© Kim Willis - no
parts of this newsletter may be used without permission.
Hi
Gardeners
It’s a nice day today but we have had some gloomy, gray
weather lately. Even with my plant
lights some of the house plants are dropping leaves. That’s fairly normal
though, plants drop leaves in response to lower light levels and changing
conditions and it doesn’t mean they are dying, just adjusting.
I went to my mom’s this weekend and she told me she
wasn’t bringing in a large snake plant this fall because it was just too big for
her house. So with the help of my son we wrestled that 5 foot monster into my
car and then I wrestled it out onto my deck when we got home. I am going to get a two wheeler and bring it
inside in a day or two. It’s blooming
right now. Snake plant blooms are small
but very fragrant. The last thing I need is another large plant but this plant
belonged to my grandmother and is 35-40 years old. You don’t abandon a living thing that old.
The plant will probably go into my small office
here. I think there will be enough light
for it because I have the room brightly lit and my smaller snake plant does
well in this room. It’s started from my
grandmother’s plant actually, so I’m bringing its mother to live with it.
We are harvesting our pumpkins now, my great grandson
got to come up a pick one for Halloween and he was fascinated by it. The husband is eager to mow the lawn where
the vines sprawled because it hasn’t been mowed in some time. I am just starting to gather gourds. My legs are acting up but as soon as I can I
will be gathering flower heads, seed heads and so on for fall crafts and
decoration.
 |
Isiah gets a pumpkin
picture by Desirae L.
|
Outside I still have lots of flowers in bloom. I am finally getting to see the mina vine
bloom. The moon flowers and woodland
nicotiana are going strong. I am still
getting a few tomatoes and lots of cucumbers from the garden. I am going to be making apple butter and
putting away some apples for pies later in winter this week. Recipes are below for apple pie.
I have left the geraniums, begonias and cannas outside
for now- probably bring them in this weekend. While the weather is going to be
warm for a few days, by this weekend we are going to see a dip in temperatures
and the first frost is right around the corner.
All of you zone 5-6 people need to bring in or protect any tender plants
soon.
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| My living room is a jungle. |
October almanac
October’s full moon occurs on the 16th and the
moon’s perigee occurs on the same day. This
will give us a good chance for precipitation around then. Perigee plus full moon increase the tides and
the chance of precipitation. The moon
should look large because it’s at its closest point for the month, if it isn’t
cloudy. This full moon is called the
Hunters moon, Dying Grass moon or Traveling moon as Native Americans often moved
to winter grounds during this time. The Hunters moon is named such because at
this time of year the moon rises early in the evening and stays bright until
almost dawn, letting hunters easily track animals in the night. It’s now illegal to hunt most game animals
after the sun goes down.
If you like sky gazing you may want to look for the Draconid meteors which will be at
their peak Oct 7-8th . This meteor
shower isn’t as frequent or showy as others but who knows what you might
see. Look for the meteors in the
northwest sky just after dark. Later in
the month the Orionid meteor shower peaks around October 20-21st. This meteor shower occurs through much of the
month however. Good viewing times for this meteor shower are around
midnight. Look straight up and to the southeast.
October’s birthstones are the Tourmaline and Opal. October’s birth flower was the calendula
originally, but now is listed as marigold.
Calendulas were the “marigold” before the African plant we now call
marigold was discovered. So now either calendula or marigolds is considered
correct. The meaning in flower language
is warm, undying and contented love.
October is National popcorn popping month, vegetarian month,
seafood month, cookie month, pizza month, and applejack month. If you are not into food it’s also National
Diabetes month, National Adopt a Shelter Dog month, National Domestic Violence
Awareness month and of course the most used and abused “cause” of all, Breast
Cancer awareness month.
Holidays of note in October include the 10th
–World Egg Day, Columbus Day (why are we still celebrating this one?) 14th
– National Dessert day, 15th
–Sweetest Day,(another stupid one), 21st National Pumpkin Cheesecake
day, 22nd – National Nut Day, 24th –and then there’s two
of the world’s favorite holidays, 30th
Devils night and 31st Halloween.
Are bees now on the endangered species list?
The social media sites are buzzing about bees being added to
the endangered species list. I have
heard all kinds of things – like now no one will be able to kill wasps on their
house, and farmers will have to stop spraying their fields. Whoa there people, before you get too “buzzed”
here are the facts. Not all bees were
put on the endangered species list. Only
7 species of yellow faced bees that live in Hawaii were added to the list. It’s the first time that bees have been added
to the list, but these species are only a small fraction of bee/wasp species in
the world.
