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August 2011
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Vol 1, Issue 4
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Garden Notes
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Greetings from Christianson's! |
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The Christianson grandchildren, Maeve, Ian and Nora,
on the Schoolhouse steps, July 2011
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While we try to teach our children all about life,
Our children teach us what life is all about.
~Angela Schwindt
Late last month we took some pictures of Toni and John's grandchildren in the Schoolhouse gardens. It was a warm, sunny morning, the bees were buzzing, and the air was infused with a delicious blend of freshly cut grass and blooming roses.
As the kids were running around barefoot in the grass, full of enthusiasm and surprising cheerfulness about sitting for numerous pictures, it dawned on me that summer is really here. I mean really, really here. And not because of the bees and the sunshine and the roses. It was the barefooted joyfulness of those children that marked the arrival of summer for me.
There are so many happenings and events in the valley this time of year that it's easy to book-up every weekend. We race from one festival to another and before we know it, the summer is over. I would highly encourage you to seek out some of the simple joys of summer, such as relaxing in our Schoolhouse gardens. The nursery is open every day from 9 am to 6 pm and the gardens are absolutely beautiful right now. Bring a picnic, a book, a camera, a friend - just come. It's here for you whenever you need a good old fashioned grass-between-the-toes summer experience. See you soon!
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| Where to find us | |
15806 Best Road
Mount Vernon, WA 98273
360-466-3821
1-800-585-8200
Open daily 9 am - 6 pm
NW Flower & Garden Show "People's Choice Award 2011"
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August Specials
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August 1 -21
Outdoor Containers - 20% off
August 22 -31
Summer Heather - 20% off
August 22 -31
Water Plants - 30% off
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The Garden in August...with Ani Gurnee
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 - Our climate here is so conducive to growing greens like kale, collards, and chard through the winter. Now is the time to be planning and planting your winter garden. Don't miss the class 'Growing Winter Vegetables' with speaker Bill Thorness on Saturday, August 6 (call the nursery at 466-3821 to reserve your spot). I plan to be there and hope you will too!
- As perennial bloom fades, consider that some of the best garden designers in the world are now encouraging us to hold off on tiding up and to enjoy the fall garden for its own beauty. Some species - such as Echinacea - have seed heads that stand tall even when dry and provide a source of food for birds in the winter. We all have our own balance point between order and disorder.
- If you prefer a tidier look, then August is a good time to begin trimming back some of the tired foliage and blooms. Case in point - Lady's Mantle. Perhaps there's no merit to leaving all those droopy leaves, especially if they are smothering adjacent plants. Many plants follow this pattern so look for a core of fresh new foliage down in the center of the plant. Retain that core and remove the rest.
- Lavender represents another typical pattern: a more woody plant prone to opening out and getting rangy with age. To keep lavender compact over many years, trim after bloom fades, shearing in past the bloom stalks up to 50% into the dome of leaves, but not so deep as to be in dry wood as this will not regenerate.
- Spring-blooming perennial ground covers, such as Candytuft, Snow in Summer, Arabis, and Aubrietia, are at their worst right now. Use your shears to snip all across the tops of these ground covers to the point where you see tiny little new growth emerging along the stems.
- August is a good time for light pruning of Japanese Maples to thin the canopy so that light can play through the interior of the tree (heavier pruning is best done in late winter just before growth begins).
- When choosing a product to treat aphids, explore the less toxic options for the sake of small birds that may be feeding on the aphids. The nursery carries an organic aphid control spray called 'Safer'.
Ani Gurnee is a popular and greatly-adored guest speaker at the nursery. Ani is the owner of Aulos Design and she can be reached at 360-445-2028. Ani will be teaching many gardening classes at Christianson's Nursery in September and October (our Autumn Class Calendar is provided below). She will also be teaching a six-week class at the Anacortes Senior College called 'Gardening & Landscaping Basics'. This class runs from October 11 through November 17 and meets Tuesdays from 3:30-5:30 pm. For more information, visit Anacortes Senior College.
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The Big Chill
Tips on freezing berries and summer veggies
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This is the season in Skagit Valley when driving from Point A to Point B is often interrupted by a 'quick stop' at a roadside produce stand and before you know it you are walking back to your car with a flat of berries. Those with home vegetable gardens and fruit trees often experience the same net effect - an abundance of perfectly ripe, delicious produce that needs to be consumed asap. If you can't use it all yourself and you can't find any neighbors to help ease the load, fear not! You can easily freeze your harvest.
Fruits and vegetables actually begin to lose many essential vitamins and minerals soon after picking, especially if they are stored at room temperature or above. However, if they are frozen within a few hours after harvesting, this will not happen. In addition, nutrients are retained better in frozen fruits and vegetables than in those that are transported long distances to their destination.
