The Herb Cottage Newsletter, 2/07

February 2007

We certainly have been experiencing some extreme weather this winter. From ice storms in Texas to tornadoes in Florida to massive snow falls in New York State, we've all experienced severe weather. Here in South Central Texas, I was concerned about the stock plants in pots outdoors. I covered my benches because, even though the actual temperatures wasn't terribly cold, we had very cold north winds for several days that I knew would burn the leaves of the hardy herbs, lettuce and greens. When the ice came, the plants were safe under their tents of frost blanket stiffened by the ice. Upon uncovering everything, I found bright green parsley, dill, cilantro and fennel. Colorful lettuce seedlings and mesclun mixes were perky and ready for planting. In the garden beds, blooming violets were seemingly unfazed by the weather and continued with their cheery blooms to brighten our still-cloudy days.

Then, just a few days after the cold and ice, we experienced spring-like days with sunny skies and temperatures in the mid to high sixties. I felt like taking everything out of the greenhouse, but knew it was much too early. The false spring was a nice break, though, because the greenhouses heated up and the little herb and tomato seedlings seemed to grow right before my eyes. The cloudy days had definitely slowed down seedling growth. Now, it's cloudy and cool again. But, with spring in sight for us, it's easier to deal with the end of winter.

I realize many of you reading this newsletter have months of winter ahead of you. A positive aspect is that will give you a chance to assess last year's gardening efforts and spend lots of time making plans for this year's garden. There is definitely something to be said for a garden down time. You can plan at leisure and not feel rushed. For you, it's the time to dream and plan with catalogs in hand and a hot beverage by your side. You can plan at leisure and not feel rushed.

Here, we can and do garden year round, and it's difficult to find time to step back and assess last year's or last season's efforts. Mid summer is one down time we have to plan and rejuvenate the gardens for fall. And, often we have a few weeks in January, but it seems Spring comes early and we have to get our plants and seeds out to get crops established before it gets too hot.

For those of you still mired in Winter, it's not too early to be looking at starting some herbs, flower and vegetable seedlings from seed for you own use. It's so inexpensive, and if you have more than you can use, you can share them with other gardeners. Maybe have a seedling exchange this spring. There is a good selection of popular herbs, flowers and vegetables at http://theherbcottage.com/seeds.html.

Since February is the month containing Valentine's Day, a commercial holiday if there ever was one, I thought I'd share some information about chocolate with you that came through an email list from a chef's service. Chocolate isn't really an herb, but it's been proven to have health benefits, when enjoyed in moderation. The following is some information and recipes to warm the heart of you and your loved ones this cold February.

Is chocolate really an aphrodisiac?

On romantic occasions, one of the most popular gift exchanged between lovers is a box of chocolates. Even the ancient Aztecs and Mayans (circa 600 AD) of South America loved it. There are some very good reasons why.

Chocoholics are beginning to understand the secret behind the amorous inclination we have for these brown and white treats. Two doctors, Donald Klein and Michael Leibowitz, theorized that chocolate contains a particular chemical called phenylethylamine (better known as the "love chemical"), which is also present in the brain.

Phenylethylamine, an amphetamine-like substance, is a chemical produced in the brain when people fall in love. Love struck persons produce more of this chemical than people who are not. Initially, Dr. Klein and Dr. Leibowitz joked about the idea of chocolate being an arbiter for people who are in love. They tried to prove their theory, but were unable to finish their experiments. Other scientists followed suit, but were also unable to conclude whether or not chocolate has love potion-like abilities. One study, however, revealed that eating chocolate did not actually increase the level of phenylethylamine in the body, thus ruling out chocolate as responsible for that certain wonderful high.

By nature, however, phenylethylamine is a naturally-occurring trace chemical known to release a certain kind of dopamine in the "pleasure-centers" of the brain. Unfortunately, one of the metabolites phenylethylamine produces also causes a person to become unusually restive. Overproduction of this chemical is found in people suffering from paranoid schizophrenia.

