Hello Garden Friends:

Many Winners in the Name that Vegetable Contest!

It’s purslane….an annual succulent that some scorn as an evasive species commonly called pigweed. Purslane has a slightly salt and sour taste; and is high in vitaminsA, B, C and carotenoids as well as dietary minerals, such as magnesium, calcium, potassium, and iron.

This year, the purslane going wild throughout our garden was “discovered” to the delight of a Latino women’s club who work and socialize in the garden a couple of times each month. Purslane is a staple of their cuisine as an essential ingredient of basic green sauces which is the foundation of many dishes (think Chicken Mole). Purslane is drought tolerant, too!

The Faith & Grace Garden is now harvesting purslane for donation at many food distribution sites where it is well received.
Portulaca oleracea Scientific classification  or Common Purslane
For more information, paste http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Portulaca_oleracea into your bowser.
Robin, Margaret, Mark, David, Elvin, Ruth, Jane and Susan (from NC) as well as the rest of you may claim your prize at the end of the message…many purslane recipes!! 

Here’s what is happening in a food pantry garden near you……..

 Agape Garden, 7384 NW 16^th Street in Ankeny (Next to the Faith Chapel and close by John Deere)
Craig Crist reports the Agape gardeners harvested a cabbage weighing nearly 10 pounds recently. Over 3,800 pounds donated this year!! The garden is really starting to produce!
Volunteer hours in the Agape garden are almost every Tuesday and Thursday evenings around 6:30 and Saturdays from 8 am until Noon. Call Craig Crist to verify time and dates @ 515-577-8260 leave message if no answer. The Agape Garden always needs help.

Faith & Grace Garden.  Between 24^th & 28^th Streets north of Ashworth Road, WDM, by Covenant Presbyterian Church and St. Timothy’s Episcopal Church, park in the lot north of St. Timothy’s off 24^th Street.

Picnic/Followed by Gardening, Friday, July 13. Potluck picnic starts at p.m. with gardening at p.m.. Bring a side from the deli and table service. Drinks provided. Bring the family. We will be harvesting vegetables for donation to the Trinity United Methodist food giveaway on Saturday morning. Please contact Tim by 3 pm on Friday if you plan to attend at timothyjgoldman@gmail.com or call 745-9842. Special note: Name that vegetable contest winners attending the picnic will receive some fresh gourmet garlic from the garden, too!!

Below are harvest totals through July 10 for the Faith & Grace garden followed by the organization to which the food was donated.

Units in Lbs	Total
Peas	140
Bush Beans	254
Broccoli	10
Cabbage	66
Chard	34
Kale	20
Lettuce	134
Onions	559
Purslane	55
Peppers	10
Total Harvested	1,777
Where the food went…. Eddie Ds	156
DMARC	390
Trinity	691
Family Violence Shelter	65
Catholic Workers	25
Cottage Grove Pres	0
Cavero Park/Bidwell Riverside	450
Total Donated	1,777

In addition, 88 dozen ears of ear have been harvested so far this season.

St. Anthony’s Garden of Eden

For information about the Garden of Eden, please contact John at comphelp@ecity.net or by calling 515-240-3146.

St Francis of Assisi Garden The garden is located across the street to the North, from St Francis of Assisi church in the North-east corner of the playground. We are picking beets, tomatoes, and zucchini and having a great year! Volunteer day in the garden is p.m. – p.m. on Sunday, but volunteers working independently anytime are welcome. For more information, contact Jan Hoeman at Janhoeman@mchsi.com.

Urban Harvest Garden – An outreach of Urban Heights Covenant benefitting the Urbandale/Windsor Heights Food Pantry 7605 Aurora, Urbandale, Iowa  278-1371

You can go to the church website at desmoineschurch.org to donate using PayPal.  All donations are tax deductible.  ALL produce is donated to the Urbandale/Windsor Heights food pantry. You can also connect to the blog and Facebook there.

For further information contact Garden Manager Beth Rydberg at 314-2114.

For information and best times to garden, please email garden manager Beth Rydberg at  brydberg@mchsi.com or by calling at 314-2114.