There are various ways to prepare fruit before freezing, including dry, sugar or syrup packing. For a good overview of these three methods and helpful guidelines on how to thaw frozen fruit, click here. Basic step-by-step instructions for freezing berries and summer vegetables using the 'dry pack' method are provided below.
Freezing Berries
Frozen berries are perfect for smoothies, shakes, baked goods, and as ice cubes in fancy cocktails. Freezing berries is also a great way to postpone jam-making (might as well save that fun for a rainy day). Not everyone does it exactly the same way but here are the basic steps:
- Select 'ready to eat' perfectly ripe berries. Pick out stems and unripe or damaged berries.
- Rinse berries with cool water and drain off as much water as you can before freezing. You can even pat them dry with a paper towel or clean towel. The drier the berry, the less chance of freezer burn and mushy berries after thawing. Blueberries are the exception. Most people suggest NOT rinsing blueberries before freezing because they are so cumbersome to dry. This is another good reason to buy or pick clean, non-sprayed, organic berries. For strawberries, remove the stem but freeze them whole.
- Spread the berries in a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet (or even your cardboard berry box) and place flat in freezer.
- Freeze until hard but don't leave in freezer so long that the berries dry out or get freezer burn. A couple hours in the freezer will work for smaller berries and overnight is usually long enough for even the biggest strawberry.
- Label freezer bags before filling and include the name of berry and the date. You can also measure the berries when putting them in your freezer bags and make a note of it on the bag so you'll know the exact number of cups (which is handy if using berries for recipes).
- After putting the berries in freezer bags, try to remove as much air as possible to prevent drying and freezer burn. Using vacuum sealed bags is ideal but not necessary.
- It's usually best to use your berries within 1 - 2 months but if the berries were dry before freezing and especially if you used vacuum sealed bags, you can usually extend freezing time up to six months.
- You can use frozen berries in smoothies, shakes, fancy cocktails, and even in baked goods and pancakes. If you want to thaw your berries, here are some general guidelines:
- Put on open shelf of refrigerator. A one-pound package will thaw in about six hours.
- Place package on kitchen counter. One pound will thaw in about three hours.
- If the package is watertight, it can be thawed in running cold water in 40 minutes.
- Watertight package of fruit can be thawed in running lukewarm water in about 20 minutes.
- Use fruits immediately once thawed.
Freezing Vegetables
Freezing vegetables is easy as well. Simply wash your produce in ice-cold water, then peel or shell if needed, remove seeds or pits, cut or slice into small bite-sized pieces, and place in labeled freezer bags. You can also dip your vegetables in boiling water (blanching) before freezing. This improves the overall quality and lasting value of the produce. When it comes to freezing fresh produce, there's a wealth of wisdom and good advice out there. Talk to the people who work at our local produce stands, organic farms, and natural food stores. Here are a few examples of some good online resources:
Garden Guides.com
Plant Green
Kitchen Stewardship
A few tips about specific veggies
Tomatoes are very simple to freeze and require very little preparation. In fact, they can be frozen whole with great results! Simply wash and dry whole tomatoes and place them in a plastic freezer bag or freezer jar. No need to remove stems. In fact, by leaving the stem on you reduce the chances of freezer burn. To prepare for cooking, place frozen tomatoes in cold water in your sink. The skin should come right off and you can easily remove the stem and core. You won't want to use these tomatoes like fresh tomatoes, but they work perfectly for spaghetti sauce, soups, stews, salsa, casseroles, or any other recipes that call for tomatoes.
Corn can be placed in the freezer in the husks. When corn is frozen this way it won't be like fresh corn-on-the-cob, but it works great in recipes for things like soups, salsa, and succotash. It's best to use your frozen corn-in-husks by Thanksgiving.
Make pesto using fresh basil or cilantro, then pour the pesto into ice cube trays and freeze. Once frozen, put your pesto ice cubes into small freezer bags (this helps prevent freezer burn) and use the pesto cubes as needed.
Click here for a great 'Cilantro Pesto' recipe presented during a recent class at the nursery called 'Using and Preserving Herbs with Suzanne Butler'
Final Tip
Keep in mind that food expands when it is frozen, so leave enough room in your freezer bag or container to allow for this expansion. If you don't, your container may leak and you'll have a big frozen mess to clean up.
While it's wonderful to eat fresh fruits and vegetables in season right after picking, it's also perfectly acceptable to tuck some away in your freezer to enjoy in the months to come. Freezing produce is easy to do, economical, nutritious, and a great way to eat locally-grown food well past the harvest season. How cool is that?
