BOK CHOY RELOADED

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I tried bok choy also known as Chinese cabbage for the first time a few months ago. I really liked it. There are numerous recipes on how to prepare it. I chose to saute the leaves and stems with a little olive oil and garlic, salt and pepper. As much as I'd like to have more, it's a little pricey for me. $2.49 for a bunch at Publix. Once it's cooked, there's enough for maybe 2 servings.

While visiting YouTube which is something I do frequently, I came across videos of people regrowing  vegetables from a part that was left over. I've tried this with celery, green onions, basil and some others. These were all curiosity experiments and no expectations of a full-fledged plant.






After cutting across the base of the plant,

copied from http://blog.spacegirlorganics.com/regrowing-bok-choy/ 

 I placed the base in water.

Top view after two weeks

Side view after two weeks

I read that the plants enjoy cool weather, sun and that the roots do better in the dark. That's when I took it outside and planted in potting soil. Also, the outer stems were disintegrating in the water.

We've had freezing weather and warm sunny weather here in Birmingham, Alabama. You never know what to expect. I never took the plant inside. I let it fend for itself.

You can see the roots attached to the soil

Today I wanted to see if the plant was making any progress after over a month.













After shaking off the dirt this is what was left.

 

The plant really hasn't grown that much.

After further reading I found that for a complete adult plant, it is necessary to grow them from seed.
I'll eat the leaves off of this and keep sprouting it in water until its completely spent.

Pot

I’ve read quite a bit about how to dry hydrangeas. About 10 years ago I did this by tying the stems together and hanging them upside down in my basement. I kept those dried flowers for 4 years until I just plain got tired of looking at them. They really hold up well. I have actually seen people at outdoor markets selling dried hydrangeas for a very hefty price.
A couple weeks ago I was fortunate to have a bouquet of big leaf hydrangeas given to me. I wanted to preserve them as long as possible so this time I stood them upright inside a tomato cage I wasn’t using inside the garage. I think they turned out pretty good. BTW I don’t know what the smaller flowers are but they seem to have done well also.



I have to warn you they're very fragile once they're dry. Have some idea as to how you plan to arrange them before putting them in a vase or pot. Otherwise, you're likely to lose a lot of blossoms.





Basil
This is Genovese Basil growing in a pot. It makes great pesto. I found a recipe at All Recipes.com
I make sure I keep it watered with the days here in the upper 90's. It grows very fast. When cutting make sure you leave a cluster of four leaves so that it will continue to grow.
Here's the recipe . Although I plan to tweak it by using chopped peanuts instead of almonds. (Remember I'm thrifty)

INGREDIENTS For PESTO
*1/4 cup almonds (substitute chopped peanuts)
*3 cloves garlic
*1 1/2 cups fresh basil leaves
*1/2 cup olive oil
*1 pinch ground nutmeg
*salt and pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C). Place almonds on a cookie sheet, and bake for 10 minutes, or until lightly toasted. (Omit this step. The peanuts are already roasted)
2. In a food processor, combine toasted almonds, garlic, basil, olive oil, nutmeg, salt and pepper. Process until a coarse paste is formed.
Note: Pick basil the same day you plan to make pesto. I made the mistake of placing the picked leaves in the fridge. NOT a good idea. It wilted away and spoiled.

Put this concoction on toasted garlic bread or pasta and a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese and you've got a tasty
treat.

Roma Tomato
The Roma tomato is pear shaped and comes in red and yellow. I chose red . I have planted yellow in the past but to me they weren't as sweet as the red. There was too much tartness. The Roma is also known as the “plum tomato” . The white you see is where I tied it to the stake in the pot.






ROSEMARY
Just for good measure I wanted to show you my rosemary plant also in a pot. The picture shows it looking a little dry but I promise I watered it right after I took the picture. This baby was saved from last year. I brought it inside and nursed it the same as a houseplant. Summer has returned and it's still alive. Some people use this plant as a hedge. Can you imagine the aroma as the wind blows? Delicious.

I've grown a little of everything in a pot in the past. I plan to experiment even more in the future.
Lastly, to show that I'm into recycling, I put the watering jug underneath the air conditioning drain and use the water for my plants. It would only drip on the ground if I didn't.










THAT'S ALL***