Wow

I have been bad at this lately, I have not written a thing in quite awhile now.

First off gardens are coming together, back yard is a mess, big circle fenced off from the dogs trying to grow some grass there, and trying to get grass in the front also, its full of weeds, I don't really like grass I think its rather stupid why would you put something on your property that you constantly have to work at and spend your hard earned money for a fancy lawn mower, grass seed, time and energy. But that is what people want and if you want to sell your home you gotta make it look the way people want it. People are stupid..............

Second off...... i will get to the second later.

Well that's that. Peace I'm out.

Wow its been a while

I haven't written anything in a while, been busy at home and worth. Not a whole lot of time to sit around.

But everything is green and starting to bloom. My pretty little lady friend got up early and decided to go get some Lilacs, they are beautiful and smell awesome.

Unwrapping the layers

Peeling back the layers one by one of matted straw and leaves to reveal the ground with all the critters and bugs vacating for the season, worms, millipedes, beetles and the little mouse highway zigzagging and around and around, pulled the roof off all that fun to bring my garlic to the light. checked them out a few days ago, they were busting through the layers of mulch just raring to go. So I went to assist, took the layers off that were weighing them down. There were a few that were struggling to get through, got a little bit of a bend to them. The larger cloves must of gotten a shove out with the frost, they were sticking straight up on top of the ground pushed them back in and covered the clove with the earth. almost all of them seemed to have sprouted, but I found another one laying on its side not in any of the rows so I put that one in the place of a dud that was rotted when I dug it out. We re-mulched with straw and are hoping for the best.

Stick in the pit

So I have all this beeswax which smells awesome every time I walk past it. So I thought to myself what else can I do with this stuff, I have already made a ton of candles, now to try something new. I work in a field that is at times physically demanding, or can be really hot and humid, being in boiler rooms or on top of office towers in the sun. I have tried many "natural", environmentaly friendly deodorants, and they don't really help in the curbing the under arm smell department, unless I apply it multiple times through out the day but that is just not practical for me.... cause I just don't want to do it, really. I am a pretty low maintenance fella.

I read a few instructional  blogs on the matter. found a couple that I liked. I started simple, didn't want to have to go out and buy a shit ton of stuff if it wasn't going to work, the only thing I had to buy was arrow root powder, and baking soda but that's because we ran out. So I made it, let it solidify overnight, and used it the next day for work instead of my Olde Spice, well it was hard, like really hard and sticky felt like it was ripping out hair, got back home after work, which was a good test day in a boiler room, doing a repair and having to carry stuff up a couple flights of stairs. And it worked I was surprised I had my doubts. So I came home melted the sticks back down added more coconut oil and a few drops of castor oil so the sticks weren't so hard and sticky. It is still a bit sticky for my liking, next batch I will try a different recipe with cocoa butter or shea butter, to make it a little more smooth. I am going to buy some more essential oils to add to the deodorant I am thinking Sandalwood, Cedarwood and a small amount of Tea Tree oil. Right now I have the last few drops from my bottle of Lemon oil, and a couple drops of citronella, It doesn't smell terrible but it could smell better.

Instructions and directions when I perfect this stuff. I want to try one more batch and then make a judgement, on what the best way to do it is.

And This is what I put them in left over deodorant containers, worked out beauty. 

Chicken Hawk

I was waiting for a customer at a job site yesterday when this fella swooped in. He landed on a tree close to my truck. I have been trying to remember to keep my camera in my truck, just in case something like this happens. I have had many times when I wanted and needed to take a photo and the camera on my phone just does not cut it. So I was lucky this time.

Coopers Hawk, lesser known as the chicken hawk, which actually deemed them a nuisance. Though they rarely would go after chickens, since they are not much larger than a chicken.

Kept on looking around and not towards me, so I would whistle, he would spin his head around and look around trying to find the victim. They are agile flyers, and hunt in wooden areas through the forest looking for small song birds, that they catch in flight. They kill their pray by squeezing while in flight. Danger to the poor birds at bird feeders in your backyard. 

