits are the face and shoulders - they often have a timeless quality. The report is from Petrie’s work in 1910-1911; it is impressive how quickly the work was published after the dig!

Bayon, Felix (text); Casals, Lluis (photography). The Alhambra of Granada. 2000. Available from Internet Archive here. The book is 191 pages - with a tremendous number of photographs. Take a look at this book with the largest monitor you can find.

Goodale, George L. and Sprague, Isaac. The Wild Flowers of America. Boston: Bradlee Widden. 1886. Available from the Internet Archive here. I can’t resist botanical books from the 1800s. There were a lot of familiar plants in this one. I’ve included a clip of the cone flower page from the book in this post.

Our Summer Yard - July 2014

Maryland has had a variable summer so far: a few hot days with thunderstorms in the later afternoon and then relatively cool days that start out in the low 60s. The yard always seems to need mowing. The flower beds are better than ever.

The day lily bulbs I dug up last fall from a place that had become too shady for them to bloom are blooming profusely - where buds survived the deer back in June. They are a bright splash of orange around the bird bath (along with the purple blazing stars) and around the base of the oak tree where there branches are trimmed high enough that they get a little morning sun.

There is a dahlia with one flower open and loads of buds.

There are a few leaves on the lawn. Some were jettisoned by the tree like the sycamore leaf on the right and some were torn off by our recent storms (like the small brach of oak leaaves below).

The patch of cone flowers is always good for some insect photography.

As I walked around, I noticed mint growing in some unexpected places. It’s probably time for another harvest!

The Tragedy of our Sycamore

Our area is in a weather pattern that brings gusty winds and thunderstorms every afternoon - and it is taking a toll on our trees. There is a large branch that has been torn from the upper part of the tulip polar at the edge of the forest. It hasn’t fallen all the way to the ground yet but seems to get lower with each storm.  I won’t be venturing underneath until it falls all the way. It  is most likely to land in the forest rather than our yard.

The sycamore is a larger problem. The tree is not that old. It came up in a garden plot and I decided to let it grow. It has two trunks and had done very well until recently. Its branches would be whipped around by the wind but it would always straight up afterwards. Now one of the trunks does not straighten up and the branches are starting to sweep the stairs to our deck. A few weeks ago I noticed a wound in the trunk and I suspected that it had happened from the bending during storms....and had reduced the tree's resilence.

But when I inspected the tree more closely, I discovered that the bending is further up the trunk (the trunk to the left in the picture below; the tree may just be top heavy with its big leaves.

I'll try trimming the branches above the bend. I do not want to cut it down! I liked where the tree is growing because it provides summer shade for a basement window and the dining room on the first floor…..and in a few years it would have shaded the top floor of the house. 

Zooming - July 2014

We are in the full swing of summer - lotus and water lilies - summer wild flowers and fireworks. Those are major themes for the zoom collages this month. 

The first collage is of lotus at the Kenilworth Park and Aquatic Gardens.

The water lilies are also from Kenilworth.

The squiggles from botched firework pictures actually turned out to be worth a collage too.

Last, but not least, a zooming collage from my walk around the Howard County Conservancy Honor Garden.

In the Forest Shade

I stayed in the shade as much as I could for my morning at Howard Country Conservancy yesterday. The plants that are under larger trees are lush with their summer growth. The redbud pods are thick on the trees; their edges are a darker green than the paper sides where the seeds show through as small bumps. The heart shaped leaves are darker green.

The insects were active - but none of the seemed to be the biting kind.  This one seemed to be posing for me. He seems to be looking right at the camera!

The wild blackberries are still mostly red. Do you see the one ripe one in this picture?

I looked in the place I had seen jack-in-the-pulpit in the spring and was rewarded with the still green seedpod on its stalk almost hidden by the other plants that have grown up beside the path.

There's a lot of green out there!

CSA Week 5

I had a few things left from the 4th week share from Gorman Produce Farm Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) when it came time to pick up week 5: a couple of carrots, one leek, an onion, a few cloves of garlic and 1/3 of the cabbage. All the more fragile veggies were consumed before they were spoiled. I have discovered that I can enjoy a whole cucumber in one sitting made into a smoothie with pineapple salsa and water on a hot afternoon. The vines on my deck have a lot of small cucumbers right now so the cucumber + salsa smoothie might become a summer afternoon tradition!

The share for week 5 includes:

• 1 bunch of carrots
• 1 bunch of leeks
• 1 head of magenta lettuce
• 2 onions
• 2 small heads of cabbage (from at 3 types!)
• 2 kohlrabi
• 1 pound squash (yellow and zucchini)
• 2 pounds of cucumbers
• 1 bunch of kale (my choice instead of chard or collards)

I already made most of the kale into chips! And we’ve made a start on the magenta lettuce and purple cabbage as part of last night’s salad.

