Spring Gardens

Hot Plant:

Helleboris:

In New York City gardens, it seems that Helleborus is this year's IT plant, and with good reason.  This superb plant is lush, comes in a variety of colors, and is shade tolerant. While I prefer the subtle creamy green and soft white petal varietals (above), more common (and less expensive) are the hellebore that have dramatic, rich plum, almost black colors.  And while all the Hellebore's are a worthwhile investment, if you can find the extravagant Helleborus orientalis -- buy it! Its flowers delicately and outwardly triangulate in an incredibly elegant way.

Along with the Crocus and Cyclamen, the Helleborus is one of the first to appear -- in late winter and early spring -- and it flowers over a long period.  Its perky early color begins to appear while there is still snow on the ground and depending on the spring weather, often continues until the Azelias are in full bloom (late spring). It gives a lot of flower bang for the buck!

In my garden, I paired this hearty treasure with off-white tulips and the double narcissus, the less common and more interesting daffodil.  The double narcissus (below) almost looks like a small creamy peony or sculpted gardenia, has a huge flower and has wonderfully layered ivory petals.  It's not your grandmother's ubiquitous Narcissus!

My prized double narcissus

My mostly white spring garden

I planted my tulip and narcissus bulbs in the late fall (talk about delayed gratification!) and for this year's garden, I stuck mostly with off-whites. The yellow daffodil (above) is a regrowth, self propogating offset from last year's planting. In a small garden, creams and whites add some depth when placed in spaces that have huge sunlight and shadow contracts. White is also a great color when visits to the garden are limited to the evenings -- white(ish) flowers can act like little lamps.

Pale green Helleborus

Zinc container from Restoration Hardware.  I look forward to seeing that Alyssum cascading down the sides.

But, my favorite new feature in my spring garden is the recently purchased zinc planters from Restoration Hardware.  The last few winters have been harsh here in New York, with much snow and drastic temperature swings. As a result,  I have had to replace multiple broken plant containers.  This year,  I decided to invest in high quality containers that will withstand our erratic weather.  Terra cotta and wood simply do not hold up. Zinc, while almost prohibitively expensive, is expected to last. I hope to buy more zinc containers at the end of season sales!

High quality planters are an essential ingredient to any garden.  Adding height will give it multiple focal points.  The height also helps to incorporate a useful rule in planting -- use delicate foliage at higher levels and bolder, thicker, heartier planting at the lower level.  The only downside -- planters need to be watered more often than in-ground plantings. 

Planters grouped together can also double as a mixed bed,  particularly on a deck or concrete area where there isn't any soil. They also provide foliage to otherwise dead zones. 

 In my new zinc containers, I planted Euonymus bushes for height and for its attractive variegated leaves, and at the bottom, Allysum, for its creeping and cascading qualities. 

If your garden includes shady spots, try Ornamental Ginger (above).  The eye-catching fan shaped leaves are great ground cover, require little maintenance and are easy to split and propagate.

Above -- a garden I designed for our last house in Brooklyn, the handsome purple spikes are Allium, which flower in the early summer and bring delicious drama to the garden (Allium are in the onion family). 

Digitalis (common name - foxglove) add height to any garden and are wonderfully elegant when flowering freely against shrubs.  Be sure to plant with bark ships, to help keep roots cool in the hot summer. 

Don't forget to Dead Head -- or remove faded flowers from the plant.  Not only does the plant look better, but dead heading prevents energy moving into seeds, keeping the focus on the flower.


Here are my go-to bulb and plant ordering catalogs:

McClure & Zimmerman     http://www.mzbulb.com

John Scheepers                http://www.johnscheepers.com

Van Engelen                      http://www.vanengelen.com

Frontgate and Restoration Hardware are also great sources for planters and outdoor furniture.

That's me, gardening in the Hamptons a fews years ago.

The Bitter, The Better!

The Wonders of Bitter Greens
Broccoli Rabe

This painting reminds me of our daughter and her friends picking flowers while on vacation last week. 

