by Noel | Sep 24, 2013 | CobraHead, Gardening, Recipes
I planted beets the last week of August for a late fall harvest. I had used old seed so I planted them thickly, but they still germinated heavily. So we’re now thinning them and using the baby beets in salads, as a vegetable side, and in drinks. The greens are looking great. Here’s a plate of them. We use roots and all, just wash the whole plant. Judy took half the beet greens, and added half a frozen banana and some raspberries we picked last...
by Noel | Aug 27, 2013 | CobraHead, Gardening
Last year I had a harvest of carrots and beets that continued into December. I used a low hoop tunnel to protect the crop from frosts and freezes and the results were great. (You can read about it here). I hope to do the same this year, but I took some big chances because almost all the seed I used was really old. As most gardeners know, seeds do have a shelf life. In spite of the stories of seeds germinating after being unearthed in an ancient Egyptian tomb...
by Judy | Aug 19, 2013 | CobraHead, Recipes
The cucumbers are prolific this year. Some of them hide themselves well under the nearby zucchini plant leaves so they tend to get bigger than the ideal size before they’re found. The larger cukes can get a little bitter so a pre-salting will draw that bitterness out. Here’s a recipe that can use up a lot of cucumbers: Peel several large cucumbers. Slice them thinly in a food processor or use a hand slicer or mandoline. The thinner slices absorb the marinade a...
by Judy | Aug 15, 2013 | CobraHead, Recipes
As they say – a prolific zucchini plant is the mother of invention! We have just 2 zucchini plants. It’s hard to tell with the tangle of vines and leaves but you’d think there were a dozen plants in the garden. I’ve been sautéing them in various ways with different additives each time – onions, garlic, tomatoes, corn, peppers, potatoes, whatever is on hand. Today I decided to make pureed zucchini soup with a ginger kick. The great thing about this recipe is...
by Noel | Aug 12, 2013 | CobraHead
CobraHead garden tools received their most important single piece of publicity recently with an excellent mention in the New York Times. The article by Bob Tedeschi, who writes for the Times under the byline “The Pragmatist”, was titled “Ergonomic Tools that Prune Away Gardening Pains”. It appeared online on July 3, here, and also appeared in print on July 4th with the title “The Pains of a Garden, Pruned Away”, on page D1....
by Geoff | Jul 28, 2013 | CobraHead, Environmental Issues, Gardening
Today I finally built some nesting logs for native bees. I got inspired by the frequent postings of Gail Eichelberger about native plants and native polinators on her blog Clay and Limestone. I then used some instructions from the Xerces Society (PDF), grabbed some old oak logs and got to work. Most native bees build solitary nests. Some nest in the ground and others nest in holes in wood or other cavities. According to the Xerces Society, holes for wood...