I am most thrilled about the kohlrabi since I discovered how great it tastes in stir fries when it was part of the week 3 share. They are such an odd looking vegetable but have become my favorite new food so far this summer (although the beets in Fruit Beety are a very close second!).

Water Lilies at Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens

I’ve posed previously about the lotuses, dragonflies, and a Great Blue Heron at the Kenilworth Park & Aquatic Gardens. Today’s post is focused on water lilies.

There are far fewer varieties that when the gardens were a commercial concern in the early decades of the 1900s, but the ones that remain are still beautiful. The storm had caused some damage to the lily pads but not as much as the lotuses experienced; there is an advantage for not being as far out of the water.

I found myself trying to capture images of dragonflies and bees on the flowers…..and trying to capture all the different colors. I picked the best images I captured for the slideshow below.

And I can’t resist included this golden dragonfly. It seemed different than any of the others.

Heron in the Lotus Pond

Yesterday we made another trip to the Kenilworth Park and Aquatic Gardens in Washington DC. There were still a lot of lotuses in bloom but the storm mid-week had snapped some of the leaves, buds and flowers. I enjoyed taking pictures of lotuses and dragonflies again then focused on water lilies (the topic of post to come) but the high point of the outing was a Great Blue Heron. The water level in one of the ponds was low and the bird was taking advantage of the easy pickings. There were people taking pictures of the heron all around the pond; the heron was too focused on food to notice.

As we walked up - the heron caught a fish. My husband captured the image below with the catch before the heron flipped the fish and swallowed!

Enjoy the best of the rest in the slideshow below!

Lotuses at Kenilworth Aquatic Gardens

As promised (in the dragonfly post earlier this week) - here is the post about the lotuses blooming profusely at the Kenilworth Park & Aquatic Gardens in Washington DC. Lotuses are quite a draw for the gardens. Most people had arrived with their cameras. There is something about the flower colors - the dark pink…to light pink…to creamy white - against the green of the large leaves and the curves of the foliage and flowers in the ponds that captures our attention now just as effectively as they did in ancient Egypt. So as you enjoy the flurry of the 4th of July --- here’s a slide show of lotuses to provide a calm interlude!

As promised (in the dragonfly post earlier this week) - here is the post about the lotuses blooming profusely at the Kenilworth Park & Aquatic Gardens in Washington DC. Lotuses are quite a draw for the gardens. Most people had arrived with their cameras. There is something about the flower colors - the dark pink…to light pink…to creamy white - against the green of the large leaves and the curves of the foliage and flowers in the ponds that captures our attention now just as effectively as they did in ancient Egypt. So as you enjoy the flurry of the 4th of July --- here’s a slide show of lotuses to provide a calm interlude!

CSA Week 4

I managed to have empty crispers by the time I picked up the 4th week share from the Gorman Produce Farm Community Supported Agriculture (CSA). Drying most of the parsley (cutting it up coarsely with kitchen scissors and just leaving it out on a cookie sheet for a couple of days…now it is stored away for use in other cooking) and making collard green chips (same technique as kale chips) cleared the overflow condition within 24 hours of picking up the share!  Then I alternated between salads and stir fries and green smoothies to finish off everything except the beets - which I used for the special treat: Fruit Beety (see picture in yesterday’s post, recipe in CSA Week 3 post)

There is a shift in week 4 - it not as overwhelmingly leafy green! Can you find all the items on the list in the picture below?** (Hint: I chose the kale rather than chard or turnips). The cucumbers will make excellent smoothies with plain yogurt and pineapple salsa (and maybe I’ll use some leek too). The lettuce and cucumber are the only two items that are not candidates for stir fry. I’m trying to decide whether to use the kale for chips…or save some leaves for stir fry and salad - there’s really enough for all three!

** Starting at the upper left and moving clockwise: red leaf lettuce, cucumbers, onions, cabbage, kale (lower right), summer and zucchini squash, garlic, carrots, and leeks.

A Picnic at Howard County Conservancy

The weather was perfect for the Fiddlers and Fireflies event at the Howard County Conservancy this past week.  I took an eclectic picnic: frozen blueberries, spinach salad with bacon bits, Fruit Beety under a layer of plain yogurt (a mini-parfait), and collard green chips.

I enjoyed walking around the picnic area and Honors Garden taking pictures. The bees were very active and - grateful that cameras are digital these days - I took a lot of images and picked 3 for this post.

And now enjoy the rest of the best from my after picnic walk in the slide show below!

Gleanings of the Week Ending June 28, 2014

The items below were ‘the cream’ of the articles and websites I found this past week. Click on the light green text to look at the article.

