The Ocean

I had the pleasure of spending several days at the ocean recently. The richness of the seashore never ceases to delight me, amaze me, and calm me. The memory that sustains me as I slog through the end of a long hot summer is floating on my back, gazing at the sky and its billowing white clouds, just beyond where the waves break, being gently rocked in the arms of the tepid salty water. It was, indeed, all good.

The August Butterfly Garden

A sampling of the critters who have taken up residence in the butterfly garden I've been working on this summer! The little yellow and white striped fellow on the milkweed and the tiny orange and white speck on the top of the blue salvia were incredibly beautiful. It was phenomenal to be surrounded by these creatures as I worked on the garden this Saturday and Sunday morning in the humid August air. The pre-school children will return to school tomorrow morning. I am so hopeful they will enjoy the new garden space. While more work remains to be done, the garden has really come along in the last couple of months.

Ode to Potatoes

Potatoes are, to my family, one of the most beloved of all summer crops. My grandfather, every year, grew a huge crop of Kennebecs in his garden. Potatoes commanded a lion's share of the garden space, along with Rutgers tomatoes, dahlias, zinnias, lettuce, gooseberries, Straight Eight cucumbers and onions. There was no greater joy than traipsing out to the garden with grandpa to watch him plunge his shovel into the earth to unearth the potatoes. We would anxiously grab the potatoes as they rolled out of the soil.

My brother is carrying on the potato tradition in his garden. My grandfather grew potatoes to provide food for his family and his sons' families, like so many people of his day. My brother, on the other hand, grows potatoes for their unique shapes, flavors and textures. Better yet, he likes to share the fruits of his labors. Pictured above are the three varities he grew this year which he has graciously shared with me. On the left is the King Harry, which I have not yet tasted. In the middle are the Russian Fingerlings. On the right are the Island Sunshines. I have had both the Russian Fingerling and the Island Sunshine, with the Island Sunshine being my favorite. The Island Sunshines are medium yellow in color, and incredibly creamy in texture. My first experience with a yellow potato was the Yukon Gold. They are widely sold now in almost all grocery stores. While the Yukon Gold is good, how much more wonderful is a potato with the name Island Sunshine! Cooked gently, skins on, with butter, and a smattering of salt and pepper! It just doesn't get much better than that.

If you have the good fortune to have a generous brother who is willing to share his garden treasures, then you are indeed blessed. If you do not have such a brother, then head to the local farmer's market to look over their offerings. You are bound to find some equally wonderful potato varieties. You will find that the products offered in Farmer's Markets are grown by people who have an abiding love of the land. Their products are freshly harvested and bursting with flavor. While you may not be able to experience the joy of watching the vegetables being dug from the earth, you will enjoy the wonderful flavors and textures of locally produced food.

A Golden Summer Night

As we sat on the back porch enjoying our Sunday evening dinner, which included the gazpacho, the world outside the confines of the porch became suffused with a beautiful golden glow. Though the camera, my husband's Iphone, did not capture the intensity of the color, I used it in a pinch because I was afraid the color would vanish while I went to collect my camera.

Gazpacho - With a Twist

The addition of jalapeno pepper, lime juice, and cilantro gives a classic gazpacho an updated flavor. A dollop of sour cream and homemade croutons round out the cold summer treat. The recipe is as follows:

2 large tomatoes, peeeled

1/2 medium cucumber, seeded

1 medium green pepper

1/2 jalapeno pepper

1/2 sweet onion

2 cloves garlic

3 cups tomato juice

1/4 cup white vinegar

1/4 cup olive oil

1 tbsp. lime juice

2 tsp. worcestershire sauce

1 tbsp. cilantro, chopped

1/2 tsp. pepper

Salt to taste

Chop tomatoes, cucumber, green pepper, jalapeno pepper, onion, and garlic roughly. Pulse in food processor until very finely chopped, but not pureed. Add all ingredients and chill. The longer the soup is chilled, the more intensified the flavors. Serve with a dollop of sour cream and croutons. See recipe below for croutons.

