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Spring is the time for New Beginnings: amending our garden soil

Simply put, amending our soil means improving it in texture and fertility. Soil amendment should be looked at as a long term solution with ongoing continual effort and ongoing continual results. If we’re looking for a quick fix, we’ve chosen the wrong hobby. Even if our soil was great five years ago, its not reasonable to expect it to remain that way without continuing to replenish it. Plants use nutrients; water and winter leach out nutrients – it’s simple math. Making our gardens the BEST that they can be begins with healthy soil, and that means we do what we can to continually replenish what is continually being used or lost.

How do I know if my garden soil is good?

The primary way to understand your soil is to check its texture and structure. Good soil has a healthy balance of organic matter, sand, silt, and clay. It should also be moist but not soggy. To determine the texture of your soil, take a handful of damp garden soil and squeeze it into a ball. If it breaks apart easily our soil is on the sandy side. If it clings together, our soil is more clay. Why does this matter? Proper soil texture is essential to allowing roots to take up moisture and air. Most soils contain a mixture of clay, organic matter and sand. Whatever your soil is currently, the objective it to ‘amend’ it so that it is more humus-y. Humus is the result of a long process of decomposition, the combined efforts of earthworms, bacteria, fungi and other microorganisms and time. It is loose, crumbly and spongy and usually dark brown or black in colour. Good soil could have as much as 25% compost and will hold together loosely if we squeeze it into a ball. Ideal soil for growing vegetables could be as high as 50% compost in the soil. This helps hold the moisture in a way that plants can readily access it. Ultimately, it is our goal.

Let’s talk about Clay first:

Clay is a fine grained mineral made when rocks break down. It acts as a binding agent giving the soil elasticity and allowing the soil particles to stick together. Clay soils can be difficult to till, and will not drain quickly after a heavy rain, often hardening when dry.

I remember a certain area near a creek close to my childhood home. We kids called it the ‘clay pit’, and I have no idea who discovered it, but new kids were constantly introduced to it. In the spring we would walk down with pails and (if I was to be totally honest) our mothers’ serving spoons, to dig some clay. We had to go after a rain when the clay was perfect, other wise it would be like cement and good luck getting any out with a serving spoon. It was heavy so we couldn’t bring a lot home in our little pails, but no matter – we didn’t need a heckuva lot.
We would get more water and knead it in like we were making bread. When it was the texture of plasticine, we formed small bowls out of it and left them to dry in the sun. I don’t recall how long they took to dry, probably a day or two if it was nice and sunny. Then we’d give them to our mothers (who were always so ‘appreciative‘) as gifts. They used them as ashtrays – which in the world in which I grew up, was a valuable household ornament. When I was much older and observed old indigenous pottery in museums, made in areas further south of where I lived, I remembered that clay pit and our rudimentary attempts at using the clay – and I felt one with the world.

I cannot say anything really ‘bad’ about clay lol, because it holds such fond childhood memories for me. But on the other hand, I didn’t have to grow a garden in it. And I sure wouldn’t want to. Dense clay soil compacts easily, restricting the movement of water, nutrients and air throughout, making it inhospitable for your plants. Roots hit a hard clay floor or wall when they try to grow, and the clay retains too much moisture drowning or rotting roots. Sandy soil is the exact opposite.

to amend clay soil –

add organic matter – like compost, dried grass clippings, shredded leaves, aged horse manure, and compost. That’s pretty much it. Sounds simple doesn’t it? Well you’d be surprised at how many problems can be solved by compost. My advice – after some very positive personal experience – is this three layer lasagna recipe.

1. Distribute a nice deep layer of straw (3 to 4 inches is a good start) over the surface of your garden area in the early spring.
2, On top of that, distribute another 3-4 inches of well aged horse manure. Why horse manure? Because it is a beautiful natural fertilizer rich in nitrogen and perfect for earthworms. (tip: horse manure is a good thing to add to your soil frequently, so make friends with a horse owner and plan to add a top layer every year or two). Your leafy green garden vegetables will be very happy.
3. On top of that – like the shredded cheese on your lasagna, broadcast the clippings of the first mowing of your spring lawn – with all the leftover fall leaves and snow mold and all the other things you thought were ugly when the snow finally melted. All organic grass clippings are wonderful, but the first mowing is full of microscopic critters that make the world go ’round. Their job is to break down organic material and they’re very good at it.

I am reminded that many years ago when our kids were young – for a different reason entirely, we layered a few bales of ‘hay’ all over the top of our backyard garden (yes, I mean hay as opposed to straw). Hay is grass, less coarse than straw (which is the dried stocks of grain) so it breaks down easier than straw. I hear all the time that one should avoid hay in a garden because of the amount of ‘seeds’ in it that are obviously going to grow, but I found that not to be a problem at all. The types of seeds you can expect to find in hay are the type of hay it is – perhaps Timothy Hay, perhaps Alfalfa. Those seeds are going to grow so LOOSELY in the hay itself that they’re easy to pull out as you’re walking by. Nothing to worry about. Don’t avoid hay for that reason.

Over the course of that summer the hay created a marvelous mulch for us, while it began the process of breaking down under the surface.
Benefits:
– It kept the weeds down, and those that did grow were rooted in the hay so super easy to pull out.
– It helped keep the moisture from evaporating.
– It was excellent mulch for our potatoes. They literally grew IN the hay, shielded from the sun.
– In many ways that was one of the best gardens we’ve every had, and I was anxious to repeat it.
– By the next growing season the hay was almost completely assimilated into the garden, and I needed more. But we couldn’t find more that year – we live in the city, so don’t have easy access to things like this. We found straw instead however, and while we understood the difference, didn’t fully envision the significance of that difference. While it looked good initially, it didn’t readily break down like the hay had, and after another growing season and winter, when Dan rototilled the garden the following spring, it got all tangled up in the tines of the rototiller – very frustrating for him. I agreed to not use straw anymore. In retrospect however, understanding it so much more now, I could have done things a little differently. We gave up too easily. All these years later, it is interesting to me that we’re returning to a method we had unwitting success with decades ago, but we’re understanding more about why it worked and that is helping. Such is the nature of gardening: one lesson at a time.

Sand:

Unlike clay, sandy soil allows water to drain more easily, but that requires a lot more water to sustain plant growth, and the constant draining washes nutrients away. My 9 year old Zack, once asked “Why doesn’t the ocean drain out?” He had noted that the sand on the beach didn’t hold water. I thought that was a brilliant question but of course I didn’t have a brilliant answer. The good news is that it is a relatively easy remedy in the garden; but again, don’t confuse ‘easy’ for ‘quick’. Looking for a one time fix is far too simplistic.

Amending sandy soil –

is necessary to help create a happy, healthy home for our garden vegetables. Adding organic material to the soil will not only add important nutrients, but will also help maintain them. It will also help with moisture retention. Compost is the best amendment. How ironic that for these two extremes of inhospitable soil, the solution is the same: COMPOST and other organic matter.

The best quality compost is made of many different types of material: garden greens, shredded leaves, dried grass, as well as kitchen waste of all kinds, and everything else that goes into a homemade compost. If you don’t have a good supply of homemade compost at your disposal, start by using city compost, or commercially purchased compost. Then immediately start your own compost so you can supply yourself every year after this. If you live in a place that isn’t conducive to compost, consider donating your kitchen scrapes to your local community garden. At the very least, donate it to your city’s green bin program if you have one.

