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18 September 2010
Una Carta De Amor
Calendula My Sweet,
Your purposes are endless; Let us begin with edibility.
You are fit to be eaten in colorful confetti salad and herbaceous potato soup.
Your dried petals can be muddled in jojobaoil or grapeseed oil for a taste of infused cookery.
For the chickens, your extract can be added to seed for enhanced brilliance of yolk.
You nest in my medicine cabinet…
You boast anti-viral, anti-genotoxic and antiseptic properties.
Enough of the anti; On to the pro!
Your tincture is soothing for Peace of Mind, Body, and Spirit. To reduce inflammation, to ease abdominal cramps, and to treat irritated epidermis. You heal wounds and sore throats; Is there anywhere you dare not venture?
You are beautiful in my garden, so easy to grow. Beautiful on my patio in a pot, the root of your common name “Pot Marigold.”
Calendula, I am grateful for you.
Share a picnic with dishes from A-to-Z at a twilight picnic on Sunday, October 10, 2010 at Hayes Valley Farm in San Francisco.
Read more about edible plants in the blog post series Nibbles from the Alphabet Garden. The Alphabet Garden is an open collaboration in urban farming, art, and technology, curated by Zoey Kroll/Edible Office.
Photos by Casey Gold
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17 September 2010
The Permaculture Design Certification course is sometimes described as a ride on a whitewater river raft.
There will be exciting rapids that get our hearts and minds racing with enthusiasm, action and hope. Other times there will be peaceful, though-provoking pauses with amazing vistas, reflection, and response.
And along the way, there will be a number of different topics such as soil, water, energy, and trees. The topics, each branches and forks in the river, winding down deep canyons. Each canyon could take a lifetime to explore.
Starting this Sunday, September 19th, we are very excited to begin to explore deeper into one of these canyons with the Deeper Dive: SOILS classes at Hayes Valley Farm. Classes will be offered twice a week, on Sunday and again on Monday from 3:00pm-6:30pm. Each week, the three hour class will introduce some of the basic concepts of soil health, compost, worms, compost teas, and soil science.
In October and November, we'll go even deeper, with Deeper Dive: WORMS, Deeper Dive: COMPOST, Deeper Dive: COMPOST TEAS, and Deeper Dive: SOIL SCIENCE.
Photo: www.oars.com
You can find out more about the latest classes and courses at Hayes Valley Farm by checking out our COURSE CATALOG.
Upcoming Deeper Dives at Hayes Valley Farm
Deeper Dive: SOILS
Offered: September 20, 2010 - October 26, 2010
Starts: September 20, 3:00pm, meeting on Sundays and Mondays, 3-6:30pm.
Location: Hayes Valley Farm, San Francisco, California
Instructors: Aimee Hill and Jay Rosenberg
Description: These classes cover various concepts of soil science including soil structure, humus, soil life, nutrients and minerals for plants, worms, compost, and compost teas as well as various strategies for maintaining soil health and fertility.
More info: http://www.hayesvalleyfarm.com/course-catalog/
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17 September 2010
Beets need boron. What’s a boron? No silly, it’s not a name you call someone you don’t like… It’s a mineral that helps beets develop deep taproots and skin tough enough to keep out the bugs. Boron is the most widely deficient minor nutrient in vegetable crop soils. It is required for protein synthesis, and increases crop yield, flower set, and vegetable quality.
So …. back to beats. Besides being famous for thriller sized crowds at Michael Jackson concerts, beets can serve as a culinary centerpiece in your home. We’re not talking about the nasty canned beets many of us have been forced to eat by Grandma as part of a childhood dinner. We’re talking about the magical root crop that is easy to grow, easy to harvest, and allows you to use the root AND the leaves for cooking. Can you ask for much more? You can bake them into chips, stir-fry them, throw em’ in soups, shred them in a salad, and use them to dye your shirt red!
Here's my favorite recipe:
Beet and Carrot Salad
3 beets (medium size)2 carrots (large size)
1/4 cup walnut pieces (optional)
Olive oil
Balsamic vinegar
Salt, pepper to your liking
- Shred beets and carrots in food processor or with hand shredder (better workout, I prefer this!)
- Drizzle Olive oil (1tb) and Balsamic Vinegar (1.5 tsp) and mix up.
- Taste, add more olive oil or balsamic to your liking
- Taste again, add walnuts on top, a dash of salt and pepper if needed.
Share a picnic with dishes from A-to-Z at a twilight picnic on Sunday, October 10, 2010 at Hayes Valley Farm in San Francisco.
Read more about edible plants in the blog post series Nibbles from the Alphabet Garden. The Alphabet Garden is an open collaboration in urban farming, art, and technology, curated by Zoey Kroll/Edible Office.
Photo by Chris Burley
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16 September 2010
A is for Apples
by Angela Goebel
B is for Beets
by Chris Burley
C is for Calendula
by Casey Gold
Share a picnic with dishes from A-to-Z at a twilight picnic on Sunday, October 10, 2010 at Hayes Valley Farm in San Francisco.
Read more about edible plants in this blog post series Nibbles from the Alphabet Garden. The Alphabet Garden is an open collaboration in urban farming, art, and technology, curated by Zoey Kroll/Edible Office.
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16 September 2010
Apples are a classic ingredient and metaphor. Apples are beginnings. A picture of a rosy apple launches our education as we innocently recite the alphabet in kindergarten. Apples are desire. Their temptation supposedly pushed Adam and Eve out of the first documented food forest. They are a choice between wholesome apple pie or sinful cider. An apple a day keeps the doctor away. But, don't follow in Snow White's footsteps...avoid poisoned apples. And, doesn't a bushel of apples buy security?
The other day, I was walking through Samuel P. Taylor State Park. Imagine redwoods and voluptuous ferns. We followed a winding path that saddled up to a stream. Using the first permaculture principle of observation, I spotted one, two, three apples on the forest floor. I turned this way and that. Was there an apple tree nearby? No, no, a hiker must have dropped his snack. But wait, way above, fifty feet high or more, were branches laden with apples. Fifteen feet away was a second tree. They were robed in swampy grey moss; their bark was rugged and worn. Recognizing their great height, I surmised these apple trees must be more than a century old, perhaps dating back to the paper mill that once churned nearby.
The apples were not quite so sweet as candy. They possessed a slight tang. I laughed. Who would have thought to find apple trees in a grove of redwoods? However, apples are pioneers of our imagination and settlements. Apples have adapted to fit particular purposes and places.
Share a picnic with dishes from A-to-Z at a twilight picnic on Sunday, October 10, 2010 at Hayes Valley Farm in San Francisco.
Read more about edible plants in the blog post series Nibbles from the Alphabet Garden. The Alphabet Garden is an open collaboration in urban farming, art, and technology, curated by Zoey Kroll/Edible Office.
Photos by Angela Goebel
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