The Secret Life of Peas

Check it out! The common pea is capable of processing, remembering and sharing information with its neighbors. Michael Marder, for the New York Times Opinionater, reports:

"...a team of scientists from the Blaustein Institute for Desert Research at Ben-Gurion University in Israel published the results of its peer-reviewed research, revealing that a pea plant subjected to drought conditions communicated its stress to other such plants, with which it shared its soil. In other words, through the roots, it relayed to its neighbors the biochemical message about the onset of drought, prompting them to react as though they, too, were in a similar predicament."

Any scientists/geneticists out there know if these findings have anything to do with how or why Mendel was able to study and and demonstrate inheritance through peas? Were those peas co-evolving with us and telling each other that being relevant in modern scientific experiments would foster future generations of intelligent peas that could one day outsmart their human predators? Nah... probably not... but it certainly doesn't surprise me that they grow and work together. 

Read Marder's full article "If Peas Can Talk, Should We Eat Them?" examining the ethics of eating such intelligent life forms here. 

Chesapeake Bay Week on MPT

Did you know that the Chesapeake Bay estuary, the largest in the United States, was created by a meteor impact? Can you identify which aquatic life is native, invasive, protected and depleted? Want to know how you and your community contribute to the well-being of the Bay? Lucky for you, this week is Chesapeake Bay Week on Maryland Public Television! Programming throughout April 15-22 2012 will be highlighting some hot topics around the watershed  including several brand new programs:

• Menhaden: The Most Important Fish in the Bay - Exploration of how the harvesting of Menhaden from the Chesapeake Bay is affecting its water quality (Monday April 16th 10:00pm, Tuesday April 17th 2:00am)
• The Maryland Harvest: A Guide to Seasonal Eating - The food-to-table movement in Maryland and its impact on Maryland restaurants, chefs, farmers and consumers (Tuesday April 19th 9:00pm, Wednesday April 18th 2:00am)
• Restoring the Bay: New Solutions for Old Problems - Riverkeeper Fred Kelley faces challenges to help clean up the Severn River (Tuesday April 19th 10:30pm, Wednesday April 18th 3:30am)

These are just a few of the new and returning programs so be sure and check the website for the full programming lineup and set those DVRs! The week wraps up with a live music broadcast in affiliation with all the amazing folks at WTMD 89.7 too. More info on the Concert for the Chesapeake Bay here. Want more facts? Visit: Chesapeake Bay Journal..

Green Matters: Urban Farming Pioneers

"The essence of the pioneering decision is: Those who choose to change their paradigms early do it not as an act of the head but as an act of the heart."
- Arthur Baker

This Friday, February 24th 2012, Brookside Gardens is hosting their third and final food-focused symposium titled: Green Matters: Urban Farming Pioneers. The all-day event will highlight innovative approaches to feeding the world's population and feature the following speakers:

• Dickson Despommier, Columbia University Emeritus Professor and author of The Vertical Farm: Feeding the World in the 21st Century
• Kathleen Merrigan, Deputy Secretary of the U.S. Department of Agriculture speaking about the Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food initiative
• Darrin Nordahl, Landscape Architect and author of Public Produce
• Ben Flanner, Head Farmer/CEO and co-founder of the Brooklyn Grande Rooftop Farm
• Jeff Semler, Maryland State Coordinator of Sustainable Agriculture Research & Education (SARE)

For more information and to register for the conference, visit the Brookside Gardens: Green Matters website.

Cecil County Couple Challenges Zoning Law for Pet Goat

An interesting article was published in The Baltimore Sun this morning regarding a goat turned pet in Cecil County, MD. The Balunsat couple purchased Snowbird for several hundred dollars through a newspaper advertisement and have raised her alongside several other animals since she was just a kid.

Snowbird, who lives in a home with less land than zoning laws require for animal husbandry, was not the original complaint. A rooster was - and the family already got rid of it (seemingly without objections). Neither the law or the family involved are concerned with whether or not the goat (or chickens, dogs, etc) qualify or act as working animals - or about the natural needs/purposes of/for the animal in question. 