I am assuming his feathers are all fluffed up because it was cold out, -15C. Those eyes adults have red eyes, good key for identifying this raptor.

I whistled again and I was spotted. He had a good gaze on me for a while, he was probably pissed and wanted to rip my eyes out, customer showed up perfect time to get back to work.

Coopers Hawk, I was honoured to be in your presence.

Pretty cool, maybe you don't think so, but maybe your also lame.

Peace I'm out.

I am a Pillar of my Community

See what I did there in the title...... oh well because I have been making Pillar candles, it really isn't as funny when you have to explain it. I'm sorry.

Since filtering of the Bees wax has occurred, candles I have been making. Actually I have been making candles since before the wax was filtered I am that impatient, but so far so good..... I have been learning from my mistakes.

Making dipped taper candles is the easiest way to make a candle, but the most time consuming and the ugliest if you don't know what your doing.

I have been experimenting with different mediums for molds and how as to keep the wick centred. Two of the sizes I have been playing with seem to be working out well. I need a few more different sizes of wicks and molds to try out. This has been fun and because of this we have been burning candles everyday.

I have since run out of wax need to go make another purchase and start filtering again, I have given away all our 2" and 1.5". So I need to make some more, then I can take pictures for the Burning Wax! Tips post I wrote up earlier, so go check it out and if I haven't put up pics then check it out in about a week or two, after I get myself some more wax.

I have on order some more sizes of wicks, to try and make some better tapers, the smaller size I have is still too large, causing to hot of a flame and they are dripping which is a no-no.

Peace back to doing house stuff... lame

Burning Wax! Tips

This is a quick tips guide for burning candles; what I have learned and found about burning beeswax candles. I use most of these tricks while burning my candles and testing them.

The wick on your candle when new is going to be longer than 1/4".  Before you light the wick, cut it down to 1/4" (about 4 pennies stacked... oh we don't use pennies anymore okay well then 3 nickels stacked, or 5 dimes or 4 quarters equal 1/4"). When lighting the candle, light at the base of the wick to help soften the wax and/or melt it so that the wick has fuel to burn. A wick works as a siphon. When there is a hot pool of wax around a lit wick, the heat from the flame draws wax up the wick and it is used for fuel to create light and more heat. The wick is still burnt but much slower then the wax. If lighting the wick from the tip you will burn more of the wick before it has a chance to create a pool of wax to feed from.

When deciding to burn a candle, estimate the time the candle will be burnt for (how long is the candle going to be lit). That's when you can choose what size of candle you should light. A candle that has time to make a pool of wax right to the edge, or with in an 1/4 - 1/8" of the edge, is a candle that is burning properly. A candle that only has time to make a small pool of wax around the wick, is a candle that is going to tunnel.

Oh no my candle is tunneling, don't worry we can fix it.

If a candle wants to start tunneling there are some tricks that are easy to do.

First is hugging the candle, where you can wrap your hand around the outside of your candle and put gentle pressure on the outside, squeezing in. Be careful when doing this so as to not spill wax on yourself. The wax is very hot and will do some serious damage to your skin.

squeezing the sides in enough for the heat from the flame to start melting the tunnel.

Another method of hugging is just using your thumb or finger and pushing the edges in to the center, raising the pool of wax, to allow for 1/4" of the wick to stick out.

Press the sides in and down towards to wick evenly all the way around, while raising the pool of wax,
with out drowning the wick. Make sure to leave a 1/4" of wick above the pool of wax

Alternative method is adding more wax.  If you have wax drippings from a previously burned candle than you can add some pieces to the pool if it looks like it is starting to tunnel. Again, just add enough to bring the pool up so 1/4" of the wick is protruding.

Some people like the tunneling look of the glow of the flame behind a golden wall of beeswax. So if that's what you like than go for it. Just keep the shell of a candle and break it up to feed other candles so you don't waste any of the wax.

