• About
  • ART CARDS
  • THE DRAWING ROOM
  • DESIGN WORK
  • GALLERY I
    • GALLERY II
    • GALLERY III
    • GALLERY IV: THE ANCIENT PALETTE
  • Label Design

Backyardnotes

~ All things botanical in photos and words—in my West Seattle garden and elsewhere; seeing and creating art and assorted musings.

Backyardnotes

Tag Archives: Spring

WHISPERS OF SPRING

16 Monday Feb 2015

Posted by backyardnotes in Blooming, Flowers, Gardening, Spring flowers, Winter flowers

≈ 5 Comments

Tags

double Narcissus, hellebores, Pink Cyclamen, plenty of sunshine, Spring, Spring flowers, WHISPERS, White Camelia, White Cyclamen, witch-hazel

FauxRoy

THERE ARE WHISPERS OF SPRING HERE EVERYWHERE I LOOK. While the eastern portion of the country is buried in snow, it definitely feels like spring here with 60 degree temperatures and plenty of sunshine. After unusually heavy rains a week or so ago, the ground is starting to dry out a bit.

Leaves, buds and flowers are bursting forth. Camelia, hellebores, crocus, cyclamen, witch hazel, pulmonaria, early tulips. Here is a little pictorial sampling of what’s happening in my little corner of the world.CorcicanHellbore_2

DoubleNarcissusWitch hazel_1WitchHazel_2CoriscanHellbore DarkHellbore DkPinkhellbore_1
MottlePinkHellbore PaleYelHellbore PinkCyclamen Pulmonaria_1 Pulmonaria_2 WhiteCamelia WhiteCyclamen_1 WhiteCyclamen_2 WhiteCyclamen_3 WhiteHellbore WhitePinkHellbore

Share this:

  • LinkedIn
  • More
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Reddit
  • Pinterest

Like this:

Like Loading...

PICKLED ASPARAGUS

15 Saturday Jun 2013

Posted by backyardnotes in Canning & Preserving

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

art studio, Asparagus, canning, Ellensburg, food, Pickled asparagus, pickling, Spring, thorp

Washington asparagus

Washington asparagus

I ABSOLUTELY ADORE ASPARAGUS. IN NEARLY ANY FORM. PICKLED IS ESPECIALLY GOOD. I could probably eat it every day. The first weekend in June I made a trip to Ellensburg for an art studio tour with a friend, one of my daughters and granddaughter. In particular I really wanted to visit Dick & Jane’s Spot. On the back west to Seattle we stopped at Thorp to buy local, Washington asparagus.

One problem with pickling asparagus are the leftover ends. I solved that problem last year in the following way:

The un-pretty ends

The leftover ends

Once the lovely spears have been cut to fit the jars, cut the remaining ends into just-larger-than-bite-size pieces (do not use the tough ends) and stuff into jars and process along with the spears. Just as tasty and little to no wasted asparagus.

All the pieces!

All the pieces!

15 pounds of asparagus yielded about seven pints of spears and pieces.

Share this:

  • LinkedIn
  • More
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Reddit
  • Pinterest

Like this:

Like Loading...

EATING SPRING

12 Friday Apr 2013

Posted by backyardnotes in Cooking & Eating, EAT!, Food, Herbs, Spring

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

basil pesto, fennel fronds, foccacia, food, greens, herb pesto, herbs, pesto, purple mustard, Spring, Spring in a jar

Spring greens & herbs

I LOOK FORWARD TO EARLY SPRING WHEN HERBS RETURN TO LIFE. Forget about boring old basil pesto. Cut a big variety of herbs and your favorite greens; fennel fronds, sage leave, rosemary, thyme, parsley, cilantro, purple mustard leaves, kale, arugula, or whatever strikes your fancy! Don’t forget the chives!

processingherbs

Strip the smaller leave from woody herb stems, otherwise just tear the leave coarsely and pile as much as you can into a food processor, add two or ten cloves of garlic, salt to taste (a little at first) and some olive oil (a quarter to half cup) to get things going and puree, adding more oil as needed until mixture is smooth or the texture you like. Taste and adjust seasoning and amount of oil.

