Greening - Did The USDA Just Approve GMO Contamination of Organic Foods?

 Dear Folks,

For those of you who may not be familiar with the term GMO it stands for Genetically Modified Organism sometimes referred to and Genetically Engineered Organism or “Transgenic”.

On January 28, 2011, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced that the United State Department of Agriculture (USDA) had approved the unrestricted planting of genetically modified alfalfa sold by Monsanto Co. and Forge Genetics. (Called RRA which stands for Roundup Ready Alfalfa.)

This very, very controversial decision by the USDA may well result in their tacit approval to contamination of all organic and naturally grown (no chemicals) foods by GMOs.

A bit of history about the phrase genetically modified or genetically engineered.

If a rose grower wants to develop a new rose with a prettier flower or longer stems he or she would manually cross pollinate two plants with some of the features they were looking for.  Each successive generation would be cross pollinated with other roses which had stronger versions of the feature sought until finally the rose grower had “the” rose he was looking for.  That is a form of genetic engineering that has been around for centuries, used in not only plants but also livestock, dogs (the original dog a wild wolf-type is the direct ancestor of all dogs), cats (some horrible mutations resulting that some people think are ‘cute”) and birds.

The problem with the current GMO and GEO ‘manufacturing’ is that the scientists are not staying with in species but going outside to cross plants (and animals) with bacteria, pesticides and even insects (if you want to scare yourself google transgenic spider and goat).

All of these experiments are touted as better for us: more pest resistant crops, stronger garments, supposedly better yields and supposedly cheaper in the long run for the consumer.

Due to the dominance of huge chemical companies like Monsanto, Dow and Schering-Plough the FDA under its GRAS rules (Generally Recognized As Safe) decided that GMO components are not required to be labeled as such and therefore the ONLY current way to know you are not consuming GMO/GEO foods is to buy organic.  Or maybe you can’t rely on that any longer with the approval of RRA!

If you eat eggs, meat, cheese or drink milk, at some point in time the chickens or cows probably ate alfalfa.

Under the stringent standards created by the USDA for certified organic foods, no part of the component stream of the final product can contain GMO or GEO foods.

Prior to the decision by Secretay Vilsack to approve RRA, he released a letter to the agriculture community.  In it he said:

“Therefore, we have an obligation to carefully consider USDA’s 2,300 page EIS, which acknowledges the potential of cross-fertilization to non-GE alfalfa from GE alfalfa – a significant concern for farmers who produce for non-GE markets at home and abroad.”  --USDA Secretary VIlsack Urges GE and Non-GE Coexistance - January 8, 2011
            
http://www.usda.gov/documents/GE_Alfalfa-to_stakeholders-2010Dec.pdf


Vilsack then approved the use of RRA on January 28, 2011.

The almost immediate impact of the approval of RRA will be on Organic Milk Producers and consumers of Organic Milk.  Why?

Because of those stringent guidelines for approval and maintenance of the USDA Certified Organic Program.  Why?

Remember the statement above by USDA Secretary Vilsack “acknowledges the potential of cross-fertilization to non-GE alfalfa from GE alfalfa.”

"Many Americans became familiar with GM contamination in September 2000, when StarLink® corn, a potentially allergenic GM variety not approved for human consumption, was found in taco shells and other corn products. Planted to less than 1 percent of the nation’s corn acreage, StarLink was found in 22 percent of the corn samples tested by the USDA and prompted the recall of more than 300 food brands. After an extensive program to remove it, three years later StarLink still showed up in more than 1 percent of corn samples."
http://www.seedsofdeception.com/Public/Newsletter/Oct04Myth-NecessityofGMFreeZone/index.cfm

Corn pollen is considered one of the heavier pollens and therefore except for bee pollination, wind drift of pollen could be considered to be limited to a 2 mile radius.

With alfalfa having a much lighter pollen, some analysts consider that between wind drift and bee pollination (bees love alfalfa) the range could be 16 miles!

At some point down the road from the approval of RRA one of two scenarios will occur with Organic Milk Producers:

1) you will be drinking organic milk contaminated by Monsanto RRA alfalfa
OR
2) the frequent tests and inspections required by the USDA Organic program will turn up the contamination and the dairy is either fined to oblivion or required to drop out of the Organic program for 5-7 years until they re-satisfy the basic certification requirements.

Not one to refrain from talking out of both sides of its mouth, the USDA will have approved a chemical and removed a food all at the same time.

There are some preventative steps consumers and natural and organic food producers can do – I discuss these at the end of this blog.

Some litigation history.
GMO seeds are patented and tightly enforced by the patent holder.  Monsanto being one of the largest producers of GMO seed, is usually at the forefront in ‘protecting’ their patents.

There are some very sad stories about farmers who thought they were getting a good deal when entering into agreements with Monsanto to participate in their GMO seed programs.  I am not going to address these here in this blog, but suffice it to say that they read like selling their souls to the devil.

Reminds me of an old Coke-Cola story about a little café owner who decided to no longer carrry Coke-Cola.  He was required to take down and return all of Coke’s signage and equipment – fair enough.  But it got worse after that - the company representatives visited him and said that since he had prior sold their product that he was now required to post large signs stating his soda was NOT coke-cola and to explain that to customers.  I don’t know how that turned out for him but when a big company hammers a little guy over the head with their legal department you know how that usually comes out.

Back to litigation by the big guys.  Along the path of Monsanto getting the USDA to approve its RRA, they were involved in a lawsuit over the RRA that made its way to the Supreme Court, and only missed being won completely by Monsanto on the basis of the huge report Vilsack reportedly used as a basis for the final approval - namely the case turned on the fact that the report was not available and further ‘study’ was needed on the issue of the use of RRA.

Two comments from the case are notable for the current and rising concern on the inability of any GMO seed to be kept within its boundaries and also who is benefitting from either the use of seed or who buys organic products.

Monsanto v. Geertson Seed Farms

In one of the most amazing (in my opinion – Catherine) statements of under-education uttered by a sitting Judge – Justice Antonin Scalia appeared unconvinced by the respondents’ reasoning during oral arguments and stated: “This isn’t contamination of New York City’s water supply…This is not the end of the world, it really isn’t. He went on: “The most it does is affect the farmers who want to cater to the European markets”

Scalia was making reference to the oft - repeated statement by the chemical giants that the only reason for organic farming is our export to countries like Japan which has a zero-tolerance policy for GMO foods.  Got that!  Your purchases of organic or naturally produced foods by US farmers in your community does not count.

[Commenting on the Geertson case] ...Gregory Shaffer, a professor at the University of Minnesota Law School, cross-pollination is a risk for organic farms and can prevent goods from being certified organic. "There is some talk about building buffers between the fields," said Shaffer. "It depends on the crop, but there are ways to create buffers to stop cross-pollination."

http://www.law.com/jsp/cc/PubArticleCC.jsp?id=1202463170985

You can’t build a buffer to bees.