When you have decided that you have had enough, and want to extinguish the flame. It is recommended that you push the wick into the pool of wax to put out the flame, so to essentially wax the wick. After dunking the wick in the wax push back up to straighten out, and you will have a prewaxed wick to re-light.

Hot Chocolate Part Duex

So, I wrote a post with a recipe for Hot Chocolate last year, but I love the stuff too much, who can blame me right?! RIGHT!

So I am Lactose intolerant, that store bought junk just messes me up big time. So last year was an experiment in the making of hot chocolate. I just wanted to control what was in it. There still is a lot of sugar in it, which I might try experimenting with this year or next what ever comes first. But alas there is only skim milk powder where I live. Then I got adventurous, I looked on the internet went to these weird sites about alternative foods not found in your local grocery store cause they are the devil, am I right? YA! So doing some incognito web surfing(chrome has a setting for that) and I found Rice Milk powder, Soy Milk powder, other Milk Powders, Cocaine Powders....no, no I didn't, and last but not least Coconut Milk Powders, YEAH! BITCH!

So I go down to the local Health food Shop, Jo Annes, sneek aboot look in the baking section there, bammo there it is White Gold. So I takes that back home.  Mix up a little chocolove slam that back and then life was born on the 9th day.

So in all seriousness back to the recipe. AND pictures this time.

1 3/4cp  -  Cocoa Powder
1 3/4cp  -  Powdered Sugar
2 cp       -  Coconut Milk Power
1 tbsp     -  Corn Starch
1 tsp       -  Salt

All the Ingredients in the bowl, sifted but not mixed.

Everything all mixed up.

Sitting Pretty.

Looks like something out of a 70's magazine, But better.

Peace, I'm off to work.

Who smells like garlic?

I smell like garlic! Those who dout me, take a whiff.

This is our first attempt at growing garlic, K cleared out the community garden last week, I planted 194 cloves in it tonight. We really like garlic, almost all our recipes call for garlic and we usually double it. So hopefully if all goes well we will never have to buy it again...... maybe.

We got the garlic from a friend who grows copious amounts of garlic. All together there were 46 bulbs, 40 Music or "Musica" is another name thrown around, so I've heard and read a few times. It is a Porcelain variety which netted me 155 cloves of really good size. 6 Persian Star, which are of the Purple stripe varieties and got 39 cloves.

I really don't know a whole lot about growing it so I read quite a bit about it, and talked to some of our friends. Everyone seemed to be in the same boat with depth and spacing.

This is what we started with, spent a little bit of time separating them while watching some shows.

This is where all those cloves ended up. My rows aren't the straightest, but that's alright to me! I tend to wobble a little too.

And then it got dark @ 5:30, so this is how it ended.

194 so that's 8 rows of 24, two of those rows may have had 25 in them, you do the math. Rows are 10" apart, planted 6-8" apart and 3-4" deep with 2" of mulch and going to throw some more on there this week before the neighbours get rid of their leaves. Straw is a preferable mulch, but we had plenty of leaves off the neighbours lawn and he already bagged it so half the job was already done. That's permaculture right there, let someone else do half the work... haha I kid. But seriously straw would have been better, the leaves are going to turn into a mat, in the spring when the leaves thaw we will have to loosen them up so as to let the little garlics poke out. Just another reason to get out of the house and out of doors earlier in the season I guess.

well

Adios Amigos. Go listen to Ramones now.

Tea Time

This is old forgot to post.
Tea, so many flavours, so many different ways to make it, so many different ingredients, so many different cultures, many many different things. My all time favorite is Lapsang Soochong....... no, no it is not actually I don't like it much at all I use it for something completely different from tea since I was so disappointed, maybe I will release my secret use for lapsang in the future. Really my favorite tea is Chai one of my old bosses said he thought North Americans were funny, cause we call it Chai Tea, because Chai means tea, so we are saying Tea Tea, he is Persian.

