Water Woes-The Flood of 2009

This past week in Atlanta has been a pretty scary place to live.  I’ve never experienced such torrential down pours and so much water on the ground…everywhere!  The water couldn’t be escaped! 

My worries about my vegetable garden were nothing compared to what most of the metro area was worried about…homes, lives, belongings, pets.  But, I was worried about my garden. Surrounded by two small creeks that feed into Nancy Creek, one of the rivers that overflowed its banks, I was virtually guaranteed that part, if not all of the garden would be affected.

On Monday, after days of not venturing over to see the garden out of fear of what I might find, I decided to go take photos.  There are many ways to get to the property…three of which, I discovered the hard way, were blocked by the flooding creeks and rivers.  I finally wound my way through a part of the neighborhood I had never been through before and found a path to our property. 

My stomach was in knots as I rounded each bend in the road coming closer and closer to the property.  Peeks of the green pasture, not muddy brown, came to me though the trees.  Maybe it was okay?  Pulling into the driveway and venturing towards the veggie patch, the pasture was completely dry!  There wasn’t any evidence of flooding or water accumulation of any kind.  I was stunned! 

What about my recently planted veggie patch?  As I approached the bridge over my little creek, I noticed the raging water, but it wasn’t even half way up the banks! And, no evidence existed that would suggest it had breached the banks, at all!  I mustered the courage to walk into the garden, even though the rain had picked up and was now actually stinging me through my raincoat.  Although the veggie patch was not washed out or under water, there was definitely some collateral damage from the amount and intensity of the rains we’ve had these past 10 days.  Some seedlings were definitely drowned or washed away…most notably some of the root vegetables like the radishes and beets.  But, others, like the collards, Swiss chard, peas and arugula were actually still there and seemed to be growing in spite of the harsh conditions. 

We’ve had three days of sunshine now and tomorrow I’m going back to the veggie patch to see what crops have recovered and which ones will need to be scrapped and possibly replanted.  I’m reminded of generations past whose survival and existence often depended upon their gardens.  In spite of what grows or doesn’t grow in my veggie patch, I say a little prayer of thanks knowing that my family will eat tonight and subsequent nights.

Mother Nature's Composters

Worms are Mother Nature’s way of composting.  In nature, worms devour decaying plant matter.  Their excretions help to loosen clay and enrich the soil for our plants and trees.  Amazingly, we can channel these little powerhouses in our homes to reduce the amount of waste in our trashcans.  And it is really easy!

Several years ago, in my master gardener classes, I sat in on a lecture about Vermi-composting.  What the heck is that???  “Vermi-culture”, an incredibly rich source of soil additive, is the product of Vermi-composting.  It is literally, worm poop!  I was hooked!  What a cool and efficient way of disposing of my kitchen scraps…no more grind of the in-sink-erator for me! 

I bought the bins over the Internet and set them up outside my shed.  I have a stainless steel compost mini bin under my kitchen sink where all my vegetable (no garlic or onions), fruit, pasta, rice, bread, coffee and tea grounds, and eggshell scraps go.  Initially, about once a week, I “fed the worms”, much to the disgust of my family!  And, those worms were well fed!  They have multiplied over the years to the point that I have a second tiered worm bin added to the family.  I now feed both bins at least twice a week!  (It is a good thing that we don’t eat out too often and that I like to cook!)  The “tea” or run-off liquid from the composter is a nutrient rich fertilizer:  plants literally grow over night after being fed with the stuff.  The worm-poop, added to my garden beds and veggie patch, reduces non-beneficial nematodes (bad soil bugs) and helps to enrich the soil.  It is a win-win for the environment:  Less kitchen waste ends up in plastic bags in landfills.

And, the worms make great pets for your kids!  Seriously!  Worms don’t live in your house, you don’t have to clean up after them, only get fed once or twice a week (and the kids can do it) and best yet, they cost nothing after the initial set up costs, including no Vet bills!  Additionally, being a Vermi-composter is a great lesson in ecology and environmental awareness.  I am always flabbergasted when I feed the worms and realize just how much plant refuse I collect on a weekly basis!  I’m all into being “green” these days!

