14 S.W. 11th Street, Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33315

© 2012 II Ugly Sisters, Inc.

OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2011 NEWSLETTER

II Ugly Sisters, Inc. and David McLean’s Trinity Churchside Garden

HELLO TO ALL !!!!

Lots of bits to convey this month. If we were more regular in sending these things, each one would undoubtedly be shorter. If we were more regular in sending these things we would not be sleeping.

Breast Cancer Awareness Month – October Fridays are Pink Dessert Days*

We contribute and participate not because we want to jump on the now popular bandwagon, but we have many of our “sisters” who have been diagnosed, and thankfully recovered. We also remember those who were not, and did not. Add to that one or two gentlemen who are also survivors, and we can do nothing BUT celebrate (and contribute). We are tickled “pink” to help any way we can!

* all desserts are various shades of pink and all proceeds are donated to the Glam-a-Thon (Sole Sisters) here in Fort Lauderdale.

COOKING CLASS IN WILTON MANORS

I spoke to the Equality Park Garden Club at the Pride Center on Wednesday evening, October 19, about using edibles from the yard. Great group! Because there were no kitchen facilities we pre-cooked most items and featured food that needed minimal cooking (this did include alcohol).

I talked while Jonny scooped some Cranberry/Carambola relish for tasting.

HALLOWEEN IS MONDAY, OCTOBER 31st

FIRST SATURDAY WALK AND TALK - November 5, 2011 at 10 AM

Nursery Walk and Talk at 10 am. Lunch begins at 11:30a.m.  Jonny and I are catering a party that evening, so we will need to get out of the shop by 3:30p.m. - if your utensils are removed prior to you finishing your lunch we are apologizing in advance.

CHECK PLEASE TUESDAY NOVEMBER 8TH – VOTE FIRST - EAT LATER

This is a real thrill for us. As many of you know, “Check Please” South Florida featured our establishment January 29th of 2011. Since that airing we have met many, many new patrons and friends. When the producers called and asked if we were interested in the then upcoming “Culinary Bus Tour” to be hosted by Michelle Bernstein and Ron Castronova, we could say nothing but YES!!! We will be the embarkation spot and dessert stop for two separate buses of 50 guests each. Where, you ask, are we going to put everyone? Well first – we presume they all shower regularly – secondly, with the permission of Trinity Lutheran Church, we are going to spread out slightly onto SW 11th Street. Trees will be alight and tables will be set up outdoors for guests. Our friend (and musician) Dorothy Lewis, will be at the keyboard and many of our other friends have volunteered to serve. None are professional so the service may improve. All desserts will be bite sized and passed, so plates and forks will not be necessary. We are featuring some of our most requested sweets in miniature – Pina Colada Cake, Mint Chocolate Brownies, Mango cheesecake and more...

If you would like to attend dessert ONLY, tickets are $15.00 and must be purchased in advance through us. All monies will go to WPBT – Check Please.

EXCITING NEW NEIGHBOR

Our friend Blaise and his brother are opening the long awaited Tap 42 sometime in the next month. We have been watching   his progress at the site of the old Brownies Bar for the past year and are pleased that he will soon join the Andrews Avenue group. A great bar and meeting place has been sorely lacking on this side of town. Just prior to the opening we will be putting a coupon for a free domestic beer on our website. We’ll let you know when. Cheers!

Thanksgiving/Holiday Menus

Orders must be placed no later than November 18 and pick up for holiday food is WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 23. On the 24th, we will be drinking single malt scotch and eating seafood (or anything BUT turkey) with the dogs and David at an undisclosed site.  Holiday Menu available on our website - @ www.twouglysisters.com.

Upcoming Holiday Schedule

Thanksgiving – Closed Thursday, November 24 and Friday, the 25th

Will re-open for lunch on Monday, November 28th. We apologize to those of you who have family in for the holiday and wanted to bring them for lunch.

Christmas – closed Saturday, December 24th – January 2, 2012.

Lunch begins again on January 2, 2012

1st Saturday of 2012 is January 7th 2012 and we’ll be OPEN. Can’t believe another year has nearly passed. Resolve to eat with us more often!

