The Organic Garden

I, like many of our customers, try to grow at least a few things in my own garden.  This year our efforts are watered down by other priorities, most noteworthy being our delivery service.  Combine our waterered down efforts with those scalliwag chipmunks who seem to take great joy in picking my not yet ripe tomatoes, taking a few bites to get to the seeds I think and then leaving the remains where they KNOW I will find them and you have what Frank from Golden Rule Farm calls an exquisite failure!  I used to think chipmunks were adorable, now I think they are scheming - they watch us with those beady little eyes, find our weaknesses and then strike. 

There are other bugs I never paid attention to before that I now love less since trying to grow things to eat: aphids, scales, mealy bugs, leaf hoppers, caterpillars and beetles.  I know they are necessary for ecological balance but could they please go provide balance elsewhere!  I don't want any, not in my garden.  And I know you can plant marigolds near your tomatoes for bugs but that doesn't stop the chipmunks - so how do you grow an organic garden and keep it going for 60, 90 or 120 days so that you reap a bumper harvest for your efforts?

You employ tactical warfare, you out-think, out-manouver and out-last, that's how!  And you employ the appetities of helpers.  Did you know that lady bugs, which you can by by the gallon (or 75'000) will eat as many as 5,000 aphids in their lifetime?  They are little bug carnivores and also eat many of the other nuisance insects that plague our patches.  Another little bug carnivore you can try is praying mantids, one egg sac contains 40'000 eggs and they will eat anything they can catch including mosquitos, wasps and beetles (and ladybugs so don't buy them together).  You can buy both insects online.

Another wonderful resource for organic gardeners who are looking at pest control is the National Sustainable Agriculture Information Service website, they will help you choose the right pest control method, and if you reach the point of no return where it is too late for ladybugs, you can visit their Pest Management Database for all kinds of information, what sprays you can use, which are registered with OMRI (Organic Material Research Institute) and what the active ingredients are in each of the sprays - it is very useful, AND they include vertebrate pests like deer, squirrels, moles and field mice - (just not chipmunks)!  Since they advise garlic extract for squirrels and mice, maybe, just maybe it will work for the scheming little rascals I have living in my back yard!

Dear Dairy, Today I was called to the kitchen table . . .

Last week I as driving from farm to farm picking up produce when I happened to pass Lolans Farm in Middleborough. It was the chickens that caught my eye, and of course, Sue bent over in a field planting so I stopped. She was so gracious, and was happy to stop what she was doing to talk to me about all things farming and hear all about who we are, who are customers are, and what our goals are. Lolans is actually a dairy farm, and Sue is a warm, hospitable person - the result was that we have another source for eggs - yeah!

This week I stopped by again (for the eggs of course) and was invited inside, sat at the kitchen table with her husband Sam so that we could talk about Dairy farming in South Eastern Massachusetts over some iced tea. Sam and Sue had read my Dear Dairy blog from a couple of weeks ago and wanted to set the record straight - so I got an education and I say this very tongue in cheek of course because you couldn't meet nicer people, who are passionate about what they do and every time I meet people who are passionate about what they do, I am inspired. Every time. So on a hot Tuesday afternoon, over some delicious, cold iced tea, here is what I learned:

• There is some good in Walmart - some of the dairy farmers in New England belong to Cabot, a cooperative that distributes profits back to the farmers. I knew this of course, but what I didn't know is that Walmart approached them with a ten year growth plan and asked if they were interested in becoming a supplier and the members of Cabot were and do you know why? Because the milk keeps coming that's why. Cows need to be milked, and the milk needs to be moved it is as simple as that and to have a steady, consistent outlet for milk is crucial to the success of a dairy farm. Not only that, but now they can manage their businesses for growth with the foreseeable future secure. I am not a fan of Walmart - that is my personal position, but we don't live in a black and white world, we live in one with many shades of gray and so if they are guaranteeing the livelihoods of local dairy farmers, and the farmers are happy, then I am happy too.
• Consumers Decide - actually, I know that what consumer dollars have a voice, but I always ask farmers what their policies are on pesticides, environmental issues etc. and since I had the ear of a dairy farmer, I asked about the use of BST or Bovine Growth Hormone and was told that none of the farmers in New England use it anymore because there IS NO MARKET for milk produced from cows injected with BST. Which leads to my next point . . .
• Farming for Herd Health - dairy farming IS a volume driven business model, make no mistake, but now instead of pushing cows to produce as much as possible, Sam said it is more worthwhile putting together a herd of good, reliable milk producers and then taking good care of them by giving them the best feed you possibly can, and keeping the cows happy. Stressed cows are sick cows, they get ulcers, and have problems with their reproductive cycles and calving and all sorts of other issues. 'Feed 'em well and you will trim their feet less, and have fewer vet bills and a higher number of offspring which is another source of income', Sam says.
• Quality over Quantity - Milk collected from farmers is tested - bacterial counts are checked and so is the fat and protein content of the milk. Farmers are paid for their milk depending on the results of those tests, good milk fetches a higher price. Now no one is advocating that in the current system you can keep your cows on the best quality forage year round and justify it with the price your milk will fetch - we are not there yet, but it is good to know that we are moving in the right direction, that good quality fresh milk is worth more per gallon means we are moving in the right direction.
• Dairies Direct - local dairy farms who produce milk with a low bacterial count should be allowed to sell their raw milk or other dairy products to neighbors and independently owned farm stands and stores. Currently, legislation is so sticky that it is made difficult or impossible and so very few of them can logistically do it, but another source of retail income for these farmers would also help secure their future, and provide yet another incentive to keep happy cows producing healthy milk.