Recipes: Purslane

Think of it as a weed, and you’ll be missing out on one of the most nutritious greens on the planet. Purslane has more beta-carotene than spinach*, as well as high levels of magnesium and potassium. Historically it has been used as a remedy for arthritis and inflammation by European cultures. Chinese herbalists found similar benefits, using it in respiratory and circulatory function. Recently, it’s been found that purslane has alpha linolenic acid, a type of omega-3 fatty acid. Researchers see evidence that these substances lower blood pressure and cholesterol levels as well as make the blood less likely to form clots. And, purslane has only 15 calories per 100 g portion.

World-wide there are approximately 19 genera and approximately 500 species of purslane. The U.S. is home to 9 genera alone. It is most commonly found in the warm temperate regions of the northern hemisphere. Purslane exhibits the most species diversity in Western North America and South Africa, where it is likely to have originated. Part of the reason for its evolutionary success is that a single plant can produce up to 52,300 seeds. What’s more, purslane seeds can survive for up to 30 years in undisturbed soil. Several ancient cultures have included purslane as a part of their cuisine, including those of Greece and Central America. Russians dry and can it for the winter. In Mexico it is called verdolaga and is a favorite comfort food. There, it is eaten in omelets, as a side dish, rolled in tortillas, or dropped by handfuls into soups and stews.

PURSLANE POTATO SALAD

Serves 4-6

In a medium pot, boil 5 cups chopped potatoes until tender. Drain and set aside to cool. In a bowl, mix 1 cucumber chopped into half moon slivers, 1 cup purslane leaves and buds (flowers and stalks are edible as well, if you choose), and 1 cup chopped scallions with greens. Add potatoes and mix well.

In a small, wide bowl, whisk 1 egg yolk until smooth. Drip in, whisking constantly, 1 cup olive oil, making sure to add slowly enough to keep mixture opaque. Add 1 teaspoon salt and 1-2 finely chopped Serrano peppers. Mix well. Spoon over potato and vegetable mixture (there may be some spicy mayo leftover; it will keep in the fridge for at least a week, if not longer), adding several tablespoons white wine or cider vinegar and fresh ground pepper and salt to taste. Toss well and serve at room temperature.

Cucumber-purslane-yogurt salad

• 5 large Cucumber, peeled, seeded and cut into quarter-round slices
• 1/4 pound Purslane, large stems removed, washed and drained well
• 2 tablespoons each, Fresh chopped mint, cilantro and chervil
• 4 cups Whole milk yogurt
• 1/4 cup Virgin olive oil
• 3 cloves Garlic, puréed with the blade of a knife
• 2 teaspoon ground Coriander
• kosher Salt and ground Black Pepper

Place the cucumber, purslane and herbs into a large bowl. In another bowl, stir together the yogurt, olive oil and garlic, coriander and season to taste with salt. Add the yogurt mixture to the vegetables and mix well. Add a pinch of ground black pepper. Taste the dressed cucumber-purslane salad for seasoning, adding a little more salt if needed. Serve chilled.

VERDOLAGO CON HUEVOS

 

2 cups purslane, with stems, diced	6 eggs
1 cup wild or domestic onion	Butter
1 cup nasturtium leaves and stems, diced

Carefully clean and rinse the purslane. The entire above-ground plant can be used as long as it is still tender. Add the diced onion and purslane to a heated and buttered cast-iron skillet. Cook for about five minutes. Add the eggs and cook omelet-style. Serve with a tomato slice. Serves three.

FRIED PURSLANE

 

Approximately 1 cup of purslane growing tips	Flour
Ground bread crumbs	Beaten eggs

Collect the tender new tips of purslane–about the last two or three inches from the stems. Rinse these in water to remove any sand. Roll them (or shake them) in flour until thoroughly floured, and then dip in the beaten eggs. Cover each purslane stalk with bread crumbs. This process is easiest to do if you simply line up the three dishes of flour, eggs, and bread crumbs, and do the breading production line style.

When the breading is done, fry or saute each purslane stalk for about five minutes or until golden brown. Serve with catsup, mustard, or sour cream. This is a unique hors d’oeuvre for even your finest, fanciest parties.

