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IL GIARDINIERE ITALIANO

The Italian Gardener

My July Garden: Jardin de Juillet

6/30/2023

1 Comment

 
What a fantastic June garden we have had… bundles of rhubarb that were picked and shared among the neighbours, followed by strawberries and then raspberries and blueberries.  But by far my favourite are the peas. I no longer grow rows and rows of peas, instead relying on local markets for any quantity.  But I do grow a few plants that gives me two weeks of fresh peas to eat as I traverse my garden every morning.  There is nothing quite like the fresh taste of peas right off the vine. Another early summer treat is adding nasturtium flowers to our salads.

Garlic Scape Pesto was again on my agenda for late June.  This year I minced up the scapes, added nuts, cheese and olive oil to it and packed some into a jar for fresh use and the remainder into the freezer in 2 tablespoon size scoops.  Drying the garlic scapes is another option. This is also a good time to pinch back the basilico and whip up a batch of fresh pesto sauce.

Tomatoes can also use vigilant pruning at this time of the year.  Doing so can result in an earlier and more abundant crop.

Frittelli di Fiori di Zucchine are an early summer delicacy. Since the flowers are open in the morning, they are best plucked then, as they become harder to clean when they close up. The female zucchini flower only fruits into a zucchini, so some people pick the male flowers only. Stuffed with cheese and dipped into a batter made with flour, eggs, baking powder and some parmesan cheese and garlic, these fritelli may be pan or deep fried.

Garlic harvest arrives in July.  Once garlic leaves begin to yellow its time to dig up the garlic and begin its curing process.  Waiting for hard neck garlic to bend over is not recommended as the heads begins to loose its outer skin and storage time is therefor lessened.

Lettuce in the summer heat some times poses a problem.  Growing lettuce in shadier regions of the garden is one solution.  Other solutions include growing it in the shade of other plants (garlic) or under trellised cucumbers or other vines.

Ferns and white geraniums growing along the east side garden of our house gives us a cool and calm area in the garden.  The combination of white geraniums and the cool lush ferns surrounded by a wood chip or mulched pathway not only solves the problem of what to do with a long narrow garden but also gives us a quiet retreat while we work at our potting bench.

Water Lillies in our garden provides us with another cool area.  We have three ceramic pots plumbed from below, running water that is pumped from an old pond.  By keeping the water flow very low and by choosing a miniature Lilly we are graciously rewarded by blooms all summer long.

Second year peppers and artichokes are doing well. In the fall of last year, instead of composting my peppers and artichoke plants, I dug them up, removed all the foliage, root pruned them and placed them in pots on the floor of my greenhouse. This spring I began watering them and watched their progress.  I am pleased to report they have all made great progress and I now have the first artichoke buds and baseball sized peppers… both way ahead of this year’s seeded plants.  Will I be able to repeat this for a third year as I do with my geranium plants? 
1 Comment
Sandy Calder
7/22/2023 05:33:45 pm

Don your descriptions of produce and the accompanying photos are amazing. Makes my mouth water! I so miss having a big garden. Need to re-learn how to get the most out of a small portable garden bed and two tomato pots. But I'll get there!

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    Life-long Gardener Don Rampone shares his tips and advice for gardening

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The Kelowna Canadian Italian Club acknowledges that our clubhouse is situated on the beautiful unceded traditional territory of the Syilx/Okanagan people. Who, for thousands of years, have lived in harmony with nature and continue to this day to offer us so much culture and understanding.
  • HOME
  • ABOUT US
    • About KCIC and Our History
    • President's Message
    • Vice President's Message
    • Executive and Directors
    • Membership
    • Volunteers
  • NEWS & ARTICLES
    • The Grapevine Newsletter
    • THE ITALIAN GARDENER
    • Kelowna's First Families
    • Pietro's Spazio Sport
    • Book Reviews
    • Mangia Mangia Recipes
  • WHAT'S HAPPENING AT KCIC
    • 2023 Calendar
    • Club Happenings >
      • CASORSO DOCUMENTARY
      • Italian Wines of the Okanagan
      • Museum Exhibit
      • KCIC Dinners & Special Events
      • La Scuola Italiana - Italian Language
      • La Nostra Famiglia Italiana >
        • Our Celebration of Italian Heritage >
          • Museum Exhibit
          • Il Nostro Lascito Legacy Project
          • CASORSO DOCUMENTARY
        • Upcoming NFI Events
        • Past NFI Events >
          • NFI - Spaghetti
          • NFI - Bisnonno
          • NFI - L'Acqua
          • NFI - Terrazzo
          • NFI - Guerra
          • NFI - Lilia
          • Coming to Pier 21
          • Dalla Terra
          • Dialetti!
          • Sveva Caetani
          • Emilio Picariello
        • Family Tree Workshops
        • Between Neighbours
      • Giuseppe's Cafe
      • La Bella Tavola - Cooking Classes
      • Bocce
      • KCIC Library
    • Our 55th Birthday!
  • More From Us
    • CONTACT US
    • Clubhouse Rentals
    • 50th ANNIVERSARY >
      • 50th Anniversary
      • Mercato
      • Dinner & Dance Gala
    • Miss Kelowna Cdn. Italian Club
    • Calendar Page
  • Take Out Dinners