Despite Scalia’s amazingly short-sighted comment, the USDA would disagree with him:

In 2008, U.S. producers dedicated approximately 4.6 million acres of crop land, rangeland, and pasture to certified organic production, more than double the 1.8 million certified acres in 2000, according to ERS estimates (see box, “Tracking the Trends in Organic Agriculture”).Certified organic crop land increased 41 percent between 2000 and 2005and was up 51 percent between 2005 and 2008, reaching over 2.2 million acres. The organic livestock sector grew even faster during this period, with the largest gains in organic dairy and egg production. Certified organic milk cows increased steadily from approximately 87,000 animals in 2000 to over 200,000 in 2008, and organic layer hens grew from 2.4 million to 348 million. Nonetheless, U.S. organic crop acreage accounted for less than 1 percent of total crop acreage in2008, much lower than that in many other countries, including Switzerland (11 percent in 2007), Italy (9 percent), Uruguay (over 6 percent), UK (over 4 percent) and Mexico (nearly 3 percent).
According to the Nutrition Business Journal, U.S. organic food sales are expected to reach $25 billion in 2010, up from $3.6 billion in 1997.

--Economic Research Service of The United States Department of Agriculture
http://www.ers.usda.gov/AmberWaves/june10/Features/AmericasOrganicFarmers.htm

In a now famous case, where Monsanto sought to enforce its patent against a farmer who was not a participant in its program, Monsanto sadly won, although the defendant was not required to pay damages to the company.

Monsanto v. Percy Schmeiser

The judgment along with previous ones upon which it was built has been interpreted by many to mean that if any RR crop is found on agricultural land wherein it was not specifically purchased even if it found its way there through entirely natural means such as wind or insect pollination, the farmer is liable to Monsanto for "theft" of its property. That at least seems to be the goal of Monsanto.

Schmeiser was not required to pay Monsanto any damages due to the fact that he had not profited from the "infringement".

Various views and opinions of Monsanto’s suit against Schmeiser essentially boiled down to the Monsanto-view theory that if their GMO product wound up on your land, it was your responsibility to either pay them for it or remove it at your own expense. This view is confirmed by a statement made by a company employee following the Schmeiser decision.

"Monsanto's Jordan said the company isn't concerned that Schmeiser won't have to pay. "The important aspect of this particular case was intellectual property, not any sort of monetary gain," she said. "The ruling affirms the way that we do business". Of course Monsanto had been seeking hundreds of thousands of dollars in "damages".

http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Goliath_and_David:_Monsanto%27s_Legal_Battles_against_Farmers

Possible Remedial Actions:
If you are a natural or Organic grower or producer of non-GMO food products you can take a ‘leaf’ from Monsanto’s legal notebook and set up an in-expensive early defense prophylactic. (I avoid being crude but this seems to fit in this situation!)  More on this suggestions below.

If you are a consumer of natural, Organic or prefer not to buy GMO/GEO products - let the vendors and suppliers (grocery stores) you deal with know in clear and unequivocal terms that you want GMO containing foods labeled as such so you can make your own choices.  This is not out of the question as it has been done before - usually by a labeling statement which reads “does not contain.”

When consumers started to become alarmed about the use of “rBGH” (“Bovine Growth Hormone used to cause the cows to produce more milk aka rBST) first came producers who did NOT use it labeling the milk as such.  Then came grocery chains like Kroger (Frys) and Safeway who banned rBGH-milk and dairy products from their stores.  Oh and you know who developed and sold rBGH to dairies?  Monsanto.

And it may not be easy to get stores to do this but you the consumer have a lot of power.

Seed and organic or natural food producers have some of the “does not contain” options available to them, but may generate the kind of brutal legal battle Monsanto is capable of, attacking those who do not want GMO or GEO contaminants and want to tell their customers so.

Monsanto has responded to this trend by lobbying state governments to ban the practice of distinguishing between milk from farms pledged not to use rBST and those that do  --The New York Times

Monsanto sued Oakhurst Dairy of Maine over their use of a label which pledged to not use artificial growth hormones. The dairy stated that their disagreement was not over the scientific evidence for the safety of rBST (Monsanto's complaint about the label), but "We're in the business of marketing milk, not Monsanto's drugs." The suit was settled when the dairy agreed to add a qualifying statement to their label: "FDA states: No significant difference in milk from cows treated with artificial growth hormones." The FDA recommends this additional labeling but does not require it.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bovine_somatotropin


GROWERS AND FOOD PRODUCERS

The “Leaf” from the legal notebook of Monsanto.

According to one source on the internt Monsanto sent out over 200 ‘cease and desist’ letters to farmers they accused of using their GMO seed without payment or permission.

Let’s take a scenario where you grow and sell organic or non-GMO seed to consumers (like me) or retailers like plant nurserys.  You have signed the voluntary “safe seed pledge” (Consumers: look for that SSP particularly on the internet sites.) and you just found out some of your farming neighbors or farmers in your community have entered one of Monsanto’s SYSTTD* GMO programs, or that a feed store or seed dealer in your community has agreed to be Monsanto’s distributor.

Since Monsanto readily accuses farmers of theft of intellectual property - you assert your rights to “Not Trespass” and turn the responsibility back on the farmers, dealers and Monsanto with a letter, reminding them of THEIR responsibility to contain their product and YOUR remedies under the law, which include claims of criminal trespass, criminal or civil negligence, and toxic trespass.

At the very end of this blog I will give you a sample letter to send out.  I can’t give you legal advice and you should not take this blog as such.  Most of you have some kind of legal representation or you can avail yourself of paid assistance from your local Legal Aid, county attorney community legal assistance programs or perhaps the ACLU would want to get involved, after all it seems completely unfair that you might be victimized by damage and loss due to contamination from something you want no part in and then be made to pay THEM.

*Sell Your Soul To The Devil

Legal Theory and A Case.

Don’t expect any help from the USDA or the FDA – while they supposedly want to promote and support organic agriculture they appear to be more interested in supporting major corporations than consumers.


Trespass
    As a general matter, trespass is actionable without proof of damage, whereas negligence is not.

    Alert your neighbor, seed dealer and Monsanto (or the manufacturer of the seed) that you will not allow or tolerate trespass of their seed or plant material on your land.

Before you send the letter have plant samples genetically tested from your farm. Soil and plant testing laboratories are in all states.

Negligence

Common Law on negligence was unclear (at best) until Lord Atkins' speech in Donoghue v Stevenson 1932. In this case, he expounded the `neighbour principle': that a man has a`duty of care' to those people whom it is reasonably foreseeable that his actions will affect. If he fails adequately to discharge that duty, then he will be liable for any adverse consequences that flow from his failure.


