March and the Redlands Thursday Night Farmers Market

Hello friends, it has been awhile. I couldn't wait another day before sharing with you this beautiful sight. Amazingly enough, this is a picture of the flowers on our mesclun salad blend, now that it has gone to seed. Hints of spring are in the air which means many of the veggies in our fall and winter garden are ending their cycle. The muzina has put on brilliant yellow flowers and the bees could not be happier. Who knew late winter could be so beautiful in the garden?

Speaking of spring, the "garden fairy" has been working steady in the nursery sowing new seeds, thinning new sprouts, propagating, fertilizing and chasing off the bird kingdom who LOVE the young heirloom veggie plants. Yes, we have tried hanging old unused cd's about to chase off the birds - to no avail. So, this morning, we hung long strips of shinny, reflective "bird tape" in the mist of the growing racks. Already, the broccoli, cauliflower and lettuce are sighing in relief - we will keep you posted.

Here in the Inland Empire, our last chance of frost is just a couple of weeks away! YEAH! As growers, this signals easier times ahead, we hope. It signals the time when we swing into full gear - adding lots more tomatoes, peppers, lettuce, melons, eggplants and more to the nursery. Already, we have thessaloniki, beefsteak, red fig pear and cour di bue tomatoes growing strong. Purple beauty sweet peppers along with crenshaw, ananas and ogen melons are doing splendidly. Little gem and mesclun salad greens are fresh and happy not to mention all of the herbs - did I mention five varieties of basil are on the near horizon?

We are happy to announce that this Thursday will mark our springtime debut at the Redlands Farmers Market [State St 5:30-9pm]. Thanks to our dear friend and seamstress extraordinaire Debbie, we have newly made, custom sown table cloths for our display [we promise, no more plaid fabric - will stick to easier stuff next time]. We needed new table cloths because we have added two additional tables to our display in order to bring to market all of the new things we are growing.

Last year, when we made our market debut, we were certified growers of 25 different herbs and annuals. This year, we have added over 150 new plants to our certified inventory , including offering freshly cut herbs at the market along with our premium potted plants. We are very excited about this and we hope you will be, too! Look for us to reach our full swing about May/June although we will be bringing new items to market every single week. Some items will be in short supply and when they are gone - you may not see them until next year.

Well friends, I must get back to the nursery while the rains are just off in the horizon.

Enjoy the day and do think of stopping into the Farmers Market tomorrow evening to say hello.

Carrie-Anne

Rolling Hills Herbs & Annuals

Do What You Love, Love What you Do

I am sure most of us have heard this phrase once or twice in our lifetime! Around our house, the dinner conversation has been taken over lately with talk of what our oldest, Isaac should consider studying as he enters college next year - and decides what " he wants to be" when he grows up.


I keep reminding Isaac to think of the things he has shown an interest in over the years - from the fascination he had from age 2 - 6 of catching and dismembering bugs. About 7, he started drawing detailed pencil sketches of the bugs [while they were still in tact] and lately, it has been a fascination with the art of legal arguing [I mean Mock Trial] in high school. I also remind him of the classes that have come easy to him - the stuff that you can just do without even really thinking about it. Come on, an A in AP Biology. That has to come from some natural talent!


I believe, with everything in me, if we really are interested in the stuff we do, we will not only stick with it, it will be a good thing for us! Take my professional life for example. In my early years, 18-27, I worked solely for the paycheck. Didn't really give much mind to what I did, as long as money was coming in. About age 28, that norm just didn't work for me - no matter how I tried. So, after an unsuccessful attempt at being a postal worker [my hats are off to all women who do well in this institution], I went to school and licensed in massage therapy.


I know, there is a bit jump from the postal worker to massage therapist. The string that tied it together was that in order for me to survive the stress of being in a job environment that was so out of my nature, I started using aromatherapy. My interest in aromatherapy lead me to license in touch therapy [massage] which lead me to study therapeutic nutrition and herbal medicine. For the next several years, I have studied various methods to help improve health and reduce stress including; yoga, breath work, and horticulture as therapy. Along the way, I founded an educational non-profit organization , the Redlands Aromatherapy Foundation, with a goal of empowering individuals to connect with green spaces, therapeutic gardens, holistic living in order to help improve their health and well-being.


Yes, this all looked good. And it was for awhile. But the funny thing was, along the way, I was no longer having fun. I was not loving what I was doing. Even though I was staying in the same ballpark career wise, I had misidentified what it really was about this journey I really loved. For years, I thought I loved helping people feel better and take charge of their own well-being using natural methods. The truth was, it was nature itself that I loved most.



