The Garden Shedde

The first time I was asked about using a mandoline I was so confused. As a lover of Bluegrass music I was thinking about the mandolin that is played with the guitars and upright bass with a bluegrass band. I was surprised when the lady pulled out a portable slicer and unfolded it in front of me and proceeded to slice almost every type of vegetable and fruit known to man and I was impressed. It wasn’t long until I went out and bought one and now I am hooked.

Using a mandoline is much easier than hand slicing and just as easy as using anything else on the market. Most of them come with a few different slicing attachments for wedge cuts and crinkle cuts for potatoes and raw cucumbers or zucchini. You will now be able to spend most of your time actually cooking and not slicing. I love this because I like to cook but I do not like to prep or clean. I am open to any short cut or time saver that I can get in the kitchen and the mandoline has been one of the best I have ever used.

I’m sure you have read about how McDonald’s hamburgers have grown over the years along with their orders of French fries and cokes. However, until I actually saw the difference in the portions between the late 1950’s and today, I didn’t really understand how much more we get today. No wonder we have no idea how much we should be eating. We are told to clean our plate and are praised when we do. The problem is we just ate enough for three people!

If you can get this wrapped around your brain you might figure out what is the appropriate portion of food for any given serving. For a serving of cheese, think of one domino, your steak should be the size of a deck of cards, your next burrito the size of a small bar of hand soap and one serving of butter is no more than one die. Indulge in fruit the size of a baseball, baked potatoes no bigger than a regular sized light bulb or pasta the size of a flip phone and you will be fine. Maybe that’s why so many of us need to loose a person in weight! You can’t eat for two or three and expect to stay healthy or thin.

I am much more hopeful than ever before about hat Americans are doing individually to help save resources, recycle as much as possible and cut down their carbon footprint. The numbers of people that I know who are working or riding a bike or bus to work has tripled in the last two tears and those that are changing their buying and eating habits have truly amazed me just in the last six months!

There are a couple of friends that I thought would never even consider buying local and changing the way they cook and eat but they actually showed me a farm they are considering buying as much meat and vegetables from as possible! I almost fell over with surprise. People are starting to realize the benefits of eating local for our planet and our health. I know for me, using local honey has made a difference in how allergies are affecting me these days and though I have not had time to test it, it is well documented that eating a raw or vegan diet can lead to weight loss and eliminating many diseases including diabetes. Of course, you want to talk to your doctor before taking off on this type of diet on your own but who knows, we may be able to control our health by just eating healthier and wiser.

When talking about sheds, most people only think about the kind of shed, the size and the materials it’s made out of. However, there are many ways you can use a garden shed if you just think about it for a while. Once you decide what you really would like to do with your shed, then you can really go out and get what will work best for you and your family.

Then you get to create the perfect landscape and look surrounding the shed so it doesn’t look drab out in the back yard. Planting the right shrubs, flowers or trees around the outdoor shed can lend beauty to something w think is nor so beautiful. Bringing your touch and eye to something so simple can really make a difference as you add to your yard and garden. Just don’t short change what you can do and open up your mind to the infinite possibilities for your yard. You will be glad you did as you enjoy your creations

More and more people are moving in the direction of buying practical gifts for their friends and family. There is nothing more practical than some great gardening gifts for those families and individuals that are starting to or wanting to grow their own food. The great thing is you can get something as simple as hand tools to a larger and more complex garden gifts that might include a raised bed or even a greenhouse.

The most important thing to consider is the skill set of the person you are giving the gift to. You may also want to ask them what they are lacking or what they would like to add in their garden this next spring. There are some things that are organic specific and others that are for general gardening. Whatever you buy for the gardener in your life, make it practical. You can also give a gift to encourage growing their own food as well. One of the best things to use to get stared is a raised bed and you can get organic beds or beds made from recycled milk jugs that both help the environment as well as give someone a way to grow their own food.