Showing posts with label pumpkin. Show all posts
Showing posts with label pumpkin. Show all posts

Saturday, November 1, 2008

Halloween, continued...

Here is our Halloween pumpkin, created and displayed last night outside on the front porch. Facial design by G. Manual labor by Mom. Appreciation by D. and F. ;-)

Halloween is only an imported holiday here in Italy, there is no tradition of it. In the schools they talk about it in English class, teaching them all of the worst aspects, such as throwing eggs and turning over trashcans...(what are they thinking?! because obviously that's what Italian kids do now!) In past years my children tried trick-or-treating, but people just didn't get it and the kids came home empty-handed. But, through the miracle of marketing, people are catching on, and G. went trick-or-treating with his friend P. last night and came home with a major haul of candy. He was quite satisfied!

A classic Halloween poem...

Halloween
by Robert Burns

Upon that night, when fairies light
On Cassilis Downans dance,
Or owre the lays, in splendid blaze,
On sprightly coursers prance;
Or for Colean the route is ta'en,
Beneath the moon's pale beams;
There, up the cove, to stray and rove,
Among the rocks and streams
To sport that night.

Among the bonny winding banks,
Where Doon rins, wimplin' clear,
Where Bruce ance ruled the martial ranks,
And shook his Carrick spear,
Some merry, friendly, country-folks,
Together did convene,
To burn their nits, and pou their stocks,
And haud their Halloween...

You can read the whole poem here.

Wednesday, August 20, 2008

Bees Do It

We're not sure WHY we have pumpkins growing in the garden...WE didn't plant them...but there they are. Growing steadily day by day, putting out pretty flowers and attracting lots of bees (there are three in the flower in this picture). Unexpected bounty!

Wednesday, August 6, 2008

What does your Garden Grow?

Let me just say that I although I love having a garden and love harvesting and cooking our homegrown produce...I am not the gardener. The Fisherman is also the Gardener! He plants, waters, weeds, etc. Without him there would be no garden! But, that said, once the crop is ripe...I step in ready for action!

This pumpkin plant took over our garden this summer. She and about 10 of her close personal friends just sprouted up all over the place and started growing like crazy. She pulled herself up the fencing with aggressive tendrils that seemed to appear out of nowhere from one hour to the next. The funny thing is that we didn't plant any pumpkin seeds. The only thing we can figure is that the seeds were in the compost we use for fertilizer. I did throw that Halloween pumpkin in the compost pile last November...


Tomatoes, tomatoes, lovely tomatoes! Good for salads, good for pasta dishes, good for sauce... the generous tomato!


Welcome to the basil jungle! We have oregano, parsley and mint, too. Way too much mint...mint is another overeager plant...put in one tiny little specimen and it'll take over the garden!

It's late summer now, so this is all that's left in the garden. It's so hot and water is so scarce that only the hardy can survive at this point. Without air-conditioning we sometimes feel that way ourselves!

Tomorrow a recipe!