Hello Garden Friends:

Oh, what a difference a year makes…..this picture came from our June 22 garden email last year when we thought it would never stop raining!!

Here’s what is happening in a food pantry garden near you……..

 Agape Garden, 7384 NW 16^th Street in Ankeny (Next to the Faith Chapel and close by John Deere)
We harvested another 130 pounds on Thursday which brings last week’s total to 715 pounds! Over 1500 pounds donated this year!! The garden is really starting to produce! The Agape garden received 1.625″ of rain last week but the ground was still dry as we planted more plants last Thursday.

Volunteer hours in the Agape garden are almost every Tuesday and Thursday evenings around 6:30. Call Craig Crist to verify time and dates @ 515-577-8260 leave message if no answer. The Agape Garden always needs help.

 Faith & Grace Garden.  Between 24^th & 28^th Streets north of Ashworth Road, WDM, by Covenant Presbyterian Church and St. Timothy’s Episcopal Church, park in the lot north of St. Timothy’s off 24^th Street.
We are picking 40 – 60 pounds of beans most nights and we are starting to harvest zucchini, too. Later this week we will plant more squash and beans. The rabbits are giving us fits!! For more information contact Tim at timothyjgoldman@gmail.com or call 745-9842 or contact Mark at wdmmarshall@msn.com or call 988-5381.

St. Anthony’s Garden of Eden
For information about the Garden of Eden, please contact John at comphelp@ecity.net or by calling 515-240-3146.

St Francis of Assisi Garden The garden is located across the street to the North, from St Francis of Assisi church in the North-east corner of the playground. Things are going great! Everything is planted and we are staying somewhat ahead of the weeds. For more information, contact Jan Hoeman at Janhoeman@mchsi.com.

Urban Harvest Garden – An outreach of Urban Heights Covenant benefitting the Urbandale/Windsor Heights Food Pantry 7605 Aurora, Urbandale, Iowa  278-1371

Last week we celebrated our first harvest.  We thinned the onions and got 58 pounds!  We also had kale and radishes.  The garden got 1/2 of rain on Friday and another 20/100 Saturday.  With the hot weather forecasted the weeds are gonna pop!  Join us Wednesday night for a BIG kale harvest and a little weeding!

You can go to the church website at desmoineschurch.org to donate using PayPal.  All donations are tax deductible.  ALL produce is donated to the Urbandale/Windsor Heights food pantry. You can also connect to the blog and Facebook there. For further information contact Garden Manager Beth Rydberg at 314-2114
For information and best times to garden, please email Beth Rydberg at  brydberg@mchsi.com

Homemade Deer & Rabbit Repellent:
Elmer Fudd wouldn’t stand a chance against our rabbit infestation. It’s time to get serious.

5 eggs (Blend them thoroughly if using a sprayer) and you’ll probably need to strain the mixture before using
1 cup of buttermilk, milk, or yogurt (think stink!)
2 Tablespoons of hot sauce
1 Teaspoon of liquid dish soap
1 Tablespoon of vegetable oil
15 drops of cinnamon oil – optional
2 Teaspoons of finely crushed garlic – optional
Mix and let sit for a day or two. Strain and spray. There are many such recipes on the web and most are similar to the store-bought brands but cost much less. The awful smell is the same either way but it does go away after the mixture dries.
Check out

The potato movement in Greece: Farmers taking matters into their own hands while building community and helping those in need.
Two more Maine towns passed the Local Food & Community SelfGovernance Ordinance–  an ordinance  to protect the health and integrity of local food systems. This can be replicated in any town.
Obesity vs. Superbugs: Who wins when the food system fails? Doctor David Wallinga writes that two of the biggest human health stories this spring – antibiotics resistant bacteria and obesity – are directly linked to a failing, industrialized food system. He argues we must change our food system and declare the winners our improved health, lower healthcare costs, and healthy food companies.
The Necessary (r)Evolution For Sustainable Food Systems – Tune in for a Free Public Conference from University of Vermont from 1:00 – 6:30 on June 28^th.

