Savory Le Jardin: Women at Work!

Tuesday, April 24, 2012

Women at Work!

Mrs. B. R. Cant to the rescue!

My first crop is coming in and it's courtesy of a few of my girlfriends: Mrs. B. R. Cant, the Duchesse de Brabant, and Dorcas. A few guys have pitched in, too: Abraham Darby, Benjamin Britten, and Graham Thomas.

Some of these names might sound familiar; they're my rose friends.

The warm spring has been wonderful for my roses. They are bursting with blooms--so many that I cannot keep up with them. They have become my first crop: rose petals. Because my garden is always so late, I've decided to take advantage of this beautiful bounty and sell decorative (only) dried rose petals at the farmer's market.

Fiberglas screening in a bread rack

I've been collecting the petals for a while and have fashioned a drying tray from a metal bread rack and fiberglas window screening. For now, it's just laid in the rack. I plan to cut it to fit after this first batch.

The first batch is a mixture of pink, yellow, and red petals (I hope to separate subsequent batches by color). After spreading them on the screening, I'll set them on a wire rack in a cool, dry place for a week or two. I'll stir them gently every day to avoid mold. When they're dry, I'll place them in large jars to take to the farmer's market.

One day's harvest of rose petals

I also hope to have fresh rose petals, as well as cut roses to take to the market. It's not much, but it's a start.

I confess I was a bit hesitant about doing it, at first, but finally worked up the courage to email the co-ordinator of the local farmer's market. His enthusiastic reply was very encouraging!

These plastic-coated wire baskets are perfect
for picking produce are are cute, too!

So, I'm getting ready for market the first Saturday in June (or one in May, if they're open). If this works out the girls and guys who guard my door will honor one of the primary rules of farmgirl life:

Everything earns its keep.