The idea of farm animals in urban areas has been a hot topic lately as many urban and suburban neighborhoods are circulating petitions to allow residents to keep chickens for the purpose of fresh laid eggs. University of Maryland Extension sheep and goat expert, Susan Schoenian, points out the separation human beings have had from farm animals and processes and that there is a growing movement back towards that connection. 

But this particular case does not appear to be affiliated with the growing "backyard farmer" movement - which begs the question: What is it that draws human beings to animals? Is it for food? Survival? Companionship? Or a need to nurture? 

To keep up with Snowbird's story, 'like' her Facebook page.

In The Meantime

Dear Readers,

It came to my attention last night that we may have lost some of you during these last two months of heavy future harvest and herd planning so I've decided to continue to post to Just Saying while the new site is under construction. Please forgive us and add us back to your reading list!

Lots of new posts will be up this week but in the meantime, perhaps the greenest and awesomest thing you guys and gals can be doing this month is start researching and supporting your local farmers by purchasing your 2012 share in a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture). Here are a few resources about CSAs:

Local Harvest

USDA National Agricultural Library

Rodale Institute

Eat Well Guide

Food Routes

Thank you for your patience,

Deborah Lakowicz-Dramby

Founder and Editor-in-Chief 

Back to the Start

Simple. Sweet. Back to the start.

Public Health Garden at University of Maryland, College Park

If you haven't stopped by the garden site or blogspot of the new University of Maryland Community and Teaching Garden lately, we've got lots of new fruits, vegetables, flowers, friends and projects in bloom for you to check out and enjoy. In a few short months we have produced an average of ten pounds of produce weekly, overseen the installation of permeable pavers, hosted hundreds of eager TerpQuest campers, learned quite a bit about pest management, gratefully welcomed tons of donations and most recently begun the construction of beautiful raised beds.

In fact, we've had so much fun and success with the growing hillside farm that several news publications have picked up on the enthusiasm. The PHGarden recently appeared in CollegeParkPatch and has been a mainstay on the University Homepage.

For regular up-to-date details, please visit the Public Health Garden website. Feel free to 'like' the Public Health Garden on Facebook and browse our Flickr pictures as well. Stay tuned for details about new volunteer days/hours and crops come September.

Eco-Goats in the Wall Street Journal

What's better than waking up at the crack of dawn in a camper, reaching the herd's food buckets while they are still yawning, and seeing the little sleepy heads stumble down a wooded hillside to get breakfast and snuggles?

Not much.

But waking up post-dawn, in a warm bed in an air conditioned house, and seeing/hearing them hop on and off the trailer and eat weeds (like it is going out of style) -  via the Wall Street Journal - is pretty awesome. Great to see the Isaac Walton League Ladies on film as well. They have been incredibly kind and welcoming to the herd and yours truly. Hope you enjoy the video as much as I enjoy this herd of hard-working goats.

Adventures in Local Eating

This week, thoughtful Marylanders participating in the Buy Local Challenge have been flocking to farmers markets and produce stands. While we here at Just Saying have purchased plenty of local produce since the challenge began on July 23rd, we've also had the pleasure of enjoying our very own locally grown produce harvested from the University of Maryland's Public Health Garden.

Thanks to Mother Nature and the hard work of our partners at the garden and dozens of volunteers throughout the growing season, the Public Health Gardeners harvested several pounds of tomatoes, cucumbers, squash, beans, and peppers just before dinner time last night. As always, we sent lots of produce home with volunteers, but this time we held on to several pounds of tomatoes and beans and headed to Baltimore City for an extraordinary adventure in local eating and cooking at a restaurant near and dear to our hearts: Alewife.

Alewife has been in the news recently thanks to a brilliant environmentally-sound endeavor by Chef Chad Wells: serving invasive snakehead fish. If you haven't read about it yet, do so here and here. While we hoped to sample some snakehead ceviche, Wells explained that the fish are currently nesting and spawning in shallow, marshy waters which are out of reach of commercial fisherman.

