Mother Earth's Garden

I did a little harvesting from Mother Nature’s Garden last night. Wild mushrooms are in season right now in our area, so we walked back to the woods and went mushroom hunting.
I don’t recommend mushroom hunting to anyone unless you know what you’re looking for. There are more poison mushrooms out there than there are edible.
I’ve been mushroom hunting with my dad since I could walk, so I’m completely familiar with what to pick, and what to leave in the woods.
My dad and son just shook their heads yesterday when I was more worried about taking photos of …read more

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I know it’s not Garden Blogger’s Bloom day, but so much is blooming right now in my backyard and garden I just had to share some photos!
I have a few lovely yellow daffodils still in bloom.

My fruit trees are in full bloom. I have one cherry tree that’s going crazy with tiny white blooms.

And an apple tree that is loaded with blooms.

My lilac is in full swing. I love looking down at it from my bedroom window!

And last here’s one of my favorite tulips. It’s beautiful in the garden, but I can never get an image …read more

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I talked the other day about some of my favorite ways to eat asparagus, here’s a yummy recipe from Love Your Veggies that combines asparagus and new potatoes. Perfect for spring cooking from the garden.

Wild West New Potatoes and Asparagus with Ranch-er Dip
You’ll need: For Vegetables: Non-stick vegetable spray 1 ½ pounds unpeeled red new potatoes, scrubbed and cut in half 1 pound asparagus (about 20 spears), washed and trimmed to approximately 4-inches 3 tablespoons olive oil …read more

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If you’ve been thinking about going organic in your garden, but you’ve been afraid to take the plunge, there is help out there. Quality Assurance International (QAI) provides information and guidance to anyone who is looking to grow organically, or or to have their garden or growing system certified organic.
Over ten years ago I remember checking out their guidelines when I wanted to take my garden totally organic, and it was a big help then, and they’re still a big help now. They share some great organic gardening pointers you may not think of otherwise.
Quality Assurance International’s organic experts …read more

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We had a beautiful rainbow over our garden last night. I snapped a few photos, but didn’t get a chance to post them last night. It was one of those crazy hectic days.

I hope the rainbow will bring good luck to my garden this summer! I did notice my onions, peas, and some of my spring greens are peeking up out of the ground. I should be planting more to join them in the next few days, and some tomato and pepper plants in the next few weeks.

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Asparagus season is almost here in my zone 5 Ohio garden. My favorite way to cook asparagus is on the grill. I also like it tossed with olive oil, and a little parmesan and either grilled or baked in the oven until it’s tender.
Did you know you can eat asparagus straight from the garden? If you haven’t tried it, you should sometime. It has a different flavor, and a great crunch.
Asparagus is easy to grow, and the only care it really requires is a little dividing every few years. Set new asparagus crowns up in a sunny …read more

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I’ve always wanted to design a waterfall terrace in one of our rolling hills. I love this video from HGTV. It’s loaded with how to ideas. I love how they incorporated it into an outside Zen filled living area.
We don’t have any hills quite that steep, but I would love to put in a patio, and outdoor living area with a water feature.

I could get into relaxing in this outdoor retreat! With the sounds of the water, and the wooded hillside. Bliss.

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It’s that time of year when you’re deciding what you’d like to plant in your container gardens for the summer. If you’re looking for container garden ideas check out these links:

Recycled Garden Containers
Unique Garden Containers
Anything Can Be A Container Garden
Great Container Combinations
Starting Your Container Garden From Seed

If you’re looking for even more container garden inspiration Jennifer has some really cool and strange plant containers at Blisstree’s Green Living. My favorite is the Lego planter, but the tiny ring planter is pretty fab too.
Image via istockphoto.com

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I can’t believe it’s already mid April! The end of March and first few days of April were warm and sunny for the most part here, but the last week has been rainy and cooler most days.
The touch of warm has me hungry for more days I can get outside and work in the garden.
Here’s what’s blooming in my garden in April.
A little pink hyacinth to brighten dreary days and some tulips just peaking out of their green hiding place.

I have several varieties of daffodils, but several are still thinking about blooming, I wish they would …read more

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If you’re a Monarch Butterfly fan, LiveMonarch.org is providing free milkweed seeds, and complete planting instructions on their website.
Monarch Butterflies love Milkweed, in fact their life cycle depends on it. The spraying and mowing of fence rows, and side ditches has greatly reduced the number of Milkweed plants on the Monarch’s migration route. You can help by planting a little of their natural habitat in your back yard or meadow.
Just send a self addressed stamped envelope to the address at LiveMonarch.org to get your Milkweed seeds.
Image via sxc.hu

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