AUNTIE LI'S GARDEN

Ny blogg! New blog!

2011-09-04T12:17:00.003+02:00

Hej! Jag vet att det var flera år sedan jag skrev något här. Sedan ett par månader tillbaka kan du hitta min blogg på ett nytt ställe http://blogg.skanskan.se/tantli/ (på Svenska)

Välkommen!

Hello! I know it's several years since I wrote here. You can now find my blog in a new location http://blogg.skanskan.se/tantli/ (in Swedish)

Welcome!

Taking a break

2009-08-08T23:48:00.002+02:00

You've probably already guessed - I'm taking a break from this blog. I have other things to do.

Thanks for reading, maybe I'll see you again in the future.

Cutest tomato ever grown?

2009-07-09T20:03:00.003+02:00

I don't even remember how I found this, but it's got to be the cutest thing I've seen in quite a while.

No, I didn't take this picture, and I do NOT own it. I found it here, among with 9 other related pictures, on the website of British newspaper Guardian.

Why can't I grow tomatoes like that on my balcony?

I took some pictures...

2009-07-07T20:14:00.002+02:00

...but can't seem to find the usb cord to connect the camera to the computer.

Anyway, I've been working my a... arm off in the Park for 3½ weeks now. Fot the past few days I've been perched on a very tall ladder trimming the edges of various climbing plants, making people behind the windows able to see the daylight again. Most of the time I've spent cutting ivy. Ivy, as it turns out, collects tons of dust and other extremely dirty stuff. This stuff is now clogging up my throat, since becaus of my glasses I can't wear the protective mask (the glasses fog up).

I don't mean to complain, I'm actually having a great time! And I'll be posting some pictures and write something more interesting as soon as I find that cord...

Guerrilla mission #5

2009-06-21T14:00:00.005+02:00

Last sunday, a week ago (sorry, been busy...) I went out with Emma to the playground. I was meeting a photographer and a journalist from a weekly magazine who wanted an interview. I hadn't planned on planting anyting except calendulas, which was all I had, but luckily I got a call from my secret donator asking me if I wanted some leftover annuals. Yes please, I replied, and she arrived with the car full.

Before the dig. You can see my Buddleja davidii in the centre,
the flowers are on their way.
And I wonder if that to the right might be Jerusalem artichokes? We'll have to see.

After. From left to right: Lobelias, tagetes and two Verbena bonariensis.

Emma helped me carry much of the plants including tools and water to the playground, but left as soon as the people from the magazine showed up. They took lots of pictures and had me posing when I tried diggig in the plants. I hope the article will turn out good, I got to read it last week before publishing, and I made a few alterations where they'd gotten things wrong.

Healthy elm trees, and starting my new job

2009-06-21T13:42:00.007+02:00

I've been busy as a bee the last few weeks, no time for internet at all! First, I went to Gävle to visit a friend who bought a house in the old town, and helped her paint the ceilings. The surroundings were beautiful, but of course I had forgotten my camera at home.

The most amazing part was seeing the huge elm tree growing behind the neighbours' house. It was completely healthy. I haven't seen a healthy elm in years, and it almost brought tears of happiness to my eyes. Ant there were more of them a few blocks away. It made me realize I actually have no idea how much the Dutch elm disease has spread in our country. Where I live, we have almost no elms left, and the few still standing are infected, and I guess I've taken for granted that's the case all over the country.

I never looked into diseases as much as I'd like, I'll have to make that one of my projects for this year.

Also, I started working in the Alnarp park for the summer. I'll be there eight weeks in total, and that wonderful place actually makes getting up at 5am worth it. I get to spend each day outside among the plants I love, in the park where I (at least according to one of my colleagues) grew up.

Plants donated for my guerrilla garden!

2009-05-28T16:25:00.002+02:00

After I appeared on Swedish radio I got an e-mail from them saying a listener from my town had contacted them and asked if I wanted the plants she was going to dig up on her allotment plot.

Err, "no thanks"...? Of course I wanted them! :D So I just got off the phone with her, and she'll call me this weekend to see if we can meet up and do some digging.

Some people make me all warm and fuzzy inside!

Acer shirasawanum 'Aureum', my new crush

2009-05-26T17:04:00.006+02:00

Last Thursday we had a holiday here, and I took a walk in Pildammsparken (it means willow pond park) in Malmö with my mother. The weather was beautiful! We had coffee and she told me a garden-related secret! Can't say what, but I'll get back to it as soon as I can.

