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| Mockingbird baby & mom |
Remember the three baby mockingbirds? One of them has grown up a little. He can fly now, but still cries constantly for food. So his mom feeds him. I don't know where his siblings are, but this little guy cries his head off until he is fed.
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| Homemade sushi |
I made sushi. Not the one with raw fish because I didn't bother to find sushi grade fresh fish. I had to struggle a bit to roll them up properly, and next time I'm going to use less rice. I used seaweed, sushi rice, cucumber, avocado and smoked salmon. It was really tasty.
Another new recipe I tried this week was Belinda's sesame peanut butter noodles. I used rice noodles. It was so easy to make and so delicious. Thank you Belinda! 😊
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| Sesame peanut butter noodles |
While at the home improvement store, I went to the garden section and bought a painted lady hibiscus, a peace lily, a marigold plant and a coneflower plant from the discount rack.
This morning while I was planting the hibiscus in the front yard, a neighbor gave me two large branches of pinwheel jasmine (Tabernaemontana divaricata). Though pinhweel jasmine does not have any fragrance, I always wanted to have one. It's one of the flowers Mom has always had in her yard.
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| Pinwheel jasmine |
A member of a regional gardening group was looking for katuk, so I offered her several cuttings. I gave her three katuk cuttings and a passion fruit seedling. And I received cuttings of Cuban oregano, also called Indian borage (plectranthus amboinicus) and Cranberry hibiscus (hibiscus acetosella).
I have been waiting for papaya and pineapple to ripe, but they are taking their time. Does anyone know how long papaya takes to turn yellow?
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| Papaya |
Take care all. Stay safe. 🌻🌼🌻🌼
XXX
Nil
That bird photo! So good! Yes it is hard to keep critters from eating our fruit, unless we are prepared to put up netting or other barriers to keep them out. I have just planted a new passionfruit to replace one that died about a year ago. Hoping for some good fruit next summer.
ReplyDeleteI wish I had thought about netting the passion fruit vine, earthmotherwithin. I let it grow on a tall tree and now I don't think I can cover it.
DeleteI hope you get a very good crop of passion fruit next year. :)
Your sushi and noodles look delicious. And the sushi looks very professional. When we bought a bathroom sink, we found the same thing...hardly any in the store. Those darn squirrels! They can be very greedy and even eat the fruit before it ripens, thus you can't even beat them to the picking! Andrea
ReplyDeleteI'm hesitant to buy large items online without seeing, because if there are defects then it's a hassle to return it.
DeleteI wish stores carry more options, the store near me has only 3 different vanity sets.
I like watching squirrels, but they can be pretty destructive. :)
I am hoping to plant a new passionfruit vine this year, Nil. I love passionfruit! Rather than squirrels, which we don't have in Australia, it is the cockatoos here that like to nibble holes in the passionfruit and then drop them to the ground. They even fly off with them to the top of our roof, take a bite out, then let them go and it can sound like there are bowling balls running down the roof! Very entertaining;)
ReplyDeleteHehee I just pictured cockatoos rolling passion fruits down your roof. :)
DeleteThat baby bird looks almost as big as the mother bird! Your sushi and noodles look good. My daughter loves sushi. Your papaya looks wonderful! Not sure exactly how long it take for papaya to ripen, several months, I think. Wait until it starts turning yellow-orange before you pick it.
ReplyDeleteYes, Bless. The young mocking bird is as big as his mother, but his chest is speckled. This morning I saw another young one, so I think at least two out of three babies have survived. And only one young bird cries constantly.
DeleteMom also said papaya normally takes several months to ripen. I have to be patient. :)
Your sushi looks delicious.
ReplyDeleteYour garden sounds so exotic and a world away from mine with all the plants you mention.
We have a humid subtropical climate here, Eileen. Good for many plants, and not so good for others. :)
DeleteYour meals look and sound delicious, especially the sushi. I hope you manage to source a new cabinet which is to your liking. It can be frustrating when you can't find just what you're looking for. X
ReplyDeleteYes Jules. While I was at the home improvement store I wondered how frustrating it must be for people who do complete renovations. :)
Deleteooh I like both Papaya & Pineapple. I imagine those are delicious. You have such neat things growing in your garden, rather different from the run of the mill stuff we can grow here. You had me at noodles. anykind anytime...comforting food which affects my sugar...oh well. Maybe you should just replace the sink part and when you find the cabinet you can put the new sink in. Then you will have just what you want. Squirrels around the world don't differ though, they like the garden wherever they live.
