“Gratitude unlocks the fullness of life. It turns what we have into enough, and more. It turns denial into acceptance, chaos to order, confusion to clarity. It can turn a meal into a feast, a house into a home, a stranger into a friend. Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today and creates a vision for tomorrow.” –Melody Beattie

I am hoping everyone had a Happy Thanksgiving, with lots of good food and laughter shared with friends and loved ones.  I am always reminded how very fortunate some of us are to be able to grow our own food or have access to locally grown food, raw milk, and handmade goods, and also how fortunate some of us are to be in a position to share that abundance.

However, it seems Thanksgiving is becoming more and more of a pass-over holiday – i.e., one that is passed over in jumping from Halloween to Christmas. Stores will be opening in less than an hour from this writing to offer prices that maybe should have been charged all along. Others will be racing to take advantage of those deals (and get the whole gift-giving responsibility “out of the way”–a sad commentary).

Times are hard, but all the more reason to ask ourselves, how much stuff do we really need? Will a bigger TV or the latest smallest widget make us happy? For many, “Black Friday” has become a day of consumer gluttony following a day of gluttonous consumption. It’s almost un-American NOT to participate.

To me, though, there are plenty of other days when I can contribute to the economy. On this day, I prefer to escape the capitalistic frenzy and get closer to that which is real in my world – those unchanging truths that have defined our existence since before written time. Record rainfalls, wind, high tides, storms – the power of nature is in full November force. Even a simple walk to the garden is a chance to see miracles.

In that vein of thought, I wrote this poem about being thankful:

Thank You, Good Earth

And blanket the ground from the cold

Thank you for gardens, hidden within,

* * * * *

Thank you, Debra, for sending me the quote at the beginning of this post and giving me a moment to ponder. I’m still trying to make sense of my past, but that can be saved for a different couch.

Wishing you all abundance, however that be defined, and please, friends, remember to buy local and support your family farms.

Blythe

The turning points for me were two-fold. The first was when I was harvesting my garlic last summer, only to discover that the mulch I had layered around the bulbs to help suppress weeds and conserve moisture was probably responsible for the bulbs rotting in the ground. Anything that takes 9 months of tender loving care to bring to maturity becomes akin to offspring, and it is particularly heartbreaking to see them “go bad.” It set me to re-evaluating what I was trying to accomplish – in the garden, in my life – where it was that I went terribly wrong – one of those midlife crises that occur with alarming frequency throughout your life, not just at the moving midpoint. Could I keep doing this?

Here is the thing with growing garlic:

• It takes up more space than you realize, because you have to factor in at least a 4-year rotation cycle (we do 6);
• It’s a labor-intensive crop – garlic does not compete well with weeds;
• There is a narrow harvest window – too early, you get puny bulbs – too late, your bulbs split open and won’t last;
• Harvest time is right in the middle of summer, 4th of July onward, which is a busy time when you might want to be doing other things;
• A fair amount of space is required for proper curing – without good airflow, they’ll mold, meaning you could go through all that work to grow good bulbs, only to blow everything at the end;
• If you want to make money at it – which is difficult if you factor in labor costs – you have to market & sell the stuff – you can’t just give it away to everyone who is overjoyed to try a few samples, and
• Contrary to popular belief, garlic won’t buy you love.

Don’t get me wrong – I love garlic and I love growing it – and the sight of row upon row of garlic standing tall in the field is a beautiful sight indeed – but you have to recognize its limitations as well as the limitations it imposes.

The second turning point was returning from a trip in late November to find everything under a foot of snow, and realizing with horror that flocks of birds could have died in my absence, along with thousands – yes, thousands – of worms. You might think the two are related, and in some ways, they are. Fortunately, other family members kept our little bird friends alive, but I was bluntly faced with the fact that I was a birdseed addict. I couldn’t stop buying the stuff. More and more birds kept coming. The more I bought, the more they came. They made me feel happy inside, but the increasing demand couldn’t be ignored. It was starting to add up. Question: did I need them to make me feel good about myself, believing I was making their lives easier? Or was I just making them ever more dependent on me, and in the process, chaining myself to a winter of watching them out the window? I was trading my freedom for this amusement.

And as for the lowly worms? Highly esteemed they are at the Barbolian Fields vermiculture headquarters. They have increased in numbers to where now they take up 6 penthouses, which have to be situated outside – somewhat protected by the elements, but not entirely. Fortunately, their instincts took over, their metabolisms slowed below that of the lowly slug (if I may be so judgmental), they retreated to the center of the bins, and I am happy to report they survived. But it could have been a much different story.

The eye-opening moment was when I realized how things I do can also limit what I can do. They have been my own choices. And once those choices become responsibilities, I can’t necessarily just quit.

“A truly creative person rids him or herself of all self-imposed limitations,” said Gerald Jampolsky. And quicker than you can say, “Who the heck is Gerald Jampolsky?”, let me just say he’s an American psychiatrist.

I can’t say that I’ve read his book, The “Oh Shit” Factor: Waste Management for Our Minds, but I would probably relate to anyone who wrote an entire book under such a title. He talks a lot about forgiveness and unconditional love. I can relate to that, too.