This park is very big, and I remember playing there as a kid. I even went to kindergarten there.

Huge trimmed Fagus sylvaticas along the streets.

The lawns were as white as the trees, very surreal.
I have never seen bellis bloom in this vast number.

I fell in love with an Acer shirasawanum 'Aureum'.
At times like this I really wish I had a real garden of my own.

Horse chestnut rescue mission

2009-05-24T16:00:00.006+02:00

There's an Aesculus hippocastanum growing on my balcony. Yes, I know! I'm probaby crazy growing a tree on the balcony, but I plan on planting it somewhere when it gets too big/big enough. I found it in one of Lund's flowerbeds while admiring the tulips with Ville (yes, we had our heads among the tulips again). I have a weak spot for small things being out of place and needing rescuing, so I quickly bent down and pulled it out of the ground. It then rode the bike home with me in my handlebar basket. Even with this unmild treatment, it's looking really good now that it's been about two weeks since I planted it in its pot.

Down by the train station, where it was found growing among the pansies.

Poor thing, what had I done?

Planted and looking good!
By now, the leaves have straightened as well.

So... anyone who wants a horse chestnut?

Tulips

2009-05-24T15:46:00.007+02:00

I love tulips. A couple of weeks ago we went to Fredriksdal with the class. During some free time me and Ville wandered around the place and fell in love with these tulips growing together with hostas along the rosary.

Getting rid of the flying vandals

2009-05-19T09:52:00.003+02:00

Ok, so the white cloths looked silly. More than one person wondered if they meant "surrender", and my neighbour actually asked me if I had joined a cult (!?). But with the help of the same teasing but kind people I thought up an ingenious idea.

Here's what to do if you wan't to get rid of vandalizing birds on the balcony or in your garden: Take two CDs, put them together shiny sides out. Thread a piece of string through the hole and hang it from a cane or fron the ceiling. Make sure they have enough thread to spin around in the wind. I put two of these devices on the balcony, and so far no more plants has been ripped up!

How Auntie Li became an auntie

2009-05-16T00:08:00.006+02:00

My oldest cousin had his first baby a year ago. There is no word for "daddys cousin" in Swedish, so we decided I'd be "tant Li". Tant means aunt (it also means old woman, but I can live with that) in a not-so-very-closely-related-but-still-related kind of way.

Her name is Iris, and she's more beautiful than any iris flower could ever hope to be. I met her for the first time a week ago (they live way up north), and even though she was very shy of all the new people, including me, I think we bonded for a while when I showed her how to pick and eat chives. She seemed to like it! Good girl, when she's older I'll teach her how to grow it as well.

Sorry for not posting!

2009-05-13T08:04:00.001+02:00

I have so much to tell you guys, and so many pictures to post! But no time to post them in... I'll try my best to get it done by the weekend.

Until then, peace!

Auntie Li on the radio!

2009-05-11T21:06:00.003+02:00

Damn, I'm good.

http://www.sr.se/sida/default.aspx?programid=3411

(it's in swedish, click the speaker symbol to listen, I'm after 9.30 or something like that.

Balcony terrorist!

2009-04-27T19:24:00.006+02:00

A few times the last week, I've stepped out on my balcony and found various degrees of destruction among the pots. After I planted out the Echinops, someone had been there and dug through their bucket, ripping off some leaves and even pulling out two of the plants. I blamed the rooks or the magpies. I was wrong.

(This is after I replanted the Echinops)

When I looked out the kitchen window half an hour ago, I saw a blackbird sitting on the rail. "Look! Oh, how cu... OI!!!" I interrupted myself when the bastard bird started digging out compost all over the place. I opened the window and shouted, but what did the blackbird do? It jumped two pots away and continued digging. Among other things, it dug out all my thyme and scattered it all over the balcony.

I've always been a defender of birds (rooks and magpies especially), but today I had enough. All my little plants! I've tied pieces of white cloth all over tha balcony, and hopefully that will keep the little terrorist away.

The neighbours must think I'm a lunatic.

Map of the balcony

2009-04-26T19:12:00.007+02:00

I spent Friday afternoon fixing the balcony, with new plants and containers. This summer, my balcony will be wonderful. Last year was more like a trial period, but now I feel more like I know what I'm doing. I fixed the pictures so you can read exactly what I have in my different pots. You'll probably have to click the image to be able to read... sorry.

Please come and visit, we'll have scones and herbal tea on the balcony!