Enjoy the Wilderness of Saguaro National Park through This Video - I’m remembering the vacation to Tucson last June --- which included a morning at this National Park. Another blurb in the feeds this week about one of my favorite places: Longwood Gardens Unveils 86-acre Meadow. I’m already beginning to think about return visits!

Timeline of Emerging Science & Technology (2014 to 2030+) - From Richard Watson and the Imperial College of London. If you want to look at an enlarged version of the graphic - a PDF is available here. One of my favorite technologies is autonomous cars - and there was a new item on that topic this week too: Demonstrating a driverless future: Promise of driverless cars. Computerworld posted 8 technologies that are on the way out - and one that we’ll never be rid of.

Reproduction later in life is a marker for longevity in women - Hurray! I fit this marker for longevity in women (I was 35 years old!).

Connectivity is Critical: 33 Ways Broadband Boosts Learning - There are lots of positives about connectivity but it takes a level of maturity to not experience the negatives. Like most technology - advocates think only of the positives first; hopefully eventually there are objective perspectives.

Architecture of signaling proteins enhances knowledge of key receptors - The Preventing Chronic Pain course I am taking was focused on the systems biology aspects of pain last week - so I noticed this article more than I might have otherwise. The progress being made in the systems biology arena is gaining momentum now that the technology is available to research questions.  Another systems biology type article: about creating viruses that naturally home in on tumor cells while boosting the body’s immune system was posted by The Scientist.

Interactive Model Skeletons - Free Technology for Teachers has a blurb this week about eSkeletons, from the Department of Anthropology at the University of Texas. The site is focused on primates. What a wonderful way to learn about skeletons!

Mysterious 'magic island' appears on Saturn's moon Titan - Something new on Cassini’s mission radar of Ligeia Mare…a ‘transient feature.’

Do the Rumble-Rump with Peacock Spiders - I’d seen pictures of these spiders before but had not realized how small they are….and the videos (here) are worth a look too!

Few Doctors Warn Expectant Mothers about Environmental Hazards - I hope this change.

Distributed Renewable Energy under Fire - How electric utilities are fighting local renewable energy in 19 states. It’s a frustrating situation. I’m glad Maryland is not one of the 19.

My Deck Garden - June 2014

The deck garden has changed quite a lot since my post in May. The sweet potato has a lot more leaves ad may be overwhelming the bell pepper plant in the same trough pot; the pepper plant has a small pepper …. but will it grow big enough to be edible?

The watermelon and cantaloupe are blooming - I look each day for a small melon beginning to form but it hasn’t happened yet.

The tomato plants have a lot of green tomatoes. In the pot next to the peacock pot, a lot of peppers that sprouted from kitchen compost are overwhelming the cilantro that I’ve already harvested once. The spaghetti squash in the peacock pot has been blooming but I have not found any small squash forming yet.

It’s the same story for the zucchini squash.

I’ve harvested mint for the second time this year - from the big round pot and the turtle sandbox. The harvest is already dried and in the crock beside the tea maker.

In the meantime - the beans are growing rapidly in the jug that originally held cat litter and the cucumber that was severely damaged by hail is hanging on - blooming! The shallow bins with miscellaneous flowers are just beginning to bloom. The morning glory has quite a ‘glow.’

Aargh! Deer ate the Day Lilies

A few days ago the flower bed of day lilies was full of potential. A few buds had opened but there were a large number of buds that were still forming.

Yesterday I discovered the devastation caused by browsing deer. The part of the flower bed I had photographed on the 18th still had a few buds; probably about half of them had been eaten. Maybe something has caused the deer to hurry away because the other end of the flower bed had almost no buds! I’ve circled the nipped stalks in the image below. Aargh!

I’ve learned my lesson….I’ll be spraying the liquid deer fence every week; it had worked well during the spring when I had sprayed regularly but I had stopped - thinking the deer now had a lot of other food around. I hope that somehow the lilies recover enough to produce a new crop of flowers if I keep the deer away.

Ten Days of Little Celebrations - June 2014

Noticing something worth celebration each day is an easy thing for me to do. The habit of writing it down reminds me to be grateful for these and a myriad of other things in my life. This month has been full of ‘little celebrations;’ here are my top 10 for June 2014. I’ve categorized them into 4 groups: outdoors, food, and courses and people.

Outdoors

Oak trimming (and discovering the oak marble). Finishing the annual trimming of the oak was worth a celebration but it was made even better this year with the finding of the oak marble. It was the first time I had ever seen anything like tit.

Therapy bush trimming. There is always some to be learned about myself during time spent trimming the bush. I celebrated that it happened this month (and look forward to at least one more time during the summer).

