healthy

12 Apr 2011 No Comments

Garden Bikini Bodies?

Yes, ladies, embrace the power of gardening.  Your body will thank you!

With spring in full sprint, I’ve been tilling my beds, amending my soil, planting my seeds, mulching my rows, and let me tell you–my muscles are looking good!  They don’t feel good, but they look good and if given the choice–I’ll take the latter, thank you very much.  I’d rather be fit, fantastic and forty than flabby, forgettable and *my age*. 

Who wouldn’t? And now I can finally fit into my shorts. My skinny shorts. 

What?  Don’t you have three sizes of clothes in your closet at all times?  I do.  They are:  skinny, normal, carrying a bit extra.  A girl has to have hope, doesn’t she? That one day she might fit back into those old clothes?  I mean, it’s no fun living in “realistic land” all the time.  Ugh.  And today, I can wear the slims!

You can, too–if you take up gardening–and replace that bothersome exercise bicycle (or relegate it to towel holder), because you’ll be getting all the exercise you need–and the vitamin D–from working in your garden.  In fact, keep it up through your golden years and you’ll be the picture of health.  You can even reach centenarian status!  It’s true.  Read an article about it in the newspaper. 

Of course staying fit also entails healthy eating choices–which you’ll have plenty to choose from in your garden.  Greens, reds, oranges, blues…  A veritable rainbow of delectables can be found at your fingertips.  Be sure to clean them first–and your veggies–else you die from some horrific parasite.  Not good.  Especially after all your hard work!

Believe me, after a while, you’ll feel stronger, have more energy, and you’ll look great.  And when you run out of rows to hoe, toss some wildflower seed around your garden.  It’s easy to do (put a check mark in the “can do” column!) and the scenery will do wonders for your state of mind.  And isn’t that half the battle?

Life is hard enough without a little beauty to appease our senses, soothe our frazzled minds, as we stop and smell the roses, so to speak.  I know “they” say attitude is everything, but when your positive attitude cap is drenched in sweat, your muscles fatigued, your back aching and your throat tight and dry, take a water break and enjoy the view. 

Sometimes ambiance makes all the difference in the world. :)

by gardenfrisk in Savory vignettes - tidbits of life discovered along the way Tags: , , , , , , ,

17 Mar 2011 2 Comments

Potatoes for St. Patty’s Day

I don’t know about you, but when I think about potatoes, I think Irish.  Not because the potato is from Ireland, it’s not.  It’s origin is South America.  Wasn’t until the 1780′s the Irish even accepted the crop for widespread consumption. Most believed the ugly tubers to be poisonous, or evil.  Suspicious in the least. 

But once they had a belly full, the Irish knew a good thing when they tasted it!  Made it a downright major staple in their diet.  And that’s when the trouble hit. 

About a 100 years later, a blanket of blight killed off fields of potatoes during the great Irish Potato Famine.  But the Irish are a hearty breed (knew there was something about those Irish I liked!–besides their merry outlook, that is) and they survived, proving stronger and better than ever.  And they still love their potatoes.

As do I.  Potatoes are easy grow.  If you don’t believe me, just take a look at this fellow bursting free from the compost pile.  A real beauty and I had nothing to do with bringing him into this world.  Gotta love an easygoing plant.

Kids love potatoes, too.  They like to plant them, harvest them and they love to eat them–so long as they’re dished out in the proper form.  At our house, we make healthy potato chips and fries which seems to satisfy most days, though mashed and boiled work, too.  My son helped me plant this row.  (Don’t ask me how those two “rogue” plants ended up outside the perimeter of my organized potato row–that’s one of the mysteries when planting with kids.)  Plants end up in the strangest of places, don’t they?

Those wires you see are my protection plan in the case of frost.  Planting potatoes in January is tricky business and can place your babies in jeopardy.  This way, if the temperature dips, I can easily place a lightweight blanket over top of these wire “frames” (9 gauge wire from hardware store) and prevent the frost from killing them off.   Works like a charm. 

If you have limited outdoor space, you’re in luck (luck of the Irish!).  This garden center has designed the most ingenious method for growing potatoes–perfect for you city bound folk.  Meet the potato box!  Potatoes have an upward growth habit and if you continually mound them with dirt, you’ll increase your bounty, tenfold.

Me, I’ll stick with my in ground garden.  I like to meander through the rows and admire Mother Nature in action.  Besides, I don’t think my husband would look to kindly upon enormous amounts of black dirt anywhere near the patio.  Sure he likes his pressure washer, he just doesn’t enjoy “avoidable” mess.  Hmph.  Does he not see the joy in crafting another super-duper garden project? 

Note on planting:  be sure to “stagger” your planting dates, planting a batch today, next batch in 10 days, next batch a week or so later…   In the foreground of this picture is my latest section which has yet to sprout.  The ones in mid-field are mid-size and those in the back are a foot high and have already been “mounded” with more dirt.  The stakes provide a “visual” marker for me to distinguish the sections by “date planted.”   I’m a visual kind of gal, and besides, it does wonders to help coordinate with my Excel program.  (My version of a garden journal.)

Remember, planting ALL your potatoes at the same time will practically guarantee the dreaded whine, “Potatoes for dinner?  Again?”

As Master Chef in our household, I’ve banned the response.  In fact, there will be no complaints about dinner–until you’ve tasted it.  Then maybe, just maybe, we’ll discuss withdrawing it from the menu.

by gardenfrisk in Garden skinny - my personal scoop on gardening Tags: , , , , , , , ,

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