While bee populations are getting smaller there are actually
plenty of bees left. In most places they
do not approach endangered status. Honey
bees are not a native species so it would be interesting if they were declared
endangered here. Bees are important to
our food supply, both native and non-native species, so everyone should try to
protect them. But you can still legally
kill the wasps that invade your home, if that’s your thing, and farmers will
continue to spray their fields, at least for the time being.
Most media stories are now being careful to stress that only
7 species of bees were added to the endangered species list but you may still
encounter those who only read headlines and are convinced that all bees are now
off limits. Just wishful thinking on
some folks part and another thing to complain about “government interference” for
others.
Questions
about planting fall bulbs
My fall bulbs have been arriving and I have started the
process of planting them. Yesterday I planted 60 lilies in various locations
(If you haven’t ordered yours you should do that today.) My eyes in the catalog are always bigger than
my desire to plant in the fall is, but I work up the energy to get it done by
reminding myself how great they will look in the spring. Here are some
questions I often get about planting spring flowering bulbs this fall that I have
answered.
How
many bulbs should I buy?
That of course depends on the space you have to plant
them. Bulbs look better if planted in
mass or groups. So consider more rather
than less but take in account the time you’ll have to plant them also. You can always add bulbs each year. Some bulbs like daffodils and crocus may
multiply but do expect some bulbs to disappear, tulips, for instance, often don’t
return the next year if conditions aren’t exactly right for them. Some bulbs are lost to animals or heaved out
of the ground with freezing and thawing cycles and killed.
Here’s some rough estimates for planting per square foot plant: 5 standard tulips or
daffodils, 9-12 species tulips or mini- daffodils or narcissus, 9-10 crocus, 15
grape hyacinth or scilla, 4 large hyacinth, 18 snowdrops, eranthus, or anemone,
1-2 large alliums like “Globemaster” , 8-10 smaller alliums, 1-2 Fritillaria imperialis.
Deciding how much space you have for bulbs can be
tricky if you have well planted, mature perennials. There can be plenty of space between these
plants in early spring that will look great with spring flowers. But when you look at your beds in late summer
it looks as if they are pretty full. I
take pictures of my beds every few weeks starting as soon as the snow
melts. I can look at those pictures in
late summer when I am ordering bulbs to see where I can plant them.
If
you have a lot of different types of bulbs and limited time what should you
plant first?
Always plant lily bulbs and tubers or rhizomes of
things like peonies as quickly after you get them as you can. These do not store well and every day you
wait decreases the chance you’ll have success with them. Lily bulbs found in packages in stores
usually don’t perform as well as those that were dug and shipped directly to
you from a mail order source.
 |
| Plant lilies first. |
If you are prioritizing your time, next plant the
smaller bulbs, like crocus and snowdrops. They bloom early so they need to get
started early. They also have the
tendency to dry out in storage.
Hyacinths, daffodils, and narcissus should be next, with tulips
last. Tulips actually like cooler
soil. While bulbs can be planted until
the soil freezes they often do not do as well as those planted earlier.
I
like the spring flowers but the dying foliage looks messy. Can I cut it off? Is there a way to hide it?
The foliage of bulbs should be left until it yellows
and dies naturally. The plant is making
food for next year’s flowers. If you cut
it off early the bulb may die or not flower the next year.
I like to plant bulbs among hosta, astilbe, heuchera,
ferns and daylilies. If you cut back
ornamental grasses in the fall or in the very early spring you can also plant
spring blooming bulbs among them. The bulbs come up and bloom before these
plants get large in the spring. The Oriental
and other tall lilies also do well planted with ferns or daylilies as an
understory; they won’t bloom until later in the season but they like their feet
in the shade.
When you are planting bulbs in the fall in a perennial
flower bed that’s full of mature plants it can be a challenge to get the bulbs
tucked under foliage that may still be green and full. But actually it’s a great idea to tuck bulbs
down under those hosta leaves or among the daylilies. So planting bulbs where later emerging
perennial foliage will hide the dying bulb foliage is a good plan.
Can
you plant bulbs under trees?