Peat moss aids in moisture retention, helps increase the acidic soil level, and we can still buy huge bags of it quite affordably. I use it in my many pots and window boxes – pots of flowers, pots with peppers or tomatoes – all traditionally places that I have a hard time keeping moist. I use a wheelbarrow as a big mixing bowl. Equal parts potting soil, peat moss and compost – pretty much following my mother-in-law’s recipe. Then I add a LOT of water. It will absorb more than you think it will, and I constantly work the water in with my hands till the mixture is very moist but not dripping wet. Then I put it into my pots and plant my plants or seeds in it. It is a lot easier to keep peat moss moist than it is to get it wet in the first place – it’s first reaction is to repel the water, before it finally gives up and absorbs it. If you let it dry out, you’ll be starting again with that process.

Aged horse manure is an excellent compostable material to either mix into our compost or layer over top of our garden surface. Again, avoid the temptation to work it in. Have a little faith and give it time to amaze you.

Ultimately – this simple rule applies: the best way to improve soil texture is by adding organic material, such as compost. Decaying organic matter loosens clay-dense soil helping air and water move more freely so that roots can penetrate easily. It also helps sandy soil by holding water and nutrients that would otherwise drain away. In each soil extreme, it encourages beneficial microbial activity and provides nutritional benefits.

All soil requires amending from time to time – if only just to KEEP it good. And of course there are all sorts of other issues like ‘heavy feeders’, and crop rotation which continually benefit the soil. Gardens are living breathing entities and part of the cycle of life. Though we cannot see most of that life – it is there nonetheless, and living in harmony with it makes life a lot gentler.

Testing your soil for specific nutrient issues

You can test your own soil using a basic soil test kit from your local hardware or garden store. Inexpensive, easy and relatively accurate, soil tests provide good insight about what’s going on under your feet, including the levels of pH, calcium, lime, gypsum and potassium. I have only tested my soil once, the year after we took our spruce trees out. And after a year of fussing about this nutrient or that nutrient, the only thing that made a sustainable difference was something as simple as that garden lasagna recipe – which added compostable material in a very big way.

5 easy tips for healthy soil in your garden

  1. continually add organic matter – every year, and throughout the year by incorporating compost and compostables – which increases air, water and nutrients
  2. try to get out of the habit of using a rototiller, especially in smaller gardens where they aren’t necessary. Breaking up all that soil isn’t helping it.
  3. protect your topsoil from sunburn with mulch
  4. don’t use chemicals unless there’s absolutely no alternative
  5. rotate crops so that they are naturally both using up and replacing nutrients

Crop rotation:

The concept of crop rotation is simple: avoid planting the same crops in the same area every year. Different types of plants require different nutrients from the soil, and in return – provide different nutrients. By not planting the same vegetables in the same spot year after year, new plants will benefit from what the former plants leave behind, and we will discourage pests and diseases from building up in the soil. Ideally, we should rotate a vegetable family so that it grows in an area only once every three or four years.

Beans – include all sorts of beans, peas and other legumes. They are easy to grow and don’t require anything specific in the soil – just lots of sun. They’ll replace the nitrogen that high feeders use up.

Greens – include anything green and leafy: lettuces, spinach, swiss chard etc. They are easy to grow and not too demanding, but will benefit from nitrogen and phosphorus. Beans and peas are known for fixing nitrogen in the soil, so follow them with greens.

Roots – are obviously potatoes, carrots, beets, and other vegetables that grow IN the ground.
Phosphorus promotes strong root growth. Bone meal is a good source of it, but don’t over use. 1 Tablespoon mixed into about 2 square feet of soil is a good amount. It’s not fast acting so the sooner you can apply it the better.

Fruits – includes any type of garden produce that produces ‘fruit’ like tomatoes, squash, cucumbers etc. They are heavy eaters so give them lots of attention. Brassicas like broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage etc are also high feeders so I’m including them in with fruits. They want phosphorus – and good sources are chicken and horse manure and fish fertilizer (fish emulsion). For several years I have planted a raw broken whole egg with my tomato plants because I had heard that the protein in the egg was beneficial, and I knew that calcium was – which the shelf provides. I had not taken the time to conduct any experiments but I’ve always had good eggs. Last year (2023 I didn’t take the time to use any raw eggs. I noticed at the end of the year that my tomato harvest was disappointing but I didn’t make a connection right away – and who’s to know if there even was one? . . . A good friend of mine conducted an experiment last season with three sets of three tomato plants each. In one set she planted each tomato in a deep hole with a fish head at the bottom (sprinkle a little compost). Same types of tomatoes, everything else the same, but different things ‘planted’ with the tomatoes. She noted that the set of three with the fish heads had considerably more fruit than the others. That is what made me think about my last season’s disappointing harvest.

This year I will be using eggs again – and in half of my tomatoes, I’ll also be including fish remains. I’ll keep track and watch for any changes. Stay tuned.

Gardening is about learning new things Every. Single. Year! So keep your eyes open, listen to others and pay attention.

Personally I avoid growing most vegetables from the brassica family: broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage, kale, brussels sprouts, radishes, mustard greens, and collards. Not to say I don’t like them, I DO. But I despise the ugly voracious caterpillars that come from the cabbage moths – which always seem to find my plants no matter how well I think I’ve hidden them. I have tried every potential solution I’ve heard or read about but in the end, each success is limited and unsustainable. I finally gave up years ago and I’m at peace with that. However, I have three exceptions to my ‘no-brassica’ rule: kale, radish greens and mustard greens (which I have recently discovered). These I plant dispersed throughout my garden – especially kale, which are planted here a few, there a few in the vegetable garden, herb garden, flower gardens, front yard, back yard, . . . . wherever I can find a spot for one or two plants. I do this because I’ve noticed that the cabbage moth will take the easy path of going down a row laying their eggs. If my kale are not in a row, I have a chance of saving more of them. I am ruthless though – if a plant shows evidence of being eaten, I quickly pull it out and get rid of it – saving its neighbours from a similar fate. I tell them “Sacrificing for the greater good is noble“. I don’t know if that helps them or not lol.

Radishes I plant sprinkled among my lettuce and carrots. I don’t really care for radish roots, but I do like their green tops so its worth it to me.
Mustard greens – I have only recently discovered mustard greens and I really like them. I haven’t developed a routine for them yet however, still working on that.

For years Dan and I have maintained what I (playfully) refer to as the “grass war”. Its a complicated conflict. He loves his grass and I sorta like it too. I love my garden and he sorta likes it too. I would like more garden and less grass. He would like more grass and less garden. The war has never been won; we remain in a tenuous semi-permanent truce, each awaiting the other to weaken or concede on small issues. Maintaining a healthy balance of both, our yard successfully accommodates every demographic in our family: the little kids who need a play area and a yard to run around in, the bigger kids and Grampa who need a trampoline with water and a treehouse, the young adults and Grampa who need space to set up some yard games and roast hot dogs, Gramma who needs a place to grow food for them all, and the Gramma Great who needs a place to sit and watch the whole goings on.

So far mutual respect is the keeping the peace. However, the ‘conflict’ is further complicated by our opposing views on a few major points – like compost. They’re not irreconcilable differences, just differences of basic idealisms. We both believe in composting – me radically, and him conservatively. It is my insistence on keeping grass clipping IN the yard, being lightly distributed as mulch throughout the gardens and adding the rest to our ongoing compost. His position is that we have too much of it, and some of it has to go. Consequently, he’s motivated to mow the lawn when I’m not around to get the bags of a freshly mowed grass out into the alley for pick up, before I notice and go rescue them – hauling them back in and dumping them out in the compost area.