2 slices French or other crusty bread cut into small cubes

1/2 tbsp. olive oil

1 tbsp. butter

1 glove garlic, crushed

Dash red pepper

2 tbsp. finely grated Parmesan Reggiano

Heat olive oil and butter in skillet until butter melts. Add cubed bread all at once and stir to blend in olive oil and butter. Cook bread on medium until bread begins to color on all sides. Add crushed garlic for the last couple of minutes of cooking. Remove from heat and stir in Parmesan cheese.

Painted Lady

This is the house painting project I have been following this summer. The house is owned by a young couple. They have a beautiful young daughter. The couple is painting the home themselves. For the past several weeks, they haven't made a lot of progress. Who could blame them? It's been "hot as blazes"! And, after an abbreviated dry spell, it has started to rain, and I mean great big flooding rain, yet again.

The old colors are the barn red and goldish orange. The new colors, taken from a historic palette, are olive green, dark green, purple, and, I think, creamy yellow. They weren't sure about the creamy yellow when I last talked with them, but I think I am seeing touches of it now. I absolutely love the purple.

As they make progress on their home, I will take more photos to share with you.

Saguaro Cactus Project

The photo, at left, is of several saguaro cacti which have been grown by my mother for the past 11 years on the window sill in her kitchen. The plants originally started as seeds in a package much like the one pictured.
The photo, at right, by Judy Hedding, is of a giant saguaro cactus at home in the desert.

The saguaro cactus is the image we all associate with the desert. The saguaro (the "guar" is pronounced "war") is found only in portions of Arizona and California. The cactus, which grows very slowly, may achieve a height of 50 feet and live for 200 years.

11 years ago, my brothers visited Scottsdale. They bought a package of saguaro cactus seeds for our mom as a souvenir. Mom,by the way, can grow anything. Her thumb is one of the "greenest" I know. She dutifully planted those seeds and they germinated. The plants were so very tiny. They grew so very slowly. She has cherished, nurtured, and protected those cacti for the past 11 years. She has told us she must return them to the desert from which they came.

As luck would have it, her grandson has settled in Scottsdale, where he works as a pharmacist. He is getting married there this fall. Mom and dad are going to the wedding with my brother and me. She is eager to take her pot of cacti with her to plant them in the desert. I am anxious for her to come full circle with her 11 year endeavor. I have contacted an organization in Scottsdale about the possibility of having the cacti planted in a conservancy. I don't want to her plant those cacti in just any old plot of desert sand. I wish for them to be as protected and cherished as they have been for the past 11 years. I'll let you know how this project progresses in the weeks ahead.

Drama on the North Forty

My husband and I arrived home this evening at about the same time. We are always greeted by Mama, the outdoor cat. Mama behaves much more like a dog than a cat, coming when called and generally "dogging" our steps as we move about outside. Tonight our sweet grey cat with the white tipped tail was nowhere to be seen.

After changing into some comfortable clothes, I went to the garden to pick some vegetables - tomatoes, peppers, and cucumbers. Yum. My little friend did not follow me as she normally does. When I returned to the house, my husband asked me if the cat had turned up. I could sense some concern in his voice because Mama is so very predictable. So, he took a turn around the North Forty calling her name. Yep, our neighbors probably think us daft, strolling around the yard, calling for Mama, over and over again. I joined my husband in the front yard where there sat our beloved cat, on a branch 20 feet off the ground in one of the oak trees. A huge cat sat below her, I guess, daring her to come down. The brute was summarily chased away.

Mama walked back and forth between two branches, meowing non-stop. I suggested that we call the Fire Department to assist us in getting her out of the tree. Isn't that the classic thing to do when your cat is stuck in a tree? My husband just gave me one of those looks. We decided, instead, to give her some time, hoping she would back down out of the tree, as we have seen her do before. We entreated her to come down in our most soothing voices. We walked away from her, hoping she would want to follow us. No deal. This time, she was just too high in the tree to get herself down. I think she was afraid. I know I would have been.

When it became clear she had no intention of removing herself from her perch, my husband went to the neighbor's house to borrow his aged red wooden extension ladder. We placed it up against the tree, and my husband tentatively began to make his way up the rickety ladder toward Mama. My job was to try to hold the ladder steady (and break his fall, I suppose, should the ladder give way). I did volunteer to climb the ladder, though not with abundant enthusiasm.

