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Wishing to follow the sun’s path as it reached its southernmost point on the horizon, winter solstice, a small group of my family and friends traveled to greet the sun on the equator this past December. We visited the South American country bearing the name derived from the latitude line that bisects the earth, Ecuador.
Six hundred miles off the coast of mainland Ecuador sits the archipelago known as the Galapagos Islands, our ultimate destination. These exotic islands are defined by salt water, volcanoes, endemic wildlife found nowhere else in the world, and plants that have reached the islands just as we did, via water currents over the last million or so years.
Surprising to human visitors, Galapagos wildlife is unfazed by the smell of sunscreen or the sound of clicking cameras. Colorful birds of many stripes, sea lions, land and sea iguanas, penguins, sharks, rays, giant land tortoises, and sea turtles go about their lives with no apparent notice of the oddly dressed foreign two-legged monkeys observing every movement and sound made by these wild creatures.
Equally captivating to fauna is Galapagos plant life, often receiving less attention than the fascinating wildlife. Hiking on the volcanic trails I was taken with the feeling that I was traveling on a totally unfamiliar landscape. The islands lie in the Pacific Dry Belt so most of the archipelago’s land area is covered by semi-desert or desert vegetation. While hiking on one island I saw Salt Bush in the Coastal Zone meeting Candelabra, Lava, and Prickly Pear Cacti living on the banks of land crashed by Pacific waves.
Intriguing were the mangrove forests edging many of the islands we visited. Paddling amongst the deep roots of these mysterious trees we searched from a rubber raft for Galapagos white tipped sharks, manta rays, fish and sea turtles. Echoing were the barking voices of sea lions frequenting the mangroves for shelter and resting places. These sea mammals literally climb into the trees to sleep on heavy branches! Red, black, white and button mangrove species have adapted themselves to the saltwater environs of the Galapagos. Sending out roots deep into the brackish salt waters and extending branches above the water line the vertical branches act as aerating organs for filtering salt. The filtering process allows the leaves to receive fresh water.
Certainly Galapagos plants are the foundation of most biological communities. Pale yellow land iguanas depend on the opuntia cactus pads and fruit. We watched as one female stood on her hind legs while munching the buttercup yellow flowers of the endemic scalesia daisy tree. Giant land tortoises, some individuals older than Montana, survive on poison apple, guava and cactus pads.
Many plants on the islands are considered to be pioneer species, meaning they are hardy plants that have crossed oceans and managed to establish themselves in the often-hostile environment of the islands. There are 560 native species of plants in the islands and almost one-third of them are endemic (meaning they are found nowhere else on earth). For example, Galapagos has its own species of cotton, pepper, guava, passionflower, and tomato.
Back on mainland Ecuador we drove into the mountains to stand on the Equator. Posing as the tourists we were for one last photo, we all reflected. Our toes were north of the Equator, our heels south of the line. We had just returned from an incredible place, the Galapagos, where time seems to have frozen somehow, its toes in prehistoric times, its heel in the 21st century with much to celebrate about both.
The thicket is invisible, shrouded in blowing snow. The coffee in my cup is cold. Baci, the rez pup refuses to go outside. Grace is curled up on a pile of catalogs waiting for recycling. Melting snow on the roof has begun dripping into the house. The wind sounds like a freight train hitting the west end of the house.
There’s only one thing to do on a day like this. Either I can return to bed, pulling the covers up over my head or I can start a blazing fire in the fireplace and read all day. A stack of gardening magazines beckons. Following is a list of headlines (Organic Gardening Magazine) that caught my fancy. And, some tidbits that inspired.
“Eat Fresh for Months, Start Now” One gardener extends her Zone 4 growing season by growing cold-weather crops such as broccoli, carrots, chard, cabbage, and arugula in what she calls a “waffle design.” The sunken areas create a protected microclimate where seeds are planted. The trough also provides for deep watering twice weekly while covered with layers of straw to help retain moisture. Come October watering stops and harvest continues right through the snow.
“It’s Bed Time” Reap the benefits of raised beds. Nothing saves time and labor like growing crops above ground. Plants are easier to access. More plants can be grown in a smaller space in contrast to growing in rows. The soil drains better. You won’t step on the soil leading to compaction. Allow at least three feet between beds to fit a wheel barrel. Don’t use railroad ties or treated wood if vegetables are to be grown in the beds.
“Heart of Stone” We Madison County gardeners live surrounded by gravel, intriguing moss rocks, astounding boulders, and smooth river rocks. Why not create a raised rock garden, another type of planting tapestry? Rock garden hits are: Autumn Snowflake, a tiny August blooming bulb, Gentians, the fall-blooming ones, Pinks, a version of saxifrages, Rock Jasmine, grow in almost no soil, Saxifrages, beautiful cushion plants, and Woodruff, likes to nest in crevices. Consider your rock pile in a different light!