Zucchini Cookie Recipe – from the cookbook Simply in Season by Mary Beth Lind and Cathleen Hockman-Wert

¾ cup butter (softened)
½ cup sugar
½ cup brown sugar
Cream together.
1 egg Add and beat until fluffy.
1 ½ cups whole wheat flour
1 cup flour
1 ½ teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
¾ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon ground cloves
Sift together in a separate bowl.
1 ½ cups zucchini (shredded)
Add to creamed mixture alternately with dry ingredients.
¾ cup raisins
¾ cup walnuts (chopped; optional)
Stir in. Drop onto greased baking sheets. Bake in preheated oven at 375 degrees for 10-12 minutes. Bake cookies as soon as they are mixed. If the batter stands too long, it will get a bit watery.)
Chocolate Chip variation: Omit spices and raisins. Add 1 teaspoon vanilla and ¾ cup chocolate chips.”

Hello Garden Friends:

Native Plant Festival and Sale – Thursday, May 24, 3-6 p.m.
Cathedral Church of St. Paul’s, Ninth and High Streets downtown
Come take advantage of this splendid opportunity to buy native plants and grasses for your own garden!

Why plant native perennials and grasses? “Let us count the ways:”

1.     Once they’re established, they need no fertilizer, no pesticides, and minimal maintenance.
2.     They’ll attract (and feed) songbirds and butterflies to your yard.
3.     They’ll sink deep roots that will capture rain water and send it deep into the soil, helping prevent rainwater runoff & improving your soil.
4.     They’ll add natural Iowa beauty!

Dr. Jo Anna Hebberger will be on hand to offer advice and tips. Refreshments will be available.

The Agape Garden is off to a wonderful start this year as you can see from how the peas are doing at right. Craig Crist also sent us wonderful pictures of the spinach, onions, broccoli, potatoes and cabbage happily growing, too.

Volunteer hours in the Agape garden are almost every Tuesday and Thursday evenings around 6:30 to dark and Saturday mornings around 8:30 til noon. Call Craig Crist to verify time and dates @515-577-8260 leave message if no answer. The Agape Garden always needs help

Faith & Grace Garden.  Corner of 24^th & Ashworth, WDM, just west of St. Timothy’s, park in the lot north of the church off 24^th Street.
Right now we are up to our ears in student volunteers!….and probably will be until next Friday as we head into Memorial Day Weekend.

Volunteer hours in the Faith & Grace Garden are Monday – Friday, 6:30 – 8:30 pm, Saturday 10:30 – Noon, and Sunday as arranged.

St. Anthony’s Garden of Eden
John Piper had triple by-pass surgery recently and is taking some time off from gardening. John says there is enough help in the garden in the meantime. You might email if you can help anyway.

Volunteer hours are Monday, Wednesday, and Friday mornings starting at 11 am running through May.
For information about the Garden of Eden, please contact John Piper at comphelp@ecity.net or by calling 515-240-3146.

St Francis of Assisi Garden The garden is located across the street to the North, from St Francis of Assisi church in the North-east corner of the playground.

We have potatoes, onions, and beets planted and bunny fencing up, plus wildflowers and perennials planted for more pollinators.  We still need to plant turnips, carrots, and broccoli and warmer vegetables.  We work on Sunday evenings from 6-7pm.

For more information, contact Jan Hoeman at Janhoeman@mchsi.com..

St. John’s Faith Garden

On May 14, ten volunteers completed planting at St. John’s Faith Garden.  We have tomatoes, cucumbers, zucchini, peppers, pole beans, lettuce, carrots and beets.  We’re happy to have four teams of four volunteers each who will share rotating garden duty of one week on, three weeks off.

Urban Harvest Garden – An outreach of Urban Heights Covenant benefitting the Urbandale/Windsor Heights Food Pantry – 7605 Aurora, Urbandale, Iowa  278-1371

Beans are popping and we are almost done planting.  Leaves are poking through the potato towers so maybe they will work!  This week the irrigation will go on and the vining crops.  Join us on Wednesday for a big plant night.  We are in need of wood mulch and compost to fill our flower  beds  that have settled.  Follow us on facebook for up to the minute news!

