Cherry Flavored Life

Freshly picked Sweet Cherries from my own tree



Life is just a bowl of cherries! An interesting saying.

Today was a good day. It was finally sunny here, and warm. I wore shorts for the first time in many months. I ran errands. I deposited money. I picked 1.5 pounds of sweet cherries from my own cherry tree, with more on the tree that are ripening. This year I got to them before the birds, the deer and the squirrels did. Hurrah! Hurrah!

They taste very sweet and are filled with sunshine and sweet rainwater.

Some days are not a "just a bowl of cherries". One of my favorite artists, Mary Engelbreit, said it nicely in her work below. I have a copy of this very poster in my home. Helps me to laugh when I need it.



Now every time I see a "bowl of cherries" I think of this illustration. Cracks me up, it's so cute and colorful.

I need more cute and colorful things in my life.

And more sweet, fresh, sunshine cherries.

Happy Spring everyone!








© Copyright 2011 Mountain Harvest Basket

She's a Hard Chick Now

But still very sweet...


Ha! I like 'em chewy.

I hope everyone had a happy Easter and is enjoying soft Spring weather now.



© Copyright 2011 Mountain Harvest Basket

St Patrick's Day at My House

St Patrick's Day Dinner Table Dressed in Green

We all wore green.

To celebrate Spring.

To avoid getting pinched by loved ones.

To celebrate St. Patrick's Day at my house.


See the pretty Irish linen tea towel with shamrocks that my Mom gave me years ago?

Each year I bring out the official Irish Linen shamrock covered tea towel that my Mom gave me years and years ago. I have never used it as a towel. Too pretty for that. I have always kept it pristine and have never even washed it. It is still as crisp and clean as the day she gave it to me. I only use it one day per year for St Patrick's Day decor. I treasure it because it reminds me of her.

So the table set in vibrant green colors, it was time to enjoy a green beverage as is tradition. We all have heard stories about drinking green colored beer on St Pat's Day, but this was dinner at home instead of a party in a bar, so we drank green colored wine instead:

Green Chardonnay ~ Pretty emerald color!

In past years I have made corned beef & cabbage in my crock pot, but this year I had a craving for something a bit more healthy and with less salt, fat and no nitrites/nitrates. So I purchased some inexpensive lamb shoulder chops/roasts (thin) and chunked them up to make my famous Irish/Greek Lamb Stew in my trusty crock pot instead. It was delicious, if I do say so myself!

Irish/Greek Lamb Stew

We each had two bowls full and between us we ate an entire loaf of homemade Caraway Seed bread that I had turned into warm garlic bread by slicing the loaf, adding fresh chopped garlic and olive oil and baking it in the oven until it was warm and crusty. I do think the men ate a bit more bread than I did. I only remember eating 2 slices. Note to self: must bake more bread.

I hope everyone reading this had a wonderful St Patrick's Day however and wherever you celebrated it. What traditions does your family have for St Pat's, if any?



© Copyright 2011 Mountain Harvest Basket

Spring is Finally Here!

Sweet Strawberries ~ freshly picked

My strawberries have started to ripen. I have gathered those that the birds and bugs have left unsampled. Not many so far, but very nice ones.



Artichokes!

Multiple artichokes have appeared! The most and the largest in the many years that I've had this artichoke plant. Must be due to our prolonged cold & wet weather. I am tired of the cold wet weather, but am loving the artichoke production.



Blue Irises

I used to get many colors and many blooms in my iris beds. Not so much variety in recent years. This year I have many blue and some dark red blooms to enjoy. They do add cheer to my day. You can spy some golden California poppies sneaking in there between the irises.




Spring Bouquet


I made an impromptu bouquet of Sweet Williams, Sage flowers and Lavender. You can't really see the lavender in this photo, but it's there. Really. Lovely scent and color to brighten my home.

Finally, it feels like Spring here today. Tomorrow it will suddenly be summer. Then I'll be complaining that it's too hot...




