a proper garden

It looks as though I won’t be able to tour the “urban farm” for another week or so. To fulfill my garden tour desire, Kim took me to Sandy’s gorgeous garden with a lovely Garden Arch. Kim and Sandy are longtime BFF’s and live only a few blocks from each other. Although Kim’s neighborhood is not horse property, Sandy’s is. But instead of horses in the corral, Sandy has a huge, beautifully planned, and lovingly maintained raised vegetable garden.

Since a picture is worth a thousand words – I will keep my words to a minimum and just let you admire what I had the pleasure of not only visiting but also the delight of harvesting from.

There are lettuce, arugula, and celery “volunteers” all along the west edge.

The volunteer arugula – is flowering and going to seed to spread more volunteers for next season.

Busy bees at the broccoli.

Brussels sprouts

Cabbage

Not only are the flowers of the nasturtium edible, but so are the leaves.

More nasturtium and flowering dill

Sandy’s cilantro is flowering and going to seed… coriander seed, that is!

Kim and I each took some home to harvest the seeds. Here is my bunch hanging in my kitchen window to dry.

The hose arches are used to hold up cloth when there is a threat of an overnight freeze… won’t be needing those now for many many months! That is Kim in the background adjusting a Canadian flag banner that hangs on the fence. Fencing is needed to keep the bunnies and other thieves out!  opinion, everyone should think about getting one.

Look closely and you’ll see another bee gathering his daily quota for his queen.

Sandy harvesting. 🙂

Calendula is another edible flower that graces the garden. Lovely when tossed over salads, folded into cake batters for extra color, or dipped in a sugar syrup to candy. I read that they are also a good remedy for bruises. Make a strong tea from them, let it cool to a comfortable temperature, then soak a rag in it and put it where it hurts. I bruise easier than a banana! Think I’ll add them to my garden!

Our harvest! Well, except for the blood oranges and Meyer lemons in the background… I brought those along as a small token of my gratitude for Kim and Sandy’s time and generosity.

Oops, I nearly forgot to show you the wine cellar! L-O-V-E this bottle!

A pair of gargoyle sconces greet you at the entrance. Sandy had them shipped home from Paris.

Gorgeous sconces in every corner of the room.

Stunning bricked domed ceilings

And plenty of bottles of wine, of course!

Thank you Sandy and Kim for a beautiful morning!