Gardening

Foraging for Garlic Mustard and How to Use It

May 5, 2020 by Sylvia Rose 7 Comments

Garlic mustard is an invasive species that was brought over to North America by European settlers at the turn of the 19th century. Foraging for garlic mustard not only helps the native plant species in affected areas, but it’s fun to play with culinary-wise, too!

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FORAGING FOR GARLIC MUSTARD VIDEO

Watch me forage in my backyard for early spring garlic mustard. Next, I painstakingly clean my hard-earned prizes and turn them into garlic mustard pesto and horseradish. If you’re new to the Kitchen and like what you see, be sure to subscribe to my YouTube channel!

WHAT’S GARLIC MUSTARD?

If you’re new to foraging, garlic mustard is an invasive plant species that was introduced to North America at the turn of the 19th century. The European settlers valued it for its medicinal and culinary properties. Today, it’s seen as a weed and for conservationists, one that’s threatening native species. In forests, garlic mustard is starving native plant species by robbing them of the soil fungi they need to thrive. This is why conservationists are starting to encourage people to pick this plant. Some other names that it goes by include Penny Hedge, Poor Man’s Mustard, and Garlic Root.

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What I’m Planting in My Victory Garden

April 7, 2020 by Sylvia Rose Leave a Comment

It’s finally happening. Victory Gardens are making a resurgence in 2020, although not for the reason I predicted. Here’s a peek at what I’ll be growing in my second year of victory gardening. Will you be digging for victory, too?

what I'm planting Swiss chard for victory garden

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WHAT I’M PLANTING IN MY VICTORY GARDEN VIDEO

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MY LITTLE VICTORY GARDEN

Back in February, I wrote about why victory gardens should make a comeback. While I view self-sufficiency as a virtue, when you grow your own food, you’re connecting with your food, getting exercise, and declining to support industrial farming practices. I had a feeling a victory garden resurgence was coming, but I didn’t know that it would be so soon or that it would be sparked by a global pandemic.

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12 Garden Lessons from the First Growing Year

March 3, 2020 by Sylvia Rose 1 Comment

There are so many lessons to be learned from gardening. Here are twelve of the biggest takeaways from my first year of outdoor gardening.

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12 GARDEN LESSONS: THE VIDEO

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12 GARDEN LESSONS IN 2019

Before we begin, I want to say that I spent a decade dreaming about having a big garden. My mother liked keeping a sizable garden and I loved working in it as a teenager. For as long as I daydreamed about working the earth, I kept a container garden on just about every apartment balcony I had. I mostly grew herbs. My basil would always die and squirrels would rob me blind whenever an heirloom tomato started to ripen.

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Victory Garden Revivalism

February 11, 2020 by Sylvia Rose 7 Comments

As food prices continue to soar and industrial farming practices continue to impoverish the soil and its produce, more and more folks are going back in time. The 1940’s victory garden is making a comeback, only this time, we’re facing a different war: the war on our health and food supply.

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THE VICTORY GARDEN VIDEO

Want to watch me rant and rave about modern farming practices and victory gardens? Here’s the video. If you like what you see, I hope you’ll subscribe to my YouTube channel!

WHAT’S A VICTORY GARDEN?

If you’re unfamiliar with what a victory garden is, we’re going to rewind to the 1940s. The world was at war and every household had to deal with strict rationing. While I’m sure many grumbled about this, many were eager to do their part to contribute to the war effort, doing everything they could to help on the homefront.

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How to Grow Your Own Sprouts at Home

June 21, 2019 by Sylvia Rose 1 Comment

Sprouts are chock-full of vitamins and nutrients and carry a range of health benefits as a result. Learn how to grow your own sprouts at home and see how rewarding it can be!

This How to Grow Your Own Sprouts at Home post may contain affiliate links, meaning that if you choose to purchase something after clicking on one of the links in this post, I may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you.

HOW TO GROW YOUR OWN SPROUTS VIDEO

Welcome to the Kitchen! Here’s a video where I talk all about how to grow your own sprouts at home. If you like what you see, be sure to check out my YouTube channel for more fun videos!

SPROUTS SHOULDN’T BE A TREAT

Believe it or not, sprouts used to be a treat for me. I grew up in a small town, so finding alfalfa sprouts in the local grocery stores wasn’t always an easy task. I always appreciated them when my mom was able to get her hands on a little plastic container, but I never really gave them much thought. When I was living near Montreal’s Jean-Talon Market–one of the most magical places on earth–sprouts became a more regular thing.

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Wild Violets and 5 Things to do with them

June 7, 2019 by Sylvia Rose 1 Comment

Roses are red, violets are blue, do you have a lot of violets and not know what to do? There are a surprising number of things you can do with these pretty purple flowers, so read on!

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5 THINGS TO DO WITH WILD VIOLETS VIDEO

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A MOST PLEASANT SURPRISE

Wild violets were the last thing I was expecting to find in my backyard when winter melted away into spring. It was late September when I purchased my home. All there was to see out back was a dwindling garden patch with the last stragglers of a tomato harvest. It was December when I moved in, and by then there was a thick blanket of snow on the ground. Winter passed by me, and as it started warming up, I was eager to see what I had to work with. Finally, the snow melted and the drab brown lawn turned emerald. One day, I looked outside and was delighted to see hundreds of wild violets coming into bloom.

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