If you would like to donate to Urban Harvest you can send a check with a designation on the note to:
Urban Heights Covenant | 7605 Aurora | Urbandale, Iowa

You can go to the church website at desmoineschurch.org to donate using PayPal.  All donations are tax deductible.  ALL produce is donated to the Urbandale/Windsor Heights food pantry. You can also connect to the blog and Facebook there.

For further information contact Garden Manager Beth Rydberg at 314-2114
For information and best times to garden, please email Beth Rydberg at  brydberg@mchsi.com

Great websites:

Kitchen Gardeners International: http://kgi.org/?utm_source=Kitchen+Gardeners+International+List&utm_campaign=f6763f931b-April_2012_Newsletter&utm_medium=email
Modern Day Homesteaders: http://www.motherearthnews.com/modern-homesteading/self-reliance-zm0z12fmzkon.aspx
Insect Identification: http://bugguide.net/node/view/60/bgpage
Garden Inspiration: One man’s foray into raised bed gardening: http://bjurlinceramics.com/bjurlinceramics/Marvins_Garden.html

Sustainable Agriculture Resources and Organizations
ATTRA – National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service
www.attra.org
SARE – Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education
http://www.sare.org/
Growing for Market
http://www.growingformarket.com/
HortIdeas
http://users.mikrotec.com/~gwill/hi-index.htm
The New Farm: Farmer-to-Farmer Know-How from The Rodale Institute
http://www.newfarm.org/
Seed Savers Exchange
http:// www.seedsavers.com

Weed Identification
Oregon Biodynamic Group
http://www.oregonbd.org/Class/weeds.htm
Illinois Council on Food and Agricultural Research: Weed ID
http://web.aces.uiuc.edu/weedid/
University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources: Weed ID
http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/weeds_common.html

Pest Identification
Clemson University Pest ID
http://entweb.clemson.edu/pesticid/safetyed/pstident.htm

Recipe Idea:
Roasted Kale and Red Onions: http://www.bhg.com/recipe/vegetables/roasted-kale-and-red-onions/
This recipe is a hundred times more amazing than the sum of its parts. It is addictive and has just the right combination of flavors and textures. I’ve made it many times and it never fails to please.

We hope to see you in the garden. Any garden.

Hello Garden Friends:

Well, the spring rains have finally come!……..along with the wind, hail, etc. I hope your garden, yard, and house are undamaged. Here’s what’s happening in a garden near you:

Agape Garden, 7384 NW 16th Street in Ankeny (Next to the Faith Chapel and close by John Deere) There is a “Big Event” at the Agape Garden on this Saturday starting at 8 am and going into the afternoon. We will be planting 34 fruit trees courtesy of the Trees Forever program. Some fruit trees and some shade trees. We will have a bobcat with 30-inch auger but need help planting and filling in. Bring shovels, rakes and gloves. Food and drinks will be provided. Volunteer hours in the Agape garden are almost every Tuesday and Thursday evenings around 6:30 to dark and Saturday mornings around 8:30 til noon. Call Craig Crist to verify time and dates @ 515-577-8260 leave message if no answer. The Agape Garden always needs help.

Faith & Grace Garden. Corner of 24th & Ashworth, WDM, just west of St. Timothy’s, park in the lot north of the church off 24th Street.
Volunteer Training Day – Saturday, April 21 at 10:30 am, in the Parish Hall at St. Timothy’s
Adult volunteers, old and new, are invited to this opportunity to learn about how to be a great garden volunteer. We will have lots of students and children in the Faith and Grace Garden this year. Adult volunteers are needed to help and guide them. At this training session you will learn how the Faith and Grace Garden is organized and operated so that volunteers can have a rewarding, productive, and safe experience in the garden.

