Of my wild harvesting friends, I am the most risk averse. If you can potentially die or get sick from eating something at the wrong time, and if I’m not starving, then I don’t eat it. Pawpaws are the exception, their creamy, custardy innards– which when ripe taste like a mixture of mango and banana– …
The sight of this box conjures up traumatic memories if you have ever worked at a garden center~ha! I will never forget the Russian roulette of sticking your hand in to grab a pumpkin praying that it is not rotten. There is a special stench to a rotting pumpkin that does not easily wash off. …
There is a country song that asks “whatcha gonna do with a cowboy in the morning?” I found this butterfly after the bad storm (here in Lincoln, Nebraska) two weeks ago laying in a pot of water. I thought it was dead and took it out and held it in my hand while I talked …
This is the third in a series titled My Friend Herb. The intention is to introduce you to some of my favorite herbs, their traditional uses and the stories surrounding them. Today I would like to introduce you to my friend Herb, his friends call him Catnip. He is the most fascinating of my herb …
This is the second in a series titled My Friend Herb. The intention is to introduce you to some of my favorite herbs, their traditional uses and the stories surrounding them that have been passed down through the ages. Today I would like to introduce you to my friend Herb. He is formally known as …
This is the first in a series of posts introducing my favorite herbs, their traditional uses and the stories surrounding them that have been passed down through the ages ~ often morphed and embellished along the way. The working heading is “I’d Like to Introduce You to My Friend Herb!” Today I would like to …
Tuesday eating from your yard tip~plant herbs to draw the pollinators to your yard. With the popularity of butterfly and pollinator gardens by now most people have gotten the message that without pollinators food production is severely limited. As someone who enjoys eating I have made the health of pollinators in my garden a priority …
Tuesday eating from your yard tip ~ Hooray the garlic chives are in flower! Few people are more fond of invasive plants than I am, but my friend it is in your best interest to eat the garlic chives flowers before the prolific self seeders take over. Allium tuberosum commonly called garlic or chinese chives …
Tuesday eating from your yard tip on okra Even if you couldn’t eat okra it is a striking plant and flower in the garden~the yummy seed pods are an added bonus! I was first introduced to okra by some friends from Ghana with it cooked in spicy tomato gravy served over rice, which is still …
Tuesday eating from your yard tip~We are nearing the joyous day of my birth, which in non-pandemic years would be celebrated with our annual Garlic Nosh Pot Luck Gathering. You might find it surprising that the most popular garlic creations tend to be the sweets. The most Garlic Nosh wins have gone to Sharon T. …
Tuesday eating from your yard tip ~ herb infused water or tisane. Technically, tea is only made from the leaves of Camellia Sinensis and herb infused water is called a tisane. Many though use the term ”tea” more broadly with good reason ~ you think getting people to try an herb is tricky business, label …
Tuesday eating from your yard tip~ Elderberries (Sambucus canadensis) are not a berry you pick and pop in your mouth. While birds can eat elderberry off the bush, it is best for humans to remove the seed and heat it up before eating them. The stems, roots, leaves and uncooked seeds and fruit contain cyanogenic …
Many of us have happy childhood memories of eating the sour wood sorrel seed pods. The sour clover shaped leaves, yellow flowers and mini cucumber shaped seed pods are all edible. Barbara Salvatore commented that she adds wood sorrel to her lemonade, to salads and soups and as a garnish on cheese. Wood sorrel in …
Tuesday eating from your yard tip ~ Lemon balm (Melissa officinalis) is known as the mother’s little helper and the beekeeper’s friend. Infuse lemon balm in a jar of water in the refrigerator overnight to create a calming drink for both mother and children. My oldest grandson showed great instincts when he plucked lemon balm …
Tuesday eating from your yard tip~Anise Hyssop (Agastache foeniculum) came to mind this week because it has traditionally been used to help us deal with the heat and recover from heat stroke, as an expectorant or for a dispirited heart. Both the anise hyssop leaves and flowers are edible and taste like licorice/anise, so if you …
