My Garden

[Saliha]

The lonely bird feeder is waiting the winter and its bird visitors.

 

[Saliha]

The first dahlia:

Lettuces and basils in the frame:

I will get a lot of chamomile at this year:

Lily beetles didn´t manage to eat all lilies (but they tried it hard). The first ones start to open:

Impatiens glandulifera flowers well (and soon it pops its seeds to everywhere):

Aconitum napellus, monk´s hood, is traditional perennial in the garden here. Also it is very toxic.

Marigolds are open:

This one lives in old basket.

 

[QSis]

What a spectacular variety of plants you have, Saliha!

I love the photo of the chamomile - I might frame that one!

What you call "cornflowers", I call "Bachelor Buttons". Beautiful, aren't they?

I was messing around with my camera in my garden the other night, at twilight. A magical hour between sunset and night.

The colors in my window boxes pop. And it's so cool to see the solar lights come on, one by one!

Lee

 

[Saliha]

Wow your sunflower looks huge. I wait that mine will become about 2 m tall but your looks like it would be 3 m or so. I have at this year yellow and red ones and some of the flowers have buds already.

That flower what you call as Bachelor Button, we call here as "ruiskukka" - rye flower. Thats because before it was a common weed in the rye fields. Now the farmers use more clean rye seeds and it has became a popular flower in the gardens. Pretty good achievement for the annoying weed.

 

[Saliha]

Pink rye flower (or whatever its name is...) On the left side corn poppys haven´t flowers yet but soon...

 

[Saliha]

Beans, no flowers yet:

Most of lilies are open:

White strawberries:

These strawberries I growed by seeds few years back. They are different than most of the strawberries as they don´t make runners at all. I think also ants have spreaded their seeds to the new parts of the garden.


Flowers only- bed grows well too:

View to the herb garden - part 1:

And part 2:

 

[Saliha]

Corn poppy:

Beans have flowers:

One sunflower will make more than one flower:

Gooseberries are soon ripe:

And peas:

Caterpillars like their leaves.


Seems I will have rhubarb pie tomorrow

One more catnip mint which has escaped from its original place:

 

[Saliha]

Golden balls (rudbeckia laciniata) and sunflowers create green garden path:

Golden balls will flower soon:

 

[Saliha]

It´s time to collect flowers and herbs from garden for the tea:

Chamomile, cornflowers, red clover flowers, anice hyssop flowers, thyme flowers, oregano flowers... I add later also rose petals, heather flowers etc.

 

[Saliha]

The first sunflower - opens soon:

White corn poppy:

Tropaeolum majus/garden nasturtium:

Basils in the pots and baskets grow well:

 

[Saliha]

A bar is open for bees:

Berries and leaves of mahonia aquifolium (Oregon-grape):

I like colors and shapes of leaves. It looks almost like a painted picture.

 

[Saliha]

A dill has tiny flowers:

Anise hyssop - behind peppermints, at the right side shark fin melon:

Growth of shark fin melons and squash grows bigger when days are worm:

Marigolds in the old iron cauldron with catnip mints:

More colors to garden - garden nasturtium:

Squash in the frame - behind thyme and basils:

Broad bean:

 

[Sass Muffin]

You've surrounded yourself in pure paradise there, Saliha!
Very nice!

 

[QSis]

You've surrounded yourself in pure paradise there, Saliha!
Very nice!

I just cannot get over the amazing number of varieties you have in your gardens, Saliha!

Lee

 

[Saliha]

I have counted that I have a little over 100 different plants. But every year I need to try something new...



The last lily - with lovely deep red color:

 

[Saliha]

I picked up one carrot to check how big they are:

Yup, they are big.


With fresh squash

and onions and herbs, I think its time of the first harvest pie.

​

 

[Saliha]

Shark fin melon:

Maybe I can soon make "fake" Chinese shark fin soup - without harming the real sharks.

 

[Johnny West]

Is there a special recipe for this fake shark fin soup? Harvest pie?

My youngest is a vegetarian and am always looking for something new to try with him.

 

[Saliha]

As this is the first time I grow shark fin melons, I haven´t tried fake shark fin soup yet. At the Spring, I got its seeds from friend from Thailand - in my country its not common garden veggie. If you can´t find just shark fin melons, I think that spaghetti squash would works well too (or rice noodles). Name of this melon comes from how it looks when its cooked - quite similar like dried shark fin after cooking.

This might be one version I would try later:

http://www.noobcook.com/sharks-fin-melon-soup/2/

But better leave meat away if its for vegetarian.


Here is recipe of my harvest pie:

1 squash
2 little onions
2 sweet paprikas
2 carrots, grated
150 g ham, cubed
1 egg
2 dl cream or sour cream
handfull fresh herbs (basil, thyme, oregano or what ever you have)
pinch of salt and white pepper

On the top: grated cheese

For crust: frozen puff pastry

Put puff pastry as the bottom to the pie casserole.

Cut squash, onions and paprikas into cubes. Cook in pan with olive oil until they are soft. Season with salt and white pepper.

Mix all filling ingredients, pour to pie casserole, spread on top with grated cheese. Bake +225 C (+437 F) 30 minutes.


I gave to it name as "harvest pie" because you can use just those veggies and herbs you get at the harvest time - from your garden or from the market. My the next harvest pie might be totally different.

 

[QSis]

I really like the sound of that, Saliha!

Lee

 

[Saliha]

"Money maker"- tomatos:

Mini truss tomato has plenty of flowers and some tomatoes coming:

Bee in the "bee bar":

 

[Saliha]

They are like butterflies - soon flying away...

 

[Saliha]

Flowers - sunflowers are still growing taller:

The veggie garden fence with shark fin melon:

Sun flowers and golden balls:

 

[Saliha]

Few more pictures today - hopely you don´t become tired of my garden pictures.

Basils give quite good harvest:

Hundreds of yellow flowers are opening - golden ball:

Golden ball bush is about 2,5 meters tall.


I just counted that this one sunflower has 8 buds - one is open:

 

[Johnny West]

There was a dahlia show at the mall today. I'll try to post a few pictures later.

 

[Saliha]

A visitor in sunflower:

More sunflowers growing:

Poppy after watering the garden - it was sunny and hot day:

Pink poppy:

Sweet chilis are still yellow - hopely they will turn red soon:

Hot chilis might not give fruits but it was the first time I tried them:

 

[Saliha]

Shark fin melon grows fast:

Silky elegance of poppy:

At the August, garden is full of everything, just waiting the harvest time:

 

[Saliha]

Yummy!

Poppy is shy at the evening, it closed its flower:

 

[Johnny West]

What do you do with your zucchini?

I do a thing where I'll put a knob of butter in a skillet, layer sliced onion and zucchini; cover and steam till the onions are opaque, then add shredded parameasan cheese, cover again until the cheese is melted. I try to do this on my grill when I can or an open camp fire.

 

[Saliha]

Usually I slice it, cook in olive oil and eat on the rye bread. But next ones I am planning to use to the date lamb stew. I created kind of recipe years ago when I became familiar with the Arabian cuisine. I could say that its the Finnish version of the traditional Arabic food.

Need to be creative in the kitchen, right?