Most bulbs like to be planted in sunny locations. However small bulbs that bloom early can
often be planted under deciduous trees, as most of their growth will be done
before the trees cast much shade. A few
bulbs and rhizomes do like partly shaded locations, Lily of the valley, trout
lilies, trillium, some true lilies are examples, so do some research and make
sure you are giving the plants the location they need.
Almost all bulbs like well-drained soil. Never plant bulbs where water stands in early
spring.
What
about naturalizing bulbs in the lawn?
If you like a nice, neatly mowed lawn you may not want
to do this. Bulbs need time to mature
their foliage and let it yellow and die naturally. This maturing process takes place when most
lawn grasses are growing vigorously. If
you don’t mind a shaggy looking lawn for a while this can work. Once the
foliage of the bulbs has died back you can mow. You may want to confine naturalized bulbs to
the edges of lawns, near already naturalized areas.
Other good places to naturalize bulbs are on steep
banks, under deciduous trees, or along streams or ponds where the area is
fairly well drained. Of course prairie
or meadow gardens can be planted with bulbs for spring color. Remember most bulbs are not native to North
America, if you are a native plant purist.
However they sure do look lovely in those meadow settings.
How
deep should bulbs be planted?
Most bulbs should be planted about three times as deep
as their height, but there are exceptions to this rule. Read package directions or look up the plant
requirements if you are uncertain. If
you aren’t good at estimating depth in inches use a trowel that’s marked with
inches, use a ruler, or mark a small piece of wood with inch measurements and
use that to guide you.
Don’t mulch too deeply after planting as this may
impede the bulbs emergence in the spring.
A light mulch of 2 inches or less is fine and helps disguise the
planting area from animals. If thick
layers of leaves blow over planted bulbs remove some of the matted leaves in
spring so that bulbs don’t struggle to emerge.
You can either dig individual holes or excavate a
larger area and arrange the bulbs in it then carefully refill with soil. You can buy special hand tools for planting
bulbs or just use a hand trowel. There
are auger type hole makers that you can buy that fit on a cordless drill. These make planting a lot of bulbs very easy.
Plant the bulbs with the pointed end of the bulb
up. If you can’t find a pointed end,
look for a round scar on the bulb. This
is where roots were last year and it goes down in the hole. Rhizomes should have budded areas on top if
you look closely.
Try not to remove any papery covering bulbs have, but
don’t worry if some of it falls off. Don’t separate the scales or sections that
lily bulbs have and don’t try to divide daffodils with double or triple
“noses”. Yes, experts propagate bulbs
that way but it isn’t as easy as it seems and your best bet is to plant the
bulbs as they came. A little mold on
bulbs that still feel firm will not harm them.
Mushy or rotted looking bulbs should be discarded.
Arrange your bulbs in a staggered way, not in straight
lines for a more natural look. Small
groups of the same color or type of bulb look better than single bulbs. Once again package directions will tell you
how far apart to space bulbs. Don’t spread bulbs too thinly though, your
display looks better in the spring if bulbs are fairly close together. (See “how
many should I buy?”)above.
Mark the spots where you planted bulbs with labels so
you know where they are. Some fall planted
bulbs and rhizomes are slow to emerge in the spring and you don’t want to
damage them or plant over them.
Should
you use bonemeal or fertilizer in the holes when planting bulbs?
Don’t use fertilizer, Epsom salts or bone meal in the
bottom of your hole. Bone meal should
not be used at all. Old books suggest it
and some new references just copy that but bone meal is now steamed and
processed for safety and little is left in the way of nutrients. It also attracts some animals, which dig up
your bulbs looking for it. Using a
general purpose fertilizer is fine, but mix it with the soil you are back
filling with or sprinkle it on the soil surface, don’t dump it in the
hole. This can burn roots. Epsom salt does absolutely nothing for bulbs
and can also burn roots. Don’t use it.
When bulbs just begin to emerge in the spring a small
amount of slow release granular fertilizer sprinkled on the soil around them,
especially if you can do it just before a spring rain, will improve their vigor
and size. And if spring is dry make sure
to water your bulbs.
How
do you keep animals from digging up the bulbs?
If you have trouble with animals digging up bulbs you
can lay a piece of wire over the planted area until the ground is frozen. Make sure you remove it early in the spring
if you don’t remove it in the fall. A
piece of wood lattice, with 2 inch holes can be placed on the ground and the
bulbs planted through the holes. This
discourages widespread digging, such as from pets, which really aren’t after
the bulb to eat. By the way don’t let
pets chew on bulbs, some bulbs are very poisonous.