The finished pesto

Spring in a jar!

At this point I jarred half of the mixture and added lightly toasted walnuts and pine nuts to the remaining puree in the processor and processed until smooth. I covered the pesto with a film of olive oil, sealed up the jars and put some into the freezer for later use.

Add a spoonful to a vinaigrette dressing, smear some on a plate and top with roasted, skinned and cooled roma tomatoes and fresh mozzarella; treat as you would basil pesto and toss with pasta or…

Foccacia dough

Add a big spoonful into some foccacia dough or savory quick bread batter.

foccacia_1a bakedfoccacia

HERE’S to SPRING!

Share this:

  • LinkedIn
  • More
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Reddit
  • Pinterest

Like this:

Like Loading...

I KNOW THAT SPRING IS ON THE WAY…

12 Monday Mar 2012

Posted by backyardnotes in Uncategorized

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

Aquilegia, catkins, cedrus deodora, corylus avellana contorta, daphne laureola, Harry Lauder's Walking Stick, lungwort, peony, pulmonaria, Spring, spurge laurel

Cedrus deodora 'rose'

BY LITTLE HARBINGERS around the garden. The cedrus deodora drop their opened cones, shattering when they hit the ground to scatter their seeds leaving ‘roses’  all around.

Cedrus deodora

There are two of these trees at the borders of our property. At heights of 50-60 feet, most likely they were planted 40-50 years ago. The seeds sprout easily and grow quickly like weeds. When the seedlings are two-three inches tall I pot them up and hand them off to an enthusiast of evergreen trees.

Daphne laureola

Daphne laureola, also known around here as spurge laurel has been blooming for a couple of weeks now. It is unfortunate that this variety does not have the fragrance of its more well known cousins but I really like the yellow green flowers clustered like jewels at the crown. The flowers will yield small black berries favored by robins and that is how they spread. New plants pop up in places not always favored by most plants; that is the driest, shadiest places around the garden that receive mostly natural irrigation. If you catch them early in an unwanted place pull them like a weed! This daphne has dark green, leathery leaves and grows to about 2 1⁄2 feet tall and is not unattractive. In my garden there is usually a place for small, shrubby plants with high drought tolerance.

Peony buds and shoots

This unamed peony emerges from the ground like no other that I have. The fat flower buds start pushing up first, long before the leaves or stems in late January. It seems to me that they should suffer from hard freezes and snow but miraculously they don’t. By the beginning of March the buds have pushed up two-three inches and the tender, slightly translucent leaves begin to loosen their grip around the buds, unfurling in a most beguiling way. I find the color and sculptural form arresting and dramatic.

This is pulmonaria. It may be pulmonaria angustifolia, officianalis, or saccharata; I have now way of knowing as it came from Grandma T’s garden and there is no telling as to its origins there. It is likely the original was planted in the 1930’s or 1940’s.  Also known as blue cowslip, lungwort or Bethlehem sage, these cheery little pink and blue flowers begin to bloom in early February, persisting well into April.

Corylus avellana contorta

I await the coming of the catkins—they signal spring is on the way. I love the way they dangle and gently sway in the wind. Also known as ‘Harry Lauder’s Walking Stick’, this specimen is in a very large pot on our deck and adds a very sculptural element.

‘Harry Lauder’ has tiny magenta flowers that follow the appearance of the catkins are easily missed—they were an unexpected surprise the first time I spotted them,

LUSH! SPRING! GREEN! is how I feel when I look at the bright green foliage and red stems of the aquilegias. It will be a couple of months yet until their flowers make an appearance. It is the appearance of plants like this one around the garden that make the promise of spring more than just a winter’s dream.

Share this:

  • LinkedIn
  • More
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Reddit
  • Pinterest

Like this:

Like Loading...

HOORAY FOR SPRING, PEAS, AND FAVA BEANS!