What does this have to do with gardening?

It set me on a quest for a better way. Or at least a different way. Because it’s not a turning point unless you take a step in a different direction. The first step is being honest with yourself. Admitting you have a problem.

(Here we go again. “Welcome, Blythe.”)

Because as much as I talk about trying to live a sustainable lifestyle, the truth is, what I’m doing is hardly sustainable.

So, what is sustainability, anyway? It’s the buzzword of the day. It’s “outside the box.” It’s Organic. It’s Green. It is used so frequently, it has lost its influence – and maybe it no longer reflects its original intention.

I can tell you what sustainability is not:

• The work I do in the garden is not sustainable – it’s pure craziness.
• Making birds rely on my handouts is neither healthy nor sustainable.
• My attempt to capture rainwater is a start, true, but a mere fraction of what could be captured with a bigger system – and it does not solve the problem of how to deal with the drought we get in the summer.
• The wind rips through here nearly every day – yet I have never managed to capture it. It’s this invisible ever-present force that can only be seen by what it moves. It seems out of reach to me – uncontrollable – slipping through my fingers every time – a lost opportunity.

Getting down helps you to look up. Looking in helps you to look out.

If I am to rid myself of self-imposed limitations, I need to get creative.

What if instead of buying seed and feeding “my” birds (ha!) – I free them to be what they are – birds – not pets – and assist them by planting shrubs that provide more natural habitat, fruits throughout the year, and shelter from the wind and cold. (Ok, I will probably always feed the birds a few treats – but it doesn’t need to be their sole source of food.)

What if I reconsidered the whole garlic operation? Too much work? Maybe I could trade help with weeding for shares of garlic – or maybe I could make it a “U-Pick Garlic” farm and let people harvest and cure their own. We could even turn it into an agro-tourism event with music & food …. Hmmm, getting a little ahead of myself on that one – but Sequim already has a zillion people coming through this little town to swoon in fields of lavender – why not attract the salsa crowd? I think I’m on to something here.

Take a break already!

And instead of planting rows and rows of garlic in a single plot, how about mixing them up with other plants throughout the garden where their legendary protective qualities can be used to better advantage? For that matter, why not mix up the whole garden? Monoculture beds are convenient, but perhaps they just create an obvious target for insects. Why not intersperse plants that attract bees, repel insects, add nutrients, and provide shade, mulch, and other benefits?

The truth is, my garden is already a chaotic mess. Grass and morning glory are everywhere. I may have excuses as to why it got so far out of control – lack of boundaries and all that – but life happens – and if you are a slave to your garden, it’s hardly sustainable unless you just enjoy that kind of martyrdom.  But what if I recognized that chaos is ok – in fact, it’s to be expected – maybe even encouraged? Maybe I need to relax a little bit. Neatness counts, but psychotic control and continued sense of failure will not enrich my life. Let it go while I take time to smell the roses. It’s ok to be less than perfect.

And lastly – while I’m on this vent – my garden is boring. Surprising, but true. Sure, certain areas stand out, but for the most part, it’s just a series of traditional squares and rows and rectangles. A failed attempt at orderliness. What if I did something to make the garden more fun? Why not make more little secret hideaways? Why not make it a place where people are encouraged to wander? Why not make it a place where sometimes you just have to stop dead in your tracks because the world around you is just so incredibly gorgeous that you have to pinch yourself with the realization of how lucky you are to be here?

I am talking about bridging the gap between a “garden” and a “small farm.” We always want to compartmentalize things. “Oh she has a beautiful garden” conjures up images of massive flowers and winding pathways leading to some focal point, like a garden gate, statue, or pond. Whereas, “Oh she has a nice little farm” conjures up rows of veggies and a small tractor tilling the ground between them. Efficient. Orderly.

What if we blur these distinctions?

There is still time to change. It is still garden planning season.

It is time to break some rules.

Not real rules, mind you. Self-imposed-limitation-type rules. Things we hold to be self-evident. It is time to make things more sustainable in terms of both lifestyle and the environment. Time to get creative.

In the process, we have this great opportunity to re-think what sustainability really means. How can we realistically apply our ethics and belief systems to our own backyards? Because if we are to preserve this planet for future generations, each of us needs to do what we can, and we all have to start somewhere. We can’t wait for the Monsantos of the world to come around to our way of thinking. We each need to do our part to contribute to social consciousness. It is senseless to keep growing excess amounts of produce that gets thrown away when it could be given to people in need (and if your community doesn’t have a community kitchen of some sort, it’s time to start one). We need to look at how to reduce waste, conserve resources, reuse & recycle, learn about xeriscaping, native plants, and many more things I have yet to discover. We need to change our attitudes toward the need for perfection – perfect lawns, roses, hedges, and rows that require so many additives, resources, and energy to make them so perfect that they become unreal – like skinny models of the plant world. We have to address issues at multiple levels from multiple angles. We need to support one another, buy local, and know where our food comes from. And we need to teach our children.