Previously, the snakehead bycatch had been killed and discarded. Thanks to Steve Vilnit, a fisheries official with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources, and John Rorapaugh of ProFish, Wells is hopeful that snakeheads will be popping up on local menus and the radar of environmentally-conscious eaters within a few months.

Humbled yet excited by all the press, Wells credits Vilnit for the idea of putting invasive species, specifically the Blue Catfish he recommended to us in place of the snakehead, on the Alewife menu. After engaging our inquiries about sustainable seafood, food safety, local markets and food policy, Wells agreed to create a few one-of-a-kind appetizers (just for us) with the produce from the Public Health Garden and we put in our order for the Blue Catfish Tacos (pictured).

What came out of the kitchen from that point forward was pure, delicious joy. For full details of our unique meal, stay tuned to our sister blog: Adventures in Container Gardening and Local Eating.

Reminder: Part II of Accokeek's Food Justice Series is Tonight

@Busboys and Poets 14th and V Location. Part two of the series of open-to-all events will feature Denzell Mitchel of Five Seeds Farm, Michele Levy of Crossroads Farmers Market, and Don Bustos from Santa Cruz Farm! Come out and support the Accokeek Foundation, the National Immigrant Farming Initiative, and the Rural Coalition. Speakers and guests will spotlight the issues that affect food justice on a local and global scale. Here's a little more about the series from Community Outreach and Education Coordinator at Accokeek, Molly Meehan:

"In recognizing the intersection between sustainable agriculture and a fair and just food system, we have invited farmers, policymakers, community leaders, and advocates to address such topics as agricultural policy, food sovereignty, building local and just food systems, achieving food access, and the connection between the environment, our health, and our food. With this series, we hope to cultivate insight and conversation among diverse members of the community, demonstrate opportunities for action with locally based initiatives, strengthen our solidarity, and develop an awareness of the pressing need to restore justice to our food and our land."

"Sí, se puede"

Thursday, March 31st, is César Chávez Day. The Mexican-American farm worker, labor leader, civil rights activist and co-founder of the National Farm Workers Association (now United Farm Workers) is celebrated for his devotion to the farm workers' movement and unique approach to unionism that made the farm workers' struggle a moral cause with nationwide support.

In nearby Washington, D.C., our friends at the Accokeek Foundation Center for Agricultural and Environmental Stewardship, in partnership with the Rural Coalition and National Immigrant Farming Initiative, are celebrating Chávez by kicking off their four-part lecture series exploring issues that affect food justice on a local and global scale. Tirso Moreno, leader of the Farmworker Association of Florida, and Board Member of the National Immigrant Farming Initiative and Rural Coalition will share the experience of farmworkers today. Delegates from the Rural Coalition and National Latino Farmers and Ranchers Trade Association will report on Via Campesina’s Global Forum for Life, Environment, and Social Justice in Cancun and Kathy Ozer from the National Family Farm Coalition will discuss food sovereignty and grassroots policy advocacy.

If you are interested in local and just food systems, bettering food access, and the connection between the environment, our health, and our food, this is the perfect place to mingle with like-minded folks and learn more about what's happening in the movement. The event is free and open to all however donations are welcome. The event takes place from 6:00 - 8:00pm in thge Langley Room at Busboys and Poets, 2021 14th St. NW, Washington, D.C., 20009. Find more information here.

Coming Soon

Hey there, Just Sayers. Apologies for the gap between posts. We've been off the grid for a week gathering information and ideas for an exciting spring season on the blog. Check back soon for the following fun topics:

• Champion Trees and Mount Auburn Cemetery
• How to Build a Butterfly Garden
• Jon Traunfeld's Salad Table
• Cesar Chavez Day (and a great way to celebrate it)
• My Favorite New England Bakery

UMASS Permaculture

Although Permacutlure (permanent agriculture) has been developing and growing since the 1960s, the practice is far from mainstream so here is the official definition, via the Santa Fe Permaculture Institute:

"Permaculture is an ecological design system for sustainability in all aspects of human endeavor. It teaches us how build natural homes, grow our own food, restore diminished landscapes and ecosystems, catch rainwater, build communities and much more."