For me, there is no better thing in life than the peace and well being I feel when I directly connect with nature! I love getting my hands in the dirt, spending the entire day outdoors in the sunlight and working in my garden. I love going outside to pick fresh herbs for my red pasta sauce and fresh sorrel and chard for the rosemary chicken soup! I love taking clippings from my "mother plants" to come back weeks later and see to see how many new plants I have. ,



I realize now, that every step I have been taking over the past 20 years has been leading me to what is now called Rolling Hills Herbs & Annuals. And while I no longer provide people with the service of a lavender, clary sage and chamomile based reflexology or massage therapy session, I am still honoring my passion of helping others feel better - now the experience comes through the plants our nursery provides.



I know that when you plant these plants, you will smell their transporting fragrance. I know you will be outside getting fresh air, exercise and sunlight [some of the most important tools we have in experiencing greater health and well-being]. I know that like me, your mind will quiet for a bit as you listen to the sounds of nature as you send time in your garden. I know that you will feel the amazing sense that all is well as you soak in a hot bath, full of the fresh, fragrant, heavenly herbs and flowers you have grown.



I know that when you plant a vegetable garden rich in variety, you will eat more nutritiously. I know that when you grow your own food, you will be more inclined to eat more fresh fruits and veggies. I know that instead of trying to get your nutrition in a pill, you will be taking it in the way nature intended. I also know that when we grown ups embrace a healthy lifestyle, we teach our children [and even their friends] a healthy alternative to the lifestyle so common these days! Life is really better in so many ways!



So, while you are enjoying your days filled with all the gifts of nature, know that I will be enjoying my bliss filled work days spent sowing more heirloom seeds, rooting more cuttings, soaking up the sun and listening to the sounds of the birds! I am deeply thankful to be at a place in my life where I am truly doing what I love and loving what I do!



Last but not least - thank you to our very 1st blog follower - you have made this day so more beautiful!



Enjoy the day!

Carrie-Anne



Grower, Rolling Hills Herbs & Annuals

http://www.rollinghillsherbs.com/

Growing Lettuce

This one is for Amy. A little birdie told me you are interested in growing lots of yummy lettuce for your family and wanted a few pointers.

First off, let me say that growing lettuce is one of my favorite things to grow. Why? Because almost everyone eats lettuce! Sure, some may only eat it shredded on a taco or leafed on a turkey-burger, but hey, they do eat eat it. And when you are growing something, don't you want everyone to actually eat what you grow! Try that with red veined sorrel. I'll let you know when my family eats it by choice [right now it is part of their "salad" and in winter soups as "spinach"]. I have faith. Actually, I have a lot of determination!

So, back to lettuce. Lettuce is an annual which means it grows fast. Most can be eaten in as little as 28 days - the baby leaves. The average maturity for lettuce is about 55 days, so a little less than two months. The great thing about lettuce is that when you take a knife and cut about two inches above the soil and crown of the plant many varieties will regrow to give you not one, not two but sometimes three full harvests!

Sure, once you have harvested the big, round beautiful head of romaine what grows back is seldom as splendid, but who cares. It is lettuce that we grew - lettuce just waiting for us to use whenever and however we choose! Now that is a real mothers helper - especially at 5:00 pm and there's some school/pta/church function at 6:00!

As for growing lettuce, you need at least 6 hours of sun, regular water, good amended soil and to plant varieties that are suitable for our climate and the season. Most lettuce can be grown successfully in our area in the spring , when temperatures are cooler and weather is more mild. This spring, we are offering the European Mesclun Salad Mix, Little Gem Romaine & May Queen Butterhead heirloom varieties. And since many varieties of lettuce really don't like our summer heat and "bolt" very quickly, we are growing the Mignonette Bronze, Mervielle des Quatre Saisans & Little Gem varieties . On that note, a shade cloth can be your gardens very best friend in the summer, to help protect the leaf/tips of your lettuce no matter the variety.

About soil. Many of you know I can write you a term paper all about the composition of soil, but I don't think that topic is as much fun for you as it is for me. But sorry to say folks, if you want to have the biggest, best tasting, most nutrient dense crops, you are gonna need to know something about soil. You just can't avoid it although many people do try!

