Author Archives: carolee

About carolee

A former professional herb and lavender grower, now just growing for joy in my new potager. When I'm not in the garden, I'm in the kitchen, writing, or traveling to great gardens.

But if you deadhead…..

Posted on July 19, 2017

After expounding upon the merits of deadheading in a recent post, it occurs to me that I need to also present another side of the issue.  Deadheading does produce more flowers overall, and does keep the plants and the gardens … Continue reading →

Posted in Deadheading, edible flowers, gardening, Potager, seeds, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Six on Saturday-July 15

Posted on July 15, 2017

  We had more rain this week, and cooler evenings which has made some crops, like savoy “Alcosa” cabbage very happy.  It will be ready to harvest soon.  With even more rain in the forecast, I decided to dig all … Continue reading →

Posted in gardening, garlic, harvest, Potager, preserving, Six on Saturday, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 11 Comments

Flower Shortbread and Deadheading

Posted on July 11, 2017

There are many good reasons to deadhead.  For those of you new to gardening, deadheading is the removal of faded flowers.  The first reason is that it immediately makes a garden look fresher, tidier, and happier.  Here’s a tiny corner … Continue reading →

Posted in Deadheading, edible flowers, gardening, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , | 12 Comments

Six on Saturday-July 8

Posted on July 8, 2017

Participating in The Propagator’s meme, here are six things that made me smile today, even though we’ve had 7″ of rain in the past week!  Appropriately, Daylily “Big Smile.” diamond-dusted and frilly! and from the potager, the season’s first tomato, … Continue reading →

Posted in gardening, lavender, melons, Six on Saturday, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Succession Planting

Posted on July 7, 2017

Many people have questioned how and why the potager is so productive.  There are several reasons.  For example, good drainage from raised beds, deep soil, and continual weed removal are assets to productivity.  Good drainage means an earlier planting start … Continue reading →

Posted in garden maintenance, garden planning, gardening, harvest, kitchen gardens, Potager, raised beds, succession planting, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , | 9 Comments

The Cutting Garden Begins

Posted on July 6, 2017

This week I began a new project, a Cutting Garden behind the potager.  You may recall my difficulty in cutting flowers from the proper gardens (See “Just Can’t Cut That” and Just Can’t Cut That 2″ for a reminder.)  The … Continue reading →

Posted in cutting garden, gardening, mulching, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

Six on Saturday 7-1-17

Posted on July 1, 2017

Here are 6 things that made me smile today:  We got 3 1/2″ rain in 20 minutes last night.  Happily, I’d harvested the shallots before it stormed, so this morning was a beautiful, relaxing time braiding!    They are now … Continue reading →

Posted in blessings, gardening, melons, Six on Saturday, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , | 18 Comments