Though days are gradually shortening following the summer solstice, and the long slide to autumn has begun, it’s no downward slide in the garden.
The post-solstice season is one of abundance, a time that sees onions bulbing, fruits and berries swelling and sweetening, and flowers blooming and adding fragrance to the garden’s summertime pleasures.
Gardeners will be blessedly awash in fresh salads, pea pods, artichokes, new potatoes and much more.
The hordes of people who retreated to their homes and gardens, last year at the start of the pandemic and began food gardening have expanded on those beginnings this year and are building further success from that experience.
During the time when her shop was closed last year, the woman who cuts my hair set up an extensive garden with her partner. This year, she tells me, it has expanded to become a “serious garden” with arbours, a multitude of hanging baskets, an old boat filled with flowers, 50 Red Russian garlic plants, a huge strawberry patch, snow peas, spinach and more.
Best of all, she is expecting to soon enjoy sweet-scented bouquets of her favourite flower, the sweet pea, picked from the vines she planted.
Celebrate with strawberries. Summer solstice coincides with the strawberry season, and in some countries, it’s a tradition to celebrate the first day of summer by picking — at home or a local farm — and indulging in strawberries. Consider strawberries and cream, strawberry and rhubarb pie, or the ultimate delight, strawberry shortcake.
I have great plans for my strawberries. I’m looking forward to strawberry sorbet made by blending frozen berries smooth in a food processor or high-powered blender. If I pick the berries fully ripe, no sweetener will be needed. Because the berries are not cooked, they need to be well rinsed.
If you are buying berries, buy only organic ones to avoid pesticide residues. According to the Environmental Working Group (ewg.org), strawberries are among the fresh fruits and vegetables most likely to harbour these residues.
A truly sumptuous dessert can be made simply by spreading a soft chocolate topping (ganache) over a plain cheesecake and arranging strawberries on top.
There are different ways to make a soft chocolate topping. One is to heat and stir equal amounts of whipping cream and chopped dark chocolate until the mixture is smooth. My friend Heather pours 1/3 cup heated whipping cream over four ounces of chopped dark chocolate and stirs until smooth.
For such a fancy-looking dessert, it’s quite simple to make.
HCP news. The Horticulture Centre of the Pacific, 505 Quayle Rd. in Saanich, is now open from Thursday through Sunday, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. The Plant Sale Centre will be open on those days and is restocked nearly every day with plants propagated at HCP, including more than 25 varieties of hardy fuchsias.
Children and youth programs. Check out the HCP nature programs, garden workshops and garden camps at hcp.ca/events.
Help from Master Gardeners. While the Victoria Master Gardener Association is currently unable to hold their usual face-to-face clinics, they are connecting with gardeners and offering advice by email.
Send questions to info@msvmga.org. For information about the association, visit victoriamastergardeners.org.
