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About Vernonia's voice. (Vernonia, OR) 2007-current | View Entire Issue (May 15, 2014)
8 in other words may15 2014 Natural Path: Eat Fresh, Eat Local By Dr. Carol McIntyre Spring is here and it is time to plant our gardens and bring an abun- dance of fresh food into our diets. I am a huge supporter of eating fresh and local. If you have ever seen my garden space at home, you know that I have optimized as much space as possible for growing food. There are raised beds in the front yard that are enclosed to create a green- house effect. This allows me to start growing early and in some cases year round (depending on the crop of course). I am certainly not a master gardener… but I have learned how to maximize my growing season here in Vernonia. Because of this I am able to enjoy lettuce year round, onions, garlic, etc. as well. One does not necessarily need a yard to grow fresh food either. Many foods can be grown in pots on the porch or outside the front door. I know of many people in town who use many different creative receptacles as pots/ growing space. Keep in mind that you do want to be careful in choosing what you grow your food in. Some containers will leach out chemicals (including xenoestrogens from plastics) that can harm our health. I personally do not recommend using recycled tires as planters because of the potential for chemicals from the tire leaching into the soil and impacting the nutrients in your plants. Some good potting plants to grow are lettuce, broccoli, cauliflower, spinach, raspberries, kale and almost all herbs. Anything that grows above the ground can potentially be grown in a pot. Tomatoes and peppers are another great example- they love the heat and it actually helps to optimize their growth. The trick with “potted gardening” is that you must WATER! Allowing the plants to dry out too much will ultimately de- crease the plant growth. Root vegetables need to be grown in larger receptacles but can be very successful as well. Eating fresh local food is not only important for our health but also for our economy. When you can grow even a small portion of your own food it saves your budget as well. Being able to pick fresh lettuce from your yard not only allows you to have more nutrition; it gives you additional income to invest elsewhere. With the increased cost of nu- merous things, this helps all of us! When food is shipped from oth- er areas, the nutritional value suffers. We have many resources here lo- cally, not only in our own backyard but from other local sources. I was recently introduced to a local woman that has a wonderful gar- den and provides weekly orders of fresh food throughout the spring/summer/fall growing season. Angie calls her space, “As it should be,” and offers fresh local food at a minimum order of $20/wk. She can be contacted at 503.804.7472. If you can’t grow your own, or have no desire to, you can still take advantage of local produce throughout the season. Please utilize this great resource. As promised, I will also be con- structing garden space at my office. I will be planting kale, lettuces, broccoli, cauliflower, cabbage and a few other things. Any patient that is interested in reaping some benefit can offer time spent in the garden (weeding, watering, etc.) in exchange for some fresh vegeta- bles. Stop in and talk with me if you are interested. Whatever you do, Eat Fresh and always do your very best to Eat Locally. Experiment. Learn what you are able to grow well and enjoy it. Sup- port our local farmers and oth- er local resources. Enjoy your impending summer and warm weather. Thank you for joining me. Be well~ Shooting Club Being Organized There will be two upcoming meetings to begin planning a local shooting club. The first meeting is May 15 at 7:00 PM at the Vernonia Fire Hall. The second meeting is June 7 at 1:00 PM, also at the Fire Hall. Everyone is welcome. Vernonia’s Voice is published twice each month on the 1st and 3rd Thursday. Look for our next issue on June 5th.
