Pat Baugh is out of the hospital and back home! YEA!

November 10, 2012

OK, here we go again.  I received an email last night from Diane.  She said that her Mother is at home.  She convinced the doctor that she was OK to go home on Friday rather than having to wait until Monday.  So Pat is home now, but Diane asked if some of us could get together to send Pat a daily meal.  Sandy mentioned that Pat really likes salads, so that is something that is good and easy.  We have our upcoming meeting this Wednesday, November 14, so maybe we can make a calendar list of "Meals for Pat"! 

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November 9, 2012

Last night I received an email from Diane, Pat's daughter, and she informed me that Pat is going to be released from Gulf Pointe Plaza on Monday, November 12, 2012.  Terry and I are going over to pick her up and take her home.  Her ability to get around for a while will be difficult, so I was thinking that maybe some of us can get together and arrange to have a daily meal delivered to her and Ruff, probably lunch.  If you might be interested, please let me know.  I will keep everyone informed.

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We surprised Pat on her birthday!  She totally enjoyed her party.  Pat's daughter Diane said the folloing:

The Birthday Party yall had for her meant more to her than you could ever know. She was overwhelmed. I Thank You for that. That was the second birthday party she can ever remember having. Yall are awesome!!!

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Latest Update on Pat!

Saturday, October 20, 2012

Pat's birthday is this coming Monday, October 22.  Is anyone interested in going over with me to give her a small birthday celebration?  Let me know, OK? 
 

OK, after some discussion, we decided to go wish Pat a Happy Birthday on Monday around 1:00 p.m. We will have pumpkin pie cheesecake from Trader Joe's and some herbal iced tea too!

I called Pat this morning.  She seems to be in good spirits overall. She has physical therapy every morning except for Saturday and Sunday. She would love to see friends. So if you have a little free time, stop by to visit with her.  She doesn't have a phone in her room, but you can call the front desk and leave a message.

She is still concerned about her garden and knows that she can no longer work in the garden. So she is still looking for someone to come over once a week and mow her front yard, do needed weeding and watering. Let me or Pat know if you can help.

 

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OK Everyone!  Here is the latest on Pat via emails below between Lois and me:

Friday, October 19, 2012 6:56 PM
 

Thank you Lois! I was in Houston today, but I'm back home. I'm going to send this email out to everyone, including me since I'm also guilty of not going to see Pat! Thank you for the information!

OK like Lois said, Pat is at:

 

Gulf Pointe Plaza

Room 207

1008 Enterprise Boulevard
Rockport, TX 78382

(361) 727-1800

Lois said:

I went to see Pat today at Gulf Pointe Plaza room 207 She would REALLY enjoy a visit. It looks like she will be there for some time. Send out your best guilt producing email. It could be any of us there.

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Hey Herbies!

Most of you probably already know about our member Pat Baugh being in the hospital with a broken pelvis.  I'll post the emails that I sent out about Pat. 

Email Friday, October 05, 2012 11:22 AM

 

Hello All!

I received a call this morning from Lois letting me know that Pat Baugh fell and broke her pelvis while gardening in her backyard Wednesday evening. She is in Spohn South Hospital, Room 308, phone number 361-985-5000. http://www.christusspohn.org/South

I then called Pat and talked to her. She is in lots of pain and because of where the break is located, surgery is not an option. She is supposed to start physical therapy and will be using a walker. Pat is very concerned about her gardens and will need help. There is no way that she will be able to continue maintaining her beautiful yard. So if any of you that might know someone looking for a gardening job, either let me know 361-729-6037 or Pat telephone number 361-729-9405.

I will keep everyone informed about Pat.

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Email Monday, October 08, 2012 11:04 AM

Hey Everyone!

Rockport Herb & Rose Study Group this Wednesday! Don't forget Barb's "Garlic" program this Wednesday! I requested it be put in the Caller-Times and the Pilot, but I couldn't find it posted. 

For more information click on website: 

http://rockportherbies.blogspot.com/2012/10/garlic-by-barb-mcspadden-october-10.html

And some information about Pat!
 

