Tomatillos on the Vine

I’ve been very excited about growing tomatillos in the garden this year and am so happy that they are abundant. Almost every day I’ve been collecting bowls full of them; I almost don’t know what to do with them all!  But gathering them is simply a delight.  Barefoot I tread onto the dirt between the rows of vegetables,  exploring the climbing vines to find their glorious splendour hidden in fragile husks.  It’s amazing how they hang so heavily on the vine, enclosed by such a dainty covering - another wonder of nature.  Once the husks are peeled back I enjoy the beautiful array of bright and vivid colours from lime green to sunny yellow.  Each one is its own unique little surprise and a delicious organic treat!

Tomatillos with Husk

Tomatillos without Husk

The tomatillo (Physalis philadelphica) is a plant of the Solanaceae family (aka nightshade) and is related to the tomato.  It is a staple in Mexican cuisine (which I absolutely adore) and is called by many names such as tomate verde, tomate de cascara and fresadilla.  The fruit dates back to about 800 BC and was domesticated by the Aztecs. The native Nahuatl word tomatl can be interpreted as “round and plump”, a description which fits the tomatillo perfectly.  In traditional medicine, they were used to treat a variety of illnesses and diseases.  A concoction was made of the flower calyces to treat diabetes and the fruits were also used as a remedy for fever.  Tomatillos are high in dietary fiber, vitamin C, vitamin K, niacin, potassium and manganese, making them a healthy addition to all diets.

Fortunately, tomatillos keep quite well after picked.  If stored in a cool dark place or the refrigerator, they will keep for a couple of weeks.  You can also pop a few in a ziploc bag (with husks removed) and store them in the freezer to be thawed when needed.  Since I adore Mexican food so much, I decided to gather a good quantity of tomatillos to make a batch of Salsa Verde.  I used a variety of  jar sizes so that I would have just the right amount when needed.  Tomatillos are hard to come by in my local markets, so I will also definitely be freezing a few bags as well.

Below is a very simple recipe for cooked Salsa Verde which can be served hot over pork and poultry entrees and in baked dishes such as enchiladas, or cold as a side dipping sauce.  This recipe is for a small portion but it’s a good idea to make a larger batch for canning or freezing. I like to cook “by eye” so my measurements below are just an approximation.

Salsa Verde Recipe
2 cups Tomatillos (husks removed)
Water with Vegetable bouillon cube or Vegetable Stock
1clove of Garlic
1/2 a small Onion
1 bunch of Cilantro
1 large Jalapeno Pepper
1/2 Lime
1 tbsp Corn Oil
Salt
Pepper

After removing the husks of the tomatillos, rinse in cold water to remove a bit of the sticky residue and add to pot.  Add just enough water (or vegetable stock) to cover the tomatillos and cook over medium heat.  If adding a vegetable buillon cube, just add enough for flavouring (maybe 1/3 to 1/2 cube depending on the cube size).  Cook for about 5 – 8 minutes or until the colour of the tomatillo starts to change.  Puree tomatillos in food processor along with cilantro, garlic, onion, jalapeno pepper, the juice of half of a lime, and some of the liquid from the pot.  Add salt and pepper to taste.  Once blended together, move sauce to a pan with the heated oil and cook for another 10 minutes, stirring often.

If canning: cook for another 5 minutes and immediately pour into clean and sterilized glass jars and close lids tightly. Move jars to a pot of hot water (make sure jars are completely immersed in water) and boil for another 15 – 20 minutes. Turn off heat and allow jars to cool in pot. Once cooled down a bit, make sure lids are sealed and wrap jars in tea towels or a table cloth to cool completely. Store in a cool dark place and then serve up come fiesta time!

You can also make the cruda option by not cooking the tomatillos beforehand.  This makes a great fresh appetizer along with tomato salsa and guacamole.  Enjoy with tortilla chips.

Salsa Verde

Here are some photos to show you how the garden looks right now.  Such a huge difference from just a couple of months ago.  Isn’t it stunning?  I am just loving it all!  I’m proud to say it looks like I inherited my mother’s green thumb afterall!

