I’ve mentioned that you can cook with weeds before, and many are familiar with including young dandelion greens in salads and braises. Since it’s dandelion (and violet) season here in the Ether Garden, I figured I’d share my favorite ways to enjoy the flavors of spring using these lovely spring blossoms and herbs.

Floral preserves and syrups were quite popular in days of yore, and are a wonderfully delicious way to enjoy a number of blooms. Violet syrup is a lovely treat drizzled over lemon infused waffles or mixed into your iced tea. The syrup (or jelly, if you prefer) is easily prepared by filling a quart jar with lightly packed violet blossoms. When picking make sure you are choosing violets which have not been sprayed with anything, and remove the stems before use (while the stems are edible, they can give the end product a bitter taste). I like to rinse my violets in a sieve under the sprinkler attachment of my sink before continuing. Fill the jar with boiling water, cover and allow to steep overnight. When finished steeping, line a sieve with cheesecloth and strain out the blossoms, reserving the liquid. At this point you will want to prepare* your canning jars, lids, and rings before proceeding with the rest of the recipe.

Measure your violet infusion, and add water enough to make two cups of liquid. Up to now your violet infusion is most likely a lovely shade of royal blue. Add two tablespoons fresh lemon juice and the liquid will turn a brilliant magenta color. In a large non-reactive pot combine the liquid and 3 ½ sugar and add ½ teaspoon butter or margarine to reduce foaming if you like. Bring to a full rolling boil on high heat. Now if you want syrup continue boiling for ten minutes. If you’re making jelly you’ll want to stir in one packet of liquid pectin (I tend to use Certo, but Ball makes some as well), return to a full rolling boil and continue boiling for exactly one minute, stirring all the while. For both syrup and jelly you will want to remove your pot from the heat, ladle your hot liquid into your prepared jars leaving ⅛ headspace. Seal your jars and process* in a boiling-water bath for five minutes, then remove and allow to cool upright and naturally.

This same recipe can be used to make herb jellies and syrups. You might try it with peppermint, lavender, or lemon verbena. Homemade treats like these are easy ways to enjoy the flavors of the seasons year-round, and make lovely gifts. I like to make the jewel toned violet jelly and can it up in little 4oz ‘quilted’ pattern jars to give as gifts throughout the year. Next up in this series will be baking with dandelion blossoms!

*For those of you new to or not familiar with home-canning, I recommend referencing a canning guide such as the Ball Blue Book or the USDA Principles of Home Canning Guide, which is conveniently available as a PDF.

The Ether Garden knew long before we did it seems. It was last winter when we started discussing the possibility of getting a small urban flock, but we figured we’d best wait until we’d been in the new house for a while before starting down that road. Then one morning I looked out the kitchen window which overlooks the garden and what did I see? A small garden statuette which must have been hidden first by the masses of Daylillies and then by the snow. There it was, the sign that the Ether Garden knew better than we did what was to come- a small hen. She’s remained in that very spot since the moment I first saw her, but thoughts of an urban henhouse have expanded and moved to the forefront of our minds

Fast forward to last month when I received notice that the woman from whom my parents have been getting organic free-range eggs. She was selling off a few of her young laying hens, as she simply had too many and couldn’t properly care for them all! This was amazing news, as I was busy trying to figure out where to find started pullets in breeds we found appealing, without having to rear an order of 50 chicks and hope we could sell the surplus later. I quickly conferred with Lumin about the chicken opportunity and a decision was made- we’d get one each of the varieties she was selling, but we’d build space for four in the hopes of adding one or two more in the future.

So that’s that- we will be getting two lovely ladies very soon, too soon almost! One Rhode Island Red and one Black Star (also known as a Black Sex-Link). Now it’s crunch time, I and must say I do feel a bit like Chicken Little at the moment. There is a coop to build, waterers to make, feeders and feed to buy, bedding to obtain, and a myriad of other things to take care of before the ladies arrive. Having spend my younger years raising backyard chickens (a few of whom my mother captured beautifully in a watercolor study) I’m probably a little better off than some, but there has certainly been a large chickenless gap in my life in which to forget a great many things.

This years varieties, at least as planned, include a vast array of heirloom veggies as usual, some are stand-by old friends, and some are new and exciting. The list so far includes (most seed is heirloom, all seed is organic):

