Greening - Various Tools to Help You Shop and Live Wisely

Dear Folks,

If you have been following me, you are probably already trying to shop at your local farmers markets, do more cooking at home to control your menu ingredients, enhance your family quality time, and experiment with all those cool recipes you see on cooking shows.

To add to your tools and information sources, I tripped across a couple of sites I found helpful.

http://www.sustainabletable.org/spread/kits

The Sustainable Table site has a variety of kits (in PDF file form) which can be used as teaching or display tools and for your own family information use.

They also have a kit for the Sustainable Dinner Party which can give you some ideas for Supper Groups.
(I have been thinking off and on of potentially setting up 'secret suppers' -- it would require quite a bit of planning, but is fun to contemplate.  I will let you all know if I get serious!)

Another site to visit for information is the Animal Welfare Institute, which certifies humanely raised livestock farms.  They are dedicated to supporting the small-scale and family farm. http://www.awionline.org/


The troubling issues with factory farming continue to, finally, get more and more attention. Even when a farmer wants to do things right if they make the mistake of getting into contracts with large processors -- the real manufacturers when you come down to what you are buying -- they are trapped in unconscionably egregious contracts which leaves them captive to corporate whims or in bankruptcy.


Read what some chicken farmers are up against.
http://www.sustainabletable.org/2010/05/chicken-farmers-describe-a-system-of-extortion-and-economic-slavery/


How can you get more control over what you buy?  I have noticed more and more food manufacturers are getting the message.  I just saw an ad for Hunts Ketchup which loudly proclaimed on the label 'no high fructose corn syrup' -- good start!

They are listening. The real challenge to getting healthier and better quality foods is to make sure you are clear about what you want them to offer to you.

I participate in online consumer surveys.  I am troubled when the elimination questions (I don't have the ability to complain about the questions) are frequently aimed at getting the survey participant to use emotions to explain how they purchase something.  That is not to say there are no questions about what do you purchase - recently I had a survey on dairy and cheese and how much was organic, or natural, or other - that was a good one.

One good thing I noticed about the surveys in the last 6 months are the options in prepared goods or shelf-stable foods which offer more environmental, natural, local, family farm options for selections in answering the survey.

So why might that be a problem?  Because those buzz words can be grabbed by food processors to label something which amounts to bait and switch - "So and so's family farm produces only naturally prepared..."

Back in January, 2010 "Tyson Foods Inc. has agreed to settle a lawsuit that accused the poultry giant of falsely claiming its chickens were "raised without antibiotics."


"In 2007, Tyson began advertising and labeling its poultry products as having been "raised without antibiotics." The following year, the U.S. Department of Agriculture ordered Tyson to remove the labels when it found that the company had injected its chickens with antibiotics before they hatched. Tyson argued the labels were accurate because chickens aren't "raised" until after they're born."


So how do you like that corporate logic?

Isn't that enough to make you want to scream at them!  The quote attributed to Voltaire goes something like "If you wish to converse with me, define your terms."  Don't you wish we could tell corporate food producers they need to define their terms so we know what they are really saying?

What is a consumer to do?  You need to know your suppliers like your grandparents did, your local farmers, meat producers, egg sellers, and cheese makers.

Some of the material on the sustainable table site are sheets of questions to ask sellers of food.

Oh, and on the subject of organic - organic picked green and shipped hundreds or thousands of miles is not a whole lot better for you than "somewhat" regional and non-organic.

Organic and natural are two words used at your local farmers market.  Here is what THEY mean:

Organic means it was grown locally in a USDA certified program, picked local and sold local.

Natural for most of our local small-scale farmers means they grew the foods or produced the foods in much the same way as organic producers but without going through the expense of official certification.

Our farmers market vendors and farmers are happy to tell you all about their foods and origins - they are proud of their products.  Ask them questions.

There is now a "Certified Naturally Grown" label for small-scale farmers and food producers. Check them out at:  http://www.naturallygrown.org/

What is a natural flavor or anything proclaimed natural?

The term natural flavor or natural flavoring means the essential oil, oleoresin, essence or extractive, protein hydrolysate, distillate, or any product of roasting, heating or enzymolysis, which contains the flavoring constituents derived from a spice, fruit or fruit juice, vegetable or vegetable juice, edible yeast, herb, bark, bud, root, leaf or similar plant material, meat, seafood, poultry, eggs, dairy products, or flavoring rather than nutritional...”

http://www.accessdata.fda.gov/scripts/cdrh/cfdocs/cfcfr/CFRSearch.cfm?fr=101.22

When a company says it is selling you something based on what they KNOW you want, but if it is in-fact selling you a substitute or inferior product isn’t that bait and switch?

The manufacturers of Splenda were sued for claiming their product is sugar.  It is not and they had to concede that or face losing the lawsuit.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18618557/

When the high fructose corn syrup producers revved up their protectionist marketing campaign to tell us that it was our own over-eating that was the problem and not their product, they left out the science which shows that consuming foods containing HFCS does not trigger the “you are full” chemical leptin.  And their throw-away tag line “in moderation” is a slap in the face when you look at the sheer volume of foods manufactured with HFCS -- how do you moderate eating something that is in almost every processed or manufactured food and which has no eating cut off command?