© Copyright 2010 Mountain Harvest Basket

One Month into Spring

It snowed here last night. Not a lot, but still cold, icy, snow.

Third week in April. It's supposed to be springtime now, right?



My driveway ~ can you see the pear & apple blossoms covered in snow?


It's been a long, cold, wet winter. I am tired of the rain and snow now.



Cherry Tree & Bay Tree ~ snow frosted



CA Redbud Tree ~ in full bloom ~ snow frosted

Note my lounge chair in the photo above. The one I enjoy sunning myself in when it's warm outside. Covered in a thin layer of snow this morning. No sunning myself today!

That's the edge of my main raised bed garden to the right of the photo. Full of snow. Good thing I have been too busy to plant it yet. Only the over wintered garlic grows in there today. I normally have all of my cool weather crops in by the first week in April. Between the weather and my schedule this year, I have done almost nothing to ready my gardens. The guys did help me to weed it. So that's something.


Manzanita Trees ~ pretty when laced with snow


I long for the softness, warmth and sweet scents of Spring. I want to see my gardens grow. I love the little seedlings pushing up from the soil. So brave. So strong. So determined. I love how they grow big and produce much.

Butterflies and flowers. I am so ready for them.



Colorful Roses ~ picked April 18th

The beautiful, sweet smelling roses in this last photo, were picked at my Mom's old house located a couple of hundred miles from here in a warmer sea-level climate. It was actually almost hot there last Sunday when I collected them. They remind me of her.

© Copyright 2010 Mountain Harvest Basket

Mutant Over-Wintered Carrots

Alien Carrots


This is what happens when you leave your carrots in the ground for a full year from one spring to the next.

You get "Attack of the Mutant Carrots".

Could be the title of a new movie....



© Copyright 2010 Mountain Harvest Basket

I Like Peeps

Mountain of Marshmallow Peeps!

Yes, I like Easter marshmallow Peeps, all of the different colors, especially after they are slightly aged (petrified) and a little chewy, but this many Peeps (see above photo) all at one time is waaay more than I ever thought I would receive in my Easter baskets! I will be eating these sweet sugary Peeps for many months to come.

Whoa! I feel a sugar high coming on...


© Copyright 2010 Mountain Harvest Basket

Tulips for My Heart

So I was down by the chicken coop when I heard the Fed Ex truck roll up my gravel driveway. The nice Fed Ex lady handed me this long cardboard box:



I had been warned to stay home to receive a Fed Ex delivery, but I was not completely sure what to expect.

Here is what I saw when I opened the box:



This is how they deliver flowers nowadays. No water. A nice vase. A packet of flower-fresh powder to mix into the water. A nice cellophane, raffia and gauze wrapping:



Colorful Spring tulips! Aren't they beautiful??

So I carefully mixed up the water and the contents of the flower-fresh packet, trimmed each stem a little bit to help the flower drink more easily, and then arranged them as best I could in their very nice vase:

My sweet kitty Jessie supervised the whole process, but I didn't get her picture this time. I think she thought I was preparing something good to eat since I was so busy in the kitchen. Given the chance, she would eat these beautiful flowers as a snack!

So these beautiful multi-colored tulips are a Valentine's Day gift from my partner Bob. Thank you Bob, my Sweetie, for bringing Spring into my home a whole month early!


Beautiful Spring Tulips

I Love Tulips!

Happy Valentine's Day everyone!

© Copyright 2010 Mountain Harvest Basket

Salad Days

Big Beautiful Ice Queen Lettuce

Remember those big "volunteer" heads of lettuce I pointed out in my last post? This big head shown in the photo above weighed in at 1 pound and provided me with enough crispy cool lettuce for many salads and sandwiches. These big heads started from seeds that last year's plants sowed all by themselves. I also have some Ice Queen babies starting to show themselves in the newly planted section of my garden along with the other Spring greens.

