The most destructive force against new perennials: Halloween!

I've been anxious about Halloween for many weeks now. When I put in new perennials about 3 years ago, the rotten trick-or-treaters (really I love kids, but I can't help but refer to kids as rotten as it gets closer to Halloween) nearly TRAMPLED my new plants! As you might know, I just put in hundreds of dollars worth of new plants that I'm not about to lose to those rotten kids (see, I swear I didn't even mean to say that!).

My idea worked really well (except for one kid, but it's a fact he's truly rotten).

Though it is the biggest EYESORE I've ever seen in my life, it kept the kids out of the new garden very successfully. The funniest thing is that I got a lot of compliments on the webbing and even had a group of kids come over before it got dark just to "see the decorations".

Well, the spider webbing - which very rarely is done well, and this case is no exception - is coming down immediately tomorrow morning. I hope I find all the big plastic spiders or I will certainly have a heart attack come spring.

Hope you had a fun Halloween!

Hot chili paste (lot jiu jeung)

This flavorful hot chili paste goes hand in hand with fried Chinese dumplings, with any shrimp or pork dim sum dish, or on top of a bowl of noodles. Here's how I made this simple and delicious condiment:

1. Over a medium flame, heat about 1/2 cup oil (I used corn).
2. Add about 2 tablespoons of minced garlic and fry until a light golden brown.
3. Reduce heat and add about 4 tablespoons of crushed, dried, hot pepper. Stir continuously and turn off flame when fragrant. This process is fairly quick. Watch carefully to be sure the pepper/garlic does not burn.
4. Add salt to taste.

The type of pepper you use will determine the flavor and heat of your chili paste. My dried cayenne peppers yielded a chili paste that was so manageable that my kids could try just a touch of it. It was also so delicious that we were microwaving hot dogs just to have something to eat with it. Another batch made with my Thai peppers yielded a chili paste that was all heat - to the point of being just painful.

Click here to see how I dried my peppers. If you don't want to delve into this recipe and have some good dim sum restaurants around, try asking for "lot jiu jeung" - the phonetic spelling for "hot chili paste" in Cantonese. Enjoy!

My father's chrysanthemums

These are my father's chrysanthemums taken today. One quick word on these mums - it requires a lot of care to produce these large blooms! Lots of pruning, staking, watering, feeding, protecting from heavy rains, winds, etc. Quite a primadonna of a plant.

You might want to make sure you're seated because 1) there are a LOT of photos and 2) the blooms that follow are spectacular!

If you missed my earlier post on my father's house, you can see his garden, ducks, geese, trees, etc. here. Here's a cool post on hatching ducklings at his house this spring (must see photos in this post!).

Tomorrow is garlic planting day

This is my planting stock for the year. In the back are two large Early Reds (medium pungency, and always the biggest bulbs for me). Up front are the Ajo Rojo (a hotter creole garlic with beautiful red-streaked wrappers), and Inchelium (my favorite all-around excellent flavor garlic). I have tried a few other varieties of gourmet garlic as well as elephant garlic (which isn't a true garlic, but a member of the leek family), but these three have yielded the best flavor, and more importantly for me, bulbs of a reasonable size to save! Had to double check the planting requirements, and just as I remembered, easy...as...pie.

• Find a spot in full sun. If you have clay soil like I do, dig compost in.
• Separate cloves carefully (keep wrappers on).
• Plant 3 inches deep with tip pointing up.
• Plant each clove 6 inches apart.
• Mulch with straw or leaves.
• Weed through the spring and summer.

Come late June of next year, I'll know the garlic is ready to carefully dig up when the outer few leaves start to die back. If I'm lucky, I'll also be able to harvest some scapes (the funny flower stalk looking thing that shoots up near harvest time). Late June, I will dig up each bulb with a garden fork, brush off the dirt being careful not to bruise or cut the garlic, then stagger them and hang to dry. Some people braid their garlic to dry (or for display).

If you're remotely interested by this post and have not tried planting garlic, there's no real excuse not to! Garlic does not take up a lot of room, and you can plant right into your flower beds if you don't keep a vegetable garden. If you do have a vegetable garden and haven't grown garlic, just know this: garlic is ready around the same time your basil, tomatoes, and herbs are. Imagine the possibilities. The taste of the garlic bought in stores (usually elephant garlic) does not even compare to true garlic you can easily grow yourself. The varieties I grow are probably a bit hotter than store bought garlic bite for bite, but definitely much more flavorful. I got my garlic as a gift a few years ago from a forum buddy, and I know there are lots of online sources for garlic. I'm not quite sure where to buy gourmet garlic planting stock around me, perhaps the farmer's market? If anyone knows, please leave a comment so others have a lead. Thanks and happy garlic planting to anyone else who is planting this weekend!

