Well, after a long cold winter that had us slipping and sliding all the way out to our cars, trucks and buses, we can just now see the light at the end of the tunnel – or should I say the thaw at the end of the freeze.

It won’t be long until crocuses poke their little colorful heads out of the ground to take a first glimpse at the all new – redesigned spring weather for 2013.  Well the weather isn’t much of a change from 2012, but you catch my drift.

So, what are you going to do with your gardening this year?  Is it an extension of last year, or a break away new direction for your little plot of heaven?  Is it veggies or flowers this year; or a combination of both?  Want to expand to a bigger climbing garden, or get your feet wet in beginning one?

The first thin to do is to begin thinking about what your new goals might be.  What about the size of your garden? Is it appropriate for the size of your property?  Are you over planting or under planting?  Maybe you have the room, but don’t have the time or energy to work a bigger garden.  Gardening takes both.  Over ambition leads to an over-whelming project that may make have you regretting you didn’t plan to pull in the rains when you were planing in the spring – which is now!

A little planning will go a long way to enjoying your garden as it blooms into an explosion of fragrance and color!

Each Thanksgiving for the past several years, I have made a holiday Cranberry sauce.  In the Mid-Western part of the United States the tradition of Thanksgiving is closely related to not only what blessings have been granted over the year, but what foods will be consumed on this day of feasting.  This years sauce is a bit on the tangy side, but can be sweetened to taste by adding more sugar, Splenda®, or honey.

1. Wash berries in a strainer or colander, and place in a proper sized pot on the stove on medium heat.
2. Add all ingredients.
3. Stir pot.
4. wash outside of orange(s) because some of the outside of the peel will be used in the sauce.
5. Zest the orange peel by holding it over the pot and scraping the peel with a fork or use a potato peeler, and scrape off the thinnest possible slices an place in the pot.
6. As berries begin to start popping, set timer for 15 minutes and start timer.
7. Continue stirring occasionally.
8. When timer is done, remove from heat and pour into shallow bowl(s).
9. Set aside to cool (perhaps in a spot on the back porch secure from animals)
10. Can be served warm (not hot), or chilled in the refrigerator overnight.

This is my recipe for Thanksgiving 2012.

Vincent’s 2012 Cranberry Sauce Recipe – Single Batch

• 1 Bag of whole cranberries
• 1 cups of Orange Juice
• a handful of raisins
• 1 Medium oranges – squeezed & partially zested
• 8 to 10 Grapes of your choice
• 6 Whole Cloves
• 1 Cups of sugar
• .5 cup of Apple Cider
• 1 Washington Apple – or your apple of choice

This is a jumbo batch. Really 3 batches together; designed for keeping some, and having some to take to other dinners or to give away.

Vincent’s 2012 Cranberry Sauce Recipe – 3 Batches

• 3 Bags of whole cranberries
• 1.5 cups of Orange Juice
• a handful of raisins – or more to taste
• 2 Medium oranges – squeezed & partially zested
• 20 Grapes of your choice
• 10 Whole Cloves
•  3 Cups of sugar
• 1 cup of Apple Cider
• 1 or 2 Washington Apples – or your apple of choice

With Father’s Day coming this sunday, why not give him the perfect gift. That is, the perfect gift certificate!  What better place to grab all of that gardening glory, than Amazon.com?  Amazon has about anything and everything your ‘daddy with the green thumb’ could want for his Earthen Garden, and a lot of things he may not have even thought of!

OR

Anyway you look at it Dad will be gardening with his new toys in no time and you saved a trip to the store!

If you’re looking for plants to add to along with his gift card, check out my friend’s (and Earthen Garden contributor) site: http://paulasplantplugs.com/index.html

Paula grows ‘Plant Plugs’ from seedlings, and has a wide variety of unique plants to choose from.  All of her stock is full of life, and grown with the best soil, best fertilizers and of course Paula’s tender loving care!

Have a wonderful father’s day all of you dads out there, and don’t forget to give a special hug to all of your little ones – no matter what their age!

What could be be better than adding the visual excitement of containers full of beauty and having some fresh herbs to use for tonight’s dinner?  Well quite a lot of things are better, but my point is beauty and taste –  it’s a good thing!

Chives bloom in the late spring with an elegant purple blossom!

Being the gardener that you are, you probably have plenty of containers to plant in, but if you don’t, or you are looking to make a statement; try finding something unique  - maybe even something re-cycled to plant in.