Well as I am making a big ole batch of tea for a pot luck at Greenshire Eco Farms, I will post my recipe.

So the way I make my Chai for a small batch enough for a few cups.

5-8      -  Cardamom pods (bruised/opened by pressing down with the back of a                   spoon or smashed with a mortar and pestle)

5-8      -  Cloves

5-8      -  Black Pepper corns

tbsp     -  Minced Ginger root

1"        -  piece of a Cinnamon stick broken up

3 or 4  -  Tea Bags (I use orange pekoe caffeinated and decaffeinated depending                 on when I'm making it)

1/2cp   -  Milk (soy, Almond, Coconut, or regular)

4 cp     -  Water

1 tbsp  -   Honey or to taste

bring water to a boil, add everything but the tes bags and milk, reduce to a simmer.
Simmer for about 5 mins or your house smells awesome, throw in the milk, tea and honey.

There you go my version (probably stolen or elaborated from someone somewheres) DEAL WITH IT.

Peace I'm out.

Another Video.....

Here is another quick video of our garden 17 days after the last video. It was a bright sunny day with wind. Please keep speakers down wind blowing can be a little loud. I have been pretty busy didn't have time to post this a lot of fancy book learnin been going on studying for EGSA (Electrical Generating Systems Assosiation) exam, taking online John Deere courses, and working way to many hours.

Here is the Vid starring Herc (our furry friend) at the end.

July 2nd 2013

This video is from July 2nd, the highlight of this video is the black cat Boss, who distracts the director during a few moments of filming and the giant cherry tomato plant. Everything looks a lot better in this video, all the plants have taken root and taken off very well, this is where the real excitement of gardening comes in. So with out further ado the video.

Life: Our Adventure

It has been warm again the last few weeks. Everything in the garden has really been happy with that. We have gotten a ton of new Tomatoes forming, which means maybe some canning might happen. I have already made and froze four 2 cup containers of marinara. Had some more Tomatoes diced up in the fridge and now we have eight 250ml jars of salsa as of yesterday, everything but the Jalapenos and cumin seed came from our gardens so that's fun. Peppers have been washed, sliced and frozen on a tray then put into bags for storage.  Also been trying out our dehydrator. I have dehydrated Patchouli, Calendula Flowers, Basil, Blue Berries, Cilantro, and some Jalapeno peppers. I am going to try a few more things and add to our jars of dehydrated things. I need to make some Pesto to freeze for a little bit of summer taste in the colder months.

Been spending some time re-arranging our house. We picked up two used items of furniture for a good price on Kijiji, we couldn't really pass them up. First was a vintage solid wood teachers desk or pedestal desk what ever you wanna call it, its beat up in all the right places I like it. Then we also picked up a couch which cost more in our own labour to get it out of the condo and into our house than it did to buy.  I would say it took a good 3.5 hrs X 2 bodies to move it, including travel time. Small condos and old houses just don't fit big furniture at all.

We weren't planning on buying furniture but we had talked about it lots. We didn't like our desk, but we got it from our house mate when he was done school.  It didn't have drawers so we had baskets under it holding the printer paper and extra USB cords and other cords, just looked like a mess. We had the couch for 5 years I think, with a lot of ass traffic. They have both served their purpose and have been well used, we just needed a change. So we browsed Kijiji just for fun, found the desk, wow good price for something we actually really like: big, wood, old and storage. When we got it home, cleaned it up and found a sale sign in one of the drawers asking $350. We got a lot better deal than that so I can not complain there. It was an easy move, it already had the screws taken out and separated in 4 parts, fit in the truck easily. When looking at a piece of furniture in a garage, then putting it into an old small house, there is a little bit of distortion in eye balling the size of it. To fix that we no longer have a dining room table and now no longer have a dining room, it is a multipurpose room.