I often write on my blogs about the challenges with our food system and how much needs to be done. Well, dairy farming is not immune from these challenges and the system is far from perfect. It is a very hard way to make a living and I don't know that many sane people would sit up in this day and age and say 'Hey! I know, I am going to invest hundreds of thousands if not millions in some land, cows, tanks and all the rest so that I can make a living milking cows!'. But for those that do, I salute you and you have my gratitude.

Business Integrity

So there I was, doing my deliveries in the rain again this week.  And as I was driving from house to house, town to town, dropping off baskets of beautifully grown local produce, I found myself tuning out the world and being hypnotized by soft ticking of the rain and regular drum of the wipers.  The misty, watery and gray day wrapped around me like a cocoon.

The world in which I lost myself?   The corporate one.  Did you know that if you were born today you could live your entire life without ever buying anything from an independent business owner?  And then I started thinking about what that means, and the integrity of the system we have created.  I was thinking of how many decisions are made each day in big business and how they affect us, whether it is is a well known fast food franchise deciding to use 60% fillers in taco meat to increase profit or a popular sportswear company combining colloquial language and drug use to increase t-shirt sales, and I started to wonder, is capitalism and integrity mutually exclusive?  Is operating a business purely for profit a sure-fire way to grow the gray area between right and wrong? 

 
Do you want to know what I find most scary about this?  Agri-business.  Corporations farming for profit, there are no farmers, only farm managers, who work for and report to a corporation.  Can you imagine what compromises are made in the field?  Most agri-businesses are in business to grow animal feed or ingredients for processed food and since cutting costs and making money are the primary goals, NOT NUTRITION, it is unrealistic to expect them to be entirely forthcoming about their growing practices or the integrity thereof.  So the same principal applies here that it does in all other industries, it is up to YOU, the consumer to educate yourself, it is up to the you to find out how your food is grown, where it is grown, using what seed and even then these companies are not required to make the information readily available.

Don't you think it is exhausting?  I don't want to have to be a structural engineer to choose a window product for my home, I don't want to have to be an automotive engineer to choose a car or a chartered accountant to translate and negotiate the finance agreement and discounts and I don't want to be a registered dietitian to go grocery shopping.

I do want the companies I bring into my home and my life to operate with integrity, I want sincere value and honest communication and so my last question is, do you think I will find it? 

The answer was sitting in the back of my van.  Yes!  BUY LOCAL.

The Ant and the Grasshopper

Years ago, I had to study Maslow's 'heirarchy of needs' which explains that our basic needs for shelter and food must be met before we concern ourselves with safety and security, or belonging or self esteem and only once our needs have been met in succession, can we realize our full potential as individuals.  I suppose that is why, as we evolve as a society one of our main concerns is convenient access to plenty of food - we are after all supposed to be progressive by nature aren't we?  We take comfort in the fact that this basic need is met.

However, our current food system wastes approx. 45% of our food.  From farm to grocery store shelf to home that is, there are losses each step of the way in transporting, storing and displaying food.  As foragers we are drawn to color and bountiful displays - would any of us shop at a store that didn't have generous displays of fresh food in every color of the rainbow?  If a store only put out what it thought would sell that day, would we feel as comfortable and excited to shop there?  One of they keys to Wholefoods' success is their displays of food, it is suggested that what they offer in addition to natural and organic products is 'food porn'.  Well conceived and stocked displays that appeal to our foraging instincts - we quite literally salivate!

Salivating is not the only result of regular exposure to these displays, one of the more serious side effects is that we have become profligate with our food and anesthetized to what goes into the creation of those displays.   No, not the hands that stack them with painstaking care, but the hands that grow and nurture the mounds of green peppers, zucchini, cucumber, tomatoes . . . each one of those items takes anywhere between 60 to 120 days to grow and in that time we are not only nurturing healthy plants, balancing soil pH levels and measuring and adjusting mineral nutrient, but we are also protecting it from bugs, animals, fungi and a range of other influences that may ruin a crop.  We have become so acclimatized to having constant access to food that we no longer respect the growing process, and no longer pause to be grateful for the harvest.  And really, all that work only to throw 45% of our food away?


In addition, we don't show the growers respect either, we are paying farmers less and less for their work, corporations like Walmart create monsopolies that dictate prices to farmers.  More and more mid-size farms are no longer viable - you can read this publication by the USDA for statistics on farm size in the U.S: http://www.ers.usda.gov/AmberWaves/November07/PDF/Datafeature.pdf, the number of small farms and very big farms is on the increase.  That means we are either getting our food from farming corporations, or neighbors - those are our choices.

