Friday, April 12, 2013

Trillium; On Top of the World! Sorry it's blurry! But you get the gist...




©Allisonians



research list;
not used but interesting;
http://resources.curriculum.org/occ/trillium/tSearch.tcl?BID5=8621&lang=0&searchListType=fullrecordLTL&dev=&a=ok

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I found Johnny Jump--Up, first time in a long time since I've been in the hills like these!



Johnny Jump-up,
Grab the ladle
Small and ancient on the table.

Rain and snow are gone for a while,
Here comes sunshine in
Johnny Style!

Be it willy, be it wily,
Like the fox and
As the spire!

Comes the sunshine!
Cold will go SOON!
Johnny recalls to us,
We're here for a while!
©Allisonians

John•ny-jump-up



Pronunciation: ( jon'ē-jump'up"), [key]
—n.
1. any of certain violets, esp. Viola pedunculata, having variously colored flowers.
2. a small form of the pansy, V. tricolor.

Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.


Read more: Johnny-jump-up: meaning and definitions | Infoplease.com http://dictionary.infoplease.com/johnny-jump-up#ixzz2QHZjAjRm

Courtesy of;
http://dictionary.infoplease.com/johnny-jump-up
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Thursday, April 4, 2013

Purple Dead Nettle

I have noticed this plant around for a very long time. Today I cleaned out around a big old tree at a house that I am property managing. I found over 5 pounds of Clivers/Cleavers and this other plant looked so beautiful I took some. The property is going to be mowed so I am lucky I saw it before that is done, in fact I think I will go mow that back part with my little hand mower cause it is hard to get around and I think the tenants need help.


©Allisonians

Here is a link which has a way better photo than mine, so I thought I'd share. It's a great resource too.

http://www.radfordpl.org/wildwood/today/Plant_Spp_pp/PurpleDeadNettle.htm
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http://www.botanical.com/botanical/mgmh/n/nettle03.html

Here is a beer recipe I'd like to try;
Nettle Beer
The Nettle Beer made by cottagers is often given to their old folk as a remedy for gouty and rheumatic pains, but apart from this purpose it forms a pleasant drink. It may be made as follows: Take 2 gallons of cold water and a good pailful of washed young Nettle tops, add 3 or 4 large handsful of Dandelion, the same of Clivers (Goosegrass) and 2 OZ. of bruised, whole ginger. Boil gently for 40 minutes, then strain and stir in 2 teacupsful of brown sugar. When lukewarm place on the top a slice of toasted bread, spread with 1 OZ. of compressed yeast, stirred till liquid with a teaspoonful of sugar. Keep it fairly warm for 6 or 7 hours, then remove the scum and stir in a tablespoonful of cream of tartar. Bottle and tie the corks securely. The result is a specially wholesome sort of ginger beer. The juice of 2 lemons may be substituted for the Dandelion and Clivers. Other herbs are often added to Nettles in the making of Herb Beer, such as Burdock, Meadowsweet, Avens Horehound, the combination making a refreshing summer drink.
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Banana This; Recycle Old Peels~ fertilizer or silver polish

There are things you can do with that old peel.

1. Do you have a green thumb? House hold plants and outside gardens require fertilization. A great way to give your plants nutrients is with a banana peel. The banana peel is very rich in potassium and phosphorus, which give that added boost to your plants soil, especially so with roses. Here is how to use a banana peel to fertilizer your soil for your plants. Remove the peel from the banana. Place the banana peel on a cookie sheet to let it air dry. Grab a paper bag or envelope. Crumble the dried banana peel and place it in the bag. Let the banana sit at room temperature for about two days. When your caring for your plant, give it a potassium treat of crumbled banana peel. Mix well in the soil to ensure the roots are fed evenly.
2. Have you been thinking about pulling out that old silver? Well there is no time like the present. Bananas peel can also be used to polish silver. Yes, polish silver. Take the old peels and place them in a blender. You want the peels to become smooth and creamy. Once they have, grab a cloth and small amounts of the creamed banana peel and begin polishing your silver. The shine will be breath taking.

SOURDOUGH STARTER with WILD YEAST

SOURDOUGH STARTER with WILD YEAST
Wild yeasts exist in the air around you and to some extent on the wheat berries. There are wild yeasts on grapes (unsulphured) and apples and other fruits. It is those wild yeasts which are 'captured' to make a sourdough starter. The process takes from 3 to 5 days. I wish I had specific amounts for you, but you could start with 1/4 to 1/2 cup of flour and mix in enough warm (not hot) water to make a thin paste. DO NOT make it too soupy. That, in fact, is the trick to a good starter, according to the French bread makers, and I think they should know. And after you've fooled around with the flour and water thing, you might wish to branch out into adding those unsulphured grapes, apples, sour milk, etc as a catalyst in order to capture other strains of yeast. Each of these strains has a slightly different taste. In fact if you move to another area, you might end up with a starter that produces an entirely different flavor. For instance, San Francisco sourdough bread is well known and has a distinct taste due to the wild strains in the air there. On day one you mix the flour and water (and add any catalysts to encourage fermentation) and place in a warm spot. After 3 days, the dough should be moist, inflated, and slightly sour. More flour and water is added (mixed in) and left to sit in a warm spot. After 2 days the process is repeated. Then the next day it is done again. Note the order: 3 days, 2 days, 1 day. At this point you should be able to make a loaf of bread using part of the starter and adding back what you took out in the form of more flour and water. Rule of thumb: Use about 10% starter to size of loaf. In the case of a 2 lb loaf this is a bit over 3 oz of starter (3.2 to be exact). For a 1 lb loaf 1.5 oz would be used. A book that describes this process in great detail is The Village Baker by Joe Ortiz, copyright 1993, published by Ten Speed Press, Berkley CA. If it's not still in print, try the used books stores, that's where I got mine. Or try your local library. If they don't have it, they might be able to get it for you. ©2008 by Ernestina Parziale

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