Moles do not eat bulbs, but their tunnels attract other
animals like voles and mice which do eat bulbs and their tunneling can sink
bulbs too deep to emerge. If you have
lots of moles you can plant bulbs in pots, which you sink in the ground to
their rim. Narcissus, daffodil, and allium bulbs are not eaten by animals,
although they can be dug out of the ground and left to die.
What do I do if I can’t plant bulbs right
away
If you cannot plant your bulbs promptly store them in a
cool dark place. The refrigerator
crisper drawer is fine or even the refrigerator in a brown paper bag. Moisten them occasionally in storage but
don’t get them too wet. If they develop
mold put them on newspapers in a dry dark area for a day or two.
If you look outside one morning and snow is on the
ground don’t despair. Plant the bulbs in
a good potting soil mix in containers and keep the containers cool, back in the
refrigerator or on an unheated porch or garage.
The ideal temperature is between 30 and 40 degrees. Water lightly every
couple weeks. After 8-10 weeks of cold
the pots can be brought into a warmer, sunny place and they will probably bloom
for you. Plant the bulbs outside in the
early spring. They may or may not bloom
the next season but at least you had them this spring.
50
Shades of orange and yellow in botanical terms
A couple weeks ago we explored 50 shades of botanical
gray. But in fall the landscape turns to
orange and yellow. So what botanical
names refer to those colors? When you
see the words below in a plants scientific name you know they are referring to the
colors of orange or yellow. It may be
fall color, normal foliage color, stem color or flower color.
Citreus, citrellus, citrinellus, citrinus - shades of
pure lemon yellow, without brightness,
Aureus, auratus, auricolor, aureoles, aureolus – a golden
yellow
Luteus, luteolus, lutescens-egg yolk yellow
Flavus, flavidus,flavescens- pale yellow
Sulphureus, sulphurinus, sulphurellus- sulpher yellow-
bright yellow mixed with white shades
Stramineus, straminellus- straw yellow, tan yellow
Alutaceus – leather yellow
Ochraceus, ochroleucus- ochre color, yellow shading to
brown
Cerinus, waxy,dull yellow, hint of red brown, beeswax
Vitellinus- egg yolk yellow with a hint of red
Armeniacus –apricot yellow
Aurantiacus, aurantius- orange-yellow
Helvolus-grayish yellow
Gilvus-dull yellow-red –brown
Testaceous, testaceus- brown yellow, earthenware
Fulvus, fulva, fulvidus, fulvellus, fulvescens- tawny,
buff - dull yellow-brown-gray
Cervinus, cervineus, cervicolor - dark tawny
Lividus- cloudy yellow gray white, livid
Electricus, succineus-amber
Primulinus- green yellow
Camelinus- camel color
Mustellinus- weasel color
Leoninus, leochromus, lion
Melleus, mellinus- honey color
Ravus, ravidus- yellow gray
Ictericus, icterinus- color of person suffering from
jaundice
Croceus,crocatus, crocinus- saffron, bright orange
yellow with a brown tint
Aurantius, aurantiacus- pure orange
Igneus, ignescens- flame orange color
Flammeus, flammeolus- flame color red/orange (vague term)
Armeniacus- dull orange
Cinnamoneus,- cinnamon
Cupreus, cuprescens,- copper, metallic orange
Ferrugineus, ferruginosus - rusty orange
Rubiginosus- reddish orange
Rhabarbatinus – rhubarb orange
Crustulinus - biscuit crust color
Argillaceous- clay color
Nitelinus – dormouse orange
Some examples of scientific plant names with these
colors include Nuphar luteum- Yellow
pond lily, Polygala lutea - Orange
milkwort, Hemerocallis fulva-common
daylily, Callistemon citrinus- orange
bottle brush, Epipremnum aureum-
Golden pothos, Hieracium aurantiacum- orange
hawkweed.
Growing
toad lilies, Tricyrtis
 |
| Beautiful toad lilies |
If you are looking for something different for a shady
spot why not try some toad lilies. These interesting plants with their dainty,
exotic, orchid like blooms in late summer add color to the shade when few other
shade plants are blooming. They are perennial plants and relatively easy to
grow. They are also deer resistant but
rabbits are said to eat them.