Oh, and the FDA does not object to the corn syrup producers calling HFCS ‘natural’ - natural hmm, - HFCS has been found to be toxic to honey bees fed it.  (In cold winter areas bee keepers feed their bees sugar water or even honey to help sustain them through the cold time.)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High-fructose_corn_syrup

See my blog on sweeteners:

http://edibleherbsandflowers.blogspot.com/2008/09/homemade-sodas-sorbets-and-what-about.html

I have also been concerned about the very useful plant-based Stevia being ‘hijacked’ by the corporate giants.

In looking at labels on packages of some of the newest offerings purporting to be Stevia, most are a combination of stevia and sugar alcohols -- the sugar alcohols being used to add baking capabilities and additional taste.  Not necessarily a bad thing although some people are allergic to some sugar alcohols like sorbitol (I for one am).

What bothers me is when one of the big giants (or two) get into the act and make some part of it proprietary with the disclaimer "trade secret."  Truvia is a partnership of Cargill and Coca Cola, and they have stevia and sugar alcohol listed on their ingredients.  And then they say “natural flavors” but won’t tell you what they are - it is a trade secret.

Remember HFCS can call itself natural. Splenda tried to call itself something it wasn’t.

Bottom line - if you can’t tell what the ingredients really are and you don’t know enough about the company's history in truthful advertising, back away.

AND don't forget about growing some of your own food, raising a couple of chickens for eggs, or even consider having a dairy goat or two (you need to know your areas zoning limitations).

You may wish to join the Phoenix Permaculture Guild forum  - they have groups on different subjects. I am a member of the micro-livestock group and soil culture group.  Nice people, made up of newbies, getting there, experts - who still learn - and all are very helpful with answering questions.

http://www.phoenixpermaculture.org/

If you have an interest in my books, the publishing site is still offering free shipping on orders totaling 19.95 shipped to USA addresses.

www.lulu.com/herbs2u

And for you Mac iPad, iPod and iPhone users my Edible Landscaping in the Desert Southwest is now available through iBook.

Have a great weekend,

-- Catherine, The Herb Lady

Greening: Your 32 Cents Worth of Choices!

Dear Folks,

You can't talk to a friend or family member, read the newspaper, or watch nightly news without sad economic facts: lost jobs, people losing homes, cuts in government budgets, which affect everything from library hours and locations to food programs, to police, fire and child care services to name just a few examples.

Human nature being what it is we want to blame someone for the mess, but who? Well we all have some responsibility in it by how and where we choose to spend our money.

"We have met the enemy and he is us". Pogo (comic strip) author, Walt Kelly, first used the quote on a poster for Earth Day in 1970.

32 Cents is the difference between how much of your hard earned dollar goes into the local economy versus "somewhere else." The national average (according to the bean counters) shows that for every dollar spent at a big chain store, 13 cents stays in the local economy funding public programs (via taxes) and paying your neighbor's grocery bill (via jobs) (and the other 32 cents goes "somewhere else"), while 45 cents stays in your local economy when you shop at locally owned and locally sourced stores.

When interviewed recently many shoppers had similar thoughts..."it's a nice idea but not practical"..."I need the convenience and better prices."

Keep that in mind when discussing who is no longer employed, when so and so can't find a job, and why there are now 10% less police or fire personnel around. Keep that in mind when the government is thinking about raising taxes to compensate for the reduced taxes into the government coffers.

Do you know where a large portion of the ‘somewhere else' that your shopping dollars goes when sent through the big chain stream? How about Asia, and overseas in general.

Take a few minutes on your computer and really do some price comparisons. You will find that your local farmers market food supplier or your neighborhood dress shop have comparable prices and great customer service.

If we are part of the problem than we cannot point fingers at ‘someone else' when we have some control over choices.

Recently Mayor Gordon of Phoenix had a request of the citizens. Pledge to try to do one-third of your shopping at locally owned and locally sourced stores. Can you do that? Can you make a difference in your community? 32 cents worth? Yes you can!

The money adds up — even if you are on a really tight budget and you spend $20 dollars at locally owned and sourced stores - do some math 20 x .32 = $6.40. How many people in your city here in the valley? Phoenix? Mesa?

Some recent (2007 or 2008) real estate estimates put the population of Phoenix at around 1,429,637 with approximately 481,000 households. Mesa at around 478,014 population and 170,023 households.

Some more math:

$6.40 x Mesa households 170,023 = $1,088,147 = if that household spent that same amount of money each month the figure would be $13,057,766 per year.

How about Phoenix with 481,000 households x $6.40 = $3,078,400 - and if that amount is spent locally each month the figure for one year would be $36,940,800.

That is a lot of jobs and employment whether working for a company or self-employed (like a store owner), or the services of police, fire and library, or education and child care. It is the difference between something as simple as a city parade or Christmas lights or something more serious and needed like support for child care and domestic violence centers, or whether your neighborhood park can be kept up, and jobs!

All from spending 32 cents differently!

First google Locavore for your community, then also search for "local first" for your community.

According to Kimber Laning, founder of www.localfirstaz.com you can also look up two other organizations nationwide for locally owned businesses in your area.