Even with gifting a big head of lettuce each to Jack and Bob, I still have several left out in my garden. I must go out there and harvest them soon though. With this warmer weather we are having, those cool weather greens are starting to bolt. They have already sent tall spikes of leaves upward toward the sun. Next will come flowers and seeds, both making the lettuce leaves taste bitter. I will pluck the remaining heads and store them in the spare fridge. They will keep for a week or two.

I predict lots of salads on my menu for the next few weeks.

Another early season harvest item is show in the photo below and fits right in with the Spring salad theme.


French Breakfast Radishes

These are the first few radishes of many. I have already enjoyed them in a few salads. I noticed that there are many many more waiting to be plucked from my garden soil. Their round red shoulders are showing above the soil line asking for attention.

I really need to make the time to get out there and tend my garden this week. My tomato seedlings are big enough to be planted out there now. I will do it as soon as I remove the new layer of weeds that have established themselves after our rainy and now hot & humid weather.

Maybe if I get up tomorrow morning and just don't answer the phone or turn on my computer, I can sneak outside and play in the dirt for awhile. You think?

Happy Spring weather everyone.


© Copyright 2009 Mountain Harvest Basket

Wet Weather in May

Seedlings ~ Rainy Day Window

Rainy, grey and cold weather here again today. Unseasonably so.

My tomato, pepper and eggplant seedlings, all warm weather crops, are taking forever to sprout their "true" leaves this year. They are growing long and spindly, looking for some warm sunlight. Some have keeled over and died. Usually by now, even though I started them late, they are thriving and almost ready to plant in the garden. It will be a few weeks yet before I can set these seedlings outside.

The photo above was taken this morning. Those are my recycled yogurt container seedling pots sitting up high (out of kitty reach) in my half moon window. This window faces east and usually has hot morning sun, but not today. It is cold and foggy out there even now.

This next photo was taken a couple of days ago when it was a bit sunnier. That's my main raised bed garden partially planted with cold weather crops.


Raised Bed Garden

You can see the garlic growing toward the back. Several kinds of greens are planted in between the rows of garlic. They are still very small and hard to see in the photo. I have found that planting my tender greens in between the garlic plants helps to keep the bugs off of my greens. It's not foolproof. The slugs still get in there as do the pill bugs, but the other pests seem to be repelled by the garlic sentinels. This year I planted spinach, mesclun, bok choy, Swiss chard and two kinds of lettuces. There is also some broccoli on the other side of the garlic patch in the shade when this photo was taken in the late afternoon. It is doing quite well as broccoli likes this cold damp weather we are having.

A big bunch of curly leaf parsley grows to the left of the garlic. That bush was planted there last summer and has thrived all winter providing me with wonderful fresh parsley for my salads, soups, stir fries etc. I did cover it with a milk crate and plastic sheeting to protect it when we had snow and freezing weather during the coldest parts of winter. It did beautifully and continues to thrive there. Unfortunately, the parsley is planted right in the middle of the space where I planned to grow my root veggies this Spring, so I had to plant my beet seeds all around the big parsley bush. Hopefully the beets will get enough sun there. I love hearty beet greens and pickled beets.

Between the parsley/beets and the side wall of the raised bed I planted radishes and carrots and a long row of snow peas. All have sprouted, but are still so small that you can barely see them in this photo.

The foreground of the garden bed is full of many little weeds that will be pulled or tilled under when I get ready to plant that area later in the month.

The big bushy lettuce to the right and in front of the garlic "volunteered" itself from plants that went to seed last summer. That variety of lettuce is Reine des Glaces (means Queen of the Ices) and is a cold hardy loose leaf crisphead. It is one of my favorites to grow. See a better picture of it below:

"Queen of the Ices" Lettuce ~ I call it simply "Ice Queen"

It is one of the lettuce varieties that I planted this year in between the garlic rows. I plant it every year.

Since I had my camera in hand this morning snapping photos of seedlings and the weather, my sweet kitties just had to get in on the photo action. Below is my best friend Jessie looking half asleep as she poses for me in the morning window light.