Potted containers of plants sit in an old 'Radio Flyer' red wagon surrounded by the Earthen Garden in full bloom at the MSU Tollgate garden.

Try tubs, trays, barrels, old watering cans, wooden boxes and more.  I’ve even seen cardboard boxes, wagons (seen above), sinks and even a row boat (as seen below)!  Just be careful to make sure you have proper drainage.  Solid containers will not let the water out, and hence will drown or rot the roots of your plants quicker that you can say “Allium schoenoprasum”.

This row boat makes a large and unique container for planting.

Speaking of allium schoenoprasum, (better known as) ‘chives’ make a nice center piece for your pot because of the hight that they will attain.  They also offer a petite purpleish bloom in the late spring, and give a mild onion flavor on your salad.  You may already have some growing in your Earthen Garden that are large enough to divide. Simply dig part of the clump including root ball of course, and re-pot. Badda-bing-badda-boom!

Annual herbs that work well in container gardens are:

Parsley (Petroselinum crispum)
Basil (Ocimum basilicum)
Coriander (Coriandrum sativum)
Dill (Anethum graveolens)

Sweet marjoram (Origanum majorana) is sown in the late spring and is known as a half-hardy annual. Chervil (Anethum cerefolium) is a biennial that is considered as hardy as an annual, and can be sown from late winter to mid-autumn.

Perennials that are ideal for container herb gardening are:

Evergreen Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis)
Chives (Allium schoenoprasum)
Mint (Mentha spicata)
Sage (Salvia officinalis)
Marjoram (Origanum vulgare)
Fennel (Foeniculum vulgare)

You may consider keeping the Mint in a pot by itself because it tends to be invasive.  Two more tall shrubs that should be kept in their own containers are laurel and sweet bay (Laurus nobilis).  Herbs are not crazy about a hard freezing, so keep in a cool garage or greenhouse over the winter in colder zones.

On Wednesday, May 23, 2012 Paula Kraus will be giving a presentation at the Novi Public Library from 7:00 pm to 8:00 pm.  The topic will be “Container Gardening with Culinary and Scented Herbs.”

The presentation is to geared toward introducing a variety of culinary / scented herbs to the attendees.  During the course of the presentation Paula will cover the standard container garden materials list, and will give her tips to keep container plants thriving throughout the growing season.

Using a selection of scented herbs, Paula will discuss the basic container garden design elements, and give a hands-on demonstration of assembling a container garden.  The finished container herb garden will be offered at the end of the presentation as a free raffle prize.  Come and join the fun!

The Novi Public Library is located at - 45344 W 10 Mile Road, Novi MI  48375.  The contact phone number is 248 349-0720.

Paula Kraus is a Master Gardner and owner of ‘Paula’s Plant Plugs’ - http://paulasplantplugs.com/index.html and ‘Seven Sisters Herb ‘N Garden’. She specializes in herb gardening, landscape restoration and plant plug horticulture.

Tomorrow morning, just as you get ready to hop in the shower, look around for a partner to join in the water-fest!  That’s right, grab one of your favorite plants like a spider plant and bring it in with you.  When you think about it, your houseplants don’t get the natural wind to ‘dust’ the leaves, or the rain shower that outdoor plants do, so the leaves of indoor house plants can accumulate small dust particles that will build up over time and diminish the amount of light that gets to the leaves, and the amount of air that will be available to your plant.

Here are a few guidelines to keep in mind:

Do not over water your plant – Some plants like to be kept very dry for periods of time before being watered (like the spider plant in my example).  These plants will usually show you they need water by exhibiting droopy leaves and possibly a minor amount of browning of the leaf tips.  Once they get to this stage, it’s off to the shower for a refreshing aqua-spa-rejunvination!

Be careful of the water temperature – Just think of climbing into an ice cold shower first thing in the morning.  Yikes!  Your plant may react the same way to overly hot water.  If you’re a person that likes near scalding water in the shower, try backing off on the hot for the sake of the plant or plants.

Be careful not to trip over the potted plant – A good place for the plant is in the front of the tub or shower stall.  The water spray will most often be reflecting off of the shower curtain, the walls and you – creating a softer spray or mist. More importantly, you will always know where the pot is, and will not bump into it, causing you to loose your balance.  If you have any hesitancy remember: “when in doubt, leave it out.”  Better not to risk injuring yourself.