Medicine Wheel In All Its Glory

 

Left Veggie Garden

Right Veggie Garden

 

It’s been a stressful couple of weeks but I have found solace in the garden.  It has truly become a place of sanctuary for me.  I find that when too much is on my mind and I can’t shut off the chitter chatter in my brain, or I just need some quiet time to pause and reflect, I step out into the backyard, slip off my shoes, graze over the velvet grass, and connect with Mother Earth.  Almost instantly I am awash with a sense of peace and calm and my cup runneth over with tranquillity.  Ahhhh.  If only I could put that feeling in my pocket and carry it with me throughout the day!

Perusing the garden to admire the progress of my herbs and veggies is simply a delight.  The Tomatillos are doing very well and are quite abundant and the Cilantro is pushing through the earth.  The Cucumbers have just started to sprout  and the Beans are really making their way up the stakes.  Even the Tomatoes are beginning to show their tiny little globes of wonder.  I am already devouring the Lettuce, Borage and Rapini and can’t wait for the rest to grow.  It’s all giving me such a sense of accomplishment and satisfaction and right now a little bit of effort is thankfully going a long way.

I have also taken to meditating, seated directly in front of my medicine wheel.  Depending on what I am feeling that day or what type of guidance I am seeking, I sit in the appropriate direction, take a deep breath, centre myself, and let go.  Just the other day I was feeling a little blue and a tad overwhelmed, so I took a seat in the South near my cheerful St. John’s Wort, sunny Calendula and mirthful Chamomiles, and I soon began to feel rejuvenated and joyful.  I have also had quite a lot on my mind recently regarding some big decisions and plans, so I have sat often in the North with my Mints and Thymes, reaching out into the centre towards my Clary Sage to welcome divine guidance, clarity and inspiration.  Since I have recently been immersed deep in study and work, I think I may need to soon sit in the East so that the fire that burns in my Bergamot, Wormwood, and Rosemary can help recharge and invigorate me to help ward off fatigue.  But what I welcome most, when all is said and done and I have time to just relax and renew, is a cozy spot in the West, soaking in the serenity of my Lavender, Catnip, Lemon Balm, and Feverfew.  How wonderful that I am gaining so much from my Medicine Wheel with only a bit of love and work in return.  Mother Earth really does have us cradled in the palms of her hands, safe and sound, and that’s just where I want to be right now.

Since my last post, work in the veggie garden has continued to progress.  Some of the Tomatoes and Tomatillos have been staked, the Beans have been planted and today I sowed the seeds of my Lemon Cucumbers into smaller planter pots in order to later plant them with the other veggies when we can find some room (although ideally, I think I should have waited a few more days).  I also transplanted the Calendula into my Medicine Wheel, so all is coming along nicely.

I also found some great websites which have helped me understand Biodynamic and Lunar Planting a bit better.  Planting by the Moon gives some helpful general information regarding Lunar Planting with a handy Moon Phase Calendar and some tips on when to do what.  The Gardener’s Calendar is a much more informative and detailed website with lots of useful information, links, etc.  It also provides an extremely useful planting schedule based on Synodic, Biodynamic, and Sidereal gardening which makes it a little easier for a new gardener like myself.  I must admit, however, it’s all a bit bewildering and perplexing as sometimes the calendars contradict each other.  Makes me scratch my head and wonder what I got myself into here.  Oh well.  Everything is now in dirt so it’s all up to the universe now.  I will at least give myself an “A” for effort.  I’m sure it will begin to make much more sense as I go and next year I will be much better prepared.

You may also notice that I’ve done a bit more work on the website itself. I’ve now created a more welcoming  Home page, separated the posts into their own Blog  page, and after figuring out what to write about myself, I completed the About the Author page (with the cutest photo of me ever, if I do say so myself) so those who don’t know me very well, or at all, can learn a little more about me.  It’s all a work in progress.

And now finally, for your viewing pleasure, here’s a look at the veggie garden as it sits right now.  So pretty.

Carrots (Royal Chantenay)
Celery
Chard
Cilantro
Cucumbers (Sweet Marketmore)
Eggplants (Sicilian)
Garlic
Onions (Green, Yellow & Red)
Lettuce
Parsley
Peppers (Golden Cal Wonder, Yellow Banana, Sweet Red Pimento, Jalapeno, & Habanero)
Rapini
Tomatoes (Early Girl, Yellow Currant, Oxheart, Ultraboy, and a variety of Roma Tomato)
Tomatillos
Zucchini

We also planted a few Marigolds, which are natural insect repellents, amongst the veggies to help keep away those pesky insects.  Hopefully it works.