Jalapeno Onion Salad

To make the Jalapeno Onions:

One red onion, sliced thinly

Olive oil

1 cup pickled jalapeno slices

½ cup apple cider vinegar

2 tablespoons sugar

Saute' the sliced onions in olive oil to cover the pan until translucent. Add the jalapeno slices, apple cider vinegar and sugar. Mix well and continue to simmer until the liquid has been absorbed or cooked off. Remove the onion slices to a bowl to cool. The Jalapeno’s can be reserved for another time, thrown away or used in the salad.

Note: These onions are terrific on sandwiches, burgers, in omelets, and on steaks.

To make the Salad:

Baby mixed greens

Crumbled goat cheese (Chevre)

Store bought pralines

Place the greens in a salad bowl topped with the jalapeno onions, crumbled goat cheese and pralines. Lightly dress with your favorite salad dressing, although many people prefer not to add dressing because it is so flavorful.

Dehydrated Onion

My dad said he would come down to Atlanta to help me build my chicken coop! Hooray!

When I was growing up in Southwestern Michigan, my dad could fix anything. A Veterinarian by day, I remember helping him on the weekends, paint, refinish floors and wallpaper the rental homes we owned. I have an especially vivid memory of Daddy installing a ceiling fan in he and mom’s bedroom and neglecting to turn off the “juice” to the room…I probably shouldn’t go in to too much more detail in case he reads this.

Anyway, Daddy can build anything. So, I’m very excited that he has agreed to help me with my chicken coop. I’ve decided to buy a kit…already pre cut wood, all the right kinds and numbers of screws and nails etc. We will put it together and paint it and voila`!

I think I got my gardening genes from my dad. (Mom kills all plants…)

When we were growing up Daddy had a really large vegetable garden outside our back fence. I used to help him. One night for dinner we were having broccoli from the garden. (I was an unusual kid and loved broccoli. I still do! ) My brother and sister and I were all served our plates with dinner on them. My brother (a VERY picky eater) hated onions as a kid. There were little white flecks on the broccoli that looked a lot like those dehydrated onions everyone used in the 70’s. Matt, my brother, started pitching a fit about the onion on the broccoli. Daddy told him to stop whining and pick them off. The problem is they didn’t really look like dehydrated onions to me, so I asked daddy what they were. I guess daddy was in a hurry with the broccoli that day because he didn’t pick off the little worms that were hanging out on it before he steamed it. It was a while before I ate broccoli without thinking about the “dehydrated onion” story.

I do wash all the produce that I harvest from my garden. I think there are plenty of great stories my kids will tell their future spouses and children about me without having a “mom fed us dead bugs for dinner” story.

Heirloom vs. Hybrid

I feel invigorated and alive! Everyone has their “thing” that re-energizes them…for some it is tennis or golf, for others reading a good book and for me…I love gardening! And the weather is perfect for 4 hours of weeding, tilling, and harvesting. My father in law, Tom, and I are pretty pleased with the aesthetics of the garden…it is beautiful! I can’t believe I am still cutting zinnias, picking green beans and eggplant, peppers and tomatillos! And, better yet, the seeds we planted are starting to sprout!

About 10 days ago Tom and I pulled up all the tomatoes and squash leaving lots of room for new plantings. I am very excited about using heirloom varieties of vegetables, so I chose to only plant them. Heirloom varieties are non-hybridized and not genetically engineered. They are the plants of yesteryear…the vegetables our grandparents, great grandparents and great-great grandparents planted and ate. They are diverse and often are more disease and pest resistant than hybridized varieties because of their diversity. And they taste amazing!

Okay, so now I’m going to get on my soapbox for a minute…and I promise it will only be a minute.