If you have a hand-held shower massager like the Delta Faucet 75700 Universal 7-Setting Handshower or the Peerless 76950 2-in-1 Shower System, make sure the massage feature is not turned on.  Too strong of a water spray can damage sensitive foliage and create unnecessary stress for your little green friend.

Thanks to everyone that came out to last night’s presentation on Herbs to Enhance Our Lives.  It was a wonderful group, and quite a crowd!

Here is the information I promised you about Harvesting and Preserving Herbs.  Enjoy the information and the Basic Herbal Vinegars recipe!

I have included a PDF of the information below for those who want to download it.

Don’t forget to check out my website at http://paulasplantplugs.com/index.html

Happy Gardening!

Paula Kraus

 herb-harvesting.pdf

General Guidelines:

• It is best to harvest herbs before a plant flowers; take cuttings in the early morning to maintain highest amount of essential oils.

• Pinch back flowers regularly, even if you are not harvesting. This helps the plant bush out more, produces more leaves

• Never cut off more than 50% of a plant at one time.

• It is easier to gather and dry (or otherwise preserve) small amounts of cuttings throughout the season. So, keep a couple of rattan paper plate holders handy to air dry your small batches of cutting on top of the refrigerator.

• Herbs that taste best frozen, not dried: chives, parsley, basil and tarragon. Freezing is a better way to preserve the flavor.Any of these can be dried, but will have best flavor if frozen instead.

• Freezing – Finely chop the leaves and fill an ice cube tray with them. Top with water and freeze.1 ice cube of frozen herbs are equal to 1 teaspoon of dried.

Methods of Preserving:

Drying, Freezing, Flavoring Oils, Vinegars, Butters and Jellies

• Drying – Bundle and hang upside down, in a dark, warm, airy place.

• Oils – 2 large (or 3 – 4 small) springs of an herb in up to 3 cups of oil. Daily, gently shake daily for minimum of 2 weeks. Keep refrigerated.

• Vinegar – 1 cup of herbs per 4 cups of vinegar. Daily, gently shake, test after 2 weeks.

• Butters: add finely chopped herbs softened butter and freeze until needed.

Basic Herbal Vinegars

Supplies Needed:

4 cups of a vinegar of your choice

1 cup of herb(s), rinsed and patted dry

1 clean jar for steeping

Paper coffee filters to filter vinegar

Non-metal funnel

Sealable, sterilized bottle for storing, with a non- reactive lid

 

Bruise the leaves of the herb(s) and put into a clean glass jar. Pour the vinegar over the herbs and cover (with non-metal lid). Shake the jar once a day for at least a week. Sample the vinegar after 7-10 days. If you like the flavor at that point, pour the vinegar through a paper coffee filter into a sterilized bottle in which you will store the final product.

Discard the bruised leaves and put a couple of fresh sprigs into the jar. Cover the jar with the lid and seal with paraffin if you choose. Label and date your product.

To insure clear, unclouded vinegar be sure that the rinsed herbs have no water droplets on them prior to adding to the vinegar.

Paula Kraus is a Master Gardner and owner of ‘Paula’s Plant Plugs’ - http://paulasplantplugs.com/index.html and ‘Seven Sisters Herb ‘N Garden’. She specializes in herb gardening, landscape restoration and plant plug horticulture.

“Are you ready for some ‘Exotic Love’?”  WOW, look at all of the hands shoot up!  Well, let me rephrase that – “Are you ready for some ‘Exotic Love’ in your garden?” Okay, okay, everyone can put their hands down now.  ”How about a little Mini Lobata?” Great!  Now I know who the real gardeners are!

This awesome annual vine choice is called – you guessed it – ‘Exotic Love’ (aka Fire cracker) vine.  Botanical name: Ipomea lobata aka Mini Lobata. This vine will make a perfect addition to your Earthen Garden, but requires full sun and has a mature height of 8 to 10 ft high. There are multiple flowers per arching tendrils. The color of each flower ranges from orange at the base to pale yellow, then white at the tip. Use as filler / spillers in a fall flower bouquet. Exquisite!

You’ll find this climber easy to grow from seed, although it takes three to four months from seed to flower.  Consider finding this plant as a plantplug.  If you choose to grow from seed, here’s an insider tip.  To get the fastest germination use the outer edge of a pair of finger nail cutters to barely nick the ridge of the hard shell. Then soak the seeds over-night. Plant the now-swollen seeds in a professional potting media and wait for the sprouts to pop. Start indoors 5 – 6 weeks before the final predicted frost date.