My Sweet Jessie

And then of course, Frieda had to ham it up for the camera. She posed demurely and waited for me to take this photo of her. All before their breakfast was served, too. Such patience was displayed.

Furry Frieda Poses for the Camera

Well, that's today's garden and weather report from Mountain Harvest Basket. Too wet to be outside today. Back to my other rainy day activities like laundry and baking.

© Copyright 2009 Mountain Harvest Basket

Spring Blossoms

Braeburn Apple Blossoms

Even though today was cold and rainy here in the mountains, Spring has definitely sprung around here. Earlier this week we had high temperatures in the 80's. It was downright hot! I wore shorts & sandals (and had to shave my legs)!

Anyway, since I haven't posted anything here in awhile, I thought I'd get back into the blogging swing of things by showing you some pretty Spring blossoms.

The photo above is a close up shot of my Braeburn apple tree blossoms. The tree is covered in delicate pink blossoms this year. More than I have seen in years past. I love their pink color. This tree is now 10 years old. Some years it produces an abundance of crisp and tart apples. Other years, not so much.

This next photo is not actually of blossoms, but if you look closely you can see some tiny plums on this Santa Rosa plum tree. It blossomed a few weeks ago, and some of the blossoms and fruit survived the freakish late snow storm we had recently.


Santa Rosa Plum Tree ~ see the tiny green plums?

Next up is my newest Bartlett pear tree. It is so new that it has not produced any fruit yet. My old Bartlett pear died a few years ago. Probably due to gophers attacking its roots (even though I installed a wire gopher basket) or perhaps due to root rot. I am not sure. I purchased and planted this new little Bartlett 2 or 3 winters ago. I usually buy bare root fruit trees. They are easier to handle, cost less and seem to grow faster and stronger when transplanted.


Young Bartlett Pear Tree ~ lotsa blooms, no fruit yet


The photo below is not fruit tree blossoms or even native ornamental flowers. This is a pretty bouquet that graced our Greek Orthodox Easter dinner table last Sunday evening. Bob gave me this bright bouquet of flowers and it added just the right splash of color to go with our traditional bright red Greek Easter eggs.


Bright Spring Bouquet

I will post about both of our Easter celebrations another day. I am so behind on my posting!

Happy Spring everyone! Enjoy the warming weather.

© Copyright 2009 Mountain Harvest Basket

Must Be the Weather

It must be something about Springtime.

It's been almost a year and this post I wrote back on April 10, 2008 still fits me today.

I finally planted the majority of my warm weather veggie seeds in little pots today. I am only about 6 weeks behind schedule! I took photos, but will post them another day. They aren't very exciting yet. Just little pots of moist dirt.

I felt good for awhile today. I felt close to my Mom while I was putting all the little seeds in the soil. I could actually feel her here with me. Smiling and laughing. Guiding me. I turned up the music I had playing on my stereo and even danced a bit around my own living room. I could feel her with me. I started to cry. Happy tears. And sad tears. Both kinds. Like I am crying right now.

I do miss her so much. But I felt her presence with me today. Spring always reminds me of my Mom.


© Copyright 2009 Mountain Harvest Basket

Spring in January?

Spring bulbs emerging early

I know that many parts of the US are having very cold weather right now. Lots of snow, ice and rain going on out there according to the weather news. Here in the Sierra foothills we have been having unseasonably mild weather all week. It's been very sunny and warm during the day with mild breezes. Feels like Spring is happening in the middle of January.

A couple of days ago, I donned a short sleeved tee shirt and a pair of summer shorts and sat in my lounge chair (you know, the lounge chair that was covered in 6 inches of snow not very long ago) to soak up some sun and get my natural vitamin D while reading my newest herb book. I must have stayed out there about an hour just enjoying the quiet day and relaxing. Something I don't do very often. I even heard a few frogs/toads waking up and talking to each other. Sure seemed like Spring was starting in the middle of January.