For years, the quiet but simmering conflict came to the surface every spring with the first mowing. My instincts told me that the first mowing was a gold mine of grass clippings, and his instincts told him it was dangerous – full of snow mold and other bad things that had to be eliminated. This remained a stale mate issue since time immemorial UNTIL a mutual friend unwittingly weighed in. Our friend Scott took a stance firmly on my side – stating emphatically that snow mold was a garden’s friend, and that the first mowing was full of hidden treasure. I should state here that Scott and his wife Alana are excellent gardeners with more formal education on the subject than either Dan or myself. It was Scott who prescribed our garden lasagna recipe above, and we both respected his opinion. The success of that ‘experiment’ has become the stuff of legend in our garden. But that’s perhaps a story for another time. Suffice it to say, that since that supreme success, we have agreed on the issue of the first mowing. Score one point for Cindy (not that I’m keeping track of course lol).

Back to the lasagna recipe –
I understand that it is tempting to want to “work in” all that additional material you just put on your garden. I admit I was sorely tempted the first time we did this too. My opinion was influenced by many years of tradition – as no doubt, is your’s. But DON’T DO IT! In fact, you will actually do damage to the very thing you’re trying to nurture. The natural state of a soil’s structure is alive and loaded with organic material – bacteria, nutrients, worms and other creatures, and microorganisms all working together in the great cycle of life. As we rototill or dig that wonderful material in, attempting to distribute it, we are actually disrupting and destroying instead of repairing. All those channels that worms and other critters create when they chew through the soil, help to bring oxygen and water into the ground below, making it easier for our plants to develop healthy root systems and find the nutrients they need. With our shovel, fork or (heaven forbid) our rototiller, we will break all that up – destroying colonies and disrupting harmony. Let nature do what she does best, and leave well enough alone.

Let the rain do its job of washing the nutrients from the top layer down into the layers below. If we’re having a dry spring, maybe we can help it out a little by watering from time to time. Yes, I know the wind will blow some of the straw around. Calm down. Just mow it up when you mow your grass and sprinkle it over the top again. In a matter of only a few weeks it will all settle in and make itself at home. We can trust the natural process beneath the surface; leave this part up to God and all his little critters.

If we intend to plant this area right away, we may be obliged to work some of this material in with a shovel or fork. We must do what we must do, but be cautious. In the past, I’ve marked my rows and gently moved the straw mixture away from the row line – to plant my seeds or seedlings, gently pushing it back around the seedlings when they come up. For potatoes, I keep the straw in place. Potatoes are tough; they’re gonna grow through it all, but I’m not as confident about more delicate seedlings, so I baby them a little.

Yes, our garden will be several inches higher than it used to be, but over the season the straw will break down, the aged manure will be distributed into it and and the top layer will become indistinguishable. It will remain a fantastic mulch. By the next year we won’t see any evidence of it – testimony to all that subterranean community effort that went on undisturbed and unseen from the surface.

~

In the process of amending our soil, we may be tempted from time to time by the lure of a ‘quick fix’. This can sometimes look like synthetic fertilizers, which can be relatively cheap and promise to act quickly. (To be fair, I am not opposed to fertilizers but take care in their selection). Fertilizers don’t amend the soil, they feed the plants. A synthetic fertilizer might help us within a couple of weeks, but its usually a single use result, needing reapplication. Organic fertilizers on the other hand, release their nutrients over a period of time. We won’t get the instant fix, but we will get a longer, sustained feeding. Several years ago we had a problem area in our garden, caused by three 40 year old spruce trees that we had removed the previous year. Whatever we were doing to help the shrubs and other plants we planted in their place wasn’t working; it became clear we had a soil problem. We went to a few local nurseries to ask for advice and suggestions for soil amendment, but the best we received were recommendations of fertilizers to help specific plants in our problem area. This was not helpful, as the foundational issue remained ‘poor SOIL’; the plants were just falling victim to it. That is when Scott and I discussed our problem, and he prescribed our lasagna recipe above – which in a single season, transformed our dead zone into a rain forest.

disclaimer:
While I believe there is a place for natural fertilizers AFTER the soil has been improved, and I use them from time to time, I don’t pretend to be an expert on the subject. This is primarily a discussion on soil amendment.

Tips for ongoing success

  1. Adding compost or another organic material like horse manure, chicken scratchings, grass clippings, or straw or . . . . any other number of sources, is the easiest way to continually nourish your soil. An annual application of spring compost and an occasional top dressing of aged horse manure should in most cases, eliminate the need for any other form of amendment.
  2. The least expensive soil amendment is your own home produced compost using kitchen scraps and yard waste.
  3. While fertilizers temporarily add nutrients directly to the area, amendments improve the nature and characteristics of the soil while additionally adding nutrients.
  4. Don’t expect a quick fix. Soils cannot be changed in a single gardening season; it will take years of continually adding organic material to prevent your garden from returning to its former heavy clay state. The action of compost and garden plant matter breaking down and working its way into the soil is a process not an event.
  5. When clearing out your garden in the fall, consider allowing leaves and other plant material to decay naturally becoming part of the ongoing ecosystem. In the spring, you can rake out what you need to, mow it up and add it back in as mulch once you’ve planted your rows.

I’d love to hear your tips for a healthier garden.
Feel free to comment below.

Warmly,

Cindy Suelzle

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HAIL, that great equalizer

I had just laid my head down after spending another few hours in the garden that spring evening ….. finally got most of my herb plants and a few more flowers IN . . . when I heard it.

ARGHHHHH HAIL!

Hail. I hate hail. That great equalizer. Natures way of reminding us who is in charge, and that we are always dependent on Him. Big mistake to rely solely on “the arm of flesh”.

I timed it.

From beginning to end less than six minutes. But I knew it wouldn’t take more than that. It never does. It doesn’t have to. I mentally went through my garden beds and realized there was no one or two places that I could reasonably even hope to cover. If I had had warning. I was completely at the mercy of hail. My thoughts turned, as they often do, to my great grandparents who repeatedly got hailed out on the prairies after putting in all their blood, sweat and tears. I thought of them standing there, at the door, watching the hail fall, weeping. Not much else to do. . . . . And as always, my heart went out to them. My people. Most of whom I’ve never even met.

early family garden in the city when the kids were little, around 1989

For me hail means frustration, disappointment and inconvenience. For them it meant everything! For them it could have cost them their entire year, and they would have wondered how they were gonna feed their family in the winter to come. I knew there was nothing I could do but hope and pray. Just as they knew there was nothing more they could do.

I went out the following morning to check my gardens. Fine. I checked each plant I put in last night. Fine. All fine. If I hadn’t heard the hail storm the night before, I likely wouldn’t even have known about it. I am relieved. And I am grateful. And again as I do so often, I wondered “why I am so favoured?”. And I love and appreciate all the more, those people who came before me, to this land. And paid such a high price, so that I could have what I have, a long time after they’re dead and gone. Thank you. Thank you to Charles and Sarah, to Alonzo and Elizabeth, to Andreas and Inger, Pearl and Leland, Heber and Capitolia, and all the others who sacrificed so that my children could be born HERE in this place, NOW in this time. The fullness of times.

