Hello from a cold, rainy fall night! I just got home from a bellydance workshop where I also vended. It was fun, but not so much productive, in terms of vending. I didn’t really make too much more to sell, but will share the couple of things in my next sewing post.
I’m guessing Fancy missed me because I sat down and she essentially tackled me. I’m writing this on my phone app, as my lap is currently occupied by a cuddly and needy dog who will not let me get up.
Anyway, back to the actual point of this post! The garden! We used most of the food that we harvested, which I was proud of. The squirrels got some things, including an entire purple bell pepper! What jerks! Here’s the haul!
I was excited to actually preserve the herbs this year, instead of accidentally freezing them and not being able to use them. I used the dehydrator for a lot of them.
In the jars we have pineapple sage- in the little jar, lemon thyme- in one of the big jars, regular thyme, and rosemary.
I also froze some fresh sage and basil in oil to try and use in cooking. They were super easy to do. I just ripped the herbs and put them in a mini muffin pan and poured a little bit of olive oil in the spots. Then after they were frozen, I just popped them out and put them in glass jars for storage. I have decided to try to use more jars for storage. A friend has inspired me to try and use less plastic, so I thought these would be perfect.
Another interesting way to use up the herbs was to make herb butters for presents. We have an Italian herb blend with rosemary, parsley, oregano, and basil. We also have a lemon pepper blend with lemon thyme, parsley, and pepper. I think they should be delicious!
We had a volunteer basil plant appear in the soil on the side of the driveway!
Overall, there are a few things I would do differently next year. Starting from seeds worked for the carrots for sure, but not the bok choy, Swiss chard, or radishes. The beans worked well and the marigolds are still going strong. I harvested two poblanos, four purple peppers, and many hot peppers.
I’ll leave you with a picture of Fancy and a garden carrot. Have a great night!