No one knows how Tricyrtis got the common name Toad
Lily. It might be because it likes to
grow in shady damp areas where toads might be found. Or it could be because of the splotched and
spotted flowers although they look nothing like the spots on toads. Despite the name Toad Lilies are charming.
They are relatively new to the modern garden scene- probably first seen in
garden stores in the early 1990’s.
Toad Lilies are native to Eastern Asia, China and Japan
and into the Himalayans. There is a
great deal of confusion still in the market place as to the proper labeling of
the different species, some 20-22 of them- and the many hybrids coming on the
scene don’t help matters. Toad lilies are members of the lily family (well,
most agree on that).
Tricyrtis likes cool, moist areas and does best in
zones 5-7 (some species hardy to zone 4). It can be grown in warmer zones if it
is in a very shaded location and kept consistently moist. In the north partly shaded or lightly shaded
areas are ideal.
Tricyrtis sends up 1-3 foot stems from rhizomes just
under the ground. The oval leaves of trycyrtis clasp the stem and partially
surround it. Some species have leaves
only on one side of the stem; others look fuller, with leaves on both sides of
the stem. The leaves are dark green in most species but there are now many
cultivated varieties of Toad Lilies with variegated leaves. In some species the stems are slightly hairy.
Tricyrtis blooms in late summer and early fall and the
blooms appear at the end of the stems. The flowers of Toad Lilies are quite
interesting and most face upward so you can admire their beauty more closely.
(Some tricyrtis species also have dangling bell shaped flowers.) Despite the attempts of many catalogs to make
them appear larger, the flowers are only an inch to 2 inches long. There are
six long narrow petals. (Actually like
most members of the lily family there are actually 3 petals and 3 sepals which
look like petals.)
The toad lily flower stamens are fused together in a
cone in the center of the flower and three feathery pistils, or female parts
are prominent in the center, these are often forked or lobed at the ends and
dotted with color like the petals. Some
flowers are solid colors in white, lavender, yellow or pink but most Toad
Lilies are known for their speckled and spotted flowers.
An interesting new development links the spotting and
blotching in some varieties of toad lilies to a virus similar to Mosaic Bean
virus. The University of Minnesota did
some tests on blotched and spotted Toad Lilies and found the virus. The infected plants seem to grow normally
otherwise and more work needs to be done to see how the virus affects the
various species.
What
Tricyrtis needs
Toad lilies need a shady moist area to do their
best. They prefer a rich, organic soil.
They are plants that need several years to fulfill their best potential. They normally bloom the first year but often
on only one stem. They may need several
years to spread and form a nice vigorous clump to make an impact. Heights vary from compact varieties about 8
inches tall to species ranging about 2 feet tall.
Toad Lilies must have consistent moisture or the leaves
dry on the edges and look ratty. Too
much sun will also cause the drying.
They benefit from the addition of compost and a good slow release
fertilizer in the spring and again in mid-summer. They are best planted in the spring.
The plants can be propagated from cuttings, seeds or
dividing the rhizomes. Dividing takes some care, as a new growth bud must be on
each division of the crown. Tricrytis
seeds germinate easily if they are given a cold, moist treatment for several
weeks before planting. Most gardeners
will want to buy their Toad lilies as bare rhizomes or as potted plants. The
plants spread slowly in the garden and are not considered to be invasive.
Remember the flowers are small, and to be seen and
appreciated, Toad Lilies need to be close to the front of the bed or along a
woodland path. They are charming in naturalized settings.
Choosing
Varieties
There are new hybrids, varieties and species being
offered each year as the plants become more popular. Here are some named selections.
‘Togen’ is one of the oldest varieties on the
market. It has white petals with
lavender edges. ‘Taipai Silk’ has purple flowers with white edges. ‘Sinonome’ has white flowers with purple
specks and the leaves are on both sides of the stem, and the plant is compact.
‘Empress’ has the largest flowers of the Toad Lilies,
they are white dotted with purple. ‘Raspberry Mousse’ is a solid wine red. ‘White Towers’ has solid white flopwers.
‘Golden Leopard’ is a shimmering yellow with brown
spots. ‘Moonlight Treasure’ has rounded, variegated leaves and large golden
yellow flowers. ‘Lightning Strike’ has tall arching stems of golden foliage
with green markings and light lavender flowers.
‘Imperial Banner’ is a sport of ‘Empress. It has the same flowers but the leaves have a
broad white streak down the middle and are slightly wavy. ‘Gilt Edge’ has leaves outlined in gold.