And I thank my Heavenly Father again for the bounty we enjoy in this land. And I recommit myself to Him, with the reminder that I am nothing without Him. All I can do for myself can be wiped away in 6 minutes, or less. Yes, I will continue to work hard. But in Him alone will I put my trust.

Warmly,

Cindy Suelzle

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onion poultice – don’t discount the simple things

Simple things that can make a difference when its all about what YOU can do at home. An onion chest poultice is an old folk remedy that is often still used, because it is surprisingly effective. Among other good things, onion contain sulfur compounds that help fight mucus and promote the expulsion of mucus from your airways. Onion and its even stronger cousin garlic, are powerful natural antibiotics as well as being antiviral and antimicrobial. This makes them valuable for viral and bacterial infections. So yes make a poultice which will soothe from the outside, and that you’ll be able to inhale, but don’t forget to EAT them as well. Let them work from the inside too.

I love how Wendi talks about using fresh onions, but in the absence of them she shows us how to use dehydrated onions. This is so important and like her, I rarely have fresh onions in my house anymore unless they’re in my garden for the few months I can grow them, and maybe a few months after harvesting. I do keep dehydrated onions, but for the most part – I choose to use THRIVE LIFE freeze dried onions for most of the year. They come diced or sliced, and are always ready to use in all my favourite dishes. As with all Thrive Life fruits and vegetables, they’re flash frozen within only a few hours of harvest, sealing in all their natural nutritional goodness. This is very important to me. All the benefits of ‘fresh’, but easier and much more convenient to use, and with a shelf life of 25 years. That’s very important to me, because I’m all about long term food storage. Even after opening, we have at least a year to use them, depending on humidity in your area.

Wendi Bergin, the Joyful Prepper

These two pungent herbs (onions and garlic) are probably best known for their immune enhancing properties, but that’s another topic for another day. Many folk remedies suggest sleeping with onions wrapped onto the bottom of your feet! Don’t laugh. And don’t be too quick to discount things that seem too simple or even silly at first glance. In fact, garlic and onions contain anti-inflammatory chemicals that have been shown to relieve some forms of arthritic pain. Onions are a rich source of flavonoids, one of which – the antioxidant ‘quercetin’, has been shown to inhibit inflammation-causing leukotrienes, prostaglandins and histamines in osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. Yeah, I had to look them up too – lol.

Q: What are leukotrienes?
A: chemicals your body produces, especially when you come into contact with something you’re allergic to. As a form of protection, they can cause coughing. build up of extra mucus and fluid in your chest and throat, as well as inflammation or swelling in your airway.

Q: what are prostaglandins?
A: fatty acids made at sites of tissue damage or infection caused by injury or illness. They control processes such as inflammation, blood flow, the formation of blood clots and the induction of labour.

Q: what are histamines?
A: chemicals your body makes to help expel allergens from your body through symptoms such as a runny nose or sneezing.

While we shouldn’t want to get rid of these natural protective functions completely, they can cause a lot of discomfort. Wouldn’t it be nice if there was something natural and ‘normal’ you could eat, that could assist in alleviating the worst of those symptoms though?

Let Food Be Your Medicine

Onions are members of the allium family, which includes hundreds of species, and they are one of the most widely used vegetables/herbs in the world, with some types growing in every climate except the arctic. Ones we’re more familiar with are the ‘onion’ of course, garlic, scallion, shallot, leek, green onions and chives. And even among these, there are many, many different types, each with its own special personality and qualities. In North America, the most popular onion to purchase is the yellow onion, for its long lasting quality. Named for its outside colour, not inside, it is cured (dried outside after harvest). If kept in a dry dark, semi cool place, it will last for months.  

there are so many different types of onions,
that could almost be a food group unto themselves.

They are a good source of nutrients and are known to offer a plethora of health benefits – many more than what we’ve reviewed here. Onions are a tremendously rich food source of flavonoids, in particular, the antioxidant quercetin (see above), which is known to prohibit the activity or creation of cancer-causing elements. A quercetin-rich diet is a recognized good defense against developing cancer.

Make onions more a part of your life.

– If you’re one of those people who don’t like the texture of onions, use freeze dried – they’re better than any alternative we can buy at the grocery store anyway.

– If you’re one of those people who don’t like the taste of onions, get over it and find a way eat them anyway. They’re really good for you. They’ve proven themselves enough times to be taken seriously, figure out a way to incorporate them into your daily diet. Hide them, disguise them if you must, but definitely EAT onions. Thrive Life’s freeze dried onions will help immensely with that.

Thrive Life freeze dried onions come in three forms: chopped, sliced or green onions

– If you’re one of those people who have kids who think they don’t like onions, be the parent and find a way to use them anyway. If you need to hide them, then hide them! But use them! Thrive Life’s freeze dried chopped onions will become your new best friend.

Okay, its not possible for any food to have only good things said about it. I think we all know the one downside, and it has something to do with ‘the smell’. Not just the smell of onions, but the smell of ‘us’ after we eat them. Onions contain organic sulfur compounds, which are the reason onions have such a sharp, strong taste and smell. Yes, those sulfur compounds help reduce the level of cholesterol in our bodies, breaking down blood clots and lowering our risk of heart disease and stroke. BUT, those same sulfur compounds cause the only negative effects from eating onions – irritation to eyes when cutting, and body odor.

When our bodies break them down, those sulfur compounds react to sweat on our skin, creating what is generally considered to be an unpleasant odor. In our society, that’s a considerable downside. And in some individuals with IBS (irritable bowel syndrome), they may increase gas and bloating. Small price to pay in my opinion, but I have found that freeze dried onions do not seem to create the same problems. As far as the tearing up aspect, try rinsing a peeled onion under water or chill it for 30 minutes before cutting. Or of course, you can skip the whole chopping step, and go straight for the freeze dried option.

As far as the onion poultice – this is new to me. I’m happy to know about it and appreciate Wendi’s thorough instructions. I have everything I need on hand and will take her advice to set aside some more clean, white cotton for that purpose.

Have you ever tried an onion poultice?
Or any other type of poultice?
I’d love to hear your opinion and your experience.

Warmly,

Cindy Suelzle

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Tomato Powder will make your kitchen a happier place

Tomatoes are nature’s most potent source of lycopene. What IS lycopene and why do we care? Lycopene is a powerful antioxidant with many health benefits, including sun protection, improved heart health as in lower risk of stroke and heart disease, as well as a lower risk of certain types of cancer. It is most effective when consumed in the form of lycopene-rich foods like tomatoes and other red or pink fruits. Studies indicate that lycopene reduces bad cholesterol (LDL) while increasing good cholesterol (HDL) levels. This balance is important because high cholesterol develops fatty deposits in our blood vessels, which can clot and lead to a heart attack or stroke. Remember, RED foods are good for the heart.

it is difficult to think anything but positive thoughts while eating a homegrown tomato

And now, you’ve got all that natural tomato goodness in a concentrated form right in your pantry! I know right? Who could have imagined that now you can:
STOP buying those little 6 oz cans of tomato paste that you never use all of anyway
STOP buying canned tomato sauce (in all their varieties)
STOP buying tomato juice
Because you’ve got all three of these wonderful foods right here in powdered form (just add water). And its a lot more nutritious because it hasn’t gone through the high temperatures of canning (which only retains 40% at best of the nutritional value). Tomato Powder is a super useful food to have on hand in the kitchen at all times. I can’t speak to all tomato powders, but Thrive Life Tomato Powder has a strong, clear tomato taste, like you just picked a ripe tomato out of your garden! It’s got all that wonderful natural tomato acid, because . . . . . . guess what? The ingredient (yes, that’s singular) is: TOMATOES. That’s it. The only thing in the can – is tomatoes. No salt, sugar, colours, flavour enhancers, or other additives of any kind. You can add your own salt to taste. Or not. You do you.