It's about doing what is best for the land, most aligned with the natural eco-system, and developing increasingly self-sustaining human settlements and agricultural systems, and highlights the ever-important question facing sustainable gardeners: To dig or not to dig? I bring it up today in light of a new project happening up at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst, in which a quarter acre of turf was transformed into a thriving garden. The video above is one of several in their documentary series about the initiative.

Pretty incredible, huh? Learn more on the Umass Permaculture blog.

(thnx John Mowbray and Treehugger)

The Accokeek Foundation and CSAs

The 200 acres of Piscataway National Park that Accokeek stewards was established in 1957 as one of the nation's first land trusts. Originally founded to protect the glorious view accross the Potomac River from Mount Vernon, the property now offers a network of trails winding through wetlands, a native tree arboretum, an outdoor living history museum, an award-winning forest restoration project, an organic Ecosystem Farm emphasizing the future of agriculture, and perhaps most importantly, it serves as a teaching facility where farmers come to learn the tools of a new trade and practice sustainable use of natural resources. Did I mention they have a great blog too?

Last week, I had the pleasure of attending Accokeek's seminar "Successful CSAs: How to Start and Manage a Community Supported Agriculture Program" with my newest partner-in-learning, Allison Lilly. A panel of farmers who operate CSAs ranging from two-acre, 26-share, leased properties to hundred-acre, 1900-share farms, spoke about land-planning, seed-saving and the overall pros and cons of the biz. While I learned quite a few valubale lessons for my future farming endeavors, I imagine our readers are more likely to purchase a share in a CSA than try and start one up so I've decided to share a few tips for anyone interested in supporting community agriculture. Here goes:

• Understand your investment. Purchasing a share in community agriculture means fresh, local produce on a weekly basis for a reasonable price. Your farmer will collect your investment at planting time and you will receive the invaluable peace of mind of knowing exactly where your produce (and sometimes eggs) comes from for 20-24 weeks out of the year. Remember, you are putting your faith in the farmer and eating in-season with respect to the weather so... have reasonable expectations. You may not get strawberries every week but you will be exposed to new flavors (and probably plenty of kale).

• Find the best fit. If you want to bring your kids to pick their own berries, be sure your farmer offers that service. Some CSAs serve larger volumes and farm on hundreds of acres. This means dangerous machinery, busy business and a tight schedule - which isn't neccessarily conducive to drop-in visitors and volunteers. Smaller farms may offer a price break in exchange for weekly or monthly volunteer hours. To search your local listings visit LocalHarvest.org.

• Consider your shopping habits and expectations. Just as scale will vary between farms, so will the product you take. Some CSAs offer a certain number of products in a pick-and-choose manner. Members can come and take two-shares of tomatoes and skip the chard, or several watermelons instead of something less tantilizing to their taste. Others offer a box with equal amounts of each weekly harvest and perhaps a recipe for the lesser-known veggie they grew for your cooking adventures.

• (Maybe) Negotiate (during the last hour) at the Farmers Market, not the CSA. The price per share is carefully calculated based on size, soil capability, labor, climate and everything else that any business has to account for. Asking a farmer to lower it, or to go through the added complications of half-shares, can be disrespectful. Not to mention, a lot of sweat equity goes into farming. Just because massive distribution systems allow the big grocers to sell certain foods very cheap, doesn't mean a farmer can afford to offer such price breaks.

Additional infomation about Community Supported Agriculture can be found on the Local Harvest website. Additional information about educational opportunities at the Accokeek Foundation can be found on their website. Additional pictures and information from our recent adventure out to Accokeek can be found on Adventures in Container Gardening.

