Summer has arrived. With so much happening at once throughout the gardens of our Inn, it’s hard to single out one subject. So we didn’t, we chose three plants to highlight. Japanese Iris, cooking with garlic scapes and the common Tiger lily.
Japanese Iris
With the unusual amount of rain we had this spring everything is extremely lush and our flower gardens are flourishing. Especially grateful for the extra water is our collection of beautiful Japanese Iris. They prefer moist rich soil, and if we have a damp spring the reward is an abundance of showy blooms. We planted a few clumps about a decade ago that we purchased from a friend who was a grower of these incredible perennials in Friendship, ME. She had devoted a field of them that led down to the sea with a stunning picturesque cove as a backdrop. As you can imagine, it was a breathtaking sight when they were all in bloom and a snapshot of that image remains in our memories. Since then we have divided these clumps countless times over the years to maintain their vigor and I keep remarking that we need more room in the garden and more friends to share with.
Garlic Scapes-Cooking
We grow many vegetables throughout the summer and garlic is one of them. It ranks number 1 on the list of “must haves” for us. To many of our guests’ surprise, growing this allium is one of the most undemanding and easiest plants to grow(we are getting ready to harvest our garlic and will be devoting an entire post to growing and storing it).
There is nothing like the flavor of your own fresh garlic and if you like to cook with it you will have a tough time purchasing store bought again. One of the benefits of growing garlic is their scapes(seed heads) that you must clip off so the energy is concentrated on developing a larger garlic bulb. They are delicious, mild and versatile. You can sautee them and serve as a side dish(great with marinated grilled steak), steam and toss with veggies, stir fry and combine in Asian dishes, add to soups and the list goes on.
One of my favorite ways to prepare garlic scapes it to sautee them with tomatoes. I cut them into 2-3 in. pieces, sautee with olive oil until slightly soft, add a couple of chopped tomatoes, coarse salt, pinch of sugar, dash of crushed red pepper seeds, sprinkle of dried oregano(from our garden) and loosely cover with a round of parchment paper(or pot cover). Cook on a low simmer about 10 min. This is an excellent pizza topping or delicious tossed with pasta, some grated cheese, and a chiffonade of fresh basil. I don’t like to complicate cooking in the summer, I save that for the winter.
sauteed garlic scapes and tomatoes
The Tiger lily
Ahh, the Tiger Lilies. You know it’s July when the Tigers are out. They never seem to get enough recognition yet I know we all see them when driving and suddenly notice these splashes of orange that appear to leap out. We’ve seen them planted at entrances to a drive, adorning country homes, standing alone in a patch of lawn, clumped under business signs, swaths along roadsides, and even deep down in a ditch(that always amazes me). I especially enjoy the contrast of Tiger Lilies alongside historic white homes, the colors are reminiscent of the old summertime treat, the Creamsicle, that we enjoyed as kids.
We have plenty of patches of our own. They stand behind rock walls or act as an entrance leading to some of our more formal gardens. Many years ago we cleaned out an old raspberry patch that was littered with Tigers and started transplanting them alongside our drive. They are a beautiful addition to the pink morning glories, that now climb there way to the top of the lily, combined with the wild roses and sweet ferns.
