NRT CookBook and Home Garden News

Sorry for the late and short posting today. Hal Gershman, an NRT Board member, got the idea to produce a cookbook as a Sheep Pasture fundraiser. I didn't realize the recipe submission form had been posted on the NRT website. So far there have been very few submissions. I think part of the problem is that the form has to be downloaded, handwritten and then brought to the NRT or mailed. So 1950s. Anyway I spent most of my Maggie time this morning digging around for old recipes, no doubt getting a lung full of mold in my basement. Now, dear reader, I'm giving you a special opportunity to send recipes to me at edh1620@gmail.com and skip filling out this form with something as retro as a pen or pencil. For instance, if say, just randomly, you have a recipe for cranberry walnut relish you could type it in an e-mail and send it on.

Finally got my raised bed started yesterday. About the middle of June I should be swamped with lettuce, chard, broccoli rabe, tatsoi, and beet leaves. You may remember an earlier post about square foot gardening. Heading lettuce goes in 4 to the square foot, but leaf lettuce is spread thinly over the whole square foot and then harvested to thin out. Interestingly the chard and beet are treated the same way. The beets are planted only an inch apart and harvested very young for salads leaving some for cooking while the chard is 4 to a square. Thirty days to heirloom radishes!

Thunk, the sun must be on my picture window. The male robin whose lady is building a nest in my overgrown shrubbery is attacking his reflection in the window. This is day two and he seems to be contenting himself with pecking the window rather than flying at it full bore. I guess it beats the year he decided to attack the rear view mirror of my car for a week.