As The Trowel Turns…
Tomatoes. I am currently swimming in tomatoes. Everywhere I turn I see round (and not so round) balls of red, orange and yellow. After making a few batches of sauce (and packing them away in the freezer) I have now moved on to sun dried tomatoes. Or rather dehydrated tomatoes. Do you own a dehydrator? If you don’t… I think you should. 
Besides drying fresh herbs, potato slices, zucchini and onions (which I use for winter soups) I also dehydrate all my excess tomatoes. My recipe is rather simple. Slice tomatoes in half (or quarters if they are the large Roma type tomatoes) sprinkle with a bit of Italian seasoning and toss with about a tablespoon of olive oil.
Lay seasoned tomatoes onto trays…
Turn on the food dehydrator and go about your day.
After you’re finished with work, errands and helping kids with their homework… Open the lid on the dehydrator take a deep breath and smile.
Pack cooled dehydrated tomato slices into jars (or plastic containers) and store in the freezer until you are ready to use. Personally, I like to add sun dried tomatoes to pasta dishes and use them on homemade pizzas. How do YOU use them?
This Nesco American Harvest Snackmaster Express Food Dehydrator All-In-One Kit with Jerky Gun
As The Trowel Turns… Raspberries!
Last week FAB reader Sarah asked to see pictures of my raspberry patch. Well, lately it’s been a hot spot for the neighborhood kids to hang out. Not only do they pick berries… but they play with our pet chickens as well.
This spring when we ordered baby chicks I decided to house the chickens just outside of the patch. I did this for two reasons. #1 Free fertilizer. #2 By having the “chicken run” within the raspberry patch the chickens would be able to take dirt baths to cool down during the long hot months of summer.
I tend to pick raspberries every other day. And when I do… the chickens tend to gather by my feet in hopes I will drop berries to them. Pictured above is a Jersey Giant chicken, she is suppose to grow to a whopping 10+lbs! Yikes!
When I first planted a raspberry patch (a few years ago) I ordered my raspberry canes from Spooner Farms. Everything you could ever hope to learn about how to plant your very own raspberry patch is on their website.
When your raspberry canes arrive in early spring they’ll look like this.
Planting was easy. I simply planted 7 rows… each about 12 feet long.
And waited for a patch of berry goodness to erupt. The first year you can expect your canes to produce 25% or their capability, the second year around 50% and after that… you’re looking at a full blown berry patch!
Here’s what our berry patch looks like right now (the berry’s should be done in about 2 weeks or so). 
For an initial investment of around $150 for 100 raspberry canes… I think it was money well spent.
I’m curious… What’s the your favorite thing you’ve ever planted in YOUR garden?
If you’re looking for some FAB recipes to enjoy this summers berry bounty… This is my new favorite book! The Berry Bible: With 175 Recipes Using Cultivated and Wild, Fresh and Frozen Berries
And these… These are my new favorite garden shoes. Sloggers Women’s Midsummer Garden Shoe.
{Giveaway CLOSED} As The Trowel Turns…
This week my Shasta Daisy 
Perennial seeds are the way to go if you ask me!
This week I’ve busy picking, canning, and baking all things zucchini and raspberry!
My In-Laws are coming into town next week so I’m trying to make/bake a few things in advance.
Be on the lookout for this yummy raspberry cake recipe on Sunday!
However here is a recipe you can use today… if you’re struggling (like I am) with what do with all those zucchini’s in your garden. It’s called Zucchini Relish and it’s one of my favorites.
Start by combining 2 cups chopped zucchini, 1 cup chopped onion, 1 cup chopped sweet peppers (I used green peppers because they were on sale).
Sprinkle with 2 Tablespoons of salt, cover with cold water and let sit for 2 hours. Drain and rise thoroughly.
The combine 1 3/4 cups of sugar, 2 teaspoons of celery seed, 1 teaspoon of mustard seed (I typically buy my spices from the bulk spice section at Fred Meyer… do this and you will save a TON!) and 1 cup of cider vinegar in a large sauce-pot and simmer with the zucchini mixture for 10 minutes.
In the mean time fill your canner with water about 2/3rds full and bring to a full boil. After the zucchini mixture has simmered for 10 minutes pack into hot canning jars
Zucchini relish is delish! Especially the on FREE Bar-S hot dogs we scored a few months ago.
Want to win a FREE copy of my New Favorite Canning book? The Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving? Simply leave a comment below and tell us your favorite canned food product! I’ll pick one lucky FAB reader at random this Sunday (July 31st) at 1pm.
Good luck!
As The Trowel Turns…
The vegetable garden is in full bloom… Here’s what’s happening behind my garden gate.
I am patiently waiting for the first tomato of the season (and some fresh salsa too!). I think it’s only a matter of days before the heirloom cherokee tomatoes start to turn purple (I hope).
