Tuesday, April 7, 2009

Mint Tea & Recipe


The mint tea is finally peeking through. Before long we'll have a large mint garden with a variety of mints- spearmint, chocolate mint.
We enjoy tea free all summer (and all winter, until our dried tea leaves run out).
Though I am offering a simple basic recipe for homebrewed mint tea, we like to spice things up a bit. Replace the black tea with a favorite, use fresh garden grown stevia instead of sugar and lemon balm adds a nice lemony flavor without having to buy lemons! Feel free to change the recipe below to suite your taste.

7 cups water in pot
4 regular black tea bags
1 cup fresh mint leaves (I wrap them in a coffee filter w/ rubberband)
Bring tea to a boil, turn off burner & steep for 3-5 minutes.
Remove tea bags and add sugar (if you're using frsh Stevia, add that befoe boiling).
Pour into one gallon conatiner. Add cold water.
For added fun, put mint tea leaves in an empty ice cube tray, add water & freeze. Serve with homebrewed tea. Add lemon wedge to side of glass. Looks lovely.

On Penns Creek

Photo: Penns Creek, New Berlin, PA

Part of our plan to live life more fully included downsizing to a smaller house. Our bungalow is just the right size for three and sits right on the water. I have long been attracted to water and find I need to be near it. It offers me a sence of peace -for whatever reason.

The wrap around deck and front porch have several gliding and rocking seating pieces to sit upon and watch the water from. Staring at moving water, much like watching a fire burn, puts you in an almost transelike state; totally relaxed.

The bank beavers and muskrats will soon be bearing their young. Geese are nesting on the banks. The fish crane relaxes in the shallows. Birds of every variety are returning from their summer homes.

Though we spend much time playing in the water -as do our three dogs, this year we hope to enjoy more time on the water.

Our 2 new kayaks sit in the garage. Paddles have been ordered online. As soon as the weather warms, we will set out exploring the waterway that leads to the Susquehanna River (though I think we'll save river kayaking until we are a bit more advanced).


Compost makes the Garden


Keeping your garden healthy is the number one thing you can do to have a successful harvest.
We're lucky enough to live near a livestock auction that has a heaping pile of manure and bedding out back -and free for the taking. The compost in the middle of the pile has seasoned through the winter, making it a great addition to the garden (unseasoned compost can burn plants).
We put 3 pickup truck loads of seasoned compost on our plot this year (2 last year). Then our son-in-law came over with his dads rototiller and did a mix job on the garden. As you can see, we have fresh, dark, moist (but not wet) soil ripe for seeds.
We have another 2-4 weeks before we can plant in our zone.
In the meantime, I have purchased seeds and made some starter plants in little pots.

Chives


Chives were the first thing to start in the herb garden. Though I have established plants, I added a seed packet of chives a few weeks ago to assure a healthy harvest.
Cives has a very mild oniony flavor and can be used fresh or dried.
When July and August come and the tomato vines are full, we use fresh chives in our homemade pasta sauces.
The lambs ear is just poking through a fresh layer of well seasoned compost, as is the mint tea bed.

Mixed Lettuce


The spring lettuce mix is coming up nicely. Soon, it will cover the raised bed it's planted in like carpet, assuring not a single weed can plant itself among the tender roots.
I am not sure what the seed packages say about recommended seed width, but I always chose a mixed variety and sprinkle it about and it sorts itself out just fine. Being planted in such a tight patch, not only do the weeds stay out, but it doesn't seem to get dirty during rains either. If there is space in between the leaves (like with Romaine) when we have summer downpours the lettuce gets coated with mud sprinkles. This tight planting keeps the lettuce nice and clean all season.
When the lettuce matures, I just snip what I need with scissors and a few days later, new lettuce appears. It's almost magic.

Easy to Grow Garlic

Garlic is very easy to grow.
In the fall, take the seperate the outer cloves of garlic (see left) and plant in loose soil, rootside down. Garlic is a very friendly plant and grows well planted with other flowers and vegetables. We have ours planted to a lettuce bed. It's also one of the first things in the garden to sprout. Ours have been "out" for about 2 weeks. As garlic reaches maturity, the leaves will brown then die away. It's time to harvest your garlic crop (if you harvest too early the cloves will be very small, too late and the bulb will have split). It's essential that garlic is dried properly, otherwise it will rot. The bulbs are often hung up in a cool, dry place. After a week or so, take them down and brush the dirt off gently - don't wash the bulbs at this stage. Wash each bulb (or several cloves) as you need them.