Many of the vegetables and fruits we buy in the grocery stores are mass-produced from hybrid varieties of seeds. Hybrid plants have been hand pollinated instead of open pollinated (think bees) and they are genetically identical to every other of their variety. They are not genetically diverse. When we rely on one variety of a seed for a particular fruit or vegetable and a virulent disease or pests destroy that plant…that’s it. The plant ceases to exist. (Think Irish potato famine…) Planting genetically diverse vegetables and fruits is good for our future, our health and the health of the environment. For example: There are only a few varieties of hybrid apples, but in the world of heirloom plants there are 10,000 varieties of apples. If you want to know more on this topic, check out

http://www.seedsavers.org/Content.aspx?src=aboutus.htm

So back to the garden and those heirloom seeds we planted about 10 days ago that are beginning to sprout. The list is long…we got caught up in the act of planting! But, the names tell you a lot about the uniqueness of these varieties. I bet they will have one-of-a-kind tastes, too.

Black-seeded Simpson, bronze mignonette, butter crunch, Lolita and sunset lettuces, arugula, and spinach varieties New Zealand and strawberry

Mammoth melting sugar peas

British wonder peas

Lucullus, flamingo and oriole swiss chard

Chioggia (looks like a bulls eye to me), early wonder and bulls blood beets

Little finger and coreless carrots

Hollow crown parsnips

Black Spanish and brightest breakfast radishes

Lacinato kale

Georgia collards (I make fabulous ones for Thanksgiving every year!)

And an experiment with Pinkeye/Purple Hull peas

Dreaming of Chickens...

Today I got an email from “My Pet Chicken” updating me on the currently available pullets. A pullet is a 10-12 week old chick that is about to begin laying eggs. I can’t tell you how desperately I want chickens…I think they are wonderful creatures, interesting and unique with the added benefit of providing fresh eggs on a daily basis. My family thinks I’m nuts… I think I’m a frustrated farmer. I probably should have been a farmer; but I’m not. I’m a city girl that loves to garden and loves animals. And, I can have chickens (hens only) in the city!

So I’ve been pouring over designs for chicken coops, getting quotes on having fencing attached to my garden for a run and reading everything I can regarding the care and raising of chickens. I have this fantasy that I’m having a big dinner party with my closest friends, the ones that love me in spite of my critters and penchant for taking on too much in my life, and we walk out to my garden to decide what to have for dinner! Can you imagine! How wonderful would it be to collect a few fresh eggs for a hollandaise sauce to drizzle over freshly picked and sautéed asparagus, or beets baked in a horseradish crust, grilled corn with lime butter, grilled pizzas made with fresh picked arugula and basil, freshly made ice cream made with a few more eggs! Yum!

Hubby wants me to slow down a bit. But, in keeping with my nature, I want it all NOW! There will be a full court press this weekend…I’ve got chicken coop designs out to share, adorable pictures of Polish and Silkie chickens (could a chicken be any cuter???), and I’m hoping with some great meals, nice bottles of wine and a little extra attention, I can convince him that now is the perfect time to add a few baby chickens to our nest.

Food for my Soul

I've been neglectful... With kids to get off to college and back to school and other life stuff, I "let go" of my wonderful veggie patch; my source of serenity and purpose, for a couple of weeks. Four hours of weeding later, I'm hurting and feeling incredibly re-energized and appreciative of good, honest, hard work. Why did I let two whole weeks go by with out making it out to the garden?

My father in law, Tom, joined me today. A joyful sight greeted us as the zinnias towered over us both! After sort-of making a plan to divide and conquer, Tom tackled the woeful tomatoes (...yanked them out as they are pitiful!) while I pulled gazillions of weeds from the former corn patch and underlying the zinnias. We picked all the tomatoes, green and red (of which there weren't many), re-staked the eggplant, which is still producing amazing fruit, harvested all the acorn and butternut squash (before the squash bugs get them), and attacked the green beans...pulling up the "spent" plants and picking all the beans from the still producing ones. Several large, beautiful green bell peppers were also ready. I'm making stuffed peppers with them this weekend! And, I can't believe it, but there are tons more jalapeno peppers! I guess I'll be making some more jalapeno pickles!

All four of the pups accompanied me to the garden today! They roamed the "pasture" chasing rodents that scampered in and out of the rock walls, chased each other, and generally wore themselves out. When I finally put them in the cab of the truck to drive home, they all found a spot and promptly crashed.

I'm going back to the garden tomorrow morning...and not just because I didn't accomplish everything I had hoped to accomplish today. I need a little more "food for my soul" that only the magic of digging in the dirt delivers.