How about we choose a different option?  Instead of pushing our farmers to grow more and more for less and less, why don't we create a different system?  One where we change our shopping habits and reduce our food waste to just 15%.  Let's not stop there!  How about we pay our farmers 30% more to grow what we need?  We aren't giving up ground in the cost of our food, just creating a healthier, more sustainable food system - let's not live like grasshoppers, and let's give ants their due!

We are WINNING!

There is always so much I want to say with this blog, and today is no different - however, I wanted today's message to be positive, on this Earth Day, I wanted to be able to be nostalgic AND sprout about the goodness that is coming of our decisions to educate ourselves and make sustainable food choices, and to be honest, when I weigh it all up we are making progress, but we have a long, long way to go and much needs to be said to create awareness on some topics.  But today, I don't want to go there.  I don't want to write about some of the environmental, political and mercantile challenges we face . . . today, I would rather say 'Thank You' - to you.

I had a conversation with a friend who asked how South Shore Organics was doing, and it is going well, each small success celebrated as if it were the first. I did tell her that one of my favorite things about South Shore Organics is that people care about the food they eat, and they care where it is from.  Our customers want to know that we are commited to supporting local farms and it is wonderful to be able to tell them we are, and then see the money they spend benefit their own community.  I love that they care, I love that they are as passionate about it as I am, but what I love most of all is being able to have a meeting with a farmer and say:  Hello, I am Pam, and I am here on behalf of a group of people who live nearby who have made a commitment to support you this growing season so what are your plans, can we be a part of them, and how can we help you be successful. 

I also thank our customers and I am grateful to each and every one, because each food dollar they spend with us speaks for them, each dollar has a voice and it says: I don't support industrial, conventional and GMO agriculture at the expense of our land and our communities, I want healthy food, grown sustainably, I support responsible growers, I support my neighbors, I don't want massive amounts of carbon fuels expended to get my food to me, I don't want tons of plastic bags and waste in my food system, I want a better balance.

So, this Earth Day, I thought it appropriate to say that it is because of people like you that the organic industry has grown from a concept to a fledgling market, then from a fledgling market into a household name and today it continues to grow despite a recession.  We have a long way to go, we have many, many challenges still to overcome, big ones, but while our farmers have our support and our commitment, we all have hope, and we can only move forward.

Happy Earth Day

Dear Dairy

I wrote in one of our newsletters a while back about the benefits of raw milk - of which there are numerous - and where to find some.  New England used to be a big dairy farming area back in the day, but as a surplus of milk drove milk prices down to levels that were no longer sustainable, and the government offered a 'whole-herd buyout' program that paid farmers a fee based on their annual milk production figures to stop dairy farming for five years and get rid of their cows (slaughter or sell).  A number of farmers, struggling to earn a living, submitted applications.  Since then other economic factors such as rising land prices, land development and more densely populated areas have all contributed to the demise of many other dairy farms in the area. 

As at 2007, the previous 25 years alone saw a drop in dairy farms from 812 in number to just 187 -  a 77% decline.  The advent of industrial dairy drove many family farms out of business, who just could not compete with the low prices.  “We just can’t survive on 1981 milk prices and 2007 costs,” says dairy farmer Chip Hager of Colrain, Mass., who milks 125 cows on 1,500 acres of owned and rented land with his wife Sherry, daughter Kim and her fiancé Aaron. “Everything we purchase to keep our operation running has gone up in price, but our milk price, which is determined monthly by USDA, keeps going down and last year was at the same level it was 25 years ago.”

In another article we published a 'profile' on the average farmer in the United States, and we noted that the average age was increasing, at the time of the last census the average age of a farmer is 57 years old.  The younger generation are off in search of more glamorous careers, they have watched their parents struggle on family farms for years and want a better life for themselves - who wouldn't?  All these factors combined create a perfect storm, one wherein the agricultural heritage of our country is compromised, industrial agriculture prospers, and our food system is changed for the worse. 

One of the latest of such casualties is the Anderson Brothers Dairy Farm in West Bridgewater, one of the closest access points for raw milk for residents on the South Shore.  The 116 acre dairy farm is run by brothers, both of whom are looking at retirement options and as all of their children have found off-farm careers, there is no one to continue the legacy of this 13 generation operation.  It is very sad.  Fortunately, Wildlands Trust stepped in and for two years worked together with the brothers, and the town to preserve this land for agricultural use only with a deed restriction.  Wildlands Trust had to raise $67,000 in private donations and the community committed $400,000 to the project, the farmers, Richard and Lance let their property go at well below market value to save it from developers.

This is one of the few 'happy endings', and everybody pulled together to make it happen, which is heartening don't you think?  From what I understand, raw milk will no longer be sold from the farm though, so it is off to Foxboro or down to Dartmouth if you would like some and so the ending is bittersweet because whilst the use of the land is secured, open space guaranteed, and the day saved thanks to the hard work of volunteers of Wildlands Trust, the unanimous vote of the residents of West Bridgewater, and the owners of Anderson Bros farm, another family operation and one of the oldest in the area ceases operation and the churn rate for loss of family farms increases by one.

Memories are Made of this . . .

