Pat doesn't have a vegetable garden, but she loves mine. We have a gate from her yard into my garden, and she is always welcome to anything she can use. In return, she brings me jars of home canned goodies from her kitchen, usually containing something I've grown.
This spring, I planted a two hills of zucchini and two hills of cucumbers over on her side of the fence, and gave her the remainder of my packet of Royal Burgundy bush beans to plant there as well. She loves having her own little garden, even though her zucchini are giving her worries over the dying leaves.
I hadn't seen Pat out in her yard for two or three days, and assumed she'd gone somewhere. I'd noticed her daughter and son-in-law looking over the fence at my garden just a couple of days ago, which was what they always do when they're visiting her, and I figured they were just looking after the place in Pat's absence. But yesterday, I noticed her beans were ready to pick, and still no Pat, so I called her. It turns out the poor dear has been very sick in bed, with aches and fever, all week! And nobody told me.
Well, of coarse I told her I'd tend to her beans and make sure they were picked, blanched and frozen for her. Now I'm wondering if anybody is bothering to bring her food. I'll be fixing her beans today, and I think a nice pot of chicken soup will be simmering on my stove.
By the way, she got a bigger crop from her purple beans than I did. She didn't amend her soil with anything, just planted them in native soil with no fertilizer, no nuthin'! Just look at the first picking from her 2' x 6' bean patch....
That's almost 2-1/2 pounds! The cucumber is from her plant, and I really need to go over to check for more. My hands were so full of beans, I couldn't carry any more. The lemon cucumber is from my plant, it was hanging over on her side of the fence where I couldn't see it.
Hmmmm. The seeds were mine, and I planted them and picked them. Do I add this to my harvest total, even if they weren't picked from my garden ? I think I should!
Wednesday's Garden Dinner
Pan Fried Sirloin Steak with Caramelized Onions (onions)
Parsley Buttered New Potatoes (potatoes, parsley)
Green Beans & Crookneck Squash (beans, squash)
Sauteed Parsnips (parsnips)
Sliced Cucumbers with Ranch Dressing (cucumbers)
Cherry Tomatoes (tomatoes)
Strawberry Sundaes (strawberries)
Parsley Buttered New Potatoes (potatoes, parsley)
Green Beans & Crookneck Squash (beans, squash)
Sauteed Parsnips (parsnips)
Sliced Cucumbers with Ranch Dressing (cucumbers)
Cherry Tomatoes (tomatoes)
Strawberry Sundaes (strawberries)
Maybe it's pregnancy hormones, but your post made me tear up today! It's so nice of you to help your neighbor! Not enough neighbors do such neighborly things!
ReplyDeleteAwww, Shawn Ann....you're expecting a baby? When? Congratulations, and please do keep us posted.
ReplyDeleteAnnie's Granny,
ReplyDeleteWhat a wonderful person you are that you are able to share in the joy of your garden and help your "under the weather" neighbor.
Also that dinner looks so gourmet. Delicious!
You're such a great gal, helping your neighbor out like that. Just for that, add the bean total on to yours!! You deserve it!
ReplyDeleteThat's terrible!!! I'm so sorry she's been ill, but I bet she's going to be thrilled with that harvest.
ReplyDeleteI just found your blog and am so very excited! I was very close to my grandmother before she passed away and you remind me of her! I was wondering if you have a recipe you use when making your "braised country pork ribs" because they look scrumptious and I've wanted to try them for some time... I will be reading your posts going backwards and am thoroughly enjoying it all!! Thank you so much for sharing!
ReplyDeleteAw, how sweet of you to be so concerned about your neighbor, Pat. I bet she just didn’t want to worry you. I am sure she so appreciates everything you are doing. I hope she is feeling better soon.
ReplyDeleteAmazing about the yield of Burgundy Beans vs. yours. I absolutely agree that these count as part of your harvest totals.
How were the early parsnips, by the way?
I love stories of neighbors being neighbors, and yours made me get teary-eyed too. I know she'll appreciate any food you bring over, and anything else you do for her.
ReplyDeleteYes, you should add those beans to the total! ;-)
LOL just what you need. More beans! I'm just waiting for mine to come in. They are being slow this year. I love their flowers though. The cranberry beans are pink and white and the Trail of Tears beans are purple. They are prettier than my all white Kentucky Wonder beans.
ReplyDeleteYou are such a good neighbor. I had trouble when I first moved to the northeast. I was used to the Colorado mountains. We all knew our neighbors and helped one another out. I still remember getting together as a group and doing crafts to sell at the volunteer fire department sale. The neighborhood even put together a cookbook one year. Here in the NE people rarely get to know the people they live near. I cheated with my neighbors. I had two friends move into my neighborhood after I was already there.
Oh and I almost forgot. You promised to tell us if the parsnips were good. Were they?
ReplyDeleteThat's nice of you to look after your neighbor. Our neighbor just lost her husband last Jan. He was young, not even 50 yet but used the bottle to much.
ReplyDeleteGood for you! I am so glad to know there are still those of us who notice our neighbors' routines and when something is awry...it's a shame so many today do not even know their neighbors. I am sure she appreciates it more than you will know!
ReplyDeleteDaisy, Sue, Ribbit, Momma_S, Daphne, Dan & Erin: Pat's beans are in the freezer, waiting to be bagged. Blog to follow. And I'm adding the total to my harvest scale ;-)
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GraphixMuse & Daphne: The parsnips were good! Not as sweet or as firm as they will be after a frost, but good.
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Bernadette, Welcome to my blog! You have a lot of reading to do if you go back to day one.
I don't really have a "recipe" for the country ribs, but I can tell you what I did. I used my old cast iron Dutch oven, and heated a bit of canola oil in it. Seasoned the ribs ( I had a really large package of them) with pepper (no salt needed) and browned them well, added a bunch of sliced onions and browned them a bit. Drained off the fat and added a cup of water and a tsp. each of chicken and beef bouillon granules, put the lid on it and put it in the oven at 325 for about an hour. Checked it for liquid and added more water if needed, covered and baked until they were tender, brown and most of the liquid had cooked out. I returned mine to the stove (lid removed) to boil down most of the remaining liquid. The bouillon made them plenty salty, so no other salt was used. I think I had them in the oven for 1-1/2 to 2 hours, checking every half hour to make sure they hadn't cooked dry.
That's so nice Granny. We all need to look after each other... and it brings us so much closer together when we do!!!
ReplyDeleteWhat a beautiful harvest. I was just telling my 11 year old son about those magic beans. We'll need to plant some next year.
Toni, the kids love the magic beans. Heck, my 37-year-old loves the magic beans!
ReplyDeleteYou are such a good neighbor and friend. And a master chef!
ReplyDeleteMissyM, I hope I'm a good neighbor and friend, but calling me a master chef makes me giggle! I just hope what I cook turns out to be edible!
ReplyDeleteWe should all be be so lucky as to have a neighbor like you.
ReplyDeleteWhat a nice friend and neighbor you are!! Pat's a lucky gal.
ReplyDeleteKistsapFG and Jenn, I still worry about her. She doesn't feel well at all, and her doctor is making her wait until Monday for an appointment...the jerk!
ReplyDeleteFranny - that is exactly what community and neighbors should be like! People helping others out. I love your post :-) It is so nice that she has you next door!
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