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Tuesday, June 14, 2022
The Observer & Baker City Herald
After cold
spring,
eager to get
growing
JENNIE
HAGEN
GARDENING WITH GRANDMA
e fi nally planted our garden June
1 here in Baker County. It’s the
latest we’ve ever done so, even
in an area that is considered to be high ele-
vation and needs cold climate gardening
practices. Regardless of the cold that this
spring has delivered though, I know I am
not the only one eager to get growing.
Every time I went through a garden
area at any of the local stores or a nursery,
other gardeners were buying plants with
marked enthusiasm and unhappy com-
ments about the weather.
I had already purchased about 15
tomato plants weeks ago. Most were in
the four-pack containers, but several were
in the gallon-size pots. When the smaller
plants were dislodged from their con-
tainers, the fi rst thing we noticed were the
spiraled root systems. If left rootbound, the
plant expends considerable eff ort trying to
send new roots through this mass. And for
our area of gardening, we don’t have extra
time. So just pinch the bottom of the roots
but pinch it hard enough so that you have
the shape of an upside-down “Y” — this
encourages new root growth that enhances
not just survivability, but an overall
healthier plant.
After all of the tomatoes were planted
we top-dressed around each one with
approximately 3 tablespoons of crushed
oyster shells. We’ll add another ¼ cup of
oyster shells in about a month and do so
for the remainder of the season, about four
to six weeks apart.
We all know what it’s like to come
home on a hot summer day and fi nd some
of the tomatoes slightly wilted. When this
occurs, the tomatoes are robbed of the
calcium needed for healthy fruiting which
in turn is what causes blossom end rot.
We’ve all seen it, it’s not just an eyesore
but it damages and wastes so much of the
tomato. Even if wilted in the fl owering
stage, blossom end rot will still appear.
Oyster shells are available at any store
that carries livestock supplies.
W
Hillary Levin/St. Louis Post-Dispatch
By DANIEL NEMAN
Beet-fennel-ginger soup.
St. Louis Post-Dispatch
W
hen the produce at your local store,
farmers market or your own garden
is at its peak, it’s time to make fresh
vegetables the star of your meal.
It’s time to make summertime soups.
In the summer, you want to make the most out of your produce by
bringing out its fl avor in the most pure and natural way. The fewer
adornments, the less complexity, the better. Other fl avors should not dis-
tract you from the garden-fresh goodness of your bounty.
As an added benefi t, simple fl avors usually come from simple cooking
techniques.
In other words, summertime soups are both delicious and easy to
make. Win-win.
I recently made four summertime soups. Only one of them was
chilled, but each, in its own way, was unforgettable.
We’ll start with the chilled soup fi rst. It’s called Beet-Fennel-Ginger
Soup, and along with beets, fennel and ginger it is also made with cab-
bage and vegetable stock.
“That’s borsch,” said a colleague. “You just made borsch” in March.
“It’s not borsch,” I said. “It isn’t just beet soup, it also has cabbage and
vegetable stock…”
OK, it’s borsch. But this version is made without meat, so it is a hearty
vegetarian meal — or vegan, if you forgo the dollop of yogurt on top.
It is also lighter in tone and texture than borsch I have made in the
past. While it still has the sweetly earthy undertone that comes from
the beets, it is also enlivened by the exotic, anise taste of fennel and
the fi nishing warm bite of ginger.
Hillary Levin/St. Louis Post-Dispatch
See, Soups/Page B2
Asparagus and shiitake mushroom soup.
█
Jennie Hagen is a native Oregonian who has spent
40 years gardening east of the Cascades. She is a
member of the Garden Writers Association and has
previously written for the Home & Garden section of
The Oregonian, and for the La Grande Observer, the
Baker City Herald, and the Burns Times Herald.
The history leading to the creation of Pat’s Alley
GINNY
MAMMEN
OUT AND ABOUT
T
he building housed at 1414
Adams Ave. in downtown
La Grande is a mystery
building.