Yes, it takes a village. It can start in a garden. God’s original plan.

Questions for you:

• Is your garden limiting or expanding your world?
• Is it a place of peace and tranquility or a hard labor camp?
• Is it an extension of your self?
• Does it reflect your ethics?
• Does it make you stand in awe at the beauty and wonder of the world we live in?
• Is it fun?
• And what can you do to make it more of all those things that enrich – and liberate – your life?

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

I cannot keep this blog without taking a moment to tell everyone how much I appreciate all your support – through the rise and fall of garlic (hopefully to rise again!) – through all the follies of this backyard “bigger-than-a-garden/smaller-than-a-farm” pursuit of living closer to the earth, working to be more self sufficient, growing enough to share, connecting enough to give, understanding enough to see what is truly important: love, laughter, friendship, doing what we can to make this world a better place.

I am so overwhelmed at times at how fortunate we are to have such an abundance of the good things in life – because the world is not a fair place, and it is so very sad to see that as a species, we still have not been able to overcome our differences enough to eliminate hunger and sickness.

It strikes me that one way each of us can help to change the world is to think a little differently about our food and what we eat – where it comes from, who grows it, how it was raised, whether what we pay for it is supporting a living wage or supporting what amounts to slavery. It is so easy to overlook the hard work that it takes to get the food from a tiny seed to the market, and so very easy to take for granted this food that is so accessible to us. Is it food that nurtures? Did it come from good soil? Is it free from poisons? Can we even recognize it? (so many “foods” look nothing like what is grown in the field!)

Garlic? Are you there?

Oops. No protection. Maybe just as well.

I am glad I didn’t get around to covering certain beds with hoops of plastic, because it all would have been blown away or shredded. When the snow melts, we’ll see what survived and what will be an “oh well” moment. It may be too late for the red wigglers.

But there are bright spots. I have seldom seen so many birds at our bird feeder — they barely waited until I finished filling the feeders, scattering seed on the ground, and filling up a small dish of water before they were there in great numbers. Finches, sparrows, nuthatches, chickadees, juncos, towhees, woodpeckers, jaybirds, mourning doves, quail … large and small, they all eat together. They are obviously thankful for the abundance of food.

(Note to self: plan on growing some birdseed next year!)

Mmmm. Homemade pies and cranberry sauce.

And speaking of abundance, I have three pies in the oven: apple, pumpkin, and green tomato mincemeat, all made from the fruits of the garden. We are looking forward to a large family gathering, full of chatter and a high level of chaos.

It is something to remember – just how blessed we are in this country. This holiday tradition of celebrating the harvest and taking a moment to be thankful for what is meaningful in life is one that can be extended to every day of our lives.

And with that thought, may I extend a happy Thanksgiving today and every day to anyone reading this. May your day be filled with many blessings: good food, a wealth of love, laughter, and good health, a warm place to be, safe travels.

And, as always – grow your own when you can, but when you can’t grow your own, thank a farmer who makes your meal possible — buy local and support family farms!

Have you herd? Farm Tour this weekend!

Tomorrow, Saturday, October 2, is the 14^th Annual Harvest Celebration Farm Tour in Clallam County. If you are on the Olympic Peninsula, Washington State, this is a very fun event that gives you a glimpse of what the Peninsula has to offer.

This year, nine different farms are opening their barn doors and throwing a party – hayrides, music, great food, farm animals & produce, demonstrations – a ton of down-home family fun.

It’s a great opportunity to see not only the resources we have here, but also a chance to see how people are making it work from home.

• Lazy J Tree Farm grows Christmas trees and all kinds of organic produce. They’ll have apple cider, hay bale mazes, and Coleman Byrnes’ Heritage “Chocolate” turkeys (order now for Thanksgiving!).
• Bowers’ Blue Mountain Belgians will be giving demos on farming and logging using draft horses and mules, as well as how to turn logs into lumber using a portable sawmill.
• Trade Winds Alpacas will give spinning demonstrations and offer opportunities to buy products made from this finest of fibers – and there is nothing more adorable than baby alpacas!
• Freedom Farm specializes in horses in all shapes and sizes. They will be giving pony rides to kids, making hay and silage, and will have lots of kid-friendly activities.
• Lökalie Gaare (Lucky Sheep Farm) will give demos on sheep shearing, spinning, and herding sheep using Border Collies (they make it easy!)
• Dungeness Valley Creamery offers raw milk, locally made cheese, farm-fresh eggs, whole grain breads, and other locally made basics at their store. They’ll give demos on how to separate the cream from milk and churn it into butter. Their big brown-eyed jersey calves are pretty hard to resist!
• Nash’s Organic Produce is pretty much legendary in these parts, offering some of the largest assortment of fresh veggies this side of the Cascades. They’ll give demos on all aspects of beekeeping, and we won’t want to miss the organic shepherd’s pie, green salad, and fruit crisp!
• Bekkevar Family Farm has been in operation since our pioneer days (Happy 100^th Birthday!) Hayrides, antique tractors, unique breeds of cattle, pigs, and other farm animals, wool spinning, and just about everything you can think of on a self-sustaining farm operation – along with a little toe-tappin’ bluegrass – await visitors here.
• Sunshine Herb & Lavender farm will give talks on growing, processing, and distilling lavender and other herbs. Registered mini Southdown sheep and rare poultry from the Barking Beak Farm will also greet onlookers.

