Field and Fen lives up to its title

Today the farm was open again, after the storm closing, full of great things. Their Roma plum tomatoes being far ahead of mine, I seized the day. Lunch will be Jersey toms and Vermont cheese. 

Mrs Moon will smile at my idea of a nice supply of fresh picked green beans. She'll refrain from pointing and laughing, because she's nice that way. This is a lady who grows and picks many gallons of them, puts them up, and gives presents of them. My haul would be the first five minutes of her daily picking.

And one of the proud beauties, red potatoes, will be planted for this year's potato harvest. Once I've found a container not occupied by immovable plants with squatters' rights.

That was the field part, everything out of the field this morning.

Now for the fen, home garden part, not strictly speaking a fen, though yesterday's rain could have had that effect if it hadn't stopped.

This group, sage, let's see if it works, spider plant reliably will, and a second Vicks plant. Just to see if they get along. They've rooted in  water together on the kitchen windowsill. Though the Vicks is a bit pungent for squirrels, I've still inserted peppermint oil drenched qtips. So the group's trying the outdoors.

I pruned the sage which is trying to block the gate

and the Thai basil, since it's starting to seed. I'll collect the seeds for next year. I've been doing this for several years since a neighbor moving back to India gave me her plant knowing I like the flavor.

The prunings went across the street to my contractor/friend/artist/cook who's no gardener so he's happy to have them.

Thai basil is one of those licorice flavored herbs. I like this one, it's a warm flavor. But I don't like fennel as a vegetable, that licorice tastes harsh to me. Yet fennel seeds are fine.

 Star anise I haven't had since I stopped red meat, and it's powerful enough to need strong ingredients, and I liked it then. But anise as a drink, ew. Likewise licorice candy, except I like licorice allsorts because you're really eating toys.

 I think there are shades of flavor in the licorice spectrum. What other foods and drinks have licorice flavor?

Now for lunch.