Business Alliance of Local Living Economies (BALLE) www.livingeconomies.org
American Independent Business Alliance (AMIBA) www.amiba.net

Find and support local farmers, restaurants, service suppliers, and stores.

If you are an independent store or service owner find your local business support group and join them -- today!

If we and our shopping choices are part of the problem, we can also be part of the solution. How can you make your 32 cents work better for your community, neighborhood and ultimately, you and your family?! Isn't making more local purchases a 'stimulus plan' with immediate impact?

While going through your holiday and New Year's preparations, don't forget to donate to some of the local charities - any amount is always welcome and helps your neighbors, friends, family and ultimately your community. I also have a list of some of my favorite national charities in the side bar here on the blog.

I will be blogging more but for the best wishes of the season, I like KEZ 99.9's humorous holiday greeting airing on the radio now during their Christmas music programming:

"Have a Merry Christmas, a Happy Chanukah, a Krazy Kwanzaa, a Tip Top Tet, and a solemn, dignified Ramadan"

And a very Healthy and Happy New Year to you all!


-- Catherine, The Herb Lady

P.S. Last Year I did the 12 days of Christmas which actually begins with Christmas Day, and this year it was my intention to re-post links to them leading up to Christmas, but I ran out of time! You can find them by going to the search bar on the blog here - Enjoy!

Huevos Mercado Granjero aka Farmers Market Eggs

Dear Folks,

My simple recipe for a wholesome and satisfying meal is based on the traditional Huevos Rancheros (Ranch Eggs) a classic Mexican breakfast. Usually served on tortillas, I wanted something a little lighter, but still satisfying. I also wanted to obtain everything from local suppliers. I like this dish for any meal.

Shopping at the Mesa Friday Farmers Market on Center, I easily came up with the tasty fixins'.

The Ingredients:

Salsa = Lil‘ Sassy Salsa, http://www.lilsassysalsa.com/

Eggs = Double Blessings Goats Milk Lotions and Soaps (and free-range eggs!), http://www.dbgoatsmilk.com/

Lettuce Mix = One Windmill Farm, http://onewindmillfarm.com/

Bread = Classico Italiano, (480-244-9405, Marcello Greco)

Basil = from my gardens.

Add some fresh fruit from One Windmill or Big Happy's Farm (480-529-3321 - Kathy Porter)

RECIPE:

HUEVOS MERCADO GRANJERO

half cup of salsa per person (choice of how much heat you would like)
2 eggs per person
2 slices of bread per person (I chose kalmata olive ciabatta)
1 cup+ of lettuce spring or baby green mix per person (I like a mound to almost fill the plate).
Fresh Basil finely shredded as garnish and added flavor

In a frying pan large enough to hold 2 - 6 eggs, bring salsa to a high simmer. Crack eggs into the salsa, cover and reduce to low simmer. Cook approximately 5 minutes until whites are fully cooked and the yolk is still soft (poached).

Place lettuce mix on plate, top with 2 eggs, and some of the salsa, and shredded basil, Serve with bread.

Add some fresh fruit for a fully satisfying meal.

Find an Arizona market near you at:

http://www.arizonafarmersmarkets.com
OR
http://www.foodconnect.org/

OR Nationally at:

http://apps.ams.usda.gov/FarmersMarkets/

What can you put together from your farmers markets' delicious offerings? Many options, all tasty, wholesome and locally produced!


-- Catherine, The Herb Lady

Rosemary-Scented Stew

Dear Folks,

I've wanted to do something with barley for a while and I was inspired to try using a bit of Worschestshire sauce while watching a cooking show by Ming Tsai the other day. I prefer using chicken and sausage without any additives. There are several grocers or local suppliers who make sausage without junk. See below for ways to find local suppliers in Arizona and around the country.

1 cup of barley
3 cups of water
pinch of salt

1 1/2 pounds of boneless chicken - cut into 3 inch chunks
1 1/2 pounds of mild Italian sausage
1 white or yellow onion, chopped or sliced in coarse pieces
3 sprigs of fresh rosemary, rinsed
1 small handful of fresh thyme, rinsed (These herbs will be removed after cooking so, tie with string or in a cheese cloth bag for easy removal)
1/4 cup of Worschestshire sauce
2 tablespoons of fresh lemon juice
1 quart of chicken stock
1 cup more or less of water
2 potatoes
2 sweet potatoes (can substitute carrots for some of the potatoes - you want about 3-4 cups of these vegetables)
Olive oil
2 grinds of black pepper
1/4 cup of flour or corn starch

1. Cook barley by bringing water and salt to boil, add barley, stir, cover, reduce heat to simmer and cook for 50 minutes. Set aside after cooking.

2: Make the stew

In a large stock pot heat oil and add onion, stirring over medium high heat for 1 minute. Add rosemary and thyme, continue stirring for 2 minutes. Add Worschestshire sauce and lemon juice. Stir for 2 more minutes, add pepper, and a bit of chicken stock stir. Begin nesting in chicken and sausage adding broth to keep it covered. Add potatoes last, on top of meat. Add enough broth and water if needed to cover everything. Bring to boil, cover, reduce to gentle simmer, and cook for 30 minutes.

