Meet the Roses of My Organic Garden

 Happy New Year! I have a few more days of  my Winter Break to enjoy. I've been looking around my garden, remembering the gorgeous colors and fragrances from my roses. I carefully chose each one and have cared for them organically over the past year. Each rose has its own charm that adds to my ever evolving little garden. Today, I thought I would  introduce you to some of these beloved members of my garden family. 💖 All of the following are my photos of the roses in my garden.

Queen of Sweden

Queen of Sweden is currently my smallest rose. She is slow growing, but I chose her for her bloom shape and upright growth. Her soft pink color, and sweetly delicate cupped blooms make her look like a fairytale candy rose. I'm looking forward to seeing how she does this coming spring. I think it is important to protect this particular rose from our hot Texas afternoon sun.

Strawberry Hill (Climbing Rose)

As it climbs gracefully, my Strawberry Hill rose has clusters of warm pink flowers that fade as the blooms age. It has a strong myrrh scent that is enchanting—it truly is a delight to senses. I will add that although this rose blooms spring, summer and fall, the blooms do not last long during our hot season, as is the case with many David Austin roses. They shatter rather quickly on hot days, but during cooler months the blooms last about 5to 6 days and are much fuller and cupped. I love it's shade of pink and it's delicate center, so I still chose to plant it.

Red Eden (Climbing Rose)

This rose quickly became a favorite of mine. It is a stunning addition to my garden. Red Eden climbing rose is bold, deep raspberry crimson blossoms. I haven't even had it a full year and its a showstopper on my archway. One of my favorite things about them is how long it's blooms last on the vine - 1-2 weeks and they smell fruity and amazing! The blooms are also have an amazing vase life too. 

Crown Princess Margareta

This rose is so charming with its apricot-orange blooms and an strong sweet fragrance. This rose blooms often and keeps it's beautiful full bloom shape even in during the summer. I cant wait for it to cover the fence I panted it in front of and drape over the other side.

Lady of Shalott

This is a fast growing rose. I planted it the closest to my back door so I could look out and see the bring apricot orange blooms. The blooms also have a spicy, clove-like scent that I love. Like Strawberry Hill, the blooms on this rose are bigger and fuller during cooler temperatures, and the colors are deeper during cool weather as well.

Munstead Wood

This rose was the first one on my list of roses for my new house. It is a deeply dramatic presence in my garden and I LOVE how deep and velvety the blooms are. The strong Old Rose fragrance is intoxicating. It has a true classic rose scent, but also hints of fruity jam or wine too. 

Desdemona

Such an elegant little rose, Desdemona has pretty pure white rose buds that subtly blush to soft pink at the center. Her strong fragrance of old rose and almond blossoms makes her a true garden gem. I have two of these roses planted in large containers. As with most light colored flowers in Texas, thrips were an annoyance during the summer for her, but she blooms all throughout the year.

Madame Ernest Calvat

I fell in love with this rose all the way back when I worked at an organic nursery during college. We sold roses from the Antique Rose Emporium and once this rose bloomed, I was hooked. It has a romantic look, and has large, lavender-pink blossoms with a strong, heady scent. Once established this rose creates an unbelievable show in the spring. I put it in my front flower bed. 

Belinda's Dream

True to its name, Belinda’s Dream is a dream come true for rose lovers. Its has huge, blush-pink to silver pink flowers are as dreamy. It is also such a dependable rose for hot Texas summers and an excellent rose for cut flowers. 

Now that it's cold out I've been collecting seeds, dividing plants, moving things around and making plans of what to add to my garden. Do you have roses in your garden? If not what has kept you from growing them? If you do have roses, what are your favorites and why? I'd love to know. 

Until my next post, Cheers, and I'm wishing you all a Happy and Prosperous New Year!

My Thoughts on making Tom Kha Soup for the First Time

 

I'm on my Winter Break from teaching and I was craving something warm and spicy, so decided to try making Tom Kha soup or Thai Chicken Coconut soup for the first time. It was absolutely delicious with the balance of the salty, sour, spicy, and sweet flavors.  I found the recipe by Cheryl Malik, here. While the recipe was easy to follow. I did make a few adjustments to the recipe-posted below. I was able to get most of the ingredients that I needed at my local grocery store, but I did have to go to Central Market to get the lemon grass for the recipe. (I'm growing some lemon grass, but it is not big enough yet to use. 😉) 

Here's the recipe from the link above:

        Tom Kha Soup

• half of one onion sliced
• ▢2 cloves garlic chopped
• ▢half of one red jalapeño pepper sliced; or a couple Thai chiles, halved
• ▢3 quarter-inch-long slices galangal or ginger
• ▢1 lemongrass stalk pounded with the side of a knife, cut into 2-inch-long pieces
• ▢10 lime leaves torn, optional
• ▢1 tablespoon red Thai curry paste
• ▢4 cups chicken broth see Notes
• ▢2 13.5-ounce cans full-fat coconut milk or coconut cream
• ▢2 small chicken breasts approximately 1 pound, cut into bite-sized pieces
• ▢8 ounces white mushroom caps sliced
• ▢2-3 tablespoons brown sugar or coconut sugar, see Notes
• ▢2-3 tablespoons fish sauce plus more to taste
• ▢2-3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
• ▢2-3 green onions thinly sliced
• ▢chopped fresh cilantro for garnish