• Bean, bush: Bountiful (1897) [47-50 days]
• Bean, bush: Empress (re-named 1979) [55 days]
• Bean, bush: Pencil Pod Golden Wax (1900) [50-65 days]
• Beet: Carillion [58 days]
• Beet: Chioggia aka Candy Stripe (1840) [50 days]
• Beet: Detroit Dark Red (1892) [60-65 days]
• Broccoli: Romanesco [75-100 days from transplant]
• Broccoli: De Cicco (1890) [48-85 days from transplant]
• Cabbage, red: Mammoth Red Rock (1889) [98 days from transplant]
• Carrot: Danvers Half-Long (1871) [65-87 days]
• Carrot: Minicor
• Cucumber, pickling: Double Yield (1924) [50-60 days]
• Endive: Galia
• Fennel: Florence
• Leek: Blue Solaize [100-120 days]
• Lettuce, romaine: Forellenschuss [55 days]
• Lettuce, looseleaf: Lollo Rossa [55 days]
• Lettuce, butterhead: Tennis Ball (1850) [50 days]
• Melon: Sakata’s Sweet [85-95 days]
• Onion, sweet-storing: Walla Walla (day neutral)
• Onion, scallion: Summer Bunching
• Pea, snap: Amish Snap [60 days]
• Pea, shelling: Sutton’s Harbinger (1898) [52-60 days]
• Potato, yellow storing: Yukon Gold [100-120 days]
• Pepper, sweet bell: Orange Bell (1989) [90 days from transplant]
• Pepper, sweet bell: Sweet Chocolate (1965) [58-86 days from transplant]
• Raddicio: Indigo
• Rhubarb: MacDonald
• Shallot: French Demi-Long
• Spinach: Monnopa [45-60 days]
• Squash, winter: Waltham Butternut Cucurbita moschata [83-100 days]
• Tomato, paste: Amish Paste [85 days from transplant] indeterminate
• Tomato, slicing: Cherokee Purple [80 days from transplant] indeterminate
• Tomato, beefsteak: German Pink [85 days from transplant] indeterminate
• Tomato, paste: Opalka (1900) [85 days from transplant] indeterminate
• Flower, Sweet Pea: Cupanis
• Flower, Nasturtim: Black Velvet
• Flower, Hollyhock: Nigra
• Herb: Provincal Lavender
• Herb: Dill
• Herb: Winter Savory
• Herb: Rosemary
• Herb: Marjoram
• Herb: Thyme
• Herb: Oregano
• Herb: Hot and Spicy Oregano
• Herb: Peppermint
• Herb: Lemon Balm
• Herb: Basil
• Fruit, Fig: Hardy Chicago
• Fruit, Strawberry: unknown variety

Remember how we mentioned that those local to the Ether Garden can benefit? Your first opportunity is right now! If any of the veggies or flowers above interest you, drop us a line! The Ether Garden is offering packets of seed in small numbers to local reader-gardeners. We will also be offering seedlings in May, and you can place dibs on seedlings at this time as well! Unfortunately we cannot offer herbs or fruit seed/starts at this time, but this may change later in the season. This is a great opportunity for those of you who simply don’t need a full packet of seed, but want to start your own. This is also a great way to get heirloom seedlings raised organically and locally.

Speaking of co-operation I stopped by my local co-op, the East End Food Co-Op today and they were putting out the first flats of locally-grown organic and heirloom transplant seedlings for sale! I didn’t get to see all of what they had, as they seemed to be explaining the different plants and prices to the staff when I arrived. I did see garlic chives, a few other herbs, and rhubarb. Mmm… rhubarb. I think I’ll have to snag myself some of those seedlings. Remember back when I was talking about what all I’d be growing this year, and how it was subject to change based on the available seedlings? Yeah- this is what I was talking about. I’m a sucker for baby plants. They’re just so darn cute (and tasty).

The article opens with the tag-line “A person would have had to eat three apples in 1991 to supply the same iron content as one in 1940.” It continues on to illustrate how, through the pursuit of our beautiful and high-yield crops, that we have lost a significant amount of nutrition over the past 50 or so years. For example

• “Spinach’s potassium content dropped by 53 percent, its phosphorus by 70 percent, its iron by 60 percent and its copper by 96 percent.”
• “The iron content of meat products declined by an average of 54 percent.”
• “The higher tomato yields (in terms of harvest weight), the lower the concentration of vitamin C, levels of lycopene (the key antioxidant that make tomatoes red) and beta-carotene (a vitamin A precursor.)”
• “High production dairy cows produce milk that is less concentrated with fat, protein and other nutrition-enhancing components and are also more vulnerable to a range of metabolic diseases, infections and reproductive problems.”

Guess I’m not so crazy about growing my own food the good old fashioned way. Guess I’m equally not crazy for wanting to grow heirloom varieties over hybrids. A lot of comments on the article are about eating organic fruit and veg, which I think are missing the boat. Just because something is grown organically doesn’t mean the seed isn’t a hybridized or GMO variety. If you look at what was being grown prior to 1940, you’ll see that it was primarily that which is now known as heirloom. WWII is when most of the hybrids were created in the name of increasing yield for the victory gardeners.

Think back as far as you can. Do you remember eating strawberries as a child? Have you eaten one lately? Do you notice a difference? I do. I’m hunting high and low for a good heirloom or similar variety of strawberry for my garden. I’m sick of the gigantic glossy mealy tasteless fruit you find in stores these days. Even the seedlings from my favorite garden centers are depressingly bland. I’m beginning to wonder if we’ve let the succulent and juicy, if somewhat more seed-filled, fruit of our childhoods die out.