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Salad Fixin's: Spicing Up the Mundane Romaine

I’m getting ready for a mini vacation. I don’t get many and when I do I tend to focus on the cheaper stay-cations and end up doing more work in the yard than I would ever do at the museum. Doesn’t do much for my weary back and sore muscles. But not this time. This time I’m going to Palm Springs to sit by the pool and sip many cocktails and have many laughs.

We rented a house and are meeting up with old friends from Portland and LA. Our plans are simple, eat, drink, swim, sit and relax. Finally.

I decided that I should bring some food from the garden so I’ve loaded up with fresh eggs for breakfasts and then noticed that the romaine lettuce was just too perfect to leave behind. Then I realized that I also have some blue borage and some nasturtium that would make an excellent addition to the salad. So while packing and prepping the dog for a desert voyage, I took a little harvesting break. And, apparently a blogging break as well. I’m going to be soooo late!

Here’s the romaine all green and yummy looking. Followed by the borage whose flowers have already been harvested.
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A Time-lapse of my Aloe Vera.

One of the many, and I mean many, benefits of living in a frost free land is that plants that are common around the world have the wiggle room to perform as they should in nature.

Like my Aloe Vera in the yard. Only in the right conditions will it annually flower. I keep a few around to handle scrapes, burns and cuts, but the yearly flower display is an additional benefit. The hummingbirds and bees love to get all up in it.

This year, I decided to take a photo every few days to just document the flowers development. While not a showy bloom, I still love to look upon it. So now I’ll force you to look upon it as well.
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Winter Pruning of the Coastal Coral Tree (Erythrina caffra)

Ever since I began my journey studying the art of bonsai, I have been obsessed with harmonious tree patterns. How the branches relate to each other, the shape of the trunk and the root flair (or nebari in bonsai circles) as well as the silhouette of the tree as a whole are all fascinating to me. When working with bonsai, we are always trying to exaggerate these traits to make the tree appear as majestic as its full sized versions. Many of the techniques and designs used on bonsai can also translate into a full sized tree. Now whenever I plant a tree, I can’t help but think about what branches will be dominant, what will be pruned and how I want to tree to grow. My days of just planting and letting nature take over are long gone. Continue reading “Winter Pruning of the Coastal Coral Tree (Erythrina caffra)”