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Friday Finds

FRIDAY FINDS

September 9, 2016

Well I made it through the first post-Labor Day week. This summer has been so incredible (I know, I won’t shut up about it, sorry) that I was truly melancholy Monday just thinking of it ending. Despite my best efforts, my thoughts have turned to gardening tasks that need to be attended to before frost and suddenly I’m feeling concerned I won’t get it all done.

I spent some time this week at the local library doing some research for work and I was thrilled to see a real, live card catalog. I bet the library gets offers to buy it on a regular basis, but this one is serving a great purpose: It’s a seed library. I’d known it was there, but I hadn’t checked it before and I was thrilled to see such a great variety of heirloom seeds represented in it. Seeds are packaged and free to take. They ask that you bring back some seeds at the end of the season  to keep the collection intact and hopefully add to it. Here’s more info on seed libraries.

The Kitchn is doing a series called “20 Chefs, 20 Knives” and I find it really interesting. I’ll admit, I was a knife snob. When we got married I didn’t register for a knife set, choosing instead an expensive  German chef’s knife and paring knife (which I still have an use regularly). Then I got a Wusthof santoku knife that has been in regular service for about eight years. And then I read a Chef’s Illustrated knife review and picked up their favorite, the Victorinox Fibrox 8-inch chef’s knife (affiliate link), about a year and a half ago and it’s the knife I use 98% of the time now. I like it so much that even if it’s dirty I will take it out of the dishwasher and hand wash it rather than use another knife. When I bought it, it was $35 and I see that it’s now $10 more, but it’s still a fantastic deal over most really good knives. I also got a new knife sharpener and it’s the best I’ve used. You just have to know the angle of your blade, which they clearly describe how to figure out in the instructions.

This list is actually quite funny and somewhat spot on. But only go there if you have a sense of humor about your name.

Here’s some good info on how to clean marble, complete with lots of drool-worthy photos of great marble, natch.

This reminds me, I never did get Mr. Much More Patient to build a trellis for the clematis by the garage.

I’m a little afraid of canning. I fear I will kill someone with a horrible foodborne illness caused by an improper seal or whatever. Here’s a bunch of ways to preserve food without going the full-on canning route.

That’s it for this week. I’ll be spending some time in the garden doing a variety of things including using Miller High Life for it’s highest and best purpose: slug bait. The slimy suckers are everywhere. What’s on your list for the weekend?

Friday finds knife marble seeds
by Erin @ The Impatient Gardener 
2 Comments

About Erin @ The Impatient Gardener

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Comments

  1. Patti Estep says: September 10, 2016 at 11:37 am

    Hi Erin,

    Thanks for the link. I really enjoy reading your Friday Find series. Short and full of interesting tips.

    Reply
  2. Erin Schanen says: September 12, 2016 at 6:31 pm

    Thanks for the nice comment, Patti!

    Reply

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The Impatient Gardener

Do you love gardening? Me too! I'm Erin and I garden in Southeastern Wisconsin, zone 5. The Impatient Gardener is all about real-life gardening: the good parts, the bad bits and even the funny stuff. It's part information, part inspiration and a little bit commiseration. Thanks for visiting.

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E R I N 🌿 The Impatient Gardener
I had a rather unpleasant realization last night w I had a rather unpleasant realization last night when I remembered that I’d not yet ordered tomato seeds. And I’m not going to rectify that until I dig into my seed stash, because I don’t go through tomato seeds quickly so there are definitely some lurking down there. 

I never used to grow tomatoes from seed because there are great varieties to be had in garden centers (including many heirloom varieties). But it’s almost non-negotiable for me now that I’m a convert to dwarf tomatoes. If you’re not familiar with the #dwarftomatoproject championed by @nctomatoman and others, these are heirloom varieties that are crossed with dwarf varieties to create plant that produces all the flavor and interest of an heirloom in a short (usually less than 4 feet) plant. 

They are particularly great in my tall raised beds. Of course I leave room to try new non-dwarf varieties every year (I loved Sun Dipper from @panamseed last year and I’ll grow it again).

Last year was a good tomato year and the photo shows some of the varieties I harvested in one day. I hope this summer will be equally good for the tomato harvest. 

One of my favorite questions to ask gardeners is: What is your favorite tomato variety to grow? So have at it in the comments because inquiring minds want to know!
And this is why I leave my winter containers assem And this is why I leave my winter containers assembled until at least March. A dusting of snow gives them a whole new look (even if it’s shades of gray). Also, I think I love my Limelight hydrangea even more in winter. Fabulous winter interest!
I’m going to look for opportunities to add more I’m going to look for opportunities to add more ferns to my garden this year. They are such interesting plants and often real problem solvers, bringing texture and color to places that many plants aren’t interested in. Athyrium niponicum (Japanese painted fern) ‘Crested Surf’ grows well for me in part shade (even pushing a bit into part sun) and looks great next to Persicaria ‘Golden Arrow’.
Birds chirping, glorious fresh (i.e. not nibbled o Birds chirping, glorious fresh (i.e. not nibbled on) foliage, and texture galore. I can’t wait to have moments like this again. The star, by the way is Hakonechloa ‘All Gold’ which looks so good with the bold foliage of Ligularia dentata ‘Desdemona’ next to it. 

With the new path, this area will be getting a small revamp. It’s the next spot I’ll be focusing my planning on.
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