Although it is like living in a greenhouse (because we haven't had air conditioning since returning from our holidays), most of the plants (indoors and out) are soaking in this heat and humidity. I've only had about four casualties within the indoor group, and no deaths or injuries to the outdoor group. Speaking of my ...
Cycling through Provence – Day 4
I should mention that as of yesterday, we are in the region of Luberon, which has some lovely hilltop villages and towns. Today we had the option to ride to the Abbaye de Sénanque, which you might recognize from photos like this. To be honest, I was really looking forward to this; however, Elsa was honest ...
Cycling through Provence – Day 3
It was a tough day today because of the heat, but the vistas were wonderful! Our day started with a shuttle ride to Robion, where we discussed today's ride at a small cafe. The sun was already quite hot and we were rolling out the patio umbrellas. The first four kilometers were ok with a ...
Cycling through Provence – Days 1 & 2
The morning of our first day of cycling started with the usual procedure - wake up, pick up something for breakfast, final pack-up, check out of hotel, head to the meeting point. We ended up at the same bakery as the previous morning and ordered allongé coffee (long espresso), croissant, and a single-serve quiche for each ...
Kitchen Lab: Octopus!
I had recorded a cooking show because I was interested and I correctly believed that hubs would be interested too. While we enjoyed our afternoon coffee, I decided to play the episode - In the Kitchen with Stefano Faita, Not-So-Everyday Seafood. I can't find a copy of that episode to share with you, but this is ...
2018 Urban Garden
In the past, I've provided updates from the moment I seed, so obviously I have some catching up to do. Something I struggled with last year and again this year is figuring out the optimal time to start seeding (based on my previous successes and failures). It's difficult to keep all the details straight in ...
Caterpillars, butterflies, oh my!
An awesome camper brought in a cutting of milkweed last week, and on it were three monarch butterfly caterpillars, busily munching on the leaves. The camper also brought in a chrysalis, which was really cool. I have never seen one before, nor have I ever witnessed the emergence of a butterfly from the chrysalis. The ...
Green
Everything is green! The Marcato peppers are a very nice size - all green! Shishito peppers - green. At least I can harvest them green. Another new variety is the Doe Hill pepper. They are round, and green! Remember my Arbol pepper plant that looked all gnarly? It's grown out of that phase (or the thrips have moved ...
Gazania-lious! This is Mother Nature’s form of art
I honestly never feel I need to say much when it comes to talking about my gazanias. The photos speak for themselves. Their behaviour is so graceful, and I would love to one day capture it in time lapse.
Mystery of the hole punched leaves solved
My no longer fruit producing Alpine strawberry plant remains on the potting table. The leaves have been yellowing, so I fertilized it a few weeks ago, and the leaf colour is slowly improving. What remained a big mystery for many weeks, maybe even over a month, has been the hole-punched leaves. I had posted a ...