This raccoon has it in for me

What at first glance may look like a cute little bandit hiding at the top of a tree, is actually a probably evil, definitely pesty creature who lurks at the tree tops plotting revenge against me. The photo is very much zoomed in. If it weren't so dark, you'd be able to see his red eyes staring directly at me.





If you look at his eyes, you can practically read his thoughts...

• "I'm furious that you placed that stone on the trash can lid. I can no longer search for food, leaving my shredded empties all over your side yard like a freshman at a frat party.


• You think you're so smart for putting a layer of straw over your composted table scraps so I don't smell it and won't dig through it.


• But the LAST straw was the netting you put over the squash. That squash belongs just as much to me as it does to you. I've always been generous enough to leave you the majority of the squash after I take my few bites. NETTING is what I get for it?!


• I will NEVER, EVER forget the night I came up to the back door with my 2 buddies in search of Sassy's leftover cat food. You didn't heed my hissing and actually tried to spray me with Windex and Old English. I was not amused.

• When you least expect it, expect it. I'm going to ravage your salad greens, salivate my rabies germs on your strawberries, and eat every last blossom I can find while you're at work. And in between these acts, I'll be watching you from above, and I know you're scared".

A garden just like mine was in a magazine!

I was taking a cursory flip through the new issue of Garden Gate that arrived today when I saw a garden that looked exactly like the perennial garden I've been working on! I was amazed to find that this garden had the same shape and layout as the one I've drawn out from my own imagination and begun to plant!

As I settled in to more closely read the article - looking for all kinds of confirmation that I'm awesome and that being a landscape architect is my destiny, I realized something that will prevent my dreams from ever coming into fruition. My brilliant garden, shown in the magazine, was the before photo. Following, was a five-page spread titled, "Too Much Going On", describing the ways that my garden probably could and should be improved.

But not to worry, the article warns me. Per the article, I do not need to rip everything out and start over (a good thing, because I just purchased and tucked in LOTS of new plants). I should follow these tips:

• Pick a core group of five or six plants and stick with it.
• Repeat colors and textures to make the garden feel unified.
• Plant in groups of three to five plants to avoid ending up with dots of color here and there.
• Expand the garden to accommodate two plants side by side instead of a row of single plants (is my husband reading this?)
• Consider using something like an urn or vertical element to mark the transition from the driveway.

I enjoy the segment "From the Drawing Board" in the magazine because several different variations on the main theme are shown. After reading the article a little more closely, it seems that I am not completely off base. Perhaps I have a little "too much going on", but I have tried to stick to a color scheme, and generally planted in groups of 3. I have also decided to add some vertical elements to this new garden. Not sure if my garden will ever end up in the after photo, but I guess I can start dreaming about being a landscape architect again.

I could not be a political commentator...

...because my ego is too fragile.

I've been noticing lots of lawn signs for different local offices recently. Seeing a particular name burned me up because of an experience this summer. I decided to use a local website to vent my frustrations, share my experiences, and lend a warning to others. Here's a link to my post. Be sure to read the comments as well. http://rockvillecentral.com/2009/10/contributor-opinion-by-wendy-kiang-spray-the-connection-between-my-water-bill-and-hoffmann-lawn-signs.html/#commenting

Lots of lessons to be learned. First and foremost, I do not have the moxie to be a political commentator. I feel an overall sense of unease about the comments that were posted today. Perhaps I am being overly sensitive. Second lesson, there are lots of wacko losers in this world. There are people who would probably never say to my face sarcastically, "Awwww, poor Wendy", yet in a forum, would have the confidence to be so outright rude. Third lesson, I love my fellow garden bloggers. Here's why:

• An overall optimism and positivity. The old gardening cliche, "there's always next year".


• The cheering on of each other. Messages from bloggers who only hope your garden will succeed. That look for the beauty in your garden, and offer sympathy when your seedlings die.


• An appreciation for differing opinions. I don't always care for all the plants on your blogs, just as I'm sure you don't always care for all the plants on my blog. HOWEVER, I love that YOU love them. I love that even if you don't necessarily care for all of my plants, you still ask questions about them.


• Are we peaceful or what? We don't argue about whether it's best to mulch with shredded hardwood or pine nuggets or rock. We don't offer links about research that refute what others are doing in the garden.


• We GET it. We just get each other. We get the passion, the quest to find the most gorgeous daylily, or to grow the straightest carrot, the appreciation for a stunning macro photo. When someone posts a message about a new garden bed, we don't start tearing down about the location, or method, or material, we marvel at and find inspiration in the industriousness.

Lots learned today. Most importantly, I am not a political commentator, but a garden blogger. I like to write about discoveries I make when things are quiet and slowed down. I like to write about recipes I've tried using vegetables I've grown. I like to comment on my love of mother nature (and my disdain for bugs!). And I like you all. You make me feel good.

This bud's for you...