Earth Day Celebration Weather permitting

You’re invited! St. Timothy’s Faith and Grace Garden Open House
Earth Day, Sunday, April 22,  1 pm – 5 pm
Please stop by and enjoy a pleasant afternoon and some refreshments. Tour the garden and learn about our plans for this summer. (Hint Hint… A children’s garden and hoop house) Wear your “grubbies” if you would like to do some gardening, or view a demonstration of organic gardening methods. We will be mulching the garden with newspapers and wood chips on both days. On Sunday, we will demonstrate the use of worm castings and worm tea in the garden. There will be a demonstration of how to make an inexpensive home worm tea brewer for use around your yard and garden. Students from Dowling High will be on-hand to help with garden tours. Bring garden gloves and a hoe. Questions? Call Tim Goldman at 515-745-9842

St. Anthony’s Garden of Eden
Volunteer hours are Monday, Wednesday, and Friday mornings starting at 11 am running through May.
The Garden of Eden Project (GOEP) uses nearly ten acres of land spread out across the south side of Des Moines. We have 16 raised box gardens (4 x 12), 8 back yards, and 5 acres we are allowed to use for the Garden’s purposes. This land allows us to produce literally tons of fresh fruit and vegetables for the hungry in our Metro area.
For information about the Garden of Eden, please contact John Piper or by calling 515-240-3146.

St Francis of Assisi Garden
The garden is located across the street to the North, from St Francis of Assisi church in the North-east corner of the playground.We are putting up fence and planting potatoes. For more information, contact Jan Hoeman. We meet on Sunday evenings 6 pm – 7pm in the garden and as things get going, also on Wed mornings at 9pm.

Urban Harvest Garden
An outreach of Urban Heights Covenant benefiting the Urbandale/Windsor Heights Food Pantry – 7605 Aurora, Urbandale, Iowa 278-1371This is an exciting week at Urban Harvest! Last weekend Acacia fraternity from Iowa State came and put up all the fencing and helped build a three bin compost bin. Cub Scouts from Pack 98 helped cut up seed potatoes. If it dries out enough (rain gauges reported close to three inches of rain last Saturday night.) we will do some initial planting on Wednesday night. Saturday will be a big push AND we will be planting 6 fruit trees with the help of Trees Forever. Join us anytime! For more information Like us on Facebook or call 515 -314-2114

If you would like to read more about the garden join us on Blogger/Urban Harvest. This year we are hoping for weekly posting with thoughts from the garden, the latest activities and a recipe. For up to the minute garden happenings join us on Facebook at Urban Harvest. If you would like to donate to Urban Harvest you can send a check with a designation on the note to:

Urban Heights Covenant – 7605 Aurora Urbandale, Iowa
You can go to the church website at desmoineschurch.org to donate using PayPal. All donations are tax deductible. ALL produce is donated to the Urbandale/Windsor Heights food pantry. You can also connect to the blog and Facebook there. For further information contact Garden Manager Beth Rydberg at 314-2114 For information and best times to garden, please email Beth Rydberg

Three Free 55-Gallon Garden Rain Barrels – Email Tim Goldman

More interesting websites from our friends at the Lord’s Acre:
Food Storage, Vineyard Design, Organic Disease Control Strategies and so much more: http://fromhere.org/events/
The Garden Rant: Funny, sassy, edgy, entertaining, educational garden site hosted by four women gardeners: http://www.gardenrant.com/
Label reading pointers – where to find GMOs; what does ”natural” vs. organic mean?
There is a short blog post on Stonyfield’s site to help consumers navigate the supermarket –It’s a quick and easy review of confusing labels, and how to spot GMO ingredients, plus there’s a place where you can add your own comments about how you personally navigate the supermarket. The post is part of Stonyfield’s ”I will know my food” campaign. http://www.iwillknowmyfood.com/#tips
Growing Power – Aquaculture: Milwaukee’s Growing Power, a community-based urban food center, is using plants as natural water filters for raising yellow perch.

Food Justice From the Ground, Up: http://foodandcommunityfellows.org/blog/collection/food-justice-from-the-ground-up-stories-of-change
The Town Without Trash: http://gimundo.com/news/article/the-town-without-trash-kamikatsu-japan/
Who Remembers Jack Lalanne?

Actual Creative Garden Club Names: One Foot Now – Six Feet Later, Rake and Bake, Grateful Deadheaders, Hearts & Spades and The Back Achers

See you in the garden!

Dowling Catholic High School Students recently did a presentation to PreK 3-5 year olds at Assumption School in Granger, IA on healthy eating, growing healthy food, how worms produce organic soil and then helped the students set up a worm bin/colony and plant seeds using worm “tea”.