This year I decided to try something different. I planted some of my corn in containers. I plan on wheeling the pots to the front of the house when it comes time to decorate for fall. That way I don’t have to worry about the corn stalks falling over like they have in years past and I can place pumpkins all around the base of the pots for a festive Marthaish look.
The chives I planted several years ago are going to seed. Have you ever collected seeds before? Seed Sowing and Saving
And last bu not least, zucchini season is in full swing. I think I picked at least 10 of them yesterday and I’ve been busy making zucchini bread all week. A few batches of zucchini relish are also on my radar… But after I’ve baked all the bread and canned all the relish I want… then what? I’m left wondering what I’ll do with all the rest of the zucchini growing in the garden. Do YOU have any ideas? How are you planning on using your excess summer squash this year?
Fiskars 3-Piece Softouch Garden Tool Set
As The Trowel Turns…
This years garden is finally coming along… The harvest schedule is about 2-3 weeks behind previous years due to the wet Spring we had in the Seattle Area. I don’t mind the delay, as long I’m still able to pick my baskets of fresh home grown produce every other day.
I am currently swimming in Strawberries… So far we’ve made Chocolate
I’m also enjoying Sugar Snap Peas & Snow Peas… Besides eating them raw out of the garden, we are enjoying them in Stir-Fry.
But the garden veggie I’m most anxiously for … Green Beans… And lot’s of them! Let’s hope it’s a bumper crop this year.
How about YOU? What are you patiently waiting for?
Grow Great Grub: Organic Food from Small Spaces
As The Trowel Turns…
I’ve never been one to spray chemicals on my plants to get rid of plant eating garden bugs… In fact the only chemical I use in my garden is an application or two of Miracle-Gro
So Mavis wants to know… How do YOU keep those little leaf munchers away?
The Organic Gardener’s Handbook of Natural Pest and Disease Control
As The Trowel Turns…
One of my favorite things I look forward to this time of year is dessert… With all the fresh fruit ripening over the next few months…I’ve found it’s best to have a plan of action.
Here’s my current plan. Step #1 Pick as many ripe strawberries as I can find. Step #2 Sneak them into the house undetected.
Step #3 Bake up a batch of scones
Yum! Want to know the best part about serving dessert for dinner? No complaints… everyone clears their plate and they even ask for seconds. Now all I need to do is find a few more berry recipes to turn the next harvest into dinner again. I’m thinking this book should come in handy.
Rustic Fruit Desserts: Crumbles, Buckles, Cobblers, Pandowdies, and More
How about YOU? Do you have a great berry recipe I should try?
As The Trowel Turns…
After a cold and rainy spring… things are finally starting to look up in the garden…The 17 garden boxes we made a few years ago are beginning to fill and in a few weeks the cabbage will be ready to harvest.
The cucumbers and zuchhini will be next… followed by the much anticipated tomato harvest… (That’s the best part of summer if you ask me).
But the one thing I’m really looking forward to is fall. It’s my favorite season of them all. This year I went ahead and planted about a dozen of pumpkin plants along the fence line… In years past I’ve planted sunflowers or potatoes… but this year I chose pumpkins… I’m hoping for not only a bumper crop… but to turn my backyard into a mini pumpkin patch for my kids and their friends… For the cost of a packet of seeds… (well… okay actually I picked them up for free at Rite Aid) it’s the first step in planning one seriously FABulessly FruGAL party!
How about you? Did you plant any pumpkin seeds this year?
The Compleat Squash: A Passionate Grower’s Guide to Pumpkins, Squashes, and Gourds
As The Trowel Turns…
Before you know it your neighbors will stop answering their doors… your friends will no longer take your phone calls and people will start to avoid you like the plague. Why? Because you’re a gardener and we’re fast approaching the scariest time of year… Zucchini Season!
Have no fear…
There are actually books out there that will help you with all your zucchini surplus.
Chocolate and Zucchini: Daily Adventures in a Parisian Kitchen
Want to get the kids excited about eating zucchini at dinner time? How about playing a few rounds of the Chocolate and Zucchini: Daily Adventures in a Parisian Kitchen game… Wooo Hooo… with all these tricks tools… you won’t have any extra squash to pass around. Before you know it… and friends and family will be begging you for some.
As The Trowel Turns…
If you’re tight on space or simply don’t want to till your garden…
Lasagna Gardening can be a great option.
Basically to build a garden bed using the lasagna gardening technique all you need to do is lay down a layer of cardboard or soaked newspaper (to smother the weeds) and then mix in organic matter like shredded (black and white) newspaper, garden clippings, compost, top soil, leaves (I also use straw) and so on. Over time all your “lasagna” layers will break down and provide organic nutrient rich soil for you to grow your plants and veggies in.
Along with Companion Planting 
How about YOU? Have you tried the lasagna gardening method?
Want to read more on the subject of lasagna gardening? Here are my top picks.
Lasagna Gardening for Small Spaces
Lasagna Gardening with Herbs
All New Square Foot Gardening