Oh, I almost forgot! I was given a donation to help with my guerrilla gardening! The giver wishes to remain anonymous, for reasons I will not mention. Very mysterious, yes? Anyway, here it is:

It goes well with the chair, doesn't it?

More from auntie Li's kitchen window

2009-04-09T15:07:00.008+02:00

These are pictures from my kitchen. A while ago I found an amazing invention in one of my local garden supply stores: A box in which you grow garden cress. You just spread the seeds evenly on the "lid" which has holes in it, and fill the box with water. Then keep the seeds moist from the top until they sprout, and voila, the roots will find the water underneath. Now, this might be the normal way to grow cress in other parts of the world, but not here. Normally, you just use some cotton or paper tissue on a plate to spread the seeds on. This often results in to little water and dried up cress, or mould at the bottom. At least for my part. With this box thing, the cress stays fresh for a very long time! And it's reusable, of course. (And speaking of cress, I find this hilarious!)

The magic box

My jungle

Caged.
Oh, what the onion is doing in the background? Drinking. Apparently the green stuff that sprouts is tasty, so I'm trying to grow some green stuff.

If not parsley, sage and rosemary, then at least thyme!

2009-04-09T14:40:00.005+02:00

Last year, before this blog was "born", I planted as many seeds as I could possibly fit on my windowsill. That was a mistake. Not only had I not realized they would need more space as they got bigger, I had also planted them too early in the season. As a result, I got an army of tall but thin alien-like plants that needed so much support there were even more supporting sticks than plants. And most of them died.

This year, I ditched the tomatoes and broccoli. The broccoli died early on anyway, and as I might have written before, all I got was one very small green tomato. I've also sown the seeds a month or so later. To be exact, four days ago. And look at this.

Thyme

Calendula officinalis

I have also sown sunflowers, oregano, Liatris spicata and Echinops ritro. The oregano has begun to sprout, but wasn't as photographable yet. Those of you with a really good memory might remember the Echinops from here. If not, click the link anyway, it's a beautiful plant.

Pansy report

2009-04-08T20:44:00.004+02:00

Well, all I can say is they're doing lovely.

And the crocus is flowering!
Yes, look closely at the very centre of the image. Or just click on it to see it enlarged. This patch by the way needs a lot of attention. I'll have to see to that soon.

(What? Where is this? See original entry here!)

Happiness is a warm spring day and a cleaned up balcony

2009-04-04T16:00:00.013+02:00

It's incredibly warm outside! I placed a thermometer on my balcony fence, and when the sun came round the corner it showed 22°C (71.6°F)! So probably 15°C (59°F) in the shadow. There are people in bikinis and shorts out on the lawn! It might not sount that warm, but to put it in perspective for you: it snowed last week, and we had several degrees below freezing point a couple of nights ago.

I went to check on the playground pansies, worried that they might be suffering from both freezing to death and lack of water (that last one was my fault), but they looked beautiful! Even nicer than when we planted them. I know they can stand cold temperatures, but I was still worried. I guess it's some kind of parental feeling setting in... Anyway, they looked so good I decided to buy some for my balcony. When arriving at the town market I went a little crazy and bought 8 pansies, two bellis, one daffodil (4 bulbs) and one Fritillaria meleagris (also several bulbs). Then I went to my local supermarket and got 20 litres of organically certified compost.

My balcony has been neglected for a while, but now it was time to do something about it. And by neglected I mean not watered more than once since november. I'm not kidding.

Before: Death and destruction.
Supposedly dead stuff, mostly (but hang on, a surprise is on its way!).

More dead stuff.

It's alive!
I couldn't belive it when I saw it! I pulled out some "dead" plants to get rid of them, but they turned out to be living their life and preparing for a new season.
In the picture is an Alchemilla mollis. It's about to sprout!
Also alive was the lavender and the Helianthus x laetiflorus. The latter was the most unbelievable, I practically ripped it out of the ground and chucked it in a pot when my dad sold the house last summer. It looked dreadful all summer and autumn, but maybe it will come back with new strength this year!

After: Pansies and bellis on the table. Also, my plate with moss looked much healthier after a shower. Dead Helianthus cut down to give space to living (pot in the midde)

Pansies, Fritillaria meleagris and daffodils enjoying the sunshine.
Also, the Alchemilla mollis, chrysanthemum and lavender, all freshened up.

I forgot my camera when I went to check on the playground pansies, but I'll post some pictures soon!

