The Gardeners’ Exchange

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We gardeners love without a doubtfulness that besides harvest the harvest and spending sentence out of doors in nature , there are many benefits to being a nurseryman . We may not always take in this when we are wrestle weeds , or trying to repair a piece of broken equipment , or dredge hose daily for weeks on end . However , we delight in a tidy garden at the end of a long hot daylight of work and we exult when harvest home and eating our garden bounty .

This is the season for peak harvest home and most of our garden are going full - tilt boogie-woogie . I can just keep up with picking the tomatoes , let alone eat them all ; pattypan squash go from adorable short gourmet size to sputnik ostensibly overnight ; and laden pepper plants are position on the earth they are so heavy with yield . My husband Tomaso goes out first matter every dawn , and when I come into the kitchen , the produce on the counter has increase in yield yet again . conceive me , I am not complaining … I am celebrating and sharing and so are the other gardeners in our lives .

This past week , my protagonist Deborah Hall come to visit and she walked in with her usual customary bouquet of perennial and annual peak from her garden . Actually , her prime are not usual at all ( except that she always brings me some when she come to visit ) ; they are beautiful , incredible bouquet of seasonal , fragrant blush and no two have ever been remotely likewise in the decades that we have known one another . They are always such a gift to me because she takes such pleasure in the growing , assembly , coiffure , and giving of them and I delight in the receiving and beauty of them . She has a grand full of shrubs , trees , and perennials with something always in bloom ; she appreciates fragrance as I do and this last bunch featured a perfumey Asian lily . Besides the flowers , Deb had a bag of newly - picked light-green beans that she had receive from another horticulture friend that very morning . We dumped them out on the riposte and separate the bean plunder then and there .

So we had to do a walk around my yard and garden ( which is overgrown and boney since I am a traveling gardener ) yet I did n’t experience the indigence to apologize or make excuses about the unkemptness – we gardener - character understand . Having not taken a hoop with us , we harvested all of the chile peppers that she could carry in her two hands and all of the squash that I could express and walk back to her car to deposit them on the back bottom .

Then we manoeuver out to our local orchard , Larriland Farms , to get some mature ravisher and to check out their plectrum - your - own leeks . This year ’s Allium cepa craw is gorgeous due to the rain we have had , they maturate them on pitch-dark plastic so they did n’t have to struggle with weed , and they are large and perfect .

near keepers , I hope . The leek were also raise on black credit card and are happy , of medium - size and easygoing to pull . Each of us left with a very clayey bag of alliums , local mellisonant edible corn , and smasher , plum , and nectarine .

dinner party that even was a gardeners ’ joyfulness : a layered squash , tomato , basil , and leek casserole simply drizzle with Olea europaea crude oil , Strategic Arms Limitation Talks and black pepper and bake at 375 ° F until babble and raw when pierce with a crotch ; saucy nettled corn on the Larus marinus sprinkled with just a tiny bit of smoked Hungarian paprika ( prove it – you’ll like it ! ) ; and green beans – steam until just tender which only take minute – put away with olive rock oil , a pressed Eugenia caryophyllatum of garlic , salt and common pepper , and just a touch of fresh minced savory . Oh how those dome melt in my mouth ; even though I had to take away belittled strings from them , I do n’t recall ever haven eaten such tender bean . Dead - ripe fresh peach slice at the table for dessert . Yum .

Last night , Tomaso and I depart toEl Andariego , our favorite local Mexican / San Salvadoran restaurant , andtookthem a half - gallon ofhomemade garden gazpachomade with our over - copiousness of homegrown tomatoes , peppers , onion , garlic , chiles and basil , to share with the stave , as well as a huge crew of sweet spearmint . I got to get behind the bar and give amojitolesson !

On Saturday mornings , I can twist leave out of my private road and drive four geographical mile northwards to our local little farmers ’ marketplace in the library / community centre parking lot in Glenwood , MD . There , I can find fresh yield and veg , herb and flowers , bread , and a local dairy provide us with Milk River , bollock , butter , cheese , yoghourt , and even kefir . I take my own bags and baskets to carry my purchases home and trade in my empty , returnable Milk River bottle so I do n’t have to compensate a deposit .

Sundays , I can head to the south and go just seven miles to Olney , where there is a turgid Farmer ’ market complete with local bakers , craftspeople , and even instrumentalist . you could have a breakfast burrito prepared on the spot , a homemade knish , and any number of baked goods with your topically roasted cup of coffee or fresh - squeeze lemonade . Besides a bit of vegetable vendors , there is a local orchard featuring unlike fruits as they come into season , two cleaning lady who play truckloads with a dazzling raiment of bloom , and another herb gentlewoman who sells all sorts of herbaceous plant and veg plant life .

Our vulgar thread is that we mature a garden and reap the benefit – we have better wellness , and abundance of local , ripe , refreshing nutrient to corrode and portion out , and it makes us glad . We admire and support our local granger and we are inspired by their persistence and commitment . We gardeners have a sorting of mutual appreciation smart set going ; not only do we exchange food , recipes and fun – we are really dear at sharing advice . Just take a smell at this Web site and see what a wealth of data we have here ! Literally , I can spend hours here reading article from all of the contributors . I just looked at the list of some of the articles that I have contributed toKitchen GardenerandFine Gardeningover the years and they still are current . In fact , rather than rewriting data , I ’d like to point out a few articles for you to check out that would be of valuable use to you during this harvest time of year .

If you have HERBS to harvest and preserve , take a look at these videos : Harvesting Herbsand Preserving Herbs bydryingandfreezing ; also see the article on Harvesting Herbs . determine and read them for easy instruction and inspiration to do it !

If you have an copiousness of BASIL in your life : These Basil Recipes Shine in the KitchenBasic Pesto Recipe(the real thing)Pasta with Summer Vegetables(easy , tasty dish – substitute whatever veggies you have)Lemon Basil Ice Cream(you may make this with any of your lemon herbs!)Buttermilk Cream Scones with Lemon Basil(ditto from above )

For a few other scrumptious summer recipes : Tabbouleh with Mint(delicious do - ahead main - course salad – with child for potlucks)Baked - Stuffed Eggplant(you could employ this with that abundance of squelch too)Peach Crisp with Lavender(or apply any lemon herbs)Blondies with Orange Mint and Apricots(you’ve contract to try these!)Summer Fruit Salad with Monarda(my favorite edible flower)Fried Squash Blossoms(for a real goody )

Celebrate and apply the bounty of the season – enjoy it now in its peak – and preserve for the winter months forward so you could have a taste of summer in the cold weather !

Fine Gardening Recommended Products

Johnny ’s Selected Seeds Connecta ® Cultivation Kit

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Corona AG 4930 Long Straight Snip , mollify Steel

DeWit Spork with Solid Socket

A rainbow of chard stems.Photo/Illustration: Susan Belsinger

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