At South Shore Organics we had peas for our baskets this week, not just any peas, but English Peas.  I love peas, I do - I think they are my favorite vegetable.  There is an often retold story around our family dinner table of me as a little girl, a toddler no less, at a wedding - my mom had made my little cotton sundress with a matching sun hat.  Come dinner time I was tired, it had been a long day but I refused a nap and why?  Because peas were on the menu that's why.  Apparently, or so it has been said, I went around to each of the guests at the wedding, many of them complete strangers to me, and helped myself to a few peas off each plate - not all of them mind you, I am not greedy afterall, just a few . . . and nothing else on the menu interested me.  Of course, the same story trails on into that evening (still refusing a nap) while all the guests were on the dance floor and their drinks were unattended I was strolling around taking a sip out of this glass and a sip out of that one.  My mom says I was already tipsy by the time she figured out what I was up to - but there you go, peas and booze, what does that say about me?

I don't remember a thing (are we surprised?) but what I do remember is years later standing in my mom's kitchen shelling peas.  I think we ate more than we put in the bowl and I don't remember which house we were in at the time, or how old I was - all I remember is shelling peas and some for me . . . and a few for the pot . . . and some for me . . . yum!  There is honestly nothing nicer than fresh peas.

The shelled peas took me by the hand and lead me down a meandering path of other food memories I have: baking with my gran; my mom's awesome chocolate cake; oat crunchies; licking the bowl - hmmm hmmm - roast dinners; boiling jam . . . and those in turn melt into other memories: long walks with my gran (I swear she knew the names of all the hundreds of thousands of wildflowers that grew all around); beach holidays; birthdays; sunday lunches . . . and the common denominator in all of these memories is family . . . family. 

How important are our food memories to our upbringing?  Do contribute in any way to the adults we become?  And not just Thanksgiving and Christmas food memories, but all of them?  Mine are important to me I know that, and I treasure them.  What about the food memories we are giving our children?  Will they look back on meals or experiences in the kitchen with the same sepia-tinted warm fondness that I do?  What will those memories be of for the next generation?  Supermarkets?  Wendy's?  MacDonalds?  Heat and Eat?  Cold cuts? Friendly's?  Or shelled peas, home cooked meals and wiping the last smidgeon of chocolate icing from a bowl with your finger?

It seems to me these memories are an important consideration for parents as we work hard to shape young minds.  When you think about it, meals are an integral part of our culture, they provide children with so much more than just a plate of food, it gives them an identity, it is what stories are built on, how connections are made.  Meals give children access to grandparents, moms and dads, brothers and sisters.  It is the one moment in time where even the littlest hands can help in the kitchen, and when we all sit together and be together without all the distractions that happen throughout the day.   It's like a mastercard ad:  chicken - $15, vegetables - $10, assorted groceries - $5, a meal prepared and enjoyed by all: priceless.

If you are one of the families that received peas in your basket this week, then let little hands help you shell them, and if you don't have children well then, you are not to old to enjoy some for you, a few for the pot, some for you . . .

Variety is the Spice of Life

You won't believe it to look outside but it IS spring, are looking forward to the coming growing season and all the delicious FRESH morsels that will be coming out of our rich New England soil this summer - particularly the wide range of choices that will soon be on offer from adventurous local farmers.   When you are connected with your food and your farmers, as we are, and as our customers are, you appreciate what goes in to growing and harvesting, you appreciate that too little rain and the legumes won't grow, too much rain and the corn won't grow, too warm a fall and the apples won't crisp, too cold and the butternut could be ruined. 

Aren't we lucky then that years and years of farming and selectively collecting seeds has produced some hardy varieties of some of our staples?  I would say so, unfortunately, we have been so selective and grown so few varieties of some our staples over hundreds of acres that the United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization estimates that 75% of the genetic diversity of agricultural crops has been lost!  One example is bananas: we generally only see one type of banana in our stores, although there are over 300 different varieties. 

So what, you may say, the world is producing enough food, and we don't miss all those tomatoes that were grown in the 1800's, or all those thousands of varieties of potatoes either!  Maybe not, but think on this.  We currently have over 92 million acres under corn crop in the U.S. alone - if 75% of the genetic diversity of those 92 million acres has been lost, imagine what would happen if a new virus or bacteria attacked the remaining 25% - what do you think would happen?  I can tell you what would happen, because back in the 1840's that is exactly what happened to the potatoes.  Only few varieties were grown over hundreds of thousands of acres, blight ravaged the crop for three years in a row causing one of the worst famines in the history of humanity.  The population of Ireland shrunk by half according to some estimates, as people either starved or left their home country in search of food.

"Never put all your eggs in one basket" our grandmothers used to say, and isn't that exactly what we are doing?  And it's not only with our food crops, grass diversity is also being lost as we aim to have beautiful lawns, flora diversity is being sacrificed as we tear native plants out of our gardens in favor of hydrangeas, roses and daisies.  I am not blameless, I confess, but I wonder how many plant species and varieties have gone extinct in the last 50 years?  I think we would be alarmed if we had statistics to consider.  Maybe we should just consider a better way to manage our food system, it's diversity and what get's grown. 

And maybe we should also adjust our expectations - next time a strange looking tomato is offered at a market, buy one, take it home to try.  Maybe it is not the perfect size, round, red, with a 5 pointed green sepals, but maybe just maybe it will taste better - and the efforts of our growers to try something new will be rewarded.

