We are starting to countdown the days until our trip to Denmark and The Netherlands. James and I are chronic over packers. Once I even brought my own Thera-flu to Tokyo and I wasn’t even sick – like at all. I always feel a little sad for the items of clothing that come home having never been worn. Clothes that sparked joy when we were … Continue reading Leaving on a jet plane
This is an awesome early spring dessert and uses 3/4 cup honey, you can use store bought but I highly recommend going to your local honey purveyors and finding out what sort of variety is available in your area. For example, a buckwheat honey is dark brown in color, thick in consistency and tastes similar to molasses. No matter what honey you use, know that … Continue reading Salted Honey Pie
This dish was an instant favorite at a Canadian Friends-giving a few years back. James and I get TWO Thanksgivings every year, we are SO lucky! Traditional dishes for this occasion come in lots of different shades of beige, this Squash salad adds color to the table. This is an easy vegetarian side to make that can be served hot or cold and travels … Continue reading Squash with Balsamic, Honey & Feta
Brining is a great way to tenderize lean meats. Not necessary but results in a juicier protein. Here is an easy recipe for a brine solution, maple syrup doubles as a great glaze ingredient when your roast is close to completion. Continue reading “Maple Brined Pork”
Chimichurri Recipe Continue reading Chimichurri
We spent most of last year observing each season and what kinds of plants and wildlife were present/absent. Now that we have a basic idea what kind of plants are already here we can plan on removing/replacing the ones that don’t belong. Time to begin plotting out details for zones we began last spring and work towards completing them by Fall 2017 We can keep pulling … Continue reading To Do/Didn’t do/Will do?
Hedera Helix. This stuff was EVERYWHERE! We still haven’t removed most of the pulled ivy vines from the property. This plant invades woodland areas and aggressively displaces native vegetation. The ground was completely covered in ivy and blackberry vines, even trying to smother out some excellently sized Sword Ferns we were keeping. Most of the trees were surrounded and their canopies were becoming overtaken. … Continue reading Ivy Diary: Front
Shooting for SILVER level certification with the Backyard Habitat Certification Program We got the site report for our property and learned there was actually 23,222 sq. ft of plantable area. Some native plants identified during the assessment: Oso Berry, Oregon grape, Sword Ferns, Big Leaf Maple and Douglas fir. Silver Level Certification Objectives require removal of Himalayan and Evergreen blackberry, all Ivy and Spurge Laurel from … Continue reading Back Yard: Site Goals
First Photos of the front yard. Magnolia and Stone Wall Watercolor Study Continue reading Front yard : First Glance
