The Wonderful World of Mints – Part I – Identifying Mints in the Garden

By Jill Henderson – Show Me Oz –

Of all the plants in the garden, mints are probably the most numerous and sometimes the most notorious.  That’s why most people immediately envision sprightly spearmint, tangy peppermint, or one of the many flavorful cultivars or subspecies of the Mentha genera when mint is discussed.  But Mentha mints only make up a tiny fraction of plants that belong to the Mint Family (Lamiaceae), which contains over 200 genera and more than 7,000 species!  In fact, it might be surprising to learn just how many Mint Family plants reside in our gardens.

Saving Seed Begins in Spring!

By Jill Henderson – Show Me Oz

If you are one of the millions of gardeners who want to try their hand at saving their own garden seeds this year, spring is the perfect time to begin.  And the best way to have a successful seed harvest is by selecting the right plants, spacing them properly and maintaining control of the pollination process.  For the beginning seed saver this is sometimes a bit confusing, which is why I’ve put together a tidy list of the easiest seeds to save and exactly how to save them in your garden starting right now!

Fantastic Fennel: The Herb That Keeps On Giving

by Jill Henderson – Show Me Oz –

(Excerpted in part from the book, The Healing Power of Kitchen Herbs)

Among the myriad of wonderful herbs that one could grow, no honest-to-goodness herb garden is complete without at least one tall, stately fennel plant.  In fact, fennel is not only edible, medicinal and downright gorgeous, but it also attracts hordes of beneficial insects to the garden.  Despite its obvious charms fennel is one of those herbs that even long-time gardeners seem to overlook.  Indeed, I am always surprised by gardeners who mistake my fennel for dill.  Perhaps it is the fern-like leaves or the umbels of bright yellow flowers – after all, the two are closely related and have a very similar shape and form.  But once you have grown fennel in your own garden and tasted its luscious fruits and stems, you will never mistake fennel for anything else.

Winter Sowing: Get a Jump on Spring

By Jill Henderson – Show Me Oz –

Many gardeners know the benefits of planting crops, such as garlic, in the early fall and winter months, but did you know that many common herb, flower and vegetable seeds can be treated this way, too? Winter sowing is the age-old practice of planting seeds directly in the garden sometime between late fall and mid-winter. Because they are living organisms, seeds have the ability to sense the environment around them, which allows them to determine when weather conditions are just right for germination. As a result, winter sown seeds often germinate earlier, have higher rates of germination and have less problems with seedling diseases such as damping off. They also tend to grow faster and stronger than their indoor-sown counterparts, which allows gardeners to get a jump on the growing season.

GMO’s: A Modern Disaster

By Jill Henderson – Show Me Oz –

There’s a lot of talk these days about being prepared for all kinds of natural and man-made disasters.  It is not uncommon to find classes, lectures, videos and books that teach eager “preppers” how to be wholly self-sufficient should our modern-day systems fail.  After all, life without electricity and modern modes of transportation would change everything about the way we live.  But whether or not you believe that some type of large-scale disaster will occur sometime in the future, there is a man-made disaster of epic proportions occurring right now!

Avoid GMO’s – Save Your Own Seed

By Jill Henderson – Show Me Oz -

George Washington once said, “Bad seed is a robbery of the worst kind: for your pocket-book not only suffers by it, but your preparations are lost and a season passes away unimproved.”   Of course, he was speaking of buying seed from someone who didn’t know how to save and store it properly and hence, an entire season of growing had been wasted waiting for a good crop that never came.   Back then (and for thousands of years before the founding of our country) anyone who farmed or grew their own food understood a thing or two about what good seed was. 

A Gardener’s Dream

By Jill Henderson – Show Me Oz -

Almost a year ago now, my husband and I settled down into our latest ‘new place’. We’ve lived quite the nomadic lifestyle over the last 20 years, moving to another house, state, or even country every few years.  In every case where it was physically possible, the first thing we did after unpacking our bags was to dig a garden.  We have hand dug and landscaped more acres of land than my back will allow me to remember, but each and every one of those gardens were lovingly created, tended and enjoyed by us for as long as we had to enjoy them.  And while it was always difficult to say goodbye, we never regretted a single one of them.

Gardening With Wildlife: Beefing Up Your Habitat

By Jill Henderson – Show Me Oz –

(Excerpted in part from A Journey of Seasons: A Year in the Ozarks High Country)

One of the coolest things about being a country gardener is that I am constantly surrounded by wild things.  These creatures are part and parcel of a healthy ecosystem and one of the rarest and most precious gifts that one can have.  However, it goes without saying that on occasion we are forced to butt heads with the very wildlife that we cherish.  Whether it’s the birds eating the blueberries, squirrels in the peach tree or a rabbit in the cabbage patch, we sometimes have to go to war to protect our share of the harvest.  And after years of living and gardening in the backwoods I have learned that all creatures are compelled to survive, and that the best deterrent for pesky garden critters is to create a place for them to do just that.

Notes from Turtle Ridge: May 2012

By Jill Henderson

The hands of time seem to spin faster during spring than during any other time of year.  This May has been disconcertingly warm, which  brought about the early bloom and fruiting of many trees and plants, including this Red Mulberry tree (Morus rubra), which normally ripens its fruit in mid-summer.   Every other day, Dean hiked up the hill, bucket in hand,  to pick the

Start Your Own Sweet Slips

By Jill Henderson -  Show Me Oz
. . . .
Last week we learned quite a bit about the history and uses of the deliciously edible and  nutritiously dense sweet potato.  With a surge in popularity among homesteaders and gourmet chefs alike, this homely root with the pumpkin-colored flesh is being grown in home gardens in quantities not seen for decades.   And it’s no wonder; for sweet potatoes cover a lot of ground.  They’re easy to grow, relatively care-free and beautiful to look at.  The roots pack a nutritional punch, taste great, are low in fat, and will fill you up every time.  Sweet potatoes are a dream to cook with partly because of their uncanny ability to be prepared in so many ways.  They can be baked, boiled, steamed, mashed or fried and added to a myriad of dishes with flavors ranging from sweet to savory.  No matter how you prepare this wonderful root, it always tastes good.  In this week’s article I’ll cover everything you need to know so you can grow your own sweet potatoes from start to finish!