This judgement did not immediately catch the attention of other judges; it took about a decade before the `neighbour principle' became entrenched in judicial thinking. When it did, the law of negligence largely assumed the form it has today. In brief, to sustain a claim in negligence, the claimant must show that he was owed a Duty of care by the defendant, and that the defendant was in Breach of the duty of care, and the breach was the cause of the defendant's loss or injury.

http://lawiki.org/lawwiki/Negligence

In your letter remind your neighbor, dealer and Monsanto about their neighborly obligation of Duty of Care to contain their crop and they are take whatever action is needed to guarantee that cross pollination will not occur, and that you have the right to sue for the damage should it occur on your property.

A Case History:

Toxic Trespass: Organic Farm Can Seek Damages from Pesticide Company
By Kurtis Alexander
Santa Cruz Sentinel, December 22, 2010

Jacobs Farm/Del Cabo, Inc. v.Western Farm Service, Inc.

"This week, California's Sixth Appellate District Court upheld Jacob's right to sue the pesticide applicator, Western Farm Service, and let stand the $1 million award a jury handed Jacobs two years ago. The ruling becomes final in 30 days.

http://www.organicconsumers.org/articles/article_22249.cfm

Here is a case that began when the Jacobs sale of product to Whole Foods was rejected because when tested it came back as containing pesticides.  Since Mr. Jacobs asserted in the suit that he discovered he was allergic 40 years prior t pesticides and made a specific point of never using pesticides, the only possible source was his neighbor farmer who hired the services of Western Farm Service, who sprayed the Jacobs farm.

PRODUCER SAMPLE LETTER TO SHOW TO YOUR LEGAL COUNSEL



Dear Neighbor,

It has come to my attention that you have decided to grow Genetically Modified Seed (or sell it) in my neighborhood or community.

You may not know that my farm/ranch is Organically Certified (or that I am committed to growing seed / plants in a natural manner without chemicals) and that I chose to not use any GMO products.

Because of this I need to remind you of your obligation to prevent nuisance cross-pollination or wind drift or other potential contamination points from your operation to my farm.

Under the trespass and negligence laws of our state, I would have legal recourse under those statutes as well as other possible remedies at law to compensate me for any damage or loss whatsoever.

I hope by sending this letter no legal action would ever be required as you accept your legal obligation to limit contamination from your GMO product.

Thank you for your attention to this matter,


Yours truly,

A..Farmer [be sure to review this with your legal counsel]

. . .

As consumers we have the power to create change for the good, but you have to do something.  Start a letter writing campaign to your grocers and local farm agencies that you want to know when something contains GMOs, and that you want your organic or natural foods TO BE organic and natural.  You want the choice to consumer GMOs or not.

Buy only seeds you know are labeled as not containing GMOs.  There a dozens of seed suppliers who signed the Safe Seed Pledge to now knowingly sell or transfer plants or seeds containing GMOs.

“Don’t Just Stand There, Plant Something!” – Arizona Nursery Association

Keep warm, the nicer weather returns next week,


-- Catherine, The Herb Lady

Frost Warning - our up and down January/February - and starting plants

Dear Folks,

Now that we have been lulled into a nice sense of spring a new "front" is coming in bringing not only a probable bit of rain, but also low over-night temperatures - we could be in the low 30s or high 20s by Sunday night (it got down to 37 here Friday night) if not sooner, so keep your protective covers ready or the "poor-man's" cloches made of clean plastic jugs with the bottom cut off.  Leave the cap off if you would like to just leave the jugs in place instead of trying to remember to put them on in the evening and take them off in the morning -- vents the excess humidity and heat.

It is easy to get thinking about sprucing up the garden after the killing frosts of a couple of weeks ago while enjoyed the past 70 degree days, but we will roller-coast into last freeze sometime between February 15 and March 1st - give or take a couple of days.  Do not touch the frost damage plants until the end of February and then begin pruning each plant over the coarse of several days so as not to shock the plant.  (The existing damage will actually be a cover for already hit plants which are still alive -- and most of them will be.)

Many of you know I experiment with not only different edibles to grow, but also how to grow them, and one of the things I have done for a couple of years now is to make a temporary modified greenhouse to start plants ahead of planting out.  I have to stainless steel shelf / bakers racks I use for growing starters and seeds and when the weather heads into winter I drape a clear plastic cover over the shelves, north to south.  I don't bother to try to completely encase rack in plastic, that is not the point -- overhead frost protection is the point and also fully enclosed greenhouses have special issues like pest, mold and mildew challenges.  I take advantage of several important facts about our intense sun -- southern winter exposure and black trays.  If I use covers on the trays, I brace them open a little to vent the excess heat and humidity (just like the plastic jugs mentioned above) and the wonderfully warming sun through the south side of the 'greenhouse' keeps the plants happy during the day and the black trays provide some residual warmth at night.

Because the birds just 'love" to get in my newly plants pots I drape bird netting loosely over the east/west sides of the 'greenhouse' configuration and that keeps the pots in tact - if the silly feather-heads get into the enclosure the openings at the bottom allow the to walk or fly out (only the occasional dove-brain actually walks 'into' the enclosure).

The particular challenge for us desert gardeners and that getting beds ready and the last of the hardy perennials and cool weather annuals is a "NOW" issue.  Because March can gallop into high 90s quickly, getting plants established as early as possible is the best key to success.  If you want some last of the season plants like dill or cilantro, seed (yes seed) them in (soaking them overnight) in an area which will have some afternoon shade by the equinox.  This will allow you to harvest these kinds of cool weather plants later into the spring.

For February planting, Artichoke;  Asparagus;  Basil;  Bay;  Bee Balm (Monarda Didyma);  Beets;  Bok Choy;  Cantaloupe;  Carrots;  Chard;  Citrus Scented Marigold (Tagetes Nelsonii);  Collards;  Corn;  Cucumbers;  English Daisy (Bellis Perennis);  Epazote;  Fruit Trees;  Hollyhock (Alcea Rosea); Jasmin sambac (Arabian);  Jerusalem Artichoke;  Lavender;  Lettuce & Greens;  Marigold;  Marjoram;  Melon, Musk Melon;  Melon, Winter;  Mint;  Mustard;  Onion, Sets;  Onions, Green;  Oregano;  Pansies (Viola X Wittrockiana);  Peas;  Peppers;  Potatoes;  Primrose (Primula Vulgaris);  Purslane (Portulaca X Hybrida);  Radishes;  Safflower (Carthamus Tinctorius);  Sage;  Savory;  Scented Geranium; Snapdragons; Spinach;  Squash, Summer;  Strawberry;  Sunflower;  Sweet Alyssum;  Tangerine Scented Marigold (Tagetes Lemonii);  Thyme;  Tomatoes;  Turnips;  Watermelon.