The sign says, "Homegrown Vegetables," and they don't get any better than that!

I am always amazed at the number of varied agricultural enterprises we can find right here on the Olympic Peninsula. Of course, Sequim has built quite a reputation in the last few years around its lavender farms, but there is so much more available: all kinds of fruits and vegetables, grains, livestock, poultry, seafood, herbs and flowers, field and seed crops, bees & honey, grapes & wine, hay and livestock feed, mulches & compost, and an assortment of nurseries – not to mention local markets and community gardens.

You know, I’ve always wanted to be as self-sufficient as possible, to “live off the land,” to work from home – and maybe this dream is just a kickback from a 60’s-era idealism, but I have to say – these people are making it work. Some are carrying on traditional methods, such as using draft horses or herd dogs – some are approaching modern markets with unconventional crops, such as lavender – some are combining the old with the new – all are demonstrating how wholesome, home-grown, small-family-farm goods are better for you, better for the environment, better for our community. These folks have my utmost admiration, and there is so much we can learn from all of them.

As I get older, I am rethinking my ideals of being completely self-sufficient. Sure, I will always have a family garden – and I will always share my passion for unique varieties of garlic – but I also know that being completely self-sufficient is a lot of work. Maybe it’s time to rethink this concept. Maybe self-sufficiency is more efficiently accomplished at a community level. That means reaching out. Supporting our neighbors.

This support has never been more important.

Anyone who lives in the Sequim-Dungeness Valley knows how recent population growth and developments have taken away a great percentage of our farmland, and with it, some of our heritage. It’s a sad story told across the country. But all is not lost. We have a resurgence of people who are showing us that it can still be done – but they can’t do it alone. We all need one another.

The alternative means being dependent on outside sources for our food supply. It’s a scary thought. We get complacent about the availability of cheap food in large markets, the availability of which is largely dependent on cheap energy. That cheap energy will not always be available.  And as big business and outside interests gain more control of our food supply, that cheap food may not always be available, either. “Cheap” has hidden costs beyond the obvious health impacts.

We are incredibly blessed to have such an abundance of “real” food and local products available to us. It’s up to us to insure that availability. By supporting our local family farms, we are supporting our independence, our self-sufficiency, and our communities. Our health – and our quality of life – defined on so many levels – depends on it.

So when you check out some of our local farms this weekend, take time to get to know our farming neighbors. We’re all in this together.

And remember to

* * BUY LOCAL * *

P.S. Can’t make the tour? Consider donating to Friends of the Fields, a non-profit organization dedicated to saving farmland in Clallam County, WA.

Thank you!

The point is, we know these pin-up centerfolds can’t possibly be real, but every year, we buy into the fantasy. Readily. Greedily, in fact. They hit our doorsteps at a most vulnerable time. We are tired of another heaping plate of turnips and kale. These companies are blatantly feeding on our craving for a fresh salad with 6 different varieties of lettuce, topped with carrot shavings and spicy nasturtium blossoms …. Or maybe a simple, sweet, succulent strawberry – a bowlful would obviously be better … or maybe a fresh, vine-ripened-in-the-backyard tomato – the kind that explodes in your mouth and juices run down your chin….  This is why the Internet is full of support groups for people like you and me.

But in all honesty, I am one of the privileged ones. I’m not stuck in a snowbank at all. It could still happen, but so far, we’ve hardly even had a winter here in the Maritime Northwest. In fact, the days have been so warm, we are having the opposite problem: the illusion that spring is already here. It’s an easy one to slip into when rhubarb, pussywillows, and crocuses are up. Hold on to your shovels, though; we are officially still within the first 10 days of February.

I retreat to the comfort of my seed catalogs. Here are a few that are guaranteed to wake hibernating gardeners. Some are tried and true – some I am sure will be new friends. Check them out, drool into your keyboard, take normal precautions not to electrocute yourself in the process, and succumb to a little retail therapy.

Renee’s Garden: I came across Renee’s when looking for the source of a green-tomato mincemeat recipe that my family just loves. What a find! How did I possibly miss her over the years? Renee’s Garden is an information-packed website with lots of gardening tips and ideas and recipes for enjoying the harvest. She specializes in gourmet veggies and heirloom cottage flowers. I particularly like her kitchen garden design page with plans for long- and short-season veggie gardens. A community forum lets readers talk with each other about what’s happening in their plant worlds. Renee Shepherd donates seeds all over the world – Kenya, Nepal, Honduras, Bolivia, Uganda – and also to community & school gardens in the U.S. – to help people be more self-sufficient and to promote sustainable agriculture. Personally, I will be growing 16 new 2010 varieties of vegetables and flowers from her garden and will be posting the progress on these pages. Obviously, I am a huge fan.