Most of our herbs and vegetables were purchased from Richter’s Herbs in Goodwood, Ontario, who specialize in organic gardening, while others were passed along to us from neighbours or purchased at the local market.  We also saved seeds from last year’s harvest and sowed them earlier in the year into little planter pots so that the plants would be ready to transplant in the garden when ready.

We have yet to plant some Beans and Butternut Squash, which I’m really looking forward to as it’s one of my favourites, and I’m hoping we can find a spot for Cantaloupe as it was deeelicious when we planted it a few years ago.  I was holding off on sowing the seeds of my Lemon Cucumbers for a couple more days until the right lunar phase to keep in line with my biodynamic gardening plan, but my mother (who is letting me share her garden space this year) seems to have stolen my spot for HER cucumbers.  Grrrr.  She’s a sly old gal I tell ya.  Don’t let her sweet little Italian mamma act fool you.  LOL   So, now I’ll have to sow the seeds into small planters and then we’ll need to find space to transplant my cucumbers when the seeds have grown into small plants.  I can’t wait to pickle those babies.

Aside from the vegetable garden and my medicine wheel, we also have other goodies planted in other areas of the garden.  We have our trusty perennial herbs such as, Basil, Chives, Oregano, Peppermint, Rue, and Sage growing amongst the flowers and also have Borage, more Rapini and some other varieties of Lettuce planted under the fruit trees to make use of the various planting areas we have.  I think we’re going to have another wonderful bounty come harvest time.

After all has found its place in the earth, the rest of the work will be maintenance such as daily watering, removing dried up leaves, tying up the vines to wooden stakes for support, and routine inspection for bugs.  My mother has already begun a tiny battle with a bird who appears to be liking my Wormwood.  I guess he was just looking for his fix from the “Green Fairy”.  Hopefully he’ll keep away, but hey, the birds have to eat too, right?

On a personal note, I am truly relishing this planting time.  Getting my hands and feet in the dirt is definitely therapeutic and I highly recommend a little gardening to everyone.  I find it very meditative and soothing,  plus it  gives me a good excuse to give myself some pampering manicures and pedicures at the end of the day.  And even though my neighbours might find me a bit strange for chatting with my herbs and veggies and giving them reiki, I really think my “babies”  enjoy my daily banter  and all the love and good energy I send their way.  I guess we’ll find out how much they appreciate it come harvest time.

The Maya believe that the universe is divided into 5 sacred regions. The division begins in the terrestrial plane and continues on into the heavens. Each region is represented by specific attributes with corresponding colours and elements as follows:

East – Red – Fire
North – White – Air
West – Black – Water
South – Yellow – Earth

In the centre, we find the Ceiba Tree or the Yax Che, the sacred Tree of Life of the Maya. The corresponding colour of this heart and core of the medicine wheel is therefore green, symbolizing love and life.

Yax Che - The Mayan Tree of Life and the Cardinal Directions

Not only does each direction represent different colours and elements, but they also maintain their own corresponding attributes:

East
As seen above, East is represented by the colour red and correlates with the element of fire. It is the direction of birth, for it is in the east that the sun, the moon, the stars and the clouds are born. The east also symbolizes activity, passion and vitality.

North
The North symbolizes the breath of life. It opens the portal to the wisdom of our elders and ancestors and carries forth messages from the spiritual realm.

West
The West represents the emotions. It is the direction of serenity and tranquillity. As the sun sets in the west and the day falls to night, silence envelops us, and we drift off to dreams and peaceful slumber.

South
In the South we connect to the Earth and Mother Nature. Here, we feel the joy of being alive and being present in physical form as we express the innocence of a child and the sheer bliss of existence.

As I wanted to remain true to the significance of the Mayan medicine wheel, I therefore planted herbs whose own attributes correlated to each direction and element. Below are the photos of my herbal medicine wheel with names of herbs planted. I will go into further detail of each herb in later posts.

East

As the East signifies activity, fire, warmth and new life I planted Wormwood, Bergamot and Rosemary. Later I will plant Echinacea as it will need to be transplanted from another area in the garden.

East

North

In the North, our breath of life, I planted 2 types of mint (Orange and Margarita Lime), and 2 types of Thyme (English and Lemon).

North

West

In the West we are reminded of the closing of the day. A time for rest and calm and sleep. Thus, here I planted soothing herbs such as, Feverfew, Melissa (Lemon Balm), Lavender, and Catnip.

