Easy Recipes From The Garden

I was happy to discover the other day that the peach tree on our property has many, many small peaches growing on it. The little green peaches are about the size of two side by side marbles, and are smooth and fuzzy to the touch.

What’s disappointing is that many of them have a tiny little hole in them, indicating a pest problem - oriental fruit moth. The moth lays an egg or two on the fruit, which hatch into little worms that dig into the fruit and set up camp.

I did some research, and it seems early and frequent spray applications with an insecticide like Imidan does the trick. You must begin spraying in very early spring to help alleviate the problem - immediately after petals drop, or even before all the blossoms are gone.

To keep spraying all summer long, it’s important to protect the fruit. It’s been recommended to bag the peaches in zip top sandwich bags with the corners cut off for drainage, and the plastic above the zip strip also cut off. After the final thinning of peaches and the fruits are bagged, they are safe from the pests; however, a new pest may emerge. Earwigs may crawl up the trunk and move their creepy little selves in the bags, so check the bags often.

I love getting deals and discounts in the mail, so I was happy to hear about the Home Depot Garden Club. When you sign up, you’ll receive a coupon for buy one get one on any shrub. The coupon is good from May 23 through June 12 - just in time to get a couple of new shrubs planted in your garden to add some nice summertime color.

If you are not a member, you can sign up here. Be sure to check the box for: “YES! Send me The Garden Club Newsletter E-mails featuring exclusive offers and coupons!”

I’ve had my eye on a couple of hydrangea bushes - I’ve always wanted a white on - and now is the perfect time to purchase them and get them planted.

One of the best ways to guarantee fresh herbs all summer is to grow your own. Herbs are super easy to grow and the flavor and convenience can’t be beat. Most herbs will happily grow in pots or containers, and with a little care, will thrive all summer long - either on your window ledge or in the garden. Place plants in a sunny spot in your home and water regularly, and you’ll have fresh herbs to use all summer - and longer if you care well for them.

You can either purchase seed packets and start the plants from those, following the instructions on the packets, or buy established plants. Plants can be found at your local nursery, as well as Home Depot or Lowes, and in the produce or nursery section of large grocery stores.

I love to eat fruits and veggies, but sometimes when I wash apples I can never seem to get that film off of them. Somehow, water and a cloth just doesn’t seem to cut it.

Even if you purchase organic produce, it can be sprayed with natural substances such as sulfur, copper, dolomite, Bacillius Thuringensis, and diatomaceous earth, according to the Berkeley Farmers’ Markets website .

If you want something more to clean your produce, here’s a simple recipe to make your own fruit and veggie wash.

In a glass measuring cup, mix together:

1 tbsp. organic lemon juice

2 tbsp. baking soda

1 cup purified water

 
Pour the mixture in a spray bottle. To use it, simply spray produce well with the wash, let it sit for a few minutes, then rinse and eat.

As we try to go greener, we’re finding new ways to re-use and repurpose items around the house. A recent addition to our eco-friendly repetoire is saving our dish water. No, really. We keep a large, clean bucket in the sink and use it when we hand wash dishes. Then, when we’re done, we take the water outside and use it to water the garden. (It’s also a good time to take out the ever-filling compost container we keep on the counter as well - two trips in one!)

Be sure to use a biodegradable dish soap, such as Seventh Generation or Method.

Here’s a trick to getting free or low-cost gardening supplies: use Freecycle and Craigslist. Sure, you’ve used Craigslist to apply for a job or unload some items in lieu of a garage sale, but it’s also a fantastic resource for finding items you need at no cost – other than the cost of picking up the item. Freecycle is an international non-profit group whose goal is to keep items out of the landfills that can otherwise still be used, and building communities at the same time. Local chapters, which are run through Yahoo Groups, can be found on the Web site. Membership is free, and members can post items they no longer need or request items they want.

I’ve been keeping an eye on my local Freecycle and have seen free pots, plants, seeds, mulch, and more change hands. In addition, many members put up their excess plants as they thin out their perennials and gardens.

Craigslist is a free classified ad Web site with local sections. Each Craigslist has a “Free” section, where anyone can post items they wish to give away. An “Items Wanted” section is available as well, where you can post request for specific things. There is also a “Farm & Garden” section, where you might find items you’re looking for.

Happy swapping!

As the price of groceries continue to climb, and our interest in organic and natural foods  also rises, the hubs and I have decided to implement a new plan: we will instill an edible landscape around our home. No more purchasing flowering trees just because they are pretty (sorry, yellow Magnolia tree - how I admired you so). Instead, we will plant trees that have pretty flowers that also bear fruit (hello, peach and apple trees, and aforementioned cherry trees). Many herbs are also quite nice to look at and interesting in a garden, such as rosemary (which is almost an evergreen shrub-like plant than an herb-looking plant) and parsley. And you can’t go wrong with a row or two of lettuce and some tomato plants.

No, we’re not going to just plant annuals to fill in the bare spots around the gardens. Instead, we’ll tuck in a few bunches of buttercrunch lettuce around the bare spots, and landscape with plants we can also eat from. However - we’re not going to pull what’s already planted; that seems counter-productive to me. What we will do is place edibles as new plants around the house, and maybe eventually replace the non-edibles over time.

At the start of May, most farmers’ markets have begun operation. Farmers’ markets are a great resource for gardeners, as the farmers themselves can help you to select good produce and even give you tips and advice on growing your own. Plants are also readily available - and a good place to find organic, natural and very healthy plants to grow in your own garden.

Of course, it’s also a good place to go if you want fresh fruits, vegetables, herbs, plants and more. The produce you’ll find is locally grown (most markets require that produce come from within a certain distance) and fresh as can be. In fact, many stands offer organic produce.

To locate your nearest farmers’ market, visit Local Harvest.

It’s not Spring to me until I begin to see the stalks of asparagus poking out of the dirt in my garden. It has finally begun to break through the earth, and yesterday we had enough to actually cook it as a side dish.

Asparagus’ fresh and distinctive flavor is best preserved as is, with little added flavor or heavy sauces. For a fresh and simple way to prepare asparagus try this:

Wash and cut stalks into three-inch pieces.

Scatter in a baking sheet and top with one-inch strips of bacon (turkey bacon or regular bacon each work well)

Roast in a 425-degree oven for about 20 minutes, or until asparagus is to desired texture.

The bacon adds extra flavor and coats the veggie with a light sauce, softening it and making it absolutely delicious.