When he approached her, she wasn't too keen about letting go of the branch. He finally managed to pry her claws free, and steadied her against his side. He slowly backed down the ladder and when he was still about 10 feet from the ground, Mama bounded out of his arms. She must have sensed that she could survive a leap from 10 feet. She landed with a thud on all four feet and fled the scene.

Once she had composed herself, she circled in for a long pet, some food and water, and a nap. She spent most of the evening recovering from her angst filled day. She is sleeping now. The rickety red ladder is back in the neighbor's garage, awaiting its next adventure. The fire department was not called to the rescue. And, my husband saved the day. He's such a sucker for Mama.

All is well.

A Few Favorite Things - Containers

Macho fern in cast iron footed container. I love the bulby shape and rim of this pot. As the fern grows, it will cascade down over the sides, but still remain suspended above the ground. The interplay between the rusty brown and yellowish-green will be luscious.


Resin container with fledgling plants. This classic lines of this container spoke to me. In time, a profusion of purple, dark rosy pink, lavender and white flowers will wreath this magnificent pot, at least I hope so. It sits in shade in the morning, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it will bloom.


Homemade round hypertufa with impatiens & hosta. I'll show you how to make hypertufa some day. It's good fun. This is the first trough I made. It is pretty basic - round and shallow with a rough aged texture, achieved with a wire brush. I like the rustic grey look of the trough as it sits on a stone wall. These troughs also are striking when planted with succulents.


Chubby clay pot of mixed plants. This non-descript little pot is perfect for the purpose for which it is being used. It sits amid a grouping of pots of all shapes. Its stout little shape appealed to me and is a nice counterpoint to the shapes of the other pots in the group. It has taken on a beautiful patina as it has aged.

Boxwood in old clay pot. Years ago, I found this pot and his brother at Sam's Club. They have graced the front entry to my home ever since. I think these two pots signalled the beginning of my fascination with containers. Look how wonderfully they have aged! Over the years, the pots have been planted with flowers, grasses, notably penisetum rubrum, and other types of evergreens. The current planting is my favorite, but probably won't last too much longer. I have to remove the evergreens from time to time when the roots become too large, so as not to break the pot.

Pizza!

When I was a little girl, I never understood why my mom's cookbooks looked so distressed. I was determined to keep my cookbooks looking brand spanking new . This is my pizza cookbook, and I am incredibly proud to say it looks every bit as distressed as any of my mother's. What I see in my dog-eared cookbooks is life well lived. The stains and tattered pages are, I guess, kind of like me - a little dog-eared, a little the worse for wear, showing a few wrinkles, but loved, lived, and holding up rather well.

The cookbook is The Great Chicago-Style Pizza Cookbook by Pasquale Bruno, Jr. and I purchased one for myself and one for my brother about 20 years ago at Carfagna's, my favorite Columbus Ohio grocery. It has been in regular use in our households since then.

Now on to Pizza!

This is my very favorite pizza dough, about to be parbaked in a 475 degree oven for about 4 or 5 minutes. Note it has been pricked all over with a fork. The parbaking will give the crust its initial rise. The toppings would compress the dough if I did not cook it just a little bit first.

This is the almost done pizza - hot Italian sausage on one half, pepperoni on the other, with a scattering of fresh onions over all of it. The toppings sit atop the tomato mixture, which sits atop the cheese. It's sort of an upside down pizza. Here is the recipe as written by Pasquale. I'll give you my adaptations afterward.

Deep-Dish Pizza No. 1

Dough

1 1/2 packages active dry yeast

1/2 cup warm water (105 - 115 degree F)

1 tbsp. sugar

3 1/2 cups unbleached flour

1 tsp. salt

1/2 cup yellow cornmeal

1/4 cup vegetable oil

1/2 cup warm water

Topping

1 28 oz can Italian style plum tomatoes, drained and crushed by hand

1 tsp dried basil or 2 tsp. fresh basil

1 tsp. oregano

Salt to taste

10 oz. mozzarella cheese, sliced thin

1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

1/2 lb. Itallian sausage, casing removed

Olive oil

Dough: Dissolve the yeast in the 1/2 cup of warm water. Add the sugar and stir well. Set aside. In a large mixing bowl combine 3 1/2 cups of flour, salt, and cornmeal. Make a well in the center of the flour. Add the yeast mixture, the vegetable oil, and the 1/2 cup of water. Stir and mix thoroughly until the dough cleans the sides of the bowl and a rough mass is formed.