“Made in the Shade” A DIY shade tent to cover salad greens in late July when the sun threatens to fry these cool-loving plants is made with easily found materials. You will need: durable plastic tubing (1/2” to 3/4” diameter), 18-inch bamboo or rebar stakes (2 for each tubing arch), 72-inch-wide, 30-50% shade cloth, cut to length of growing bed, and garden clips from garden suppliers, three for each arch. Did you know that growing under shade cloth will lower leaf temperature by 10 percent, extending your harvest. Shade cloth used over germinating fall crops will keep soil temperatures under 80ยบ, essential to propagating broccoli, chard, lettuce, mustard greens, radishes, spinach, and turnips.
“Get a Clue!” What are weeds trying to tell you? Stop and consider before you rip that weed out of the ground. Weeds are opportunistic plants that thrive in conditions that are inhospitable to others. So, weeds are living clues to what may be missing in your soil. For instance, thistle, dandelion, quack grass, bindweed and plantain all grow prolifically in compacted soil. By adding organic matter to soil it will loosen the soil structure making it more accessible for nutrients to reach plant roots of the good kind.
Well, the wind is still blowing snow around in swirls, all indoor critters are snoring, and the chili is simmering on the stove. There’s nothing like being stuck inside on a crazy weather day for catching up on home front projects, dreaming, and just kicking back.
Some mornings are just more beautiful than others. Getting up before dawn every day now to let Baci, the rez pup out, gives me the opportunity to see the sun rise over the lake. A couple of days later the raspberry leaves were blown into the lake! And, now we have winter...
People who visit Montana are often surprised to see magpies and ask what in the world they are! These whimsical birds cut a graphic silhoutte against the bright blue skies. Many times I have seen flocks of magpies flying into a sunset and have mistaken them for tropical parrots except for the fact that the ground was covered with snow. The white on their wings painted bright pink and purple by the colors of the sunset make magpies appear other-worldly!
When asked why a gardener gardens, the reply might include something along the lines of a yearning or search for authenticity. The optimism, which makes a gardener believe in the possibility of absolute abundance of the next growing season, also informs an approach to food.
Not everyone grows to eat but everyone eats. This week of celebration and ritual will find our entire nation ruminating over the meal to end all meals! Will the _______ (you fill in the blank) be baked, roasted, steamed or whipped? Will Aunt Carol make her orange-flavored cranberry sauce? Are all! the cousins coming?
Ritual slows time and heightens our senses. We harbor an unquenchable belief in the possibility of unprecedented experience. This belief is most strongly played out when family and friends sit down to a home-prepared Thanksgiving meal.
What if that long anticipated meal didn’t include a southern-raised turkey shot up with fake butter, frozen pumpkin pie from a Midwest food factory, and mashies from a box but, instead, a mouth watering meal prepared from ingredients raised, foraged, and grown within a 100 mile radius of our own home? A 100 Mile Meal, as it has come to be known!
A Madison County farmer listed ingredients for a 100 Mile Thanksgiving meal gathered within our region. Bake a fresh, never-frozen Hutterite turkey stuffed with Montana-grown whole wheat bread dressing savory with locally foraged sage. Replace cranberry sauce with tangy red currant sauce. Here, I would have to cast my line further a field, compromising to include slices of dried orange and Meyer lemons in the sauce, possibly adding nuts for taste and texture.
And, freshly dug creamy white russet potatoes flavored with a turnip and garlic chives would fill the mashies bowl. Sweet potatoes were especially robust and abundant this year in local gardens. Sweeten with locally produced honey and bake. Of course, winter squash such as acorn and butternut abound. Green beans, a traditional mainstay, are out of season now. Another green offering might include a salad of kale, broccoli, golden beets, and chard drizzled with homemade apple vinegar and canola oil.
Fresh pumpkin pie, of course! And, home-raised cream and butter from a small dairy herd near Pony. Spices for this lovely supper would have to come from outside the 100-mile radius. But we are fortunate to be able to buy salt mined in Utah, not that far away.
The 2007 winner for the Oxford Dictionary Word of the Year award is “locavore”. Not surprising considering the media attention given to the importance of buying locally. The word brings together eating and ecology in a new way. A deeper understanding of the need to preserve foodlands and support local small-scale growers and producers is implied and illuminated.
Today we gardeners and cooks need a legion of grandmas to guide us back to a time when families grew their own and cooked it fresh from the land. But, short of that ideal, we can certainly explore our region for the best locally grown food thus supporting a local economy and reducing food miles traveled.
Can each of us answer this question: who’s your farmer? To all locavores out there: have an unprecedented and delicious Thanksgiving, authentically local!
