Signs of Spring

We've been lucky with a mild winter in Seattle. Even so, I could tell a few weeks ago that spring was just around the corner. I can't describe it, but it's something about the way the air smells in the morning...and I'm up pretty darn early. And it had nothing to do with my daphne blooming.

About a week after that, I noticed my rhubarb was breaking dormancy. The crown turns bright red which means leaves are soon to follow.

I'm looking forward to when I can harvest the stems to make a rhubarb sauce. I don't really follow a recipe but add cinnamon and brown sugar to taste. Sometimes I add freshly grated ginger--use a Microplane to avoid stringy-ness in the sauce. It's great on pancakes, waffles, or French toast. Maybe I'll try a quick bread this season. I'll let you know how it turns out!
 

Brrrr!

Apologies for not having posted since the 1st of this year. I'll blame it on the weather; this being the coldest spring on record.

Let's catch up on what's happened since I last wrote.

My culinary laurel is evidence of that. I was hopeful that I'd have a flush of leaves from the buds. After looking more closely, the little shrub was toast. It looked so ratty, I removed it immediately.

My Queen Anne cherry is finally blooming as of Saturday--our warmest day this year. I had no blooms on Friday. When I came back Saturday afternoon, about half of the flowers are open. This is the year when we're supposed to have a heavy fruit year (stone fruits have "alternate bearing years"), but I'm not getting my hopes up.


Cardoon and rhubarb are doing well. I have yet to make something with cardoon. I better act fast while the leaves are small and workable. Rhubarb on the other hand doesn't intimidate me. I made a wonderfully tangy sauce for our Easter breakfast waffles. I peeled and sliced 5 small stalks (remove the leaves! they are poisonous), added about 1/2 cup of brown sugar, a splash of water, and 6 strawberries over medium heat in a saucepan. I cooked it until the rhubarb was soft. So easy and so delicious!



I planted a patch of Early Purple Sprouting broccoli and sowed a patch of the "3 Root Grex" beet mix from Fedco Seeds. I can't wait to see how these turn out. The drizzles of rain in the last two days have at least helped relieve me of my watering duties. But really, I'm ready for some sun!

Hello, Rhubarb!

Granted the rhubarb emerged last month, but life has been busy with the arrival of my new son, Oliver. I'm just now getting around to reporting the latest happenings in the garden.

February was deceivingly warm--the weather that makes us Seattlites think winter is over and it's time to plant our tomatoes. I took the opportunity instead to move the rhubarb to a more ideal spot: more sun and better access to the hose. It's also next to my red flowering currant, Ribes sanguineum 'King Edward' creating a nice compliment with it's intensely hot pink flowers to the rhubarb's red stems.

A part of me dreads moving dormant plants. If it was a bulb, it wouldn't matter. But trying to move something with no stems, nothing on top, with just a mess of roots still makes me doubt the plant's survival even after doing it so many times. I'm always relieved see sprouting--a sign of life.



I was glad to see the rhubarb survived, but it was also flowering. Now what? Do I let it flower, and if I do, will it die or taste bad? I consulted a friend who has had good success with rhubarb, and transplanted hers last year. I was curious if her plant did the same thing, but hers never flowered. A quick internet search lead me to the Rhubarb Compendium. Not to despair. All I needed to do was cut the flower stalk down to the ground. I had a feeling that was it.



I was hoping for a crop this year, but I'll wait for next year. It's still slow growing. The advice my friend gave me was that rhubarb needs a year to adjust after being transplanted. In the meantime, I'll take advantage of the huge stalks at the Columbia City Farmers' Market!

Rhubarb

I know it's late in the season for acquiring a rhubarb plant. But there I was, at the West Seattle Farmers' Market, wandering around and I spotted it in a 4" pot at Langley Fine Gardens. It was so cute with several small leaves and a lot of potential. Where it would be planted was already visualized in my garden. I gave the man $3--a bargain!--and took my new crop home.

Here it is in the ground with my Walla Walla onions in the background.

Cute, eh?

I sacrificed a few primroses to make room for the rhubarb. Who wants to eat primroses anyway? Some may argue the same for rhubarb, but I like it. Especially at this time of year when local fresh fruit is hard to find. The apple supply has been looking pretty grim since April. But I haven't had enough heat for cherries.

I've made crisps and sauces this season using the rhubarb from the Columbia City Farmers' Market. The recipe I recently used was from the first edition of edibleSEATTLE. It calls for ground ginger for the topping and the filling. I prefer using fresh ginger for the sauce. The more intense flavor means I don't need any for the topping. All you need is some peeled ginger and a Microplane. If you don't have a Microplane, the small holes (not the nutmeg grater) on your box grater will work just fine.

Rhubarb sauce is easy and quick, and you don't have to make a crisp. I made a sauce last night with rhubarb, ginger, strawberries, butter, and brown sugar. I threw it all in a pan on medium high heat until the rhubarb was tender. You can swirl it into your ice cream or even oatmeal for breakfast. Enjoy!