Spring is on its way

2009-03-30T22:50:00.006+02:00

Cold, warm, cold, warm, rain, fog, snow, sunshine - in other words: Spring is on it's way. The trees down by the train station here in Lund can barely wait to burst out their leaves. In Alnarp, we barely have time to look utside the window, we're locked up in the computer classrooms all day, trying desperately to finish our AutoCAD project (good luck me...). But last week we had a walk around the park to look at some of the spring plants on our list. One of them was this Helleborus foetidus. I took one picture, and didn't even realize how beautiful this flower is until I looked at it on my computer! Oh my, I really must finish the project soon and return to the real world...

Guerrilla mission #4

2009-03-29T16:15:00.005+02:00

Last Wednesday, my cousin Ida came over for a visit, and I surprised her by telling her we'd be doing some illegal planting. She was all for it (well, younger cousins are meant to agree with you, right?), and we walked from the train station to the playground where I'd planned to plant some pansies. The weather had changed from warm spring to just above the freezing point in just two days, and I thought my fingers might fall off.

Before she arrived, I biked all over town to find the cheapest flowers, since the old man on the town square had forgotten to save 20 plants for me. He only had 10, + 6 scruffy looking ones. To his credit, I got them all for the price of 10. I found 10 more at the florist on Mårtenstorget, and with 26 pansies and a bag of flower soil carefully balanced on my bike, I went to pick up Ida.

Before: This boring piece of hedge needed some colour!

My sweet cousin in action.
We cleared the weeds and dug in the plant soil.

After spending at least 15 minutes pondering on how to arrange the plants, they were finally dug in.
No, I do not always use this cap when guerrilla gardening. It was a coincidence, I swear.

After: Better than I had ever imagined!

Beautiful!

And all was ready for the interview which was to take place the following day...

...which went surprisingly well. It will be aired on Swedish radio P1 some time in May. I promise to post the link here.

Guerrilla mission #3 accomplished

2009-03-22T11:17:00.004+01:00

Me and Cici followed the plan from my previous entry and attacked the ugliness of or apartment building entrance.

Before the dig: To the right of our apartment entrance there's a gap in the hedge where one of the hedge plants have died. Filled with stones, sticks and weeds, it's not a pretty sight.

To the left there's an equally ugly spot which, judging from other entrances, once upon a time also was a part of the hedge. It is now filled with cigarrette butts.

We cleared out the rubble (it filled two grocery bags!), cut away the remains of the dead shrub, and dug through the soil to loosen it and to even out the surface. On the left side of the door we decided to dig in some extra soil to fill in the hole, but the soil on the location was actually quite good! A nice clay soil, filled with worms and other organisms.

We put in these anemone bulbs (the package says bulbs, I don't know... bulb in Swedish is what a tulip grows out of), Anemone coronaria 'St. Brigid Mix' - amazing how something this ugly and shrivelled up can become beautiful flowers! Well, hopefully they will...
We also sprinkled some Leptosiphon seeds after watering the soil, and then raked the whole thing over as good as anyone can rake without a rake. (I need a rake, please give me one?)

After the dig: We felt very pleased with the right side...

...and even more pleased with the left side.

We made some interresting findings!
I kept the action figure (can anyone ID him?), and Cici kept the glass marble. The other stuff went into the trash with the rest of the debris.

Plans for Guerrilla mission #3

2009-03-21T21:03:00.003+01:00

1. I found the anemone bulbs/whatever they're called!!! They were under the zink. With the rest of my gardening stuff. Ahem...

2. I talked to my friend and neighbour Cici, and we decided to use them tomorrow to fix the gap in the hedge below our windows. We're meeting at 10 in the morning, since there's no risk of bumping into the caretaker on sundays.

3. I'm thinking about mixing them with some low sunflowers... or maybe one of the pink flower mixes I bought on sale a while ago.

Also, I've been thinking about really getting a move on my playground site. If I don't it will be really embarrassing showing it to the reporter next week... Maybe some pansies along the wall? Hmm... Photos of both missions will follow, of course.

A second interview! What have I gotten myself into?

2009-03-20T19:52:00.003+01:00

Yes, what have I gotten myself into? A woman from Sveriges Radio (Swedish version of BBC radio or something like that...) e-mailed me and asked if she could call me and ask a couple of questions about guerrilla gardening. I gave her my number, and somehow I ended up saying yes to her interviewing me next week, AND NOW I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO DO!!! How did I get myself into this? All I have to show her is my playground, which to be honest isn't really much to show (good thing it's radio and not tv, hahaha), but I guess I could tell her about all my grand plans or something...