Remove meat and vegetables to a bowl, discard herb bundle. Cool a bit of stock and stir flour into it, then while stirring, add back into stock to thicken. Cook for 3-4 minutes until thick. Cut meat and vegetables into large bit-size pieces. Add reserved barley to stock and bring back to a boil. Add meat and vegetables back in and heat for 2 minutes. Serve and enjoy. This hearty stew usually needs no additional salt.

ABOUT barley.

My mother cooked with barley frequently to extend the nutrition of soups. An old grain, barley is more nutrient dense than brown rice (higher fiber of the good kind). While it takes a little longer to cook, it is worth while to cook up several cups at a time and freeze in 1-2 cup packages for easy additions to soups and stews or to make a variation on fried rice. One nice thing about cooked barley is that it does not have the extra-gelatinous starch rice does.

. . .

GARDENING: My e-reminder service is applicable to areas other than the Phoenix Metro valley, including some other states. Click here to find cities whose gardeners can use the same planting and growing help.

. . .
Locavore - Local Suppliers of foods:

In Arizona go to http://www.localfirstaz.com/index.php to find local producers and sellers of not only food but everything your need .

All over the country, you can also find local farmers and producers of all types of foods at localharvest.org

And in Arizona you can find farmers markets at foodconnect.org - foodconnect.org also helps the community with the guiding principle of their mission statement "...to grow strong communities, healthy food, healthy families and healthy farms."


Have a great day,

-- Catherine, The Herb Lady

Garlic -- Time to Plant

Dear Folks,

Some of my garlic harvest from last spring is shown in the picture here. I was as excited as a kid in a candy store with the bounty! A pungent candy store to be sure, but the results were amazing. I did blog about it before, but I'm doing so again, because now is the time to prepare to plant garlic. Optimal time is October 1st through November 1st to ensure a sufficient cold potential through the winter here in the desert. While the 6 or so months of growing time seems like a lot of time to spend growing something large and consumed quickly, the efficient use of space makes it worthwhile. Garlic cloves can be planted as close together as 4 inches. In an approximate 17 x 3 foot section of the garden I harvested 124 heads of superior Purple Haze garlic. This year I'm trying out a Russian Porcelain Giant in addition to the Purple Haze - I hope to double my harvest next spring between these two varieties.
The picture to the right shows some of the garlic rinsed off and braided. Next spring I will go over the harvesting steps. (I used that picture before to show how lovely the garlic looks.)
STEPS to Success with Garlic:
1) The spot you choose must have 4-6 hours of direct sunlight a day, or more.
2) The soil must be organic rich and well draining.
3) Separate a head of garlic into cloves, do not remove paper, discard any that are rotted.
4) Plant pointy end up with 1 inch cover soil (basically 2 inches deep.
5) Water well and as needed - as with other herbs and edibles do not let the soil dry out completely between watering.
6) Keep the garlic bed weed free.

That's it! Plant, water, weed and wait. Now, where to get your planting garlic. You can start with a head of garlic from your local farmers market or grocer. Or you can purchase from my supplier ronnigers.com. Click here to go to their website.

Folks, I may be duplicating this info in several places, but that is because I want you to know how easy it is to grow garlic in your own backyard garden.

. . .

LOCAL FOCUS

Are you sore from gardening, work or just the stress of life? Rolfing may be the answer. Rihab Yaqub, whom I've known for as long as I have been going to the Mesa Farmers Market, is a Certified Rolfer and a great lady. Her focus on life has been self-awareness and living in harmony and it is just a simple pleasure talking with her. Click here for her website and learn more about Rihab and rolfing (And no, as I once read, it is not a mugging you pay for!)

. . .

Don't forget to sign up for the discount ($15/year) on my reminder service to greater success in the desert garden -- the discount ends September 30th - still a good deal after that ($21/year), but why not take advantage of an extra good deal. Click here for the payment window. Information on the service here.

Have a great day in the garden,



-- Catherine, The Herb Lady

Food as Medicine - Prevention, Not Cures

Let your food be medicine and your medicine be food.

This oft-used admonition is credited to Hippocrates of Kos (c. 460 BC - 377 BC) an ancient Greek physician who is referred to as the "father of medicine" — it is his ‘oath' which our modern doctors take as their vow of healing — "...with regard to disease, namely, to do good or to do no harm ..." Epidemics, Book I, Ch. 2 (Source: Wikipedia).

Do you take supplements? Purchase the cheapest food? Do you go to the store with a recipe and not an open mind? Do you unmindfully accept the package labeling as to what you are buying? Do you know what is seasonally available in the produce section? Do you garden? Are you teaching your children to garden?

And finally, are you trying to save money? Ahhhhhhhh!

You know, all of the first questions really relate for many us, to the last one — and of course in our current economic climate the money question begs some answers and they can be found in the first questions.

SUPPLEMENTS:

First let me say that I am not saying that all supplements are wrong, or that you are making a mistake to take any supplements.

The point I want you to ponder is this: If you purchase unripe, out of season (by local standards) produce, packaged goods which say they are good for you but are not (you take the manufacturer's claims at face value), and then take supplements either because your doctor says you are lacking, or because you don't feel ‘up to par," are you not creating the need for the supplement, and perpetrating your own vicious cycle?