Territorial Seed Company: This is our Northwest classic go-to seed company for all things garden related: over 200 varieties of new seeds for 2010, all kinds of tools, kitchen supplies, instructional videos, and more. I buy their seeds every year and have never been disappointed.

West Coast Seeds: A Canadian company – a good source of untreated seeds; good growing guides for everything from achillea to zucchini; handy planting chart. I have not tried them yet, but they come highly recommended. I am located close to the Canadian border, so their seeds should be a good fit.

Uprising Seeds: You can’t help but love this family and their adorable son! Seeds are grown in Acme, WA – definitely acclimated to northern areas of the Pacific Northwest (Acme is located east of Bellingham, west of the Cascades). Perhaps they don’t have the varieties of larger seed companies, but the basics are covered, and it is fun to support young people trying to make a go of it.

The Thyme Garden: I admit, I have a certain weakness for herbs and dye plants. At one time, I was growing over 100 varieties, thanks mostly in part to The Thyme Garden. They describe themselves as “an eclectic, earth friendly family business working with nature to provide organically grown seeds and plants…” Their gardens showcase some 700 varieties of useful plants from all over the world, and is a place I definitely want to wander around in one of these days. For now, I wander through their catalog that is full of brilliantly written descriptions of intriguing must-have plants.

Seed Savers Exchange: A non-profit membership organization dedicated to conserving and promoting heirloom vegetables, fruits, flowers and herbs. This 850-acre Iowa farm must be absolutely phenomenal. They permanently preserve over 25,000 endangered vegetable varieties. You can spend hours on their catalog, but becoming a member gives you access to 13,571 MORE varieties, in addition to being able to buy seeds from other members and knowing you are doing a good thing for protecting the diversity of our food supply. Seriously, I don’t think I could handle the choices.

Nichols: Located in Oregon’s Willamette Valley, where just about everything grows. I remember ordering my very first elephant garlic from Nichols back in the 70s, and I have been growing it ever since.

Seeds of Change: These guys are located down in New Mexico, so not even close to the Pacific Northwest – but they are Certified Organic, have done a lot of research on sustainable agriculture, and provide lots of growing how-tos as well as top-quality seed. I admire what they’re doing.

Jardin du Gourmet: Aka, Artistic Gardens. Years and years ago I came across this seed company that offered hard-to-find herbs and specialty vegetables. I confess, I have not ordered from them in awhile, but I am glad to see they are still in existence. What I really liked was that you could order these little trial packets to test out a particular variety. Guess what? Seed packets are just $0.35! And I see they are offering a package deal of herbs: 50 (Yes FIFTY) herb varieties (they select which ones) for only $17.50. Wow. Where can you get that?!

The Cook’s Garden: More varieties of lettuce and greens that you ever knew existed. If you aren’t craving a fresh salad now, you soon will be! This is a new find for me – one I am sure I will return to.

Seeds from Italy: Tuscan, Roman, Venetian …. Hmmm. Anything in this catalog would pair well with my gourmet garlic collection. How have I missed this source? I like a catalog with a niche!

Local sources: Last but far from least! We are seeing a lot more locals saving their own seeds and offering them for sale or exchange. The nice thing about buying local is that you know the plants are already acclimated to your region. In my neighborhood, Nash’s Organic Produce is offering local seeds (Seed Dreams) in addition to all the fresh fruits and vegetables they carry. I am anxious to see how the Walking Egyptian Onions do! (You can’t order the seeds online; you have to stop in at their store in Dungeness.)

That’s all for now. I’d be interested in hearing about what are some of your favorites!

Just a reminder to everyone out here on the Olympic Peninsula that the 4th Annual Farmer’s Breakfast is THIS WEEKEND, FEBRUARY 7, at the Sequim Prairie Grange, aka Macleay Hall, located at 290 Macleay Road in Sequim.

You get very fresh local foods – ham, eggs, toast, jam, juice, & coffee – lively entertainment – a silent auction – good company – and the good feeling that comes from knowing you’re helping to preserve farmland in our region.

The event is sponsored by volunteers at Friends of the Fields, who work tirelessly to help protect what we too often take for granted — the availability of fresh food. Some of our most fertile land (the flat spaces!) is being divided up into neighborhoods. In fact, 3/4 of our original 76,000 acres of farmland has been sold to housing or commercial development!

Taking steps to protect our ability to feed our own community just makes sense.

But it is so much more. It’s preserving a part of our history and a way of life; it’s protecting open space, wildlife habitat, and our groundwater; it’s reducing our carbon footprint and ensuring our independence … in addition to ensuring a supply of nutritionally superior food.

If you can make the Farmer’s breakfast, you can help this cause, eat a great meal, and have a good time all in one!

If you can’t make the Farmer’s breakfast, consider donating to the Friends of the Fields, a nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving farmland and supporting sustainable agriculture in our region. It’s an investment in our future.