Brookside. We walk around Brookside at least once a month and it is always enjoyable but with the construction going on this summer we are looking for alternatives. I celebrated June’s visit since it will be the last one to Brookside for a few months.

Green tomatoes. My deck garden has gotten off to a reasonably good start. I have 11 tomatoes on two plants! I’m celebrating their progress and hope to report other colors soon (and then move them to the ‘food celebration’ category.

Food

Community Support Agriculture. My first experience with the CSA has been worth celebrating. The fresh veggies are getting eaten.

Watermelon. I didn’t wait for the local melons. The grocery store had a bin and the one I got was excellent.

Kale chips. They taste good - and are nutritious too! Even my husband - not usually big on veggies - liked them.

Courses

Thought provoking classes - The Paradoxes of War class I started this month on Cousera has been very thought provoking….and I am celebrating that I signed up for it.

The survival of people in harsh reality - The Nubians survived harsh climate and the Ancient Egyptians to produce their vibrant culture - that’s the main take away from The Art and Archaeology of Ancient Nubia course that I just finished on Coursera. I am celebrating their accomplishment; they help us realize that the ancient Egyptians were not the only ancient people to apply extreme creativity toward improving their lives.

People

People. There are so many people related celebration days this month that were highlighted by Father’s Day, telephone calls from (and to) family members and meeting new people.

Brookside Gardens - June 2014

We parked at Brookside Nature Center after finding the lot at the Brookside Gardens Conservatory full. On the boardwalk between the Nature Center and the Gardens, I saw wood hydrangea (image 1 in the slide show below) in bloom and the immature fruit of both May apples (image 2) and Jack-in-the-Pulpits (image 3). Both were in bloom last time I was on that path. It was greener along the boardwalk with the spring wild flowers gone to seed and the ferns unfurled.

Our walk around Brookside Gardens was truncated by the construction projects that have been starting (and not completing) over the past year and a morning wedding….but even a limited walk around Brookside has appeal. I particularly enjoyed the ivy bed around the river birches (left image above - the tiny red speck in the lower right of the picture is a hibiscus!). The gardens often have tropical plants set outside once it is warm enough. This year there seems to be a lot of taro (right image above); my daughter had talked about taro recently when she was summarizing her geology/astronomy field trip to the Big Island.

Some of the beds had been planted with clumps of dahlias and other summer flowers. Peonies (image 5) were beginning to bloom. There was a vine hydrangea that was climbing a tree (image 6), leaves that have colors other than green (image 7 and 10), fragrant roses (image 8) and lots of buds (image 9). Enjoy the little bit of Brookside slideshow below!

Squash Blossoms

Earlier this week I noticed that the zucchini squash plant I have in a large pot on my deck had almost as many buds as it had leaves! The weather has been cool and the many of the leaves still had tears caused by hail a week or so ago.

A little over a day after the first two pictures were taken, most of the buds opened. I glanced out my kitchen window as I fixed my breakfast to see the plant full of blooms.  What a cheerful view to begin the day (and I’ll be even happier to see some squashes).

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This morning the squash has more blooms!  In the morning light, the green veins seen on the outside of the blooms contrasted with the glowing yellow.

In addition, the blossoms from a few days ago have a deeper color in their curls - another stop along the timeline of a zucchini squash.

CSA Week 1

I signed up for a medium share at the Gorman Produce Farm’s Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) for this season and yesterday was my first pick up. My husband and I were out on other errands so we drove over even though the farm is less than a mile from our house.

They provided two reusable bags for each member to use for the season. There was a chalk board listing this week’s full and medium share items. I walked around to pick up everything for the medium share:

• Tatsoi
• Cilantro
• Arugula
• Pac choi
• Mizuna
• Garlic scapes
• Red butter lettuce
• Romaine lettuce

 I’m going to be eating a lot of fabulous vegetables this summer - mostly in salads. The refrigerator has been reconfigured to accommodate the extra amount of greens.

On the way home we clocked the distance and the round trip would be 1.5 miles…a comfortable hike. Maybe the CSA will turn into a healthy choice from both a food and exercise perspective!

Lull in the Flower Beds

The very last iris is blooming in our flowerbeds. We have a sea of green that is studded with potential:

There lilies are sending up their bud stalks (not all of them yet - but every day I notice more emerging above the dense core of leaves). That part of the flower beds will be full of yellow and orange by the time the hot weather is consistent.

The blazing stars are clustered around the bird bath. They’ll be almost the same color as the irises as some point.

The dahlias are purple and pink and white…..I don’t dig them up in the fall and our winters are cold enough to challenge their survival. Most of the plants from last year seem to have survived the winter.

I’ll miss the color at our front door for the length of time it takes the new flowers to begin their season.  Right now I have to simply love the green!