When Hippocrates admonished his patients to treat their food as medicine he meant for them to eat properly all the time and it would be their medicine - helping them stay healthy.

SEASONAL PRODUCE:

What's in season now where you live? Here in the Phoenix area, for produce raised within 100 miles of us, we have a lovely selection of at the very least:
Anise, Beets, Bok Choy , Broccoli, Cabbage, Carrots, Cauliflower, Celery, Cilantro, Diakon, Dill, Fennel, Greens, Kale, Kohlrabi, Leeks, Lettuces, Onions, Parsley, Radicchio, Radishes, Rapini, Spinach, Squash, Winter, Swiss Chard, Tomatoes, Turnips, Apples, Grapefruit, Lemons, Limes, Oranges, Tangelos, Tangerines and for some areas we have peppers and eggplant, and kumquats are coming ripe.

Seasonal, local produce is better for you nutrient wise, it is usually far cheaper because it is local and does not have to be shipped far and if you cook seasonally you get a nice variety in your diet. (As a side benefit you are supporting your local producers and community.)

If you think you do not know how to prepare many vegetables, or ways to use fruits, keep this in mind:
Any combination of vegetables and herbs can be roasted with a bit of olive oil.
Any combination of fruit makes a wonderful compote, salad or side dish.
Go to the market not with a recipe (except the basic idea you want produce of some kind at each meal), but with your mind's eye open for the tasty and colorful possibilities. Roasted vegetables make a great base for stews, soups, or sauces. Prepped fruit is a fast snack.

PACKAGED FOODS:
Where do I begin with the challenges of buying nutritious manufactured/processed foods?
In an earlier blog posting (November 17, 2008) I gave you, my readers, a short method of determining nutrient density of packaged foods.

Recently, I purchased and read "Eat This Not That: Supermarket Survival Guide" by David Zinczenko and Matt Goulding, after catching Zinczenko on a Rachael Ray show.

The focus on this book is weight loss through better choices - not just in packaged foods but the authors also include information on produce selection.

The difference of the focus between my early posting on nutrient density and this book is their primary concern is fats and sugars, with a strong emphasis on fiber (excellent!!!), while my emphasis is on fiber and protein. The "Eat This..." authors give you specifics on which foods to choose over others and my focus was on an easy (I think) formula for evaluating the foods.

I do want to emphasize — this is a great book for getting an understanding of what the processors are doing to the food you purchase and the often misleading labeling on the packages. They point out a nice little guideline to go by - how many ingredients are actually in a package — the less the better - they suggest you aim for 7 or less ingredients — and what are the first couple of ingredients (avoid like the plague anything which starts with sugar, high fructose corn syrup-- always a no-no). The authors go a little further and discuss avoiding foods which have more than one sweetener. This is a great education tool. To read more about the book and/or purchase click on the amazon link below.



The formula I worked up (the earlier posting has some examples of foods I regularly have in the house showing how the formula works) was something I felt the need to work out because of the quick way I/we all try to get through the grocery shopping experience.

Take the total grams of fiber and protein, added together and divided into the calories and you have a factor — that is the nutrient density of the product. Example: Green Soybeans-Frozen
(Edamame) Protein 10 Fiber 4 = 14 Calories 120 = Factor 9.

You are looking for a factor of 20 or less — the lower the factor the higher the nutrient density. One of the best cereals for many reasons (fiber, lowering cholesterol, maintaining level blood sugar) is old fashioned oatmeal — Old Fashioned Oats Protein 5 Fiber 4 = 9 Calories 150 = Factor 17 — and it only takes 5 minutes to cook this oatmeal.

If you take the formula to the store with you, you can easily and quickly compare products.

Please educate yourself and your children on prepared foods. Make a game of it - keeps them creatively occupied too - have them do the math on "my formula" and compare foods. Tell them to goal is the math ‘answer' needs to be lowest of all the options you look at.

On the opposite end of the nutrient density spectrum is dessert — and you need to engage the children is this formula comparison too. There are horrible dessert options and better ones. Try to keep the dessert factor to 40 or lower. Have the children make sure there is fiber in the dessert they are looking at.

Example of horrible: Kellogg's Granola Bar, Crunchy Almond/Brown Sugar Protein 2.96 Fiber 2.3 = 5.26 Calories 604 = Factor 114 !!!!!

Example of Better: Kroger Ginger Snaps Protein 2 Fiber 1 = 3 Calories 120 = Factor 40
(One of my favorite quick snacks is a small piece of cheddar cheese between 2 ginger snaps — nice complimentary flavors--an after school snack couple this plus some apple slices.)

GARDENING

First when you look to purchase seeds, find companies which have signed the voluntary "Safe Seed Pledge" begun in 1999 by High Mowing Seeds http://www.highmowingseeds.com/the-safe-seed-pledge.html

The pledge is each company's stance on "...commitment to non-GMO (genetically modified organism) seed. We feel that the regulatory framework for the introduction of genetically modified crop varieties is flawed, and that GMO seeds themselves present a threat to plants' genetic diversity through their ability to pollinate non-GMO plants."

