Beth Trissel's Blog, page 120

Gardening With Herbs

A mix of old and new quotes about Herbs & Gardens.

Hot lavender, mints, savory, marjoram;

The marigold, that goes to bed wi' the sun,

and with him rise weeping. ~ Shakespeare, Winter's Tale

If you set it,

the cats will eat it,

If you sow it,

the cats don't know it.

~Philip Miller, The Gardener's Dictionary, Referring to Catnip

Salt is a preservative. It really holds flavor. For example, if you chop up some fresh herbs, or even just garlic, the salt will extract the moisture and preserve the...

Herbs, Herbs, Herbs

Hot lavender, mints, savory, marjoram;

The marigold, that goes to bed wi' the sun,

and with him rise weeping. ~ Shakespeare, Winter's Tale

If you set it,

the cats will eat it,

If you sow it,

the cats don't know it.

~Philip Miller, The Gardener's Dictionary, Referring to Catnip

Salt is a preservative. It really holds flavor. For example, if you chop up some fresh herbs, or even just garlic, the salt will extract the moisture and preserve the flavor. ~ Sally Schneider

The Herbs ought to be ...

Herbal Recipes for Making Potpourri

For gift giving, fund raising, or just plain fun, consider making fragrant potpourri. Begin in the spring by drying rose petals, an essential ingredient. Other flowers such as bachelor buttons, asters, straw flowers and statice add color. Any blossoms that dry well can be used. Mints, lavender, and lemongrass are excellent herbs for fragrance. Save the peelings from citrus fruit. Additional scent comes from manufacturers who sell potpourri supplies.

Order ground orris root...

A Blog Award and Contest (Inspired by Denise Alicea)

This week I (Beth) was nominated via The Pen & Muse Blog for the Creative Writer Blogger Award.  Thanks to Denise Alicea  for the great nomination!  Wooo hooo.  I've also had some nominations from several other bloggers whom I will endeavor to credit here.  Be sure to visit Denise's blog for the chance to win a swell prize!

This award requires me to tell some lies and have you try to guess which one is correct. If you win, I will give away a Free download of my upcoming release, Somewhere...

Make Way For Ducklings~

One of my favorite childrens' books is also true of life here in the country.   There's even a Duck Crossing sign in the neighboring town of Dayton near the creek that runs off of Silver Lake.  And plenty of ducks to watch for.

This time of year the ducklings are delightful to observe, waddling after their mamas and zipping behind them over the water, bobbing, dabbling, and whatever it is that ducks do.  Such cheerful creatures, far better tempered than most geese.   The two species tolerate e...

A Burst of Spring~

Ah spring, that glorious season, came in a rush here in the Shenandoah Valley.  We went from seemingly endless snow to new life emerging as the white stuff receded.  Then the weather grew unseasonably warm, urging everything into bloom at once, which was spectacular while it lasted.  But now the season is ahead of itself and far too dry.    It's more like summer today than mid-spring, with unseasonably warm temps, though earlier this week we had a return of cold and frost.  So up and down...

SOMEWHERE MY LASS EXCERPTS

Excerpt

"You are a beauty." His words were a hoarse whisper.

The rise and fall of her chest betrayed a deep inhalation of breath. A flicker of reproach lit her eyes. "I dinna think ye took heed of me at all."

He winced at the well-deserved jab. "About before, I'm sorry I left you so suddenly. But there's no earthly way I could fail to notice you. I'd have to be deaf, dumb, and blind and even then…"

The tension in her face eased and then the hurt returned. "Oh, aye? How could ye forget all...

Breaking News~Somewhere My Lass Release Date!

My light paranormal, Scottish time travel romance, Somewhere My Lass, is coming out 2010-05-26!  That's THIS May!  Somewhere My Lass is the next story in my 'Somewhere' series.  Those of you who loved Somewhere My Love will also be fans of this suspenseful, intriguing romance.  And quite possibly even some of those of you who didn't fall all over Somewhere My Love

Heads Up~Somewhere My Lass is a short novel (235 pages) and my publisher The Wild Rose Press has opted to only offer the longer n...

Herbal Lore~Foxglove and Fairies

*These foxgloves are growing in a garden in Colonial Williamsburg.

Foxglove, also known as Digitalis: I've grown this beautiful flower/herb and used to have a spectacular stand of foxglove but they all died out one winter and I've had the dickens of a time getting new plants established.  Because foxglove is a biennial, it has to grow one season and survive the winter, the tricky part, and then resurrects the following spring and blooms in late spring/early summer.  If you're fortunate the p...

Herbal Lore~Foxglove

*These foxgloves are growing in a garden in Colonial Williamsburg.

Foxglove, also known as Digitalis: I've grown this beautiful flower/herb and used to have a spectacular stand of foxglove but they all died out one winter and I've had the dickens of a time getting new plants established.  Because foxglove is a biennial, it has to grow one season and survive the winter, the tricky part, and then resurrects the following spring and blooms in late spring/early summer.  If you're fortunate the p...