Chocolate also has a substantial amount of tryptophan, an important amino acid that controls the production of the mood-modulating serotonin.

Probably the most distinctive "side-effect" of eating chocolate is its release of endorphines, the body's own endogenous opiates. The production of endorphins consequently gives chocolate addicts that co-called "inner glow" about them (which explains why many chocolate lovers seem to be so gloriously alive).

In the end, science has yet to prove chocolate's efficacy as an aphrodisiac. While some doctors say that phenylethylamine in chocolate is just a mild love-chemical, the debate is still ongoing and it is too early to know if chocolate really is the lovers' delight. Then again, giving your special someone a box of chocolates couldn't hurt.

(Referenced from Chef2Chef email forum, Volume 12, Issue 30, 2/9/07)

For more information on chocolate, an informative web site is: http://www.chocolateexpert.com/index.html

And a recipe I couldn't resist:

Godiva Chocolate Rum Smoothie

This smoothie recipe features Godiva® chocolate liqueur, a rich chocolate liqueur based on Godiva chocolates. Available as white chocolate or dark chocolate liqueurs. We call them "Montezuma's Revenge."

Ingredients:

2 ounces Godiva liqueur

1/2 ounces Goslings Black Seal Rum, or your favorite brand

1/2 banana, peeled and sliced, other half for garnish

1/2 cup vanilla ice cream

Preparation:

Pour Godiva into blender. Add rum, banana and ice cream. Blend until smooth. Pour into chilled serving glass. Garnish with banana slice. Makes 2 drinks.

In the cookies of life, friends are the chocolate chips.

___________________________

Good Growing to You,

Cindy Meredith, proprietor

The Herb Cottage

442 CR 233

Hallettsville, TX 77964

phone & fax: 979-562-2153

March 2007

March is a blustery month. Here in South Central Texas, we've been having very windy weather, some very cool days and nights still, and some warm days. We had one morning a few weeks ago that was at 22 deg. F. here at The Herb Cottage. I was not prepared for such low temperatures and lost some potted succulents that were outdoors. The leaves on my big lemon eucalyptus tree froze, but that's happened before and I know the tree will rebound shortly. Already I'm seeing new growth peek out of the ground around the coral porterweed and Mexican Mint Marigold. The Greggi salvias, Salvia aurita, and most of the herbs in the beds look perfect. The parsley, cilantro, cutting celery, oregano and various varieties of thyme as well as the violets I planted in and around the thymes are looking perky and bright. I'm always amazed at how well most of the culinary herbs do in the cold. And how beautiful and rich the colors are this time of year.

One herb I'm very pleased with is the Florence Fennel I planted. The bulbous growth at the base of the stem is getting larger and is almost ready to harvest. I will be planting more so there is always greenery for the butterflies as well as more delicious fennel for salads and side dishes. The Bronze Fennel I planted near the green is doing equally well. It's not as tall as the green yet, but is bushy. I'm surprised this plant isn't a better seller because the color is so warm and coppery. It's as good a butterfly attractor as the green and adds a very different color to the garden. It looks good planted in beds with purple and gold color flowers such as marigolds, anise hyssop and sage. It lasts a long time and the little yellow flowers it produces only add to its allure.

Lavender growing is becoming very popular here in Texas and I get lots of people looking for information regarding varieties and conditions it likes. I'm by no means an expert on lavender growing on a large scale, but I've been growing different varieties in the herb garden for many years. The varieties that seem to do the best here in our humidity and long hot late summers are the lavindins and hybrids, the intermedia. Some popular cultivars are Grosso and Provence, although more similar ones are being developed. One I like is Gros Bleu, which is similar to Grosso, but with bigger flowers. Provence has more slender flowers and they are spaced farther apart on the stem than the Grosso or Gros Bleu, but it is the one that is used for culinary purposes. The balance of the oils is just right for using the flowers in baking, traditional French cuisine and even tea and drinks.

