I was at our local seed store and found out about this interesting new plant - the climbing or vine spinach. There are two varieties, the green or red vine version.

Since it originates from East Asia, it’s also known as Malabar spinach, Indian spinach, or Ceylon spinach.

Not only is it edible, but it makes for pretty landscaping with it’s climbing vines and flowers.

One gardener also mentioned that this plant is a true and fast climber. Especially with the weather gets really hot.

I will try to grow them in container with a trellis in a nice sunny spot.  And maybe plant one seedling in mom’s garden to surprise her.  I think they will do well in our northern California summer.

I can only imagine how neat it would be to have fresh endless spinach salads all summer. And the fact that the stems are soft and edible sounds amazing.

Here’s some interesting info I gathered about this neat plant from Cornell University Vegetable Growing Guide:

“The leaves from this heat-loving vine have a mild flavor and are used like spinach in salads and cooking.

Annual plant but is perennial in frost-free areas. Extremely frost-sensitive. It creeps when temperatures are cool, but leaps when the mercury hits 90 F.

Part shade increases leaf size. But prefers hot weather and full sun. Requires trellis or other support for twining vine. Can follow peas up the same trellis.

Grows well in a wide range of soils, but prefers moist, fertile soils, high in organic matter, pH 6.5 to 6.8. Tolerates damp soil. Requires consistent moisture to keep from flowering, which causes leaves to turn bitter.

How to plant:

Propagate by seed, cuttings

Germination temperature: 65 F to 75 F

Days to emergence: 14 to 21 - Scarify (use a file, sharp knife or sandpaper to carefully cut through the tough seed coat) seed to hasten germination. May take 3 weeks or more.

Seed can be saved 4 years.”

Note: It’s not truly spinach and comes from the Basellaceae Family. The family comprises some two dozen species of herbaceous plants, some with climbing habits.

Photo from Wikipedia.

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Last summer my mom let the wild purslane in her backyard garden to grow as they please.  And now they have started to sprout all around the yard.  And lucky for me since now I can make purslane salad.

The taste is similar to water spinach, but with a crunch from the stalks.  For more flavor, try steaming it lightly.

So here’s my take on another fresh summer salad.  It’s pretty much made with all the stuff from the garden.  Except for the walnuts and dressing.

The fresh ripe apricots adds a bit of sweetness.  While the plums gave it some tang.  The greens were mostly purslane and a few baby broccoli.

Dressing is simple using rice bran oil and apple cider vinegar.  Along with Himalayan salt and ground black pepper.

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M found this fresh stalk of Brussels sprouts From Trader Joe’s.

I always thought it was cool to get them in stalks rather then in bags. No extra packaging wasted or needed either.

Brussels sprouts belong to the cabbage family. It’s a healthy vegetable that is high in vitamins A and C.

Interested in growing them? Check out these info and tips from the University of Illinois Gardening Extensive:

- Fall production is the most practical and rewarding in most parts of the country.

- Sprouts maturing in hot weather or under dry conditions are more likely to develop bitterness.

- In the proper season of the year, it can be grown with fair success in most areas of the country. In mild areas, or where there is deep snow cover, the sprouts may overwinter.

- Sprouts improve in quality and grow best during cool or even lightly frosty weather.”

I don’t plant to grow them anytime soon. But I do plan on cooking these. It would be best lightly steam or roasted with garlic and then drizzled with olive oil, Himalayan salt and ground black pepper.

These are such unique and beautiful gourds. They are called “Swan Gourd” and shaped like the elegant bird.

Photo from Monches Farm. They must be popular as they are all sold out at this farm.

I first spotted them at Berkeley Bowl, one of my favorite market in the east bay. They are known for having the widest and best selection of healthy, fresh fruits and vegetables in Northern California.

Berkeley Bowl is also famous for their large varieties of apples too. I especially like browsing at the exotic fruit sections which was most recently filled with giant avocados and star fruits.

As for the swan gourd, I should have bought a few as gifts for my mom. Then she could save the seeds and try growing them in the garden. But my tiny produce basket was already too full! If I see them again on my next trip out I will definitely get them.

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It was interesting to see dragonfruit being grown at the Ruth Bancroft’s Garden.

If Ruth can grow it successfully in Walnut Creek, then maybe my little plant will turn out just as nice. Of course I’ll have to remember to protect it from the winter freeze.  

Here is a close up of one of the two fruit still on the plant.  I was hoping they would grow as successfully as the cactus pear.

Dragonfruit is also known as pitaya, a plant native to the tropics. It’s a succulent with three sided stems and sharp tiny spines.

Dragonfruit has become more popular lately because of it’s health benefits. It’s full of antioxidant, fiber and high in vitamin C. It’s can be eaten fresh or as dried fruit (preserved). It’s also made into wine. I’ve even seen it being mixed into energy drink and included in skincare products too.

