Healthy soil and sustainable growing

[Pete Vukovich <pvukovic1@yahoo.com>]

Out here miners lettuce is practically a weed, it does seem to cluster in shady areas more so than in open sun. Our local climate is substantially cooler than texas. If you've got some thick trees I'd try it on their perimeter where it gets midday shade, I see them around lower growing firs, and pines alot - especially those near a water source.

BTW I've had the same problem with Mache, a little came up but didn't seem to do much - no idea what it wants...

--pete

--- On Tue, 6/1/10, Pego Rice <firekeeper38@yahoo.com> wrote:

From: Pego Rice <firekeeper38@yahoo.com>
Subject: Re: [Livingontheland] Gardening with Native foods and perenials
To: livingontheland@lists.ibiblio.org
Date: Tuesday, June 1, 2010, 11:34 PM

There's a company selling the flour or tortillas made with Mesquite.  A lovely sweet flour that is easy to make at home with a blender, tho the beans are wasted w/out a hammer mill. Still you can steep them for some sweet drinks.

 

Sorrel (Rumex) is best in salads very young and blended with young Amaranth leaves or even chopped into a grain salad of some sort, like Tabouleh.  The sourness of one balancing, earthy flavors well.  Some sorrels are too coarse or too harsh to eat easily but they can be made into soups

 

I've dwindled to the last of my Smilax shoots, Their season is as short as Asparagus and similarly timed.  The roots get unbelievably huge and are edible but kinda not great.  The fruits are supposed to be edible in a medicinal or gel making way but are so seldom close enough to an opposite sexed patch that I've never seen them. Still, the thick shoots standing up to 6 feet high in the woodlands are choice eats in a salad or sauteed a bit.

 

Thanks for the correction of Ribes/Rubres.  I do have both listed and meant the Ribes as a general group which include both the currants and gooseberries, since I haven't yet sorted out which are the best for here.  You can certainly see I've added to my list in a pitch-patch fashion and need to organize better by common or Latin. 

 

Amaranth is dead easy to grow and comes in pretty colors, suitable for fooling HOA Nazis and grows in some shade.  The young leaves are great in salad mix and their light earthiness balances sour, bitter and spicy elements well.  The older leaves are better treated like mustard greens and go great with them.  The grain is easy to process and can be popped as well as cooked whole or used as a flour

I love Violet leaves and flowers but have never had any luck growing Mache.  I'm just now trying Miner's lettuce, tho I suspect South Texas too hot.   Still you've got a great and interesting list, yourself.

Yours, Pego

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