The photo above shows Spring bulbs, they are either crocus or grape hyacinth, that are planted in my terra cotta bowl on my porch, emerging from the soil as the weather warms up this week. They are even bigger today than when I took this photo earlier in the week.

I know we will get more cold, rainy and even snowy weather before Spring really arrives in March, but for now we are having a nice Spring preview. It is confusing the plants though. They will all pop out and then get snowed on in a few days or weeks. Always an adventure with nature.

For those of you who have colder weather where you are right now, take heart that Spring is not very far away. It will be here soon.

The nights are still cold here. Each day in the late afternoon the temperature drops and my house does get quite cool. I haven't been building many fires in my woodstove yet this winter, but I have been baking things in my kitchen. You know, just to help warm up the house...

Last week I baked a batch of banana muffins to use up the overripe bananas, and to warm up the house, of course.

I need to make another batch, as these are long gone by now, and I have more overripe bananas sitting around. And I need to keep my house warm on these cold nights....yeah...that's it...keep the house warm.

What's the weather like where you are today?

© Copyright 2009 Mountain Harvest Basket

Spring Color

Spring Color Pot

I finally planted those pansies! I planted them in with the radiant red petunias that survived in the terra cotta pot on my porch since last Summer. I can hardly believe that those petunias are still alive. They are actually thriving. They are blooming their little hearts out! Must be all that coffee and tea that I watered them with during the Fall and Winter months. Well, now they have pansy companions in many colors. And I have a colorful patio table centerpiece.


© Copyright 2008 Mountain Harvest Basket

Night Wanderings

Full Moon Goddess

Walking alone in the dark with only the light of the full moon spilling over the nearby hills to light my way, I hike up the hill from my mailbox to my home. Too busy today to leave the house and get my mail, I do it now in the dark. It is peaceful this time of day. There is a slight breeze. It brings the sweet smell of Spring mixed with the distinct scent of steaks that one of my neighbors must be cooking on their grill. The scent of their dinner surrounds me and whets my appetite, although I have already eaten. The barbecued dinner is a sign of the warming weather. The soft breeze and the scent of pollen in the air usher in Springtime.

I look up and gaze at my Full Moon Goddess now rising higher in the sky as I approach my home on the hill. She is beautiful and so bright. She takes my breath away every time she shows off her beauty. Just for me. My moon.

Tonight she is serenaded by soft music floating up from our small town below. I can hear the guitars and the beat and the country twang of the singers. A familiar song to my ears. I stand there and sway with the music as my gaze stays fixed on the moon above. I hear them serenade me too. “knock, knock, knockin’ on heavens door….knock, knock, knockin’ on heavens door…” yes, I remember that song. The beat gets in my blood and I remember good times.

I smile at my Moon Goddess and talk softly to her. I ask her questions and listen quietly for her answers. I feel them in my heart. I can almost hear my Mom’s voice in the moon’s whisper.

The music is fading now. The singer is talking and the crowd is cheering and applauding. The town is entertained tonight, and so am I.




© Copyright 2008 Mountain Harvest Basket

Vernal Equinox

Seedlings Waiting ~ waiting for me!

According to my calendar, yesterday marked the Vernal Equinox, the first day of Spring. The season when the outdoors turns green and everything seems to bloom and grown in abundance.

Well, here I am sitting inside at my computer just having finished my second cup of strong green tea, (my caffeine of choice these days) and feeling a great need for some sunshine and warmth to penetrate my soul. So I gathered these recent photos of bright colors and sunshine from the world just outside my door and I am sharing them with you, my blog buddies, so that we can all celebrate Spring together. Some of you are still having wet and cold weather where you live, so it is my hope that these images of Spring will bring as much sunshine into your hearts as they did to mine.

When I am done with this post, I am going outside to nurture my soul with the real thing. Something I need to do a lot more of. For now, let me share a little bit of my Spring world with you.


