Mary, Mary, quite contrary. How does your garden grow?

I had plans to write posts before seeds went into the ground, but alas, life while socially distancing got busy and took off on me. 

I wish I could report that the extra time spent at home meant that my home was decluttered, organized and spotless. 

That is not the case. 

Spending more time at home, all the time, translates into more messes.

So that will be something I will need to work on soon! 

I did lose track of my gardening posts too. 

I will continue my posts on veggies and share what I do know, but for now...how is it going?

I wanted to write to just say how proud I am of all of those new gardeners out there!  You will love eating food that you grew yourself.  (Tonight, we are actually eating our own asparagus...there isn't much, but it will still be yummy!)

You are likely to hit hurdles. 

You can't control the weather. 

Weather is a variable that will affect your yield. 

Be easy on yourself. 

All of my potatoes died this year because I put them out too early.  And I am an experienced gardener. 

You are doing a great job! 

Keep going.  (And keep growing)

And learn, learn, learn.  You can ask me if you have any questions.  I would be happy to help. 

So how is your garden growing?

May 16.

Green..or yellow? cleaning...

I have been meaning to add to this blog since the new year.  I have been taking pictures to add to posts, and well, life is getting away with me.  There is always so much to do!

After Christmas, we did an overdue clean out of the fridge.  We had been collecting citrus fruits...and not eating citrus fruits. (No worries, we are not suffering from scurvy).  These citrus fruits were nearing the end of their lives so I decided I would dry them to use in simmering pots or in teas or share with the birds.  So I layered them along the trays of the dehydrator and let them dry.

Before I did so, however, I figured a cleaning would be necessary.

I stopped using commercial cleaners (aside from dish soap) a couple of years ago and strive to use essential oils whenever I can.  I know there is still some controversy on essential oils.  Either people love them, or people love to hate them...and there are the skeptical.  The way I look at it is we were meant to survive on this planet with the things that are on this planet.  Essential oils are concentrated things from this planet...so much closer to the earth than a scientific concoction of chemicals...anyways, that is up to you to decide.

It's no secret.  I use doTerra.  (I love my doTerra oils and if you want to love them too and need help getting set up, I can help you with that...alright enough of a "business type plug") You can use whatever brand you are in love with, but do note the quality of the oil.  Some are diluted.  The companies do not need to tell you this and they can still say that they are pure, even 100% pure...so please do some research, especially if you plan on using them on your body, in your body or on your food!  Safety is important!

I digress.

To clean my fruit I filled a bowl of water so that the fruit was covered.  Then I added 5 drops of lemon oil and let sit for a minimum of 5 minutes.  After time was up, I rinsed and wiped with a cloth.  Nice and clean.

Try it out!

(It also makes your house smelling fresh and clean!)

After the fruit was nice and clean, I sliced and layered in the dehydrator to preserve.