Meatless Monday (and Beyond)
Plant-based pleasure from a French chef
COVER: Spring rolls are the perfect showcase for the edible flowers of spring. Find the recipe here.
Publisher’s Post
“The garden suggests there might be a place where we can meet nature halfway.” —Michael Pollan
Oregon called. They want their weather back. Or maybe that was California initiating the call …
It is hard to talk about gardening without focusing on the weather, especially when the weather has been so unusual: snow in Burbank and Santa Clarita; tornados in Montebello; hail all over and rain levels that are at least double the seasonal averages at measuring stations in Van Nuys, Burbank and the Santa Clarita Valley.
Predictions for a dry and warm spring in LA County rely heavily on almanacs, which have been recording weather since 1818. But according to a 2010 study by the University of Illinois, those predictions are about 52% accurate, at best. It might be equivalent to throwing spaghetti against a wall to see what sticks. (A valid strategy for many things, in my opinion, just maybe not weather forecasts.)
Without a real idea of what is to come, we can really only go by what we know. This is the first year in several that I haven’t had to use my garden sprinklers for multiple months in a row. That is a boon for my water bill, at least! While my garden is quite overrun by some sort of tall thick grass, the soil is the most fragrant and beautiful it has ever been. My perennials (for the pollinators) are blooming explosively and I have volunteer tomato plants sprouting all over. It all gives me hope that this year, at last, my “fake it ’til you make it” gardening strategy will come to fruition … quite literally.
With every issue, I learn so much as we bring these stories together. And this one is no exception. From the workings of bees (“The Valley Hive”) to the success of a school garden (“Cultivating Gardeners”), and from composting with kids (“Edible for Kids”) to eating flowers, our garden issue has given me new strategies in both my garden and kitchen, and I hope it does the same for you.
It remains to be seen how long I—or, rather, my garden—can go without resorting again to the sprinklers, but I know that this year, at least, nature stands a pretty good chance of being the hero of my dinner plate.
Until next season, may your garden be rich in nutrients and full of plants, and may your plate be full of your garden’s bounty.
Tami
Publisher and Editor
