Gardening time

[#1]

Here is my future tomato crop - right now, my darlings are enjoying the comfort of my office

[#2]

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@Avery O wrote:

Luce! If you can send us the recipe, that would be awesome!

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@Luce N wrote:

And the taste! I wish you would come try some of my homegrown/homemade tomato sauce. Absolutely divine. 

Maria and Avery, I'm afraid the secret to the recipe is simply my miraculously delicious tomatoes:

 . first, you need to chop some of my wonderful homegrown onions, and let them fry in olive oil. 

. meanwhile cut some tomatoes (homegrown too), add them to the onions. 

. add salt and pepper

. let it all simmer

. prepare some pasta in a separate pan. Once the pasta is cooked, add it to the tomatoes. 

. you can add grated cheese, but you don't need to.

I guess I should add basil, but I haven't tried yet.

As you can see, the secret is in the exceptional ingredients. Bon appétit!

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[#3]

Hi Luce,

I plant basil in the orchard, everywhere. Along with tomatoes, peppers, chilli peppers, strawberries and more.
I do it because it helps me keep several types of insects away and especially the aphid.
Also, the smell ... hmmm!
It also helps to plant "marigolds" and "tagetes" (carnation de moro or Damasquina)
In addition to giving a lot of color, they also help with the same as basil, and make more pollinators come.

[#4]

I have basil, mint and rosemary in pots this summer and in spite of our devastating heat, they are all doing well.  Of course, I have to water them every single day unless it rains and sometimes even then.  Lots of homemade pizza and rosemary chicken.  Also one or two mint juleps!

[#5]

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@Mary W wrote:

I have basil, mint and rosemary in pots this summer and in spite of our devastating heat, they are all doing well.  Of course, I have to water them every single day unless it rains and sometimes even then.  Lots of homemade pizza and rosemary chicken.  Also one or two mint juleps!

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So you too had a very hot summer? And in what part of the world are you?

I love the name "mint juleps", but never had any. How do you make them, please?

You might be the right person to ask: do you use basil in your homemade pizzas, and if so, how do you do so? I still don't know much about how to use basil. I use it it salads, but don't really know how to use it in cooked dishes. I'd love to have some advice, if you don't mind.

[#6]

Luce - we chop the basil very fine and sprinkle it on the pizza before it goes into the oven.  I'm growing Thai/ purple basil which is quite sweet and delicious this way.

I'm on the Mississippi Gulf Coast = summer lasts from May until October, with high heat and humidity.  Awfully hard to keep container plants going.

Mint juleps - make a simple syrup of equal parts sugar and water.  Boil under the sugar is completely dissolved and cool.  Muddle some mint leaves in the bottom of a tall glass (I like aluminum for this for some reason) and wipe some around the lip of the glass.  Fill with bourbon, simple syrup and ice and garnish with a mint sprig.  Stir gently and enjoy!

[#7]

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@Mary W wrote:

Luce - we chop the basil very fine and sprinkle it on the pizza before it goes into the oven.  I'm growing Thai/ purple basil which is quite sweet and delicious this way.

I'm on the Mississippi Gulf Coast = summer lasts from May until October, with high heat and humidity.  Awfully hard to keep container plants going.

Mint juleps - make a simple syrup of equal parts sugar and water.  Boil under the sugar is completely dissolved and cool.  Muddle some mint leaves in the bottom of a tall glass (I like aluminum for this for some reason) and wipe some around the lip of the glass.  Fill with bourbon, simple syrup and ice and garnish with a mint sprig.  Stir gently and enjoy!

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How about sea breathe, do you get any or are you too far from the coast? I know what you mean about high heat and humidity, I go to Florida once in a while, and although I like being hot, sometimes it does get a bit too much. But this summer was extravagantly hot here in France too. 

Thank you for the recipe for mint julep. I'm not big on alcohol, but if I get the chance, I'll try to have a sip or two next time I'm in Florida! 

[#8]

Ooh - I've missed so much on this thread. Thank you all for hints and recipes. 