Instructions

• Add onion, garlic, jalapeño or chile, galangal or ginger, lemongrass, lime leaves, red curry paste, and chicken broth to slow cooker. Stir to incorporate, then cover slow cooker with lid.
• Cook on high heat for 2 to 3 hours, or low heat for 4 to 6 hours. After cook time is up, use slotted spoon to remove all aromatics, leaving broth behind.
• Add in coconut cream or milk, chicken breast (or tofu or shrimp), and mushrooms. Cook on high heat 1 hour or low heat 2 hours, or until chicken breast pieces are cooked through.
• After cooking, add sugar, fish sauce, and lime juice. Taste and add more of each ingredient as desired. Ladle soup into serving bowls and top with sliced green onions and fresh cilantro. Serve warm. 
• 
  
• **Adjustments I made to the recipe:
• 
  
• I used 2 - 10 oz. cans of chicken breast (to save time)
• I used 2 tablespoons of red curry paste instead of 1 tablespoon
• I used the juice from 4 limes
• I used ginger 
• I used a teaspoon and a half of lime zest instead of lime leaves

If you’re looking to add a warm and comforting dish to your rotation, this Tom Kha soup is a must-try. What’s your favorite Thai dish to make at home? I'd love to try some more recipes.

Welcome to My Creative Garden: Where Art, Nature, and Whimsy Collide!

 Hi there! I'm Misty Poe, a free spirit with a passion for all things green, creative, and nurturing. While I may not have children of my own, my life is filled with fur babies (and a fish friends!), vibrant plants, and plenty of paintbrushes. In this space, I’m inviting you to join me on a journey through my world—a place where organic gardening flourishes alongside art projects, creative teaching, foraging for nature's treasures, and experimenting with delicious recipes. Whether you're here to learn how to grow your own food, get inspired by my artistic adventures, or explore new ways to live in harmony with nature, there's something here for everyone. Let’s grow, create, and thrive together!

My Violet

My Velvet

The newest member of my family, little Crackle

Green Beans for Eva

Green Beans for Eva book

Since my last post I got a little side-tracked, but I got myself back on track fairly quickly. I received news in October that a children's book called 'Green Beans for Eva,' that I illustrated was being published. I'm very proud of the work I did for it. Here's a peek at a few of the images inside:

If you are looking for a gift for a young family member or friend, this is a sweet book. <3 p="">

Happy Holiday, All!

Evolution

Hello there! I'm finally back after 6 months. My unexpected summer break is coming to a close in a couple of weeks, but I have been pretty productive with my time. I have been doing a lot of painting. I've started exploring florals in combination with the experimental color, texture and abstraction that I've been working on for the past few years. I've also become interested in portrait painting again, or at least figurative story telling.
Here is a collection of images of some of the work that I have done over the past few months. Next up, I'll be back teaching elementary art in a couple of weeks, and I am super excited about it.
You can currently find my pins and paintings at ATown in Austin, TX or as always message me about anything you may be interested in.

 

  

 

 

Taking a Break

We'll see how long it lasts, but I deactivated my Facebook account this morning.  I think I look at it too much and it's causing me to not use my time as efficiently as I could.  I also feel that I am not making the genuine connections with people necessary to feel happy. Sure, I read everyone's updates about their lives and congratulate or compliment to the best of my ability as I see their posts, but I spend too much time doing this and then realize I could have been cooking, or painting, learning something new, going out for a walk, calling a friend, really any number of things that I am not doing. I also find that I fall into feeling sad about the connections with friends that I have had that I either no longer see, or that seem to no longer have the time for direct or in person communication with me. I feel like a majority or people prefer texting to actual phone or in person communication.  Don't get me wrong, I appreciate the technology and find it very helpful in many ways, but hearing a person's voice or spending time and sharing experiences with them is the only way to build real long-term connections with people that are important to you. That's been my experience anyway. I'm hoping to make more of an effort to see who the people are in my life that are dedicated to making that kind of connection with me, and vice-versa. I'm also hoping it takes away the tendency that I can have to compare my life and where I am at to others, as well as give me the time and freedom to explore my world around me, even at the smallest and closest levels.  I am also hoping it will help me to focus on my goal of getting my artwork out for others to view this year. Onward! Now, I'm going to enjoy coloring in this beautiful book between calls at work today.  Have a wonderful week everyone! xo

Happy 2016!!!

I realize we are already a couple of weeks into the new year, but Happy New Year!!! This week's losses of a two artists that were highly inspirational to me has left me feeling sad, but inspired to truly work to fill every day with intention, passion and kindness (which was my goal for this year). My artistic resolution for 2016 is to have courage to make, and promote my work. Here are a group of paintings wired and ready to go on display.  Onward!