yes, it really is that wet

Posted on Posted in designing, food and garden, projects

i swear, every time i go outside to do something it the garden it starts to rain again. look at that poor yucca plant now . . the flower cups are so full of water that it can’t hold itself up any more. if you’ve been watchng the tour of pennsylvania at all, that is exactly the same weather we are having here. i can’t remember any more the last completely dry day we had.

this morning, i was determined to get the rapini greens in before they were uselessly bolted.
so there i was, kneeling over the bed in a steady morning rain.

it was worth it . . i ended up with over three pounds of trimmed greens from that little two-by-three-foot patch. i am steaming them to freeze in pouches for winter.

and next on my list? these guys

this is a mixed patch of hardy mustard and asian greens. i won’t be pulling whole plants out here though . . . these are cut-and-come-again crops that will produce well all season long (if this year is anything like last year). i can pick whatever leaves are biggest each week and freeze a pouch or two at a time. they add tons of great taste and texture to indian dishes, as well as to the black bean stew we like to eat.

that leaves me with a gap to fill in the middle of my greens bed. i have seeds for chard (see the existing chard struggling along on the left there?) jeesh—what DO i have to do to get chard like norma’s?? she makes it appear effortless.

but i hate plant more of it when i can’t even get this batch to grow well (yet; i’m not giving up).

maybe just some more asian greens . . i had no idea they grew so fast, and man-oh-man, are they way more beautiful than the ones you can buy in the store.

if i have too many of these though, i’m not sure they would freeze well. maybe i’ll try lettuces . . . it’s certainly cool and wet enough.

and then in the “i swear—you can’t make this stuff up” department of gardening

as i headed back into the house, i noticed we have a mystery crop growing right in the fiber of the rug outside the back door. hmm, maybe it’s swiss chard . . .

so, i promised some knitting today and that’s exactly what i have for you.

i’m being very good with getting the socks done i think. every day or two they are a few inches longer. since it is my day to teach, they are getting some extra work.
i’m almost done with the big mystery project . . just finishing up the last bit. after that, i’ll be free to start the next new big thing.

in the meantime, i can’t keep my hands off the new fearless fibers merino/tencel yarn and swatching seemed like a good way to not (technically) start something new

this is a sock-weight yarn so it’s a little heavier than other yarns i’ve used to knit little nothings, and therefore, i tried it with some stitch pattens that seemed to beg for a more substantial yarn.

i’ve been looking for the right thing to marry with the pattern on the left for some time . . . it’s a rather abstract motif that looks like little rippling rivulets, and doesn’t read well in a lot of yarns, especially very fine ones (trust me).

but i think we have a good match here; i like the looser swatch a little better . . when i hold it in my hand it has a lighter and drapier feel. the holes are more open, and even appear to “run” which i like.

the split leaf motif (bottom right) is also very pretty, but has a heavy feeling in my hand—not in the spirit of the little nothings at all. maybe another time with another yarn. the fourth swatch is ok, but again, it has a heavy look.

so the one on the upper left is my favorite. and because swatching is never enough, i caved in last night and cast on for the scarf while we watched the bike races.

just a taste—just to get myself started. i can take it with me to a doctor’s appointment tomorrow.

BTW, deb at fearless fibers is having a promotion today through july 7th—with any purchase of $25 or more you can choose a free pattern from her complete selection. click here to see details on the front page of deb’s etsy shop. she also just added some new color selections to the merino/tencel yarn page, including the serenity colorway, above.

i made some headway on the re-started guava scarf, and oh my.

i’m in love. i would have it half done if i hadn’t been hiding it from myself (must finish big project, must finish big project). and believe me, as soon as the last stitch of that big project is done, i am grabbing this one and holing up in a corner with it for some private conversation.

now listen to this: just a couple of hours ago i said to david, “you know, those day lilies are trying SO hard to bloom, and every day they are juuuust a little bit closer, but never quite”.

and just now i looked at the office window to see

we got one . . . like a little sun.

25 thoughts on “yes, it really is that wet

  1. do you need a tester? I have some jade sapphire cashmere/silk blend that is heavier than lace weight but not quite sock weight – or of course I have OODLES of sock yarns I could work with as well.

