Madison’s Pickles

08/19/2025

Small bounties this week in the garden! Lots of weird & new produce!

08/05/2025

From a far you are going to see an overgrown yard filled with weeds, but if you change your preception & take a closer look you will see a thriving ecosystem filled with bugs,birds,fungi,trees, flowers,fruits, & vegetables. I tried to depict the difference in perception throughout most of the photos, so you could all enjoy as much as myself! Gardening to me is more than putting plants in the ground. It’s intention, planning & ex*****on! It’s my peace & it’s my form of art 🌻

(August blooms)

07/30/2025

🌺Let’s talk about hibiscus!! 🌺

Aside from its individual beauty Hibiscus has many health benefits & can be a fun bloom to work with!
Hibiscus offers various health benefits! It’s loaded with antioxidants, may aide in heart health, used for it’s anti microbial properties, may help lower blood pressure & cholesterol levels, aid in digestion & promote liver health! Can be used to help lower fevers & used for its antibacterial properties. Hibiscus may also aide in weight loss & help regulate blood sugar!
Now you may be thinking “ok, that’s cool & all, but how can I consume it?” Well, traditionally you can drink it as a tea that’s one of the easier methods. The tea has a tart & slighly sweet flavor. Great way of boosting antioxidant intake! Some other ways you could use it include hibiscus syrup, drinks, desserts, savory dishes, personal care products, the flowers can be used in sauces, marinades, & garnishes! Along with tinctures, salves, & oils for a more medicinal affect!

Fun fact: Hibiscus can be grown here in Indiana if maintain properly & pollinators love it!! The variety you want to look for should say hardy hibiscus if you want to add this besuty to your gardens. 🌺

Now with every medicinal plant I always suggest doing your own research & consult with your primary care giver if you are on any other medications! Although they may have great properties they may also come with allergies & other side effects!

‼️Warning‼️

While generally safe in moderation, hibiscus can pose some risk & warnings! Consuming hibiscus could interact with certain medications relating to blood pressure & diabetes. It may also cause blood pressure & sugar levels to drop! Hibiscus consumption is also not recommended during pregnancy or breastfeeding women due to potential miscarriage or effects on the baby!

Aside from all this amazing information what is something we should make with our hibiscus & share it with all of you?

07/29/2025

*Older video

A reminder things are always changing. Summer is slowly approaching its end & in a couple months we will find ourselves back in another shift. This is a time of reflection, slowing down and appreciating all the life around us! 🍁

07/28/2025

We have bats doing good work in our food forest! This is the first time seeing them here 😍. We must be doing something right with our .6acre lot if we are seeing all these different flora & fauna. Never in a million years would I think it’s possible to make a difference with the little amount of land we have!
Now could you imagine if a lot more people replaced their monoculture lawns & added a little bit more diversity!?!? 🌏 🌱 🦋 🐝 🍎

07/28/2025

I’m loving these summer storms 🥰.

07/28/2025

Today’s harvest consisted of hardy hibiscus, chamomile, .5gal of greenbeans, 1 cup of blackberries, 1 cup of yellow tomatoes, & some cucumbers to pickle later!
What are you harvesting from your gardens right now? 🌱🍅🥒

07/26/2025

My miracle today was walking the garden filling the bird bath & pollinators waters. During my walk I noticed several house wren fledglings taking their first flight. They sat on the branches inspecting me. May be an insignificant thing for some to witness, but for me I’m witnessing life take place in an environment we created! 💛

🤎✨🤎✨🤎✨

Happy Friday 💌

07/26/2025

How are you beating the heat wave in your gardens, farms, or even home?! Or some ideas to implement?

Here’s a couple of mine: watering in the evenings, resused frozen soda bottles filled with water for our rabbits, ice cubes in water bowels, curtains pulled in the house, frozen fruit rinds for our chickens, & all bird baths/pollinator waters topped off!!

*photo for attention! Pepper is beating the heat in the AC this week 😂💛

07/24/2025

I’m just saying if you want to make a tasty potato salad I highly recommend trying out this recipe!!

I added purple potatoes in for a more colorful salad, so really any potato will do for this recipe! I hope you all enjoy! 😋💞

07/24/2025

This is your sign to research before killing a beneficial insect! Don’t be like myself!!
Instinctively I thought “oh those are deer fly & I definitely do not want those reproducing to make the rest of the gardening year miserable!”
If I would’ve taken the 10 seconds to do my research & found out they are Tiger Bee flies. Tiger bee flies are considered a beneficial insect in the garden! They can pollinate, control carpenter bee populations, & are harmless to us humans! Next time I’ll be thinking twice before killing any bugs in our garden!