August 2020 Issue #180

Hello,

What fun that we both love gardening. Thanks for joining me.

1) Lockdown nature walk map
2) Eco gardening tips
3) Roast Garlic Mushrooms

Lockdowns, sigh, thank goodness for our gardens... and hopefully your daily lockdown walk. Whether you go around your property or around the block, the whole family can do their own nature map. It's interesting to see how different people view and draw the same scenes!

The FAQ section is the place where the beautiful people hang out... earthy and raring to grow.

Do you know why tomatoes disappear, why eggplants vanish? Is it your your dog, neighbors, squirrels, possums, deer? See what other readers have discovered about garden thieves!

Eco gardening tips

• Leave leaves or not?
  When I lived in Sydney, Australia, I noticed lots of leaves all seasons, with councils and householders clearing them away constantly. The reason apparently is that the trees are confused! Because many trees are English and European native, they don't quite fit in with Sydney's sub-tropical weather which doesn't usually have clear seasons especially summer and winter. It has long drawn out in-between warm weather, even causing the native gum trees to drop leaves continuously.
  
  

  Some leaves left on lawns are good, but rake up big amounts to use as garden mulch or put in compost, otherwise it can result in yellow and dead patches developing in your lawn due to lack of sunlight.
  

• Woolly warmth
  Natural wool insulation is popular now for homes. It comes as large flat bats/pads and if you can score some, they make excellent mulch, especially cuddled around strawberry plants. Use them all over your garden — they'll break down after 1-2 seasons.


• Hot cooking tip
  Slow cookers or crock pots are handy indeed. As you toss in ingredients, sometimes you might add too much liquid. Remember to use less liquid than if you are cooking with an ordinary pot on a stove element. Here's what to do if it's looking too liquidy... simply take off the lid, place a clean teatowel over the pot then put the lid back on over the teatowel — it absorbs moisture.

Best Vegetable Peeler

You only need this one multi-functional peeler.It grates, planes, slices ...it's all you need to prepare your vegetables for eye-catching salads and cooking.

Made of stainless steel, it's a high quality, sturdy and comfortable kitchen essential.

See more information at Garden Gift Hub

Roast Garlic Mushrooms

An almost effortless recipe that is surprisingly tasty and will gain you compliments as a cook.

Ingredients

• 12 garlic cloves, peeled
• 12 large button mushrooms
• 5 Tbn olive oil
• Salt to taste.

Method

1. Heat oven to 180ºC (355ºF). Choose a baking dish that is just large enough for the ingredients, as spaces will tend to cause the mushrooms to dry and shrivel too much.

2. Put garlic cloves in dish and cover each clove with a mushroom. Slightly overlapping is fine.

3. Drizzle the oil over and season with salt.

4. Roast for 75-90 minutes, stirring after 1 hour, until the mushrooms are a deep, rich brown and slightly shrivelled. Serve immediately.

Preparation time: Approximately 10 minutes
Cooking time: 75-90 minutes
Serves: 4 as a side dish

Live, love and garden
Megan