My Tiny Little Garden

The weather has finally been nice a few days in a row. For a while it was steaming hot one day and we were wearing sweaters the next. I finally put some seeds in the garden. I know--it's very late. I don't grow things seriously, I just love growing things. I can't explain it. When Andy and I met, I had cucumbers in the garden that looked like a bunch of polliwiggles. (I guess it was a good conversation starter on our first date.) I am not a good gardener and I suffer from "Charlie-Brown-Tree Syndrome," which I inherited from my mother.

For those of you who do not know what that is, it is when you feel bad for a scrawny little half dead plant and feel that you need to tenderly nurse it back to health and restore its great potential. The syndrome kicks in when you are in the plant section of home improvement stores and you feel bad for that stick of a plant--you know, the one that was knocked on the ground, rendered dirtless, stepped on and denied water? Yes--we are the people who buy that plant (actually most stores are more than likely willing to give it to you.)

I still love to grow things regardless if they turn out pretty or at all. During the winter, I just get an itch to watch things grow. When summer comes along I just can't help but planting. I find it astounding the potential that exists in a tiny seed. A huge oak tree is  grown from a tiny acorn, it is amazing!

I decided to try square foot gardening this year. I have three matching 2'x4' boxes. The wood was originally going to be two 4'x4' boxes but then I had to move where I was going to put them. They still look nice even though I lost planting space. At some point I plan on getting more lumber and making a fourth box. (My parents asked me why I made squares in the garden. I told them it was so my mother would "farm" the plants when I was away. Is anyone else's mother addicted to that facebook farmville game?)

This is the first year in my lifetime that we have had wild bunnies come to our neighborhood. We also have two big groundhogs. I sometimes see the bunnies sitting next to the boxes even though there isn't plants in them yet-- they must have learned through experience that a wooden box means a bunch of good veggies. I don't mind I plan on only fencing two of the boxes and leaving the far one for the animals. If they get the rest of the plants, I won't mind too much.

I hope to be a more serious gardener in the future, possibly even growing all of my own produce, but that is years and years away. I admire people who get some kind of "crop" from their gardens. My only goal for this year is to grow enough Roma tomatoes to make some spaghetti sauce (gravy if you live in my house.)


*Note: The drawings are taken from the 1911 version of The Secret Garden, one of my favorite stories when I was little. 

Rue, an Herb of Days Passed

"There's rosemary, that's for remembrance; pray, love, remember: and there is pansies. that's for thoughts. There's fennel for you, and columbines: there's rue for you; and here's some for me: we may call it herb-grace o' Sundays: O you must wear your rue with a difference. There's a daisy: I would give you some violets, but they withered all when my father died: they say he made a good end..." Ophelia in Hamlet

Common Rue is a small shrub native to Europe. It is a strong, bitter, herb and has been used for culinary and medicinal uses for hundreds of years. In Medieval times it was thought to ward off the plague, witches and lice and was used to treat snakebites. Later it was said to improve eyesight and creativity; it is said that many famous Renaissance artists ate it to improve their skills.Too much rue can poison a person but in the 1600s it was used as an antidote for poison. It was also used to cure arthritis. If you are cut, and touch it, blisters will form. It used to be used sparely in Middle Eastern foods and is currently used in Ethiopian dishes. It currently seen in European gardens as it creates neat hedgerows and is cropped easily.           

I am writing about rue today because, while at the living history farm a few weeks ago, someone handed a bunch of it to us ladies in the kitchen. He told us to hang it to deter mosquitoes.We both smelled it and touched it, wondering what it was and we hung it without a second thought. Later that day, one of our friends said "What is this doing in here where people can touch it?" in a surprised tone. He told us what it was and we ladies looked at each other in fear as we remembered all of the handling and smelling of the rue. None of us were harmed. It is said that some people are more apt to be affected by it than others. It's good to know we are a relatively hardy pack of women.

Currant Ice Cream Recipe from 1819

It was so hot today that Andy and I happily made some homemade ice cream. We made two kinds: a currant ice cream made from a recipe from 1819 and a modern coconut ice cream that we plan to serve in miniature pie shells.

In the 1800s, ice cream was typically served at parties in the form of an intricate mold. These molds were frequently in the shape of vegetables and bouquets of flowers. There were tons of different flavors, most using fruit flavors and mixes of fruit flavors. Can you imagine digging into ice cream that was molded so perfectly? During the Regency period, ice cream was put into small, shallow glasses and licked out like modern day edible cones. Some period intricate molds can be seen here.  

Ingredients:

-1 pint pureed currants

-1 pint heavy cream

-1 cup powdered sugar

We decided to take a modern shortcut on "pass them through a sieve" and decided to put them in a blender. What happens when we take modern short cuts? It doesn't work. :D For some reason the currants would not blend. After prodding at them enough and trying to blend them for a while, we noticed we had crushed them to a pulp anyway and used them as they were.  

We mixed the currants, sugar and cream and put it into our modern ice cream maker which works exactly like an 1800s model in practice, the only difference is that the maker is not hand cranked but uses electricity--thank goodness you'd have to have a lot of willing helpers to hand crank that long!




We waited until the ice cream couldn't mix anymore and then poured the ice cream in a plastic container and put it in the freezer.

This was the end result. It doesn't look as good in the photo but it tastes very sweet and is similar in taste to raisins. Now tomorrow I will put scoops of this ice cream into little glass dishes and I shall sit on the patio and pretend I'm Jane Austen. I would recommend this recipe because it is very simple. It only has three ingredients and doesn't require you to cook anything. Who wants to cook when its so hot out? 

We came across a really good ice cream recipe from 1855 if anyone wants to begin to make ice cream. It is more detailed than most period directions and offers alternative flavorings.

