Serendipity in Sonoma: Petaluma

Speaking of heirloom tomatoes, as luck would have it we recently found ourselves smack in the middle of Sonoma Valley, passing by the town of Petaluma.

Petaluma has never been on my mental map but just a few days before we boarded Virgin America for sunny California my Baker Creek seed catalogue arrived in the mail. You see, buoyed by last year’s unexpected gardening success, I have big ambitions for growing juicy tomatoes. And Petaluma, on our way to the wine country, is home to Baker Creek’s seed bank!

The seed bank is literally an old bank, with high ceilings, moldings from the gilded age, and thousands of packets of famed heirloom seeds in neat rows.

The Seed Bank on main street, a Mecca! 

Though frankly I am after the fresh veg that tastes amazing, we have been reading up on heirloom seeds. Heirlooms are not hybrids and are not genetically modified (ie natural selection over human intervention).

Neat rows of dahlias and morning glories.

Choosing tomato seeds is not as easy as one might imagine. Pink tomatoes and striped tomatoes, cherry tomatoes and giant tomatoes, Russian tomatoes and Japanese tomatoes. One of the garden-wise employees pointed me to Green Zebras and Pantano Romanesco.

Rows and rows of tomato seeds

In a so-very-California turn of events a couple dudes acquiring seeds for a well known local restaurant (seasonal, heirloom, local, of course), helped round out my picks.

Stay tuned for more gardening updates. And if you know anything about growing tomatoes, be a dear and share your tips.

January Assortment: From Downton to Heirlooms

Last time I wrote about an assortment of topics I had a pretty good time of it. So here is a January medley.

First, BBC’s Downton Abbey and very good it is. If you are not watching it yet, you should. It is full of drama for a thinking person (I mean you have to vaguely understand entailed property) not to mention the best zingers delivered by Dame Maggie Smith ("Do you think she’s mad, ill, or working for the Russians?").

I snagged this screengrab from PBS

This brings me to Julian Fellow's Snobs - anyone who enjoys Downton will LOVE this book. It is a delightful and frothy tale of British aristocracy but set in modern time. Julian Fellows is known for authoring Gosford Park but is rapidly becoming the "guy who wrote Downton Abbey."

Which brings me to Helen Frankenthaler who passed away just a few weeks ago.  No, no relation to other topics. Not only is her art important, but it is beautiful (there is a difference, you know). Frankenthaler worked with the likes of Jackson Pollock and poured thinned paint on canvas to create her works.

This work "Spiritualist" by Frankenthaler from 1973 hangs at the National Museum of Women in the Arts.

Final topic is tomatoes.  Heirloom tomatoes to be specific.  Buoyed by last year's gardening success (to my intense surprise I ended up with a crop of herbs from seed) I am keen to get started and patiently await my catalogue from Rare Seeds.  If you know anything about growing tomatoes in suburban yard or what heirlooms to choose, do get in touch.

With any luck in six months I will have my own crop of lovely tomatoes.

Garden Pipe Dream

If you are seeking serious gardening advice, it really would be better to move right along to more credible publications. Gardening always appealed to my sensibilities in a romanticized sort of way. It is gentile and lovely, full of cabbage roses and swaying lavender, morning dew, elegant glass cloches, rustic but ever-so-graceful watering can, neatly organized seeds packets in a garden shed...

Though cabbage roses may not be in my gardening future, a modest herb garden seems to be just the thing. Undeterred by my actual spotty record of tending to plants, I boldly step into action. I am armed with seed staring soil and tiny cardboard pots. To up the ante I am starting my own seedlings.

As every venture, this herb garden began with Google. I industriously reviewed smart herb garden plans and learned about companion planting. One practical tip picked up along the way: cover seedlings with plastic wrap. Done.



Basil and Thyme: Clearly I have a neck for this!


Long and behold, mere days later my basil and thyme is starting to sprout. Lavender takes a few days longer but at last it is sprouting too. Already, I have visions of clipping bits of tarragon for my vinaigrettes and wonder if it’s wiser to freeze or dry excess supply of supple oregano. It doesn’t take long for my kitchen table to start resembling a mini-nursery.

Emboldened by my early success, I pick up more seed packets.




Seeds are "Guaranteed to grow" so it's a sure thing!

 I engage assistance of husband in surveying the expansive property for just the right spot to cultivate my herb garden. To be continued…