Stepping into Summer

One more day until the official start of the Summer solstice but the preparations for its arrival have been in the works for weeks now.

 Grab a coffee and come on through, to see how Greenacre is stepping into Summer.

We had alot of colder than usual days this Spring so I used them to update some furniture and DIY Summer projects. 

The first update was a wood cabinet that holds all our roller skates in the breezeway.

I had to sand it down because it had a very thick layer of varnish. 

Then painted the accents gold and proceeded to stain the rest of the cabinet.

Layering it with light blue paint to make it look weathered and aged like a fine wine.

Here is how it turned out after all that layering.

Still, have to locate some gold rope ties for the curtains I made out of the leftover fabric from the reupholstered wingback chair.

I recommend watching some of the tutorials on youtube to guide you. Stock up on some coffee, patience and invest in a good stapler.

Next came upcycling some old wooden children's puzzles into beach-themed signs for outside.

Again I layered the paint with light blue and some pale yellow to create a more textured background so the fish and seashells would stand out.

Maybe a little much but we LOVE the beach and all things associated with it.

The solar lamp post above was made from leftover wooden post pieces and boat rope. A small hole was drilled on the top to place the spike inside so that the lamps could be changed out.

A neighbor's cat destroyed my cushions which prompted me to make some new covers.

That gave me the idea to add a hula skirt to the canopy and grabbed some watermelon pillows to make it even juicier.

Of course, after falling in love with the tiki chair, I decided to grab some more hula grass skirts and hang them around the porch roof.

Looks really cool when your underneath them too. Gives you that vacation feel and you don't even have to leave your backyard.

With flowers like, why would you?

This chair was one of the first pieces of furniture I ever bought over 20 years ago. It was dark green but I used the blue stain from the cabinet to give it a facelift. Not very successful with the rope weaving but the lizards don't seem to mind.

 

Anyone up for a tour of the gardens?

These pair of cranes greet you as enter the forest.

While the blue crabs remind you of what you might need when going to the pool.

Mother Mary stands in the middle of it all.

This arch is all that is left of a gate that once used to guard the front walkway.

A walkway that leads you to the front garden that now resembles a meadow.

Something is always in bloom at Greenacre.

As Rudolph looks on.

Hope y'all enjoyed the tour and are stepping into Summer overflowing with joy!

Easy-peasy Italian Wedding soup

Spring has yet to come through and bring warmer temperatures.

Not even going to hold my breath on this one either.

As a few weeks ago it was still a marshmallow world. 

All very pretty but enough already.

Now we get daily dusting's with most of it melting by the end of the day.

They are promising more Spring-like temps by the end of the week but the weather has a mind of its own. So until it actually happens, its still very much soup weather here at Greenacre.

Italian wedding soup is a family favourite and I wanted to share my easy-peasy way of making it.

First, fill the pot with approximately 10 cups of water

and bring it to a boil.

Then add 6 beef bouillon cubes to make the beef broth.

Unless you already have beef broth made, if you then use 10 cups to fill the pot.

I don't like the taste of the premade or canned beef broth and found the beef bouillon trick online.

Let that simmer as you wash and cut the spinach.

Then bring the beef broth to a simmer and add the spinach.

Next are the meatballs and to make them you will need:

1lb of triple mix meat or you can use just beef. (I find triple mix has a better flavor)

1 small onion chopped finely

1 package of Shake'n' Bake Crispy Italian (instead of breadcrumbs)

1 egg and 2 tablespoons of Parmesan cheese.

1/2 teaspoon of oregano

Mix really well and roll out the balls.

You can make them whatever size you like, for me small is best.

Slowly put the balls into the soup and add 1 1/2 cup of the acini di pepi.

Please do not substitute these little pasta balls for something else because it truly is not the same.

They are the Juliet to the Romeo meatballs.

Let them simmer for about half an hour on medium-low heat while gently stirring occasionally.

After plating the soup, sprinkle some Parmesan cheese on top for the finishing touch.

My Nonna always liked to add a beaten egg into the soup for extra flavor but that is optional.

This really hit the spot today as I stared at the snow coming down.

While thinking...BASTA YA!

Enough already with this snow and cold.

Come on SPRING!!!!

Hurry the hell up.

Ingredients:

10 cups of beeth broth

or 6 beef bouillon cubes and 10 cups of water

1 lb of chopped spinach

1 1/2 cup of the acini di pepi

1lb of beef or triple mix ground meat

1 egg

1 package of Crispy Italian Shake 'n' Bake

1 small onion

1/2 teaspoon of oregano

2 tablespoons of parmesan cheese

one beaten egg and parmesan cheese to finish top off the soup.

Fall Gardening Tips

Summer 2017 came and went in a blink of an eye.

It wont go down as the best Summer weather ever but it was a great one for my garden.

All that rain and cooler temperatures kept my garden beds very green and lush.

Seems almost criminal to cut them back but the time has come.

I started by cutting back my tiger lilies, African Zinnia and Shasta daisies a few weeks ago.

They had already begun to turn brown and wilt.

Being extra careful not to cut off the emerging buds below.

Here are some websites to help you better identify which perennials you should cut back and when.

Naturework.com has great information on which perennials you should pinch and prune

Better Home & Gardens has a great list on which perennials to cut back

and

Fall 101 at Gardens Alive tells you the don'ts of Fall pruning

Everything in my garden is pruned back with the exception of  my Gardillas,

Echinaceas and

  Rudbeckias.

They will turn to seeds and hopefully give me some new plants in the Spring.

Next is the worse chore of all, weeding. The beds had alot more weeds this year because of the rain and it was a constant battle keeping them under control. Come Fall I make sure to remove as many as possible so they dont develop a deeper root system or spread.

 A mini garden rake is a great tool for this. It helps to ease stubborn weeds out by loosing the roots, making it easier to rip them out.

Now for the most important step of all and the one thing I highly recommend.

MUCLH!

This is 2 yards of it and approximately 6 hours of labour. 

So I can get these 6 Benefits of mulching.

Grillo Services has this great article that explains how

Mulch In The Fall For Healthy Plants In The Spring.

Last Spring I noticed a huge difference in my plants and garden beds. Less weeding, healthier plants and bigger flowers. As well as it looks cleaner with the mulch.

Here are the beds now, cut back, de-weeded and mulched.

There are a few plants that you can harvest seeds from for next year.

I collect my Cosmos and Zinnias seeds.

The flowers dry into these seed balls . 

Which I cut and store in a marked envelope.

Here is a more extensive list to help you harvest your seeds.

Top 10 Plants for Harvesting Seeds

Now to enjoy thus glorious time of the year.

Saved the best tip for last,

ENJOY IT ALL....from the cutting back, weeding, mulching, seed saving or  doing nothing at all.

Life is about doing what you love, being happy, finding joy and being grateful for what you have.

Lucky for me gardening is all of the above.

Happy Fall y'all!