Bulbs and more

I really under estimated the amount of hyacinth bulbs I dug up.  Yesterday I planted 565 from the bucket, and that was only 2/3 of them.  UGH!!  The local temperature has dropped from the 90's, so I suppose I could get a few more in the ground today.

The wild blackberries are very sweet.

 

Sunflowers are starting to open.

The fern like stalks on this Bronze Fennel are between four and six feet tall.  Their stalks support clusters of tiny yellow flowers that attract butterflies and bees. 

But if you are not careful and it drops the ripened seeds before you can get to them, you will find hundreds of plants in your garden the following year.   I'm just about to cut the flowers off of this one, before I have a meadow of fennel.   

Digging up Spring Bulbs

Little grape hyacinths are one of my favorite spring bloomers.  Their striking purple color seems to shout "you've got to look at me".

They are planted in several areas around the yard, but the largest colony was along the edge of this planter box.  We trimmed back this flowering cherry and I wanted to put some colorful perennials along the edge and move the hyacinths back a little.

After hours of digging in this small space, I have over 500 hyacinth bulbs to replant.

Apparently the bulbs were happily multiplying where they were.  Looks like my simple little project is going to be a week long ordeal.  That's okay, I know I'll be really happy next spring when the yard explodes with purple.

Sweet Summer Corn

The great tasting sweet corn from Olathe, Colorado, grown over on the Western Slope, finally came in to the stores this week.

Didn't have any big plans for the day, so we shucked and washed four dozen ears of corn this morning.

Blanched them in batches of eight at a time for about 4 minutes.

Then plunged them in ice water until they cooled off.  After they drained the tedious part began.  Cutting the kernels off  forty eight corn cobs takes some time, and can be quite messy.

Having done this before, I decided to save myself some cleanup time and move everything off the counter. (Next time I'll do it on a table out in the middle of the yard and have even less cleanup.)

I ended up with twenty eight cups of sweet corn kernels, which I vacuum sealed in two cup portions. Now I'll be able to have fresh Colorado corn even on a snow day. But first,  I think we deserve a batch of basil corn fritters on the grill tonight.

Seedless green grapes

I've got grapes.

I taste one every day, and they are not ready for human consumption.  But they are getting there,  looking good.

Wild Blackberries

This is really cool:  I have a wild blackberry bush in my front planter.  I didn't put it there, but I am happy to have it all the same.  Apparently, after some investigation on my part, I discovered that each berry is really made up of lots of tiny, round, shiny berries stuck together—an aggregate fruit.  Each tiny berry in the cluster has its own seed, so one animal eating one fruit spreads many seeds.  I have a lot of birds that frequent my yard, so I'm thanking them all.

The fruit, which ripens in early summer through mid fall, goes from green to red to black.  I discovered the plant when the berries were all green, so I've been watching it for a while.

The berries are growing from the center of this flower.  According to what I've read, wild blackberries are like the ones you buy, only much tastier.  I am ready for that.

Here's the update on the zucchini crop... the first three are part of dinner tonight.

Eggplant Fries

The August issue of Bon Appetit included a requested Eggplant Fries recipe from Terzo Piano, a restaurant inside the Art Institute of Chicago.  I made them and was very pleased with the results.

While my Japanese Eggplant has a few fruit growing, it's not the right variety for making  this recipe.   

The ever popular Black Beauty Eggplant with it's large oval fruit is perfect. After cutting the eggplant into 1/2" rounds, then 1/2" sticks you submerge them in ice and water for at least 2 hrs.  This is a key step to insuring the fries don't soak up any oil.

After coating the fries with a rice flour mixture, working in batches, they are fried for several minutes, or until golden.

The Institute's Chef has perfected the coating recipe to yield a wonderful light crunch when done, similar to a tempura texture. 

There is a dipping sauce, similar to the Greek Tzatziki sauce, that is included in the recipe.  I liked it enough, but will jazz it up a bit next time I make these, which will be soon.  They were really, really good.

The Smoke Bush

There are at least seven varieties of the Smoke Bush.  It's a deciduous shrub, a member of the Sumac family, that grows like a tree in zones 4-9.  It gives year round interest with nice fall color.

This particular shrub, is Cotinus Grace, growing at Denver Botanical Gardens and it grabbed my full attention.  When it blooms during the summer, it appears to be covered in pink lace.  They can grow to 15' X 15'.

Here's a close up of the bloom, it really is pretty.  I'm thinking of yanking a tree out of my yard and putting one in.  It requires full sun, is tolerant of drought conditions and salt but prefers well drained soil and is a slow grower.  I believe I have the  perfect spot for it.

Lastly, I want to share with you the serenity of this peaceful pond at Denver Botanical Gardens.