Author: thecapeblog

Pizza, More Excavation

We are almost done with the big excavation.  Filled up the truck with all the roots we dug up.

Called two tree companies about transplanting our Eastern Redbud and the Red Maple.

Made mushroom/tomato/feta pizza from a giveaway.  Excellent!

Ellen sold and bought her house!  She found a cash buyer and her offer on the new one was accepted.

Much cooler today.  Equinox is two days away.  Ron wore a flannel shirt and jeans.  He looked like a cute farmhand!

On-Hand But Still Gourmet

We got our Sunday NYTimes – early!

Having found some used squash and an eggplant in the downstairs frig, and wanting to clean up the tomatoes, I made a ratatouille for lunch yesterday.

From there, it was pretty easy to put together a coq au vin using the frozen whole chicken in the freezer and tomatoes, shallots and herbs from the garden.

100_6469I also did three loads of laundry.  It rained in the morning, but one load dried anyway.  Changed the sheets.  Did the transfer station run.

Got some ideas at New Seabury for the front yard.

Laura came over for dinner.  We had our usual great visit!

More Excavating

100_6467Ron joined me in excavating today.  We manged to clear a lot of roots from the area.

I visited the French patisserie in Popponesset for the first time.  Picked up some dried fruit for almost 75% off.  Want to go back to take a photo of a pretty vignette made from grasses and roses that I think would be perfect for the excavated area.

Made a nice salad for supper:  greens, blue cheese, nectarine, our tomatoes and cuke.

Vegetables and Flowers That Tolerate Shade

Carrots, turnips, beets, potatoes, sweet potatoes and radishes; lettuces, spinach, cabbage, mustard greens, kale, and collards.

Peas and beans can also do well, although they won’t produce as big a crop as the same plants in full sun. Cauliflower and broccoli make the list; in fact, some professional growers deliberately plant cauliflower in afternoon shade to protect the light-sensitive curds. Pretty much all of the herbs do well with limited sun, as do the perennial vegetables asparagus and rhubarb.

Lettuce and spinach are said to get by with the least sun, a measly four to six hours a day. The others mentioned above do better with six hours. GardensAlive.com

Types of Shade

Partial or Half Shade: This very variable and confusing term is often defined as about half a day of direct sun. Gardeners in areas with  5-6 hours of afternoon sun may be able to grow most vegetables and herbs. However, those with only 3-4 hours of morning sun will have better success with true shade-lovers, and should choose other types of plants as the main focus of their gardens.

Dappled Shade, or Light Shade: The sunlight in these areas is filtered through trees with an open habit and small leaves, rather than a dense leaf cover. Sun falls on your garden, but it doesn’t hit specific sections for as long as it would without the trees. Again, the longer and brighter the sun shines in a particular area, the more flexibility you have in your choice of edibles and shade-tolerant annuals for that spot.

Open Shade:  An example of this would be the North side of a building which gets no direct sun  throughout the entire day, but is not otherwise covered by trees or structures. In general, this is too much shade for good production of most vegetables.

Full Shade, or Dense Shade:  In this situation the garden doesn’t receive direct sun and is also shaded by trees or structures, resulting in little ambient light. The plants in this article are unlikely to thrive in such a location.

Vegetables and Herbs for Half Shade and Dappled Shade

Of all the vegetables, leafy crops are most tolerant of partial and dappled shade. In hot areas, it’s actually preferable to grow them where they don’t receive full sun all day, since they’ll hold longer before they bolt and taste bitter.  A garden grown in a partial or half shaded plot can contain lettuceof all kinds, chard, scallions, kale, radishes, Asian stir-fry greens, spinach, and leeks. Herbs include arugula, basil, parsley, dill, chervil, cilantro, chives, garlic chives,  watercress, and alpine strawberries.

If you are unsure whether you have enough sunlight for these crops to grow well, start small and experiment. If you have too much shade, leaves will be spindly, soft and weak. They’ll have a mild, bland flavor and lack crispness.

Flowers for Half Shade and Dappled Shade

A partially shaded location is ideal for nasturtiums, since if they receive too much intense sunlight, their leaves fry and become unsightly. They come in some hot, tropical color mixes such as ” Amazon Jewel”, “Alaska”, “Copper Sunset” and “Whirlybird”, as well as some cool pastels like butter-cream “Moonlight” and cream splashed with red “Vanilla Berry”.

A variety of cutting flowers, such as our ” Chantilly” snapdragons, “White Wonder” feverfew, “Marble Arch”salvia , and “Pride of Gibraltar” cerinthe can also tolerate about half a day of shade. For containers, I like ruffled“Victorian Posy” pansies.

Flowers for Open Shade

Many of the flowers that prefer shady locations have unusual, exotically-shaped flowers that give an enchanted, fairylike quality to a shady place. “Mrs. Scott Elliot” columbines, “Apricot Fairy Queen” foxgloves, and “Mulberry Rose” and “Persian Violet” Nigella come to mind. My other favorites include evening-scented “Alata” nicotiana and deep blue “Azure Bluebirds” forget-me-nots.

.

Excavation Is My Specialty; Ventilation At Edgewater

I finally removed the obstinate arbor vitae root, then got a last-minute request to drive Alpha to her second job interview at the Hyannis Mall.

Got a tiramisu, crumpets and a focaccia loaf at the senior center.

Requested quotes from Peter’s insurance agent.

Jim installed the new ventilation system for the basement at Edgewater.  I’ve put it off long enough, nothing else worked.

More Tilling

We rented a mid-sized tiller from Taylor Rental.  Ron powered through all of the new garden plots and the front section where the big arbor vitae used to be.

The tiller helped a lot, but the former tree area still has a lot of big roots.

I drove Robert yesterday and today.  Picked up Alpha in Hyannis, found the address okay.

Made two entrees tonight, chicken cutlets and chicken stir fry.  Came out very well, then I knocked a half-full bottle of O’Doul’s on the floor and managed to get it on both scatter rugs.  Furious, livid.  Then Ron was on me for not using the “right” paper towel roll and stopping the garden watering 11 minutes early.

You just can’t please some people any of the time!

We went to a pizza luncheon at the Senior Center yesterday.

Genealogy Is Tiring

I’ve been pounding my head against the wall for days looking for McLean relatives.

I was sure that at one point, I found a whole family tree.  After hours of searching, though, I think it might have been Ron’s family.

In any event, I am worn out.

After doing almost nothing all day, Ron volunteered to cut the grass; good fellow.

We picked up baked goods at the Senior Center.  Peter was passing through and stopped in for rolls, a cuke and tomatoes.

I got the manure unloaded and spread.  We added chopped leaves and some of the fine tree debris.

The plan is to rent a tiller, first to mulch up the beds in the front and back and then later, to mulch the garden once it’s gone by.

Watched a glorious animated film last night from Ireland called “Song of the Sea.”  It’s up for an Academy Award.