November 19,
2013 - Kim’s Weekly Garden Newsletter
From Kim Willis
These weekly garden notes are
written by Kim Willis, unless another author is noted, and the opinions
expressed in these notes are her opinions and do not represent any other
individual, group or organizations opinions.
Hi Gardeners
 |
| Zinna seed can be planted in the fall. |
I am hoping
that all of you have your power back on today.
The gales of November were really harsh Sunday. The air pressure dropped to one of the lowest
readings recorded in this area and that’s never a good sign. It was like we
were in a hurricane. I would hate to
have been a hunter in a tent Sunday night.
There is some really cold weather ahead this week so be prepared.
We didn’t
lose any large trees but I know some people did. I’ve included an article from MSU on tree
damage at the bottom of the newsletter. If
you need to trim oaks, because of storm damage or because they need pruning now
is the time to do it.
The typhoon
in the Philippines and our recent storm are reminders to always have emergency
supplies and plans. When there is a natural
disaster it can be days or weeks before help can reach you. Make sure you store water and food, have
flashlights and batteries and perhaps a source of heat that doesn’t require
electricity. Talk with your family about
what to do in various emergency situations that might affect you. If you commute long distances make sure you
have emergency supplies in your car including warm clothes as Michigan emergencies
often involve snow and cold weather.
Keep an ear on
the radio for weather related announcements.
If high winds or storms are predicted and you have a well you’ll want to
run some water for you and pets and livestock in case power goes out. Charge up your cell phones and other battery
powered devices you may need. Make sure
the car has gas in case you need it for warmth or charging things.
Here are some
tips. Solar lights outside can be
brought inside for light and put back out to re-charge if needed. Your hot water heater tank can be used as a
source of emergency water if needed. There is a drain valve that will let you run
off water by gravity. Make sure to turn
it off before draining water off. If
power returns and it doesn’t fill up quickly it could burn out. If you have a propane or gas stove the oven
typically doesn’t work in a power outage but the burners do if lit by a
match. You can boil water to help heat
a room, put some marbles or rocks at the bottom of pots to alert you when the
pot is almost empty so you don’t ruin the pot or start a fire.
If you have a
land line phone keep a cheap corded phone on hand to plug in a wall jack
because cordless phones don’t work without electricity. Cell phone service goes out in some emergencies
also. When there is an emergency turn
off your cell phone and limit its use so unnecessary calls don’t run the
battery down.
Let’s switch
to happier topics.
Sowing flower seeds in the fall
You may think
the planting season is over but there are some common garden flowers that drop
their seeds in the fall. Those seeds
need a period of cold to germinate and may need the freezing and thawing cycle to
crack a hard seed coat and allow moisture in for germination. You may have some of the garden plants that
require these conditions in your garden and they will self- seed for you if
left alone. If you don’t have the plants
and want them in your garden now may be the time, before the ground freezes
solid, to sow some of those seeds.
Seeds that
can be sown in the fall include: Bachelor's Button, Coreopsis, Cosmos, Echinacea, Flax, Larkspur, Moss
Rose, Marigolds, Morning glory, Nasturtium, Pansy, Poppy, Strawflower, Sweet
pea, Verbena and Zinnia. Buy the seeds
or collect dry seeds from friend’s plants.
Some of these may also be planted in early spring. Some wildflower and grass seed may also be
suggested for fall planting. Check the
label, plant description or a reference.
Chances are if nature drops the seed in late fall it likes fall
planting.
Clear a spot
in the garden of vegetation and loosen the soil. Sprinkle the seeds over the area. You may
want to sprinkle them thickly as some will not germinate. You can thin in the spring. Very small seeds like poppy seed should not be
covered but press them against the soil.
Larger seeds like morning glory seed should have a loose layer of soil
about a half inch thick placed over them.
Don’t water the seeds. Nature
should take care of that for you.
You can apply
a very thin layer of mulch such as pine needles or chopped straw but don’t use
leaves or anything that mats over the seeds and don’t make the mulch deeper
than a half inch. Make sure to mark the
spots where you sow the seeds. Some may
wait until warmer weather to emerge so don’t be in a big hurry in the spring to
plant over them, thinking they didn’t sprout.
If you have trouble with birds pecking at your seeds cover the area with
netting.
It’s not too late
to plant the seeds until the ground freezes solid. After all nature will still be dropping them,
even after the snow falls in some cases.
Dandelion rubber
 |
| The extremely helpful dandelion. |
Most of you
have seen the white milky sap that oozes from a dandelion stem when you break
it. That sap contains latex. The roots
have even more sap. Since WWII
researchers have known that rubber can be made from dandelion sap collected
from dandelion roots and it was even manufactured in small quantities during
the war when it was hard to get traditional rubber.
After the war
when rubber was available again and when a synthetic rubber was developed,
making rubber from dandelions and other native plants seemed to be less
important. But recent developments in
the rubber trade have turned researchers back to other sources of natural
rubber and dandelions have become the top choice for that research.
Natural
rubber has many advantages over synthetic rubber and is preferred for things
like car tires. Traditionally it has
been harvested from rubber trees on plantations in South America and South East
Asia. The trees take several years to
grow to a size where they can be tapped, and they require care and attention
throughout their lifespan. To get rubber
you tap trees and let the sap flow, then collect it, a labor intensive
project. A fungal disease threatens
rubber trees and has decreased production in many parts of the world where
rubber is grown. And rubber tree farmers
are turning rubber tree farms into palm oil production or other less labor
intensive and more profitable agricultural enterprises.