ReplyDeleteYes, Faith. I think I'll have to buy the sink and the cabinet separately if I want to find exactly what I want. :)
DeleteI'm happy to hear you liked the peanut butter noodles, Nil. They are so different from other things we eat. Your homemade sushi looks like the rel deal! You did a great job. There is a vegetarian/vegan store here that does vegetarian sushi using Napa cabbage. It is so, so good. I need to get some soon. :)
ReplyDeleteOoh Napa cabbage in sushi sounds so good. I am going to remember this for the next time. :)
DeleteI'm going to print your noodle recipe and keep it in my folder of favorite recipes. :)
Wow! Your papayas look so healthy. I love seeing what you are growing in Florida. I hope you find your sink and cabinet. Sometimes people give away old sinks. That's how I found mine. It's a pedestal sink. The birds are so sweet.
ReplyDeleteI love pedestal sinks, Stephenie. However, there's not enough storage space in this house, and having a cabinet is very useful.
DeleteYour garden sounds wonderful Nil, so much growing and producing. I enjoyed hearing about your plant trades with neighbours....it's so nice to have people around who share your passions. No squirells here eating the fruit, but fruit bats, they help themselvesvto the best mangoes and avocados, eat a bit then drop them. I don't mind, food has been scarce with the drought, so I'm happy to share.
ReplyDeleteI'm a member of a Facebook gardening group, Nanette. There are so many experienced gardeners in the group and I learn so much from them. And they are always willing to trade plants. :)
DeleteSorry to read about the sink issue, Nil. Thrift stores are sometimes a good source, but unfortunately a couple in our area recently closed because of the virus shutdowns and financial issues. One was a Habit for Humanity Restore which always had household items in stock, perhaps you can find a similar outlet in your area. Failing that, buying new might be the best option. I may try peanut butter with noodles but would most likely opt for homemade noodles or store bought vs. Ramen noodles in the recipe. Sushi is one of my husband's favorites, but we have never done it at home.
ReplyDeleteWe do have several Habitat for Humanity Restores in the area, Beatrice. They opened stores again recently. I plan to go there sometime soon.
DeleteI bought all my plantation shutters from Restores. :)
I haven't made noodles at home. I had rice noodles that I bought to make Vietnamese pho, so I used that.
That's a nice picture of your resident mockingbirds! And that sushi looks pretty snazzy to me. I do hope the squirrels are feeling generous and save you some passion fruit. I have no experience with growing papaya.. way too exotic for where I live... but yours look large and healthy.
ReplyDeletePapayas take so much time to grow. I'm waiting impatiently until they turn yellow. :)
Deletegood job on the sushi. looks very tasty. i have a feeling if you're only seeing one baby bird that the others have met an untimely end...
ReplyDeleteSherry, just the other day I saw two young birds. So I think at least two out of three survived. 😊
DeleteNil, I planted a punnet of marigolds a couple of weeks ago and have two left. I have no idea what ate them but there must be some pest that comes out at night as where they are is surrounded by wire to deter the possums. I didn't think any pest would bother with marigolds 😃
ReplyDeleteI bought the marigold plant as a pest repellent, but later learned that they attract snails and spider mites. I wonder if snails ate yours marigolds. I also learned that they must be scented to repel insects.
DeleteBeautiful photos and the food looks soooo good! Stay safe and healthy everyone ☺
ReplyDeleteThank you Natalia. Hope you are doing well. 😊
DeleteYour food photos also look so delicious. Hopefully the squirrels will leave you a few passionfruit to enjoy. Pinwheel jasmine are lovely plants-such shiny green leaves!
ReplyDeleteI hope squirrels will be kind to me Anita. So far when I get one ripe passion fruit, they get about 4-5 green ones. The sad thing is sometimes they don’t even eat them. It looks like they cut the stem first, and ignore the fruit after it fall to the ground. Sigh...
DeleteI love when babies learn to fly 🐦
ReplyDeleteAnd I’m jealous of your papaya
I really enjoy bird watching. Now I know how to recognize young mockingbirds from adults. 😊
Deletesuch a lovely photo of the mockingbirds - Your sushi looks very professional and I want to try the noodle dish! Our squirrels seem exceptionally pesky this summer and much bigger! They are getting into my flower beds and breaking flowers and digging up some..
ReplyDeleteOh I’m glad the squirrels here haven’t gotten to my flower beds ... yet.
DeleteThey are too busy eating green passion fruits.
Your sushi looks really good Nil, we love it, but I haven't ventured into making it. It is often my treat after the grocery shopping. Pawpaws seem to take ages to ripen. And then we have to pick them a bit green before the flying foxes get them. Good luck with them. Pauline
ReplyDeleteI didn’t know papayas took a long time to ripen. I covered them loosely with bags because I noticed birds or squirrels had nibbled tomatoes right next to papaya trees.
DeleteI had to look up what flying foxes were. 😁