Then we looked at couches on Kijiji and saw this one dark couch, looks new and not gaudy. So we booked a time for picking up the couch; also take into consideration we have not gotten rid of any of the other furniture yet. The day after we get the desk home we head on out to get the couch. We got the measurements, yep seems like it will fit in the truck alright. Head down, look at the couch, realize there is no bargaining for this thing its in brand new condition. So now to get it out of the ladies condo 5' long and 3.5' wide hallway, 7'x3'x3' couch, and a 34" door way into another hall. Turn it this way, no turn it this way, well they got it in here. I don't remember what they did to get it in here. Lets try it this way, we're going to scratch the wall, no now its up against the mirror, ok try it this way, Alright we are in the hall, pick it up walk down the longest Apartment building hallway ever. In the elevator (that was the easiest part in the elevator). Down to the moving room, ?No moving room? really? We have to take it through the underground parking? Alright in the basement down another really long hallway, wait? There are 4 doorways in this hall, with the hinges on opposite sides of the frames, for no other reason than to annoy us.  They also seem to get smaller and smaller, turn it this way, no that way.  Wont work the door is on the other side, oh the doors will not stay open, okay we're through to another hallway. Oh look the moving room yes, no, it just leads into the underground parking, remember that part, right okay. Through the underground to the doors, run around to the front of the building, grab the truck bring it around. The door for the cap is 33" high, wow that's no good. Well we just have to get it over that hump of the couch then it gets lower in the middle, okay that's not soo bad.  I will just lift it up on this end and tilt it in nope, okay tilt and turn, no the legs are hitting the side box of the cap okay.... we'll flip it on its back okay lets try that, no right its as high as it is deep, flip it back over lets lift and just force it the padding will squish, alright we're in. Oh well that was fun, great Thickson Rd. has an accident and they are diverting all the traffic, sweet traffic jam. Oh I will just head north, 'F' the 401 I says to my little lady friend we can go north, "Hey remember that little pastry I brought home from the Portuguese bakery, well its just around the corner from here.", "Lets go."

Get home a few hours later, "alright lets get it into the house, the other couch came in easy, maybe this one will." No, no it wont, its shaped completely different. Get everything out of the way get it out of the truck, wow that was really easy how come it came out so easy? Gremlins I tells ya little Gremlins. Alright into the front porch, into the hallway, oh our hallway is a little bigger that will help. No it won't there is a staircase in it as well. Turn it this way, no turn it this way, lets try it this way, we're going to scratch the wall no now its up against the mirror, okay try it this way. "Well what if we turn it around" says the pretty little blonde girl on the other side of the couch, "No, I don't think it going to work that way" says me. Lets try it, tilt it up, slide it into the bigger area at the bottom of the stair, spin it around slide it back bring it back down, pick it up, walk 1/3 up the stairs over the railing, "turn it this way" says the voice hidden behind the couch.
"I can't see anything you gotta let me know what to do"
"okay I got a leg and the arm through"
well I am stuck on the stairs holding this thing and can't go anywhere, well figure it out, its in, it is in the living room with the other couch, wow! We should have gotten rid of this stuff first. House in shambles.

Another Video

We are going back in time again to May 29th 2013, how did I do it? Well I went on my computer, then to Youtube on my internet browser and drank an espresso and amazingly we traveled back in time and heres a video to prove it.. oh? we didn't travel in time? prove it! Video #2

Peace, its bedtime.

EATING: Swiss Chard

The Garden has been behaving. We have gotten on top of those pesky leaf miners at least on the chard. Which by coincidence we are having for supper with a sheppards pie, and I wanted to write a post about cause I am bored, chard is delicious, and this is the recipe we are using today.

Swiss Chard with Olives, Garlic, Currants, and Feta

you will need

Swiss Chard - as much as you want
Olives - handfull or as much as you want
Garlic - 1 clove or as much as you want
Currants - handfull or as much as you want
Feta - Crumbled - handful or as much as you want
Salt N Pepa - Push It as much as you want

So first things first get the chard from your garden, you have a garden right? with greens in it? oh you don't ok well grab the chard from your refrigerator.