'The beginning of Wisdom is to call things by their right names' ~ Chinese proverb

A most interesting discussion the other day around the topic: 'You Are What you Eat' disturbed me and left me thinking for days afterward about what labels on our food say, what they don't say, and how the truth is presented in a fashion that isn't honest at all.  Later, walking down the aisle in a grocery store, I started to randomly pick up products to read their labels and it was quite an alarming exercise.  I have done it before of course, to check for this coloring, or that nasty preservative, but never have I read through the whole list and thought about what label is actually saying.

For example, on a box containing serving packets with oats, blue berries, peaches, bananas and strawberries I found that actually, there were no strawberries, blueberries or peaches inside that box and the 'banana' was in the form of 'banana flake powder'.  Imagine that?  Strawberry oats with no strawberries - even though it says Strawberries & Cream on the front of the box.  So what did it have?  Dehydrated apple, artificial strawberry flavor and red 40 lake coloring.  The peach and blueberry oats had dehydrated apples or figs, artificial flavors, red 40 coloring, blue 2 lake coloring or annatto color.

The other thing that struck me is how much sugar is in everything.  And they are clever about it too, they don't put 'sugars' and lump them all together - oh no!  Then it would appear too early in the list of ingredients and people wouldn't want to eat it, so they separate them in out - the same box of oats contains sugar, corn syrup solids and dextrose - all sugars.  Another product, Worcestershire Sauce contains molasses, high fructose corn syrup and sugar (and anchovies, but that's another blog). 

A popular Italian olive oil is a product of Italy, Spain, Tunisa and Turkey - and a 'healthy' cooking oil promoting 'healthy cholesterol' is a 'natural blend of canola, soy and olive oils'.  Natural.  How natural is GMO canola and soy?  It's not natural at all, it's Frankenfood.  And while we are on the topic of NATURAL, let's just agree that every Tom, Dick and Harry are adding this word to their branding to capture some of the conscientious shopper market but regrettably, there are no enforced guidelines for the use of this word.  You can put it on anything.

I don't know how you feel, but I get frustrated and upset that making good choices for our families is made so hard.  I get tired of all the cloak and daggery and carefully worded and presented brands and marketing ploys.  Just tell me what I am eating!  Somebody said last week: we shouldn't be labeling food that is GMO free, or Organic.  That is food in its truest form.  We should be labeling everything else - the front label (not the back small print) should say Contains GMO's, Not Organically Grown, or Made With No Organic Ingredients or how about Contains Three Types of Sugars.  Maybe then as a nation we will be empowered to make healthy choices instead of being empowered to choose foods that promote weight gain, heart disease or diabetes!

Seven Ways to Help our Pollinators!

"The Keeping of Bees is like the Direction of Sunbeams"
~ Henry David Thoreau


One of my favorite experiences from the 'Menu for the Future' discussion group hosted at the  Kingston library so far was hearing Laurie Sybertz's first hand account of bee keeping.  She and her husband, Joe, keep bees.  Or at least, Joe does.  They really are fascinating, hardworking, humble little honey bees and are crucial the the successful pollination of many crops, contributing to at least one third of our 'plant' diet through their efforts.

Laurie also shared with us their plight, which we covered in more detail in our newsletter this week (see our website at www.southshoreorganics.com for a copy).  The buzz is that with the use of insecticides, and large scale agricultural farming practices which destroy diversity and the introduction of gmo crops, nearly a third of bee hives have been disappearing.  This is quite alarming, and is a new trend that has been established year on year for the past three or four years.

Lobbyists, bee keepers, organic consumer associations and farmers are all doing their bit to address the problem, but you can help too and the future of our food system may depend on it!  Here's what you can do:

1. Resist Perfection - allow a portion of your garden to return to its 'wild state' with brush, grasses, weeds, deadwood and leaf litter to allow pollinators to find food, seek shelter and breed.
2. Plant Flowers - a native flower garden in a sunny area, or even a herb garden.  Hummingbirds and butterflies like yellow, red and orange flowers while bees prefer blue, purple, white and yellow flowers. 
3. Avoid Pesticides - pesticide misuse is one of the most significant threats to pollinators.  Urban and suburban yards make up a large portion of land undergoing regular pesticide application, avoiding it is not only better for pollinators, it's better for your children, pets and water supply as well!
4. Use Honey - support the honey industry and substitute honey for sugar in your own kitchen.  When baking, use half as much honey as sugar, reduce the liquid by 1/4 cup and add 1/4tsp of baking soda per cup of honey used.  And don't forget to buy local honey.
5. Eat Ice Cream - Haagen Dazs launched a new limited-edition flavor called Vanilla Honey Bee, the company donates a portion of the proceeds from all 'honey-bee dependant flavors' to honey and sustainable pollination research.  Visit their website www.helpthehoneybee.com.
6. Bug Someone Else - pollinators are fragile and easily hurt, but they won't bother you if you leave them alone.  Instead, bug your family and friends about the importance of pollinators in our food chain.
7. Buy Organic - Organic farmers create pesticide free,  pollinator friendly environments while providing healthy, fresh produce.  When you buy organic you keep pesticides off fields and reduce exposure to GMO crops.  Many organic farmers also keep bees because they know it improves their yields.

