258. X is for Xanthous

Dave had fun playing with my tomatoes. I got the highly coveted, "If I were straight, I'd show you a really good time" award!!!  THAT is the highest compliment. Have you read his entry yet?  If not, go here, then come back.  I'll wait. 

-------------Now, then.  Let's get on to more mundane affairs.

Xanthous, in case you don't know (because why would you?), means yellowish. 

I could go around and photograph all my yellow and gold yarn and fiber, and my sunflowers (which are nonexistent this year, but...) and my calendula and my marigolds and my daylilies and my summer squash, the couple of pieces of yellow pottery I have and the yellow botanical prints, and my yellow jasper pendant, and bees with their legs laden with yellow pollen, or dandelion blossoms -- but I'm rather sick of sticking to the rules of the ABC-Along, aren't you?  I think I speak for all of us when I say we have to search desperately for an X word, and let's face it, I scoured the dictionary mightily for one I could use. So I thought I'd photograph something that is more at the front of my mind right about now.

Holy xrap, that is what's known as a xrapload of Swixx xhard!  You can't see it, but there are yellow-stemmed ones in there too. 

And you know, if it weren't for yellow, my wheelbarrow would be reddish (it's faded over the years) and my Swiss chard would be blue. Right?  So xanthous is the word of the day, and I'm nearing the end of the ABC-Along.

In case anyone is wondering, if the conditions are right, this is how much chard you can get from one 3ft X 3ft grow bed. This is after the several bags I have already frozen and the several meals we have already eaten from this year's one bed entirely devoted to Swiss chard.  And it's still growing.

It's a good thing we like it, herrm? I spent all of Sunday afternoon blanching and freezing some of this, bagging some of it up to give away, and I still had more left over to eat this week.  I wonder if we'll ever eat it all, or will we just grow so terribly sick of it that I'll never grow it again?  I haven't even started on the kale yet.  And the new fall planting of beet greens. 

I had beet greens and chicken for breakfast yesterday morning.  And a highly delicious breakfast it was, too. 

The other night I had a dream that I had realized a whole other great place for a garden spot that would dramatically increase my growing space.  I was knocking myself on the head and saying, "Why didn't I think of this before?!" Then I woke up and realized I was dreaming about my childhood home, not this one.  I told Claudia about this dream, to which she replied:

"Repeat after me:  I am a gardener, not a farmer." 

Hm. Xactly. 

Comments

[Stephanie]

Oh my...your swiss chard is gorgeous. I need to go and get me some. My naturopath told me a while ago to help heal with certain foods..and she uses chard in what she calls "soul soup". You saute chard and onions until good and wilted and then put 'em in the blender with chicken broth or veg. broth and whir the whole thing up and drink it in small sips while cupping the mug in your hands. It really does make you feel pretty good :) Not that you need soul soup or anything...but you do have a rather large crop o' chard there....and....well..I thought I'd give you some tips on what to use some of it for :)

[lisa]

Why can't you be a farmer? A farmer of thoughts and ideas and dreams and gardens that wanna be big spreads? When we think of moving, we always think that we want more land (we have just under quarter acre) with more sun (we loose it early because we're on a hill) and flat (said hill). My friend who spent time in Greece said that my black dog who is turning whitish/tannish in places (even though she is young, must be those yellow lab and border collie genes poking through) is what the Greeks call blonde, xanthe. And my Latvian friend's niece is named Zentha, sounds the same, but I think it means something different, even though she is blonde.

[lisa]

Because I want to grow pumpkins.... And winter squashes....

[sandy]

Rats. And I could have snitched a couple of dozen of those xtems and you would have never xissed thex.
Plant some next year, will xou?
xo

[Carole]

You should listen to Claudia. She's wicked smart.

[Manise]

Why can't we be small scale farmers, huh? We have crops in boxes! :-)

[margene]

Claudia is always right on the money.

[kathy]

I had a dream that someone was designing me a black trench coat. I though this is great because I really want one. That morning I walked by a store window and there it was on display. No, I didn't go buy it. But now it has me thinking, do I really want one? Should I listen to my dream self?

[CindyCindy]

Your Swiss chard is gorgeous. And, although I do not question the incredible wisdom of Claudia, I must say you are a farmer. A generic definition for farmer is "creator".

[claudia]

OK, I see that chard. The real question is, how many TOMATOES can one grow in a 3 by 3 grow bed?

[Nicole]

Looks like your garden-a-long was a success! Have you started planning next year's garden yet? Will you be trying anything new?

[Helen]

I read David's post. I love the word plotz. Nice chard.

[marianne]

Holy xrap, you are so funny. Your toms are gorgeous, er, Dave's now, as is the Swixx xhard! dang, that's a LOT.

[Cookie]

I am not arguing with the wonderful Claudia. However, I do wonder what's wrong with a little at home farming.

Moving on...

Love the chard!

[Adrianne]

hehe, I work on what I think is a farm. We work about 5 acres. My employers call it the garden. So do whatever you like! And Oh! The Chard! Sooooo beautiful. I've just planted some (well maybe a month ago) down in SW Virginia, and I've got little bitty seedlings working their way up, I hope they make it.

PS- since I don't comment often, gotta tell you, love you blog, read it all the time. Love your attitude, it points me in the right direction. thanks!

[Brenda]

You'll be all set now when one of the professors in the medical school talks about something being xanthrochromic. (I used that word in a lecture this morning).

[Beth S.]

Best "x" ever. Really!