Look at the size of this mushroom.  It's a chanterelle we picked here in the neighborhood.  I can't tell you exactly where we found it, but it IS a prize specimen.

 

It looks pretty dirty, but this one is fairly clean.  We've seen worse.  (Lots worse.)   A toothbrush and a little water will take care of that.  

 

But this is great.  We've had a fabulous year for mushrooms.   

 

HAPPY WET SUMMER!!!

 

Look what the cherry peppers are doing.  Now we can see why they're called cherry peppers.  

 

Aren't they cute?  Yeah, and HOT!!!  

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!!

 

We have picked a ton of kale, but it's still growing, and it is beautiful.  That's Dwarf Siberian kale in the front, and Nero di Toscana (dinosaur) kale behind it.

 

The dinosaur kale is almost as tall as I am.  I tried to take a selfie to show you, but I couldn't get us both in the picture.  You're welcome.  

 

We've learned how to can kale, so we will have some in the winter.  But there is also a great recipe for kale salad, perfect for summer.  It's under vegetables in the recipe section.  

 

I hope kale is part of your weekly diet.  It is so good.

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!!

 

It is still August, and look at all this color.  Our Black Gum Tree is in full Autumn mode.  Seems like it's changing daily.

 

Weather is getting cooler too.  We are back to having lunch on the porch.  

 

HAPPY SUMMER!!!

 

 

 

How bout this for pretty?  

 

We made this quiche using onions, chanterelle mushrooms and roasted peppers from the garden.  

 

Jon loves making pie crusts, and he's gotten really good at it.  And the rest of the recipe is from Nanny Barb.  You can find it in the recipe section under main dishes:  Nanny Barb's Onion Pie.  It's a great recipe, and easy.

 

This quiche will make 4 meals for the two of us.  So there's dinner for this week.  

 

HAPPY COOKING!!!

 

 

Look how pretty the zinnias are in Rosalie's garden this year.

 

I am ordering zinnias for my next year's garden.  I just love the mixed colors.  

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!!

 

I don't know if you have seen this map, but it is quite interesting.  I just found it when I was searching the site for something else.  Mark posted it years ago, but it's still accurate for the most part.  The big lot that was annexed isn't numbered, but the rest is pretty accurate.

 

Here's a bit of fun:  Orient yourself to the map, and then find your lot by its number.  

 

Looks different in 2D doesn't it?  If you go to Googlemaps you can see a satellite picture of our mountain. That's fun too.

 

HAPPY SUMMER!!!

 

We have seen this caterpillar on the parsley for the past few days.  Watching the caterpillar grow and the parsley get eaten.  That's OK.  

 

We love seeing Black Swallowtail butterflies.  They are so pretty.  Even the caterpillars are pretty.

 

The Black Swallowtails use parsley for their host plants.  They lay their eggs on the plants they want the caterpillars to eat when they hatch.  They love parsley, and they also like dill, fennel, Queen Anne's Lace, and lovage.  So we make sure to have lots for them to eat.  Don't mind sharing when we have lots.

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!!

 

 

 

Look who bloomed at our house...in the middle of the night.  Our Night-blooming Cereus.  

 

A couple weeks ago I noticed 4 tiny flower buds.  Over the next week two of them fell off, but the other two got bigger and bigger.  When the buds started turning up, we brought the whole thing inside.  And checked on it for the next couple nights.

 

On Wednesday at 9:30 pm the buds started to open up.  They were completely open at 10:15 pm, and making the whole basement smell wonderful.  That's when I took a bunch of pictures, and admired the blooms for about an hour.  

 

The flowers were still open and fragrant at 3:30 am, according to Jon and Gizmo.  

 

We love this plant, for these special summer nights.

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!!

 

 

 

Can you imagine anything as beautiful as this being called a "weed?"  Me too.  Some people call it Queen of the Meadow.

 

We always love seeing Joe Pye "weed" blooming all over town,  all along the side of the road.  We haven't seen any in the neighborhood lately, but they are all along the road to Murphy and Blairsville.  

 

Joe Pye weed is tall:  about 6-8 feet, and when it blooms, this beautiful pink crown tops the plants.  I hope you notice them in your travels.

 

HAPPY GARDENING!!!