I would add, also, that the producers of GMO seeds (Monsanto among others) are attempting to buy up seed source companies. While they have not withdrawn those producers from commercial activity - if you were a company wanting to control source materials and replace them with your higher profit, monopolistic substitutes, what would you do?

Heirloom, hybrid, and organic will be phrases you see when seed and plant shopping.

Heirloom refers to an old or even ancient plant variety which cannot be patented, and is still around because 1) it produces consistently, with great flavor and, 2) people worked at keeping or reviving the strain for use.

Hybrid plants are crosses produced either spontaneously in the wild or garden, or intentionally created by horticulturists, farmers, gardeners or laboratories. Usually hybrid plants are patented which means you do not, as the purchaser of the plant, have a legal right to propagate it. This, by the way, is the underlying profit motive for the GMO producers, you only have the legal right to use the seed once and may not propagate it intentionally or ‘unintentionally' - chew on that one for a while.

Organic means the seed or plants were raised under certified conditions for organic plants meeting Federal organic standards.

Not all heirloom plants are raised organically, and not all hybrids are raised non-organically.

As a general concept — organically raised seed or plants are a good thing, but not necessarily needed in your garden if you garden with natural (meaning organic-like) practices - no chemicals. Plants not raised organically will have most of the offending chemicals out of their systems in 90-120 days.

As stated at the beginning of this section, if you purchase your plants or seeds from providers who have signed the safe seed pledge, then you can be reasonably assured you will be getting quality products, with no laboratory interference.

What to plant in February in your garden:

Herbs: Basil, Epazote, Hardy Herbs: oregano, marjoram, rosemary, thyme, lavender, sage, savory, bay, mint
Edible Flowers: Bee Balm (Monarda Didyma), English Daisy (Bellis Perennis), Hollyhock (Alcea Rosea), Marigold, French (Tagetes Patula), Marigold, Gem (Tagetes Tenuifolio), Marigold, Tangerine Scented (Tagetes Lemonii), Marigold, Signata, Marigold, Citrus Scented (Tagetes Nelsonii), Pansies (Viola X Wittrockiana), Primrose (Primula Vulgaris), Purslane (Portulaca X Hybrida), Safflower (Carthamus Tinctorius), Scented Geranium, Sunflower
Other Edibles: Artichoke, Asparagus, Beets, Bok Choy, Cantaloupe, Carrots, Chard & Mustard, Collards, Cucumbers, Corn, Fruit Trees, Green Onions, Jerusalem Artichoke, Lettuce & Greens, Musk & Winter Melons, Onion Sets, Peas, Peppers, Potatoes, Radishes, Spinach, Strawberry, Summer Squash, Tomatoes, Turnips, watermelon.

CLASS:

My 3-part "soil to table" class at the Desert Botanical Garden is coming up and filling up fast (there is a class limit) — First session is February 22. For information and registration (must pre- register) Call Steen Lawson Office 480.481.2066, or visit www.DBG.org.

SEASONAL RECIPES:

Check out my posting on January 1st for Rosemary Lemonade
Goes along nicely with the following seasonal recipes:

RED & GREEN COLE SLAW
1 cup shredded red cabbage
1 cup shredded green cabbage
1 red apple
1 green apple
11/2 tablespoons cider vinegar
11/2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
5 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 teaspoon celery seed, crushed
Optional herbs: rosemary, thyme, oregano, cilantro, about half to 1 tablespoon finely minced.
Salt & pepper to taste (taste first)
Add celery seed to red wine vinegar and set aside. Core, shred or finely dice apples (don't peel). Toss with cider vinegar.
Mix cabbages and apples (including the cider vinegar) in a large bowl. Mix red wine vinegar/celery seed with olive oil, pour over salad, and toss to coat well. Taste. Add salt and pepper to taste.

ALMOST EMPTY MUSTARD JAR RECIPES
...ah, the possibilities...frugal cooks once routinely saw the almost empty mustard jar as an opportunity for a salad dressing or sauce. Even 1 tablespoon left over could be turned into a tangy dinner enhancement.

SALAD DRESSING:
1 almost empty mustard jar
2 tablespoons citrus juice (orange or tangerine are lovely)
4 tablespoons oil
Dash of salt and pepper
1 tablespoons fresh herb of choice, finely chopped (rosemary, thyme, oregano, marjoram or combination)
Place all ingredients in the jar, cap and shake well, dress the salad.

Options: If you enjoy chunky salads aka chopped salad (where the ingredients are left larger sized) create your own ‘green goddess' dressing — in a blender place this salad dressing and add 1-2 cups of finely chopped salad greens (lettuces, kale, escarole, etc.), blend to combine and pour over coarsely chopped vegetables.

MARINADE/SAUCE:
1 almost empty mustard jar
2 tablespoons white wine
2 tablespoons olive oil
4 tablespoons vinegar, citrus juice or other fruit juice (pineapple, apple, etc.)
4 tablespoons finely chopped thyme, or 2 tablespoons finely chopped oregano, or 1 tablespoon of finely chopped rosemary.
Salt and pepper to taste.
Mix well and pour over boneless chicken or sturdy fish (tuna, shark, halibut, swordfish). Marinate for at least 2 hours or overnight. Grill until cooked through, about 10-15 minutes per side depending on thickness and heat of grill, basting with marinade periodically during grilling.