Additional Resources:
Pick Your Own.org
Help With Cooking.com
How To Garden Advice.com
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August Classes
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Growing Winter Vegetables with Bill Thorness Saturday, August 6 11 am to noon reservations required class fee: $5 Want to serve your own salad on Thanksgiving, Swiss chard at the winter solstice, collards for Christmas, and purple sprouting broccoli for Valentine's Day? You can do it if you start your fall and winter garden now. This class will talk about winter gardening techniques, succession planting, soil building and the right timing to grow food throughout the year. Instructor Bill Thorness, author of 'Edible Heirlooms: Heritage Vegetables for the Maritime Garden', has been growing food in his Seattle garden for more than two decades. www.edibleheirlooms.com  Hypertufa Saturday, August 27 10 am to 12:30 pm reservations required class fee: $35 Local landscape designer and garden artist, Kathy Hirdler of Floribunda Designs, returns to Christianson's to share her knowledge of making hypertufa containers and ornamentation for your garden. Make a traditional hypertufa trough to take home for planting with alpines or sedums, while learning all about hypertufa and other cement-based materials. Planters, water basins, stepping stones, leaves and sculptural pieces can all be made using the techniques Kathy will be presenting. All materials and supplies are provided but students should wear gardening/work clothes or a sturdy apron, and bring a trowel. Note: This popular class will be a second offering of the same class scheduled on July 9. For class reservations, call us at 360-466-3821 or 1-800-585-8200 |
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Autumn Class Calendar
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Saturday, September 10 Using Grasses in the Garden Speaker: Ani Gurnee 11:00 am - noon reservations required (class fee: $5) Skagitonians to Preserve Farmland Informational Session with Guest Speaker from SPF 1:00 pm - 2:00 pm Saturday, September 17 Heavenly Hydrangeas Speaker: Marianne Binetti 11:00 am - 12:30 pm reservations required (class fee: $5) Saturday, September 24 Revitalize Your Garden Design Speaker: Ani Gurnee 11:00 am - noon reservations required (class fee: $5) Saturday, October 1 - Giant Pumpkin Festival Savory Pumpkin Cooking Speaker: Suzanne Butler 10:30 am - noon reservations required (class fee: $5) Country Wines: Crafting your own fruit wines from nature's harvest Speaker: Bob and Dorcas Toombs 12:30 pm - 2:00 pm reservations required (class fee: $5) Sunday, October 2 - Giant Pumpkin Festival Tool Care and Maintenance Speaker: Ani Gurnee 1:00 pm - 2:00 pm reservations required (class fee: $5) A mobile tool sharpening service will be at the nursery from 2:30 pm - 5:30 pm so bring your garden tools! Saturday, October 8 Trees and Shrubs for Fall/Winter Interest Speaker: Ani Gurnee 11:00 am - noon reservations required (class fee: $5) Fall Color Garden Walk with John Christianson 1:00 pm reservations requested (complimentary) Saturday, October 15 Preparing Your Garden for Winter Speaker: Ani Gurnee 11:00 am - noon reservations required (class fee: $5) Saturday, October 22 Garden Photography Workshop Speaker: John Holtman 11:00 am - noon reservations required (class fee: $5) Saturday, October 29 Weaving Rose Hips in Wreaths and Swags Speaker: Laura Campbell 11:00 am - noon reservations required (class fee: $35)
Fall Berry Garden Walk with John Christianson 1:00 pm reservations requested (complimentary) For class reservations, call us at 360-466-3821 or 1-800-585-8200 |
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Autumn Event Calendar
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Giant Pumpkin Festival October 1 and 2 9 am - 6 pm both days A weekend of celebration and fun for all ages! Highlights include: Cider pressing · Food · Live music · Activities · Classes (see above) and of course... The Giant Pumpkin Contest Saturday Oct 1 Weigh-In: 2 pm - 4 pm Awards: 4 pm $500 cash prize for the largest pumpkin! 4th Annual Scarecrow Contest October 1 - 31 Holiday Open House and Art's Alive! 2011
November 4, 5, and 6
16th Annual Holiday Tea
November 26
More details about all these events will be published in the September issues of our Garden Gazette and Garden Notes newsletters, and on our website. |
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Closing thought...
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"Rest is not idleness,
and to lie sometimes on the grass on a summer day
listening to the murmur of water,
or watching the clouds float across the sky,
is hardly a waste of time." ~ John Lubbock 
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Garden Notes Editor:
Eve Boe, Public Relations and Events Coordinator
Christianson's Nursery & Greenhouse
eve.christiansons@gmail.com
360-466-3821
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