Turn the dough out of the bowl onto a well-floured work surface. Knead and pound the dough (dust with flour if the dough sticks to your hands) for 5 - 6 minutes until it is smooth and soft. Dust the dough and a large mixing bowl lightly with flour. Place the dough in the bowl and cover the bowl with plastic wrap and a kitchen towel. Let rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 1 1/2 hours.

After the dough has doubled in bulk, turn it out of the bowl and knead it for about 2 minutes. Oil the bottom and sides of the 14 inch pizza pan (with 2 inch sides). Spread the dough in the pan with your fingers and palm. Work the dough until it covers the bottom of the pan. Pull the edges of the dough up to form a lip or a pronounced border all around the pan. Preheat the oven to 475 degrees F. Prick the dough bottom with a fork at 1/2 inch intervals and parbake the crust for exactly 4 minutes in the preheated oven. Brush the crust lightly with olive oil.

Topping: in a 2 to 3 quart mixing bowl, combine the tomatoes, basil, oregano, and salt. Set aside.

To Assemble and Bake: Lay the slices of mozzarella cheese evenly over the crust. Spoon the tomatoes over the cheese. Sprinkle the Parmesan over the tomatoes. Next, add the Italian sausage - flatten the sausage pieces between your thumb and forefinger an distribute them evenly over the tomatoes. Drizzle about 1 tbsp. olive oil on top. Bake the pizza in a preheated oven on the bottom oven rack for 4 minutes; move the pizza to an oven rack 2 slots above the lower rack and bake an additional 30 minutes, until crust is lightly browned and sausage is cooked through.

My Adaptations: I've never used 3 1/2 cups of flour. The dough can't take more than just over 3 cups. I use only about 1/2 tsbp. of sugar and 1/2 tsp. of salt. I use olive oil in place of vegetable oil.

For the topping, I add a clove of garlice minced, and use about 1/2 tbsp. of olive oil in the tomato mixture. I generously add a couple of grinds of black pepper to the mixture, as well.

In place of the mozzarella cheese, I sometimes use provolone cheese, for the smoky flavor it imparts. When using Italian sausage, I pre-cook it until it is still just a little pink on the inside. It will finish cooking in the oven.

While this is not a pizza I usually make in the summer, this Friday evening was dark and rainy, and a perfect time to stay inside and make pizza. I hope you'll try it sometime. It is certainly worth your effort.

Butterfly Garden II

Here are some photos I took in the Butterfly Garden at the Children's Learning Center yesterday morning. The photos were taken after I finished weeding (of course). I'm happy to report all the plants and flowers are thriving since I planted them several weeks ago. They are being watered regularly by staff members. The butterfly weed (asclepias), third photo from the top, is my favorite plant in the garden. It was blooming when I bought it and it continues to have bright orangish-yellow blooms. It's long and lanky with dependably green foliage. It's a real winner!
I hope to have the garden finished by mid-August. There are stepping stones left to be placed, a tic-tac-toe game to finish, and some late summer blooming plants to get in the ground. I hope to find a small piece of sculpture to further enliven the space. So far, I'm very happy with the result and, apparently, so are the children for whom the space was created.

Chillin'

The last light of this day is almost gone. I'm chillin' on the back porch by candlelight listening to "Nothing but the Blues", my favorite Saturday night radio program. There's something about the blues that strikes a chord in me. The music is plaintive. It whines. The melodies are not all that sweet. I like it.

Tonight, the pond gurgles in the distance. A lonely toad groans. In addition to the summer sounds to which I have grown so accustomed, the stillness is broken by the snap, crackle, and pop of distant fireworks. Every now and then a fairly thunderous boom asserts itself. Poor Mama the cat isn't so happy with all the commotion. She's found a lap and is settling in nicely.

