“Simplicity is the ultimate sophistication.” Lao Tzu
Leaf Loss / Bare Bones / Blue Sky
This ash tree started out forty years ago in a five-gallon pot as a housewarming gift. As soon as the leaves begin to drop–in just a day or two– the branches will become bare and I’ll have a LOT of raking to do.
“Simplicity is the final achievement. Simplicity is the keynote of all true elegance.” Coco Chanel
Abscission is the reason why leaves fall. Scientists believe that a reduction in sunlight leads to the reduction of chlorophyll in the leaf due to a reduction in photosynthesis and this may trigger the abscission of leaves. The actual process occurs when the weaker cells near the petiole are pushed off by the stronger cells beneath them.
That’s a lot for my brain to process and right now all I want to do is quietly savor the stark, elegantly naked branches.
She felt vaguely upset and unsettled. She was suddenly tired of outworn dreams. And in the garden the petals of the last red rose were scattered by a sudden little wind. Summer was over — it was Autumn.
“She felt vaguely upset and unsettled. She was suddenly tired of outworn dreams. And in the garden the petals of the last red rose were scattered by a sudden little wind. Summer was over — it was Autumn.” L.M. Montgomery
Rainbow Valley is the seventh book in the chronology of the Anne of Green Gables series of novels by Lucy Maud Montgomery. Photos by Enchanted Seashells.
In the corner of the garden close to the back gate, I found a wing that belonged to a Monarch butterfly. Poor tattered little one, colors dull and listless; I carefully picked her up to bring inside the house to spend eternity resting in a pretty box of similar treasures.
Photo by Enchanted Seashells
When I went back outside to finish a yard clean-up project, I had a visitor — this magnificent Monarch who stayed still long enough to spread her wings for a picture, vibrant and alive:
Photo by Enchanted Seashells
It’s a blueblue sky circle of life day here in SoCal.
With all the powerful planetary energies at play right now and everything else in this country that almost too horrible to even think about, it seems like a great time to get grounded, to literally get back to what’s simple and healing — and that’s where you’ll find me, in the garden planting seeds of serenity (and flowers).
A garden must combine the poetic and the mysterious with a feeling of serenity and joy. – Luis Barragan
Is there anything better than homemade apple butter?
Apple butter is not a single invention by one person, but rather a preservation method with roots in medieval Europe. It originated in Germany and the Netherlands, with monasteries in those areas using it to preserve their apple harvest.
The Pennsylvania Dutch, who are actually of German origin, later brought the practice to North America, particularly to Pennsylvania, and it then spread throughout Appalachia and the American South.
This is how they used to make apple butter! It was a slow, laborious process.
My mom and I made apple butter every year. We’d get a bushel of apples and spend a fun day working together.
Cooking apple butter typically takes eight to twelve hours in a slow cooker on low heat. This long, slow cooking process allows the apples to break down, caramelize, and develop the rich, sweet flavor characteristic of apple butter.
Here’s my easy recipe. Even though it’s easy ingredient-wise, it’s going to take a long time for the apples to cook down, so be patient, otherwise, you’ll end up with a lot of applesauce.
Ingredients:
🍎 Apples, a lot of apples. I used the ones from my tree so I know they’re organic and free of any pesticides.
🍎 Cinnamon…I add a massive amount of cinnamon because that’s how we like it, so add as much or as little as your taste dictates.
🍎 Water
🍎 That’s all you need, except this time toward the end of cooking, I tasted the concoction and added two tablespoons of apple cider vinegar and three tablespoons of sugar because my apples were VERY tart. (ACV brings out the sweetness, too.)
First, core and cut the apples into medium size pieces or chop them smaller, whatever you feel like doing is fine. No need to peel.
I started the cooking process on the stovetop, rather than in the crockpot, because I had too many apples to fit and I needed to wait until they cooked down before transferring. This is when you add water, about 1/2 cup to one cup depending on the amount of apples you have.
Add cinnamon.
Cook over medium heat for about an hour, stirring ever so often so the bottom doesn’t burn. I used a potato masher to make sure the apples were all getting softened.
When it looks like applesauce, carefully spoon into a blender and zap until smooth.
After that, transfer it into the crock pot and cook on high for four hours. Stir every once in a while.
After that initial four hours, turn the crockpot on low for twelve hours to cook overnight. Keep the crockpot top cracked open or condensation will form and drip into the pot and make the apple butter too watery.
