Ice on the Windows

   The end of December has brought frigid temperatures with it.  As I type (at 9:45AM) it is -31 degrees C.  During the night, while up puttering, the atmosphere in the house told me it was bitterly cold outside.  My curiosity got the best of me, so I opened the front door (it groaned and screeched on it's hinges) and peeked out.  It was -39 degrees and the air was thick with ice fog. 

   The inside of the kitchen windows have ice building up at their bases, and the lip the of the front door latch (visible inside the house) has thick frost on it. 

 

 

   When it's cold, the ravens and magpies come and go.  When it's really cold, the ravens tend to stick around, sitting in the neighbours' trees, waiting for the scraps of old cat food I sometimes put out.  Here's a solitary fellow - his buddies were in another tree nearby.

 

   

   It's a day for staying put with a warm cup of tea, a good book, or some indoor chores to do.  I am glad there is nowhere I have to be today, and shake my head at the memories of walking to work for years in this weather.  *shudder*.

First Big Snow of the Season

 

   A winter storm warning was issued for the area yesterday.  It forecast snow in the amount of 20-30cm this weekend.  It began snowing last evening and continued through the night.  When I went outside this morning (-16 degrees C) to shovel the step, I measured what had fallen.

  

 

   If you're wondering what that brown thing is, that is the tip of a 30cm ruler that I shoved into the snow.  It looks like the forecasters were right on the money!

 

 

 

The view from the front step.

   The forecast says that a series of low pressure systems are moving through the area that will produce 20-30cm by Sunday morning (tomorrow).  We already got the 30cm, thanks.  I hope we don't get any more!

Gentle Visitors and Haystack Cookies

   This October has been mild.  As we wrap things up for the month, the coldest temperature we have had was -8 the morning of the 18th.  No way will we see the -22 temps we saw on Hallowe'en 2013!   We did get snowfall for two days early this month (around the 5th-6th, as I recall), but it quickly melted.  Right now, pansies are still growing in the yard and the volunteer peas that sprouted in a raised bed earlier this month are still alive.  The mint is still going, too. 

Pansies in the strawberry bed. 

 Peas

   We had a lovely surprise two days ago, when a mother deer and her two little ones wandered into our yard from the street.  The youngsters nibbled on shriveled crab apples that had fallen near the fence, and the mother ate chickweed that was still growing along the edges of a garden plot.  They stayed for about 5 minutes, walked around to the back on the house, hopped over the back fence into the alley, and sauntered away.  I love it when we have visitors like this!  These pictures aren't the clearest, but it's what R. could grab before they left.  (Click to enlarge.)

 

   A random craving for Haystack cookies struck a few weeks ago.  I finally gave in and made some, thinking a batch - two, at the most - would work that craving out of my system and I'd be free of it for another few years.  For whatever reason (I can think of a few...), a single batch did not do the trick.  Oh, no.  As of yesterday, I am on my 5th batch of Haystack cookies.  That will be it.  My body is now begging for dark chicken meat, eggs, and avocados rather than grains and sugar.  Thank goodness.  

   The recipe, if you're curious, is easy to make and relatively inexpensive.  If you have a sweet-tooth, be sure to have someone hide them after they're made.  But while you're making them, be sure to spoon some of the mixture, still warm, into a small dish and enjoy with a strong cup of tea.  So yummy.

Haystack Cookies

• 2 cups white sugar
• ½ cup milk
• ½ cup butter
• ¼ tsp salt
• ½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• ½ tsp vanilla
• 3 cups oats (can use quick-oats, regular oats, or “half and half” – I use half and half)
• 1 cup unsweetened coconut (I use ½ cup)

Optional:  Some people add a large dollop of peanut or almond butter to the mix.  Chopped peanuts or slivered almonds (the almonds are nice!) can also be added.

 

Directions

1.       In a medium pot, combine sugar, butter, and milk.

2.       In a large bowl, combine salt, cocoa, oats, and coconut. Mix well.

3.       Heat milk mixture until butter melts and the mixture starts to boil.  Reduce heat and let boil gently for ~2 minutes.  Stir constantly.

4.       After 2 minutes, turn off the heat and add the vanilla.  Stir.  Add the oat mixture and stir well.

5.       Place spoonfuls of the mixture on parchment paper or wax paper and let cool.

 

Mild Start to October

 

   October's here!  As I type, it's 9 degrees C and sunny at 9:00AM.  In the past week, the leaves on the trees finally began to turn and fall.  We have yet to have a killing frost, which is very unusual. Typically, the first hard frost hits in early September.  We've even had years where things get badly zapped in late August. 