Making your own TOMATO POWDER

drying your own tomatoes for tomato powder

Making your own tomato powder is pretty straight forward. A little investment in the time department, but easy, and if you’ve got an excess of garden tomatoes, its a great use for them. Best practice is in a dehydrator, but you can dry in a slow oven, and if you live in a hot dry climate, you can dry them in the sun. I don’t – so that’s all I’ve got to say about THAT.

The meatier type of tomatoes is preferable, as they have less water and less seeds – like Romas. Simply slice and lay evenly in your dehydrator. All dehydrators might be different, but select a low setting and expect it to take a full day and night. How long exactly, depends on too many factors to estimate with any precision. Factors like: type of tomatoes you are using, and how much water they contain, how thick you sliced them, even the weather – is it cold and rainy, or hot and dry?

You’ll want to continue to dry them until they are brittle. Ensuring that you have removed all the moisture is critical to give you a good product in the end. Use a food processor or blender to grind the tomatoes into a fine powder. It may be helpful to break the tomato slices into smaller pieces as you add to the blender. You can sift the powder through a sieve to separate the larger pieces, which you can put back into the blender.

Store in an airtight container in a cool, dry place. Nothing lasts forever, so plan to use it up in a year (or two at the most). Nutrition will diminish over time of course. Having it be VERY dry in the beginning is key to it staying dry, and it STAYING dry is key to longer shelf life. Keep it well sealed, as it will want to absorb the moisture from the air.

Thrive Life TOMATO POWDER

Thrive Life Tomato Powder

Thrive Life Tomato Powder is just that – tomatoes powdered. You would use it the same way and store it the same way as homemade tomato powder. Its just a LOT easier.

to take a closer look click the link

10 WAYS TO USE TOMATO POWDER

1. Tomato paste
ratio 1:1-2
1/4 cup tomato powder + 1/4 cup water = tomato paste
start with the lesser amount of water, and then add a tablespoon more at a time to reach the consistency you prefer

2. Tomato sauce
ratio 1:4
1/4 c. tomato powder + 1 cup of water = 1 cup tomato sauce

3. Tomato juice
ratio 1:8-10
1 T. tomato powder + 1/2 cup (8-10 T.) water
optional: add your choice of seasoning ie: onion powder, sugar, salt, pepper, to taste

4. Spaghetti sauce
ratio 1:4

or use your own Mediterranean seasoning mix: any combination of oregano,
thyme basil, rosemary, garlic, onion,

5. Pizza sauce
ratio 1:3

or use your own Mediterranean seasoning mix: any combination of oregano,
thyme basil, rosemary, garlic, onion,


6. Cream of Tomato Soup
ration 1:16
Prepare a roux from 1/4 cup butter and 1/4 cup flour over low to med. heat
Add 1/4 cup tomato powder – whisk in
Add 1 T. chicken bouillon – whisk in
Slowly stir in 4 cups of milk, whisking all along to prevent lumps from forming.
Simmer over low heat, whisking to combine well, heat thoroughly and thicken slightly. Add more liquid if needed.
*optional: I like to rub some Freeze dried chopped onions through a sieve to create onion powder. Nice addition to the soup.
*optional: add 1 tablespoon of Italian or Greek blend of herbs, or your own combination of oregano, thyme and basil.
*optional: add another tablespoon or two of tomato powder if you want it richer

Thrive Life Tomato Powder label

7. Ketchup
1 cup tomato powder and 3 +1/2 cups water
1/3 cup honey or brown sugar
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1 t. onion powder or 2 T Freeze Dried chopped onion crushed to make onion powder
1/2 t garlic powder or 1 T Freeze Dried garlic crushed to make garlic powder
1 t salt + 1/2 t pepper
1/2 t dry mustard
pinch of allspice and a pinch of cloves
Combine all, and simmer over low heat stirring frequently to prevent scorching – till reduced to desired consistency. Expect it to take 30-45 minutes depending on your preference of thickness. Pour into jar and refrigerate. Expect 2 pint jars. Best to let it sit a day to allow flavours to fully blend.

8. Barbecue sauce
1/2 cup tomato powder
1 cup water
1/3 cup brown sugar
2 T. apple cider vinegar
1 T Worcestershire sauce
1 T soy sauce
1 T mustard
1 clove garlic, minced
2 T FD chopped onion
1/4 t Cayenne pepper (or your favourite dash of hot) or NOT
Salt & pepper to taste
Mix all ingredients in large saucepan, heat over low and stir 15 or so minutes till slightly thickened. Stir frequently to prevent scorching.

9. to add that beautiful rich ‘tomato’ zest concentrated
To any tomato based soup, stew, chili or pot roast – add a tablespoon or two of tomato powder just because YOU CAN! You’ll be surprised at how it richens things up.

10. As a garnish
Sprinkle tomato powder  over top potato salad, deviled eggs, hummus, even a lettuce and tomato salad. Be creative.

I’d love to hear your experiences with Tomato Powder, and your suggestions for recipes, please comment below.

If you want to see more tips like these, recipes and updates on Thrive Life Specials and promotion, click here – to sign up for my monthly Thrive Life newsletter.

Warmly,

Cindy

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Vinegars from the Garden

2020 was my experiment year for vinegars. I had tried a few vinegars from scratch in the past with varying degrees of success but I think I overthought it, or I simply didn’t know how to use them. Whatever it was, I got discouraged and backed away until that year when it seemed so easy to try again (and I had all the time in the world), I couldn’t resist. SO glad l did. These vinegars below are actually “INFUSED Vinegars” – meaning I started with an existing white vinegar and infused the flavours. So easy, you can make your own and be guaranteed an amazing result. The results have been spectacular and I am never going to be the same again. Infused Garden Vinegars and I are best-friends-forever now.

Sun Vinegars

A new fave way for me to use my fresh garden herbs (and especially to carry their wonderfulness into winter) is to make ‘sun vinegar’. So called because you set them out in the sun to ‘steep’. Use a quart jar, a 2 quart jar, or a gallon jar – depends how much you want to make.

recipe:
Chive Blossom Vinegar

Chive blossoms in white vinegar, less than 24 hours and already that gorgeous pink colour!

When the chive blossoms or garlic chive blossoms are in full bloom, pick them, shake off to ensure they’re free of insects or dust. Swish them in clean water and shake off excess moisture. Fill a clean glass jar without stuffing them in. Top up with white vinegar, making sure all are covered. Secure lid and place in a safe, sturdy spot where the sun with shine on it for about 2 weeks. You’ll watch the vinegar change colour into a beautiful pink/rose/mauve shade as the blossoms fade. When the blossoms have lost their colour your vinegar is ready. Strain through a cheese cloth into clean jar to store – discarding old blossoms. Store in pantry out of direct light to preserve it lovely colour. Plan to use within the year, just in time to make some more.

Basil – Oregano – Rosemary – Sage – Tarragon – Thyme

Basil vinegar just before straining. Colour transferred from leaves to vinegar.