Geeez Louise.

First ever interview!

2009-03-04T16:19:00.002+01:00

I just got home from being interviewed on guerrilla gardening for the first time in my life! It was a girl from my school doing an essay on guerrilla gardening (well, I don't remember her exact subject), and I think I did very well. She seemed pleased, at least. And it was fun, I didn't even mind the microphone on the table. I also showed her "my" planters by the university library here in Lund, and expained my plans to her. Not much to see now, but it felt good to have an actual place to point out.

We also stopped by the gardening store on Lilla Fiskaregatan and I got some sunflower seeds that expired last summer, really cheap. There's probably still some life in them.

And I made a very exciting discovery! Searcing Google for guerrilla gardening Lund shows this blog as hit #3!

Lost anemones

2009-03-03T21:46:00.002+01:00

Spring is on it's way, and I can't find the Anemone ....bulbs? lumps? My dictionary is inadequate here... Anyway, I had been planning to plant them outside my building entrance, where there's a gap in the hedge. And now they're gone. How I lost them in a two room apartment is (not really) a mystery. I'll just have to find them again. Soon.

By request, I'm putting up a picture of my own tattoo. I had it made a year and a half back, after a drawing by my friend Veronika, aka don Harmono.

Yes, it hurt. Like hell.

Coolest tattoo...

2009-02-20T20:05:00.003+01:00

I browsed the internet, looking for flower vine pictures, and stumbled upon this! It's absolutley beautiful! Gorgeous!

I want it. Picture found HERE.

Guerrilla mission #2 update

2009-02-10T15:51:00.002+01:00

Here is the picture I promised earlier.

You can see where we put the bulbs. Not much else to say really, read the original entry here.

Lingonberry chocolate squares

2009-02-10T15:24:00.005+01:00

It's tuesday. Tomorrow I have an exam on about 100 evergreens and conifers. Last week I went on a holiday. I should be studying my ass off right now, but I'm not. Instead, I tried out a fantastic recipie I made up in my head many years ago.

I got some frozen lingonberries my boyfriend's mother had picked, and since my boyfriend don't like lingonberries they were mine to use as I pleased. This is what I made:

Lingonberry chocolate squares

ca 2-3 dl lingonberries, fresh or defrosted frozen ones (with no sugar on!).
500 g chocolate, half dark chocolate and half milk chocolate

Melt the chocolate in two separate bowls in tme microwave or over hot water on the stove. Put the lingonberries on a third, larger bowl and pour the melted dark chocolate over them. Stir carefully, don't mash the berries! Stir in the milk chocolate. If you're somewhat more skilled than I was, you will get a marmorated effect. I didn't. Spread the mixture in a 1 cm thick layer on a sheet of baking tray paper (or whatever the correct word may be...). Put in the fridge to cool for 20 minutes or so. Take it out and cut into squares using a sharp knife. PUT ON AN APRON, THE BERRIES WILL BURST!!!

Lingonberries, for those of you who don't know, are rather similar to cranberries. Their sourness and the sweetness of the chocolate go extraordinary well together. However, they are not as brutally sour as cranberries are, and I dare not recommend using the latter. At your own risk.

Also, I think dried lingonberries would work very well.

Guerrilla mission #2

2009-01-27T21:37:00.003+01:00

I just came home from an evening guerrilla gardening attack on a playground near where I live. It was me, Helena and Johan, pulling out the weeds and putting in some crocus bulbs in an empty corner of the flowerbed. Well, maybe it was never a flowerbed until now, just an empty patch of soil.

We tried putting the bulbs in a heart-shape, but Johan somehow misunderstood this plan and put them down quite randomlu. We tried digging his up again, but hey, flowers are flowers :)

I know it's a bit late for planting crucuses, but I found them really cheap at a diy store a few days ago. If they take, they take. if not, it was worth a try :)

Will return with pictures as soon as I remember to bring my camera with me, haha.

Now, the observant reader might note that there is no entry on my blog named Guerrilla mission #1. This is because I was lazy. I am sorry. Mission #1 was me and Helena putting down some tulip bulbs in a tree pit by the Lund University Library some time before the holidays. Hope they'll grow. I have more plans for these tree pits, as soon as it's warm enough for seeds :)

Purrtilizer

2009-01-16T20:57:00.003+01:00

I'm not good at this. Sorry. Here's a little somthing to cheer you up :)

From: http://icanhascheezburger.com/

Stealing the trash can!