11 Tuesday May 2010

Posted by backyardnotes in Iris, May flowers, Spring, Transplanting, Vegetable garden

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

cabbage, clematis, fava beans, iris, pears, peas, Spring, tomatoes, transplanting

PICKING THE FIRST PEAS AND FAVA BEANS OF SPRING IS SHEER JOY! The favas may need another four to five days, but we’ll see. I planted two varieties, Negreta (3ft tall) and Aqua Dulce (5ft tall). The Negreta are about a week or more ahead of the Aqua Dulce for harvesting.

And, the some of peas that were a real mixed bag of age, varieties, and viability and planted in December are nearly ready to harvest. Can I exercise a little restraint and keep myself from picking a pod or two as I admire them?

They have really taken off!

The Arrowhead cabbage that I planted last fall are nearly ready to harvest too, it’s surprising since the other cabbages have long since bolted. One Savoy is still forming a head.

On Friday and Saturday I transplanted all of the tomatoes and some of peppers, most into one gallon pots, then into the coldframe they went. They were twenty-eight days since seeding. Tomatoes grow like weeds; happily for us they certainly taste better! Just about the time they are ready to outgrow the coldframe, the fava beans should be nearly done and can come out to make room for tomatoes.

I’m excited to see that we will indeed have pears. There quite a few of each type. We’ll wait another week or so before thinning them. These are the Bartlett’s. This is a great time of year!

In the flower garden, the iris ‘Saturday Night Fever is in full swing. Very large flower and tall stalks. I purchased this one at the Seattle flower and Garden Show about ten years ago and it has multiplied nicely. Time to divide this year after blooming has finished.

Another lovely, delicate bearded iris is ‘Lenora Pearl‘ from White Flower Farm. It is a reblooming iris, blooming again in the fall. This has proved quite vigorous and in also ready for division after ten or elven years.

We have several clematis trellised up against the house and this one, ‘Crystal Fountain’, is quite showy. Deb and I each bought one from here in 2005. I kept mine in a pot on the deck until last fall when it went into the ground (much happier and growing like crazy), against the house and behind the miniature climbing rose, The ‘Rocketeer’. This clematis is a rebloomer throughout the summer.

Time now to attend to matters outdoors and take advantage of more fabulous weather–predicted to last the rest of the week!

Share this:

  • LinkedIn
  • More
  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Reddit
  • Pinterest

Like this:

Like Loading...

Archives

Recent Posts

  • OUT WITH THE OLD POND, IN WITH THE NEW WATER FEATURE
  • WINNING SUBMISSION AND NEW DIRECTIONS
  • WHISPERS OF SPRING
  • NOT EXACTLY CANNING…
  • A GIFT OF WINTER APPLES

Art

  • ABC Typography
  • Annerose Georgeson
  • ArtPlantae Today
  • Drawing in Color
  • Fonts
  • Gage Academy of Art
  • Kapitza
  • Kathleen McKeehen
  • Katie Lee
  • Late Start Studio
  • New York Central Art Supply
  • Painting of the day
  • PastelPointers blog
  • The Postman's Knock
  • Wagonized
  • Wordle

Birds

  • Bird Note

Blogroll

  • A Gardener's Table
  • A Way to Garden
  • Annerose Georgeson
  • Backyardnotes\’s Blog
  • cold climate gardening
  • Homeward Bounty
  • The Fresh Loaf
  • West Seattle Blog
  • West Seattle Herald
  • WordPress.com
  • WordPress.org

Bugs!

  • BugGuide
  • What's that bug?

Butterflies

  • North American Butterfly Association

Canning & Preserving

  • A Gardener's Table
  • Canning Across America
  • Fermentista
  • Food in Jars
  • National Center for Home Food Preservation
  • Phickle.com
  • Well Preserved

Creative & Handmade

  • Aunt Peaches
  • BackyardDesigns
  • RedClothespin
  • Whirlygig Fashion

Design

  • ABC Typography
  • Before and After Magazine
  • Clients from Hell
  • Communication Arts
  • Font Bros.
  • Fonts
  • Kapitza
  • My Fonts
  • The Graphics Fairy
  • The Postman's Knock
  • Typographica.org
  • Wordle

Font Love!