Don't forget my beginners guide book for desert gardening available in print or as a eBook.

Publisher

Have a Great weekend.

-- Catherine, The Herb Lady

P.S.  Check out the calendar for upcoming events - Boyce Thompson Arboretum Plant sale and their Annual Herb Festival - I participate in both.

Follow Up To My Family Post

Dear Folks,

I want to thank all of you who offered their kind words to my family on the loss of my cousin.

This morning they captured the suspect without incident (happily no one was injured in doing so), and so we move forward.

Some of you have noted that we should hold our emergency responders in high regard, and support them in any way we can, and I can only echo that.  I grew up in a firefighter family (3 uncles - one of whom was Chris' grandfather - and a cousin).

My friend and soul mate is now a retired firefighter, but was on active duty when I met him years ago.

With that kind of background you quickly learn to say good bye, even when they are going to the store, as if it was your last.

You learn that when they go out the door in the morning to their job, they may never return, so you make each goodbye sincere.

From my personal perspective, and following on the tragedy in Tucson, I wish everyone to give thought to what types of intervention can be looked to, to lessen or prevent future tragedies like these two very, very sad events.

If everyone, sometime down the road, were to consider guiding a troubled person toward help, instead of passing them by, perhaps some of these events would not happen.  Even one interception -- would be worth the effort.

As hard working and worthy as our police are, they can't be everywhere.  The death of my cousin in a criminal act has not altered the fact that I do personally believe in the right of citizens to legally own guns for self-protection.

Hold your family and friends close to your heart,

-- Catherine, The Herb Lady

Sad News For My Family

Dear Folks,

Way too soon after the tragedy in Tucson, yesterday my young cousin was killed in the line of duty as a police officer in New Jersey.

We lost his father just this past September.  Our family while large and spread out is close knit in spirit.

Someone (possibly one of his fellow officers) began a facebook page for condolences.

http://www.facebook.com/pages/RIP-Officer-Chris-Matlosz/180931118604382

We don't have answers only very, very sad questions.

-- Catherine, The Herb Lady

Green Your Life Up With A Return To Respect

Dear Folks,

The terrible tragedy of yesterday's shootings in Tucson, Arizona demands a comment.

We NEED to return to civil discourse in our conversations and comments.  We can all still have lively discussions and disagreements without, as the Sheriff stated, political vitriol fueling and triggering unstable people to take, literal, inflammatory words and phrases.  If we are frustrated with leadership and circumstances, change is made through our willingness to become engaged in change and do meaningful work and volunteering.

With the upcoming celebration of Martin Luther King, Jr. and Civil Rights Day -- we should look at some of what Dr. King, asked people to do when they disagreed.

"Nonviolence means avoiding not only external physical violence but also internal violence of the spirit.  You not only refuse to shoot a man, but you refuse to hate him."  -- Martin Luther King Jr.

Sit down with family and friends and civilly talk over this tragedy.  Keep Congresswoman Giffords, her family, the families of those who died and those who are injured in your peaceful thoughts and prayers, and ask the Good Lord, Great Spirit, or whomever you look to for comfort to guide our leaders and officials in better civil behavior, so they can actually "represent us" as we should be represented -- by setting good examples!

-- Catherine, The Herb Lady

Saturday, January 8th, Lecture - LOCATION CHANGE!

Dear Folks,

Due to water damage at the library where the free lecture was scheduled - the location has been changed.

See the link to the google group site for information.

http://groups.google.com/group/edible-landscaping-in-the-desert-gl-gs-ge/browse_thread/thread/c3b12c62f76c05b8#


-- Catherine, The Herb Lady

Fall Leaves or Leaf Fall - Pruning Conundrum

Dear Folks,

One of the things that is both amusing and frustrating to Deane is pruning the deciduous trees.

But first make sure you take precautions with the coming hard frost here in the valley.  See my google letter to readers for tips and information.

Click here.


Back to pruning the trees.  The key to pruning the trees is first you look for all the leaves to fall which indicates the sap has stop running and you want to get the pruning done before the new flower-future fruit buds form.  Except here in the valley where you are supposed to go out and talk to the trees and find out when they are going to drop their leaves.

The fig tree after a cool couple of nights and days decided around December 7th to drop all of its leaves in 3 days!  Sitting in the little outdoor breakfast nook, I commented that we needed to eat in a hurry so we would not be buried in the leaves.

The peaches and the apricots, on the other hand, like to hang on to all of their leaves, or at least most of them well into mid to late December or even January all the while happily putting out new flower buds.

The thought of cutting off all of that potential fruit is enough to make an rancher/orchardist like Deane cry, but as we lost 3 trees this year, most likely to old age, a deep pruning was called for and he girded his loins (actually getting into old sweats) and proceeded to remonstrate the trees for clues on the best branches to take off.

The result was a pruned tree still holding onto its leaves!

Oh and all that pruned wood?  The trailer ready to go to the landfill where they transform the branches and twigs into mulch was a masterpiece worthy of a peasant of good sturdy stock and his hard work.

Tips For Pruning:

1) Most pruning of stone fruit trees should be completed before the first of the year, so as to minimize cutting out potential fruit.
2) Most experts recommend a 'vase' shaped configuration, removing crossing branches and opening the center of the trees to allow maximum air flow and light.
3) Citrus while evergreen can occasionally use a pruning, mostly to remove dead limbs, HOWEVER, many commercial citrus growers will allow dead limbs - if not a safety issue, to stay on the tree to support fruit-bearing branches.  Prune Citrus before late January/early February flowering.
4) When pruning try for a downward facing cut so that rain and moisture cannot collect on the cut edges.

Fruit Thinning:

It is a bit early for this tip but you should have the information handy.  The reality of thinning stone fruits is while it seems wasteful to pick off every 2 or 3 young fruit, you will protect the tree in the long run.  We have once or twice not gotten the fruit thinned and the result was broken branches from the weight of all the moisture ladened fruit.  Also the resulting fruit is very small.

The general recommendation is about 6 inches between remaining fruit.  If that is too much for you to deal with, try picking out all but 1 peach out of each cluster,  but do watch the weight of the branches. It is not uncommon to see heavy branches supported with a 2 by 4.

Have a safe and Happy New Year, keep warm, take care of the plants, family and pets, and I will have more information to you next year!

-- Catherine, The Herb Lady

Find my books on gardening or cooking in print or ebook.  www.lulu.com/herbs2u

Free Upcoming Event and Free Shipping Offer - Ends soon!

Dear Folks,

See the free shipping offer from my publisher below - Ends December 12, 2010.