2008-11-15T21:28:00.002+01:00

This is what happens when nature takes over.
The grass ran away with the trash can!
I saw it! I took one picture ant then they were gone!

Autumn is here, and almost gone

2008-11-15T20:57:00.006+01:00

I realise I've not been posting here for quite some time now, and I really have no excuse. School is taking up a lot of my time, though.

A while ago I recieved a packache from the USA, containing seeds. Next spring I will be able to grow both Coreopsis and Echinops ritro! Maybe I'll even put them in a guerilla garden along with the Calendula officinalis seeds I collected at school. (what is guerilla gardening?) Thanks to Tina at GardenGoose for sending me the seeds!

Also, me and a friend are planning some tulip planting, stay tuned for news!

This is from my beautiful campus. By now, all the leaves have dropped.

The Great Blog Land Seed Exchange! 2008

2008-09-19T18:18:00.006+02:00

Join up at http://gardengoose.blogspot.com!

I Have:

Sunflowers (annual):
Red sun - 1 pkt
Pan - 1 pkt
Paquito Sangria - 1 pkt

Tomatoes:
1 Mix pack (individual mini bags if you just want one)
Garden Pearl
Golden Sunshine
Marmande
Red Cherry
San Marzano 2
Tigerella

Mauranthemum paludosum (crysanthemum) - 1 pkt

Fragaria vesca 'Rügen' (alpine strawberry) - 1 pkt

Broccoli Red Arrow - 1 pkt

Thyme - 1 pkt
Oregano - 1 pkt
Lemon Balm - 1 pkt
Chives - 1 pkt

I Want:

Echinops ('Veitch's Blue', but others as well)
Echinacea
Rudbeckia
Helenium
Helianthus salicifolius
Hosta sieboldiana
Thalictrum delavayi (Yunnan meadow rue)
Cress
Calendula officinalis
Cosmos

+ lots of others! :)

Fancy gadgets

2008-09-18T13:22:00.003+02:00

I've added a Garden Blog Search om my site, you can see it just below the Archive. Thanks to Hanna at This Garden Is Illegal for adding me to the search.

Also, I've added Gardening Definition of the Day, you can find that somwhere in the right column as well.

Among the reeds

2008-09-16T15:09:00.007+02:00

Sorry for not writing in a while, I've been busy studying and so on. Trying to adapt to my new education and new job at the same time! But I think I'm managing pretty well.

At the moment I'm studying for an exam in scientific names on plants. Tomorrow it's perennials and annual plants, and next week it's woody plants. I've been walkinga round the Alnarp park with my camera, taking pictures and notes. I think I'll do fine tomorrow, but I haven't really had time to study the trees and bushes.

Among the perennials, I found some real favourites. One of tem is this Thalictrum delavayi. I didn't really notice it until I looked at my pictures and found this close-up. It's beautiful, isn't it?

Echinops ritro 'Veitch's Blue' is another plant I plan to put in my future garden. More pictures (from other photographers) are here and here.

I also found (not easy to miss) this Arundo donax. It wasn't on my plant list, but I fell in love with it as soon as I stepped in among the canes and looked up at the sky. I did some research (well, on wikipedia...), and it seems it might not be the best plant in the world to plant anywhere. This makes me quite sad, but I take comfort in the fact that I can always go and talk to it in the park.

Alnarp

2008-08-26T12:16:00.003+02:00

Long time no post!

Yesterday, I went to Alnarp for my first school day of many more to come. I've completely forgotten to write about it here, but I've been accepted to the landscape engineering program at SLU Alnarp! Three years of learning about plants and gardening! :D

There will be more reports on the matter, when I'm not so hungry haha.

Also, I've realized there will (sadly) be no tomatoes on my balcony this year. I'm a crappy gardener, but will work hard to improve!

Shame on me!

2008-08-15T12:42:00.002+02:00

This is sooo embarrassing. The tomato plants needed some water, that's all. They were not dying, and were not damaged from the storm. It was ALL MY FAULT. Some gardener I am... And I even tried blaming it on my boyfriend! He did a great job watering all my plants while I was away, and two days after I'm back I almost manage to kill them.

I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry.

On the bright side, they look really nice now! Although, not one of them has gotten any tomatoes yet. Hmm...

