tall clover farm

Slugs get a bad rap (justifiably so) around here.  How can a slow-moving creature with the viscosity of a gumdrop manage to clear cut foliage like its wielding a chainsaw and machete?  Just recently though, I noticed a more viturous result from the intrusive invertebrates: artfulness. When not devouring dahlias or noshing on nasturtiums, my [...]

[Read more →]

Uh oh Boz, I know that look, the scowl of an unhappy bulldog, judging me for taking too long to plant all of my tomato starts. (Gracie on the other hand, believes a nap can solve any of life’s issues.) Smart dogs.  Indeed, I waited too long, hoping that one day in May the sun would shine on my Puget Sound garden [...]

[Read more →]

Rhubarb-a-Palooza Continues… With current Seattle temperatures visiting degrees reserved for ice fishing and mukluk wearing, should I really be making ice cream? Heck, yes; I scream for ice cream no matter what the forecast. I continue my rhubarb love fest with a recipe for roasted rhubarb vanilla ice cream. It’s surprisingly subtle and not surprisingly, delicious. The original recipe [...]

[Read more →]

In the world of preserves (and pie), spring’s star couple is strawberry and rhubarb. One’s sweet, one’s sour, both show up in the garden or market at the same time, and their textures are different enough to keep the end result interesting. So today my friends, I’m going to share with you how I make strawberry-rhubarb jam–the [...]

[Read more →]

He who knows the right time to put up a hammock…   Should also know it’s an unmistakable cue to take down the Christmas lights. One year ago:  Sprouting Broccoli: It’s a Keeper

[Read more →]

After a day off-island with friends, I had too many miles and too few minutes between me and the 8:00 pm ferry to Vashon.  As fate, traffic, and a few wrong turns would have it, I missed the boat. Setting my parking brake and expectations, I was all too aware that the next ferry was an hour and [...]

[Read more →]

Nature doles out some amazing colors. When my camellia Taylor’s Pink Perfection began to bloom for the first time, I found its blush exuberant, unapologetic and very reminiscent of a hue I’d come across before: the lipstick color of my fourth grade teacher Miss Wells. In my recollection, Miss Wells and Delta Burke are now the [...]

[Read more →]

In some cafe, perhaps in Amsterdam, maybe in Bruges sits a man whose interest in the works of Van Gogh and Rubens is only rivaled by his love of works in nature, in this case unusual plants. So Bart, fear not; while you’re enjoying a European holiday, your primula sits protected on my porch. The blossoms are exquisite, the [...]

[Read more →]