Rooting for Sweet Potatoes

By Jill Henderson – Show Me Oz
. . . .
Sweet potatoes are an ancient food crop; a staple that has sustained and nourished mankind for thousands of years.   Highly nutritious, sweet potatoes are the seventh most important food crop in the world.  Throughout the ages these sweet, orange, red and sometimes golden roots were valued so highly by early man, that they were often used as a form currency and as a token of friendship between cultures.  Today, this weirdly-shaped “potato” is making a comeback with home gardeners – and for good reason. 

Share the Seed: How a Seed Swap Works

By Jill Henderson – Show Me Oz

Swapping seeds is both fun and addictive. I remember the first time I began swapping seeds with other seed-junkies in 1999, using a then obscure method of communication known as the internet.  Back then, most of the people I knew did not have or even know what email was.  Finding a group of people who loved to trade and talk seed was like finding a long-lost friend.  I was instantly hooked, both with seed swapping and the internet!

Seed Saving: Beans & Peas

By Jill Henderson – Show Me Oz
….
If you are planning on saving some of your own seeds this coming summer, the very best time to start is before a single seed goes in the ground.  In fact, saving seed should begin with that catalog you’ve been perusing all winter.  Seed catalogs are often filled to the brim with valuable information on the crops you want to grow, including germination times, growth characteristics, suggested planting dates and so on.  But the best part is that many catalogs now list each vegetable’s Latin botanical name, as well.  For the seed saver, those two little words written in italics and perched between parenthesis can mean the difference between seed saving success or seed saving failure.

Essential Herbs: Lemon Balm

By Jill Henderson

Lemon balm is one of my favorite herbs for many reasons.  To start, it is by far one of the easiest herbs to grow and it’s beautiful to look at, as well.  I particularly like the way lemon balm attracts beneficial insects and butterflies  to my garden.  Occasionally, even the hummingbirds find it intriguing.  I am also partial to lemon balm tea, especially on a cold winter night.  It’s deep earthy lemony flavor brings back a touch of summer sunshine and its soothing and calming properties make it a valuable medicinal herb.

Seeds of Significance: Sources for the Rare and Unusual

By Jill Henderson

Today is one of those cold blustery winter days that give me a good reason not to go outside.  Instead, I’m cuddled up to the  wood stove  dreaming about gardening.   More specifically, I’m dreaming about seeds – wonderful, open-pollinated seeds devoid of genetic modification and over-hybridization.  My seed dreams consist entirely of varieties that are either tried-and-true open-pollinated heirlooms, or rare and unusual varieties of open-pollinated fruits and vegetables.  Thankfully, those kinds of seeds don’t have to live only in my dreams, because thousands of varieties of unique open-pollinated seeds are readily available to the home gardener – if you know where to look.

Winter Seed Saving: Pumpkins and Squash

By Jill Henderson

With Christmas just around the corner, the last thing people might be thinking of is gardening, but the two go together like pumpkin pie and whipped cream.  In fact, if you grew your own pumpkins or squash this year and plan on using the sweet flesh to make delectable holiday treats with, now is the perfect time for saving their seeds.   Extracting and drying seeds from hard-shelled squash and pumpkins is fairly straightforward, however, you must first be sure that the seeds you save now will come true to type next year.

Fall Leaves: Good for the Garden

By Jill Henderson

The clear, cool days of fall are perfect for wrapping up last-minute garden chores, such as winterizing perennial herbs, flowers and shrubs.  It’s also a good time to cultivate (till) the garden or to create new beds for the spring garden.  Fall is also the time of the annual leaf fall in the Ozarks.  Many homeowners spend days trying to get rid of the deepening piles of leaves from their yards.  But instead of raking and burning or bagging them for the garbage, consider putting fall leaves to use in the garden as a protective, nutrient-rich mulch. 

Gorgeous Green Tomatoes

By Jill Henderson

Fall is in full swing and November is just around the bend.  Time to say goodbye to the fresh bounty of the summer garden and tuck everything in for the winter to come.   After the particularly tough growing season we just had, you won’t want to waste a single edible thing from the garden – and that includes green tomatoes!  With a little creativity, those crispy green orbs can be turned into an amazing array of sumptuous edibles.

Moving Herbs Indoors

by Jill Henderson

Now that summer has come to an end and the cool sunny days of fall are upon us, it is time to think about preparing the garden for a long winter’s nap.   It is the perfect time to divide and transplant perennial herbs.  But while your at it, why not bring some of that summer sunshine indoors for the winter?  Many herbs growing outdoors can be brought indoors for the winter, providing much needed freshness to both the windowsill and the cooking pot. 

Seed Saving Time: Tomatoes

By Jill Henderson

If you’re like most people in the Midwest, your garden got a slow start this year. With the colder than usual temperatures and excessive moisture this spring, many gardeners were late in getting their seeds in the ground. If you were among those who didn’t give up entirely this year, you’re probably just getting around to processing the bounty of your labor. And while you’ve probably got a ton of things to do, don’t forget to save some seed.