Seizing Citrus Season
squeezing the best out of life...
Hello,
I once wrote that “orange is my spirit guide — energetic, optimistic, and a little bit tart.” Courtesy of the smitten kitchen digest, I have a few recipes to add to your citrus cannon including a lemony pasta that will startle your winter weary senses, a simple lemon tart that goes all in with the entire fruit, and caramelized brown sugar oranges that marries bitter with sweet. Perhaps the perfect breakfast/dessert/remedy for these unsteady times.
Onward
For months I’ve been musing about (and hinting at) “the next.” Over the last 6 months I’ve brainstormed with friends, scribbled countless note cards with what-if propositions, and continually added to a rambling document (or 3) tucked away in a folder labeled “REFRESH” on my desktop.
Please understand, “refresh” has nothing to do with resolutions, but I’ve decided to introduce the new name of this newsletter on this last day of January all the same. Cultivating Color encompasses my love for the garden and the kitchen told through the lens of color.
Sharp eyed readers may note that nothing’s really changing. Instead, I think the shift is internal, an expansive leaning into my gardener/cook* persona. I am and always will be a (handmade) gardener. Along with a generous harvest of bouquets and berries — and blisters and bruises — my garden continually teaches me to cultivate growth and accept change in every aspect of life. Neither the garden nor the gardener is ever completely still. I’m so glad you’re here.
xo Lorene
* gardener/cook was the Instagram account that was lost last spring.
Shop Talk
Just a reminder that all postcards and stickers are 30% off when you enter: SEND30 at checkout.
Recent reading: Sweet Pea School, Growing and Arranging the Garden’s Most Romantic Blooms. Publishes February 25, 2025, but you can preorder now. Sweet peas will always have a place in my garden and my heart. After reading this beautiful book I may have over-ordered seeds for this year. Can’t stop. Won’t stop.
Chilly Sweet Peas
Anyone who has spent even a few growing seasons with me will tell you, sweet peas are my totem plant, a generational touchstone and possibly the most satisfying cut flower in my summer garden. It used to be that every year, right around Valentine’s Day, I would go through the ritual of soaking, sprouting, and starting seeds. Dreaming of the fragrant blo…
Recent writing: How to garden in sync with nature’s calendar in your own backyard. Did you know that your garden is like a toad, a coldblooded animal whose metabolism keeps pace with external temperatures.
Recommending: In a recent newsletter, @sue clancy talked about the “consolation” of color, an idea that resonated deeply with me. Personally, color is a source of delight and focus as well as comfort and refuge.
Introducing
Watch for Index of Delight, a mini dose of wonder landing in your inbox every Monday. Each brief dispatch will share a favorite quote, a delight, and a prompt to carry with you into the week. I’m excited to hear what you think.
Ticket Giveaway!
This year’s Northwest Flower & Garden Festival runs February 19-23 at the Seattle Convention Center. I’m speaking on Wednesday Hope to see you there!
If you’re in the greater Puget Sound region, I’ve got a complimentary ticket to giveaway to the first 3 people to respond to this email. Simply hit “reply”
Follow this link to get $3 off a regular adult ticket. Discount valid through midnight 2/28/25.
Coloring
An energetic spring for anyone who needs it. I know I do. Cyclamen hederifolium developing seed pods. Yet another case of looking closely at one thing and discovering another.
You never know what the day will bring. Friends who give you flowers, like a bunch of budded lilies, are simply the best! On the flip side. A loved one’s unexpected spill and a trip to the emergency room is less good. My poor mom. Then again, time altogether as a family is good.
On a week when we’re finding our feet again after mom’s fall it’s been a comfort to watch the deep merlot colored lilies emerge. Learning in close, nose to paint and paper, I catch a slight but delicious scent from these beauties — a whiff of the coming growing season
Each witch hazel bloom is like a frayed beam of winter sunshine. And the bracing fragrance does wonders for clearing my head.
I love the witch hazel colors!
Full of inspiration. Hope your mom is ok