Sunday, January 9, 2022

Grateful Appreciation


There are so many roses blooming that I just had to pick some and bring them in. They are the old-fashioned kind of roses, soft and sweet as your granny's bosom and I have put these in the kitchen because I will smell them fifty times a day. 


I am a hunting widow again but as we all know, this is not something that disturbs me much. My time flows with the day, and I do a little of this and a little of that, considering what would make me happiest. Not that I always do what would make me happiest but I do some of that. 

Today I worked outside for awhile, doing actual and real yard work. I pruned back two roses that haven't bloomed in a year because they're in shade, and pulled the border grass threatening to encroach them. I need to move those roses to somewhere a little bit less shady and plant something more apt to thrive there.

Then I attacked the sago palms in front of the front porch which is an easy job but a dangerous one as the fronds are needled and come each with their own dose of mild toxin. But it didn't take me long and I managed not to get myself pierced by one of the poison darts. 


It does not look like winter here, does it? 


I still have not had the heart to pull my pepper plants. These are just a small percentage of the peppers growing now. 

It has been warmer today but it's supposed to get a little cooler this week. Such weird weather. My arugula, beautiful and healthy and the object of my love and desire (culinarily speaking, of course) looks to be in the process of bolting which I have been fearing the greens would do. But still, the garden looks pretty, although it is relatively sparsely planted. 



Plenty of greens for us. 


Food for the soul and the body.

I have washed the lettuces twice and they are wrapped tenderly in a kitchen towel in the refrigerator now, waiting to be made into salads. As for the roses- well, you know. 

It wasn't just roses and salad greens I picked today though. 




The heavy-headed beauty of the camellias thrills me. It just does. And I do not become jaded about it. 


Each and every blossom I bring in is appreciated and admired and enjoyed just as is each and every bite of salad I eat from our winter garden, slicked a tiny bit with olive oil, sweetened by a splash of balsamic, seasoned with nothing but salt, pepper, and fresh garlic, peeled and pressed. 

I think I'm hungry now.

Love...Ms. Moon

35 comments:

  1. The flowers are beautiful. I can't grow veggies where I am, my tiny patch is too hot, the soil too poor and filled with tree roots. And slugs and snails and earwigs etc. So I have succulents and things in pots that don't need much more than a good watering in the summer.

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    1. Plants in pots are a fine thing too! We are lucky to have the space and dirt and growing seasons we do.

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  2. Oh, these flowers!!!! *happy sigh*

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  3. So amazing to see such flowers in winter. Smelling roses? And eating your own homegrown salads. It's heavenly.

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  4. hunting widow indeed! But I know it works for you...... and for Mr Moon, bless him. Your day sounded lovely....and your camelias and roses......well, I just ....can't....say....enough about those.
    Susan M

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    1. I am happy that he can go and do these things. They are very important to him and his mental well-being and I know that. And I very much like alone time so it works out well. And then we're happy to be back together when he gets home.

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  5. The Blooms, the Greens, how pretty the exterior of that Lovely Old House looks with those Segos along the front... which I had some of those and yes, they can sure pack a nasty prick if they impale you while trimming them! I'm sure the interior of the House now smells sublime!

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    1. Segos have been around since the dinosaurs probably because no one wants to eat them! They come with their own weapons, don't they?

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  6. Those roses are so beautiful. I never could grow that many, but my parents did.

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    1. That's only from three bushes! They're going crazy!

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  7. We brought some Illinois tomato seeds (Early Girl and Best Boy) and dirt this fall and just had our first tomato. It was SO tasty! We also planted mini peppers. We have loads of beautiful green peppers….my question, as it is every time I plant peppers, is how long do I have to wait for them to turn yellow, red and orange?? I check them every day and even talk to them. Some days I whisper sweet nothings and some days I yell ‘turn, dammit!’

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    1. I think you just have to forget about them and suddenly, they will be orange and red and yellow!
      Congratulations on your tomato.

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  8. You mock me woman:) My yard is buried under two feet of snow. Sigh. It will bloom again. In the mean time, I can enjoy your roses, so thank you.

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    1. I don't mean to mock you, sweet lady. And when your spring comes, it comes fast and beautifully!

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  9. I just read an article in Cooks Illustrated magazine about a chef who feeds his hens densely pigmented hot red peppers so that they lay eggs with bright red yolks. Maybe something to try with your extra peppers. By the way, the article also says there is no taste difference.

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    1. Why would anyone want red-yolked eggs? I think that would be extremely off-putting. I have also heard of feeding chickens marigolds to get golden yolks. My hen's eggs are a beautiful shade of deep golden orange. They make store eggs look insipid.

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  10. I'm SOOOO envious of your beautiful garden. Even those sago palms are beautiful (if evil)!

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    1. They are cool plants and ancient ones. But evil, yes. They are.

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  11. To answer your question...No, it certainly does not look like winter there! Where are the snowmen? Where are the icicles?

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    1. Good questions. Not anywhere near here is the answer to that.

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  12. The sun is shining but it is really cold here and the driveway is covered with ice so I will stay inside and read today. Your flowers and salads look lovely and it is nice that all of your gardening work pays off with such a beautiful bounty! I love how you treasure each one!

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    1. It is easier to appreciate food that we have grown ourselves, I think.
      I can't imagine trying to drive on ice. So scary!

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  13. I do love your camellias. That dip into the 20s made it look like winter here. I've cut back all the ginger but need to pull out all the orange cosmos, just dead stalks now.

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    1. I've got a lot of dead stalks around here too. Also banana leaves although those stalks seem fine.

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  14. Holy Moly. You've no idea how much I miss plants, flowers and trees! These pics are a feast for my eyeballs. Thank you.

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    1. I know the desert has its own beauty and I respect that but I need trees and green around me. It's a requirement.

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  15. It's amazing how green everything is, even in winter. You haven't had a freeze yet, I'm guessing?

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    1. We did have one or two light freezes. Not enough to really kill anything.

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  16. Your bountiful garden. I love how completely you appreciate its many gifts.

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  17. Our lettuce is starting to bolt too. Wishing for another cold front, it’s been so hot and muggy. I think it’s lovely, appreciating each bit of beauty. The red roses look very much like mine, also heavy with bloom. I would love to know the name of the white one, looks like a perfect match in size and shape. Enjoying your camellias vicariously, I never get tired of looking at them.
    Xoxo
    Barbara

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    1. I'll see if I can identify the white rose. I didn't plant it but we did transplant it over by the garden and it is much happier there.

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  18. This whole post is divine. The flowers are so incredible.

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Tell me, sweeties. Tell me what you think.