To be as brief and concise as I can - COMPOST! For those of you who already have and do compost - not too much needs to be said [although I would keep my eyes open for something to be said at a later date in a upcoming blog!]. For everyone else - may I suggest a road trip to Cherry Valley Nursery in Beaumont to pick up bagged organic compost by E.B. Stone. Add enough to give your veggie bed a good two inches of compost, being sure to dig in in lightly to the existing soil [a couple of inches will do!]

Why add compost? When you are growing veggies, especially lettuce which can be placed tightly in a bed, you must pay extra attention to making sure the soil is very fertile since you are feeding your plants directly from this soil! A soil rich in nutrients [and air pockets, now that you have dug down a bit] allows for roots to grow strongly which leads to healthy, happy, tasty plants for you! It can also mean less pesky bugs since healthy plants [which come from happy soil] don't seem to attract harmful pests like the unhealthy ones do].

In my garden, I like to combine my lettuces from the romaine-types to the oak leaf varieties. I adore the texture, color and form a mixed border has. I do insist though that the placement of the lettuces be in the front of the bed. Chances are, I will be wandering out to pick lettuce in the dark at some point and access is key! [not to mention why night crawlers are called that! - yuck!] . I try to give each lettuce starter a circumference of about 6-7 inches so they can stretch out a bit.

To keep the family stocked in lettuce, it's a good idea to successively plant through out the season. Simply put, start some new lettuce weekly so you can rotate harvesting from the oldest to the youngest. Don't forget to change it up a bit with harvesting a little from here and a little from there. Baby leaves are yummy, too!

Be sure to water your veggies thoroughly! I still love to stand there with a hose and water my garden. I get out of the house and loose myself in the garden. Best part is, no one really comes to look for me there!

So, here's to your best lettuce ever, Amy! By the way, I was thinking. Maybe one day this spring you all would like to swing by and we could plant some veggies together. Sometimes hands on is best! Let me know what you think Cparker@rollinghillsherbs.com .

Enjoy the day!

Carrie-Anne

Carrie-Anne Parker

Grower, Rolling Hills Herbs & Annuals

http://www.rollinghillsherbs.com/

plants available now at Olive Avenue Market, Redlands. Ca

Fire and Ice??

OK, you know how rain and severe winter weather has been set to hit SoCal this week? Oh, how right they were.

This afternoon, after a morning break from the rain, it was back. And boy was it! The winds blew in. The sky darkened. Hail poured down. All at once, the heavens opened and down it came.

Immediately, I sent a text message to the senior child instructing him to not drive in this weather - just sit it out. [Did he listen, of course not. Instead, he chose to take a friend home who lives a city away]I calmed the frantic kitten who was freaked out by the thunder, hail and the wind pounding the windows. As soon as the worst had passed, I ventured out to see how the garden managed.

Sad to say, what had been hanging on since summer is very sad. They don't like this cold snap. Truth be told, I don't either. How absolutely strange it is to look out across the vegetable patch and see what looks like snow [left over hail ] right next to my chili pepper plants.

As I write, the pouring rain, thunder and lightning is back. Our older dog [16] has made her way over to sit here under my desk. I am off to cover what is left of the summer veggie plants to protect them from additional cold temps [I use burlap ][cover succulents, potted plants and citrus, too!]

Friends, I am beginning to ask myself if the Earth is showing us how unhappy she is. In a few days, the plants in the nursery will show me what this cold has done to them and if they are happy or not. Let's keep our fingers crossed.

Enjoy the day!

Carrie-Anne

Grower, Rolling Hills Herbs & Annuals

http://www.rollinghillsherbs.com/

Soup is On!

For those of us who are old enough to remember the song verse "it never rains in California", if the weather man is correct, that singer lied!

The forecast has been saying rain all this week, beginning last night. So far, it is right on. Just minutes after the boys finished cleaning out the rain gutters [and with an electric blower I might add - sweeping was way to much effort], the first rain drops were here.

So friends, for those of you planning your weeks dinner menu, I say soup! O.k. that may be a no brainer. The trick is making one that everyone will eat and that fill that "rainy day" soup spot.

My answer - chicken rosemary soup. This is one of my families favorites, they actually ask for it even when it is 90 degrees outside.