We went shopping today in Columbus, about two hours from our home. What wonderful treasures we brought home from the "big city". We bought Georgia peaches, homegrown first of the season sweet corn, and an Indiana melon from Carfagna's, our favorite grocery store. The rich, ripe smell of melon greets us each time we open the refrigerator door. A great breakfast awaits tomorrow - fresh fruit and crusty toasted bread.

We feasted our eyes on so many fabulous sights. I especially was drawn to the images at Pottery Barn. They offered some very understated nautical pieces, to which I took an immediate liking -browns,beiges, off-whites and clears, with a little burst of orange thrown in. It's probably a good thing I don't live in Columbus where all those temptations lurk.

My neighbor, known for his fireworks displays, has begun to launch his annual technicolor, quite loud display. I'm taking a break to revel in the sparkling magnificence. Poor Mama.

Happy Fourth of July tomorrow! Enjoy your time with friends and family!

Bubbles

This 4th of July, while waiting for darkness to fall, and the fireworks to begin, try your hand at making giant bubbles. On the North Forty, giant bubble making has been a 4th of July tradition for years. The bubble solution is very easy to make and my favorite recipe is listed below.

You'll also need some bubble makers. Coat hangers work pretty well as giant bubble wands. Simply bend them into your favorite shape. Make sure there are no sharp edges. The best wands, however are made from plastic coated wire. Plastic coated wire can be found at a hardware store.

After making the bubble solution, find a large pan with sides that are not too tall. Simply dip the bubble wand into the solution, slowly lift it out, and move the wand gently through the air to form the bubble. A slight jerk of your hand will release the bubble from the wand. Then watch as the bubble takes flight, tossing and turning in the air, with its fabulous array of colors..

The best bubbles are made when it is humid and cloudy. When one part of the yard gets slippery with bubble mixture, move to another section to avoid falls. If possible, allow the bubble solution to sit overnight before using it. And, if lots of tiny bubbles form in the solution, scoop them out. That's just about all you need to know.

Bubble Solution

1 cup Joy dishwashing detergent

10 cups water

1/4 cup glycerin (found in pharmacies, or in the pharmacy section of a big box store)

Gently mix together, and if possible, let sit undisturbed overnight.

Happy Fourth of July! Enjoy!

First Tomato

I am eating, as I type, my first homegrown tomato of the year. It's actually not from my garden. My tomatoes are sitting in the garden stubbornly refusing to turn red. The tomato I am enjoying is from my mom's tiny patch, or from my brother's garden. I don't really know whose tomato I am enjoying, but I surely am. When I arrived home this evening, a little bag of three tomatoes was wrapped around the handle to my side door. Isn't is remarkable to have family who will share their first tomatoes of the season with you?

But, back to the tomato. It's so juicy, sweet and absolutely bursting with flavor. It was still faintly warm when I sliced into it. The fruit was almost round, not too big, and perfectly tomato red. I chopped it into uneven chunks in my eagerness to eat it. A little dab of cottage cheese, some cucumber slices (from my garden), a dash of salt and freshly ground pepper, and I'm savoring the perfect summer meal.

If you've not had your first homegrown tomato, I hope you will soon. It's such a wonderful treat.

The Bathroom, Continued

Work continues right along on Stuart's bathroom renovation, shown at left. Tonight Stuart and I tiled the back wall of the shower enclosure. We used 6 x 6 white porcelain tiles. The job, overall, was not difficult, but it was messy, until we got the hang of the thin set. By night's end, we were feeling pretty good about the skills we acquired this evening. Neither of us had ever touched a tile or trowel before this evening.

We've decided the internet, while a source of much good information, has a lot of conflicting information for do-it-yourselfers. If you use the internet for home improvement, be sure to read more than one site. And, if in doubt, seek out help of people who have experience in the work you are interesting in pursuing.

Note the rain showerhead in place in the bathroom already. Stuart scored that fixture at the Great Outdoors for a really Great Price. He is so proud of it.

I am proud of his persistence in this project. When he tore into the bathroom, he has admitted he had no idea how much work it would take to restore it. But he is deriving a great deal of satisfaction from the endeavor. For my part, I thought it way cool to be standing side by side in the bathtub with my grown son affixing tiles to the shower enclosure in his new home. The easy exchange between us, once we settled into the job, and the cooperation between us - well, that's the stuff of dreams.