Wash/rinse your chard, shake excess water off, bunch chard together and cut 1 inch strips or how ever big you like it, chop garlic finely, put pan or pot on medium heat, add a small amount of oil (not really needed).
Once pan is hot add chard, after 30seconds add garlic, wait another 30seconds turn heat source off so as to not over cook "wilt" your chard, add olives and currants, and season with salt and pepper, once doled out sprinkle feta on top.

Ingredients, Check

Ingredients chopped,check!

Ingredients in pot, Check!

Cooked? Check!, oh look at that the bread is done too.

Add Feta, and eat. photographing food is hard.

Thats it Thanks
Peace, I'm out

The Garden

Yesterday was productive, Well it was productive in the back garden. Meaning we planted a lot of stuff or re-potted a lot of stuff. We had planted 7 Tomatoes of varying species earlier, I listed them HERE! but we still had quite a few more maybe 15 more plants. Anybody want a Cherry Tomato plant, here in the Kawarthas? I went and bought 3 more storage totes, from that place that sells a bunch of stuff and has tire in their name. A 115 liter tote holds two tomatoes very well we had two from last year so 5 all together now, plus our 3.5gal pails from the grocery store bakery which used to hold frosting (the gross kind). We also planted 4 Cucumbers which will be trellised, 3 or 4 Courgettes, 4 Basil we have 6 more to plant, 3 Nasturtiums. Also sowed 14 Bush green Beans, and 4 Scarlet runner Beans which will also be trellised, Cilantro lots of em, Chamomile hundreds of em.
Our Kale, Spinach and Chard, are all coming along nice. A couple more Chard and Kale seeds have sprouted and been coming along now for about a week. Leaf miners, Leaf Miners, Leaf Miners have already made an entrance into the raised bed. Picking off eggs sucks, they do what their name means, they hatch burrow themselves in the leaves, and eat eat eat, leaving a miners tunnel behind. They look like little bugger maggots. To Remove poke a hole at one end of the tunnel carefully push from the opposite end of the tunnel to the open end, as if you were trying to get air bubbles out of your phones screen protector. Depending on how early you do it, little tiny maggots pop out or how late bigger ones will come out with a little black dot for a head. CRUSH! those little bastards they are very unwanted. So row covers have been implemented over our chard and Spinach they seem to leave the kale alone.


We have been hardening off our Peppers, Aubergines, Watermelons and Delicata Squash.

Pictures will come later it was uncomfortably humid to be fiddling with a camera today or yesterday. Not used to our season yet.

Peace I'll be back.

Selling and sold stuff.

Kijiji is great, if you need to get rid of something, or need something for yourself, or are just bored and wanna window shop you can do it for hours, yes and make yourself feel bad by looking at all the pets available because "we are moving and cannot have our dog anymore" grow a pair would ya, I thought dogs were part of the family. I haven't rented a place for a long while, but last I heard you cannot be evicted because you have pets. Either way I won't get into that. 
We have been trying to make room in the house and garage. We just have way too much stuff, I was able to get rid of  a CRT TV, huge friggin wall unit for the CRT TV, stereo and speakers, Motorcycle, refrigerator, Tires and Rims. I have more tires a rims too if you need em please buy em off me. Either way if you want to get rid of things price them right you can get rid of it fast. You are trying to get rid of it don't be greedy and it will go quickly. again just another post to talk about myself. sorry.

I wrote this before the murder of Tim Bosma, just a reminder please be careful when selling items if you are meeting new people. Don't let them into your house, if you can show your wares outside of the house it is always better or make sure you have someone else in the house with you or in my case a very vocal dog, all my items are shown on my front porch, in my front veranda, or in the middle of my driveway. Having nosy neighbours helps plenty too.