You will need:

Olive oil - virgin cold pressed is my favorite

Garlic cloves 6-8 chopped finely

4 large springs of rosemary [I like to use the equivalent by combining young new growth that appears this time of year] - stripped from the steam and chopped finely

3 boneless/skinless chicken breast or 5 boneless/skinless chicken thighs

1 large white onion

2-3 medium potatoes peeled and cubed

6 large carrots peeled and sliced

1 fresh lemon

2 cans of white beans, rinsed and drained

1/2 cup white wine

1 cup of uncooked penne pasta

6-8 cups of chicken stock

3 cups of fresh chard - washed and chopped [spinach can be used if you like]

1 can of cream of mushroom soup

salt - to taste

pepper - about one teaspoon

cayenne - 1/4 teaspoon

This is all done in one large stock pot.

Add enough olive oil to generously coat the bottom of the pot. Begin to warm.

Meantime, combine the chopped rosemary and garlic and coat the chicken by pressing both sides into the mixture. Sprinkle both sides with salt and pepper and place in the warmed oil.

Saute the chicken for 3 minutes or so on each side - the smell is incredible! [it will actually lure teenage children into the kitchen where they may even talk to you - take advantage of it!]

Add the white wine, sliced onions, and continue to saute for 2-5 minutes longer. The goal is not to cook the chicken thoroughly, but to brown.

Squeeze one half of the lemon to the mixture. Remove the chicken and add the chard, carrots, potato and saute 3-5 minutes.

Add stock. Return the chicken [now diced] to the stock. Add undiluted cream of mushroom soup,about 1/2 teaspoon each of salt and pepper. Add 1/4 teaspoon of cayenne. Simmer for about an hour on low heat.

Add rinsed white beans and uncooked pasta. Cook until pasta is tender.

If broth is too thin for your liking, thicken with flour paste by a adding twice as much cold milk or cold water to flour, stirring well. Then add your paste slowly into your soup and simmer for an additional 10 minutes or so.

And there you have it! A thick winter soup that you made in one pot that is brimming with fresh seasonal herbs and veggies [chard, carrots, onions, rosemary & lemon]. I serve it with fresh french bread.

For variations, add more lemon juice, rosemary, fresh French thyme or sorrel and some sour cream.

Enjoy the day!

Carrie-Anne

Grower- Rolling Hills Herbs & Annuals

Planting Strawberries & Getting Arugula

This morning, while pulling weeds from the first garden bed we renovated when we moved into our new home , I found myself taking a very long pause. "This weed smell pretty good, even familiar", I thought to myself. What I thought were weeds were actually arugula greens.

This is pretty common around here in our gardens. Just last week while pulling "weeds" from the newly expanded strawberry patch, low and behold there were tiny heads of heirloom lettuce popping up. Let's not forget the volunteer tomato plants that sprung up throughout the garden last summer - I never know what kind of fruits I would get.

As many of you know, this is the case when you garden with heirloom varieties of your favorite veggies. When you plant heirlooms, the seeds they produce when replanted, will produce plants true to type. This is not the case for their hybrid counterparts. If you try to replant then, chances are that if they even sprout,what you get will not be what you had originally or they will produce poorly.

Heirloom seeds are good for the local environment. They are open-pollinated - a great thing for local bee communities. Being that they have not been genetically modified in any way, we know they will not ply a part in the collapsing of beneficial insects as many believe hybrid varieties may do.

Heirlooms are adaptive. When you save seed from varieties that you use in your garden year after year, you will be surprised on how well they do warding off pests and infestations. On a purely social level, heirloom seed oftentimes have deep historical roots, both in families and communities, as they have been saved and passed down sometimes for generations. When sharing the seeds, we share the stories of loved ones who came before , helping to keep generational ties strong.

Sure, many argue that heirloom plants do not produce as heavily as the hybrid varieties. This is true. Hybrid seed was engineered to assist the commercial grower who has a goal of quantity over quality. Take the tomato for example. Most are harvested while green, gassed in order to ripen and have been bred to withstand thousands of miles of travel.

The average home gardeners goal is not to load tractor trailers full of our crops and haul it anywhere. Our goal is to savor the ripe, juicy flavor of tomatoes we have watched grow from mere transplants. Our goal is to share with our neighbors the best tasting eggplants, peppers, melons, basil's, gooseberries, strawberries and peaches they have ever tasted.

I suspect we heirloom gardeners have yet other reasons behind our passion. We are thrifty. We know that we can save the seed from our most beloved garden varieties and replant them year after year. Wow, growing spring and summer gardens and it didn't cost us anything except time, kitchen compost and a little labor?

We love success. We don't want to waste our time, money or energy on plants that don't grow well in our areas - another reason we save seed and begin with heirloom veggie starters.