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Since I always saw amaryllis bulbs being sold during the Christmas holiday, I thought they were winter blooming plants.

So I didn‘t think it would start producing flowers this time of the year. In reality, summer is their natural bloom time. Although it is autumn, the warm temperatures we’ve had for the past few days gave the plant ideal blooming weather.

I’ve always referred to these flowers as amaryllis (as that is the name given to them at garden shops). According to the Pacific Bulb Society, the correct name is hippeastrum. Which is a genus in the family Amaryllidaceae with 70–75 species and 600+ hybrids and cultivars.

The flower got stuck with the name amaryllis decades ago when those being sold were the hybrid plants. Either way I think amaryllis is much easier to say than hippeastrum.

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Another favorite garden produce coming from mom’s kitchen garden is Lao-Thai chili peppers. Peppers are normally divided into three categories: hot peppers, bell peppers, and sweet peppers.

These are considered hot peppers. It could all ripen as soon as next month.

When these young chili start to turn red, they will be harvested and dried in the sun.  Then they will be roasted and turn to chili powder.

Summer time seem to be the best time to cook with chili peppers, whether it’s in soup or salads.

Chili peppers contain capsaicin (the stuff that makes them HOT). Capsaicin help stimulate the region of the brain responsible for cooling the body. You would think the heat would make you feel hotter, but in reality the pepper actually help lower body temperatures.

For those interested in weight loss, researchers coming out of South Korea found that capsaicin triggers proteins that help fight obesity by decreasing calorie intake, shrinking fat tissue and lowering fat levels in the blood.

However, they say, it is not known exactly how capsaicin might trigger such beneficial effects. (United Press International 07-28-10).

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These are Mexican Evening Primrose. I planted the seeds last year in my mom’s flower garden. And they finally starting to bloom this summer.

Since it took so long to bloom, I had thought the seeds were dud and I got weeds instead. Especially since the plant just kept on growing leaves for most of the year.

During the spring, I had wanted to pull the whole thing out because I didn’t see any flowers. And I also wanted to make room to grow other flowers too. But I’m glad I didn’t. The Mexican Evening Primrose are especially nice late in the evening when the breeze comes by and it starts to sway.

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If there was a way to farm or garden without having to weed, prune, water, use fertilizer or pestides would we do it? The answer would seem to be 100% YES! But unfortunately it’s not something we are used to hearing or think is remotely possible.

Welcome to the world of permaculture. It is defined as “permanent agriculture”- where the conscious design and maintenance of agriculturally productive ecosystems which have the diversity, stability, and resilience of natural ecosystems. Or simply stated as farming along with Mother Nature alone.

Masanobu Fukuoka (February 2, 1913 – August 16, 2008) is a pioneer in the world of permaculture. He has written numerous books on the subject, starting with The One-Straw Revolution.

Abundant Rice field growing in Japan. Photo by Kjeld Duits. Duits has written a great article about Fukuoka: Farmer- Philosopher.

Here is a little more info about Fukuoka:

“At age 25, he began to doubt the wisdom of modern agricultural science. He eventually quit his job as a research scientist, and returned to his family’s farm on the island of Shikoku in Southern Japan to grow organic mikans. From that point on he devoted his life to developing a unique small scale organic farming system that does not require weeding, pesticide or fertilizer applications, or tilling.”

He is also considered to be a philosopher as well. Definitely someone I wished I had heard about sooner.

Bill Mollison is another pioneer of permaculture. Declared as “Ecologist of the Century” in Australia. Here is some info I’ve found about him from an interview with Seeds of Change.

“Permaculture is nothing less than a “sustainable earth-care system” capable of providing our food, energy, shelter, and other needs while conserving the world’s resources.”

He advocates local food production and regional self reliance.

Another amazing farmer to note in the world of permaculture is Sepp Holzer of Austria. Holzer’s farm high up in the Austrian mountains is a very unlikely place to be farming. But he’s been doing it successfully for the past few decades.

His farm includes forest gardens, terraces, and ponds. There are fruit orchards, including fruits you can’t imagine would grow in such high altitudes. There are also many garden variety vegetables that could feed a whole village. Holzer’s method of gardening is to throw seeds everywhere and just let them grow. Holzer believes the plants are beneficial to each other as well as the soil. It’s a really interesting concept that still amazes me.

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I finally got my hands on a dragonfruit plant.  The best part is I didn’t have to travel to any dragonfruit convention to find them.

I’m hoping mine will survive the northern California winter.  We do have nights where temperatures get to 32 degrees Fahrenheit.  At least I’ve had good luck with my other succulents such as Aloe Vera and Queen of the Nights.

It was really easy to plant the cuttings. All I did was stick them in good soil and topped it off with lawn clippings (my version of mulch). Some people mentioned growing dragonfruit from the seeds. I think that would take too long to grow, if at all. But next time around I’ll try to save the seeds and grow them. And they sure have lots of seeds!

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