Curling Tendril Contrast

3 Jan

Sugar Snap Pea 06/16/2010

Looking through old garden photos this evening, I came across this shot of a sugar snap pea plant I grew in 2010.  I’ve always had an affinity for the pea plant, the pods are absolutely delicious, but really, secretly, I believe I grow this plant not to eat it, but to observe it.  To observe, primarily, its tendrils, the way they spiral and grow in an unruly yet purposeful fashion strikes me.  I find that the curling tendrils beckon me, and to place my gaze upon them is both addictive and satisfying.  Just imagine, the meagerest of structures, a most unassuming appendage, has the task of supporting the weight of its heavy pod-burdened form entirely, by curling around whatever it might grasp.  What an amazing contrast lies within those tendrils, strength and support mixed with beautiful, nuanced elegance.
 

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Preservation Hand-Me-Down

1 Jan

Hot Pickles 08/09/2010

Unfortunately, I did not get to do any canning this year.  It was our first year in a new home and, despite our best efforts, we got the seedlings in the ground just a little too late.  We had a decent year but the ever-so-finicky cukes did not survive the late transplanting.  It was my first year without a cucumber crop and we definitely missed having them.  The picture above is of the cucumbers I ‘put-up’, as Grandma would say, last season, which was my introduction into the hobby.  I used the cayenne peppers I grew to make this particular batch spicy.  I also made a couple batches of garlic dill, and sweet bread-n-butter.  We ate them throughout the year and my husband, John, really enjoyed them.

The more life experience I gain, code for aging, the more nostalgic I become.  I believe that canning and preserving is another part of that nostalgia wave.  I remember my Grandma used to put up jams and sauces, pickles, field peas, and tomatoes.  I imagine she preserved all kinds of things but my memories are limited to this finite list.  In addition to canning she also utilized her deep freezers to preserve.  I have taken a cue from her and frozen tomatoes every year I’ve grown them, and this was my first year freezing okra, which turned out to be a success.  I just cut the okra into half-inch slices and froze them on a baking sheet so they wouldn’t stick together.  Once they were frozen I put them in a freezer bag for long-term keeping, which turned out to be not-so-long-term because we ate all of my spoils before the first snowfall.  Freezing is a great place to start if you want to capitalize on your garden’s offerings and eat ‘fresh’ all year-long.  Of course, if you get crazy with it you’ll probably need a separate freezer, you can buy small ones these days, 3-5 cubic feet, for under $200.  Freezing vegetables usually only includes a few simple steps, I’ll be sure to blog each of my ventures this upcoming summer and fall, so stay tuned! 

Hand-Me-Down 01/01/2012

My foray into canning began when I mentioned to my Mom that I had an interest and learned that, somehow along the way, she had inherited a canning pot from her former Mother-in-law, my Grandmother.  I was elated to hear this and even more excited to get the oversized box in the mail from Mom containing the largest pot I’ve ever seen, I can process seven pint-sized jars at once.  I decided that whether or not my cucumber crop was abundant, there would definitely be some pickling happening, even if I had to go to the market to buy the cucumbers!  Luckily, I had enough cukes left-over to make six jars of pickles.  If you have an interest in canning, pickled vegetables are a great place to start because foods or liquids that are highly acidic, such as vinegar or pickling liquid, can be safely processed with a water bath technique, which I find far less daunting and expensive than pressure canning.  Knowing that I can preserve everything I grow using water baths and freezers makes me less interested in venturing into the pressure cooker world, and Grandma was always a little scared of the pressure cookers so I’ve never had any first-hand experience.  

To get started with water-bath preservation, I utilized the Ball resources, the standard in jars, lids, and other canning accessories.  I found that they have excellent resources and materials for teaching newbies, such as myself, how to safely preserve food.  I basically purchased the book they’ve probably been publishing for decades on the basics of canning and later discovered their amazing website which allows you to populate into a custom search the type of food, the method of preserving, and the level of difficulty and get back recipes that match your criterion.  I’m including links to the book and the Ball website at the bottom of this blog, I highly recommend them if you’re a beginner or just looking to try a new recipe or preservation technique.  They offer videos, how-to PDF’s, product sales, and more. 

Seven-Jar Processing Capability 01/01/2012

While pressure canning, in my opinion, seems like a more involved processes, it’s still important to make sure you follow every step to the letter when preserving in jars, no matter which technique you use.  The last thing you want to do is create a breeding ground for bacteria!  The environment you’re creating inside your jars has to be inhospitable to everything except your delicious produce.  Don’t let this discourage you though, on my first try I successfully sealed six pickle jars without any drama.  In the worse-case scenario, where something goes wrong and bacteria are allowed to grow inside your jar, there are lots of disgusting cues which will ensure that you aren’t tempted to eat whatever’s inside the tainted jar.  In other words, you’re less likely to eat something bad and get violently ill, and more likely to just lose a batch of something you labored over to the trash.  I guess you have to decide for yourself if the rewards outweighs the risks.  I know I’m looking forward to bringing my Grandma’s old canning pot in from the garage this season and picking up where I left off. 