  • Emigre
  • Font Bros.
  • Fonts
  • Hoefler & Co. Typography
  • Kapitza
  • My Fonts
  • The Postman's Knock
  • Typographica.org
  • Wordle

Food & Drink

  • David Lebovitz
  • Indian Simmer
  • Jeffrey Morgenthaler
  • Punk Domestics
  • Rose Levy Beranbaum
  • Serious Eats
  • Tapas Bonitas
  • The British Larder

Gardening

  • A Gardener's Table
  • cold climate gardening
  • Cornell Plant Pathology Vegetable Disease Web Page
  • Hellebores
  • Hosta library
  • Johnny's Seeds
  • Naylor Creek Gardens
  • North American Butterfly Association
  • Not Dabbling In Normal
  • Territorial Seed Company
  • Wells Medina Nursery
  • West Seattle Nursery
  • What's that bug?

Inspiration

  • Toom-ah? What Stinkin' toomah?

It's About Life

  • Toom-ah? What Stinkin' toomah?

Let's Eat!

  • Anson Mills
  • Five and Spice
  • food52
  • Northwest Sourdough
  • The Artisan
  • The British Larder
  • The Cook's Thesaurus
  • The Fresh Loaf
  • Wild Yeast

Painting & Drawing

  • Annerose Georgeson
  • ArtPlantae Today
  • Draw a stickman
  • Drawing in Color
  • Gage Academy of Art
  • Kathleen McKeehen
  • Katie Lee
  • Painting of the day
  • PastelPointers blog
  • Wagonized

Plant love

  • Flower World
  • Hellebores
  • Hosta library
  • Naylor Creek Gardens
  • USDA Plants database
  • Wells Medina Nursery
  • West Seattle Nursery

Shops

  • BackyardDesigns
  • RedClothespin
  • Whirlygig Fashion

Vegetables

  • Johnny's Seeds
  • Territorial Seed Company

West Seattle

  • West Seattle Blog
  • West Seattle Herald

Categories

Blogs I Follow

  • grow it cook it can it
  • Red Road Diaries
  • A Gardener's Table
  • Backyardnotes
  • WordPress.com

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 64 other subscribers

apples Art birds black radish brussels sprouts cabbage camelias camping canning clematis compost cranberries crocus dahlias Daikon radish Death Valley desert Drawing fall fava beans food friendship gardening Gardening garlic hamamelis harvest hellebores herbs hiking hostas iris lavender mangoes mixed media mustard greens narcissus nature New Orleans nicandra painting pears peas peonies peppers pesto Pickled asparagus pickles pickling planting plants poetry poetry exchange poppies preserving Radishes rain roses Sandhill Cranes seedlings Sisters snow Spring Spring flowers sunshine tetons tomatoes Travel trillium tulips vegetable garden volunteer plants volunteer seedlings wildflowers winter cyclamen winter flowers

Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 64 other subscribers

April flowers Art Canning & Preserving Cooking & Eating Fall Flowers Fun in the Garden Growing Harvest Inspriation Jellies & Preserves March flowers Spring Spring bulbs Spring flowers Summer! Tomatoes Travel tulips Uncategorized Vegetable garden Weather West Seattle garden Winter Winter flowers

No Instagram images were found.

BYN_IG

No Instagram images were found.

Create a free website or blog at WordPress.com.

grow it cook it can it

Red Road Diaries

Musings from the back roads

A Gardener's Table

Celebrating the Harvest

Backyardnotes

All things botanical in photos and words—in my West Seattle garden and elsewhere; seeing and creating art and assorted musings.

WordPress.com

WordPress.com is the best place for your personal blog or business site.

Privacy & Cookies: This site uses cookies. By continuing to use this website, you agree to their use.
To find out more, including how to control cookies, see here: Cookie Policy
  • Follow Following
    • Backyardnotes
    • Join 64 other followers
    • Already have a WordPress.com account? Log in now.
    • Backyardnotes
    • Customize
    • Follow Following
    • Sign up
    • Log in
    • Report this content
    • View site in Reader
    • Manage subscriptions
    • Collapse this bar
 

Loading Comments...
 

    %d bloggers like this: