Maggie Turner: Page by Page

It isn’t as hot as it was last week, but it isn’t pleasant out there nonetheless. Rain is predicted here for today, and quite a bit for tonight. One 1000 litre rain tank is full, the overflow rain barrels are full, and the second 1000 litre tank has about 250 litres of water, it might also be full by tomorrow, it he predicted 20-25 ml of rain falls. Everything looks good in the garden, with a few exceptions. The Peas are beginning to die off, but they aren’t big producers to start with. The Cabbages are being attacked by cabbage worms and flea beetles. We have been spraying with insecticidal soap, it is helping, but the Cabbage doesn’t like it. The Walking Onions got mildew again and are on the ground, we need to find another variety that is not vulnerable to mildew. This morning Attila brought in Swiss Chard, a Carrot, and a Zucchini for my lunch. The Zucchini are starting to get bigger now, and there are a lot of them, so soon I’ll be looking for ways to preserve Zucchini. I recently came across a mention of Zucchini “candy”, boiling in a Koolaid (I would use fruit … Continue reading →

The heat wave broke today, thank goodness. I’ve been sitting out on the back porch, or wandering around the garden, most of the day. Not only did the temperature fall to 25C, but it also rained. It has been weeks since a quenching rain has occurred here. Lawns had turned brown and crunchy, the earth in the garden was cracking. Attila watered the gardens every single day, using all of the 1200 litres of rain water that had been collected in the last big rain storm, and then having to depend on the municipal water supply to continue. The garden stayed green and healthy. Now that it has rained, the garden is downright lush. And we have about 700 liters of rain water collected in the rain tanks today. Who looks forward to rain? We do! Every day Attila brings me treasures from his gardens. Today it was a fresh carrot, a very small zucchini, and six large leaves of Swiss Chard. These were sauteed with chopped onion, and some edible pod peas that I picked this morning out of the garden. It seemed a waste to compost the carrot greens. After some research, a plan was devised for using … Continue reading →

It is HOT out there today. Stepping outside is exactly the same as stepping into a sauna. Attila worked out there all day long, in a place where he had to work close on very hot machines. He does this, he doesn’t complain. He arrives home looking haggard and exhausted. He bathes, he naps, he goes out to his garden, and he returns to the house refreshed, no matter the heat. The garden, I wish everyone who loved gardens could have one of their very own! Hot Dogs were the requested dinner for tonight. We a brand that we could order online with our groceries, with no nitrates, and they arrived earlier this week. I had made Hamburger Buns recently, but not Hog Dog Buns. So, at 6:20 a.m. this morning I began measuring ingredients into the bread machine, and by 9:30 a.m. this morning a dozen 100% Organic Whole Wheat Hot Dog Buns (low sodium of course) sat cooling on racks on the kitchen counter. While the oven was hot a batch of Maggie’s Oat Cakes were whipped up and baked for breakfast. Years ago I started with a recipe from a cookbook borrowed from the library, Out of … Continue reading →