   The pansies, alyssum (which smells HEAVENLY, like honey), and few little marigolds are still going strong.  The row of Swedish Red pea plants is still alive and putting out flowers.  We've dug some potatoes to have with meals, but otherwise, the majority of them are still in the ground.  

   The parsley, mint, Pineapple sage, sage, and oregano are still growing and in great condition - so much so that I've been trying to find people to share the herbs with so they don't go to waste.

   The solitary pumpkin that set this year is still in the garden.  The plant has been lightly touched by frost, but for the most part, covering it at night has protected it.

 

 

The potato patch (with a few pots of Georgian Fire and Red Russian garlic bulbils planted in the corner, marked by stakes).

 Lou enjoying the sunshine beside a of pot of alyssum.

Sage and purple pansies

 

The Swedish Red pea plants are still putting out flowers (such a pretty colour!)

Garlic Planted and New Bulbils

    

   In late August, I splurged and bought some new garlic bulbils from Seeds of Diversity.  It's always a surprise to see which varieties they send.  The bulbils arrived September 16th.  Of the 5 varieties sent, all but one (Persian Star) were new to me.  The varieties from Seeds of Diversity were: 

Russian Giant  – Hardneck – Marbled Purple Stripe – Very hot when eaten raw.  Best grown in cool/northern climates.  Large bulbs, often 3 inches across.  4-6 cloves per bulbs.  Long storing (~8 months).  Skin is brownish-purple.

Pyong Vang Korean – Asiatic Hardneck – Glazed Purple Stripe.  Rare, hot, early to harvest.  Easy to peel, moderate storage (~6 months).  It is best to remove scapes when they emerge. This variety should be harvested when 1-2 leaves have turned brown (unlike most varieties).

Red Rezan – Hardneck – Glazed Purple Stripe – Small plants and large bulbs.  Medium heat.  Pretty cloves; skins have almost an iridescent/gold tinge.  This is a heritage variety.

Persian Star – Hardneck – Purple Stripe – Cold-hardy variety and a Canadian heritage variety.  Late harvest.  5-6 months storage.  Spicey but not too hot.

Mother of Pearl – SOFTNECK – Silverskin – long storage, dense heads, no scape develops, rare variety.  Of the Silverskins, this is the earliest variety to mature.

   The softneck variety was a surprise.  They are typically grown in southern climates and are not usually recommended for northern/cool gardens.  I will give it a try, anyway, and will be thrilled if it grows through to maturity.  

   The new bulbils, as well as Red Russian and Northern Quebec bulbils, were planted in pots on September 23rd.  There are 13 pots of bulbils on the go this Fall!  

Update: September 30 - there are now 17 pots of bulbils on the go.  On the 26th, I planted a third pot of Persian Star bulbils in the East garden.  Today, I discovered an envelope of Georgian Fire bulbils from a 2020 seed trade and an envelope of Red Russian bulbils from 2020 in my seed stash.  Most were still firm.  A few looked like they started to sprout, but I planted them, anyway.  The pots are planted in the corner of the North garden nearest the house.

Georgian Fire (bulbils) – Hardneck – Porcelain – Very cold-hardy, balanced strong flavour (one of the hottest porcelains, very hot when eaten raw), 4-6 large cloves per bulb, large bulbs, long storage (6-8 months). 

Update: October 2 - Okay.  Now there are 19 pots of bulbils.  I might be going overboard!  I found some leftover Red Russian and Northern Quebec bulbils that were harvested this past August, and planted them in pots in the North garden.

 

  The garlic bulbs R. harvested in August this year were very small due to the extreme heat, dry weather, and clay-heavy soil of the south garden.  The smallest was Brown Tempest; I was tempted to plant those cloves in pots like I did the bulbils, they are so small.  Some of the bulbs harvested were varieties originally started from bulbils from Seeds of Diversity in 2016. 

   The garlic patch was planted today (September 25th) in the East garden.  It was sunny, mild, and breezy, perfect weather for working outside.  Planted again this year (all hardnecks) were:

Red Russian - Marbled Purple Stripe - 5.5 rows

Northern Quebec - Porcelain - 2 rows

Central Siberian (started from bulbils in 2016) - Marbled Purple Stripe - 2 rows

Baba Franchuk’s (started from bulbils in 2016) - Rocambole - 1 row

Kiev (started from bulbils in 2016) - Rocambole - 1 row

Brown Tempest  (started from bulbils in 2016) - Glazed Purple Stripe - 1 row

   I forgot to count the number of cloves planted, but each row has 12-15 cloves, so there are about 150-187 in total.

The patch, finally planted...

 

 

...and covered with the first layer of mulch.