It takes more than 500 bees to make just one pound of honey, and honey is surely one of mother natures sweetest gifts.  Long ago, we knew the value of the honeybees bounty as in ancient Egypt, taxes were paid with honey and in early Greece and Rome, honey symbolized fertility, love and beauty.  Today we seem to have lost appreciation for this amazing insect, thank you Laurie for sharing your story with us, and for providing the resources for this blog, and the newsletter article.

Resources: MaryJanesFarm magazine

www.ccbee.org

www.pollinator.org

www.nappc.org

www.honey.com

Wondering about Winter Land

Okay, so in keeping with my promise, because I know you are all sitting at your computers waiting patiently for this very post - here is a recipe to help us endure the next dusting.  Last time I wrote about how the last time would be the last dusting, a bit optimistic I know for February but I am a glass half full kind a gal and I thought I could will it so with words.  Turns out the pen may be mightier than the sword but the mightiest of all is precipitation!

So today, since its Sunday, I thought a brunch would be a good idea.  I posted about a fruit salad on Facebook last night, that could be included too or you could just add some berries or chopped up apple to the batter - here we go:

New England Griddle Cakes (fitting, don't you think?)

Ingredients
1 1/2 cups sifted flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp sugar
1 egg
1 1/2 cups milk (use sour milk if you have, or even buttermilk)
3 tbsp melted butter

Method

• Sift dry ingredients together
• Beat egg, milk and butter together
• Add liquid mixture to dry mixture, stirring constantly to keep it smooth
• Drop the batter by spoonfuls onto a hot greased griddle.  Cook slowly until top is full of tiny bubbles and the underside is brown.

• Turn and brown the other side and serve with hot maple syrup - makes 2 dozen small cakes.  Add sliced banana or fruit if you like!  Enjoy.

March Madness!

I love this term - you see it everywhere in the papers in March, whether you are buying an iPad or a car or just taking a trip to the grocery store, March Madness promises discounts, deals, and special offers!  But that's not why I love it.  I love it because it is the MOST apt description for this season.

Well-weathered after the winter, we are hanging on by a thread sanity-wise.  A snow storm depositing only a few inches can push us over the edge after feet and feet of snow all winter.  But one little ray of sunshine, and a day of high 40's and it is a different scene entirely.  It's not just us, mother nature is the same, consider the phrase 'mad as a March hare' and you can immediately relate to the image of a wall-eyed rabbit twigging-out at the prospect of a few warmer days, some sunshine and somewhere to put his feet where there isn't snow. 

The definition of madness is: great folly, fury, rage, temper, enthusiasm.  The definition of March is: going from great folly and enthusiasm to temper and rage then back again!  March is named for Mars,  so it's no small wonder, and the much quoted Shakespear line 'Beware the Ides of March' is full of wise forboding.  

So, in March I feel the countdown truly begins.  Spring is in the air, the ground is softening and soon the planting and sowing will begin.  Not long now, we can make it.  Are we there yet?

Savoring the Snow

As I sit and write this post, I am looking out at a gently blanketed landscape and the snow flakes are dancing like butterflies.  Today has a meloncholic feel to it, the forests always go quiet when it snows and so do the roads as we, like the animals, huddle down.  Maybe we are not as far removed from primal instincts as we think.

I also feel a particular appreciation for the snow today as this might be one of the last gentle dustings we get this year, and then no more until next year when we hope and pray our Christmas will be a white one!  What lies around the corner is long days starting with early mornings, farmers have already been planning the growing season and taking stock of their 'to do' lists, taking trips out to the green house or the barn with a combination of anticipation for how much needs to be accomplished and excitment to get underway. 

Knowing Spring is on our door step and she brings all her craziness and energy with her, I think today is the perfect day to putter around inside and wear your slippers or just your socks all day and appreciate one of the last quiet days we will have this year.  And, as promised, in celebration of the snowy day, I have included a recipe for some cookies.  A sweet friend, Ashley, baked these last week (using organic ingredients) to share and they were DELICIOUS!  It is Martha Stewart's recipe, Ashley added cranberries and I loved them so much I ate more than my share and didn't regret a thing!  They are absolutely worth a quick trip to the store for any ingredients you don't have!

Ingredients

• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 1/4 teaspoons ground cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• Coarse salt
• 1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup packed light-brown sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 cup finely grated zucchini
• 1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
• 1/2 cup chopped toasted walnuts
• 8 ounces cream cheese, room temperature
• 1 cup confectioners' sugar, sifted

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Sift flour, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder, and 1/4 teaspoon salt into a bowl. Beat 1 stick butter and the sugars until pale and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla.
2. Beat flour mixture into butter mixture. Mix in zucchini, oats, and walnuts. Refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour.
3. Using a 1 1/2-inch ice cream scoop (about 2 tablespoons), drop dough onto parchment-lined baking sheets, spacing about 2 inches apart. Bake until edges are golden, about 17 minutes. Let cool on a wire rack.
4. Beat together remaining 1/2 stick butter, the cream cheese, and confectioners' sugar until smooth. Spread 1 heaping tablespoon filling onto the flat side of 1 cookie, and sandwich with another cookie. Repeat with remaining filling and cookies.