‘Lunar Landing’ is a hybrid toad lily with silvery, velvet like leaves, each
bordered in dark green, reddish stems and purple flowers.
Caution:
All parts of the Tricyrtis plant are poisonous.
Apple
Pie recipes
This
fall apples are abundant and cheap so there’s no excuse not to make an apple
pie. Pies are good holiday desserts or
good anytime. This article will tell you
how to make the filling and also the crust. Making your own pie crust saves
money. But if you want a time saver, buy
a chilled pie crust at the grocery.
There
are apple peeler-corers on the market that will let you prepare lots of apple slices
fairly quickly. If you are going to do
apple canning or freezing a peeler-corer will save you time and effort. Most are hand cranked, although electric
models exist.
You
can use frozen, thawed apple slices for either filling recipe. You can also make the apple pie filling and
freeze it for later pies.
The
crust
If you are making a pie from scratch why buy
prepackaged commercial pie crust? Pie
crust can be a little tricky but it’s inexpensive to make. With a little practice you can be turning out
good pie crusts and saving yourself some big bucks. Most pie crust recipes are good for fruit or
meat pies such as chicken pot pie. It’s
the filling that decides whether or not you eat them for dessert or dinner.
You’ll need a rolling pin and a good surface to roll
out the dough. Many people use a wood or
plastic cutting board to roll out the crust.
A good tip for making any pie crust is to refrigerate the cutting board
and rolling pin enough to chill them before beginning.
Piecrusts are basically a blend of flour and fat. In the “good old days” lard or butter made
the best crust. It still does but you
can use vegetable shortening if you must, although trans fats like shortening and
hard margarines may be worse than more natural fats for your health.
Piecrusts often require a little fine tuning from the
recipe as different conditions will alter the amount of flour or liquid
required in a recipe.
Here’s a basic recipe for a two crust pie.
2 cups flour
3/4 teaspoon salt
2/3 cup softened butter or shortening
cold milk- about a 1/2 cup
Mix the salt and flour, then cut (mix) in the
butter. You can do this with a fork or
by using a hand mixer on the lowest speed. You should end up with a crumbly
looking mixture.
Add cold milk a tablespoon at a time and blending it in
before adding another until the mixture holds together as a dough ball. If the mixture gets too wet looking you can
save it by adding a bit more flour. Divide the ball in two parts.
Roll out one part of the dough on a floured surface to
a 1/2 inch thick. Turn your pie pan
upside down on top of the rolled out dough and cut around it. Lift the cut out piece and carefully put it
in the pan. If the dough tears you can
patch it together with your fingers.
Roll out the second piece of dough on a floured surface
to 1/2 inch thick. Use as little flour
as possible to sprinkle on the dough while rolling it out to keep it from
sticking to the rolling pin. Cut a
couple small slits in it near the middle.
Add filling to the crust in the pan, it can be mounded a little in the
center. Then carefully lift the rolled
out dough and place it over the filling.
Cut off any dough in excess of an inch or so around the
pan. Then fold the remaining edge of
crust up over the pie rim and crimp the top and bottom crust together with your
fingers. Use your thumb to pinch the
dough to make a nice scalloped edge.
Alternately you can cut the second crust in narrow
strips. Lay half of the strips over the
pie filling in one direction and then lay the other half crossing them, to make
a lattice type crust.
Brushing the top crust with a little milk before baking
will make a nice brown crust.
Making
an old fashioned apple pie filling
Start with peeled, sliced apples. You’ll need 3 cups of slices for a small pie,
4-5 for a large. If you want the apples
to remain light in color you’ll need to slice them into a color preservative of
1/2 cup lemon juice to 1/2 gallon of water.
This first recipe makes an old fashioned apple pie
filling for 1 pie that is darker and softer than a commercial pie filling. Take 2 cups of the apple slices or 3 if
making a large pie and add 1 to 1-1/2 cups of sugar (depending on how sweet you
like the pie). Also add ½ teaspoon
cinnamon, ¼ teaspoon nutmeg and ¼ teaspoon allspice and a ½ cup of apple juice
or water. You can adjust spices to your
taste.
Bring the apple mixture to a boil and cook about 10
minutes until the apples are soft and breaking down. Remove from the heat and fold in 1 cup of
raw sliced apples or 1-1/2 to 2 cups if the pie will be large.