Now that we are back from spring break, and the bags are unpacked and the piles of laundry cleaned, folded and put away, it is time to refocus on healthful eating.  We ate well on vacation, but our intake of greens was far lower than our intake of ice cream, toffee and other sweet treats that we only eat when we are on holiday.  So logically, one of my first stops when we got back to NYC was the greens isle at Whole Foods. And one of my favorite, powerhouse go-to green:  Broccoli Rabe.

Bitter greens are so important to healthy living because they contain phytonutrients that support the liver to manage cholesterol, balance hormones and detoxify the blood.  They also help to metabolize fats. Aside from Broccoli Rabe (also known as rapini), other healthy bitter greens include radicchio, dandelion greens, endive, kale, daikon greens and arugula.  They are all fantastic!

Broccoli Rabe with Pine Nuts and Bread Crumbs

This dish is a staple in our home.  I have instructed countless friends over the years in its preparation. It pairs wonderfully well with most proteins and can be enjoyed in any season!

Here is what you will need:

2 heads of Broccoli Rabe
Olive oil
1/4 cup pine nuts
4 cloves of garlic cut into large pieces
dash of hot pepper seeds
1/2 cup of bread crumbs
1 Lemon
salt/pepper

Cut the leaves of the Broccoli Rabe into pieces and with a peeler, thin the stalks. Soak the greens in hot water for 3-5 minutes. This not only cleans the vegetable but also takes the bitterness down a bit. Remove from water and dry (preferably with a salad spinner). 

While the greens are soaking, sauté the garlic, pine nuts and hot pepper in the olive oil for about 2 minutes (or until garlic is soft).  Add in bread crumbs and sauté until slightly browned (another 1-2 minutes). 

Add in the rapini leaves and sauté for 3-4 minutes, or until soft.   

Add lemon and season with salt/pepper. 

Eat greedily!

Next up -- early gardens. This Springtime the "it" plant  is Helleborous. I planted 5 in my garden last fall. 

Spring is here - think healthy!

Cappuccino in a Flash!

Fun Gift...
For Someone That Has Everything.

Recently, we attended an elaborate 40th birthday party, hosted by a friend who appears to have everything.  For weeks, we struggled to come up with a gift. After spending a weekend at the beach, and using our beloved stovetop instant Cappuccino maker everyday, we thought, surely he doesn't have this!  It has been months since the party, and my friend enthusiastically uses the handy machine regularly -- he loves it!

So if you are struggling with a gift, here is a suggestion -- and demonstration, of course!

The Bialetti Mukka Express is a frothy wonder:

This device only has 3 pieces to clean and is handsome enough to keep out.

To use, simply pour the espresso coffee into the funnel filter, and water into the base.

Screw top part of coffee pot to the base. 

Fill upper compartment with milk (or whatever your lightener of choice is these days).

Place on stove, high flame. 

The coffee percolates and froths the milk simultaneously! 

Within 2-3 minutes an audible POP indicates your caffeine fix is ready.

Pour into cup and...

...you have Italian coffee house quality, at home!

We have a number of the Bialetti stovetop coffee/espresso making machines, this company makes a quality, reliable product. Our current favorite coffee machination is the Americano, where hot water is added to expresso for a tasty "hot top" of varying dilution.

It may be interesting to note that while, on one hand I am recommending Cappuccino makers, I am watching my own caffeine consumption.  It is easy to keep a cup of coffee in each hand when watching little ones all day, and this can seriously impact your sleep. It is recommended to keep the caffeine intake to under 250mg/day (this is no more than 2 cups of drip coffee). Expresso is 3-4 times less caffeine per cup than percolated coffee. Green tea is less than 45mg per cup.

http://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-living/nutrition-and-healthy-eating/in-depth/caffeine/art-20049372

Need an organic chemistry fix with your caffeine intake? Here is a scientific blog (but not too esoteric) that shows and explains the function of caffeine in the body on a molecular level (my daughter was excited by the cute mice in the adenosine receptor diagram):

http://boundlessthicket.blogspot.com/2012/04/coffee-my-favorite-kind-of-bean.html?showComment=1404997058718#c1571951509348859818

Oh, by the way, if the frothing pressure value is not in its proper place on the Mukka, this is what happens:

Coffee Geyser!