With spring around the corner, as the ground hog would have you believe, this is a great time of year to settle in with a few seed catalogs and plan your garden. Laura Heffernan, Master Gardener, says that playing in the dirt has been proven to be healthy. (http://www.healinglandscapes.org/blog/2011/01/itsin-the-dirt-bacteria-in-soil-makes-us-happier-smarter/) I believe her and as the book ‘Outliers’ points out, the heart healthy people of Rosetta Pa. not only shared the community of food, but the shared responsibility of growing it.
Herb gardens are great for beginners to get their feet wet in gardening. Herbs are great for their mineral rich flavor enhancing properties, and they will bring your cooking game to a new level. They taste great and have some surprising added benefits. (http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article- 2306078/Why-whiff-rosemary-does-help-remember.html)
You can learn some of these basics from our Cooking Vamp 15. The important thing is to start preparing a plan now. You can even get some things started indoors now and transplant when the weather turns. Laura points out that even if you are going to be moving, your work in putting together a garden will be a legacy for the next occupants to enjoy. I heard a saying yesterday that the best time to plant a tree is 20 years ago, and the second best time is today. Well you may have to wait till the frost is gone from the ground but you get the idea.
I am also reminded of a song lyric of Guy Clarks, “The thing money can’t buy is true love and…home grown tomatoes” Get your seed catalog out and get planning. (We love the seed catalog from Seeds Of Change) I’ll be over to help harvest those home grown ‘maters’!!
Watch this week’s Cooking Vamp to learn some tips on starting an herb garden from Laura Heffernan here.