Balcony report

2008-08-06T11:32:00.005+02:00

The storm stirred quite a disaster on my balcony, just as I had expected. All tomato plants exept for one are drooping with shriveled leaves. I must say I feel guilty, I hadn't tied them to enough supporting sticks. And one of them had actually started to bloom! Don't know what will become of that now... A poor comfort as it might be, this was my very first tomato year. Next year, I will be somewhat older and wiser.

Anyway, I tried my best to tie up the plants. Don't know if it shows clearly enough on the picture or not, but I made one of those before-after pictures that seem to be in fashion these days.

On the brighter side, all the rain did wonders for my moss plantation! (well, after I emptied it of the gallons of water it had gathered...) It's incredible how moss can be neglected for weeks (I have a feeling it was completely forgotten by my partner while I was away on holiday) and then burst into life again after a rainfall.

Raspberry marmalade with chocolate

2008-08-05T22:21:00.003+02:00

This recipie is new to me, and I found it in a magazine. I haven't tried it with bread yet, but I bet it would be lovely with hot scones! (here's the recipie for the other marmalade you can see in the picture, Plum and nectarine with rosemary!)

Raspberry marmalade with chocolate

900 g raspberries
1 lemon
5 dl regular sugar
200 g chocolate, 70%, chopped

Squeeze the lemon and mix with raspberries and sugar in a pot. Boil for 10 minutes (turn the heat down so it won't burn!). Stir and remove the foam a couple of times during boiling. Remove from the heat and add the chocolate. Stir until the chocolate is melted. Pour into clean, hot jars and place the lid on. Let it cool and store in the fridge.

Plum and peach marmalade with rosemary

2008-08-05T21:49:00.008+02:00

Yesterday's storm and heavy rainfall probably didn't go easy on my poor balcony... It was still too windy today to get a clear view over the likely disaster, we'll have to see in the morning. Poor, poor sunflowers.

But bad weather gets me in a creative mood, so I emptied the freezer from fruits and berries and cooked two kinds of marmalade! They will get one entry each, making them easier to find.

The first one is last year's absolute favourite, plum and peach marmalade with rosemary. One year later it's still talked about among my friends! The plums are from my aunt Iréne's garden, a real treasure chamber for fruits! Rosemary from the balcony and peaches from the store.

I borrowed the picture from Keepers Nursery, thank you loves!

Plum and peach marmalade with rosemary

250 g victoria plums (skin on, seeds out)
250 g peaches (skin on, seeds out. And nectarines works just fine!)
1 twig of fresh rosemary
2,5 dl jam sugar (I have nooo idea if this exists everywhere, it's sugar with pectine already in it I think)

Cut the fruit into pieces, whichever size you desire. Mix them with tle leaves from the rosemary in a pot and boil for 10 minutes. If the fruits don't water enough to star boiling, you can add a tablespoon or two of water to help it on it's way. Then add the sugar and boil another 5 min. Pour into clean, hot jars and screw the lid on tight. Let it cool and store in the fridge.

You can see the result on image next to my Raspberry marmalade with chocolate recipie!

Grandmother's garden

2008-08-04T23:20:00.022+02:00

My grandmother's garden is a wild and wonderous place, she herself calls it "the Hellish Paradise". With nobody strong enough to take care of it all, it grows and grows until one day it will cover the Earth completely. Or somthing as poetic as that, at least. I love this garden with all my heart.

In a couple of years, the wall of the backyard patio will be no longer made of stone, but of roots and leaves...

... and the garden shed will be invisible to the world.

Here was once a garden full of herbs, with neat signs for every plant. I remember it as if in a dream, strangely enough. Nobody could tell, nowadays, and perhaps this is the saddest part of her garden.

Grandma and a small but beautiful part of her creation. There is a path there, leading to the front door. Can you find it?

Öland - where I have my roots

2008-08-04T22:34:00.012+02:00

Some weeks ago, I went away on holiday with my mother to visit grandma who lives on Öland, the second largest island on Sweden. We stayed for a week and a half, and on the few days with really good weather we went exploring "our" island like many times before.

One of the places we visited was "Stora Alvaret" - the great alvar (the largest one in Europe, actually. It's a huge barren landscape, where the soil covering the limestone ground is only half a centimeter in many places (2 cm at the most, accordig sources). Yet, it's the home of many plant species, even some trees!

One of the plants which seem to grow just fine on 0.5 cm soil is thyme. It even flowers. Why can the thyme on my balcony hardly survive!? The mysteries of nature...