FREE Lecture January 8, 2011.

The City of Mesa Hosts a monthly series of "Living Green" lectures and I am co-lecturer at the one for January.

Mesa Sustainability site here

Greg Morris and I will be discussing edible landscaping for the backyard gardener.

Greg is a Certified Professional Landscape Designer with a focus on sustainable landscaping, and of course Edible Landscaping is the ultimate sustainable gardening. Click here for Greg's blog.

The lecture is free but it is a good idea to call and let them know you plan to attend (contact info on the City site).

FREE SHIPPING OFFER

If you have been interested in my books but waiting for a good opportunity, you have one now with a free shipping offer -- the offer ENDS December 12, 2010.  (SPECIAL NOTE: the free shipping may not guarantee delivery in time for Christmas - I don't want you or your giftee to be disappointed.)

Go to my publisher's page for my books.  Enter the following code when prompted at check out -- the offer has a maximum of $45 in free shipping charges -- HOLIDAY305.

Catherine Book Site

The offer is for print copies, of course, but you can order your copy of my two main books as ebooks - with a version available for iPad at the same link.

I will be posting current gardening tips next blog!

Have a wonderful weekend!


-- Catherine, The Herb Lady

Herb Teas for what ails ya!

Dear Folks,

I hope you all had a sweet and comfortable Thanksgiving with friends and family.

Susan Wittig-Albert writes the wonderful herb shop mysteries I enjoy so much and is herself an excellent source of knowledge on herbs and their uses.  Her weekly e-newsletter, which arrives every Monday morning, has 3 herbal tea recipes for soothing symptoms of colds and headaches.  Check out the newsletter with other information:

http://www.abouthyme.com/dayletters/101129.html

If you are a mystery lover and have not read any of Susan's books, you are in for a treat.  To get an introduction to the series which is quickly approaching the high teens in numbers, buy a copy of her short story compilation.  You get an introduction to her characters in a charming series of shorts that satisfy.

One of the key points of my writing and lectures is using culinary herbs for their medicinal properties.  Unless you want to get into your own serious study of medicinal herbs, culinary herbs as a basis for health choices is a generally safer beginning.  CAUTION:  always know the sensitivities and allergies of you and your family.  Even culinary herbs can cause reactions in some folks.

One of Susan's recipes using ginger is similar to what I referred to as my "Good for you Broth"


GOOD FOR YOU BROTH
aka nature's "penicillin"
The holidays can bring illness due to stress. Here is a fragrant, soothing, and healthy broth for whatever ails you. This recipe can be doubled or tripled easily
1 cup chicken broth
¼ inch slice of fresh Ginger Root (peel can be left on)
1/8 cup fresh cilantro (whatever you do - do not use dried!)
1 lemon or lime juice, zested, and juiced (divide juice)
Soup Option: Sliced carrots and scallions for extra flavor
Place broth, ginger, Cilantro, zest and half of the juice in pot, cover and bring to simmer for 10 minutes. Strain, add remaining juice and drink while hot (don't burn yourself!). The heat of the broth is one of the helpful elements to making it work well for you. If you want to make some to keep refrigerated and then microwave it later by the cup, reserve the rest of the juice (or squeeze some fresh as needed), and add after re-heating (a lot of the vitamin c is lost in heat - that is the reason for adding the reserved juice just before drinking).

FOR A SOUP, cook noodles in a separate pot - add carrots to the same cooking water, cook until desired done-ness, drain and set aside. If you are feeling creative, slices of carrots can be cut to resemble flowers - pretty effect in the soup. Have herb flowers and finely chopped fresh scallions for garnish ready.

After making the broth, strain, add rest of juice. Divide noodles and carrots into soup bowls, top with broth, and float herb flowers if desired.

for the full post go to:

http://edibleherbsandflowers.blogspot.com/2008/12/hot-sip-for-cold-weather.html

Don't forget my books are now available as e-books with a version for iPad.

http://stores.lulu.com/herbs2u

Have a great week and keep comfortable!

-- Catherine, The Herb Lady

Potato Soup with Garden Herbs

Dear Folks,

I've had an urge for potato soup - must be our chilling weather!  Anyway, I think I've come close in flavor to my mom's potato soup of 5 decades ago, but of course I had to add herbs for additional flavor.

Homey, warming and tasty.

I've been having fun with the sorrel from my garden (I've been adding to grain salads for sparkle), we always have fresh parsley too, and I got the arugula from one of our Farmers at the Mesa Farmers Market 'cause my arugula is not up yet, darn :-)

You can easily make this vegan friendly if you desire.

Catherine's Potato Soup with Garden Herbs

2 tablespoons of butter

1/4 of white onion minced

Melt butter in 2 quart stock pot, saute the onion in the melted butter while you clean and cut of potatoes, add a tablespoon of olive oil if it looks like the onions need more liquid.

1 tablespoons of olive oil

3-4 cups of diced potatoes (I leave the peels on and I used red new potatoes)

2 cups of milk

1 1/2 cups of finely minced herbs (I used a mix of parsley, sorrel, arugula)

salt and pepper (about 1/2 tsp of salt and several good grounds of the pepper grinder will usually do it)

Add milk to onions and bring just to boil, stir in potatoes, reduce heat, cover, and cook until tender - about 15 minutes, season with S&P.

Croutons:  (I toasted 12 grain bread, spread butter/canola mix on and very lightly sprinkled with garlic powder and cubed.)

When the potatoes are fork tender, mash leaving some pieces for texture.

Serve with minced herbs and croutons.

Optional:  Crumbled fresh cooked bacon /

Vegan Options: try rice milk instead of the cows milk and some firm cubed tofu can be added just before mashing to increase protein content, use all olive oil for saute.

Enjoy!

-- Catherine, The Herb Lady

My books are available as ebooks and a version for iPad in addition to print
www.lulu.com/herbs2u

Random Acts of Culture

Dear Folks,


I just had to share this with you.  Random Acts of Culture is a project of Knights Arts, in what are known as "flash events" apparently spontaneous, but structured gatherings in public places.


This one is thoroughly enjoyable.  A random performance of Hallelujah Chorus from Handel's "Messiah"  With the world's largest pipe organ in Macy's Department Store in Philadelphia.


Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wp_RHnQ-jgU


-- Catherine, The Herb Lady

Yes! We have some bananas!

Dear Folks,

Well after many lost opportunities - we missed some ripening times when we were out of town, or the fruit simply was not mature enough when frosts hit, we have our special banana fruit!

On Wednesday the 3rd we noticed some of the fruit beginning to yellow and cut the whole stalk on Thursday - (we thought - although yesterday Deane noticed there is still a large 'hand' of fruit on the plant which we will leave there until it begins to yellow).

