Borage Soup

Recipe: Borage Leaf Soup

Last week I wrote about growing borage as well as my recent forays into using the leaves more readily as an edible staple. While I have found several ways to use the prickly greens, making variations on this soup recipe has proven to be most successful and best-suited to my current diet. As I have

Borage and bumble bee

For the Love (and sometimes not) of Borage

I’ve been growing borage (Borago officinalis) for almost as long as I’ve been a gardener, but when I look back, I can’t recall why I started growing it in the first place. Borage is an unpleasantly prickly if not painful plant. It grows scraggly and too tall in my well-cared-for soil and relies on neighbouring

Blue on Chartreuse

Borage (Borago officials) flowers shot against a backdrop of Golden Jubilee Anise Hyssop (Agastache foeniculum ‘Golden Jubilee’) leaves.

Constructing Lunch

We’re hitting that magical time of the season when a growing portion of our meals are gleaned from the garden. I enjoy moving around the space, snipping bits of this and that from here and there. I have edibles tucked in everywhere. There are lettuce seedlings in every bed, except the dry one. They would

Weekend Gardening Highlights

It was an insanely busy working weekend. Come Monday morning and I was desperate to unwind from the weekend, not the other way around. I still managed to get some time in most of the gardens, with the exception of the street garden, which is taking care of itself these days. Thankfully we got some

First Lunch Courtesy of the Garden

Recently, our meals have been peppered with ingredients gleaned from the gardens; however, today’s lunch is the first that is all garden grown. Here’s the breakdown: Chive Blossoms: A hardy perennial that has been growing for about a decade in a big container on the roof. Lemon Balm: Eat the fresh leaves in the spring.

Pink Borage

I’ve never been able to determine why borage (Borago officinalis) flowers, which are typically blue, sometimes turn pink. Some books mention the possibility of pink and even white flowers but don’t account for why they appear. I don’t think it is related to soil pH as is the case with some flowers. Could it be

Harvested: Borage, Onions, Garlic

I just returned from my community garden plot where I harvested a ton of onions, garlic, and borage. They were all overflowing in the plot and some needed to be sacrificed for the good of the garden and future harvests. The garlic had already formed a few cloves each. I left plenty more that will

Late Season Gardening — Party Time, Excellent.

Despite the cold — and the fact that we experienced a brief and light snowfall this afternoon — outdoor gardening is still happening here in Toronto. I am yet to put any of my gardens to bed. The side garden is fine really. Doing a last clean-up is pretty much my choice. I choose to

Annual Bath & Beauty Pot

Guest post by Eleanor Athens There are so many herbs that make fantastic skin care ingredients. The three in this project – borage, chamomile and calendula – are all annuals. Start your pot in the spring after the last frost using the two-inch herbs available at most nurseries. Your pot will need good drainage, rich