Garden Problem: Weeds
Weeds,
they just keep showing up!
On
the farm, a weed is simply a plant out of place. Your beautiful Bluegrass lawn
would be a real problem in our lettuce beds. Mostly we all know that every year
the lambs quarter, thistles and Johnson grass will be back. Knowing how each
one decides where to grow and how they reproduce is key to containing or at
least co-existing with them.
The
back-story is weeds are opportunistic and indicators. Some like tight clay soils, others wet
conditions. Some like full shade, others
full sun. Some thrive in cool weather,
others like it hot and dry. So when you see weeds growing in the path, spraying
an herbicide is quick and easy, albeit short sighted. It or another plant that
likes compacted soil will return in due time. The real solution is to loosen
the soil to allow the desirable grasses and clovers to re-populate the area. A
weed patch can sometimes indicate a mineral imbalance in the soil. It is
counter intuitive, but if you analyze the plant tissue and see that it is high
in a particular element like boron, the weed is actually living in a boron
deficient soil. It provides the function of scouring the soil for any and all
boron, so when it is chopped up and tilled into the soil, it will deposit the
accumulated boron back and make it available to future crops.
Then, there is how they reproduce. Some rely on
making lots of seeds. Others have specialized stems or roots. Guiding these
systems are if they are programmed as annuals, biennials, or perennials.
Annuals, like lambs quarter, arise when the temperature and moisture and
placement in the soil merge to create the proper conditions for germination.
When you first see lambs quarter emerge, that is the best time to manually hoe
or disturb the seedling before it takes root. Since some have a fibrous root
system and others make a deep penetrating taproot it is best to prevent their
maturation process. If allowed to go to seed, the plant will produce hundreds
if not thousands of seeds for future generations. Every square foot of soil contains
gazillions of seeds from years past, known as the soil seed bank. Biennials,
like thistles, take two years to go thru this cycle. When the wind blows the
tiny seed, the ones that grow landed in an open spot. The first growing season
it will make a low-growing rosette. The following year it will send up the seed
stalk and make a reddish purple flower that
sends thousands of seeds into the air. When chopping these plants you must cut
the crown where the plant meets the soil to prevent it from suckering out and
sending up a secondary seed stalk. If you severe the seed stalk at just the
right time, the plant hormones will think it set seeds so no need to sucker out
again, but actually they are not viable. Perennials, on the other hand, are the
most insidious of all. Johnson grass not
only likes to make lots of seeds, it also forms specialized roots/stems known
as rhizomes. These run through the soil, sending up new shoots at nodes along
the stem. Usually one node will become dominant so the energy for growth is
delivered there. If you chop up these rhizomes each node will become dominant
and you helped it reproduce.
While
all these variations on the theme are interacting, there is one other aspect to
consider. All plants exude compounds out of their roots into the soil as part
of its interaction with the environment. One of these has an allelapathic
effect on other plants. This is a self-preservation technique that is toxic to
other weed seeds, preventing them from germinating or withering soon after.
Given
all these variables, it is challenging to manage our fields to reduce or
eliminate weeds to produce edible crops. Some times it looks weedy, but is not
really hurting the crop. Other times it looks pretty good, but the specter of
doom is looming. So look at your yard or at others as you drive along the road
to see why those plants might be growing where they are. A weed problem might be as simple as adding a
little organic boron fertilizer.
In Your Share
Green
Beans- organic
Broccoli
– organic
One more week of the most popular
green vegetable! You told us you wanted
more in last year’s member survey.
Cucumber
Fresh
Garlic – organic
Lacinato
Black Kale Greens – organic
Yellow
Squash and/or Green Zucchini
Tomatoes
- organic
Napa
Cabbage – organic
Sugar
Snap Peas – organic
Don’t
toss out your nutrients!
So say the editors of
Recipes to Enjoy
Ginger Lemon Broccoli
Recipe shared by a
friend of the farm, our thanks!