Place your bottom pie crust in a pan. Fill the pan with your filling mix and then
cover with the top crust. Seal the edges
of the bottom and top crust together by pinching them together with your
thumbs. Make a few slits in the top
crust.
Bake in a 400 degree oven for about 30 minutes or until
the top crust is brown and filling is bubbling.
Clear
gel filling for 4 apple pies
This recipe will make about four pies and requires a
special product called Clear Jel. You can
find Clear Jel in some stores by the canning products or order it from
Amazon.com or other mail order resources.
It makes a filling that looks much like commercial canned filling and
doesn’t have a starchy taste like some thickeners leave. You can freeze any filling you don’t use for
later.
You will need 8 pounds of apples, peeled and sliced. This
is about 12 cups of apple slices. Use a
color preservative to slice the apples into that consists of 1/2 cup lemon
juice to a 1/2 gallon of water.
First blanch the apple slices by putting them into a
large strainer or colander and dipping them into boiling water for one
minute. Work in batches, let the slices
drain well after blanching and keep them warm in a bowl while you work.
Next mix together;
2-1/2 cups
apple juice,
1 cup
water
3 cups of
sugar
3/4 cup
Clear Jel
1/4 cup
lemon juice
1/2
tablespoon cinnamon
1/2
teaspoon nutmeg
1/2
teaspoon allspice
Bring this mixture to boil in a large pot, stirring
until thickened and bubbly. Remove from
heat and fold in drained apple slices.
Let cool until lukewarm before filling pie crusts. Add top crusts and crimp crusts
together. Slit tops in several places.
Bake in a 400 degree oven about 30 minutes, until crust
is golden brown.
Of course apple pie tastes best when drizzled with
caramel and topped with a scoop of ice cream.
This
week’s weed- Virginia Creeper, woodbine
Virginia Creeper, Parthenocissus
quinquefolia, is one of those plants that some consider a weed and others
consider a garden plant, even purchasing it from nurseries. It is often confused with poison ivy because
of its growth habits. It has beautiful
fall color and is an easy vine to grow in all most any conditions. While it is not irritating to everyone,
Virginia Creeper does have a sap that some people are allergic to, although it
doesn’t affect people as badly as poison ivy.
Virginia Creeper has compound leaves with 5-7 parts,
not three, although an occasional three leaflet leaf leads confusion to its
identity. The leaflets are joined at the
base in a palm shaped pattern. In the
spring new leaves may have a reddish tinge, in summer they are green with
reddish stems. In fall, the plant is
truly beautiful when the leaves turn to scarlet red.
Virginia Creeper has small, greenish white flowers that
are barely noticeable. The flowers
produce small grape-like fruits which turn blue-black in autumn and contrast
nicely with the red fall foliage. The
fruits are poisonous to humans but are very well like by birds that soon gobble
them up.
Virginia Creeper grows as a vine, it has tendrils with
a sticky pad on their end that can attach it to almost anything. It will climb
trees or sprawl on the ground, or cover fences. It will penetrate window
screens. One plant can cover huge
areas. It is a perennial plant although
the foliage dies each winter. Some
older vines get woody and thick and persist through winter. Pieces of the stem can root where they touch
ground and the plant also spreads by seeds dropped by birds.
Once established in an area Virginia Creeper spreads aggressively. It will grow in any kind of soil, in wet or
dry areas and in sun and shade. It
doesn’t play nice in the garden and care should be used if it is wanted in the
garden for fall color. You probably do
not want to encourage it to grow on your house.
Medicinal
and other uses of Virginia creeper
Both the leaves and berries of Virginia creeper taste
bad and are used as an emetic (causes vomiting) should you need to vomit. Bruised leaves or berries are said to relieve
headache when sniffed. But too much will cause headache- one of those herbal
paradoxes. A tea of Virginia creeper
leaves was used to kill head lice by Native Americans.
A tea from the roots was once used to cure gonorrhea
and cholera but the layperson is urged not to experiment with the plant,
especially for these purposes. Hot
poultices of the leaves are said to help rashes and poison ivy but since the
plant causes allergic reactions for many people I would not recommend that use
either.
As a survival food it is said that one can strip the
bark off stems, boil the stem pieces and consume them. I would think you would need to be really
hungry to eat it. A pink dye can be made
from the berries.