West

South

In the South, we feel the joy of being alive. Here, we surrender to playfulness and laughter and reconnect with our inner-child. In this direction I planted St. John’s Wort, Roman and German Chamomile, and will later transplant Calendula from another area of the garden.

South

In the Centre, I planted Clary Sage, a symbol of wisdom, strength, and clarity to unify all the herbs planted.

All in all I am quite pleased with the layout of my garden. It may look pretty barren at the moment, but as the plants begin to flourish and grow, they will expand and cover each quadrant until all that will be seen is a majestic array of colours and beauty. I can’t wait until harvest time! And as a closer, here is a semi-arial view of the entire medicine wheel as it sits right now.

Medicine Wheel

With my herbs selected and shovel in hand, the first step was to complete my medicine wheel design. With the circle already formed, all that needed to be done was to create the centre core and the 4 sectors of the medicine wheel. As I am sometimes directionally challenged, I made good use of my trusty compass to find true north and then went on from there. In the end, I had a perfectly aligned (and almost perfectly circular) medicine wheel.

Medicine Wheel

I personally think it looks fabulous with the vegetable garden in the background.

Garden View

Next I decided which plants would be best suited for each direction and began to plant them in relation to their properties and the ways in which they would be used through traditional and medicinal methods. (A more detailed description will be discussed in my following post.) As the moon is in the waning gibbous phase, the time was perfect for planting my herbs as they are all perennials and rely on a strong root system for support. With each plant in place, I grounded and centred myself and gave them a little bit of love and reiki, so that they may grow strong and healthy, full of goodness and vital energy, and then finally showered them with water to let the magical wonders of nature begin! And I truly believe that something special was at hand because the birds and bees could not get enough of my new medicine wheel. They were all fluttering about with curiosity, inspecting this new found treasure whenever I walked away from it. I’m glad they’re excited about it too.

In order to create my medicine wheel, I first had to decide on the dimensions and size of my garden. I decided to go with about a 7″ foot diameter, give or take. I then had to dig up the beautifully manicured lawn which was an arduous feat that took up the better part of the day. Who knew ripping up a lawn was so much work? After the lawn was ripped out and my circle was formed, I began laying bricks (left-overs from the interlocking driveway – reduce, reuse, recycle!) around the perimeter of my circle.

Here are some before and afters…

Before Digging

Beginning Perimeter

Circle Complete

With a full day’s work behind me (and a slew of aches and pains quickly developing), I decided to retire for the day. Phew!

Welcome all to my Enchanted Garden, a place for my musings and ramblings and my adventures in gardening. Through this blog I will follow the progress of my new Medicine Wheel Herb Garden as well as the vegetable garden. As I am relatively a beginner to gardening, I’m hoping that I have inherited my mother’s green thumb. Only time will tell.

In keeping with my own personal philosophy and way of life, it is integral that my garden be an organic one. I will also be planting based on some biodynamic principles which stem from the philosophies of anthroposophy and the teachings of Rudolf Steiner. My herbs and vegetables will be planted and harvested with respect to the rhythms of nature in conjunction with the phases of the moon. Certain plants will be planted on the waxing moon, while others will need to be planted on the waning moon and the same principles will be applied when it comes time to harvest. This is not only a tradition that has been practiced by ancient civilizations, but a system that has also been taught to me by my mother, a stellar gardener in her own right, who learned it from her own mother and so on. The herbs chosen will complement and balance each other and the vegetables will be among some of my and my mother’s favourites. As my mother too follows some biodynamic methods, crop rotation is also practiced. Each year vegetables are planted in alternating places, always in accordance with each other, in order to keep the soil vital and healthy. Also, special attention is paid to the soil itself. The soil used is a combination of earth, compost, manure, and organic top soil. Pesticides, herbicides and chemicals will definitely not be used. However, for those bugs and critters who are intent on devouring and destroying my fine garden (which I hope will be few and far between), I will use organic methods to scare them away, such as with the use of a homemade neem oil spray and by planting marigolds, which naturally repel insects, interspersed amongst the vegetables.

I hope you will all share in my new found passion and gain some wisdom and insight through my words. And being a new gardener, I’m sure we’ll all get a good laugh out of my misdaventures and blunders as well. So grab a cup of herbal tea, settle in, and enjoy!