Author: irene

Learning to Draw in Winter’s Colors

irene

I have a book about nature journaling, full of enticing examples of hand-written notes, illustrated by simple, charming line drawings delicately accented with watercolors. The idea of keeping a nature journal appeals to me as a gardener of both cultivated and feral plants; in my mind I can see a garden journal of my endeavors magically appearing on the dining room table (which usually functions more as a desk than a table). But there is no such journal, the reason being that drawing is a mystery to me, an intimidating Read More …

Homely Potato Soup

irene

No, that’s not a ‘title typo’, while this potato soup is ‘homey’ it is also a great way to use up those random ‘homely’ potatoes we end up with while digging spuds. (Which leads me to wonder, is ‘homely’ even an acceptable term anymore?) Setting that rumination aside, the potatoes I’m referring to are those that may have been impaled by a digging fork, or sliced by a shovel; they may have gnarly, scabby skins (a problem in 2018, when the critical early tuber set period was marked by a Read More …

Interior Gardeners: Like Ducks to Water

irene

Gardening seems to come as naturally to residents of Alaska’s Heartland as, well, as ducks take to water. After the long snowy winter, the bright spring days and luminescent nights of late April and early May inspire many of us to start seedlings on the windowsill and to clean up the garden (raised beds, old wheelbarrows and bathtubs, patio pots and hanging baskets), or whatever else our imagination and resources come up with as Places to Put Plants. The harvest may be small or it may be bountiful, it may Read More …