Directions to the Grange:

If you’re coming from Port Angeles, follow the Old Olympic Highway toward Sequim. Where it makes the S curve in Carlsborg, instead of turning right to follow the Old Oly (going straight turns into Cays Rd.), make a left. Can’t miss the Grange on your right. Coming from Sequim, take the Old Olympic Hwy to where you come to the main intersection with Cays, and instead of following the Old Oly to the left, go straight.

Hope to see you there!

But back to the weekend bash at Nash’s: you can register for the event on the PCC website. I think tomorrow is the last day, but you could call to make sure. My understanding is that not only do you get a close-up tour of Nash’s 400 farmed acres, including the Delta Farm, which was PCC’s first preserved property, but also a meal goes with the deal – and you won’t get anything fresher than that!

Go to Nash’s website to see more of what he’s got going on around the farm (and some good recipe ideas, too). Nash has a sustainable operation that includes a well-fed herd of pigs. Very fun to watch their antics! Nash’s winter farmshare program is starting up later this month and is an excellent deal. Personally, since I grow a lot of our own food, the Nash Bucks is a better option for us — pay $350 upfront and get $400 worth of fresh organic produce that you can buy whenever.  You get a discount and the farm crew gets added money upfront, which is particularly appreciated when they are gearing up for spring plantings.

And by the way, if you’re in the area, drop in and see the Dungeness Valley Creamery at 1915 Towne Road. The Associated Press recently released a very misleading article about e. coli bacteria that were implied to have come from the Brown family’s cattle. In reality, there has never been ANY e. coli found in the Dungeness Valley Creamery raw milk. I drink it all the time and have never had any problems. My husband is lactose intolerant and does just fine with the raw milk, which, as Jeff Brown explains to me, is because the lactase enzyme that helps you digest lactose is not destroyed through pasteurization. Their dairy and bottling area is impeccable. Their cows are open pastured and treated like members of the family. This milk is obviously nutritious, real food.

Unfortunately, the Washington State Department of Agriculture (WSDA) is not held accountable for the damage. Such action seems unconscionable, but apparently they can get away with it. The Browns ended up having to throw away hundreds and hundreds of gallons of good milk. They have no recourse other than to keep doing what they do best: produce quality milk. Interestingly enough, outside sales might have dropped, but local folks who know the Browns and know what an outstanding dairy they run, came out in record numbers to support them. So, if you’re in the area, if you’re visiting the Delta and other farms so critical to the security of good food in our region, stop in at the Dungeness Valley Creamery while you’re at it and show your support.

It’s no secret that the Sequim-Dungeness Valley has practically been inundated by new housing developments with expansive lawns, box stores, and parking lots. Truly, we are very fortunate to have the farms we still have. We can save the future of our region by supporting our local farmers, donating to organizations such as Friends of the Fields, a nonprofit dedicated to saving farmland, and spreading the word as to the importance of having access to locally grown food. We are at a crossroads. Where does your food come from? And do you know where your children’s children’s food will come from? We’re losing land to development right now at the rate of 1000 acres/year. It’s a valid question.

Meet Nash Huber and his crew. See up close how he does it. Stop in and meet Jeff and Debbie Brown and Ryan and Sarah Brown McCarthey. Meet the hands that feed us and thank them first hand.

Chinese Garlic Lord relaxes, thinking of all the money he is making with his stash of garlic. If you ask me, this picture illustrates another good reason to BUY LOCAL. (Reuters photo)

Ok Folks – this is just in from the news, so you know it must be true.

GARLIC – yes, our humble little bulb of the Allium family – is outperforming gold, silver, oil, real estate, and stocks in China. In fact – and I am not making this up – people are INVESTING in garlic – trading it on the black market – HOARDING garlic (yes, I have been known to do this, too) – and quadrupling their money (umm – it’s just a pleasant gastronomic memory of very high proportions for me).

There is a story of a young jobless guy with basically nothing going for him who bought 100 tons of garlic and turned around and more than doubled his money a couple months later and bought a new Toyota pickup (I would have suggested he get an education, but he was one happy guy, regardless). Had he held out a little longer, he could have doubled that once again. In fact (loosely defined), in some provinces, the price skyrocketed 15 to 50 times that of normal, depending on the source you read – and I know that’s a pretty big spread – but the concept is still there:  Garlic – yes, GARLIC – has been named the Best Performing Asset in China this year. People are living high on the stuff – buying homes with swimming pools, movie stars, and the whole works with their profits. We’re talking about people becoming overnight millionaires trading – yep – garlic!

Gee – and all this time, I’ve been trading garlic for good cheer.

Seriously, folks – this is Wall Street madness taking place in the trenches. According to the Financial Times out of London, “In Shandong province, China’s garlic-growing heartland … cash dispensing machines have run out of money amid frenzied trading.”

And get this quote from ABC News that according to the China Business News, “coal mine bosses — who are often depicted as being both extremely rich and nefarious speculators – [have] been playing the garlic market, hoarding bulbs and hauling them between storehouses.”

Nefarious, indeed.

I admit, I have never been to China, but it sounds like there is mafia opportunity here, and I think we have the makings of a movie with lots of high-powered kung-fu moves fighting over who gets the last clove of garlic – at least, that’s how it works in my family, and I tell you what – nobody messes with me. But then, my family is Sicilian.