Be adventurous. Try other garden herbs alone, or in combination to make other flavours. Use the same basic recipe as for the Chive Blossom Vinegar. They’ll all taste different depending on the herb. Keep everything clean and sterile, strain vinegar well to ensure a nice clear product.

using herb vinegars:

Herb vinegars can be used in a variety of salad dressings, sauces or marinades to add a fresh, delicious ‘herby’ flavour to a perfect garden salad, a bowl of steamed garden greens or fresh sliced cucumbers. Be brave, try different things.

Our very first venture was to use the Basil vinegar ALONE as a marinade for chicken breasts. Wow! Best grilled chicken I ever remember eating. The tangy basil flavour was in every single moist bite. Definitely remaking that one. We also used an herb vinegar to marinade thin strips of chicken and pork to grill on skewers. The meat absorbed too much of the vinegar and took on an almost ‘pickled’ taste, a disappointment. Won’t be revisiting that.

using fruit vinegars:

straining raspberries through jelly strainer

My first fruit vinegar was raspberry. I had a lot in my garden and was picking every other day, so it was a natural place to begin. And raspberries are SO good for you. They are a high antioxidant food and contain several phyto-nutrients that give raspberries their beautiful colour. Making a fruit vinegar is easy and extends the wonderfulness of summer into the non-growing seasons. You can make a refreshingly delicious raspberry vinegarette dressing for your salad in the summer, or long after fresh raspberries are only a fond memory. Whenever possible I try not to heat foods too high (or too long) in an effort to retain as much of the nutritional value as possible, other than the necessary hot water bath if I want to seal the jars. For this reason I opted for a ‘fresh’ uncooked raspberry vinegar. It was shockingly delicious. And because its so easy, there is no reason you cannot make some raspberry vinegar in the middle of winter using frozen berries. You froze your excess from last summer right? *See instructions to make the vinegar below. In the meantime, how to use it . . . .

Raspberry vinegar (scroll down to see recipe) can be used in a variety of salad dressings to add a fresh, delicious flavour, or add a couple of tablespoons to a glass of cold ice water. Oh my. Don’t judge until you try it. For a salad dressing, this vinegar is delicious enough to simply mix with a beautiful oil and shake, but if you’d like something a little more ‘reciped‘, try this one:

Double Raspberry Vinaigrette recipe: (to make in blender or food processor)
1 small onion coarsely chopped (or minced if you’re not using blender)
1/2 cup frozen raspberries, freeze dried raspberries or raspberry jam
2 T honey
1 t dry mustard
1/2 t salt
1/4 t pepper
1/2 cup raspberry vinegar
1 cup of your choice of oil (or combination of two: vegetable oil, olive oil, grapeseed, avocado etc)

add all ingredients except oil into blender. Puree till well combined, then turn the speed down and add oil in a steady stream. If you would like the texture of the whole or mashed raspberries (instead of pureed into a liquid), hold the jam out till after the blender part.
Stir in afterward.
If the vinegarette is too thick, thin it by whisking in a little water or apple juice.

Raspberry Poppy Seed Vinaigrette recipe: BEST EVER and less than 5 minutes to make. 
For more than a beautiful green salad. Use it as a sauce for grilled chicken breasts. 
adapted from a recipe I developed almost 7 years ago – see original post here
1/2 cup raspberry vinegar
1-2 cloves of garlic minced (depending on size and taste)
1/4 minced fresh onion or 2 T THRIVE Freeze Dried Onion cause its so simple
1 tsp coarse salt 
dash of black pepper
* 1/2 cup fresh or frozen raspberries or THRIVE Freeze Dried Raspberries (optional but very nice texture)
2/3 cup Canola oil – or your favourite vegetable oil 
2 tsp poppy seeds 

Directions: 
Combine everything except the oil and poppy seeds into the small jar of a small blender. Blend till completely smooth. Or whisk well in a jar with a hand whisk. Not necessary to mince garlic or onion ahead of time if you are using the blender. 
Slowly drizzle in oil continuing to whisk. Whisk in poppy seeds last. 
Thats It! Super Simple. Super Quick.  Super Delicious. 
Can be made earlier. Letting it sit in the fridge for an hour or more will give the flavours time to blend better. 

Raspberry Vinegar – or Sour Cherry, or Saskatoon, or Concord (Valiant) Grape, or Highbush Cranberry or Black or Red Current Vinegar. The sky is the limit.

Finished Raspberry, Cherry, Basil and Garlic Chive Vinegars.
Note the gorgeous deep colour of the fruit vinegars and the delicate rose’ of the herb vinegars.

basic recipe:
using a 2 quart glass jar
6 cups clean fresh raspberries
2 cup sugar (consider substituting honey or using half sugar / half honey)
6 cups white vinegar
Place raspberries into clean jar. Dissolve sugar or honey in vinegar over low to medium heat. When hot and sugar completely dissolved, pour the sweetened vinegar over top the raspberries, making sure they all get covered. Cover with a lid, and let it sit on the counter out of the sun for a minimum of two days or up to a week. Will turn a gorgeous deep red colour. Strain through jelly strainer or several layers of cheese cloth (to keep the vinegar clear) into a clean storage glass jar. Cover and store at room temperature.
* recommended to use within 6 months
* I love the unique flavour of honey, but don’t want the raspberry flavour overpowered by it so I use a combination of sugar and honey together.

They’ll all taste different depending on the fruit. Be brave and try new things. Keep everything clean and sterile, strain vinegar very well to ensure a nice clear product.

SO. The next question of course, is what to do with the fruit you strain out of the vinegar. . . .

While the herbs were pretty spent and I had no problem throwing them into the compost, there was no way I was gonna throw the fruit out. I first intended to combine it with some fresh and puree it for a fruit leather. I still might do that one day, but after tasting the strained fruit – Oh! My! Goodness! – it was so wonderful, that it deserved something better. It tasted like chutney to me. So that is what it became.

By definition, a chutney is a relish-type-of-sauce made up of sweet and sour flavours, usually with fruit as the base and seasoned with herbs and spices. A condiment. The origin is from India but the variation of flavours are as wide as the world, lending itself to anything you’ve got on hand. So with the ‘sweet’ of the sweetened cherries and raspberries, and the ‘sour’ of the vinegar – it was a match from the beginning. What do you do with a chutney? Topping for meat (think about cranberry sauce, its a sort of chutney), or any dish that is more mild flavoured (think about plum sauce on egg rolls, another type of chutney). Use it with cream cheese on crackers. Use it with roast beef, pork chops, any type of chicken, with a grilled cheese sandwich, with a cheese plate, with samosas, Asian dumplings, egg rolls . . . . etc.

recipe for CHUTNEY from strained vinegar fruit:

lame title I know, but what else should I call it? The thing to remember is that you can make this from whatever fruit you have leftover from whatever fruit vinegar you make. I added flavours that I thought would go well with cherries and raspberries, but there were lots of other flavour possibilities for another time. See below. Again, be adventurous and creative.