    I actually just took advantage of deb’s offer and ordered two colors of her merino tencel blend to make a striped sweater, in two of the darker greyish shades, I can’t wait!

  2. Oooohh love your fearless fibers rippling rivulets. You know my favorite color is yellow, and one of the runners up is pink. Lovely guava scarf!

  3. Halfway through the post I was cheering for the upper left swatch..I am so glad you chose it…I think it is spot on!
    My lilies are blooming too…I just adore lilies!

  4. Anne can you share how and what type of things you prepare and freeze? How do you use them later on? I’m a newbie veggie gardener and am not quite sure how to keep the items at their best? Take basil for instance? I have a ton that is in jeopardy of flowering if I don’t pick it. I love fresh tomato & basil salad but simply have too much to use anytime soon.

  5. Guava is so beautiful…I love that yarn!

    I’m with Michelle…I would love to read more on how you freeze and save your veggies for the winter months.

  6. Well, I live a charmed chard life, but believe me, I have my Achilles heels. And I don’t mean socks — well, actually, I sort of do. 😀

  7. just had to pop by and say woo hoo… all the fund raising for Claudia’s ride sent her over the top (almost doubling her donations over the last two days!!) How fabulous that you not only support it with such a generous donation personally, but that you nudge others to do the same. You’re a peach.

    Those little greens in the rug are a hoot. (I’m weird enough to leave them .. are you gonna?)

    Love the new stitch pattern – and totally concur with your choice.
    and sigh…. that guava… sigh….

  8. Love the new yarn! What colorway is that? Your veggies are superstars!! Oh, by the way, we’ve had the first glimpse of the sun in a week or so!!

  9. The merino-tencel yarn swatches remind me of Tiger’s eye stone. The yarn even has a shimmer to it. Very pretty indeed. It’s hot here in WA state. We usually have the rain. Methinks the weather gods are asleep at the helm this year. Your greens look just lovely. Cheers!

  10. You certainly have green fingers as all the vegetables that you are growing look great & yummy. I wish I can do the same but had no success so far. I am in love with your guava scarf too – lovely color.

  11. This is so funny! I can’t believe you have greens coming up in your *doormat*. Talk about a green thumb! 😉

    I like the earthy-golden color of this latest little nothing. But what about that upper right-hand swatch? It’s really pretty too! 🙂

  12. I got a serious laugh out of your rug plants! Isn’t that the way of gardening? Baby your plants, water them, feed them, give them their own umbrella (I do–it can be very hot here), and they struggle along painfully, while the tomato plant growing through the concrete in the patio puts out batch after batch of gorgeous tomatoes. Sometimes I think I’d be better off just cultivating the weeds!

  13. Our weather pattern around here has been what I’ve heard reffered to as “pop-up” storms.
    The day starts clear and sunny with blue skies. By early afternoon it’s gray and cloudy and we get torrential rain for about an hour. After which it’s clear, until the next day when it all starts over again.
    It’s nice because you have just enough good day to pick weeds, mow the lawn, or whatever, but enough rain that I haven’t had to water more than a couple of times. And everything is so green!

    I suppose those little sprigs in your doormat could be A-rug-ula. Or maybe O-rug-ano?

    (Oh dear. Sorry about that. But it couldn’t be helped.)

  14. Love that Guava yarn (going to search through your older posts to find out what it is, it’s from One Planet yarn and fiber, right?). And wow! I see that rapini really IS a quick grow. I’ve got a bare patch in my garden, but I was afraid I’d run out of time! I think I’ll plant some tonight! 🙂

  15. Your patterns are beautiful and you made a very gracious reply to sunshine. Some people seem to only get satisfaction from dragging others down. I’m sorry someone like that took their frustrations out on you! I love this new colorway, gotta get some of my own!!!

  16. That guava knit has me salivating! Now I’m craving guava, and I’m stuck in the middle of midwest USA! Oh, the insane cruelty of it all!

    (Hee hee, note the drama . . .)

  17. Did you have a cottonwood fluff storm not too long ago? Our welcome mat sprouted cotyledons from the cottonwood fluff during our rains of biblical proportions.

    Great looking lace swatches!

  18. the merino tencel piece looks like little lake waves coming in on a sandy shore… beautiful colours, and hurrah for the Day Lily bringing you some sun

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