If you’ve done any canning or preserving, I’d love to hear about your experiences, reply with a message or shoot me an email at pinkradishblog@gmail.com.

Happy New Year’s, and Happy Gardening!

http://www.homecanning.com/

http://www.amazon.com/Ball-Complete-Book-Home-Preserving/dp/0778801314

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Raised Beds Beneath Snow

25 Dec

Raised Beds on Christmas Day 12/25/2011

 
I thought I’d post a photo of my twelve raised beds today, such a contrast to the lush green ‘jungle’ this turns into in the summer months.  This photo reminds me that I love to garden because it’s a hobby that changes with the seasons.  Each year, when the spring months roll around I feel rested, rejuvenated, and ready to be outside again watching tiny seeds grow into delicious food and beautiful plants.  I believe that using the winter months to reflect on what a grew, what I want to grow next season, watching the beds get covered with snow, anticipating May, reading and learning about unfamiliar crops, or just brushing up on the old standbys makes me a better gardener.  I look forward to sharing lush photos with all of my readers this summer, but for now, I’m enjoying being here in this place where gardening is less hands-on and more cerebral, philosophical and hidden beneath snow.
 
Merry Christmas and, as always, Happy Gardening!

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Humbled Mammoth

17 Dec

Mammoth Sunflower, Humbled by the Sun 09/18/2011

I realize that anthropomorphizing sunflowers is probably inappropriate, particularly when comparing them to anything other than sunny or happy.  However, I quite like pretending that their massive bent stalks with folded yellow heads is a gorgeous display of humility in nature. 

The sunflower shown in the photo above is playing host to both a bee and a pair of mating grasshoppers, look closely.  It is of the Mammoth variety, and grew approximately 7 feet high with a stem as thick as a sapling tree.   Morbidly, it has since been decapitated, and its head rests on my garage floor waiting for me to pluck what I can only imagine will be more than a few hundred seeds from a circumference of approximately 37 inches.

While the sunflower may not personify your typical vegetable garden contender, I find that it serves several purposes and therefore has secured its rightful place within my beds.  The purposes, in order of importance to me, are first form and then function.  I simply love looking at them, therefore I grow them.  I get a kick out the way they tower above all else in the garden, even me.  Sunflowers are more than just nice to look at though, they also attract bees to the garden whom are much-needed pollinators and a gardeners very best friend.  And, while sunflowers may not offer the promise of tasty greens, roots, fruits or vegetables, they do provide seeds which contain a fair amount of fat, protein, vitamins and minerals.  

 

Sunflower Head with Petals and Visible White Seeds 09/18/2011

In the photo above, you can see the petals have started to fall from the center and the butt-end of the seed is exposed.  I love how much symmetry and order there is to be found in nature, look at those perfect rows!

To harvest sunflower seeds you should allow the head to dry partially or completely on the stalk.  You can put a paper bag around the head to keep squirrels and birds away – they love sunflower seeds and can pick the head clean if you don’t protect it.  It’s important to use a paper bag so that the head can continue to breathe.  I left my heads to partially dry this year uncovered and cut them once all of the petals were gone and the seeds were clearly visible.  I was fortunate and did not have a problem with pests, although I kept a close eye out for signs of foraging.  To continue the drying process once cut, I placed the heads in my garage.  The garage works perfectly because it’s fairly cool and dry.  As the head dries, the seeds develop their unusually striking black and white stria. 

 

Sunflower Head Post-Decapitation 10/09/2011

This photo, taken immediately after I cut the head from the stalk, shows the seeds just starting to change color. 

  

Dried Sunflower Head 12/16/2011

 Here you can see the dried head with a patch where I’ve started pulling the seeds out.  If you leave your sunflower head in a paper bag hanging upside down, somewhere out of the elements, the seeds will also fall out on their own a few months after harvesting.  If you intend to eat the seeds, you should make sure to grow a variety which produces edible seeds, like the Mammoth, and you should roast them before consuming.  Spread them on a sheet pan and season with salt or leave plain, depending on your taste preference, and place in a 300 degree oven for approximately 20 minutes.  Don’t forget to save some seeds for planting next year’s crops.  Planting seeds can be stored in a container or storage bag and refrigerated until the next gardening year. 
 
I encourage you to give the Mammoth a try, its oversized stature makes a statement in any garden and, of course, it produces delicious seeds which manage to taste even better when you’ve grown and harvested them yourself.  Enjoy watching this beast bow to the sun and, I say, anthropomorphize all you want.
  
Happy Gardening!