* 3 cups cherries and raspberries combined, strained from making fruit vinegar see below
(with the skin, cherries have more texture so I chopped them finely)
1 onion chopped finely
4 apples (the tarter the better) peeled and chopped
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1/2 cup brown sugar
* 2 cups chopped cranberries (I always have freeze dried on hand, but you can use frozen or dried craisins if you have them. If you don’t, then use raisins.) see below
1/2 t salt
1/4 t pepper
2 T grated fresh ginger (I suppose if you don’t have it, try 1 teaspoon ground ginger)
*** other possibilities see below

Into the pot with everything on medium heat, stirring to mix well and heating to combine flavours. I prefer not to over-cook anything, and unless there is a good reason for more cooking, I opt for less heat where I can, so I never boil chutney for the length of time most recipes tell you to. That makes it mushy, and mushy is yucky to me. I just had the pot on the burner and added things as I measured them, stirring often. It eventually came to a natural simmer and I let it simmer for about five minutes.

From this amount, I got three pints. Two pints I processed in a hot water bath (15 minutes) for winter use, and the other one I put in the fridge for immediate use. Obviously the ones processed are going to be a softer texture than the pint in the fridge.

* 3 cups is simply what I happened to have, if I had more or less I might have adjusted the other ingredient amounts. I am sure it would change every time I made vinegar.
** Cranberries are very important in this recipe because of their colour. Raspberries will fade in the heat to a dark pinky colour which I don’t like (so I always add cranberries to raspberry jam). They also seem to have a natural pectin that thickens on its own so I never have to add pectin to raspberry or rhubarb jam if using cranberries. For this chutney, I noticed right away that the raspberries were fading so I added cranberries.
My first choice would always be freeze dried because of their superior nutrition and bright colour, and of course the ease of storage. Always ‘ready’. Second choice would be frozen cranberries that I buy lots of at Thanksgiving to keep on hand. Might want to chop them for this chutney. Third choice is dried cranberries. These are usually very sugared so I don’t buy them as a general rule, but they still have that wonderful cranberry taste and of course the colour which is very important when canning.

*** other ingredients to consider adding are numerous. I didn’t want to lose the distinctness of any of the flavours by adding too many, but to consider for another time:
Garlic minced – a natural for anything savory
Cloves and or cinnamon – preferably whole and in a cheesecloth bag for easy removal later
Red pepper flakes for some heat – I almost added it this time but wanted to know what it would be like without first. The ginger has some natural heat too, so that worked
Dry mustard – always a great flavour enhancer and a natural emulsifier if using more liquids
Lemon or lime – didn’t need it this time with the apple cider vinegar and the strong cherry and raspberry tastes, but I love a citrus zing when suitable.
Again, be adventurous with what you have on hand, and flavours you like.

Have fun making your vinegars and in coming up with your own flavours depending on what you have on hand. Necessity is the mother-of-invention right?
I’d love to hear your stories with your own flavours.
Please leave me a comment.

Warmly,

Cindy Suelzle

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Common Herbs and Spices in your House and Yard: an Introduction

“… all wholesome herbs God hath ordained for the constitution, nature, and use of man” D&C 89:10

As I worked on this post, it became much too long for a single entry. Consider this an introduction as there will be several posts discussing herbs we can use daily, and also grow in a northern climate such as Edmonton, Alberta.

SYNOPSIS:
Growing herbs is one of the most delightful things about summer, and is a perfect first experience with gardening. Herbs are among the easiest plants to grow, usually very forgiving, pleasingly fragrant, lovely to use decoratively, and the majority can be used in the kitchen as well as around the home. Many have additional health benefits that are worth exploring. This article was first drafted to be ‘notes’ I was using for a class I taught. I have edited and expanded several times since originally compiling them, and it soon became too long and detailed for simple class-notes. I originally intended to review my ‘Top 10 Herbs’ for household use: how to grow them and how to use them. But that number grew to my ‘top 15’, then my ‘top 20’, and now I’m not even going to pretend to keep my list to a number. I will likely be adding to it or expanding on the information as I have more time, experience and inclination to do so. Of course there are many I won’t be able to include, but that doesn’t mean I don’t find value in them. Its just that where does one draw the line, right?

The definition of an HERB is “a flowering plant whose stem above ground does not become woody”. In the mid 19th century, the term included vegetables. So in the scripture quoted above (D&C 89:10) “all wholesome herbs . . .” refers to more than simply what we nowadays consider ‘herbs’.   This is important to note as one reads further into the chapter, and finds repeated admonitions to eat fruits and herbs.

Another difference is where they come from on the plant. For instance, cinnamon comes from the bark of a tree so it is considered a ‘spice’. Ginger is a root, so it is considered a spice. Some plants produce both herb and spice, like cilantro. In its leaf form this plant produces a very popular leafy herb, but if you leave it too long, it goes to seed it produces coriander seeds – a spice. If we are using the leafy part, the stem or the flower, we’re often referring to it as an ‘herb’. The bark, root and seed are most often considered a spice.
Moral of the story is to not get too hung up about the difference and trying to nail down exactly what this or that is. There are exceptions to every rule.

But for certain, there are many herbs and spices that we have in our gardens and homes which are of value to our bodies in more ways than we’re currently using them. It is good to be open minded, creative and willing to try new things. You may discover things you never knew before.  And whether you live in a house with a yard, a condo with a patio, an apartment with a balcony, or a basement suite with a sunny window, there are herbs you can grow, and ways they can make your life better. If sun is an issue, consider using grow lights, perhaps even try dabbling into hydroponics.

When we use herbs for self care, we should be treating minor ailments, not serious life threatening illnesses, and for more serious situations it is important not to self diagnose. Make sure you are using them correctly, buying from reputable sources or being absolutely sure of identification if growing or gathering.

Not all herbs are good for you:

Don’t underestimate their effect, and don’t assume the words “natural” and “herb” are synonymous for “healthy“. Just because it grows in your garden does not mean its good for you. For example, Lily of the Valley is a beautiful plant with a simple, elegant and innocent looking flower, but the entire plant is extremely poisonous. Even the water you place the flower in contains deadly traces of its poison. Hydrangea is gorgeous, but other than the roots, the rest of the plant is very poisonous.

Also important, is to use the correct part of the plant. For example don’t substitute the root if it calls for the leaf etc. Rhubarb leaves are poisonous but their stalks are delicious and super nutritious. Potatoes are wonderful, but their leaves and sprouts are poisonous as are parts of the potato itself if allowed to go green. All of the tomato plant – other than the fruit, is poisonous. So just because one part is good, doesn’t mean it all is.

Be open minded and willing to experiment, but be smart.

When using an herb for the first time, start with a small amount and test for allergic reactions. Pregnancy and while nursing is not the time to be experimenting with ‘new’ herbs, in fact it is as advisable to avoid most herbs as you would avoid most drugs. Never underestimate their efficacy. Many drugs come from herbs.

I am looking forward to sharing this journey with you. And I’d love to hear about your experiences both growing and using herbs, especially your recipes.

Warmly,

Cindy Suelzle
Backyard City Homestead

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Common Herbs and Spices in Your House and Yard: Oregano

Oregano is a major player in my herb garden. To the right you can see a few varieties of thyme. Behind the thyme are feverfew plants in full bloom, St. John’s wort behind the feverfew with yellow flowers. Also purple lupins and poppies in bloom.
Raspberries in the very back along the fence.