Find more recipes in my book "101+ Recipes from The Herb Lady"



Have a great day,

-- Catherine, The Herb Lady

Greening / Bring It Home!

When you consider ‘greening' options keep in mind family activities at home. They have more benefits than saving gas money. We do not need research studies (although they exist) to show the many advantages to having family night / activity days at home.

Aside from the many garden and cooking projects families can work on together, activities can include educational tools which are also fun, particularly for the younger members of the family.

SOME IDEAS:

Jodi Freeman, author of several books for children, developed coloring books to teach about the native peoples of the Southwest. "My Coloring Book About The Old Ones" is both an activity book and a learning tool. Included are pages for the children to draw their own interpretations of ideas. Available in print or download click here. For those home schooling - the benefit of having the coloring book as a download is that each child can have their own copy.

Susan Lovejoys delightful book "Sunflower Houses" is a gardening-with-children treasure, sure to bring the child out in all. Click here for more info on the book.

Board and Card Games: So many of us grew up playing board and card games with friends and/or family, and it seems like while they are still enjoyed by some, maybe exploring some of the great oldies would get some easy fun back into the family home activity selection options. I see board and card games as an opportunity to teach healthy sportsman-like competition as opposed to the ‘take-no-prisoners' variety which field sports can sometimes teach. I put together some of my favorites in an Amazon sidebar link and chose those that have the free-shipping option if you spend $25 - save gas and shipping too!

Old Time Radio Programs. If you think the children and teenagers in your home might not be interested in the old shows, just consider how much time and energy they put into their MP3 and other audio players. Among the many, many options for program options are comedy (wholesome - there is a word you don't see a lot), musical, drama, detective, and holiday themes.

A super and inexpensive source is Old Time Radio Cat. With the holidays coming up, a start for you is the central holiday page for Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas click here.

From there you can view the other categories in their sidebar. I am particularly fond of the old detective shows like Johnny Dollar, Nero Wolfe and Texas Rangers, but the old comedy of Fibber Maggie and Molly, Bob Hope and Jack Benny will never go out of style. If you are getting meals ready during holiday time, decorating the house, or enjoying some family time, how about a nice radio program to keep you company? As an aside many of the commercials are still in the programs — both historically interesting and occasionally de ja vue for current events.

And finally my friend Brenda Hyde has the greatest family-centered website. Oldfashionedliving.com Everything from crafts, to recipes, to tea party, gardening and just plain family fun stuff can be found there. Check out her blog links too.

Find some new or old fashioned ways to enjoy family time at your home!


-- Catherine, The Herb Lady

Greening - Alternative Energy and Your Legacy

Dear Folks,

Some years ago I read for the first time the basis for decisions in the Sioux culture:

"In Sioux culture, no decision would be made without reference to the will of the seven generations previous and in consideration for its effects and consequences for the seven generations following."

I think we all need to stop for more than a moment and consider that belief as a foundation for decisions we make individually and also on a national level with regard to where our energy resources some from and how we use them. (This is certainly true of every nation, too.)

What legacy will you leave for your later years, your children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, the families of friends? Some ‘pundits' suggest we have a God-given right to use up any and everything on the earth — I think that is incredibly selfish. My ‘other mom' had a saying for those kinds of people - "eat the whole chicken today, and the feathers and bones tomorrow." Will you be leaving behind more chickens or only the feathers and bones?

At this moment the US Congress is considering legislation which among other things would open up off-shore drilling.

Also T. Boone Pickens has launched a national ad campaign to get the country to refocus on sustainable alternative energy forms, and Al Gore has also launched a challenge — both of them to make and ensure that the US energy usage is both sustainable and self-reliant and not reliant on other countries for non-sustainable sources.

Wheee - lots of words there, but consider these factors:

1) No one - not a person - is indicating that things like off-shore drilling or even opening wild-life areas will produce anything sooner than 5-10 years down the road - in other words this is not a quick fix, folks. (Nor is it as safe as some would like to believe - when humans are involved there will be accidents, errors and just plain stupidity -- on a recent visit to Venice Beach I was saddened to see just how much of the decades old oil contamination is still visible - nasty!)

2) Sustainable - really give that some thought, because with gas, diesel, and jet fuel running at all- time high prices something has got to give.

3) Of the "things" that can ‘give' and not give, the most glaring is that anything which is moved over land has options - anything moving in the air currently has no viable fueling options. We can make electric, solar and hybrid cars, trains, and even boats, but we can't yet make a solar or electric powered airplane — do you understand what that means? If something has to give, it is going to be your car, train or bus or boat ride.

Pickens is making the point that a mix of alternative sustainable energy such as wind, solar and hydro along with ‘some' non-sustainable natural gas exploration, will allow the non-sustainable oil to be diverted to airplane use, period, which would theoretically (yes I used that word) allow for maximum efficient use of depleting oil reserves to be used for planes while all the techno folks get to work on a better fueling system in the future for air travel.

Gore's point is that we have become reliant on outside sources and (my words here) we as a nation need to be come locavores with our energy sources.