 We also came across a few flavors that we weren't anxious to try:

I hope you all stay cool tomorrow, it is supposed to be another hot, lazy day. I encourage some period ice cream desserts to help prevent heat stroke. :D

The Ugly Girl Papers, 1870s Beauty Advice

I came across the depressingly titled “Ugly-Girl Papers” This seems like something my mother would have given an awkward, gangly, thirteen year old me if we lived in the 1870s. I assume this book would be given as a gift because I can’t see any girl picking this up in a bookshop and not feeling a rush of embarrassment. She would then keep it, not on a bookshelf but wrapped up in a rag, tucked under her bed or hidden in a pantry, only to sneak peaks at it when her family is out. Most of the recipes and suggestions in this book include toxic chemicals such as ammonia, nitrate of mercury, sulfurous acid (a chemical found in acid rain,) and borax.

As much as this book tries to reassure the “ugly reader” that there is hope for her, it perpetuates a lie that is all too familiar to us today: “you are ugly and need products to fix you.” Makeup is fun and that is all it ever should be- no one should feel that they are not able to leave the house without caking pounds of makeup on their face. It really is upsetting to read this book; you can imagine the ladies of low self-esteem who heard enough lies that they put numerous poisons on themselves.  

It reminds me of the poem by Marge Piercy entitled “A Work of Artifice":

“The bonsai tree
in the attractive pot
could have grown eighty feet tall
on the side of a mountain
till split by lightning.
But a gardener
carefully pruned it.
It is nine inches high.
Every day as he
whittles back the branches
the gardener croons,
It is your nature to be small and cozy,
domestic and weak;
how lucky, little tree,
to have a pot to grow in.
With living creatures
one must begin very early
to dwarf their growth:
the bound feet,
the crippled brain,
the hair in curlers,
the hands you

love to touch”





Some of excerpts from Ugly Girl Papers, some are sad to read, others are interesting to see how they used items:

How to Preserve Antique Books

-->

Books are unlike other antiques. Many people think that just because a book is old, that it is “worth something.” While I am one of those people who think books are always “worth something,” to collectors and potential buyers of your book, being old does not make it more desirable. Unlike other antiques such as furniture, toys, and clothing, which are used a lot over the years, the majority of books only get read a few times over the years and spend most of their time unharmed on a bookshelf. Books from the 1700s and before are prized by collectors, as well as 1^st editions of books and books signed by the author. Many of us wish to preserve our books for their information and beauty, despite their lack of collector value.  



If you have a historical book or book of importance, it's best to leave this to a professional. (I mean it.)

Before you start preserving your book, decide if it is a book that you want to read a lot or not. If it is a book you will want to read a lot, consider making a digital copy of the book. You can photograph each page with a digital camera or use a photocopy machine that is designed for old books (the ones that have 2 panels to scan instead of one flat one, these can be found in large research libraries.) Once you have a digital book, you can keep it digital or print it out and put the pages into a binder.   

Before you touch your book, wash your hands and make sure they are very dry. The oils on our hands can break down the paper and inks. Some people like to wear white cotton gloves but I think that it is harder to turn pages and you are more likely to cause damage to your book.

Open your book carefully. Find two spare books and lay towels on them to hold your book slightly closed so you don’t put stress on or break the spine or binding of the book.

Go through the book and remove anything that should not be in there such as book marks, newspaper clippings, bugs, dust and dirt. You can very carefully vacuum the dust and dirt out but I find that a clean feather or never before used paint brush work very well. Be careful when turning fragile pages. You can use a loose leaf of paper to turn the pages if your book is too delicate.  

Unfold any folded pages; this can be very tedious because sometimes a lot of pages are “dog eared.” If you leave these pages bent, the bent part will weaken the paper and eventually fall off. You may see some of the page corners in your book already broken off.

Decide how often you will need the information in your book. If you will be using your book often and did not want to make a digital copy, wrap your book like you would a school “book cover” only make sure you use acid free, archival paper. This can be bought at craft stores in the scrap booking section or from an office supply store.

If you will not be using the book much, wrap your book like a present; again use acid free, archival paper. Be sure to label your book cover in pencil. I write the title and copyright information on an index card and tape it to the front of it to avoid ruining the book cover while pressing to hard on it with a pencil. Your book can then be placed in a zip-lock bag.

If your book is very important (diaries, family bibles, a book with high collector value), make a box for it, out of archival cardboard; make sure the book is a tight fit. If your books aren’t very important, like mine, I place three or four books in a shoe box.

Store the books or boxes, lying flat on a surface in a dry dark place. Inside drawers or on bookshelves are good places. Make sure that bugs will not eat your books by putting bug traps on top of and behind your shelf.

Some other problems you may have:

Mildew Stains-- The greenish brown stains in books are not mildew but what is left behind after mildew has been there. There really is no cost effective way to remove these stains. There is not danger of the mold returning if it is only stains. 

Mold or Mildew—If your book has mold or mildew currently, you may wish to make a digital copy (outside) and discard the book. Books with mold or mildew can infect other books. It is very hard to remove mold and mildew because touching them only spreads the spores. A good rule is to never buy books with mildew on them in the first place, no matter how cheap.   

 

Oxidation or "Foxing"—Rusty looking stains in books. These can only be removed by a conservationist but will not hurt the book.     

Crinkling of the pages or Tears—These can only be repaired with great care. Try to flatten out crinkles the best you can. Do not tape tears; it only leads to more problems in the future. If you need to repair a tear learn how to repair it the proper way with Japanese rice paper and a rice based glue. I will probably post a short tutorial on fixing tears sometime in the future.  

*Note: Look at the Godey's Lady's Book Lithograph at the beginning. There are two children using an umbrella in the snow. :D I hope you all enjoyed and can make use of this information.