@Maria My apple trees and a damson and plum tree are beginning to look extremely sad. I'll have to wait until spring now, but if I plant all the things you suggest, near them, will that keep the bugs away? My cherry tree (very large) is also buggy. 

[#9]

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@Nichola L wrote:

Ooh - I've missed so much on this thread. Thank you all for hints and recipes. 

@Maria My apple trees and a damson and plum tree are beginning to look extremely sad. I'll have to wait until spring now, but if I plant all the things you suggest, near them, will that keep the bugs away? My cherry tree (very large) is also buggy. 

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 So sad to hear that your fruit trees are in trouble. I guess it has to do with the unusual weather we've had? Do you listen to Alain Baraton on France Inter? He's great at giving advice on this type of issues. Here's the information on his program "La main verte", which is unfortunately programmed a bit early in the morning (7.45). I've just seen that you can also podcast his wonderful advice.

https://www.franceinter.fr/emissions/la-main-verte

[#10]

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Mary W wrote:

Luce - we chop the basil very fine and sprinkle it on the pizza before it goes into the oven.  I'm growing Thai/ purple basil which is quite sweet and delicious this way.

I'm on the Mississippi Gulf Coast = summer lasts from May until October, with high heat and humidity.  Awfully hard to keep container plants going.

Mint juleps - make a simple syrup of equal parts sugar and water.  Boil under the sugar is completely dissolved and cool.  Muddle some mint leaves in the bottom of a tall glass (I like aluminum for this for some reason) and wipe some around the lip of the glass.  Fill with bourbon, simple syrup and ice and garnish with a mint sprig.  Stir gently and enjoy!

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Mary ... I love a good mint julep too - and I like it really minty. So instead of plain simple syrup, I make a mint simple syrup, like this:

Combine equal parts water & sugar with lots of mint leaves in a saucepan. Bring to a boil, stirring until sugar dissolves and simmer for a minute or so. Remove from heat and let steep at least 30 minutes. Strain syrup into a glass jar, let cool and refridgerate. Use for mint juleps, iced tea, to flavor plain seltzer water or club soda, lemonade … you get the idea.

You can also make a basil simple syrup that's quite good with iced tea or lemonade. Or you can do a combination basil and mint syrup (ratio is half again more mint than basil).

Basil pairs well in a fresh fruit salad. If you know what granita is, you can make a mint granita with that syrup. Granita is akin to sherbet and Italian ice. It's a little work to make, but very refreshing in the summertime. Another use for mint syrup is in a cold summer melon soup.

And lots of mint is used to make that middle eastern classic - tabooli, which I make quite often.

ETA: Off topic, but once when my sister and I were on our way home from a day trip, we witnessed a deer running alongside the road, it's head completely encased in a wire tomato plant cage. Poor thing was looking rather panicky. It was bad for the deer, but pretty funny to witness. I wonder if that deer bothered any more tomato plants after that.

[#11]

OMG.  I have NOTHING growing in my patio except some elephant ears and a very sad rose.  Couldn't get out to buy young plants this year and now the heat and humidity are upon us.  I sure would like some mint and basil but...

[#12]

Mint Julep: 

• 1 ounce simple syrup (if you've gone to the trouble of minting the syrup all the better, but not neccessary)
• 2 cups crushed ice
• 2 ounces bourbon (some people use rum, but those people are crazy)
• fresh mint

Use a highball glass or silver Julep cup (I wish I had some, but I just use a regular glass), add simple syrup, 1 cup crushed ice, and some mint leaves to the bottom, muddle the mint with the ice (I just use the back of a spoon) to crush it a bit and release the oils in the leaves. Add the bourbon and a splash of water (I like using seltzer or sparkling mineral water because I like the bubbles). Add more ice to nearly fill the glass. Stir well and garnish with fresh mint.