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Mallow Pod Memories

12 Dec

Okra Pod Harvested 8/20/11

 For me, few things conjure such vivid childhood memories as okra and homemade biscuits.  These two foods hold a very special and powerful place in my brain bank of delicious days gone by.  In honor of my beautiful Grandmother Rogers, I decided to grow the amazing okra plant in one of my twenty-four garden beds.  A member of the mallow plant family (as in marshmallow – more on this later), okra is also referred to as lady fingers or gumbo.  In the southern regions of Georgia, where I was raised, it was used primarily as a vegetable side, sautéed, coated in corn-meal and fried, pan-fried, boiled, or added to soups and stews - an extremely versatile little seed pod.  Okra has gained limited fame for its use as a thickener in the New Orleans staple stew, otherwise know as gumbo.  In the U.S., the plant grows primarily in the south-east, and can be found growing fairly north on the east coast.  It is estimated that the plant was introduced to the southeastern region of the U.S. during the early 18th century from either West Africa, Ethiopia, or Southeast Asia. 

Okra is not only one of my favorite vegetables but the name, which so perfectly describes its characteristic slime, is also one of my favorite words – mucilaginous.  Mucilage (or plant goo) occurs in various parts of almost all classes of plants and has historically been used both medicinally and as a glue.  The most famous mallow plant, the marshmallow, holds is mucilage in the roots and was originally the primary ingredient in marshmallows which, back in the day, were medicinal in nature.  Like honey or syrup, mucilage is a demulcent (coating agent) making it perfect for soothing sore throats and dry coughs.  Marshmallows today are made from a plant-derived glycerin and instead of suppressing coughs, are primarily used as a tasty “glue” to bind Rice Krispies, but I digress! 

To grow Okra, you need heat, Africa-heat is preferable but difficult to find in the States.  Off the top of my head, I imagine Arizona would be most comparable.  However, humidity seems to be a factor as well, making southern Louisiana and parts of Florida even better contenders.  If you’re not lucky enough to live in Africa, or some other hot, humid climate, don’t fret, my Denver garden produced delicious and abundant pods and, if you don’t know, Denver is both dry and relatively mild in the summer months.  As with many of my garden plants, it seems as though concessions can be made to work within the respective environment and realize a decent yield.  One concession I made to ensure success was to start the seeds indoors 5 weeks prior to the planting season.  In regards to the humidity, I made sure the plants were sufficiently watered with excellent drainage, no sitting water or soggy roots – this spells disaster for almost any type of crop.  Had I planted the exact same plants in a more favorable environment, it’s likely that I would have realized a higher yield.  However, I found the work was well worth the reward and intend to make this a permanent addition to my garden.

If you’re interested in giving this mallow pod a chance, I recommend starting the seeds indoors, and planting in the sunniest spot you can find.  Do not allow the pods to grow larger than 3 to 3.5 inches, which will ensure tenderness.  Pods grow quickly so expect to harvest every other day, if left on the plant too long Okra becomes woody and inedible.  If you’re hesitant about the goopy interior, your first cooking experience should be either corn-meal coated and fried, or grilled over a very high heat, both applications keep the slime factor to a minimum. 

Enjoy watching this plant’s beautiful flowers grow into perhaps the strangest, yet most delicious seed pod I love to reminisce over.

Happy Gardening!

 

Okra Flower 7/30/2011

 

 

 I would like to dedicate this post to my Grandmother.  For her, putting the most delicious food I’ve ever had on the table every day was just a single item on a very long list of things to do between the time her feet hit the ground and her head hit the pillow.  I am grateful for all that she has taught me, the love she has so graciously given me, and the appreciation she instilled in me for growing and eating farm-fresh produce.  Grandma, you simply can’t imagine how much of an influence you’ve had on my life, and I thank you.

Grandma Rogers and Me 3/21/2010

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Introducing, Pink Radish!

6 Aug

Salad Rose Radish Harvested 7/30/2011

I pulled from the ground this past weekend three enormous, hot pink radishes (hot in both color and flavor)!  The most beautiful root I’ve ever seen, the catalyst for my blogging debut.  Like most people who eventually blog, I’ve been tossing the idea around for some time now, wondering if I have anything meaningful to offer the reader, or myself.  Those pink radishes inspired me to take the leap, and so, here I am.

I very much enjoy teaching, learning, cooking, especially eating, and growing my own vegetables.  My Pink Radish blog mission is to teach readers what I have learned about growing, appreciating, cooking and of course eating delicious food through personal experiences both recent and long since past.  I also hope to learn, from readers and fellow bloggers, anything and everything they may generously offer.

To stay true to my knowledge-sharing nature, I feel it only appropriate that I add a few brief comments about the pink wonder that got me here, the Salad Rose, as it is formally referred to.  Tolerant in cool or hot weather, this variety is hardy in almost any zone.  Radishes make for a great beginner choice because they’re fairly low-maintenance, require little space and best of all, they are quick producers.  What this means for you is little work and large reward, especially if you plant any of the more uniquely beautiful varieties, such as the White Icicle or Watermelon (shown below).  In short, if you’re a new gardener, teaching a child to garden, living with limited green space, and/or love a hot flavor, radishes will make a great addition to your space. 

Happy Gardening!

 

Watermelon Radish Harvested 7/18/2011

 

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