We have been enjoying the ripening fruit ever since.


This is a "Blue Java" or "Ice Cream" banana (Musa acuminata ss. Java Blue( Moo-suh)(ah-kew-min-AH-tuh) is reported to be the best tasting banana and to have a vanilla ice cream taste.

I purchased the original plant about 8 or 9 years ago at a Home Depot in town, and transported the potted plant around until about 2 years ago and then waited, and waited - the first bunch a year ago came out so late we cut the stalk at first frost to keep it going and it did ripen in our back room but the fruit while banana like in flavor was not inspiring.

Over the next year or so we had the hit or miss with subsequent bunches until this one.  It took right at 4 months to go from first flower sighting to this pre-ripe stage.

So was it worth the wait - yep!

First let me tell you these are not large bananas - they average about 3 inches long.  4 of us did the first taste tests - we all agree the flavor is more pronounced than the store bought kind, sweeter, creamy, and with 'something' additional in the flavor.  1 of us said "vanilla"

So it was worth it.

Okay on what some of the challenges were that I can discuss now.  That first year's bunch was off the first plant which grew to about 10 feet tall.  Subsequent plants were taller.  When they would get really going in the warm weather they would put out a new leaf about every 8-10 days.  It appeared the subsequent fruit bunches even when not robust were larger and more 'hands' developed.

Over the last two years I identified some important aspects of growing them here in the valley:

1) the large root mass grows substantially once you put it in the ground from a potted plant.  Subsequent plants are more robust and put out fruit earlier - most likely because of the enlarging root mass.

2) your success with the fruit is going depend a lot on when the flower comes out after the plant has been in the ground about a year, meaning after the initial plant is in the ground a year, the subsequent 'baby' plants will be more robust, grow faster and reach flowering stage a little sooner.  If the fruit in optimal growing time takes 4 months to go from first flower sighting to ready to harvest the stalk then your prime crop will be available before first frost.

-- we have our last large bunch on another plant (each plant produces one bunch then dies back and you need to cut it out) is just now getting go good size and unfortunately needs another 2 months to get to prime harvest state.  We will watch and cut it at first frost.

-- in a very cold winter your banana plants may go to the ground if we get sustained killing frosts (not common) but they will come back up as soon as the soil warms in the spring, even sooner if the subsequent winter is mild.

3) bananas are a large piece of grass - kind of - creating photosynthesis from all green parts.  One of the complaints of 'orderly gardeners' is that the wind can shred the large leaves and it does, but do not cut any of the leaves off unless they have gone completely brown. If you need to contain it some you can cut the bent-over tips some to keep them from trailing on the ground.

4) they will require a bit more water than some other fruiting kinds, but not excessively.  During the hottest part of the summer we watered for about 10 minutes between the same kind of watering we gave our tomatoes, other fruit trees and herbs.

Recommendations from other banana growers are to try and keep no more than a few plants in the same area (root mass) at a time, to encourage good growth and fruiting.  I don't know that my cutting out some of the baby plants for re-sale did any of that but the remaining plants were very large in girth.  I did need to keep the babies cut out anyway so I could control how wide the spread of the mass was by selectively choosing which baby plants came out.  Worked for us.

Other useable qualities of the banana plant are the leaves and flowers are edible.  While you don't want to chow down on the leaf they make great steaming envelopes for food, imparting a fruity quality to the cooked food.  The banana flowers are also edible but I have not wanted to sacrifice future fruit by trying some of the recipes. Now that I know how good the fruit is when it ripens at the right time, if a flower comes out too late for successful fruit production I will give the recipes for banana flower a try -- maybe next year. (If you are really energetic the fibers of the stalks have been used in weaving.)

We were almost considering giving up on the major plant area (I had started another small one to have at least for using the leaves), and we are both glad we didn't pull the plants -- the fruit is that good.

Next I will be updating on my ginger project.

Have a great time in the garden!


-- Catherine, The Herb Lady

My books are available as ebooks with a version for ipad as well as in print copies

http://stores.lulu.com/herbs2u

Cooking Shows are Not New!

Dear Folks,

As fan of old time radio, I asked Jon over at www.otrcat.com if he had any old shows on cooking or gardening.  I have purchased mp3 shows from Jon for some of my favorite old time detective shows (like "Yours Truly, Johnny Dollar") and with all that is going on now with the economy and renewal of interests in home gardening (aka Victory Gardens) I figured I would ask if Jon had any in his extensive collections.  He said he would check and he did!

He has two small collections of old time cooking shows "Betty Crocker" and "Martha Meade" (known as the Betty Crocker of the West).

I transcribed the recipes from two shows for you below -- I can't wait to try the "Emergency Steak" -- it is a perfect fit for an economical dinner today!  The war time economies required creativity in the kitchen.

A note about old time radio shows.  These shows were made in the 30s and 40s primarily although Jon's collections go from about the 20s through the 50s.  The culture and times were different, think of it as a history lesson. Many of the shows still have their commercials.  As a history lesson it is what it is and the fact that women's roles have significantly changed and evolved in society is an important current event compared to history.

One of the aspects of these cooking shows is how long they pause to give the listener time to write down the instructions -- compare that to today's cooking shows and you have to be a speed typist to write it down.  Although most of the time you can go to a current show's website to find the recipe, many times they are not available at the time of the show, so the pause is helpful :-)

Jon tells me he is working on compiling the gardening shows and hopes to have something in the spring.  I can't wait!  Did you know about 40% of all produce consumed in the country back then was home grown to support the war - Victory Gardens were then and now a great way to bring fresh to the table.  Our local family owned nursery Harpers Nursery was started as a Victory Garden!

Jon has an extensive collection of holiday shows, click here for the main holiday page.  Although Halloween is past Jon has a family friendly selection of halloween shows - comedy and variety - in addition to his scary sampler.  Click here for the variety halloween page.

On each of the main pages, Jon includes a show you can listen to or download to computer.

His collections are inexpensive and many times include a hundred hours or more on each disc.

Okay here are the recipes with a link following for the shows page.  The emphasis was on a lot of vegetables, a point I keep writing about and folks need to pay attention to today - your plate for a meal should be a rainbow of color with 2/3 of it taken up by vegetables and fruits (not including potatoes, pasta or grains).

"Emergency Steak"

Betty Crocker August 10, 1945

Serves 6

1 lb of ground beef or hamburger

1/2 cup milk

1 cup wheaties

1 tsp salt

1/4 tsp pepper

1 Tblsp finely chopped onion

Mix all together, pat the mixture into a 1" thick 'steak shape' on a broiler pan or in a heavy skillet.  Broil 8-15 minutes til desired doneness (med - well).

