Goodbye, Winter

A gallery of winter scenes from the garden. Farewell, Winter. Tomorrow is Spring! [gallery link="file" size="large" targetsize="full" ids="7482,7481,7480,7479,7478,7477,7476,7475,7474,7473,7472"]

In September, the autumn berries start getting ripe. They are quite astringent at first, but get sweeter after frost.

Winter Berries: the Autumn Olive, aka Autumn Berry

Fresh fruit in late December! What a treat! Autumn Olive, aka autumn berry, Elaeagnus umbellata, is an amazing shrub. It is a nitrogen fixer, great for pollinators, and provides fruit when little else is available. The berries are high in lycopene and antioxidants and can be made into jams, syrups, elixirs, wines, fruit leather, tossed into baked goods, sprinkled on salads, or eaten fresh by the handful. I love this shrub. And the red berries beneath fresh snow are strikingly beautiful. But BEWARE - this plant can be invasive in some areas!

The Power of Tea: Herbs for Coping with Grief and Hard Times

There are times in your life when you are blindsided by events that turn everything upside down and inside out. The path forward is not at all clear; the only thing you know is that things will never be the same. This post is about how a cup of herbal tea can help us cope with grief, get some rest when we need it most, boost our immune systems when we are most vulnerable, and get ourselves recentered. We dedicate this post to the memory of our good friend, Andy, who was hit by a drunk driver. Please don't drink and drive.

Turning the Corner into November

We turn the corner into November. It is amazing how much is still blooming and how many fruits are still available! Here is a quick autumn garden inventory. Lots of pictures of flowers, fruits, fall colors, and cute grandkids - plus an amazing bald-faced hornet's nest that was revealed after the leaves had fallen!

All Hallows Magic in the Willows

All Hallows’ Magic in the October Garden

Be Aware! There is Magic in the Gardens on an October All Hallows’ Eve!

Purple Goosefoot, Chenopodium giganteum, or Giant Pigweed - covered with raindrops. Its velvety leaves hold on to the drops of water.

Rain!

Rain! This post was written after we had gone 3 full months without a single drop. Living in the Rainshadow of the Olympics in the Pacific Northwest is sometimes a challenge for the garden. Now we begin our transition to a time of drizzle and gray...and I couldn't be more thankful!

Wild Harvest with Mac Smith: Seaweeds and More from the Strait of Juan de Fuca

Forager Alert: If you've ever wanted to identify, harvest, cook, & eat seaweeds, this post is for you! So much abundance right out our back door! If you are local, heads up: Mac Smith is hosting another Wild Harvest class at the next minus tide that will teach you how. Upland plants also included.