The Public Health Garden at College Park

The University of Maryland's latest, greatest community gardening initiative "demonstrating sustainable agriculture and environmental best practices in support of public, environmental and community health" has officially kicked off. MPH student, gardener, blogger and project coordinator, Allison Lilly, has been working with Facilities Management, the School of Public Health, the Department of Plant Science and Landscape Architecture, the Office of Sustainability and the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering to coordinate land plans, generate funds and interest, and gather enough plant and seed donations to get started this spring.

Seeds will begin germination today in the university greenhouse with help from several Institute of Applied Agriculture students and staff. There is even talk of incorporating a goat or two for sustainable, herbicide-free weeding of the plot before planting so be sure to join us and watch the garden grow on the official Public Health Garden blog. And if you are on facebook, "like" the Public Health Garden facebook page.

Love 'em or hate 'em, they are great for the Chesapeake

I highly recommend that our readers spend a few minutes with Charles Cohen's recent article in Urbanite about the state of oyster farming in Maryland waters: Betting on the Half Shell.

Earlier in the week, I attended a lecture on the ecological and industry benefits of oyster economics given by Dr. Douglas W. Lipton, Associate Professor and Program Leader of Sea Grant and Sea Grant Extension Programs at the University of Maryland, and when I came across Cohen's article, which covered a large share of the topics he touched upon, I wondered if he wasn't in that classroom as well.

Here are some highlights:

• The Chesapeake Bay oyster (Crassostrea virginica) population is declining for several reasons including the usual suspects like over-fishing, habitat destruction, poor water quality and sediment run-off, as well as two diseases harmful only to oysters (i.e. not harmful to humans): Dermo and MSX.
• While Dermo (Perkinsus marinus) is a native pathogen, MSX is not and was brought in with pacific, non-native oysters.
• Restoration is important not only for your palette and the net income of watermen and profits to processors and related industries, but for water quality improvements, increased fishing benefits, and even waterfront property values.
• What is being done to aid in this restoration? Repletion. Basically, the state subsidizes the movement of baby oysters from one place - where they will grow slowly - to another place where the survivors of the move will flourish fast, clear up some of that murky water, and later be harvested. While this process seems to aid the waterman and the water, it is quite expensive and perhaps only justifiable if the oyster biomass is raised to near or above the level that provides maximum ecological benefits.

For more information, check out the video about oyster aquaculture below and tune in to: The Marc Steiner Show, WEAA 88.9 FM, on February 24th, 2011.

GE Alfalfa

For several years, the Center for Food Safety, the Cornucopia Institute and others have been engaged in a court case fighting the release of Monsanto's genetically engineered alfalfa. Last week, to the favor of the biotech industry, USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack announced that the agency will fully deregulate the controversial seed. As you would expect, folks in the organic community are more than disappointed. Michael Pollan tweeted that the decision to cave is a "disaster for organic agriculture" and all the foodies are buzzing about the potential contamination and complications.

Because of the sensational claims made on both sides of the GMO debate, I decided to contact Associate Professor Scott Glenn, from the University of Maryland, College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, a professor I've had the pleasure of learning from. His research and teaching focuses on the biology and management of perennial weeds and his perspective on conventional farming methods has helped me understand the merit in arguments for and against the innovation. Glenn explained:

"Roundup Ready® Alfalfa was deregulated (approved) [in April 2004] but shortly thereafter, several activist groups took [Monsanto and Forage Genetics International] to court stating that the pollen from the GE alfalfa would contaminate organically grown alfalfa. There was a court decision to have further scientific studies to determine if this was a valid issue. Recently, the results of those studies have been released and they indicate that there is no valid scientific evidence to suggest that this would be a problem. Furthermore, if contamination does occur it would be at an extremely low level and, according to a recent ruling, that alfalfa crop would not lose its status as organically grown.