If you like it super smooth and creamy like we do, blend it one final time.
And this is the finished product, so good you’ll want to eat it with a spoon. It looks like chocolate, doesn’t it? YUM!
While it’s still warm, I store some in glass canning jars in the refrigerator to eat right away, and freeze the rest.
Sometimes you never know what’s going to thrive in your garden when seeds are sown, but this year’s zinnias have been spectacular. I’ll save all the seeds and try again since she’s really happy where I planted her near the front door.
This beauty brings so much joy! I especially love her little coronet of yellow flowers.
Photo by Enchanted Seashells
Zinnia is named after Johann Gottfried Zinn, a German botany professor who discovered these plants and brought them back to Europe in the 1700s.
The center of a zinnia is made up of disk florets, which are tiny flowers that form a cluster in the middle. These disc florets are surrounded by larger, petal-like structures called ray florets.
The circle of yellow florets is where the nectar is located. It’s where bees pollinate as they collect nectar and pollen. The center of the flower will start to grow larger as the seeds start to form. YAY!
If an apple a day is supposed to keep us healthy, what can I do with all of these?
This is the first year I won the battle with rats and squirrels. I netted and secured the entire tree and picked the most abundant harvest yet.
I counted at least seventy apples and now I’m left with a busy day.
Photo by Enchanted Seashells
I’ll post the recipes later, but I plan to fire up the crockpot to cook and freeze applesauce, apple butter, and prep apple slices ready for pies. I’m feeling very much like Little House on the Prairie with this bounty. I am so proud of myself!
Photo by Enchanted Seashells
These apples were from one tree; there’s another tree on the upper garden with smaller apples but I’ll pick them today and add them to the crockpot, too.
The smell of apples + cinnamon is sooo therapeutic! 🍎
I don’t want to hear about that orange POS or worry about WW3 or the economy or ICE or any of the other no good, terrible, very bad things that are going on. I want to bask in my ignorance.
Just for today I want to be the innocent who waters her garden and talks to crows and delights in butterflies and believes in the inherent goodness of humanity.
Curated from Cottage Whimsy / Artist: Naoko Stoop
This Beach Boys song seems to convey the vibe of the day, only good vibes! Here’s Good Vibrations studio footage. I know that Leon Russell played on a version of GV, but I don’t see him here:
Here’s a little sprinkle of alchemy from Mother Earth.
I grew these flowers: Forget-Me-Not, Zinnia, Calendula…with seeds collected from last season’s blooms. It’s a satisfying project to participate in the circle of life, almost like I gave birth to them, which in a way, I did.
It’s not just me: A query about saving one’s seeds reveals this: Harvesting garden seeds offers a deep connection to the natural world, to become more self-sufficient, and to witness the unique adaptations plants make over time to their specific environment. It also provides a sense of continuity and independence from commercial seed companies.
Yes! I do so love FREE things!
I try to save as many seeds as I can in the veggie garden, too. Cilantro and tomatoes perform well, as do certain types of lettuce. Cucumbers and members of the squash family won’t produce true to type if they’re hybrids, but it’s fun to experiment.
June is full of color around here. Soon enough, it’ll be too dry and everything will turn drab and brown, but the joy continues because I’ll salvage the seeds for next spring. It’s the circle of life all over again!
May’s birth flower is Muguet de Bois, Lily of the Valley. Every year on my birthday, my mom would give me a brand new set of Coty perfume and dusting powder. I felt SO grown up! I savored its divine fragrance as long as I could, and then stashed the empty bottle in my drawers to scent my clothes.
A favourite flower in my garden to see, if you ask me, just has to be The Lily of the Valley. Known to be the May Lily, this sweet scented, dainty white bell represents a return to happiness and innocence. How delighted I be to see my Lily of the Valley, as blooming it be in ye month of May. Often found neath leafy bushes, or hidden away within the nooks and crannies. Tread carefully mind. As under its flapping green leaves you’ll find its wee white bells dangling on a tiny stem. The Lily of the Valley symbolises Pure Love…They say Lucky in Love it be that’s why it be tradition for brides to have Lily of the Valley amongst their wedding flowers. There be many an old Myth told about the faery folk and the Lily of the Valley. In Ireland it is known to be “The Faery Ladder”.
Little thoughts written by Athey Thompson Photos taken at home by Athey Thompson
Enchanted Seashells | Princess Rosebud 