I called Ruff, Pat's hubby, just a short while ago. He said that Pat is still in the hospital awaiting Dr. Hahn's OK for her to transfer to Gulf Point. He said that Dr. Hahn has been busy and hasn't signed any paperwork for Pat. I do know one of his nurses, so I might try calling her to see if she can help. I also told him that I had two names for potential gardeners for Pat thanks to Darlene Gooris and Ginger Smith. That seemed to make him happy.

 

I then called Pat. She was having physical therapy trying to learn to walk again. I told her that I would call her back later today and check on her.

 

I'm really worried, because a broken pelvis is no fun. I broke mine about 25 years ago while skiing. It took over a year to finally heal, and I was in the hospital for 2 weeks and crutches for 3 months. I really can sympathize with Pat because I know how much pain she is experiencing.

 

I will keep everyone informed. Thanks!

Linda a/k/a Herbie

 

"Garlic" by Barb McSpadden October 10, 2012 at 10:00

 

 

Rockport Herb & Rose Study Group

Just a reminder that our next program is Wednesday, October 10, 2012 at 10:00. Find us at the ACISD Maintenance Department Formerly Rockport Elementary, 619 N. Live Oak Street, Room 14, Rockport, Texas. Our program will be:
 

"Garlic" by Barb McSpadden

 Do you like it raw?

 

Or cooked?

Come and learn everything you ever wanted to know about herbs. Did you know that there are over 2,000 herbs and that roses are herbs too? And did you know that many of our Texas Native Plants are also herbs? Herbs have been used for centuries for not only culinary purposes, but also for medicinal uses, in cosmetics, cleaning solutions, clothing (one of which is Gossypium cotton), building supplies and art and craft purposes.

 

Our herb study group was founded in March 2003 and meets the second Wednesday of every month at the ACISD Maintenance Department (Formerly Rockport Elementary), 619 N. Live Oak Street, Room 14, Rockport, Texas at 10:00 a.m. to discuss all aspects of using and growing herbs including the historical uses of the herbs and tips for successful propagation and cultivation. We are open to the public. Some members of the group are available as speakers to other audiences.

The Rockport Herb & Rose Study Group, founded in March 2003, is a non-profit educational organization dedicated to increasing public knowledge and awareness about herbs.

I happened to run across this article Gourmet Garlic from the Ground Up on the Mother Earth Living website: 

http://www.motherearthliving.com/gardening/gourmet-garlic-from-the-ground-up.aspx?newsletter=1&utm_content=9.18.12+HBC+eNews&utm_campaign=2012+ENEWS&utm_source=iPost&utm_medium=email

 

Amaranth, Sunflowers and Jerusalem Artichokes

This is my version of the Remarkable Plants of Texas for September's  program.  While I could not find a reference to Jerusalem artichokes in the book Remarkable Plants of Texas by Matt Warner Turner, they are definitely a sunflower.

Even though I wanted to present the herb club members with edible (maybe not delectable) choices of cooked sunflowers I found that the truly edible varieties are not present in quantity in our area, and were not to be found in the area of the Hill Country I was visiting, either.  So, I thought, we will just try these very abundant silverleaf sunflowers and see what happens.  Well, as it turned out, not much happened.  The buds do look like they would make a nice edible dish, but the ones I tried burned.  I hope to reclaim the pot.  As for boiling the seed heads to get the oil, nope, that didn't happen either.  I did get some nicely colored water and you will get the color, dingy greenish brown.  NO OIL at all.  I am pretty sure, though, the sap could be used as a glue, as my fingers were very sticky.
So onto the program and here it is:

Amaranth – Amaranthus spp.

The genus has some of the oldest and most important food plants in the world. Cultivated and uncultivated produce thousands of tiny seeds. They are very fine but very nutritious. Most varieties have a very high protein content. Up to 16% - higher than most varieties of wheat which is 12-14%, rice 7-10%, and corn 9-10%.
Amaranth protein is rich in lysine, an amino acid that is low in most other cereal. Its lysine content twice that of wheat and three times that of corn. It also contains more fiber, calcium, and oil than most other grains.

The Aztecs used amaranth as a grain and considered the plant a symbol of immortality.