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp lemon juice
½ tsp salt
¼ tsp minced garlic
¼ tsp grated fresh ginger
¼ tsp lemon peel
1 head fresh broccoli
Whisk oil, lemon juice, salt,
garlic, ginger, and lemon peel in small bowl.
Set aside.
Cook 1 head broccoli, cut
into florets, 6 C boiling salted water for 2 minutes. Drain.
Toss with dressing.
Green Smoothie, our thanks to a CSA
member for sharing this recipe, as smoothies are an easy way to include fresh
greens in our daily diet. She reports, “It
was really GOOD! I was worried that the
kale taste would be too strong, but it really wasn't!”
Mix in blender for 1 serving the following:
3 large leaves of Kale (remove stem)
1 frozen banana
1/3 C Greek non-fat vanilla yogurt
1/3 C apple juice
1
small handful of ice cubes
Cold
Pea Soup, our
thanks to a CSA member for sharing this seasonal recipe.
1
pound sugar snap peas
1
medium potato
1
pint chicken or vegetable stock
salt
and freshly ground black pepper
2 T
sour cream
chopped
fresh parsley for garnish
String
peas; peel and finely chop potatoes.
Combine peas and potatoes with stock in a saucepan and bring to
boil. Reduce to simmer for approximately
ten minutes until vegetables are tender. Cool for a few minutes then blend
until pureed. Add salt and pepper to
taste, then force through a fairly fine strainer, discarding solids. Stir or whisk in sour cream and refrigerate
for up to two days.
Kale
Salad with Pecorino and Lemon
serves 4. Many versions of kale salad
are around, this one originally in The New York Times 2007.
1
large bunch kale, washed and trimmed of stems
4 ounces Pecorino Romano, grated
2 lemons, juiced
½ C olive oil
salt and fresh black pepper, to taste
4 ounces Pecorino Romano, grated
2 lemons, juiced
½ C olive oil
salt and fresh black pepper, to taste
Roll
several kale leaves lengthwise and using the point of a chef's knife, cut away
the thick center stem. Discard. Roll the remaining stack of de-veined leaves
into a tight cigar shape and slice into thin ribbons.
Toss
the shaved kale with the cheese. Whisk the lemon juice and olive oil and pour
over the salad. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Here is the key to any kale salad!! Let
the salad sit at room temperature for 20 minutes up to an hour before serving.
Tuscan Kale Caesar Slaw, adapted from a Bon
Appetite recipe from Epicurious online.
¼ C fresh lemon juice
8 anchovy fillets packed in
oil, drained
1 garlic clove
1 tsp Dijon-type mustard
½ C extra-virgin olive oil
½ C finely grated Parmesan,
divided
salt and freshly ground black
pepper
1 hard-boiled egg, peeled
1 bunch Lacinato/Tuscan black
kale, center stalks remov-ed, thinly sliced crosswise (about 8 C)
Combine the first 4 ingredients in a blender; purée until smooth. With machine running, slowly add oil, drop by drop, to make a creamy dressing. Transfer dressing to a bowl and stir in ¼ C Parmesan. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Cover and chill. Dressing can be made 2 days ahead, keep chilled.
Coarsely
chop hard-boiled eggs, you can separate the yolk from the white and chop
separately if you want to, depending on your final presentation. Toss kale and dressing in a large bowl to
coat. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Top with remaining 1/4 C Parmesan
and chopped eggs.
Substitution:
you can use a little soy sauce in place of the anchovies; it’s the saltiness
that you want to balance the other flavors.
Wonderfully
Easy Pasta with Kale,
an Asparagus to Zucchini recipe
1/3
pound penne or farfalle pasta
2 to
3 T olive oil
1
small onion, diced
2 or
3 garlic cloves, minced
½
pound chopped kale leaves
salt
and pepper
Bring
6-8 C salted water to a boil; add pasta and cook until tender. Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a large skillet
over medium heat, add the onions and garlic, and cook until tender. Add the kale and sauté until wilted. Drain the pasta and combine it with the onions,
garlic, and kale. Season with salt and
pepper and serve immediately.