Germination takes about 7 – 10 days at a temperature of 65 degrees. Additional light is required to keep the seedling from stretching to the point they become weak and leggy. You will need a grow light bulb or a shop-light set up on an adjustable length cable. Keep the light approximately 2 inches above the tips of the seedlings.

As the last frost date approaches you will need to harden off the seedlings by leaving them outside, in a sheltered area, for just a few hours each day. Add a couple more hours and a little less shelter after the first week. After the last frost, plant your vines near a support structure … a fence, trellis, light or mail post.. This gem climbs 10 – 20 ft high… or long, if you let it stretch out in your Earthen Garden on your favorite fence!

Like the Beatles said: “All you need is (exotic) love!”

Paula Kraus is a Master Gardner and owner of ‘Paula’s Plant Plugs’ - http://paulasplantplugs.com/index.html and ‘Seven Sisters Herb ‘N Garden’. She specializes in herb gardening, landscape restoration and plant plug horticulture.

Paula Kraus, Advanced Master Gardener and Earthen Garden (http://earthengarden.com) guest columnist, will be a guest speaker at Novi, Michigan Public Library on May 23, 2012.  Paula will introduce us to a variety of culinary / scented herbs throughout her presentation.  She will cover suggested container garden materials and offer tips to keep container plants thriving through the growing season. Using a selection of scented herbs, Paula will demonstrate basic container garden design elements, and assemble a container garden to be offered as a free raffle prize!  If time permits, she will also demonstrate how to make a basic ‘basil pesto’  for audience tasting.

Paula Kraus is a Master Gardner and owner of ‘Paula’s Plant Plugs’ - http://paulasplantplugs.com/index.html and ‘Seven Sisters Herb ‘N Garden’. She specializes in herb gardening, landscape restoration and plant plug horticulture.

It’s a great new year – It’s 2012!  Yes, it’s finally here!  The year the Mayan people threw in the towel and said “Im done – I’m tired of making calendars.  Let’s go get a beer!” I guess it had to happen sometime.

A lot of people think this is the last year of the world – the end of all time – the end days.  But, why now?  Why in my lifetime?  I mean, I’ve been a good guy.  I’ve paid my bills on time and been a decent father to my kids, and a good mate to my – er, mate.  Couldn’t the Mayans have put the ‘end of the world as we know it’ off for maybe another couple of thousand years?  Maybe even just a few hundred years? Would it have killed them to continue the calender even if their heart wasn’t in it?  Ya know, to give us new-age earthlings a handful more of generations of carbon-based humanoid life forms.

Okay, I think I can hear someone out there saying “yea, give us some more time to destroy ourselves with nuclear holocaust.” See, and that’s just the attitude that keeps us all in despair.  I think the world’s population is on the brink of a golden era. A time of great peace and joy.  A season of prosperity unlike any other in recent, or even distant history.  “Let the sun shine in!  Open up your heart and let the sun shine in – sing along with the fifth Dimension!” , isn’t that how the song goes?  Something like that anyway.  I always had mixed feeling about that song, but I’m diggin’ it more now than ever before, because it is so uplifting!

That’s what we need more of in the world.  We need positive expression.  We need to release our inner happiness to the world.  What’s that you say?  Maybe there isn’t a whole lot of ‘positive’ to go around these days? Well, I think there is.  I believe we just need to express it more openly, and more often.  If everyone would turn off the damn TV - stop listening to the hate mongers on the news, and begin interacting with their fellow man/woman, I believe the true joy within us will become so evident that it will be undeniably overwhelming!  If we all start tuning out the television’s negative message of gloom and doom, and tune into our family and friends and neighbors, we will see that we are a much happier civilization than we are told by the media.

Maybe the Mayans just got fed up with the work involved making that calendar, and decided to rejoice in the beauty of the day.  Bathe in the wonderment of the ‘now’, and let distant future generations wake up, and realize that they need to do the same.  Maybe “happy is what happy does.” Maybe 2012 is the new beginning we all have needed – it just took the ancients to open our eyes to the joyful life we all should be living! Anyway, that’s my ’2012 new years wish’ to the world.

Keep lettin’ that sun shine on in…