Perhaps we are also a little rebellious. Perhaps we are tired of seeing the most fundamental and basic of human needs , food [all the way down to the genetic blue print - the seed] being re-engineered and manipulated - usually for profit at the expense of another.

Perhaps we have had it with the fact so much of our life is more manufactured than authentic. Take taste for example. It's a pretty sad fact that if a child were to only eat strawberries, tomatoes, peaches or plums purchased at the grocery store, they would never have actually tasted them at all. They would have never enjoyed the authentic fragrance of these aromatic wonders. As an adult, when they smell the sweet smell of summer fruit will they magically be transported back to childhood as nothing like scent can do? I wonder.

We gardeners know that gardens are about more than food! They are a place we can go to and let our senses be transported - forgetting the worries of the moment. They are places where we spend time with our loved ones. They are places where we can build our emotional, physical and psychological health. They are places where traditions are made and then handed down to further generations. They are places where we adults can still find surprise ,magic and abundance . Above all else, they are a place where when we let go, we find that the weeds in our life may actually be gifts from nature for us to enjoy.

Happy day to all!

Carrie-Anne

Grower, Rolling Hills Herbs & Annuals

Catalog Surfing

I don't know about you but my mailbox is very full these days. You know, the old fashioned box at the end of your driveway that usually only has junk mail but now has the good stuff we wait all year for. Yep, it's the time of year when new seed or garden catalogs just waiting to be devoured cover to cover, start arriving.

Normally, I go page by page, circling the things I just have to have. That is round one. Round two means getting more real, looking at what will and won't grow here in the Inland Empire and asking myself if anyone in our family will even eat the "exotic" vegetables I just have to have. Round three, I add up the cost of this fantasy garden. This is when the day dreaming usually ends.

Like many gardeners, the focus of my gardening efforts has changed quite a bit over the years. For many of those years, I was a container gardener; growing roses, scented geraniums, gardenia plants along with various herbs and annuals. But about five years ago, while still renting, I decided on planting a vegetable garden - this time, in the ground.

This was big for me! Up until then, I had never waiverd on my strict policy of not planting anything in someone else's dirt - hence why I was the self proclaimed Queen of Containers! For those of you who have tended gardens that you have had to leave behind, you understand this strict policy! Leaving behind your beloved plants when you move, is like leaving behind members of your family - heartbreaking and hard to recover from.

So, having not had the success I wanted from growing veggies in containers, I got the family involved and we turned over a square 12x12 section in the back. We planted squash, tomato and lettuce. The squash did very well, as squash tends to do. The success of the tomato was fair, the lettuce was poor. But it didn't really matter. The process of Mr. King, our less than cordial neighbor sticking his head over the fence to offer us a tomato cage he wasn't using, was in my opinion, the crowning success of that veggie patch!

Flash forward to now. Our family has lived in our own new home for almost a year and a half now, which means we have one full vegetable garden season behind us. I have to say, the second time around was a heck of a lot better than the first. Tomato plants yielded brilliantly, lasting all the way through November as did the six varieties of basil we planted. Hot peppers, eggplant, and did well. Salad greens are still going strong, as are plenty of herbs.

So what was the difference? I think it was a few things. First off, it is my own property. Second, our garden soil here is awesome! When you dig, there are earthworms bigger than any I have ever seen! Adding to that, we actually used the compost from our backyard bin - what a concept! Last, and what I think was perhaps the most important part, I used herb and heirloom vegetable starters versus seeds.

Back to the garden catalogs. Today, as I look through them, I still dream of what I would love to plant in my spring /summer veggie garden. But now, as a growerof herb and heirloom vegetable starters, I sit and wonder what my neighbors here in the IE are dreaming of planting in their home/community gardens. Catalog surfing helps me know if I was on target when making our seed purchases last fall for our upcoming gardening season. When something new to this years growing season really stands out, I can immediately go on a hunt for organic and heirloom seed source. How I do love the challenge!

But the truth is, I could really use your help. After you are done circling up your catalogs and refining your wish lists, could you do me a favor? Share with me what you are planning on planting in your veggie garden this year - whether it will be a ground or a container garden. Chances are, Rolling Hills will be growing it. If we aren't, we can suggest a variety that you may like even better since our focus is growing varieties that will do well here in the Inland Empire.

Here's to catalog surfing and your best veggie garden ever!

Carrie-Anne

Grower -Rolling Hills Herbs & Annuals