In 1910, there had been a home
in this location, according to the
Sanborn map. While the applica-
tion for the National Register of
Historic Places states that 1414
was constructed in 1916, the archi-
tect is unknown as is the owner/
builder. It is interesting to note
that the building features the same
small windows that are divided
into eight triangles as were evident
in the Roesch Building.
The question becomes — was
this building at 1414 built by
Roesch and actually a part of the
Roesch Building or was it built by
someone else?
We do know that originally
there was a passage on the second
level from one building to the
next.
When the Roesch Building on
the southeast corner of Adams and
Fir was razed in 1927 to construct
the Sacajawea Hotel, a substan-
tial portion of the building was left
standing. The addresses for this
were 1406-1412 Adams, which
over the years housed numerous
businesses. This remaining por-
tion had a common wall with the
building located at 1414 Adams.
When the US Bank was con-
structed in 1970, the remaining
portion of the Roesch Building
was razed and the common wall
Fred Hill Collection
Looking west along Adams Avenue in downtown La Grande around 1928.
between it and the next building
was resurfaced leaving the
building at 1414 Adams, which is
known today as Pat’s Alley.
The original Roesch building
had been known for being the
home for automobile businesses
over the years and this was no dif-
ferent for 1414 Adams.
The fi rst business there in
1916 was Daniel Auto, followed
by Bowman & Young Auto, then
Harris F. French Motor Com-
pany with Paige-Jewett Sales
and Service, where in 1925 a
Jewett Coach sold for $1,245 and
a Deluxe Sedan for $1,680. The
Morelock Service Auto Company
was selling Star cars there in 1927
and a Star Six Convertible Cab-
riolet was being sold for a mere
$885. (About $15,000 in 2022).
All through the 1930s, the Chev-
rolet was the star of 1414. Lar-
ison Chevrolet followed by Lari-
son-Frees Chevrolet and, fi nally,
Norman Frees Chevrolet.
Following nearly 25 years of
automobile sales and the short-
time temporary home for The
Observer, while the building on
Sixth Street, across from the Pres-
byterian Church, was being con-
structed, Roy Farnam Supply
moved into this location in 1940.
Roy had started in business with
Jack Allen of Jack Allen Supply,
located on the corner of Adams
and Fir in the Roesch Building,
selling auto parts, accessories and
sporting goods.
After Allen moved to Pend-
leton and was elected state senator
in 1932, his partner, Roy Farnam,
bought him out, creating Roy
Farnam Supply. Nearly 10 years
later, Roy moved his business
into 1414 Adams and Roy Farnam
Supply remained in business there
for over 30 years.
In 1971, Pat Fitzgerald, of Fitz-
gerald Flowers, had his shop in
the Moon building and was upset
because his landlord wanted to
raise his rent. One day he noticed
the building across the street
at 1414 Adams was empty and
contacted the Goss family, the
owners, about the possibility of
renting it. Pat had seen mini malls
in other towns and thought this
would be the ideal place for him to
develop one for La Grande.
Following an agreement with
the owners, he set contractors to
work and, after many hours of
planning and construction, on
Friday and Saturday, the 14th and
15th of May 1972, Pat’s Alley held
its grand opening.
The Observer took their readers
for a tour.
“We open the door into a
wide quaint alley reminiscent of
a narrow cobblestone European
street, with one obvious exception
— everything is new. The cobble
stone is modern glossy linoleum.
Mediterranean style porch lamps
mark the entrance to the shops.”
The occupants were ready for
their fi rst customers. The fi rst
shop on the right was Fitzger-
ald’s Flowers with Pat’s Garden
Center located behind it, oper-
ated by Pat and Helen. On the left
side was The Pacesetter, a wom-
en’s clothing shop, with Norma
Noyes and Sharon Catlin as pro-
prietors and owners. Then the
Lamplighter, a gourmet shop, with
Dotty Hoff man and Ruth Lacer
there to provide you the newest in
gourmet and party foods.
Next was VJ’s, where Velma
See, Mammen/Page B2