Oregano is a staple in every herb garden. Primarily because it is so doggone easy to grow, and easy to please. It is super friendly and loves everything and everyone; a real confidence booster for first time gardeners.
* Spring came early this year? Great! Oregano will be one of your first plants to green up.
* Late spring? Don’t worry about it. Oregano will be pushing through the cold nights like a trooper.
* Lots of rain and hardly any sun? No problem. Oregano can be its own mini rain forest.
* Lots of sun and a little on the dry side? Gotcha covered. Oregano is very forgiving on either end of the spectrum. For a plant that originates in the hot areas of the Mediterranean, it is surprising how hearty an established plant can be in a typical Canadian year.

in the garden

Oregano is a hearty perennial that makes a useful ground cover in any sunny part of your garden. It may start out low, but can grow up to two feet high when mature! It has a lovely pink to lavender coloured flower (some varieties might have white flowers) so I make sure to have it in a few different spots: my herb garden of course where I keep it trimmed by harvesting, and in a couple of my flower gardens where I allow it to flower to use in bouquets and flower arrangements. Strip off the lower leaves to use fresh or dry and then enjoy the flowers in a jar of water. Because its so independent (not one of those high maintenance fair weather friends), oregano is the perfect beginner for any herb or backyard garden. If you’re much north of Edmonton, or live out in the country where your garden is open, its possible your oregano might not make it through every winter. Just be prepared for this and don’t take it personally. That’s one reason I keep it in a few DIFFERENT spots throughout my garden. I don’t want to put all my eggs in one basket, and we do live in Canada after all. I even grow some in my vegetable garden as it is a friendly and helpful companion to many other plants.

Oregano in upper right, parsley in center and sage forefront. Lupin (purple flower) upper left of center, feverfew upper far left (flowering like little white daisies). Red orache center left.

Most herbs are considered weeds (we are such name calling bigots lol), and as such they’re not particularly fussy about the soil in which they grow. Oregano is no exception. Not surprisingly then, rich loamy soil is actually not even desirable for oregano. It actually prefers sandier, lighter soil that drains well. So if you have a difficult spot in a sunny area (rock garden, along a sidewalk, or close to your kids’ sandbox) – let your oregano show you what its made of. If you’re in an apartment with a sunny side, or small condo with limited patio space, oregano will do well in a pot. If you live where I live, be prepared. A pot makes it a one season plant as it won’t survive the winter outside of the ground. Best to plant it in the ground if you have a spot available, so that it can come back, but if you don’t – no problem. Just treat it like an annual and replant it again next year. It does best in sun of course but doesn’t demand full sun. Other than that it is virtually trouble free and maintenance free. Having said all this, my garden has excellent soil and I really don’t have a poor-soil place to plant it, so it is where it is. Thankfully its pretty difficult to offend oregano.

The leaves of oregano are flat and oval and can range from fuzzy to almost smooth. Occasionally mistaken for marjoram as they belong to the same family and look very much alike. 

Oregano plants are in the mint family (and a close cousin of marjoram) so they propagate themselves through root expansion. They’re not ‘invasive‘, but they will spread if not contained. I like this fact and it keeps my oregano plentiful so that I have lots to move around and to share.

It can be started from seeds but they take a long time to germinate. Catalogs offer a wide variety of seeds, but unless you’ve got your heart set on a particular type that you can only get by seed, spend a few bucks and get a plant from your local nursery. Better yet, get a cutting or division from a friend, then you’ll know exactly what to expect and you’re more sure of its hardiness. After a few years, you can divide your own plants to spread oregano to different parts of your garden, and share with friends.

Few garden pests bother oregano, (another great attribute), in fact the strong scent of oregano repels pests, making it an excellent companion plant in your vegetable or flower garden or under fruit trees.

Many use oregano oil as a natural insect repellent, and even as bug spray for your household plants! Simply add a few drops to a spray bottle with water, and spray your plants with it. You will keep aphids away.

in the kitchen

Oregano is a MUST-HAVE in any kitchen garden, probably the herb I use the most during the cold months, as it is so wonderful in soups, meat stews, pasta sauces, chicken dishes, dressings, and roasted vegetable dishes (especially those with a Mediterranean flavour. One of my favourite ways to use it in the summer months is with a few other herbs on vegetables roasted over the barbeque with a little bit of olive oil. Did you know that climate, soil, and moisture can cause variation in the flavour? That means that your oregano can be quite unique to YOU.

As with most herbs, oregano leaves taste best before the plant flowers. In my herb garden I pinch the flowers to keep the plants bushy and prevent it from bolting to seed. In my flower garden, I allow them to flower and then cut to use in the house in flower arrangements. Either way, cutting the flower off keeps the plant vibrant.

To harvest (anytime after the plants are close to 6 inches), simply clip with some kitchen scissors or clippers. I cut the stem right to the ground to encourage more stems from the base and keep the plant looking plump. I pick the bigger, older stems that are a little more ‘woody’. Swish lightly in clean water to wash and shake excess water off in the sink. Let sit to let the wetness dry off, and when no longer damp, strip the leaves from the top by holding the top and sliding your finger the thumb down the stem.

Oregano and Thyme. Very good friends.

Conveniently, harvesting = pruning. Most woody, perennial herbs don’t require pruning to grow. They’re fine left to their own devices and given the right growing conditions, in fact many will become shrubs or carpets of ground cover. But in a well kept garden, pruning will improve the look and strength of the plants, and the whole idea in a home garden is to USE the herbs anyway right? Pruning also encourages new growth which will have the best flavour. Having said this, the flowers of the oregano plant attract bees and other friendly pollinators which is very desirable in any garden, so allowing some flowers to stay on the plant is a good thing. There simply is no bad way to grow oregano. It is going to like you and help you no matter what you do or don’t do regarding it. Wouldn’t we all like to have friends this loyal and forgiving?

Using it fresh in salads, and many other dishes, using it dry during the winter, and even making into a tea – which is quite tasty bytheway. I sometimes use it in my pesto to supplement basil if I’m a little low on basil. When you know something is super nutritious as well as delicious, your incentive to use them MORE is enhanced.

However you use it, just make sure you do!

oregano is good for you

More than just a culinary herb to use in the kitchen, oregano is rich in antioxidants, boasting one of the biggest antioxidant ratings. Keep in mind of course that we don’t eat handfuls of oregano like we eat handfuls of berries, but just knowing that should make us want to include them as much as possible in our diet. Rich in Vitamin K, (a lesser known but important nutrient), it is helpful in preventing heart disease and building strong bones.

a veritable bouquet of herbs! Clockwise from 11:00 and 12:00 is Feverfew in full flower,
1:00 is Red Orache (more green than red here),
3:00 is Orache, 4:00, 5:00 and 7:00 is Mint, 6:00 is Feverfew and dead center is Oregano

Oregano is well known to strengthen our immune system, so make sure you have plenty on hand for flu and cold season. Because it has powerful antibacterial and anti-fungal properties oregano oil is very popular. It has a remarkable ability to fight bacteria and studies indicate that it’s antimicrobial quality is not diminished by heating. For those who suffer from arthritis and other inflammatory conditions, it is helpful to know that oregano contains a substance known as beta-caryophyllin, which inhibits inflammation, so we can add anti-inflammatory to the list of favourite ‘antis“.

Oregano has earned its honoured place in my garden, and I love that the flowers attract bees which are welcome guests. I highly recommend it in your herb, flower, or vegetable garden.  A single plant can yield you enough to use fresh during the summer and enough to dry for the rest of the year.

I’d love to hear your Oregano story. 
How do you grow it and where? 
What are your favourite ways to use it? 
Any tips for the rest of us?

Warmly,

Cindy Suelzle