Years and years ago, Pop tried to teach us all to be survivors. "To survive, you have to know things. You may not necessarily need to be book smart but you do need to know things." For a while, that made no sense whatsoever to my feeble brain but, at his insistence, I kept listening and learning. I am glad I did and I am still learning. Now, his words not only make sense but seem brilliant. Not every life skill can be gleaned from the pages of a book. Some need to be hands-on knowledge. There is a lot to be said about those hand-me-down teachings from long ago. I find it a bit humorous and a lot ironic that "science" is suddenly saying "Your grandparents were right!" about so many things. Tidbits of information that we could have possessed merely by listening...really listening...are now suddenly all the rage. Books are published daily with "Grandma's remedies", "essential oils" are a huge fad after being used for centuries and "survival" classes have no vacancies. Why? All because we were too all fired ready to pass on the teachings of ones like Pop to "move forward with progress". Yep, now that progress is telling us we should have listened. We should have learned. Didn't? Oh, no problem! Pay us big money so you can learn what used to be common knowledge. It seems like a lot of folks got a little too big for their britches, so to speak. So, for whatever it is worth, I try to pass along information occasionally. To bad others do not pay heed. A lot of good stuff is going the wayside.
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| Henbit starting to bud. |
These thoughts plowed through the old brain today as I was snipping a bundle of Brussels Sprout leaves for lunch. No, my great tip of the day is not that you can eat the leaves as well as the sprouts but rather about another plant most folks deem as a weed. Henbit, Henbit Dead Nettle, Dratted Weed or whatever you wish to call it, the plant is edible as well as quite pretty as a wildflower. Pop always called it "Henbit" so that is the name that stuck in my head all of these years. "Learn what plants are edible and you will never go hungry." Good advice, Pop! If ever need be, I know that I can gather henbit along with about a thousand other plants and survive. I will have food, albeit food that some folks think of as unconventional food. Henbit is a great plant to have about the place. It is ready to grow in any given soil and climate. To go along with its attractive appearance, it has sort of a peppery flavor making it a great addition to salads.(Henbit is in the mint family but to me, it has more of a grassy/mustard green flavor) It can also be cooked as any other greens or added to stir fries. Both the leaves and the flowers are edible! Think of how pretty this would be in a salad at your next dinner party! One word of caution though, in herbal remedies, henbit is used as a laxative. You might want to hold off overeating it!
Now another good point about this so-called weed. Honeybees love it and that, my friends, is a great thing for us. With the decline in the honeybee population, having a clean bunch of flowers makes for happy bees. Since I prefer that no harmful chemicals touch my gardens, the henbit plants (and all other plants) produce pure, clean pollen and nectar. Another important lesson from Pop which is just now making news..."Take care of the bees. Without them, there won't be much left. Bees take care of the plants and so take care of us. No bees, no us." Pop was a smart man and it did not take a lot of book learning for him to get that way.
How many times have I heard the phrase "If we could only bottle this!"? Folks, who are not accustomed to the scents of a garden, go wild over the Jasmine, Citrus blossoms, Southern Magnolias, Wisteria and Gardenias. These blooms fill the air with their light flowery fragrance. The winds off of the Bay gently waft the aroma around the yard filling every nook and cranny. At night when the dew settles over the hillside, the fragrance strengthens and silently flows in through the open windows. The house takes on an entirely different feel. It is almost mystical!
With a big lug of a dog snoozing on the living room floor, my house can use all the help it can get in the form of deodorizing. I wash her and her bedding only to be accosted by "doggy" smell within a few hours. Ugh! This makes me appreciate the blooms all the more. I have even taken to picking Gardenias to set in the window where the breeze can filter it into each room. This afternoon as I sat looking out the window, an antique canning jar of Gardenia blooms was sitting near me. I thought about folks who live in big cities and do not have the opportunity to sleep with open windows, sounds of frogs and scents like Gardenias. With that thought, I was saddened. Surely everyone must experience this at some point. I vowed right then and there to never take this for granted. My little piece of paradise is just that..paradise.
Now a few "did you know" facts about Gardenias. The fruit of the Gardenia is used to make a yellow dye that is used in clothing and food. Gardenias are being studied as a possible treatment for rheumatoid arthritis and as an immune system booster. Gardenias are actually edible! That lovely white bloom of the Gardenia Jasminoides can be used in salads or to garnish desserts. The petals can be snipped and candied but my favorite recipe calls for Gardenia J. petals to be made into ice cream! Yep, ice cream! I have not tried this but anything involving ice cream has to be delightful! I am thinking that this will be the project for tomorrow! Gardenia ice cream definitely has piqued my interest and since I have several bushes in full bloom, now is a perfect time to try the recipe! (If this is a success, look for recipe forthcoming!)
*One word of warning. If you plan to eat any flowers, first use a reputable source to check for edibility and double check the identity. Never use any flowers that have been sprayed with pesticides and never use any from roadsides as they are contaminated with exhaust emissions. Do not use blooms from florists or department stores as they are most likely treated to last longer. It is best to use your own home-grown flowers!