Caution- berries are poisonous and cause nausea,
abdominal pain, bloody vomiting and diarrhea, dilated pupils, headache,
sweating, weak pulse, drowsiness, and muscle spasms. The tissues of the plant
contain microscopic crystals called raphides, which are irritating and can
cause allergic reactions in people, especially in fall.
October-
by Helen Hunt Jackson
The
month of carnival of all the year,
When
Nature lets the wild earth go its way,
And
spend whole seasons on a single day.
The
spring-time holds her white and purple dear;
October,
lavish, flaunts them far and near;
The
summer charily her reds doth lay
Like
jewels on her costliest array;
October,
scornful, burns them on a bier.
The
winter hoards his pearls of frost in sign
Of
kingdom: whiter pearls than winter knew,
Oar
empress wore, in Egypt's ancient line,
October,
feasting 'neath her dome of blue,
Drinks
at a single draught, slow filtered through
Sunshiny
air, as in a tingling wine!
Kim Willis
“He who has a garden and
a library wants for nothing” ― Cicero
Events, classes and other offerings
Please let me know if there is any event or class that
you would like to share with other gardeners.
These events are primarily in Michigan but if you are a reader from
outside of Michigan and want to post an event I’ll be glad to do it.
Do you have plants or seeds you would like to swap or share? Post them here by emailing me. You can also
ask me to post garden related events. Kimwillis151@gmail.com
An
interesting Plant Id page you can join on Facebook
Here’s a
seed/plant sharing group you can join on Facebook
Invitation
If you are a gardener
in Michigan close to Lapeer we invite you to join the Lapeer Area Horticultural
Society. The club meets once a month, 6:30 pm, on the third Monday at various
places for a short educational talk, snacks and socializing with fellow
gardeners. No educational or volunteer requirements for membership, all are
welcome. Membership dues are $20 per year. Come and visit us, sit in on a
meeting for free. Contact
susanmklaffer@yahoo.com Phone
810-664-8912
For sale Muscovy
ducklings, black laced, about 4 months old, you must buy at least 2, unless you
have other ducks. $5 each. Message me at
kimwillis151@gmail.com for more info. Muscovy are flying ducks, large sized and make
good meat ducks. They do not quack- and
are very quiet.
Mary Lou Lafond has a
huge, 5 feet +, Norfolk Island Pine to
give away. You must move it. Norfolk Pines are indoor plants, must be
inside before frost. For more info
contact her at marylafond@frontier.com
Here’s a facebook page link for
gardeners in the Lapeer area. This link
has a lot of events listed on it.
Here’s a
link to all the nature programs being offered at Seven Ponds Nature center in
Dryden, Michigan. http://www.sevenponds.org/
Here’s a
link to classes being offered at Campbell’s Greenhouse, 4077 Burnside Road,
North Branch.
Here’s a
link to classes and events at Nichols Arboretum, Ann Arbor
Here’s a
link to programs being offered at English Gardens, several locations in
Michigan.
Here’s a
link to classes at Telly’s Greenhouse in Troy and Shelby Twsp. MI, and now
combined with Goldner Walsh in Pontiac MI.
Here’s a
link to classes and events at Bordines, Rochester Hills, Grand Blanc, Clarkston
and Brighton locations
Here’s a
link to events at the Leslie Science and Nature Center, 1831 Traver Road Ann
Arbor, Michigan | Phone 734-997-1553 |
http://www.lesliesnc.org/
Here’s a link to events at Hidden Lake Gardens, 6214
Monroe Rd, Tipton, MI
Here’s a
link to events and classes at Fredrick Meijer Gardens, Grand Rapids Mi
http://www.meijergardens.org/learn/ (888) 957-1580, (616) 957-1580
Newsletter/blog
information
If you would
like to pass along a notice about an educational event or a volunteer
opportunity please send me an email before Tuesday of each week and I will
print it. Also if you have a comment or opinion you’d like to share, send it to
me or you can comment directly on the blog. Please state that you want to have
the item published in my weekly note if you email me. You must give your full
name and what you say must be polite and not attack any individual. I am very
open to ideas and opinions that don’t match mine but I do reserve the right to
publish what I want.
I write this
because I love to share with other gardeners some of the things I come across
in my research each week. It keeps me engaged with people and horticulture.
It’s a hobby, basically. I hope you enjoy it. If you are on my mailing list and
at any time you don’t wish to receive these emails just let me know. If you
know anyone who would like to receive a notification by email when a new blog
is published have them send their
email address to me. KimWillis151@gmail.com
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