faulker042

Deer resistant garden. May 2012. I've been gardening with my deer friends since September 2005 when we built our home. Deer resistance varies according to the availability of food in the wild and the population of both the deer and humans (new construction removes habitat).  My definition of deer resistance is this: If the deer nibble the plants, but the plants bounce back for my enjoyment in the bloom season, the plant passes the test. See that pretty Yucca 'Color Guard' in the photo above? The deer nip the tips in January and February when food is scarce. But the leaves recover and the plant blooms on schedule in May. That's what I mean by deer resistant, even though the yucca looks a bit scruffy as I write this post on a cold January morning. In the photo below, note the mounded Spirea 'Neon Flash' blooming in shades of pink. Once in awhile, the deer will pick a bloom, but overall, I don't miss a few flowers during peak bloom season. The spirea blooms for...

Waterfront Park in Charleston, SC. Nine A. M.  (looking away from the sun) January 13, 2013 A forecast promising sunny days and temperatures in the seventies was enough of a temptation to put us on the road to Charleston, South Carolina. With a drive time under five hours from our home in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, we spent little time debating our getaway destination. We stayed in the historic district where it was convenient to walk through the streets (a few remain cobblestone) in the French Quarter and South of Broad, including the famous Battery. We got caught up in the game of "which house do you want to buy?" as we wandered along the shady streets and drooled over the architecture of homes from the 1700 and 1800s. It was "Restaurant Week" in Charleston, but the crowds weren't bad. We enjoyed a great dinner with coordinating flights of wine at  Social Wine Bar  on East Bay Street. We stopped in during the early afternoon and made our reservations for eve...

Start out with good ingredients such as Valrhona Cocoa, demerara sugar, slivered almonds and chocolate chips. As a fan of food and bigger fan of Paris, I follow the blog of expat American +David Lebovitz , pastry chef, author of cookbooks and one of my favorite iPhone apps, Paris Pastry ®. I made his Chocolate Biscotti Recipe for holiday gifts.  Is it possible for an amateur like me to turn out great biscotti? I took David's advice and searched out the best cocoa as he proclaims it makes a big difference. At the new  +Sur La Table ® in Durham, I found +Valrhona® Cocoa Powder   (made in France) and while a bit on the pricey side, I'm now a convert to this brand. Intense chocolate. I also picked up demerara sugar (for the glaze) and slivered almonds at the local  +Southern Season  in Chapel Hill. Pause for technology tip: You'll note that there are now plus signs in front of some links. These are easy links provided by Google+ to profile pages so ...