AS I PREPARE YET MORE MILK JUGS for winter seed-sowing, I can't help but wonder how many of you are also involved in this fun project. Mind telling me what you've planted so far? My list to date: Read more » How’s Your Winter-Sowing Coming Along?
January 25, 2012
AS I PREPARE YET MORE MILK JUGS for winter seed-sowing, I can't help but wonder how many of you are also involved in this fun project. Mind telling me what you've planted so far? My list to date: Read more » Tuna-Tarragon Crepes with Sauce Mornay
January 23, 2012
LAST SATURDAY, I took 8 crepes out of the freezer, and then proceeded to invent a highly-fragrant filling for them. The filling was made from common supermarket items -- including canned tuna, frozen spinach, and dried tarragon. These I bound together in a sumptuous, velvety French sauce called "Sauce Mornay." The result of this mad-experiment? Well, one bite and I thought I was eating perfume. Two bites and I nearly passed out from pleasure. Three bites, and I realized I'd have to share the recipe with you. Read more » What to Winter-Sow…And When
January 21, 2012
(Originally posted January 3, 2011; now updated and revised)
YOU MIGHT BE WONDERING WHEN, exactly, to winter-sow your perennials, annuals, herbs and veggies outdoors. The easiest answer is "now." However, to save work later on, I find it pays to plant certain seeds ahead of others. The following schedule has worked well for me: Read more » Kevin’s 2012 Events Schedule
January 18, 2012
MY EVENTS SCHEDULE for 2012 is slowly filling up, with three lectures, three garden tours (to benefit the The Garden Conservancy), plus one hands-on plant-propagation workshop. Live in or around New York's Hudson Valley? Stop by and say hello! The events: Read more » Seeds to Winter-Sow: Platycodon ‘Sentimental Blue’
January 17, 2012
IF I didn't already have Platycodon 'Sentimental Blue' in my garden, I'd certainly obtain it. In early July, this amusing creature puffs up its flower buds as if to announce "I'm here at last ...do you still love me?" And love it I do, because after these hot-air balloons (which make a loud "pop" if you squeeze them) open, they reveal the most dazzling, violet-blue stars you can imagine. Have a look: Read more » House Tour, Part 4: The Dining Room
January 13, 2012
DID I MENTION that we are only the fifth owners of this old house? It stayed in the same family from 1826 until 1975. And in 1975, new owners gutted the original kitchen wing -- which included a dairy pantry and a butler's pantry -- I still cry about this -- and turned it into rental apartments. Then they assaulted the formal, Greek-Revival dining room by turning it into an eat-in kitchen. I'll show you what we did with the rental apartments in a future tour. Meanwhile, here's a glimpse of the dining room, restored to its intended purpose: Read more » Chocolate Mousse
January 11, 2012
NOTHING TICKLES MY TASTE BUDS more than Chocolate Mousse. I love its light, foamy texture and its rich, out-of-this-world flavor. Furthermore, mousse freezes perfectly well. This means you can schedule it for your very next dinner party. Read more » 