From Wikipedia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amaranth
Kiwicha, as amaranth is known today in the Andes, was one of the staple foodstuffs of the Incas. Known to the Aztecs as huautli, it is thought to have represented up to 80% of their caloric consumption before the conquest. Another important use of amaranth throughout Mesoamerica was to prepare ritual drinks and foods. To this day, amaranth grains are toasted much like popcorn and mixed with honey, molasses or chocolate to make a treat called alegría, meaning "joy" in Spanish. Diego Duran described the festivities for Huitzilopochtli, a blue hummingbird god. (Real hummingbirds feed on amaranth flowers.) The Aztec month of Panquetzaliztli (7 December to 26 December) was dedicated to Huitzilopochtli. People decorated their homes and trees with paper flags; there were ritual races, processions, dances, songs, prayers, and finally human sacrifices. This was one of the more important Aztec festivals, and the people prepared for the whole month. They fasted or ate very little; a statue of the god was made out of amaranth (huautli) seeds and honey, and at the end of the month, it was cut into small pieces so everybody could eat a little piece of the god. After the Spanish conquest, cultivation of amaranth was outlawed, while some of the festivities were subsumed into the Christmas celebration.
Because of its importance as a symbol of indigenous culture, its gluten-free palatability, easy to cook, and its protein particularly well suited to human nutritional needs, interest in grain amaranth (especially A. cruentus and A. hypochondriacus) revived in the 1970s. It was recovered in Mexico from wild varieties and is now commercially cultivated. It is a popular snack sold in Mexico, sometimes mixed with chocolate or puffed rice, and its use has spread to Europe and parts of North America. Amaranth and quinoa are called pseudograins because of their flavor and cooking similarities to grains. 

Sunflower

Sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.) is one of the few crop species that originated in North America (most originated in the fertile crescent, Asia or South or Central America). It was probably a "camp follower" of several of the western native American tribes who domesticated the crop (possibly 1000 BC) and then carried it eastward and southward of North America. The first Europeans observed sunflower cultivated in many places from southern Canada to Mexico.

Sunflower was probably first introduced to Europe through Spain, and spread through Europe as a curiosity until it reached Russia where it was readily adapted. Selection for high oil in Russia began in 1860 and was largely responsible for increasing oil content from 28% to almost 50%. The high-oil lines from Russia were reintroduced into the U.S. after World War II, which rekindled interest in the crop. However, it was the discovery of the male-sterile and restorer gene system that made hybrids feasible and increased commercial interest in the crop. Production of sunflowers subsequently rose dramatically in the Great Plains states as marketers found new niches for the seeds as an oil crop, a birdseed crop, and as a human snack food. Production in these regions in the 1980s has declined mostly because of low prices, but also due to disease, insect and bird problems. Sunflower acreage is now moving westward into dryer regions; however, 85% of the North American sunflower seed is still produced in North and South Dakota and Minnesota.

From the book:

Sixteen or more species in the state of Texas.

It is phototrophic aka heliotrophic, meaning it follows the sum. Even before the flowers open the leaves and buds follow the course of the sun, facing toward the east in the morning, straight up at noon, and sharply toward the west in the late afternoon. At night the leaves point downward, while ther terminal buds face toward the sky, gradually leaning eastward again as dawn approaches. Once the flowers open and first ray florets unfurl, the stems below the flower heads harden and the flowers freeze in a position tilted toward the east or northeast. The Kiowa Indian name for the sunflower , ho-son-u, literally meaning “looking at you.”

Both current and historical uses for the sunflower are manifold. The seeds are the most obvious part used. They are eaten raw or roasted. But their main use is for the oil. Native Americans obtained the oil by boiling the seeds and skimming it off. They used it for cooking as well as for mixing ceremonial paint. The Caddo added ground sunflower seeds to cornmeal for cakes or tamales. They also added it to porridge or rolled it with roasted corn into small balls called bogan. The Apaches made a bread of it. The fine long fibers from the sunflower stems have been used for thread, cordage, and paper. The coagulated sap was used for chewing gum by the Kiowa.

The small unopened flower heads can be eaten whole and are said to taste similar to artichokes. They have been found in corprolites in the lower Pecos dating back to 6000BC!

They have also been used for dye.