The angustifolia, or English Lavender varieties, don't seem to do as well here, probably due to the combination of heat and humidity we experience. To grow them is a challenge. Some folks simply grow them from fall through early summer and consider them as annuals. That's one way to go and not have the stress and worry about bringing them through the late summer and early fall conditions.

One easy way to use lavender in tea, drinks and baking is to make lavender sugar by placing a few lavender buds in a jar of sugar and closing it up for a few days. Remove the flowers and you now have lavender flavored sugar to be used in lemonade, tea, or any plain sugar cookie, shortbread, pound cake or cake recipe. Not everyone likes the flavor of lavender, though, so go easy with it until you learn how your family, or you, like the taste.

Those of you living where the snow is deep on the ground and winter shows little sign of abating, now is a good time to start seeds for planting out when spring does come. To me, there is nothing so satisfying in gardening as growing plants from seed. It's just miraculous to put a tiny seed in the soil and watch it germinate and grow. Most herb varieties will take 6 to 8 weeks from seeding to produce a viable transplant. Some perennials may take more time.

By far the easiest herb to grow from seed is basil. But, if you don't have a nice warm spot, and even have a way to keep the soil warm, it may be a little early to start basil. But, dill, cilantro, nasturtiums, lettuce and arugula are very easy from seed. If you've never grown Hibiscus sabdariffa, or Roselle, the red in "Red Zinger" Tea, it's very easy. It takes a fairly long growing season, however, so it's best to start it early. It's another one that really like the warmth, so don't be too impatient with it. Keep it indoors until the weather really warms up.

You'll be surprised at how big and lovely the plant gets with its reddish pods and small creamy yellow flowers. I've tried every year to over winter it, but have only been successful a handful of times. My greenhouses don't stay warm enough to keep it happy. It's so easy to grow from seed, though, that it's hardly worth the trouble of watering it and worrying about it all winter. This year, it was doing well until January when we got some cold temperatures. The plant lost most of its leaves and then fire ants got into the big pot. I treated the ants with diotomaceous earth and got rid of most of them. But, the recent very cold temperatures did the plant in, I think. If you have a sunny window in a warm room in the house, you could grow it indoors over the winter and enjoy it, too. I don't know if it would flower or not, however. The plant itself is very attractive and worth growing just for that reason. There is a good picture on the seed packet on The Herb Cottage website, seed page: http://theherbcottage.com/seeds.html

This is also the time to start the long season vegetable plants from seed such as tomatoes, peppers and eggplant. There is nothing like the taste of that first warm home grown tomato off the vine. Bell peppers, sweet and juicy, are so much tastier and more tender when they are homegrown. If you like eggplant, growing your own offers you the choice of many different varieties, not just the big purple ones in the store. Home grown eggplant is tender and very tasty. If you've never grown your own, you are in for a taste treat. And, the plant is so pretty with its purple and yellow flowers that turn into long narrow purple fruit or round green of the Apple Green or the striped Listada de Gandia. Some of these varieties are on the seed page or are being added to the seed page at http://theherbcottage.com/seeds.html and some are offered as plants.

This year why not try a couple of heirloom tomato varieties. The flavor is so much more "tomatoey" than most hybrids often offered as seedlings. The Herb Cottage has a good selection of heirlooms seedlings as well as seed for you to try.

As I mentioned in a previous newsletter, I am offering a selection of herbs and vegetable plants, especially heirloom and open pollinated tomato plants for sale by mail order this year. You can download a copy of the catalog from the home page: http://theherbcottage.com or send me a note or email and I'll send you a paper copy of the catalog. To purchase plants you will have to have an order form this year and either mail it or fax it to me. Only the selection of Botanical Interest Seed can be bought directly on-line through Pay Pal. Seed is also available in the printed catalog as well.