The Distinction of a Species

I watched a movie once when I was a little girl about a disease that swept through the world and turned people into dust.  I was so disturbed by it, I had one of those moments wherein your perception of the world is altered along with your relationship with it.  And not because nearly everybody the lead character knew died one-by-one leaving only him and the heroine to repopulate the earth, not because of the tragedy of whole families being wiped out virtually overnight, but because I realized for the first time that my whole world was vulnerable.  Does anybody else recall the moment when that realization came to them for the first time?

'Of course the world is vulnerable', my mom said, 'life is precious, a meteor, a plague or any one of hundreds of natural disasters could forever change the face of this planet and life on it' - but it was more than that.  I realized for the first time how dependant we humans are on each other.  Our skill sets have evolved over generations and become so specific, I realized how much knowledge and progression would be lost.  If I were the last person on earth, I couldn't run or repair a power station or build solar powered panels for my house, and if I could, supplies would eventually run out and I couldn't build more.  Where would I get gas for my car?  There would be plenty cars around so that wasn't a problem, but once gas stations ran dry?  What then?  I am not a doctor, and after all the supplies in the pharmacies expire, I don't know anything about using plants to treat illness and disease.  If we managed to propagate, I could teach children to read and write, but I couldn't teach them physics.  Back then we didn't have the Internet to answer our questions only the library, but how much knowledge gained since the inception of the computer would be lost forever?  And then the biggie:  once the stuff in the grocery store went bad, what would we do for food?  So in my little girl mind, even if you survived and everybody else was turned into dust, you quite possibly would end up starving to death or dying of disease so maybe dust was a better way to go.  As I get older, I realize we would endure.  We would gather, organize, plant crops and reform little communities - it would be a very different life, but not necessarily a bad one. 

There have been many movies since that portray the demise of the human race usually involving some sudden and hugely destructive force, but what if we, us humans, are the cause of our own demise?  What if we build, grow, expand and consume ourselves out of existence?  Extinction is nothing new, species have been coming and going and evolving on our planet since it's birth, a typical species becomes extinct within 10 million years of its first appearance.  We the people have only been around an estimated 250,000 years, that's like a nano-second in the grand scheme of things, and in that nano-second we have inflicted more change on our environment or adversely affected or displaced more living species than any other organism in earths 4.54 BILLION years.  We assume we have the right to permanently alter landscapes and think we are very clever for taking a year or two to develop new organisms in a genetic science lab when it takes Mother Nature hundreds of thousands of years to accomplish the same thing.  We are powerful, rulers of the planet and at the top of the food chain.

I can't help but wonder, will another intelligent species be uncovering our bones and the remains of our cities, a 'lost civilization' out of earth one day?  Will they sadly shake their heads and say: How unusual, they destroyed the world that supported them and designed their own demise.

Dark Knight Moon

I have a confession to make - it is about a newly . . . revealed . . . fettish.  Its the radishes. I can't help myself and may need the help of family and friends in the form of an intervention.  They are organic and beautiful.  They grow underground, and you can smell the earth, they are demure to look at and all pepper and spice to taste.  I am so enamored with all the different radishes you get, and so when this one appeared on our farmers harvest list for South Shore Organics this week, I just had to have some.  I had to. 

I am of course, talking about the winter root - Black Radish.  They are Spanish in origin, and are bigger than the little red ones we are used to seeing, and talk about sexy!  Dark velvety skins hiding pale white flesh - these are the vampires of the underground: one bite and you're hooked!  Here you go - this is my take on a photo for the cover of a Twilight themed radish novel:

Last month I wrote about a radishing princess with a beautiful heart and the mattador who won her love with his beautiful heart, well, the Chiogga matador that beet all other admirers to gain her affection better watch out!  A new man arrived in town this week and he is ruthless, hungry and dangerous! 

Oh the drama, promise of romance, intrigue and suspense - what will happen next?  Will the radishing princess fall for the dark knights charms?  Is it any wonder I am infatuated?

A New Place to Eat

I had the occasion to travel on the Red Line into Boston the other day.  While clutching a railing for support in the swaying cart, I zoned out and let my mind wander as I people-watched because, let's be honest, the Red Line may not be pleasant but it is fascinating!  Occasionally when I have these moments I think 'if I was an alien who was beamed down for the first time into this exact moment - what would I think?'  And then I glance around like I am seeing the scene for the first time.  I would assume subways are where people sleep, read, sit, look unhappy, eat, stand . . . wait, did I just say eat?  Eeew. 

Then my wandering brain really kicked into gear, thinking about our relationship with food and how low down on the list of day to day priorities it is that we have started to 'squeeze it in'.  You see people eating in cars all the time too.  Instant oats, breakfast bars and shakes, grab-and-go snacks and lunches, hot pockets, pop tarts, sandwich wraps, take-it-with-you-soup-cup and we haven't even gotten to drive-thrus yet.  Which begs to be asked:  Are we too busy to eat?  Is the car, subway, bus and train the new dining room table? 

Why do we do this to ourselves?  At what point did we say 'strawberry pancakes in the form of a pop tart on the subway - what a great idea!  It will save me at least 15 minutes over a bowl of granola and yogurt!'