Serve garnished with parsley and sliced radishes and vegetable side dish (below)

Cut a mixture of carrots, celery and cabbage into equal size pieces to equal 3-5 cups total.  Cook in a pot with 2 tablespoons vegetable oil and 1/4 cup of water in a covered pot. Add a bit of water if needed. All the water should cook out.  Cook only until crisp done (in the 40s they would have been cooked very well done).   Serve the Steak and veggies with a tossed salad.

http://www.otrcat.com/113-BettyCrocker-279-custom.html

"Sour Cream Tart"

Martha Meade Society Cooking Show

May 16, 1933

Martha Meade was called the Betty Crocker of the West, sponsored by The Sperry Flour Company, of San Francisco, CA, would eventually become part of General Mills.

The show featured information about the local growers of food products and in this episode the focus was on apples.

6 baked pastry tart shells

2 eggs separated

2 Tblsp flour

6 Tblsp sugar

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 tsp cinnamon*

1/4 tsp nutmeg*

1/4 tsp "pastry spice" but can substitute half and half ground cloves and allspice*

1 cup sour cream (or add a tablespoon of vinegar to 1 cup of cream and let set for a couple of hours)** 

1 cup of unsweetened apple sauce (Show notes to make apple sauce add the juice of 1/2 a lemon to the apples while cooking and then add the rind for flavor - removing before serving -- Catherine notes if you have never made apple sauce it is very easy -- core and dice up apples - I personally leave the peels on - 1-2 tablespoon of water is all you need usually - bring to high simmer, reduce heat, stir, cover and cook on low for about 30-40 minutes depending on how thick you want it.  Stirring occasionally.

Meringue

4 tbls sugar

2 tbls chopped walnuts

*Catherine says you could substitute 1 teaspoon of pumpkin pie spice and achieve a very similar taste.

** Catherine says "I would consider 1 cup of greek style yogurt as an option to the sour cream."

Beat egg yolks until thick and lemon yellow.  Add sugar and beat to incorporate sugar well.  Mix flour, salt and spices together then add to egg mixture, mix.  Then add sour cream and apple sauce and blend thoroughly.  Cook mixture in the top of a double boiler until thickened.  Cool, Pour into pastry shells.

Whip egg whites to peaks, gradually add in 4 tablespoons sugar and 2 tablespoons chopped walnuts, and top each tart with some of the meringue.  Bake in slow oven 300 for approximately 20 minutes. 

http://www.otrcat.com/113-MarthaMeade-280-custom.html

-- Catherine, The Herb Lady

Question on Assassin Bugs

Dear Folks,

I was sent a comment on my September, 2008 post regarding aphids click here to read that post.

Since I was going to write another post on the "white flies are coming, the white flies are coming" -- the white files being a form of aphid and a real pain in the gardener psyche, I thought I would simplify and give you the link to the older post and respond to the comment.

Doris “anonymous” commented on aphids and the beneficial predatory insects which can help you manage these pests:

“I found your page while trying to find out if the little bugs in broccoli are hazardous to ingest. My concern is regarding the use of assassin bugs. From wikipedia: Some assassin bug groups specialize on certain prey groups, such as ants (feather-legged bugs - Holoptilinae), termites, or diplopods (Ectrichodiinae). Some blood-sucking species, particularly Triatoma spp. and other members of the subfamily Triatominae (e.g., Paratriatoma hirsuta) , are also known as kissing bugs due to their habit of biting humans in their sleep on the soft tissue of the lips and eyes; a number of these haematophagous species, located in Central and South America, are able to transmit a potentially fatal trypanosome disease known as Chagas disease (American trypanosomiasis). So, I don't know which brand you are advocating, but surely wouldn't care to encounter the last one!!! Take care, Doris

Doris, first the aphids attacking the broccoli are most likely a type of aphid which is live baring as opposed to the egg baring types, and usually ‘gray’ in color although they can be green or other colors.  The live baring are more prolific in reproducing and can be a serious problem on the cabbage family members like broccoli because they can ‘hide’ in the junctions of the leaves and stems. (See my soap solution remedy below.)

It is unlikely if you ingest aphids that you will become ill unless the plant was sprayed with chemicals recently.  Most people simply do not want to ‘eat’ insects under any circumstances because of the ‘ick’ factor.

As far as the assassin bugs as beneficial insects are concerned, to my knowledge you won’t be able to control which member of that large insect family your pests attract, and, again as far as I know you can’t buy assassin bugs like you can lady bugs or praying mantis egg cases.

Folks, Doris is correct on the subspecies ‘kissing bugs’ being vectors for a serious disease, most of the some 138 species are south of the US border, with 12 of the species ‘native’ to the US.

According to “Kaufman Field Guide to Insects of North America” the USA species are not potential vectors because of the differing behavior patterns of these “American” bugs.  So Doris if you are in the US, you probably do not have to worry about which assassin bugs show up in your garden.

All gardeners should educate themselves and family members to leave the assassin bugs alone, regardless.  They do a good job on the pests but can give you a hard bite, described as excruciating, if you threaten it.  Most of the beneficial insects are capable of biting, so you should always leave them alone to do their job

Soap solution.  Mix an a small amount of something like dawn dish detergent into a quart of water and once every 5 days during the growing period of plants like broccoli or cauliflower, pour about a 1/4 cup of this solution straight down the center area of the plant.  This is like grandma pouring the dish washing basin onto the plants to keep the bugs away.  It works because even the ‘exhausted’ soap suds are enough to kill the pests without harming the plant or soil.  The 5 days is important because the birth cycle of the pests is about 7 days so you want to keep the cycles broken.

-- Catherine, The Herb Lady

Eco-Friendly Lunch & Snack Options & What is Edible Landscaping?

Dear Folks,

I will get to the question of what is Edible Landscaping below, but first - options to plastic wrapped and bagged lunch and snacks for school or office.


Susan Decker is "Always A Little Behind" crafts and this gal is an amazing one-woman crafter. Pictured here is her newest eco product, reusable and washable snack bags to replace plastic wrap and ziplock bags.  These items are new additions to her lunch products.  


"Lunch Bags are 11”h x 8 ½” w x 3” d, made from 100% cotton fabric, lined with Nylon Ripstop fabric (waterproof and washable), and haveVelcro closures. Take your lunch to work, know which bag is yours and be environmentally friendly all at once!"  The snack bags pictured are small, medium and about half the size of the lunch "box" bag.  The lunch bag is $12 and the 3 smaller ones are $4, $5 and $6 or $13.50 for the set of 3.