Oh Deer!

This WAS the edge of my daylily bed just a few days ago. Today, the deer, which have a regular path across the North Forty, decimated this corner of the garden. They also helped themselves to green bean and sweet potato leaves. On this, the first day of summer, I am sad. The deer are wearing me out. Their appetites and numbers grow each year. I spray regularly, alternately using a pepper based spray and Plantskydd. Both are effective, but only for so long, given the monsoon season southern Ohio is enjoying this year. My husband has suggested an electric fence. I've seen some very inconspicuous ones, but I don't know how I feel about turning my beloved yard into an electrified compound. I could plant deer resistant plants, but I don't much like most of them. Hopefully, I've bought a couple of days worth of respite from their gnawing.

Of weddings, Virginia, and boxwood

I just returned from a wedding in Blacksburg, Virginia earlier today, so I've been away from my keyboard for a couple of days.

My very dear friend's son was married on the Virginia Tech campus Saturday, where he and his bride met and went to school. The ceremony was thoughtful, with the priest sharing the bride and groom's separate reflections on marriage, written as part of a pre-cana assignment. Gerber daisies in several shades of pink were carried by the bridesmaids and decorated a simple four tier scrolled white cake. Good food, good music, catching up with old friends and dancing made for a memorable time.

The Virginia countryside, as always, is just the best. As we drove toward Blacksburg on Route 460, after leaving the interstate, the New River sparkled on our right and one big emerald hill after another opened itself up to us. A rain overnight washed away yesterday's haze, and this morning, the fluffy white clouds danced in a bright blue sky all the while holding tight to the mountaintops.

Since I was away from home during the weekend, absolutely nothing was accomplished in the garden, which, with all the rain, is sprouting weeds faster than I can pluck them. So, I was determined to do some work this afternoon, in spite of the 90+ degree heat.

The little sprouts pictured above are seedling boxwoods I started from cuttings last summer. It was really easy to do. I took soft cuttings from boxwoods around my yard and removed the two-thirds of the lower leaves. The wet cuttings were dipped in rooting hormone, then inserted them into plastic trays filled with potting mix. I made little holes in the mix with a pencil before inserting the cuttings, so the rooting hormone would not be wiped off when the cuttings were put in the tray. The trays were dampened thoroughly and put in a plastic bag in a shady part of the garden. After several weeks, the cuttings rooted and I transferred them to individual mix-filled peat pots. They managed to survive the winter. Early this spring, I put them on the wall around the garden where they could soak up the sunshine. But, they've begun to dry out very quickly. They're looking a little yellowish, so I think they've exhausted the nutrients in the soil. I planted 40 of the hardiest in the garden after adding compost late this evening. There are another 40 or so left to go. I hope they will thrive in their new home.

What am I going to do with 80 boxwoods? Well, I've got some ideas, but I'll save those to share with you later.

Projects

This evening I am tired. I worked, with my son, Stuart, hanging greenboard on the ceiling of the new shower enclosure in the bathroom of his home. He's purchased a lovely old cottage with Tudor characteristics, big on character, short on amenities. The bathroom, formerly cloaked in light blue/aqua metal tile with dark burgundy accents, is no more. The linoleum, destroyed and covered by wicked blue carpet, is gone. The sixties faux wood vanity with flecked formica top, way too large for the space (the bathroom door hit it every time it was opened), was dismantled and tossed out the window. The fabulous old tub is staying, but nothing more. Much work remains to be accomplished, but each step he takes toward his renovation goal is reason for celebration. So, celebrate we did, with family, cold beer and good food after an evening's work.

I've been keeping my eye on another renovation project I will share with you in the days ahead. A young couple, with whom I am acquainted, has embarked on painting their rambling frame home, embellished with great trimwork. I've been watching their progress on the project, and will share photos with you as soon as I ask them if I may share their work with the world, or at least my portion of the world. The house was painted a sort of creamish/yellow with rusty orange accents. I have seen green on part of the house, but don't know what other colors they plan to use in conjunction with it. I'll keep you posted and hopefully, have some pictures of their work soon.