The political side effect or benefit, if you will, to having our own sustainable energy sources is to deflect all future discussions about cause and effect of ‘our oil under their soil' decisions by our government. I'm not trying to make a pro or con political statement here, just an observation of every discussion in the last some years over oil and the rest of the world.

If you decide to get solar on your residence or business, then you have made a major decision in taking back some control over where, how and when energy becomes a problem for you personally. If you go further and plug your electric or hybrid car into you solar powered/supported home (or business), you have reduced energy load on the community and increased your control over your life and resources. Make sense?

There is a new company in Arizona which is trying to take the bite out of residential solar purchase decisions, because the big stopping point for most folks is the up-front installation cost.
I cannot recommend them yet, because I have not used them although we plan to get an estimate and consultation with them.

http://www.solarcity.com/

This company consults with you, then builds a system to your property needs, and leases the system to you, for a total of reduced electric company bills, lease payment of an amount less than your average monthly bill. They do this by owning (and therefore they have to maintain) the equipment for a 15 year lease, with options for you at the end. They take the tax credits to make it work for them.

I am not alone in believing Arizona, for example, is so sun drenched that to NOT take advantage of it is just plain wasteful, but the resources to build etc. need to be there. Check out solarcity on your own, don't take my thoughts by themselves.

So what will your legacy be? Will you go for window-dressing quick fixes, which fix nothing, or choose some reasonable, doable options for the here and now, which will have good benefits for the future?

-- Catherine, The Herb Lady

Bringing My Blog Back Up

Dear Folks,

When I first put the blog up several years ago I thought I would be able to keep it going on a regular basis. But with life being what it is and was, I found some of the things I wanted to do with the Blog too time consuming versus putting out some internet newsletters and writing for local papers.

Now that posting to the blog is easier (for me anyway) and I have re-structured some of my writing I want to use this blog for my frequent thoughts, concepts and opinions on all things edible from the garden to the table, and greening up your life suggestions with an emphasis on helping you become a locavore.

A little bit about being a locavore and bringing buying decisions nearer to your home -- makes even more sense now that so many folks are having to adjust to a less-far-ranging errand running and lifestyle use of vehicles.

A locavore is both a person and a life-choice option. Being a locavore in essence means buying choices which are not only physically closer to you, but which also focus on where the 'thing' is made or grown.

If family and community are important parts of your life, then supporting local farmers, crafters, and the good old fashioned (now in again) mom-and-pop (M&Ps-for reference) stores -- you know, the ones owned and operated by your friends and neighbors -- is now more important than ever.

Does shopping locally guarantee you will always be happy with what you have? No, of course not.

But, for example, if you purchase locally grown, "seasonally available" fruits and vegetables, you are purchasing food which is picked at its prime, the most nutritious it will ever be, minimizing use of fuels, and supporting a local farmer.

If you shop at a M&P store, more money goes back into the local (your community) economy.

This is not about putting chain retailer or chain grocers out of business. This is about taking back control over not only your buying options, but also making choices which will result in benefits to you, your family and your community.

If your city or town prefers to deal with chain retailers and not the the M&Ps, think about whether your city or town is a cookie-cutter-found-anywhere type of town or does it stand out as a place to call "home town."

You know who has the power to support M&Ps and make chain stores really competitive? YOU!

If you always choose price over quality, are you producing your own self-inflicted injury, i.e., if all the chains take over all the cities and towns, where will your buying choices be?

There will always be a need for chain retailers and grocers, unless you want to create your own mini-self-sustaining life in your own back yard.

But like customers of mine at the farmers market who buy my fresh herbs -- many of them do not have the skills, time, or space to grow what I do. Likewise, I have not decided to grow my own cotton and weave my own cloth, etc. so I buy clothing from some chain stores and some M&Ps.

Here's a short to-do suggestion for you: Use the internet and find suppliers in your neighborhood. Go to http://www.localharvest.org to find food producers near you (all the USA and many countries). In Arizona you can find M&P stores offering many types of goods at http://www.localfirstaz.com.

Find a local farmers market by zip code or state at the USDA site at: http://apps.ams.usda.gov/FarmersMarkets/

And finally an important 'greening' tip for you and the health of your family. Do whatever it takes to ditch any food product containing 'high fructose corn syrup' HFCS from your and your family's meals including school food programs. The science about the health consequences and addictive nature of HFCS is still rolling in and overwhelming. It is about how our bodies react to this artificially manipulated sugar product. You and your family are far better off using cane sugar, honey, molasses and agave nectar.

And if the kids are addicted to sodas and you have a challenge getting them off the commercial sodas - make homemade sodas using unsweetened concentrated frozen juices (they are naturally sweet). Easy, they will like them and you get to control the ingredients: 1/4 cup of thawed juice concentrate to 3/4 sparkling water, seltzer or club soda (check the sodium contents of those 'fizzies' for choosing the right ones for your family). It is easy to teach even small children to make their own orange, pineapple, cranberry or raspberry soda using a marked measuring cup handy. Fill the cup to the 2 ounce level (1/4 cup) and add chilled fizzy water to near the top, transfer to a drinking glass, add ice if desired and enjoy.

Commercial options are out there - check out Hansens Natural Sodas, now available in most stores.

Have a wonderful day,

-- Catherine, The Herb Lady