We also heard several ravens calling eachother across the landscape, but they were too far away to be seen. They gave me quite an eerie feeling, and my mind started to wander into winter, and thiking about all those people who must have gone lost on the alvar duting snow storms an frozen to death. But just in time before I felt the ghosts of a thousand dead men grabbing at my ancles, it was time to continue on our journey.

On we went, to Capellagården's garden in Vickleby where inspired I dreamed of my future garden, and even bought a new garden hat (organic and fair trade, imagine that).

Somewhere after that I fell asleep in the car, and didn't wake up until we were back at grandma's.

Auntie's herbal tea

2008-08-04T12:33:00.008+02:00

This is a delicious tea of fresh herbs I make once in a while, and vary according to supply. This time I used whatever was avaliable (and not completely eaten by bugs) on my balcony. And yes, I pot the herbs in the cup just to make the picture look nicer... worked, didn't it?

Auntie's herbal tea, 1 pot

1 handful of fresh herbs, for example
lemon balm
lavender (leaves or flower)
some oregano
a small branch of rosemary

Rip the herbs in two and toss them in a teapot. Pour boiling water on top end let it seep for at least 20 minutes, or even longer if you like. It won't turn bitter!

Pour the hot tea in a cup and sweeten with honey.

A trip to Copenhagen

2008-07-09T21:38:00.008+02:00

Dear, oh dear, my feet are killing me. Today, I made a trip to nearby Danish capital Copenhagen with my friends Emma and Ida. It's only a 30 min train journey or so from Malmö, Sweden, in other words a perfect one-day trip!

I will give you loads and loads of pictures, enjoy! Just klick on them to make them larger if neccessary.

Our first stop, where we got off the metro, was Christianshavn. Here, new and old boats share the anchoring space of the canal. Many of the older ones seemed to have brought a garden on board! What an exellent idea, just bring your garden wherever you go.

No, sorry. The tree grows on dry land. But the rest were on the boat.

Cast off, Mr. Oregano!

From the canal, we walked to famous Christiania. Due to what now seems to be a terrible misunderstanding, I didn't take any photos there. I simply got the impression photographing was forbidden but to make a long story short it now seems it is. Well, too late anyway. I'll just try to describe it, shall I? And you can always search the net for pictures.

Christiania is like some sort of organized wilderness, buildings, people, dogs and gardens alike. The dogs, I must say, were very well-behaved and looked cuddly. Especially a very large fluffy one sitting in the middle of the street looking at the people passing by. I didn't stop to pet it though, not wanting to risk conversation with the owner. (I'm very poor at understanding danish, and that's also a long story. Ask me if you want.)

The gardens, Oh, the gardens! Wild and bushy, somewhat chaotic in some places. In some of the houses which lacked hedge rows facing the street, the residents had simply used many large pots with a huge veriety of plants to frame their homes. No, sorry, It seems an impossible task to describe it.

I must tend to my feet, and will, hopefully, continue my story tomorrow. Stay tuned for pictures of the fantastic Botanical garden of Copenhagen!

Sunrise

2008-07-08T18:47:00.002+02:00

The first of my six sunflowers planted on the balcony burst into bloom today! The variety is called paquito sangria. Sorry for not elaborating more on the subject, but I'll be going on a holiday to Öland (second largest island in Sweden) in a couple of days, and my head is packed with things I have to do first. Vacuum the floor, do the dishes, pack, water the rats and feed the flowers. Oh, sorry, the other way around on the last two.

Red and yellow fruit salad

2008-07-06T19:19:00.004+02:00

Today I made my tastiest fruit salad ever. And since I even grew one of the ingredients myself (the lemon balm), I thought I'd share the recipie with you. Use organic fruits when possible!

Red and yellow fruit salad, serves 2-3

1 banana, sliced
1 orange, peeled and cut into pieces
½ red apple (for example Jona Gold), not peeld, but cut in pieces
1 nectarine, also in pieces
1 good handful of small seedless red grapes, sliced in halves
some lemon balm, small leaves or larger ones ripped in pieces (ripping allows more taste than cutting)

Chuck the fruit in a bowl, mix them using a spoon or two, serve with lemon balm on top.

Auntie Li's Garden exists!

2008-07-05T21:29:00.003+02:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!

My first ever entry in this blog, "Auntie Li's Garden", and many more will come! Here I will write about anything related to gardening, plants and nature. You will find lots of pictures, tips, recipies, links and also the tales of my everyday adventures in the name of gardening.

Many thanks to Kenny for feeling inspired and helping me with the flowers and stuff around the headline!