XOXOX,

The Uglies

and now it’s David’s turn ...

 

 

WHAT’S OUR NEXT EXCUSE AFTER THE “BIG RAIN”?

TRINITY CHURCHSIDE GARDEN NEW AND VIEWS FOR FALL 2011

I just finished the two-day October stint at the Broward County Plant Affair, at Heritage Park in Plantation. Still the best unusual plant show in Broward, full of knowledgeable vendors, well stocked with everything: rare ferns, new orchids, Bromos by the square yard, tropical fruit, herbs, succulents and chatzki. The next date of the twice a year shows is May 5 and 6, 2012. This is the show for Real Plant Nuts trying to satiate their latest ‘disease’. (If you attended and picked up a free Coral Tree, don’t plant it where there are kids or dogs. This is a perfect McLean ‘Playground Tree’.)

This show is an educational adventure for me. Really had a plethora of “what’s wrong with . . .” this time. I suppose I’ll never figure out exactly why a rain we need so badly kills so many plants – and each one has a different mystery cause. Some of my guesses are: (1) a low spot that hadn’t shown up in lighter rainfalls, (2) a root system accustomed to sparse water with an open, spread-out structure, can’t handle consecutive heavy rains, (3) Rain water on top of irrigation water you forgot to turn off. A rain gauge tended by an intelligent life form is still the best weapon you have against Mother Nature in a bathing suit, (4) too much compost or organic stuff in a new planting. (what % of compost to a normal soil would you blend-in??)

Weird, but cactus in the right soil mix did great. Mysteries that died were: mints, some basils (the curly purple one is the best survivor, with Greek and Holy Basil close), old rosemary plants, and, holy cow, native Cocoplum (in liner form)!, Plants in decorative containers longer than 2+ years were hurt because in old pots, the organics ‘muck-out’ and stop the drainage. James, my haircutter, laid all his ceramic and clay pots over on their sides . . . an idea I wish was mine. Some plants I bought in 4 inch pots had problems because the original soil mucked-out in the middle of my good mix. But at Heritage Park, Pepe the Fruit Tree Guy, said, “you don’t learn anything from them unless you kill them”. Remember, ‘garden’ is a verb.

Of the neat stuff for me at the Heritage Park event, the tops were orchids, an old disease I haven’t shaken. The best one I missed. It was a greenish-golden Vanda you could see for 300 feet, from Dan and Margie. I came home with a bi-generic cross with 5 inch flowers of snake- skin lavender and white. No variety name, just the parents on the tag. (Remember the annual Davie Orchid Society auction, 10/25, 6:30, Baptist Church, 7241 Taft Street.) There was an incredibly fragrant hoya from Syd Gardino, and a Brazilian Blechnum fern with red new fronds in Sheri’s booth. Mark the Croton Man, seduced Marilyn Barber with a rare old variety called ‘Twist and Point’. (Marilyn and Wain Barber, Cindy Owen, and David Herold, helped me survive the knee-killing weekend- I’m going to start getting younger.) And, you could have had the ultimate ‘green’ garbage disposal – Carl sold one of the piglets born at South Plantation High . . . you are in luck - there are more!

BUSH CLUB NOVEMBER 9, 7 P.M. AT TRINITY LUTHERAN CHRUCH, ACROSS FROM THE ANNEX. Our speaker, BILL WAGENAAR has fooled around with edible plants for 30 years – and he’ll tell us about it!

At FIRST SATURDAY, Nov 5, I will try to have some of those Vandas, and I’ll show you the best tasting leafy green vegetable I’ve found. It is a frilly mustard, (found it at Winn Dixie) possibly the Japanese cv. called ‘Miszuma’, which has a really sparky flavor on its own, or in a raw-leaf McLean Wrap around a piece of fish, chicken or cheap hot dog. About the McLean Wrap, Penny said in a great recent talk she gave, that I eat anything, even dirt. Now I admit, I like fallen ripe Surinam Cherries off good compost - but have any of you seen me, “eat dirt”?

David