Lightning Bugs, Mama and Crickets

This evening, we sat on the back porch, in the heavy still air, to listen to the end of day sounds. Our outdoor cat, Mama, happily romped around the yard. As day gave way to dusk, the lightning bugs began to treat us to their fluorescent green light show. The legions of robins, who make their beds in the oak trees surrounding our house, chattered busily as they do each evening before falling silent, just as darkness arrives. Suddenly, Mama began to leap quite high into the air, at the, I'm sure, very startled lightning bugs. Over and over, she pranced and jumped at the tiny bursts of light. It was quite an amusing sight. Finally, she snagged one of the poor creatures, and buried her head in the grass to enjoy her catch. Very shortly afterward, she came racing to the back porch in search of her water bowl. She drank heartily. I'm wondering if the lightning bugs, which made my hands smell terribly when I caught them as a child, taste as bad as they smell. After drinking, she stretched herself out on the cool concrete and fell fast asleep. For the first time this year, the crickets began to wail.

Summer has arrived.

The Butterfly Garden

This afternoon, I took the flowers, pictured at right, to the butterfly garden I am working to recreate at the preschool where I used to work, part of Shawnee State University. A 16 x 24 foot space has been set aside for the tiny new garden. These plants joined others planted a couple of weeks ago which are thriving, given the plentiful rainfall we have had in the last several weeks. When I arrived, a small bright yellow butterfly and a bumble bee were flitting about the garden.

The butterfly friendly plants pictured include salvia, bright yellow milkweed, gaillardia, lavender and three colors of pinwheel zinnias, a bushy mildew resistant type of zinnia. Other plants and flowers already in the garden include pink buddleia, daylilies, monarda, rudbeckia, marigolds, caryopteris, coneflowers, and other varieties of zinnia. In the midwest, all of these flowers and shrubs are good choices for a butterfly garden.

The garden is a work in progress. A child sized arched bridge, built by my mom and dad, a dry creek bed, and a butterfly house have already been placed in the garden. Pathways will be added next. When it is complete, I'll post some pictures.

What's in a Name?

As I sit here, ready to compose my maiden post, I'm giving serious thought to the blog name I have chosen. For me, the name was a natural, because it is one we have used to describe the land around our home for years. However, for those who may have interest in reading this blog, the name I've chosen may seem a little strange, conjuring up images of rogue adventures on the vast prairie. I've learned that, under the Homestead Act of 1862, settlers were permitted to buy 160 acres of unoccupied land for $1.25 per acre, after having lived on the land for 6 months. The acres were laid out in four parcels of 40 acres each. "North Forty" is a reference to the northernmost 40 acres of land granted to those homesteaders.

The North Forty of which I write is actually the side yard of our home that lies, fittingly, just to the north of the house. When we bought our home almost 25 years ago we discovered a lot line just feet away from our new residence. As we did not want to be hemmed in by another house, we plunged further into debt to buy the adjoining lot. Hence, our North Forty was born.

The first order of business was to plant spindly pin oak trees around the perimeter of the house and North Forty, an act for which I am very grateful every day. Our property lies hidden away beneath the now towering oak trees which offer protection from the summer sun, a sense of enclosure for our space, enchanting red and golden fall color, and much brown material for the compost pile.

The rock-strewn-clay-soiled North Forty has undergone a massive evolution over the years. Buckets full of rocks have been hauled off the property, while truckloads of topsoil and compost have been shoveled into it. Trees, shrubs, flowers, and vegetables have been planted and replanted. Patios and walkways have been built and rebuilt.

The expanse has seen toddlers scamper across it on their way to the Eagle's Nest, a wooden play structure, long since dismantled. Young boys played baseball and built snow forts there. High school golfers perfected their short game, leaving only a few divots to show for it, plus one broken dining room window in a neighbor's house. Friends gathered for giant bubble-blowing contests on the Fourthf of July. My husband and I illegally burn leaves in the garden each fall, just for the almost forgotten smell of it.

The North Forty, represents, for me, the entirety of this gracious place I call home. Join me in this celebration of home and my never-ending search for inspiration as I continue to improve upon it. I'm hopeful you will make discoveries that will brighten your homes and lives.

Welcome, come in, make yourself at home, and enjoy The North Forty Chronicles.