Monday, December 31, 2012

Saffron, figs, etc...

Just returned home to Japan after a little visit to my native country, Malaysia...
It is about 5 degrees here, compared to about 30 degrees in Malaysia...
Shot these pictures some time ago but did not have the opportunity to post them...
The above shot is that of the Crocus sativus...
We have quite a few bulbs but have not been taking good care of them...
Still, we can harvest some saffron from the flowers (which we use for cooking)...
Apparently, the saffron is among the most expensive spices in the world...

Had the opportunity to harvest a few fruits from our fig tree...
We got their seedlings from a neighbor some years ago...
They tasted really sweet and good...
Next season, I certainly plan to give more care to this plant as figs are one of my favorite, favorite fruits...

The Chingen-sai, as this vegetable is called in Japan, was thriving well before we left for Malaysia...
I took a look at the potager after coming home today...
Hmmm, they looked kind of wrinkled, probably from the effects of the cold...
And yes, I mean, no... the wild boars have definitely made their mark on my potager...
Their foot prints can be found here and there on the beds...

The Chingen-sai stir-fried with a little ginger and garlic...
 Lovely taste...
The cauliflower plant is still growing well, despite the cold...

The lettuce too, is thriving and giving us a lot to chew on...

The Komatsu-na too, is quite resistant to the cold and is growing well..

This is the last post for the year 2012.... I'd like to wish all my friends and readers a very happy 2013, and may the new year bring you and your loved ones much joy and happiness...

14 comments:

  1. Happy New Year - I have loved your photos this year - beautiful work. I'm super impressed with your saffron - I have never got one to flower despite a couple of attempts.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Happy 2013 to you, Liz... thanks for your comments... and good luck with your saffron... 2013 may be a good year for the saffron to flower...

      Delete
  2. Happy New Year Lrong! Hope you had a good holiday here in Malaysia. I love to plant saffron. Not sure how to get them here. Your veggies look good despite your holiday :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you Ash, I did have a good holiday in Msia... happy new year to you...

      Delete
  3. That is a lovely, lovely crocus flower shot. I never thought of harvesting the saffron, must remember this.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Good luck with your crocus harvest...

      Delete
  4. A great year ahead for you. May you always have a most bountiful harvest and your cornucopia fill to the brim and overflowing. love the images of your harvests, the fruits of your toil and sweat.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you so much for your compliment... likewise, I wish you happy gardening in 2013...

      Delete
  5. Belated happy new year.
    Beautiful crocus and figs you have there, I'm in a gardening rut, hope to get some seeds started for the coming spring.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Happy NY year to you too... good luck with gardening in the coming spring season...

      Delete
  6. A little bit late but akemashite omedetougozaimashita.
    Do you dried your figs when you have too many?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Akemmashite omedetou gozaimasu... our fig 'harvest' is barely enough for us to have them fresh... perhaps in a few years down the road, we can work towards a bigger harvest...

      Delete
  7. Hello Lrong! happy New Year to you and your sweet wifey :-D hey thanks for cutting open that fig fruits. Looks soooo goood!! Next time if I see one fig fruit, I will be so ready to get it to put into my mouth hehe... Btw, I like long beans omelette as well ;-)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Happy NY to you too, Steph... the figs were really good, I must say...

      Delete