We need a new chicken coop because I did not know about the attraction that chicken food is for rats. I thought that a secure, closed shed/coop with chicken wire over the large windows and along the outside walls for a few inches would be enough. But rats are willing to dig down much farther than a few inches in order to access tasty chicken pellets while the hens are sleeping. After a couple of years of chasing rats, covering new holes, pouring patches of cement, and finally covering up all food at night and rising VERY early to put it back out for the ladies, we are ready to build a new coop.
The Brussels Sprouts that overwintered are blooming now and still delicious. We pick the leaves and steam them like any green and pluck off the ready to bloom heads that look like thin broccoli to steam as well. In the past I remember pulling Brussels Sprouts out of the ground at the end of the fall season having no idea that they could over winter or that they would still produce food to eat. What a waste that was!
My oldest granddaughter was over yesterday after school. I fixed her some eggs with some leftover potatoes to eat. I forgot that there were some burdock slices mixed in with the potatoes or I probably would have given her something else since strange new foods can be difficult. When she asked, "Grammy what are these little round slices?" I fully expected her to pick them out. But in spite of her persnickety junior high taste buds she surprised me with "they're good."
My friend, Jan, gave me some horseradish root to plant a couple of years ago when she discovered how much I like horseradish sauce. I lost the plant in the garden the first year as it got mowed down when mistaken for a weed. It came back the next year since horseradish takes some effort to kill but not before I asked my friend for another root. She was surprised since she knew all about horseradish but accommodated my request. Now I have two established roots. I was out looking at the plants today and I thought that another plant had somehow sprouted in the same spot since there is clearly a sprout with buds forming. I didn't know that horse radish produces flowers! Now I am looking forward to what my gardening encyclopedia says will be "large white blooms".
Several years ago my oldest daughter planted Lemon Balm in the garden. Lemon Balm as I discovered, is very prolific. After a few years it became clear that I would have to be very aggressive or nothing else would survive in the herb garden. I have had a running battle trying to keep it under control, often pulling out whole clumps and dumping them in the compost. It just seemed to spring up everywhere. Last week my husband was reading about Lemon Balm in Michael Moore's Medicinal Plants of the Pacific Northwest, Santa Fe, NM; Red Crane Books, 1993, pg 163. I was having a down day and he made me a cup of Lemon Balm tea. It was really pleasant! Seems that while "Lemon Balm is not a potent medicine," it "works predictably, has no side effects, and can be combined with other herbs in a beneficial way. It is a simple sedative and a surprisingly effective mood elevator and antidepressant." There are other uses as well. How did I know? Now I am grateful that the plant survived my ignorance.
Moving toward a renewed, earth based lifestyle can be fear driven or wonder based. Some days feel dark and heavy, especially when news on the environment or economy are particularly bleak. Then I allow myself to brood with my chickens for a little while as I sip Lemon Balm Tea from the garden. Most days I choose to enjoy the adventure of transitioning even if I have no idea where it will take me or the people I love. There is always something new to learn, so many surprises to encounter, that I am constantly amazed and forever grateful for the wonder and goodness of life.
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