Author Archives: Debbie Rea - The Gardener Wife

Simple Seasonings

Now that folks are harvesting tomatoes and cucumbers in my area, I’m going to tell you my favorite seasonings for eating them fresh.Cucumbers — Halve them lengthwise and sprinkle them with salt-free lemon pepper. This is exactly what I did on one of our Shakespeare picnics (shown above).Tomatoes — Cut them in wedges and sprinkle a little fleur de sel. NotContinue reading “Simple Seasonings”

Watering Tips

When we don’t get enough rain to keep the garden producing goodies for my table, I have to water it. Here are some general watering tips for gardens. Water from below. Never spray water onto the foliage or flowers. Remember that the roots need the water, not the leaves. Here in the humid Midwest many plants are susceptibleContinue reading “Watering Tips”

Elegant Picnics

ENJOY — garden style living I may earn commissions for purchases made through any Amazon links in this post. See disclosure here. Summer is my favorite season—and nothing says summer like a picnic! Also, nothing tastes as good at a picnic as fresh seasonal vegetables and fruit from your garden or from wherever else youContinue reading “Elegant Picnics”

Swiss Chard Tortilla Española

EAT — garden-to-table eating I promised on Instagram that I’d share this recipe in my newsletter, so I’m adding it here, too. Don’t forget: you could also make this with beet greens because Swiss chard and beet greens are practically the same thing. This dish is what I remember my mom making whenever she got aselga (she couldn’t rememberContinue reading “Swiss Chard Tortilla Española”

Dealing with Tomato Diseases

GROW — practical gardening tips I may earn commissions for purchases made through any Amazon links in this post. See disclosure here. Tomatoes, alas, are not the easiest vegetable to grow. Here in the midwest and most of the U.S.A. our growing season is not long enough, so we have to buy seedlings and transplantContinue reading “Dealing with Tomato Diseases”

Best Tasting Tomatoes

ENJOY — garden style living I love gardening—from my head TO-MA-TOES! Tomatoes are the most popular vegetable to grow in a home garden–and for good reason. This is where your tongue gets the most bang for your gardening effort. The dramatic difference in taste between homegrown and store-bought tomatoes is often what drew us foodContinue reading “Best Tasting Tomatoes”

The Great Scape Pesto

Garden-to-Table Eating from my newsletter archives June is when it’s time for me to cut off the garlic scapes—those curly things forming at the top of my garlic plants. These taste like garlic and can be used like garlic in any recipe. They’re also a nice addition to stir-fry dishes. But my favorite thing to make withContinue reading “The Great Scape Pesto”

Harvesting Tips

Practical Gardening Tips from my newsletter archives Now that most of the planting of the kitchen garden is done, I’m hoping to settle into a routine of harvesting, watering, and weeding. I also have some pruning (tomatoes), deadheading (flowers), and thinning (squash and Swiss chard) to do. It’s exciting to be harvesting snow peas nowContinue reading “Harvesting Tips”

Garden Walk Adventures

ENJOY — garden style living We just had a garden walk come to my kitchen garden this weekend. This was the first garden walk sponsored by the Homer Glen Junior Women’s Club, and it was the third time I’ve put my garden on a garden walk. It was a panic to get everything planted, weeded, and lookingContinue reading “Garden Walk Adventures”