Quick update on my poor little vegetable garden. I wrote an email to Lowe's customer service regarding the poor condition of my garden, and I just got a phone call from the manager of the garden center in Burbank. She couldn't have been nicer - and she's setting me up with all new stuff!! She said that the product I bought is meant to be mixed in with existing soil, and is too strong to use exclusively. All I have to do is come in and pick out my new plants! They're even going to deliver it for me! How cool is that. Can you add a hashtag to a blog? #greatcustomerservice #Lowes #happy
Thank you Lowe's! Muah!
Thursday, May 8, 2014
Saturday, May 3, 2014
HOT CHICKS XXX
The last few days have been a doozy - Santa Ana winds brought the mercury up to about 100 degrees, and it's stayed in the 90's for the past couple of days. My chickens are HOT! They have a Chicken Fountain that I mistakenly mounted in direct sunlight, and the water was boiling! So I moved it inside the coop where it'll never get sun. I also filled a one-gallon plastic waterer with fresh, cold water and a tablespoon of Bragg's Apple Cider Vinegar (organic with the mother) and placed it on my back porch in the shade. I recently read a blog (I should link it but I can't remember which one it was...) that said we chicken keepers should keep fresh water in different places throughout the free range areas. I always figured they'd come n' get it in the coop if they wanted it, but they aren't that smart. And natch, as soon as I put that new water out, they all came and hung out on the porch like it was happy hour! I love my chickies.
Update on my raised garden - At the recommendation of a Lowe's employee, I used Kellogg Organic Garden Soil which was a BIG mistake. This stuff is NOT very good. It's compact, so the drainage is poor, and there's something unbalanced about the pH that's making every plant turn yellow and die. All my beautiful tomatoes, zucchini and herbs are stunted, barely the size they were when I bought them, and all yellow with dried up bits. My beloved zucchini blossoms! They came up, lots of them, but are only growing to about 2 inches long before opening and drying up to dust. I might have to go back to Lowe's and ask them to make it right somehow. Oh - one thing is doing just fine in the garden - the freakin mushrooms that are coming up now! How hard can this be?
I'll leave you with a recipe for one of my favorite summer dishes, that couldn't be easier to prepare. It's one of the things I'm looking forward to having in abundance, if I can ever get that dang garden going. It's a dish called Spaghetti Alla Checca and I used to eat it all the time when I lived in Italy. Here ya go!
SPAGHETTI ALLA CHECCA
Ingredients
ripe tomatoes
basil
good olive oil
salt
spaghetti
Chop up tomatoes (as many as you think you'll need for 3-4 servings) into bite-size pieces and put in a bowl. Tear fresh basil leaves (I use probably 5 or 6 or 7) and stir into the tomatoes. Drizzle heavily with olive oil - this is your sauce, you'll need about a half cup or more. Sprinkle with salt to taste - don't be shy with the salt! This part can be made several hours in advance (it actually gets better) and left at room temp, covered; it also makes a delicious salad.
Cook pasta in lots of boiling, salted water. Again, don't be shy with the salt here - I use a couple of tablespoons (I fill my palm with kosher salt) and dump it in. Don't worry, you're not *eating* all that salt. It's important for the flavor of the pasta! Cook according to package instructions, drain, and toss it in your tomato mixture. Then DIG IN! Perfect summer dish.
bye bye!
p.s... Chicken Chicks Unite!
Update on my raised garden - At the recommendation of a Lowe's employee, I used Kellogg Organic Garden Soil which was a BIG mistake. This stuff is NOT very good. It's compact, so the drainage is poor, and there's something unbalanced about the pH that's making every plant turn yellow and die. All my beautiful tomatoes, zucchini and herbs are stunted, barely the size they were when I bought them, and all yellow with dried up bits. My beloved zucchini blossoms! They came up, lots of them, but are only growing to about 2 inches long before opening and drying up to dust. I might have to go back to Lowe's and ask them to make it right somehow. Oh - one thing is doing just fine in the garden - the freakin mushrooms that are coming up now! How hard can this be?
I'll leave you with a recipe for one of my favorite summer dishes, that couldn't be easier to prepare. It's one of the things I'm looking forward to having in abundance, if I can ever get that dang garden going. It's a dish called Spaghetti Alla Checca and I used to eat it all the time when I lived in Italy. Here ya go!
SPAGHETTI ALLA CHECCA
Ingredients
ripe tomatoes
basil
good olive oil
salt
spaghetti
Chop up tomatoes (as many as you think you'll need for 3-4 servings) into bite-size pieces and put in a bowl. Tear fresh basil leaves (I use probably 5 or 6 or 7) and stir into the tomatoes. Drizzle heavily with olive oil - this is your sauce, you'll need about a half cup or more. Sprinkle with salt to taste - don't be shy with the salt! This part can be made several hours in advance (it actually gets better) and left at room temp, covered; it also makes a delicious salad.
Cook pasta in lots of boiling, salted water. Again, don't be shy with the salt here - I use a couple of tablespoons (I fill my palm with kosher salt) and dump it in. Don't worry, you're not *eating* all that salt. It's important for the flavor of the pasta! Cook according to package instructions, drain, and toss it in your tomato mixture. Then DIG IN! Perfect summer dish.
bye bye!
p.s... Chicken Chicks Unite!
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)