Hierba Santa

Hierba Santa Even though I have been in Texas for seven years, I am still adapting from my northern gardening notions. The seasons seem reversed, with the challenge to beat the summer heat rather than the fall frost. But one of the pleasures of Austin’s subtropical climate is the ability to try new plants. An easy one is Hierba Santa, sometimes called Hoja Santa, sometimes called Root Beer Plant and sometimes called Piper auritum Here is one picture of my...

Transportation Solutions

There are a lot of nice things about living in a small town. The air is fresher, the stars are brighter, and the streets are quieter. Unfortunately, living in this quiet town also means that I have to drive over twenty miles if I want to take in a movie, go to a concert, or buy organic groceries (the kind we can’t grow in our own organic garden, of course). I’ve felt guilty about all this driving for some time now, but the guilt has grown quite a bit...

Shiitake and Tofu Recipe

Using our homegrown mushrooms………. Sautéed Shiitakes 1-2 T. Olive oil 1-2 Cloves garlic, chopped 12 Oz. Sliced shiitakes 1 T. Tamari 1 T. Sesame Oil 2-4 T. Dry white wine Optional – 1/2 lb. cubed tofu Sauté garlic in oil for 1 minute. Add shiitakes & sauté for an additional 3-4 minutes. Mix Tamari, sesame oil & wine together & pour over mushrooms. Simmer over low for 10 minutes. (I didn’t really measure anything the first...

Shiitake Mushrooms

Last April, my friend Michael Ball asked me if I’d be interested in helping him split the work of starting a crop of shiitake mushrooms. He supplied the cut red oak logs from the woods on his farm, I bought the mushroom spawn and we shared the work of drilling and plugging the logs with the spawn. I ended up with about fifteen logs each with about four dozen plugs or more and each plug a potential mushroom. Typically, the mushrooms appear the following...

Harvesting Potatoes – Double Digging

I’m happy with my potato harvest this year. I’ll end up with over forty pounds each of Red Norlands, Kennebec, and Russets which will last us well into next year. Growing your own potatoes is difficult to justify economically. Factory farm potatoes are practically given away here in Wisconsin, and even at a price of $2.00 per pound for locally grown organic potatoes my crop at most would be worth about $250. Mine are worth a lot less actually, since my...

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