But hey – we all understand that for the price to go up, there has to be a demand – and those of us who know garlic also know the fresh stuff only lasts so long. Why the demand? Apparently, because of last year’s low prices, farmers planted half of their normal crop (and there were those who were tuned into this fact), so now there are fewer bulbs to go around. In a country like China, which produces about 75% of the world’s garlic (followed by Argentina and Spain – a fact that may be news to Gilroy, the self-proclaimed garlic capital of the world, but lest I digress…), reducing the crop by 50% amounts to a lot. That’s still a lot of garlic. Try to picture 1 million acres of just garlic. I just can’t.

Enter the H1N1 panic. I am not one to argue with traditional Chinese medicine, which goes back thousands of years and is respected the world over; however, there is no scientific basis to the idea that garlic can ward off the swine flu (according to my #1 source: the Internet), although garlic has long been associated with neutralizing viruses, killing bacteria, disinfecting closets, and repelling vampires and other undesirable suitors.

Imagine this scenario: people in schools are stashing supplies of garlic to ration out to students. I am picturing small children in uniforms, stoically standing in straight rows, obediently chewing raw cloves, eyes watering. Garlic will make you strong, alright.

I admit, this was the best garlic year ever for me, too, but not because garlic is a scarce commodity or because I was capitalizing on fear.

No, as boring as it sounds, I attribute my success to the basic business principles of consistent marketing, building a reputation, nurturing relationships, and a lot of hard work growing, weeding, harvesting, curing, cleaning, and packaging the bulbs, which I get to know on an individual basis. Come to think of it, if you look at my hourly wage, I wasn’t all that successful, all facts considered, which is why I decided to cut back my 2010 crop by – guess what – 50%, a decision I am now regretting. Many of my neighbors are jumping on the garlic bandwagon and are upping their plantings. I don’t fear the competition. There is plenty to go around. Garlic is always fun to share and trade. We just trade on a different scale.

See, like most investment opportunities, by the time most of us hear about them, it’s too late. And I am not one to criticize our friends on the west side of the Pacific, because they work very hard to make a few measly dollars (translated from Yuan, Won, Yen, Dong, etc. – depending on where you are).

Is it too late to invest in garlic? If you’re imploring me, I have to say, yes. Sadly, mine is almost all gone. But if you’re begging me for my last few bulbs, I will probably give them to you – gratis. I am a sucker for desperados.

It does seem rather ironic, though, that for many years I have been trying to educate people (a term I have always found rather patronizing, but here I am using it) on the difference between the superior quality and taste of my gourmet varieties of garlic – some of which are relatively rare in this country – bulbs that have been individually nurtured with my own two hands and that cannot be grown by commercial mechanized methods – and those relatively tasteless 2-for-a-buck Chinese bulbs you still find piled high in the grocery stores. And although I am finding more fans in recent seasons, thanks in part to foodie and locavore trends (I admit, I am a member of both of these groups) – it is the crisis in China – of all places – and the subsequent skyrocketing price of cheap garlic – that is making people sit down at the table and take notice of the value of this little bulb.

Jeesh – more valuable than gold! I always thought so. You can’t eat gold.

As I always say, Eat Garlic. Eat LOTS of it! And, of course, for the very best, BUY LOCAL.

Check out the phenomenal variety of goods I purchased this week from the Sequim Locally Grown outlet: cinnamon rolls and a peach pie (wow!) from Sequim Valley Products, turnips, kohlrabi, and leeks from the Lazy J Farm, shallots from the Johnston Farms, flax seed from Teri Crockett, fresh oysters from QuilBay Seafood, and a live Colorado Blue Spruce tree from the Hydrangea Rangers (which we will plant after Christmas)! I had also recently purchased locally grown wheat from Nash’s store, fresh raw milk from the Dungeness Valley Creamery, freshly roasted coffee from Princess Valient, fresh raw honey from the Rarely Bee Haven Apiary, and lip balm and soap from the Galloping Goats Farm. That is just a small sampling of what is available.

Sequim Locally Grown makes it so easy. You just go online and browse through the produce and products posted by local farmers and artisans, make your selections by Tuesday evening, and then pick up your order at the local Grange on Thursday. It’s a special treat to see what was selected for you to complete your order – and definitely fun to see what everyone else is getting to give you ideas on what to order next week (personally, I’m going for Yvonne’s Chocolates!). (More local sources of food can be found on my Buy Local page – and if you think of someone who needs to be added, please contact me!)

This Thanksgiving, I am literally OVERWHELMED by how blessed we are to have so much available to us that is grown right here! It is such a privilege to be able to get to know the good people who work so hard to bring it to our table!

I am also keenly aware that not everyone is blessed with such abundance. According to the World Food Program, over a billion people in the world are going hungry, which means 1 in 6 people do not get enough food to be healthy. We are spoiled in the US, but we still have our problems. They are not insurmountable. It just takes a little effort on everyone’s part to help out someone else. Can’t find locally grown food near you? Go to Local Harvest for a directory of family farms. Just plug in your zip code and you may be surprised what is available near you. Real farmers. Real food. All across the country. Once you taste locally grown, anything else seems mediocre. Being a locavore becomes a mindset and a way of life.

