Recent Blog Posts
Lemony Cabbage or Onion Pickles
Tangy Cabbage and Onion Refrigerator Pickles Our Meyer lemon tree has a full load of juicy lemons. So when we have lemons will we make lemonade? Well, sometimes we do, but here is another great way we enjoy those lemons. We’ve made refrigerator pickles before, see our post on lemony cucumber pickles, now we’ve adapted…
What’s Growing Now – February 2024
It is citrus season here in Southern California. Although the Mandarins are done for this season, the Meyer lemons and sweet lemons are coming on strong. Both trees are loaded with fruit, so we’ll be enjoying that lemony goodness. All the greens love the cool and damp weather we’ve had this winter. Lots of kale,…
What’s Growing Now – January 2024
We are in full citrus season here. Our Satsuma mandarin orange is packed with fruit, along with the Meyer lemon and sweet lemon. Lettuce is going strong, as is cilantro, kale, and collards. They enjoy the cooler weather and thrive at this time of year. Also have peas and beets coming up. Garlic is already…
Creamy Mandarin Cilantro Dressing/Sauce
Creamy Vegan Dressing or Sauce from Mandarins and Cilantro Our Satsuma Mandarin orange tree is loaded with fruit. Time to find creative ways to use them all. We posted a tasty Mandarin Oatmeal Bar recipe earlier. Now time for a salad dressing/sauce. Along with those Mandarin oranges we have a good crop of cilantro and lettuce…
Mandarin Orange Oatmeal Bars
Tasty Vegan Mandarin Oatmeal Bars Our Satsuma Mandarin orange tree is loaded with fruit. Time to find creative ways to use them all. Here is a tasty and nutritious snack bar, or cake, we created using simple ingredients. The result is a wonderful chewy texture from the oatmeal with a hint of mandarin orange flavor.…
What’s Growing Now – October 2023
October was still quite warm with a few days of cooler weather indicating fall is on the way. The major harvest this month was digging 50 pounds of sweet potatoes. Summer crops like beans, squash, peppers, okra and tomatoes are still producing. For flowers, the okra, zinnias, coreopsis, hollyhocks, chocolate flowers, feverfew and marigolds continue…
What’s Growing Now – September 2023
September has felt a little cooler than normal, yet still warm weather for sure. We often still have hot weather in September, but this year was fairly pleasant on most days. The cooler weather for getting the next round of lettuce started (they don’t germinate well in the heat). Summer produce is still growing well,…
Marigold Photo Gallery
Marigolds are Blooming Our marigolds are filling the garden with their bright colors and pungent aromas. We plant marigolds for their pest deterring nature as well as their brilliant colorful flowers. Here in late summer and fall they are in full bloom, showing a beautiful variety of patterns in yellows, oranges and reds. Here is…
What’s Growing Now – August 2023
August is a full summer month with hot dry weather, except this year hurricane Hillary decided to head our direction. Before Hillary passed through we had temperatures well over 100 Fahrenheit (40 Celsius). The storm passed east of us but lowered the temperature significantly and dropped 3 inches or more (7-8 cm) of rain in…
What’s Growing Now – July 2023
July quickly turned into a hot summer month. The cool weather of June slowed the maturation of summer tomatoes, peppers and eggplants. They are now enjoying the warmer weather of July trying to make up for lost time. Tomatoes did not get ripe until the very end of July, a few weeks later than our…
Roasted Garlic Pesto
Creamy Roasted Garlic Pesto Garlic is harvested and basil is growing in our warm weather, so it must be pesto time! This recipe is a rich creamy version of pesto. It makes a great dip, sauce or salad dressing. Something different than traditional pesto. We used roasted garlic along with cashews to make a smooth…
What’s Growing Now – June 2023
June has generally been cool and grey. We call it our June gloom that follows the May grey. This time of year it is common to have a marine layer creep over the mountains to keep mornings overcast usually clearing late morning. This June we’ve had quite a few days staying cool and grey into…
Tapioca Slime Mold
What is tapioca slime mold? No, it is not one of our new recipes! Looking around the garden just a bit after 7 am in the morning, there was this white blob sitting on the mulch under the fig tree. First thought is maybe it is an unusual type of mushroom. However the surface texture…
What’s Growing Now – May 2023
May started off with a warming trend getting into the high 80’s (low 30’s for our metric friends), then dropped to high 60’s (around 20 Celsius) as our May grey settled in. It’s a typical pattern here where May and June get a strong marine layer bringing low clouds and overcast mornings, usually burning off…
Fava Bean & Garlic Scape Sauté
Fava Beans and Garlic Scapes Garlic scapes are a rare delicacy. Hard to find unless you grow your own hardneck garlic. The scapes are the flower stalk produced by garlic in late spring. We cut or snap off the scapes to focus growth into the garlic bulb. Those trimmings are a tasty treat with a…
Vegetable Garden Plant Families
Why talk about plant families? Understanding plant relationships and their shared characteristics enhances our appreciation of plants growing in the garden. Plants in the same family share common characteristics and ancestry. Knowing a plant’s family can give us insights on growing them and helps us see plants in a new perspective. For the gardener, understanding…
Asian Style Fava Greens
Fresh Fava Greens Our fava bean plants are prolific. See our April 2023 posting for more information about growing fava beans. We’ve started harvesting the young green shoots for some tasty dishes. They have a mild flavor, a bit like spinach greens. Use like other greens by steaming, sautéing or add to other dishes. Here…
What’s Growing Now – April 2023
April warmed up and after a wet March everything is growing! Wildflowers along with other plantings are blooming in abundance. The California poppies and lupines do a great job of spreading themselves around the whole garden. We also encourage the Shirley Poppies in shades of red and pink. Color all around. Walking into our April…
What’s Growing Now – March 2023
March started and ended with rainy weather. Nice for the green growing plants. Our Miner’s lettuce is thrilled with the cool wet weather! All the deep moisture should give us an abundance of wild flowers in the next couple months. Sounds from the garden this month were on the wet side. We heard some happy…
What’s Growing Now – February 2023
February came to a close by delivering a lot of rain for us. We had around 6 inches of rain in 2 days. Considering last season had just over 10 inches for the full year, this was significant! Major snow in our local Southern California Mountains left people snow-bound in 8 feet of snow! The…
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Zanganeh Garden 