[#13]

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@Maria T wrote:

Hi Luce,

I plant basil in the orchard, everywhere. Along with tomatoes, peppers, chilli peppers, strawberries and more.
I do it because it helps me keep several types of insects away and especially the aphid.
Also, the smell ... hmmm!
It also helps to plant "marigolds" and "tagetes" (carnation de moro or Damasquina)
In addition to giving a lot of color, they also help with the same as basil, and make more pollinators come.

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 Hi Maria! 

So you're another gardener, that's cool! I too have flowers to protect the plants. Here, they're called "Oeuillet d'Inde", which means "Indian carnation". I love their color. Tomorrow, I'm adding a photo of the seed package for you to see what they're like.

[#14]

@Luce
Of tagetes, I have several species.
A neighbor gave me a lot of seeds but they were mixed.
Until they have flowered, I have not known what they were 🙂

And, yes please, upload a photo to know which ones you have.

[#15]

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@Maria T wrote:

@Luce
Of tagetes, I have several species.
A neighbor gave me a lot of seeds but they were mixed.
Until they have flowered, I have not known what they were 🙂

And, yes please, upload a photo to know which ones you have.

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 Here is the photo! Now, I'd love to see a photo of your flowers, they must be very colourful.

[#16]

Oh Luce. Your basil looks lovely (and I'm dying for one of those tomatoes to go with it). I'm going to have to get mine from the market this year because I didn't get a chance to do the plants. Although my rosemary is doing very well after being overwintered (don't ask for instructions. I think ignoring it and forgetting to water it had a lot to do with its success). So I'm eyeing it up for future meals, along with the parsley the local squirrels don't seem to enjoy.

I think I recommend mohitos for mint consumption, if you're going to mix cocktails: 

https://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/mojito-242527

Naturally, Thai basil is also very good chopped and quicly sautéed into Thai recipes. One that I get as takeout is chicken and eggplant (aubergine). I haven't tried this recipe, but it seems like it's along the right lines (although serano peppers are a fusion element): https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1012781-stir-fried-chicken-and-eggplant-with-asian-basil

Rosemary is amazing with chicken, and I like to put a lot of it into this soup recipe (not sure that Baris approves of this one because it's a bit of a North American mash-up of a Turkish dish):
https://garlicshoots.com/2010/12/13/turkish-lentil-and-spinach-soup/

[#17]

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@Renata S wrote:

Oh Luce. Your basil looks lovely (and I'm dying for one of those tomatoes to go with it). I'm going to have to get mine from the market this year because I didn't get a chance to do the plants. Although my rosemary is doing very well after being overwintered (don't ask for instructions. I think ignoring it and forgetting to water it had a lot to do with its success). So I'm eyeing it up for future meals, along with the parsley the local squirrels don't seem to enjoy.

I think I recommend mohitos for mint consumption, if you're going to mix cocktails: 

https://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/mojito-242527

Naturally, Thai basil is also very good chopped and quicly sautéed into Thai recipes. One that I get as takeout is chicken and eggplant (aubergine). I haven't tried this recipe, but it seems like it's along the right lines (although serano peppers are a fusion element): https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1012781-stir-fried-chicken-and-eggplant-with-asian-basil

Rosemary is amazing with chicken, and I like to put a lot of it into this soup recipe (not sure that Baris approves of this one because it's a bit of a North American mash-up of a Turkish dish):
https://garlicshoots.com/2010/12/13/turkish-lentil-and-spinach-soup/

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Oh Renata, now is the perfect time to come visit me, I've got tons of tomatoes, even more than I had planned as some garden friend decided to give me some of his at the last minute. They are delicious, and so is the basil. You'll be amazed to learn that I managed to water them regularly enough, although my vegetable garden is about 5 minutes away from home. You were right to suggest growing basil. My basil is supposed to be Marseilles basil, with rather small leaves. 

Thanks for the links, it's always fun to try new recipes.

[#18]

Luce, I'm less than a mile back from the beach.  However, Mississippi isn''t directly on the Gulf of Mexico but rather on the Mississippi Sound as there are barrier islands a few miles offshore.  No surf to speak of.  The "feels like" temps have been over 100 degrees F all summer.  We have at least another month but so far, so good concerning hurricanes this year.  Peak season is September so we'll see.  My area was destroyed by Katrina - 30 foot storm surge that went as far as 10 miles inland - so we get pretty jumpy this time of year.

[#19]

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@Mary W wrote:

Luce, I'm less than a mile back from the beach.  However, Mississippi isn''t directly on the Gulf of Mexico but rather on the Mississippi Sound as there are barrier islands a few miles offshore.  No surf to speak of.  The "feels like" temps have been over 100 degrees F all summer.  We have at least another month but so far, so good concerning hurricanes this year.  Peak season is September so we'll see.  My area was destroyed by Katrina - 30 foot storm surge that went as far as 10 miles inland - so we get pretty jumpy this time of year.

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Good luck with the hurricanes, Mary! 

[#20]

Hi Luce, I'm going to drop in another recipe. Gardeners' time in North America usually means being approached by someone you know who planted zucchini (courgets) and now has about a million of them. I had a copy of the book this is from for years before I found this recipe in it. Now that I look at it, I realize that I've been ignoring the part that says to separate the eggs for as long as I've been making it (maybe because I have a small kitchen and I tend to ignore any instruction that creates more dishes than I think are necessary).  This basically gives you something like a potato latke, but with zucchini.  I usually replace the mint with some dill. I don't know how I survived knowing people who grow zucchini before I found this.

http://www.veggieobsession.com/2010/03/zucchini-feta-pancakes.html

[#21]

Hi Renata,

I know what gardener's time feels like as I do have zucchini growing in my garden. Sometimes they go wild and I give zucchini's to anyone that says they like zucchini. Took some to the hairdresser, to dance class... my neighbours who like zucchini...

Thank you very much for the recipes, and for the explanation of "gardener's time".

[#22]

my fish like zucchini .... I buy the expensive organic ones for fishfood and zucchini spaghetti when I am doing low-carb  (currently I've fallen off the low carb wagon)

[#23]

How convenient that fish like zucchini. Had no idea. It's a shame you live relatively far from me, otherwise I would have a gift for your fish.

But is the delicious looking dish on the photo for your fish? 

[#24]

I am drowning in tomatoes, peppers and cucumbers right now. I've spent the last 2 weeks canning at least part of every day. I had a good talking to my squash and okra and they've backed off a bit - thank goodness.

Aubergine sauce, spaghetti sauce, various levels of heat in salsa, pickled peppers, pickled veggies, bread and butter pickles, kosher dills, lo-sodium dill pickles, tomato jam, pepper jelly, and ranchero sauce oh yeah don't forget the sweet pickle relish, the dill pickle relish, and the hot pickle relish.

Thank goodness it's raining right now or I would be outside picking yet more stuff that needs to be processed.

We enjoy everything I make all the rest of the year, but the end of summer is a pain in the tush.

[#25]

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@Cheryl K wrote:

I am drowning in tomatoes, peppers and cucumbers right now. I've spent the last 2 weeks canning at least part of every day. I had a good talking to my squash and okra and they've backed off a bit - thank goodness.

Aubergine sauce, spaghetti sauce, various levels of heat in salsa, pickled peppers, pickled veggies, bread and butter pickles, kosher dills, lo-sodium dill pickles, tomato jam, pepper jelly, and ranchero sauce oh yeah don't forget the sweet pickle relish, the dill pickle relish, and the hot pickle relish.

Thank goodness it's raining right now or I would be outside picking yet more stuff that needs to be processed.

We enjoy everything I make all the rest of the year, but the end of summer is a pain in the tush.

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The worst is when you suddenly get tons of clients and you have to chose between making money and not letting the garden go crazy!

I've had to tell some of the clients about the garden - that way they sort of understand that there are PRIORITIES in life.

[#26]

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@Petra R wrote:

my fish like zucchini .... I buy the expensive organic ones for fishfood and zucchini spaghetti when I am doing low-carb  (currently I've fallen off the low carb wagon)

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Is this what the fish are getting? That's like a five-star tank you're running. 🙂