I also know that I am extremely fortunate to be able to grow my own food – and although my hourly wage may not amount to much, the pride I have in knowing I am providing the very best nutrition and flavor for my family, the security in knowing that no matter what the economy does, we will have plenty of food, and the satisfaction in doing something that keeps me physically fit and that provides me something of substance (that I can see and EAT!) as a result of my labor – is worth far more than what I would pay for a similar (but ultimately inferior) item that has been transported from who knows where to sit on a shelf in a supermarket.

I have corn and beans in the freezer, canned tomatoes, relish, and jams on the shelves, and broccoli, chard, collards, and an assortment of greens ready to harvest in the garden right now. I have numerous boxes of Gravenstein apples and several varieties of potatoes in our barn, along with an assortment of pumpkins and other squashes. (If you could use some apples, please contact me!)

Abundance is what Thanksgiving has become all about. Get this: according to the American Council on Exercise, for the average American, Thanksgiving is a time to consume 3,000 calories and 229 grams of fat. If that doesn’t epitomize this odd compulsion Americans have with consumption, I don’t know what does.

I think of those early Pilgrims, whom we unrealistically commemorate on this holiday, and how they sat down with the Wampanoag Native Americans (who undoubtedly lent them a hand to keep them from starving!), probably at a simple feast that included deer and seafood as well as fowl, beans, corn, squash, and probably some wild greens. And guess what? IT WAS ALL LOCAL FOOD!

So before you commit yourself to a post-Thanksgiving feast coma followed by a fleeting idea of the need to walk for 30 miles to wear off those calories (and then collapsing for 3 days afterward and doing nothing), consider what Thanksgiving means to you. A time to be thankful, of course; also a time to be mindful. Abundance? Yes. Over-consumption? Not necessarily. A time to celebrate the fruits of all the hard work that went into making all this food available. A time to lend a hand to others.

And if you really want to celebrate a traditional Thanksgiving – GO LOCAL!

Thank a farmer. Thank the hands that feed you. Thank your neighbor!

I have to tell you about Andi and Rudy. Andi likes texture in her pieces and is fond of finding unusual things with which to imprint patterns into her work. She adds a bit of whimsy to her creations. She also has a serious knack for photography.

Rudy is part scientist, part potter. Talk with Rudy and you get a real education in what goes into making pottery – where he digs the clay from steep mountainsides in remote areas, where he comes across rare minerals for the glazes, how he achieves an unusual metallic luster to his pieces, the chemistry behind the transformation that occurs when you heat something to 2300 degrees F or more….

Rudy “claims” to have reached an understanding with his passion for clay over the last 15 or so years, but he still continues this never-ending quest to stretch the limits of what is possible with this most basic of elements from our earth and the minerals that transform a plain pot into a mesmerizing vessel that melds form, function, and inescapable beauty. His pieces make you want to hold them firmly in both hands and then to run your fingers lightly across and around its contours. Very sensuous. Very tactile.

And the result? Truly phenomenal!

What is it with pottery that somehow touches us so deeply? It brings to mind ancient cultures that cross into modern times. It blurs the line between an object with an obvious purpose: filling, holding, carrying, emptying – and the abstract realm of emotion and spirituality. It has the ability to intertwine utility with the essence of who we are, a duality that fools us with its simplicity.

Here is a picture of my personal favorite garlic roaster (center piece), which sits in my kitchen on the window sill and reflects the changing moods of the day outside. Beside it are some other Bauer Haus creations: a French butter dish to the left (the little robin is a memory from my mother), a funky little bird (made by Andi) to the right, a couple of small bowls, and some of my favorite rocks.

So – yes, to roast garlic, you can use aluminum foil – that convenient disposable product that finds its way to landfills – and it will bake up just fine. Cut a small piece off the top of the garlic bulb to expose the tips of the cloves and pour a little oil on top. Wrap the foil around the bulb and bake at 350 degrees for about 45 minutes. Roasted garlic is always good.

BUT – bake your garlic in pottery – and the garlic is transformed from a mere accessory to the meal to an elegant centerpiece at your table.  (I highly recommend a Georgia Fire, Chesnok Red, or a plump Bogatyr variety – or perhaps a Brown Tempest or a Persian Star – so hard to choose!)

In a tradition that dates perhaps thousands of years before Christ – simply drizzle the bulb with the oil of the olive tree, and bake it slowly until it is creamy soft and the sugars are caramelized. The vessel captures the aroma and ensures all of the juices are secure. Roasted garlic done this way elevates a simple dinner to a feast.

Bring the vessel to the table. Slowly open the lid. Deeply inhale the fragrance.

Give thanks.

Thank you, Andi and Rudy! I am thankful for friends like you!

And to all my friends in cyberspace, have an abundant Thanksgiving, and of course, remember to buy local!