Alfalfa is a perennial forage crop that is primarily cross pollinated. All producers of alfalfa as a forage (organic and conventional) want to harvest alfalfa (including grazing) in bud to early bloom, so if managed right it should not be producing pollen. However, sometimes due to poor management or bad conditions some pollen may be produced. However, the only time those genes would be incorporated in to the genetic makeup of non-Roundup Ready alfalfa is if that alfalfa was allowed to fertilize and go to seed. This could take place in alfalfa that is grown in the wild (very rare, but definitely not part of an organic system) or during the production of commercial seed. Commercial seed production (both organic and conventional) is grown under very closed, highly monitored conditions. Major precautions are taken to prevent extraneous pollen from fertilizing the cultivars of alfalfa that they are producing. There are strict protocols in place such as not having any other alfalfa fields (organic or conventional) within a specific area ('pollen-free zone') surrounding the alfalfa seed field."

So the case, as it has been presented, against GE alfalfa is not scientifically strong enough to limit or eliminate its use and Montsanto does not intend to persecute accidental cross-contaminations but perhaps the devil isn't in the details of this one. Perhaps the greenies, who may disown me after this post, need to broaden the argument, re-organize and out-innovate. What I mean is, the organic opposition comes across as anti-progress and innovation, and if that is the case, we're not going to win much support from the conventional side or even the civilian masses. Instead of putting our energy into the fight against a certain seed, let's put it into the race for a solution and accept the fact that we may need to bend a little here and there to find it. Isn't the bigger problem here the rampid use of products containing the herbicide glyphosate and the effect that has on everyone and everything?

2011 Welcomes a New Type of Reality TV: 'Kill It, Cook It, Eat It'

On Tuesday, January 11th 2011 at 10pm EST Current TV will begin airing episodes of Kill It, Cook It, Eat It, a television series that follows a diverse group of participants as they "procure their main course the old-fashioned way: by hunting and killing their chosen prey, butchering it in the slaughterhouse, helping to prepare it in the kitchen, and ultimately sampling it at the dinner table."

A few weeks ago, when a classmate of mine invited me to an exceptional local turkey farm to procure a main Thanksgiving course the old-fashioned way, I got to thinking whether or not I could go through with the deed. After about three seconds of thinking I said, "Nope. No thank you, but I admire you for doing so" and went along my merry meat-free way. I have been considering the topic throughout the holiday season and have decided to watch this series because I believe it will offer a hint of the experience without the anti-feedlot activist spin and at enough distance that I can still sleep at night.

Like so many increasingly conscious eaters, I have been on the fence between strict vegetarian and polite house guest for some time now and wonder if this series, likely filled with the painful audiovisuals books on the topic spare, will push me to take a stronger stance.

Slow Season!

Warmest wishes and deepest apologies for the lack of posts lately. The holidays are a busy time of year around here! Please feel free to spend some of your Internet-browsing hours looking through old posts here on Just Saying or on the following sites/blogs/links/stories that have captured our attention lately:

Mental_Floss: 18 Fun Facts About Your Favorite Christmas TV Specials

MSN 'A Year of Mystery Meat' - Read about the experiences of a Chicago area public school employee who ate school lunch every day for a year

Green-Up Your Computer with ECO BUTTON

Recent GMO News - Bt Cotton Failures in India (also here)

Get to know The Fabulous Beekman Boys or just watch Farmer John's Goat Cam!

And if those happy Beekman goats made your heart grow three sizes, consider making an end-of-year donation to one of our favorite organizations, Heifer International, to gift a goat or a share of one. Learn more and donate here.

Garlic Planting at Shaw Farm

'Tis the season to get that garlic in the ground. I had the pleasure of helping Farmer Brian Hughes level beds, pin plastic insulates, and plant stiff-neck and soft-neck garlic for the Shaw Farm CSA members come spring. The soft-neck is in the bed on the left, being planted by a CSA member, Tim. The bed on the right is the stiff-neck. If you're interested in planting some garlic in your own garden, The Daily Green put up a nice How-To earlier this fall. It's getting late in the season though so... hurry!