Because the
writing was on the wall so to speak, and natural rubber shortages are becoming
common, several research projects turned to developing other sources of natural
rubber. Two research centers
collaborating with manufacturing partners have made great strides in producing
rubber from dandelions. One is the
Fraunhofer Institute for Molecular Biology and Applied Ecology and Continental Manufacturing
in Germany and the other is Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center
in Wooster, Ohio, working with Bridgestone Corp. and Ford Motor Co.
In Germany a manufacturing
facility began large scale production of rubber from dandelions in October of
this year. They hope to have dandelion rubber
tires on the commercial market within five years. Besides tires the rubber will be used in many
other applications that traditional rubber and latex are used for, such as
latex gloves.
The
dandelions being used were bred from a Russian species of dandelion, (Taraxacum
kok-saghyz). It differs slightly in
appearance from the common dandelion in that the leaves are smaller, narrower
and more grayish in appearance than common dandelion s and there are tiny
projections on the leaf bracts that cover a dandelion flower bud. The roots of this species had more latex
present naturally.
Researchers
used good old fashioned plant breeding by selection methods enhanced by being
able to identify genes in selected plants that had desirable traits like more latex
and thicker roots to produce new strains of dandelions. They have now developed dandelion varieties
that are highly productive but have not been “genetically modified”, which is
important for European markets. These
varieties are being grown both in greenhouses and in huge fields outside for
dandelion rubber production.
Dandelions
can grow in temperate climates close to rubber manufacturing plants cutting down
on transportation costs. They can be
grown and harvested in one year, using mechanical harvesting equipment and the
plants don’t require care after the harvest.
Dandelions have few disease or insect pests and as most gardeners know,
they grow quite well almost anywhere.
Dandelion
rubber used in things like latex gloves does not cause allergic reactions in
people like traditional latex does. And
it is thought that by-products of dandelion rubber production can become
another source of bio-fuel. Replacing
synthetic rubber and latex made from petroleum products with natural dandelion
rubber also cuts down on fossil fuel use.
And farmers in America and Europe will have another profitable crop to
grow, one that requires little fertilizer or pesticide use. Dandelions, despite being hated by lawn
lovers, have always been useful plants to have around. Now it seems they have become even more
valuable.
Don’t cook your blueberries
Scientists
recently released research results that suggest that eating 2 cups of wild
blueberries every day for 8 weeks may improve blood pressure, enhance
cardio-vascular health and reduce metabolic syndrome- which frequently becomes
type 2 diabetes. (The journal Applied
Physiology, Nutrition, and Metabolism Nov. 6, 2013) But if you were thinking about consuming those
blueberries in muffins or pie better think again.
Researchers
have found that cooking blueberries removes a lot of their health
benefits. Blueberries contain the
healthy polyphenols, anthocyanin,
procyanidin, quercetin and phenolic acids.
Cooking blueberries decreases most of the healthy polyphenols with the
exception of phenolic acids. Blueberry
foods made with yeast had less loss of polyphenols. (ACS' Journal of Agricultural and Food
Chemistry) So if you are using
blueberries for their health benefits eat them raw.
Rosemary- and spearmint- for
remembrance
There is an
ancient saying- Rosemary for remembrance – and other research studies in the
past have confirmed that even smelling rosemary aids in memory. But a new study using concentrated rosemary
extracts found that when consumed the extracts helped with memory loss and
cognitive function in age related decline.
The studies were done in animals but human trials begin soon.
Researchers at
Saint Louis University School of Medicine found that both rosemary and
spearmint extracts given to animals reduced changes in their brains linked to
loss of memory and cognitive disorders.
They also tested animal’s memory and learning abilities and found
animals given the extracts did better than a control group. Rosemary had somewhat greater effects.
.jpg) |
| Rosemary plant with flower. |
Research
still needs to be done to see if consuming rosemary and spearmint as we do now in
cooking is beneficial but all signs seem to point to at least some
benefit. It can’t help to sprinkle a
little rosemary on your bread as it bakes or on your roasting chicken. And a mint julep might help the memory also,
as long as you don’t over indulge.
Some vegetable oils may not be good
for you
The news is
all about reducing trans-fat in the diet and the recommendations on how to do
that often include replacing it with vegetable oil. But the Canadian Medical Association is
citing a study done in February that found when saturated fat was replaced by
corn or safflower oil the risk of death from coronary artery disease and other
cardiovascular diseases rose significantly.
Both corn oil
and safflower oil do not contain omega-3 α-linolenic acid, which is associated
with cardiovascular health even though they do contain omega-6 linoleic acid. Most other vegetable oils contain both. That suggests that replacing trans-fat or
saturated fat with some vegetable oils may not be better for you. The Canadian Medical Association is asking
the Canadian government not to allow a heart healthy label on corn oil and
safflower oil. If you are afraid of
butter choose your vegetable oil carefully.
Can a Japanese pickle
prevent the flu?
In Japanese folklore eating Suguki, a fermented turnip
pickle, is said to prevent colds and flu.
Now researchers have found that there may be some truth to the claim and
a bacteria produced by those pickles may become very important in modern
medicine.
Fermenting turnips produces bacteria called Lactobacillus
brevis. When this bacteria was isolated
and fed to animals in a pro-biotic drink, it prevented them from catching a H1N1
flu virus and boosted their immune system response. This bacteria is very resistant to stomach
acid and produces a layer of sugars called exopolysaccharides. Exopolysaccharides are also found in other
things and are known to boost the immune system.
Human trials are beginning in Japan with the pro-biotic
drink made from the bacteria and there’s hope that it may be the answer to many
of the deadly flu virus strains that keep emerging. In the meantime if you don’t want a flu shot
you may want to consider looking for some Suguki.
Throw a log on the fire and have some cocoa.
Kim
Garden as though you will live forever. William Kent
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