Hey Nature, nice haircut!

Okay, so as much as I love the garden...weeding overwhelms me, especially major yard weeding. I get completely bajigity when it comes to weeding. Once they're there, I kind of feel like they made their point, survival of the fittest and all. My sister, on the other hand, loves weeding more than gardening. Match made in sister heaven? I think so. She coined a phrase that I love, she says weeding is like "picking nature's split ends." Brilliant.

Now, I do have a reason that I am waxing poetic about my love for my sister and her mad weeding skills. I had this weeks post all written out (it will now be a highlight post later this week) and then came home from a long day at work and found that Anne + fam spent 5 hours in my front yard pulling the weeds...no wait, let me re-phrase, DESTROYING the weeds that infest my front retaining wall. She weeded the ever-living shiznit out of my yard. I am mind-blown, amazed, and... SO FREAKING HAPPY! WOOT! Attached is a photo of what this incredible weeding feat entails...one 15 foot by 3 foot area = 8 bags (2 not pictured) of split ends. Lookin' good, nature. And thank you Jackson's.

Um, teacher? Are we graded on timeliness?

As it turns out, becoming a student after a ten year hiatus is a bit difficult. Not the classes, per se, but the structure and discipline. I've had a career for 10 years, a career that needed me to be at work on time. I've never had an issue with attendance, and in fact, am pretty much psychotically aware of being on time to the places I need to be. But with class...oof, a different story altogether. I am rush, rush, rushing to my morning classes and am still about 10 minutes late each day, and the night class...oy. Part of the issue is that the classes are 4 hours long. I seem to have the attention span of a 2 year old when it comes to a 4 hour class...I wriggle around in my seat, heave exasperated sighs, and doodle in the margins of my notes. But, in truth, I love the classes. I received a perfect score on my first horticulture test (a feat of which I am very proud), and have included photos of the first two arrangements we did in Floral Design. The large triangular one is the symmetrical arrangement (note that we are not able to choose our flowers, we use the ones the school has...so while pretty, not necessarily the pieces I would have chosen myself). And the second is the asymmetrical bouquet. Awfully exciting, no?

The tomato pictured below is the first major heirloom I have picked this summer. While my cherry, yellow pear, and sungold tomatoes have been producing for a while, the big guys are just now coming to the party. This particular specimen is a Black from Tula. I got the seedling from my neighbors Julie and Jay, and I'm glad I chose this varietal. It weighed nearly 2 lbs (I know because I stood on my bathroom scale with it, then without it, and the difference was nearly 2lbs. Scientific, aren't I). Anyway, I have made two jars of salsa and both have been devoured.

Easy salsa recipe below:

Chop enough tomatoes (different colors if possible) to fill a bell jar nearly full.

Chop 1/2 red onion

Chop 1 jalapeno (mine was from my garden too!) More if you want it hotter

Chop some cilantro (if you like it)

put it all in the bell jar

Add in 3 or 4 pinches of kosher salt

pour in enough white wine vinegar to fill the jar

shake and roll jar to mix up all the colors of tomatoes

Refrigerate and serve with chips (I like multigrain tostitos the best)

Tomatoes as tall as a tree!

The tomatoes did not get the memo about the garden's petite status. I have one plant that is easily 7 feet tall - the sungold and the yellow pear, grape tomato and tomatillo are equally out of control. If the tomatillo sets its fruit in relation to the size of it's branches than I'll have to hire help to pick all the fruit.

A few not-so-great gardening notes, I planted everything too close together (again) but this time I blocked enough sun that my plants are losing leaves at the bottom...but, according to the many many many gardening websites and books I've read, this is no biggie...just makes the garden a little ugly. If you stop by to see it, just look about 12inches above the soil and higher...deal?

Anyway, I have harvested some cucumbers, sungolds, cherry, grape and yellow pear tomatoes, one purple cherokee, some green sausage tomatoes and an artichoke. Pretty good so far. I have been debating planting fall crops too, I pulled out the peas, and I think the zuch is going to die, so I believe I will plant brussels sprouts, carrots and beets for the fall. Thoughts?

I heart flowers.

I got to do some floral for restaurant parties this week, and am really excited about my foray into floral arrangement! The picture above is one of the three "modern patriotic" arrangements I did for a woman who is celebrating her anniversary on the 4th of July, she wanted red, white and blue tones, but didn't want it overly flag-like (her words). I chose deep pink cottage Yarrow, white daisies, blue cornflower, sea thistle, and buplerium. The thistles and bluperium (the green stuff) look so firecracker-y that I thought they worked beautifully. The yarrow is a great deep pink, so I got to use the tones she was looking for, but I modernized it. I really like it. A lot.

The arrangement at the end of the post was for a 5th wedding anniversary and the husband, who planned the party as a surprise, wanted to re-create the wedding bouquet. So, white calla lillies, yellow freesia, white hydrangeas, and white listanthus were used to create a beautiful and classy arrangement. I used a tarnished sterling silver bowl to put the flowers in, I like the play of the dainty freesia and lisanthus, and the modern calla lily, with the traditional, but shabby bowl. The bride LOVED it and said that it was very similar to her actual bouquet.

Woot! Can't get much better than that! So here I am, a month into the birth of Leap floral, and I am loving it. I am actually thinking of getting another client or two. Nervous? Yep. Learning how to profit from this? Trying. So far, I am having trouble gauging how much floral I need for an arrangement, but I am getting better. My eyes are just bigger than my wallet (as usual).

So if you need flowers, for anything, or invitations printed, or just want to chat, reply to my post, email me at leapfloral@gmail.com, or stalk me at Loft 610, I'd love to help!! :)