Seriously!?  Is eating an unsatisfying meal while hurtling through the bowels of Boston the best we can do? Then it made me think back to a show I caught on TV where a woman was packing dinner into Tupperware so her three children could eat in the car on the way to their piano lesson, baseball practice and dance recital respectively.  Does anybody else out there think we are losing the plot? 

I think we owe it to ourselves to treat ourselves better, to take a moment and think of what we are giving up in exchange for those precious minutes: good healthy food, some face-to-face conversation, or some 'me' time, a few minutes to reflect on what our day will bring or did bring.  Do we really accomplish anything in those sacraficial minutes anyway?  To quote an age old and over-used verse:

To everything there is a season,
and a time to every purpose,
A time to be born, and a time to die,
A time to plant, and a time to harvest,
A time to weep, a time to laugh . . . .

Well, surely there is a time in between all that to eat too?

Surviving Sleet

Here we are again, are you ready to celebrate another storm in New England with me?  Ready to break out the baking pans and punctuate these days with some delicious decadence?  Are you, like me, determined to embrace the gifts of today regardless of how much snow there is to shovel?  And since there has been A LOT of snow to shovel, I feel the need to put the calories back in my body lest I wither away to nothingness and we can't have that, can we? 

It just so happens that conveniently - I love it when this happens - my calorie craving has coincided with a cheesecake craving!  And not just any cheese cake - I want a BAKED cheesecake!  What good is a cold day of wintry mix if you aren't going to at least turn the oven on?  So, this is my special choice for this little winter storm:

Philadelphia Double-Chocolate Cheesecake

Ingredients:

24 OREO Cookies, crushed (about 2 cups)

1/4 cup  (1/2 stick) butter or margarine, melted

4 pkg (8 oz each) PHILADELPHIA Cream Cheese, softened

1 cup  sugar

2 tbsp flour

1 tsp  vanilla

2 tbsp (heaped) cocoa

1/2 cup blueberries

Method:

• Heat oven to 325ºF.
• Mix crumbs and butter; press onto bottom of 13x9-inch foil-lined pan. Bake 10 min.
• Beat cream cheese, sugar, flour cocoa and vanilla with mixer until well blended.  Add eggs, 1 at a time, mixing on low speed after each just until blended. Pour over crust.
• Bake 45 min. or until center is almost set. Cool completely. Refrigerate 4 hours. Use foil to lift cheesecake from pan. Top with berries.

Enjoy!  A few more snow storms accompanied with decadent ideas and we may just have turned this winter around, don't you think?

Food Guilt!

No, not 'loosen-the-top-button-I-ate-too-much' guilt,  I am talking about something else entirely!  I am talking about Responsible Grocery Shopping - read this:

"Do you take home the certified organic, cage-free dozen from California, or the non-organic but vegetarian-fed eggs from the family farm nearby?  Do you spring for the Omega-3 eggs at a dollar more a dozen, or wait for your next trip to the Feed & Seed, where you can by 9-year-old Nathan's mismatched rainbow of uncleaned eggs packed into re-used cartons?  Not to mention large or extra large, Grade A or Grade AA.  Is the notion that brown eggs are healthier real, or is the difference from their white counterparts only shell deep?

So here's my question: does a quick trip to buy eggs turn into a "nerve-wracking test of your personal belief system"? 

When I first read this passage from 'Organic, Local and Everything Else' written by Zoe Bradbury I honestly felt she was inside my head, writing from my very own experiences.  I have these debates with myself all - the - time, and not only standing in front of the array of choices at the egg fridge but at the fish counter (is it farmed or wild caught?  loaded with mercury?  from local waters or far off seas? how much energy was consumed in capturing, processing and transporting?), looking for a steak (organic from the other side of the US, or local? pasture raised or grass fed or grass finished - and what's the difference? what about antibiotics?  hormones?  how many cows are in this one packet of ground beef?)  and then there is chicken, milk, produce, bread, cooking oil . . . sometimes I think I might spontaneously combust from all the friction caused by the to and fro of the constant debate as I wrestle with . . . myself!

Who knew grocery shopping would become an anxiety laden two-hour event as we try to make socially and environmentally conscientious choices?  All the while food corporations are working harder than ever to convince us that what they put in front of us is exactly what we want - even when it's not!  Product messaging cleverly targets our desire to make good choices, for instance, I picked up a bottle of milk the other day that was labelled 'no added hormones' and thought I had made a good decision.  It was only as I was standing in the check out line mulling over my bounty that I realized they just guaranteed no hormones were added to the milk, but they never said they didn't give them to the cows!  I had been duped and I was so ANNOYED! 

After more and more of these experiences I am thankful to have my fresh produce and egg dilemma resolved, and it makes me happy to be able to extend the peace of mind to others through South Shore Organics, and I feel collectively we will address meat, fish, cheese, bread and butter dilemma's too in time to come.  In the meantime, just make the best choice you can using the following guidelines:

• first choice: local, sustainable, conscientious, humane, organic
• second choice: from further afield and certified organic
• third choice: from further afield and sustainable practices
• everything else

And then quiet that relentless voice in your head, you have made the best choice you can -  besides, the last thing we need is people bursting into flames throughout the store!