Tuesday eating from your yard tip~Purslane (Portulaca oleracea) has many health inducing virtues, including more omega 3 than any other leafy green. While many Americans view purslane as a lowly weed, purslane is eaten all over the world. It is baked in bread, pickled and added to soups, stews, stir fries and egg dishes. Google …
Tuesday eating from your yard tip~ The garlic scape is the stem and seed head forming above the hardneck garlic plant. By cutting off the scape, the energy that was going into creating the seeds is directed back to creating the ultimate garlic bulb. Scapes even come with their own handle for easy gathering. The …
Tuesday eating from your yard tip~Rose was the herb of the year in 2012. The Herb Society invited the Rose Society to talk about roses. It quickly became apparent that while Rose Society people strive to grow the perfect rose, Herb Society folks are more interested in how you consume the rose, which baffled the …
Tuesday eating from your yard tip on Lamb’s Quarters (Chenopodium album). If you have any open dirt you most likely have Lamb’s Quarters. Consider it a free gift to fill your tummy. The cooked leaves and soaked seeds are edible, as are the very young leaves uncooked. The young leaves are tender, but like all …
French Tarragon (Artemisia dracunculus) is the parlor trick of herbs. When you bite into a fresh leaf, first you taste the anise flavor then wait a moment and your tongue temporarily goes a bit numb. French tarragon in the old herbals is often referred to as the little dragon because of it’s winding roots. It …
Dandelions are a treasure trove of potassium, calcium, iron, magnesium, vitamin A,C,K and B6. Dandelions are edible from the root to the flower except for the milky filled hollow stem~but even that has uses, but just not for feeding our tummies. The green parts are bitter, but the yellow of the flower is not. I …
Tuesday eating from your yard tip~Onion Chives (Allium Schoenoprasum). The pink flowers and the leaves have a subtle onion flavor making them both visually and palette pleasing. My favorite way to eat chives are chopped up and heated with a quarter size of oil, to flavor the oil, before I throw in my eggs. Today …
(Photo above is of nettles emerging in the spring.) You would be hard-pressed to come up with a plant with as much medicinal and nutritional power– as well as being a stellar textile– as Stinging Nettles. This is the time of year to harvest the leaves of these natural wonders because they are best while …
Eating from your yard tip~Helianthus tuberosus commonly called Jerusalem Artichoke or Sunchokes is a hardy beast that grows over seven feet tall with yellow Rudbeckia-like flowers. You can harvest the tubers after the first hard freeze, but I think they taste better if you wait until spring to dig them. My grandson and I dug …
I haven’t been going out much at night this winter. Look what I’ve been missing right outside my door Hope you are well! We are in an attic freeze with snow and more snow. – J. in Lincoln, Nebraska And here’s a similar light discovered in East Portland on 2/11/2021, the first night of the …
Tuesday eating from your yard tip~as temperatures dip the question is what to do with the green tomatoes? Engage hive mind for the answer. Of course we all think of southern fried green tomatoes. Marie Kuhel suggested pickled green tomatoes~my coworker from Texas suggested adding some carrots, onions and hot peppers to the tomato pickles. …
My herb cabinet is a repurposed fold out VCR cabinet.. Tuesday eating from your yard tip~ If you haven’t already done so this is a good time to fill your herb cabinet with your favorite kitchen herbs for cooking this winter. As a general rule it is best to harvest herbs mid~morning after the dew …
Tuesday eating from your tip~Of my wild harvesting friends, I am the most risk adverse. If you can potentially die or get sick from eating something at the wrong time and if I’m not starving then I don’t eat it. Pawpaws are the exception ~ the creamy custardy innards taste like a mixture of mango …
Tuesday eating from your yard tip~I’m in the midst of harvesting the bronze fennel seeds! Fennel is in my top five favorite herbs. I carry a container of seeds in my purse to ease coughs, upset tummies and freshen up breath. All parts of fennel are edible. Some people get upset because their bronze fennel …
Tuesday eating from your yard tip ~ there are many basils with different tastes, colors of leaves and flowers. I have it on good authority from two elderly tipsy Italian women that purple opal basil is the key to a good marinara. Both the basil flowers and leaves are edible. A traditional basil pairing is tomato, …