New every season
What a surprise to find Spinach planted last Fall in the garden.
It was protected by a plastic tent to help with the winds and cold weather but I never expected it to survive the last ice/snow week of weather we had in January. 🤗🌱
“Gardening – the endurance to push through each season to find new beginnings and life in the most unexpected places.” Denise.🤗🌱
See you in the garden 🤗💚🌱🌱
Denise
Photo captured today as I begin to clean out the garden for the Spring ahead 🌱 Denise
In my heart-efforts to feed the birds and squirrels during our recent snow storm, I found the 25# bag of sunflower seeds and a large bag of bird seed, purchased prior to the storm, couldn’t keep up with the weather or their need for nourishment in the extreme cold.
By Monday morning, knowing a trip to town was not happening, I thought, “Why not try cutting up one of the left over outside pumpkins?”
Silly me thinking a kitchen knife could cut through a frozen pumpkin 😅 Bringing it inside to defrost, made cutting it up easy.
Bringing it inside made cutting it up easy. The seeds inside looked nice and fresh and the pumpkin pulp smelled sweet like Thanksgiving pie 🥧
Not really knowing if the squirrels or the larger birds would eat it, I figured, I came this far, “What could it hurt.” To my surprise and delight, the pieces of pumpkin shells were completely empty this morning when I checked them. 🤗🐿️🪶🪶🪶
Maybe that’s what I saw the squirrel nibbling on yesterday afternoon 🤔 It doesn’t matter, the seeds were eaten and met the need on a cold winter day.
Thankfully, the sun is out, temps are rising and another pumpkin is defrosting in the kitchen sink waiting for a little critter to enjoy later today. 🐿️🪶🧡😊 Stay safe!
Denise 12 Leaves Garden Nursery 🌱🤗💚
In keeping with “heritage and traditions,” my friend shared a memory her grandmother’s kitchen.
Granny would keep a pot of soup going on the stove, adding to it the bits of vegetables left-overs from dinner and such. The generation before us knew how to live through lean times.
With Granny in mind, and wondering what I was going to fix for dinner tonight, especially since we have all been snow bound for 4 days…I remembered I had ground beef from the other night in the fridge. 🤔
Soup! So I peeled a few potatoes, cut up carrots, sauteed onions in the pot and added the ground beef 🍲🥕🥔
Adding a sprig or two of the fresh parsley hiding out from the snow in the Clubhouse, as we call the outside building, and voila! 🌱🌱🌱 Dinner done👍🤗🍲
Thanks to my friend for sharing her childhood memories of her granny, and thanks Granny for instilling in the next generation how to cook and thrive without always having to run to the food store. 🍲
Denise🙂🌱🌱💚
Fresh basil in the winter 🌱🌱💚
I find starting herbs seeds to be a challenge because the seeds are so tiny. Some herbs like to have cool temps to germinate and others not so much.
Late August I decided, “What the heck,” and sowed basil seeds in with the Fall lettuce. Always wanting a Fall vegetable garden, I purposely set aside a spot and let the soil rest through the summer.
I was surprised to see the basil begin to sprout with no effort on my part. They grew up in a nice little row next to the Butter crunch lettuce and spinach.
As they matured, I carefully dug them up, a few plants at a time, and potted them up. Some individually others snuggled up together. 🌱🌱
They have done well. Now located in a southern facing window in a semi-heated (barely) outside building. They’re not particularly happy about our current extreme cold temps but I have faith they will hang in there until Spring. 🤗🌱🌱
With snow covering the ground, it’s nice to know my idea of “What the heck, give it a try,” has taught me to step out of my gardening comfort zone and watch those itty-bitty herb seeds show me how to grow and thrive 🌱🌱🌱💚
Denise🤗🌱💚
How do you maximize beautiful Fall weather and time? Get project #2 done!
Freshen up the tables used to display flowers and vegetables.
My Dad always taught me to use quality paint for projects. Good prep and your painting project will be successful.
Back story on the tables if you have read this far…when I first had the idea to open the nursery I knew many items would be needed. It was a bit overwhelming.
One Saturday afternoon, husband and I “happened” upon these metal bistro tables at the big box store on close-out for $20 each!
I was so excited and bought two. Once we realize they fit easily into the car, back I went to the store for a few more. Praying the whole way through the parking lot, “How many should I get? How many will he let me load up in his car?” Lol
Settling on five (the number for grace) I drove home a very happy shopper! Happier yet, husband assembled them all the very next day. That was a miracle right there!
The tables remind me the plans to start the nursery were sown with good seed and although the next season has to wait until Spring 2026, the Lord has a plan as I wait on Him.
Hope you enjoyed reading my grace story.
Looking forward, and thank you for following Twelve Leaves Garden Nursery.
Follow us on FB @ 12 Leaves
Denise
* Paint used Sherwin Williams DMC acrylic black. Water cleanup. Experience with this paint has proven it is tough and can hold up to the weather.
So how does one begin again when unexpected happenings in life occur?
Right back where you left off.
Picking up a brush and opening up the gallon of stain/sealer purchased this summer before it got hot.
It may not look like much of anything, but it sure felt good to be out in the hoop house starting over again.
Before pictures…glad we moved the pallets undercover at the end of the Spring season. My son replaced several of the boards and they are looking good. Stain and the sealer will help too.
I used a roller and the project moved pretty fast.
The added boards helped the 1-gallon pots to stay steady on the pallets.
Project One done!
Thank you for following along with my family and I in our Garden Nursery.
Denise and family
“You shall yet plant vines…” again.
Jeremiah 31:5 NKJV
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Twelve Leaves Garden Nursery