Either Way Hit the Gas

Peace I'm Out

Too be a Cat

up in the morning, fresh cup of coffee
lounging beside me, small ball of fluff
resisting the sleep, embracing the light
little kitty groans, coming from a box
birds singing chirping, ready for the day
day begins, when kitty says

That is Zoey in her little Red Bed, on top of Beanies apartment. My awesomely talented Mum made the stained glass behind Zoey.

Laundry time

REvisions

Ran out of laundry soap.... gotta go make some I guess. There are a lot of posts about making your own cleaners and detergents, So I am going to add another to the list the more the merrier. We have read a few recipes.... but I don't like that cause I'm not going to eat it. lets call them directions and measurements.

I am not experienced in the whole making your own cleaning products still a little green, my roots are showing but were going to try different things. Right now this is working for us with our city water, I don't know if it will be different with well water or hard water. It took me this long to make our laundry detergent, Trampled by Turtles - Rebellion (lies) (Arcade Fire cover), and a while longer to write this post.

What you will need!
Pure Castile Soap (I used Dr. Bronners Magic Soap)
Borax (Sodium Borate)
Washing Soda (Sodium Carbonate)

So what to do? Well grate the soap with a fine grater make it small flecks, more soluble in water that way you don't have to use hot water cool or warm will work.

After you do that add two cups each of the Borax and Washing soda.

Mix it all up either stir or put in container and shake what ever you prefer.

Use 2 tablespoons We now use 3 - 4 tbls per load of laundry, I use 3 4 - 5 tablespoons when washing work clothes(I am a Diesel Generator Technician I tend to get smelly) put more or less in find what works for you. If you want more Smell from the soap grate another bar and add another cup each of the sodas add some essential oils, though we found that didn't really work.

While writing this I stumbled upon this gem Death (Detroit, Rock and Roll '75) how? I don't know but its great.
 That link no longer works here try this one Death - Politicians in my eyes!
Peace, I'm Out

Woah!

So yesterday was wicked beautiful out, sun shinning. Just beauty bod, had lots of good sun time today. Raked up all the twigs that the cedars dropped over the winter, top dressed the raised garden bed with some sheep manure, brushed all the loose hair off the dogs. just thrilled that it was so warm out, I fully enjoyed it. Got time to take some pictures of our seeds we have been starting in the collector room (the room that collects everything).

First up we have from Edible Antiques, Azoychka Tomato, Pirkstine Orange Tomato, and Moon and Stars Watermellon, This was our first time ordering from E.A. I'm not into writing reviews but delivery was fast, nice envelopes with good description.

Edible Antiques, I like the envelopes.

Then from The Cottage Gardener, we ordered new Sandul Moldovan Tomato, Little Finger Eggplant(I kid here it is), Some flowers Calendula, Heirloom Sunflower mix, Cardinal Climber, Sensation Mixed Cosmos.
From last year we are using King of the North Sweet Pepper, Five-Colour Silverbeet Swiss Chard. We also bought Organic Kelp Extract, we have a hard time finding any good fertilizers that aren't Scotts Miracle-gro brands in our area, so this will apparently make upto 255L.

and from last year or maybe the year before we have from Cubits Chadwick Cherry Toms, Bloomsdale Spinach and from Urban Harvest, Little Bells Pepper (which we saved seeds from last year) we couldn't find anybody who had them and were running low. and Vates Blue Curled Kale.

We have our small greenhouses heating up the soil in the raised garden beds to transplant house Kale, Chard, and Spinach. We took them out yesterday to harden off in the nice weather, today isn't as nice, hence why I am writing this.

Here they are with their packages.

I wanna thank these people also for the work that they do finding suppliers, collecting seeds, find sustainable organic and Heirloom Varieties. Cause its something that I would not want to do. I am happy to support them.

These are our planned plants for this season, we are getting quite the collection.

Sleepers, enjoying the weather. Guarding the Gnomes home.