Evolution of a Garden - before and after

When we purchased this house a year and a half ago I was so excited to have a nice spot for my garden. Little did I know just how overgrown this 24 x 12 foot plot of land was. Okay, yes it looks overgrown but I assumed it would be a quick clean up job. I later found out that this garden hadn't been used in many, many years and it took weeks to pull out the bushes, grass, weeds, and rocks. A garden was planted in a hurry so that I could make the most out of the upstate New York growing season. It was not my best harvest and this year I was determined to make the most out of my garden.

This picture is post winter frost and mid build of the lattice border. When raking leaves during the fall season we threw some into the soil for composting along with fertilizer pebbles. The soil was healthy and dark when it came to tilling.

Evolution of a Flowerbed

On to my new flower bed! This area just needed some "oomph", so we got out the shovels...

After digging up the layer of grass and tilling the remaining soil to even it out, Voila! Rather than buying stones to border the bed, I used the many, many, MANY rocks that are found in the yard. I planted a Laceleaf Weeping Japanese Maple tree (Acer Palmatum Dissectum) which will grow 6 to 10 feet, or an average of 8 feet. This tree must be "trained" or pruned as they grow to encourage the weeping top and I am on my way out the door to do some trimming as soon as I post this. My other favorite plant that does great in this area is a Delphinium. It isn't flowering at the moment but around mid summer it will produce beautiful blue towers of flowers that last into fall. There are also various colors of lilies scattered throughout; spearmint and peppermint are surrounding the bird bath.

I hope this gives you some inspiration. With a few hours of hard work and some creativity you can give a boring landscape a little personality!

How to Tempur Chocolate!

You will need:
- double boiler
- rubber spatula
- candy thermometer
- parchment paper
- chocolate (using larger amounts of chocolate will make tempering easier

Step 1: Boil water in the double boiler and lower heat to a simmer. Melt 2/3 of the chocolate, stirring often, and remove from heat when you reach 115 F (for dark chocolate) or 110 F (for milk and white chocolate). Do not exceed recommended temperature. Fold in remaining pieces to cool the chocolate to 84 F. Remove any chunks that did not melt, and set aside to reuse.

Step 2: Heat chocolate for 5-10 seconds, stirring, and repeat this process until chocolate reaches 88-89 F (for dark chocolate) or 87 F (for milk chocolate). Do not exceed 91 F.

Step 3: You can now spot test to ensure the chocolate is tempered properly. Spread a thin layer over parchment paper and let cool; if done correctly the chocolate should be smooth and shiny, and if unsuccessful it will be dull and streaky.

Good luck and have fun!