By the way, I reclaimed the pot by soaking ammonia in it for several days, with the lid on to keep the fumes contained. I brushed it and then used a Brillo pad to shine it. Looks as good as new and it is 30 years old stainless Farberware.

Herb Fair in Houston

South Texas Unit

of

The Herb Society of America

Our 40th Annual 

Herb Fair

 

 

Friday, October 19, 2012

  

Open only to patrons who have made $20 or more in pre-purchases

  

4:00 p.m. – 6:30 p.m.

 

 

Saturday, October 20, 2012

  

Open to the general public

  

7:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

 

 

Hermann Park Garden Center
Houston, Texas

 

For more information go to website:

http://www.herbsociety-stu.org/HerbFair.htm

 

 

21st Annual San Antonio Herb Market

The 21st Annual Herb Market

 

Come Celebrate Rose "Herb of The Year" for 2012
Date: Saturday October 20, 2012
Time: 9:00 am - 4:00 pm
Place: The Historic Pearl Brewery
Pearl Parkway & Avenue A
Bring the family and friends. Its free and open to the public.
 

SCHEDULE OF EVENTS

 
 

9:00 – 2:00 "Ask The Experts" Local Rose & Herb Experts

Questions about Herbs? Ask our experts!

 
 

9:30– 10:15 Growing Herbs 101 Shane Dunford

Learn how easy it is to grow herbs in your landscape and containers. Shane is the Managing Director of Nature’s Herb Farm and will guide you through the proper care for herbs in our region.

 
 

10:30 – 11:30 Rose, Herb of the Year Robbi Will

We are excited to have Robbi Will with The Antique Rose Emporium as our Featured Speaker. Robbi will share the lore and legends of the Rose and and will enchant you with the rich history of roses explaining why for thousands of years cultures across the globe have valued this fragrant and beautiful plant. And if you think that roses are hard to grow - think again. You will learn the species that do well here with very little maintenance.

  
 

12:00– 1:00 Cooking Demo:

Cooking With Rose Chef Steve McHugh

Chef Steve McHugh, always the creative chef, will share the culinary side of this versatile herb. Come see his demo and share a taste of what may become your new favorite ingredient!

 
 

1:30– 2:30 Roses as Medicine,

Aromatherapy & Craft
San Antonio Herb Society

Join the SA Herb Society as they share ways of using Rose in the home.

For more information click on the following website: 
http://sanantonioherbmarket.org/

HUMMERS & BUTTERFLIES

It's that time of year again, so check out:

Monday, September 19, 2011

HUMMERS & BUTTERFLIES

 

 

You will find lots of good information about hummers, butterflies and their favorite plants!

If possible be sure to get down here to Rockport, Texas for our upcoming Hummer/Bird Celebration.

http://www.rockporthummingbird.com/

Hot Peppers

The August program was indeed Hot Peppers by Barb McSpadden.  Like some of the presenters before her she brought goodies to try.  They were wonderful.

Herbie here!  I found the article The Patron Saint of Peppers by Jeff Baker!  It is on page 174 of The Old Farmer's 2012 Almanac!  Barb referenced this during her program!

Click on website:

http://books.google.com/books?id=A8rfnrPw69YC&pg=PA174&lpg=PA174&dq=Jeff+Baker+Patron+Saint+of+Peppers&source=bl&ots=kRG7VevVrV&sig=uZrj9XVrWAPQg3-gerfA__-2oEk&hl=en#v=onepage&q=Jeff%20Baker%20Patron%20Saint%20of%20Peppers&f=false

And here is a good article about Peppers by Skip Richter, Contributing Editor for Texas Gardener. 

Peter Piper was definitely before his time. Peppers are still the trendy veggies you must have for your vegetable garden to be… well, to be cool. But they are not just for the vegetable patch, as numerous new ornamental types are available for setting annual beds ablaze with color.

Bell, cherry, chili, pimiento, banana, paprika, tabasco, habanero, piquin and the list goes on, making peppers among the most diverse and versatile of garden veggies. Although "discovered" in the 1500s by Spanish explorers to the New World, American gardeners and consumers are now rediscovering the versatile pepper.

To read the rest of the article click on website: http://www.texasgardener.com/pastissues/marapr03/peppers.html

You might want to check out website HARVESTING HOT PEPPERS!