Native Manzanita Trees in Bloom ~ Bees Buzzing, hear them?


Fruit Trees ~ planted a few years ago


The Old Girls ~ Red, Lucy & Barbara (still my Spring chicks!)


My Neighbor's Dog ~ through the wire fence ~ notice the blur where his tail is supposed to be. He's wagging it so hard that you can't even see it. He likes me.


Green Onion Pot on my porch ~ planted 6 years ago & still going strong


I love this shot. Makes me feel Spring in my heart & reminds me of Mom.


© Copyright 2008 Mountain Harvest Basket

Nature's Magic

Nature inspires me. It never ceases to amaze me. Each day brings new beginnings....


Hyacinth Emerges


new growth, new experiences....


Hyacinth Budding


and new surprises....


Hyacinth Blooming


Just like life. Life amazes me. Each day brings something new.

I love Spring.



© Copyright 2008 Mountain Harvest Basket

Nurtured By Nature

Springtime on my patio table

It’s been a few days since I’ve felt like posting anything here. My life and my mood have been less than ideal this week. Too much work, too little money, too little time and too little energy. Same old stuff. Add to that some health concerns about my precious kitty companion Jessie, and some partner relationship issues and you have my ingredients for a less than ideal week. Well, at least it’s Friday today. Not that Friday signals the end of the work week for me since I am self employed, but it still triggers some ancient relaxation urges in my psyche.

My sweet kitty Jessie

I want to thank my good friends both locally and in my blogging world for being so psychic and sensitive and for expressing your concern for my well being. I love and appreciate every one of you. You have reached out to me without me even asking you for it.

So here I sit sipping my second glass of cheap Merlot wondering what I will make myself for dinner. When I am stressed as I have been this week, I tend to eat rather haphazardly (which doesn’t help my mood or energy level) and I find myself missing my Mom a lot more than usual. I guess it’s her nurturing and her love that I miss the most. And her laughter. She had a great laugh.

I also miss her more around holidays, my birthday and especially as the season changes to Spring. I have always associated Springtime with my Mom. She loved her flowers and her garden so very much. She was very much like a beautiful blooming flower herself. A bright yellow King Alfred daffodil or a velvety red Mr. Lincoln rose (her favorite). At least in my eyes. She was bright and sunny most of the time. Colorful always. Fresh and vibrant. Full of life. That was my Mom. I miss her every day, but especially this time of year.

King Alfred Daffodils

It’s a wonderful time of year, my favorite season, so it’s not a sad time. I just think of her more as the flowers start to bloom and as I start to work in my garden again. I know she is with me, directing me, telling me what plants to put where and how to plant them. You see, my Mom could grow anything. She definitely had a very green thumb. I used to say that she “could grow popsicles from planting popsicle sticks”. Since her death almost 11 years ago, I seem to have cultivated my own green thumb, when before I couldn’t grow much of anything. I truly believe her spirit lives within me and helps me to continue doing the things that she loved so much.

I love to be in my garden in the Spring. I love the new growth, the new beginnings filled with promise. I enjoy seeing the earth wake up after a cold winter. I love dreaming and visualizing my bountiful harvest while planting the seeds and seedlings in the moist soil. I can feel my Mom in the garden with me. I enjoy my garden and nature in general for the beauty and the feeling they give me, but I also enjoy being in my garden because I feel so much closer to my Mom when I am there.

I’ve neglected my garden in the past couple of years. Oh, I still grew some veggies and a few flowers and herbs, I should say they pretty much grew themselves, but I haven’t really given my garden enough priority or attention to truly feed my soul, make my spirit soar and allow myself to be nurtured by nature, and of course feel closer to my Mom.

So this Spring, I think I must make my garden a higher priority in my life and get out there and plant my seeds, hold my Mom’s hand and harvest some love to feed my spirit. Oh yeah, along the way I’ll harvest some veggies too.



© Copyright 2008 Mountain Harvest Basket