Itching for Summer – Dealing with Chiggers!

by Jill Henderson – Show Me Oz –Summer is a fabulous time to explore and hunt for wild edibles or to hike along a cool river, but people around these parts generally avoid venturing into overgrown and untamed places during the summer months because of the ticks and chiggers. How does one even begin to tell outsiders and visitors to our fair hills about the myriad of insects that inhabit our beloved Oz? I suppose if you’ve got a vicious sense of humor, you could just let them wade into the chest-deep grass and work it out later, because they’re not going to believe you anyway.

The Truth About Cancer

Jill Henderson – Show Me Oz -For those of you who read my blog regularly, I want to step out of my normal role as a writer and share with all of you something that means so much to me.  This past February, I lost my oldest brother Patrick to glioblastoma brain cancer.  Right off the bat, Pat decided to do what his doctors suggested.  He had surgery, then radiation, then two separate attempts at chemo which both landed him in ICU.  He knew he couldn’t do it again and needed to find another way.  Many caring people gave suggestions as to alternative cancer treatments, but researching even just a few was extremely time consuming and confusing for everyone.   I wish I had found then what I am about to share with you now.

Dandelions: Love Your Weeds!

Jill Henderson – Show Me Oz  – If you’ve been reading my blog for a while, you know that I enjoy tweaking people’s perceptions of the wilder parts of our world – especially those that we cannot completely control.  That’s why this week’s article is all about dandelions – those pretty little yellow flowers folks either simply love or absolutely hate.   But what is it about this non-native species that drives some people up the wall and how can we harness its potential to our advantage?  If you’re tired of battling those little yellow flowers, perhaps it’s time to embrace them and use them to your benefit.

Seed Saving Time: Radishes

Jill Henderson – Show Me Oz – I don’t know about you, but our spring garden is never complete without at least a few rows of crisp, spicy radishes.  We love to put them in salads, on sandwiches and, of course, for snacking on while we weed!  Common radishes are super easy to grow, have few pests and diseases and can really tolerate the cold, wet weather of the early spring months.  Radishes are also among the easiest seeds to save, provided you follow a few simple rules.  As a bonus, by saving your own radish seeds you get to enjoy an entirely new round of tasty edibles in the form of the young green seedpods, which are a taste treat in their own right.  So don’t pull all your radishes just yet…