Contact Susan at: littlebehind17@yahoo.com
Or call: (480)895-8889


You can see the lunch bag at her etsy site


Greg Peterson of the "Urban Farm" in Phoenix writes about the need to find better eco ways to replace plastic wrap in the current issue of Edible Phoenix.  Greg contemplates the impact of the Gulf Oil spill and all of our tremendous use of petroleum-based products.  He also highlights a Tempe gardener who created a community garden in her back yard -- a superior idea.  A community garden does not have to be a public dedicated lot, it can be as simple or as complex as you and your friends, neighbors or group care to make it. I am currently mentoring a retirement community garden, and an elementary school community garden.  There is no better time in this current economy, and with our primary planting season getting under way, to find ways to garden in your backyard or with friends.


Read more of Greg's article "Jena's Tempe Garden" here:


If you are not familiar with the Edible Phoenix magazine it is available at your favorite farmers market, quarterly, or you can subscribe here:


. . .


WHAT IS Edible Landscaping?

When I say "edible landscaping" to a customer or passer-by at the farmers market I sometimes get a quizzical look - what IS edible landscaping, the look says. Many people take the word landscaping to infer LARGE as in trees and shrubs.

What I mean by edible landscaping is the use of edibles in place of ALL aspects of the garden — opening up the choices of what to use, and where, for texture, form, and fragrance.

In most cases there is an edible plant, which will do well in the desert, to replace strictly ornamental (and often poisonous) plants, making the gardens safer for family and pets, in the long term — and useful as in edible.

Do you like fountain grass?  How about replacing it with lemon grass.

Need to get rid of the oleander, or would like large privacy plantings?  Replace it with bamboo or sugar cane.  The sugar cane grows handsomely like bamboo but is not as invasive and comes in a gorgeous stem color of burgundy called "Pele's Smoke" (an heirloom sugar cane).*   Bamboo shoots (the young sprouts at the base of stalks) ARE the bamboo shoots you buy canned in the Asian section of your grocery store.

If you are worried about the watering requirements of sugar cane or bamboo, once established they take standard vegetable watering — in our gardens now with temperatures still in the 100s the sugarcane is being watered every 4 days.

*Sugar cane has a history in the Valley of the Sun.  It was grown commercially in the late 1800s and early 1900s and again to a lesser degree in the 1950s-70s.  It grows easily and quickly to a nice height of 8 to 12 feet, can be cut back for harvest and re-sprouts.  Because the leaves can be ‘sharp,' sugar cane also makes a good perimeter/privacy hedge.

Need a formal hedge?  Try myrtle, lavender, rosemary, or any of the scented geraniums for your options of low to high hedges, which can be trimmed to form.

Themes and Landscaping ideas from: "Edible Landscaping In The Desert Southwest: Wheelbarrow to Plate"

AGAINST A BLOCK FENCE
Back Row:  Lavender (tolerant of lime leach from blocks and bricks)
Front Row:  Ornamental (and edible) Kales and cabbages

You can find more information on these themes by purchasing the book (the book is now also available for iPad users) or joining the "Edible landscaping subscription service" - see the link in the upper right corner here on the blog.

As mentioned above, now is the beginning of our primary planting time.  Optimal time for perennial plants, trees and shrubs is Oct through Feb.  Oh and cool weather annuals and Garlic!

Have a great time in the garden

-- Catherine, The Herb Lady

Save These Dates!

Dear Folks,

I have several classes or lectures lined up at the moment.
October 9th
November 20th
January 8, 2011


SALSA 101 Class with Catherine "The Herb Lady"
Saturday, October 9th at 2-4 p.m.
Did you know fruit salsa was not invented by modern chefs? It has been around longer than you think! Come enjoy an afternoon learning about the history and plants that make up salsa, then make your own variations to take home with you! The class is $15 for members, $22.50 for non- members. All supplies are included. Space is Limited. Call 520.689.2723 to register. All proceeds benefit Boyce Thompson Arboretum.

http://arboretum.ag.arizona.edu/

Tofu: Holiday Recipe Ideas! Presentation with Catherine "the Herb Lady"
Saturday, November 20th at 1-3 p.m.
Tofu is the plain sister of healthy foods with a secret — it is a palate for flavor! Tofu is not just for vegetarians and can take your next holiday meal to a whole new level. In this presentation Catherine explains that menu planning for the holidays with vegan or vegetarian family and friends is not the challenge you would think. Take home holiday and casual recipe ideas – and try samples of them too - for entertaining using nutrient dense tofu and edamame (green soy beans) that will please meat eaters and vegetarians alike. This presentation is $10 for members, $17.50 for non-members. Recipes and food samples are included. Space is limited. Call 520.689.2723 to register. All proceeds benefit Boyce Thompson Arboretum.

http://arboretum.ag.arizona.edu/

Edible Landscaping: Vegetable Gardening, Herbs and More
January 8, 2011   1:30 - 4 P.M.
Red Mountain Branch

Presented by:  Greg Morris, Master Gardener, Landscape Designer, and Catherine "The Herb Lady" Crowley

Now you can have your landscape and eat it too! This program will cover the basics for successful vegetable gardening, but will also show how to incorporate edible plants throughout the landscape, and will suggest plant varieties for landscape function and edibility. An interactive 'show-and-smell' with culinary herbs will teach you growing basics and provide cooking suggestions, too.

INFORMATION:
Donna DiFrancesco
Conservation Specialist
Environmental & Sustainability
480.644.3334 (tel):  480.644.4774 (fax)
PO Box 1466
Mesa, AZ 85211-1466
Water Use It Wisely!

. . .

We have had our 'seasonal shift' and now we are entering "spring in the desert" -- for new comers that may be hard to understand.  October is the beginning of the primary planting season for perennials and all cool weather annuals and biennials.

If you have tried and tried to have a garden in the desert southwest and been disappointed in the results one of the primary pieces of information is what to plant and when.  When I write and talk about being able to garden all year long - I mean it -- however you have to plant each plant variety in its own proper season.  October ?  Plant dill, parsley, and cilantro and all the cole (cabbage) family and root vegetables and all the wonderful greens and lettuces.  February?  Plant basil, tomatoes, chives, watermelon, summer squash, and corn.  July?  Yes, late July - early August - plant all the "SEEDS" for the fall plants you want including those pumpkins for Halloween and Thanksgiving.


Think snowsuits in July and Swimsuits in December and you will have a way of understanding when to begin seeds for transplanting and the different seasons in the desert garden.


My easy helper 'reminder service' is just $21 a year for information directly into your email inbox.  Several times a month you will receive simple but detailed information on what to plant and when, when to look at harvesting (and also what is available at your local farmers market), and how to use the bounty of your gardens.  This inexpensive service is made possible by keeping it automated, so I am always happy to answer additional questions for subscribers individual gardens via email.

You can pay through this link:

Paypal payment window

Also for those of you interested in my gardening and/or cooking books, they are now available for your iPad.

Have a great day,



-- Catherine, The Herb Lady