Stuffed Pumpkin

This was my first time preparing food inside a pumpkin. This recipe was easy to make and was definitely a meal in itself. It provides a good basis for variations to suit your taste, such as substituting rice for the millet. The most difficult part was cleaning out the pumpkin.
 

 1 small to medium pumpkin                                2 tablespoons honey

1 cup raw millet                                                  1/4 cup almonds or other nuts (optional)

1/4 cup sherry                                                     1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 cup raisins (regular or golden)                    1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

3 tablespoons butter                                           3-4 cloves crushed

1 large apple peeled and sliced                          salt and pepper

1 pear peeled and chopped                                                          

1/2 cup dried apricots chopped

Cook the millet. Soak raisins in sherry. Carve out the top of the pumpkin. Remove seeds and string. Carefully scoop out some pumpkin and steam until tender. Alternatively, canned pumpkin can be used. Heat 2 tablespoons butter in large skillet and saute apples, pears, apricots and nuts about 5 minutes. Add remaining ingredients. Stir in cooked pumpkin, soaked raisins with sherry, and cooked millet. Adjust seasonings. Add 1 tablespoon butter and water or broth, so it's not too dry. Spoon mixture into pumpkin shell. Replace lid and bake in a pan with about 1/2 of water at 325 degrees for 60 to 70 minutes. Serve with your favorite green vegetable. Serves 4. If using a large pumpkin, double the recipe.

 

 

In the News

EPA Proposes to Remove 72 Chemicals from Approved Pesticide Inert Ingredient List

http://yosemite.epa.gov/opa/admpress.nsf/0/3397554FA65588D685257D7A0061A300
I was more excited about this report, until I read that "The 72 chemicals are not currently being used as inert ingredients in any pesticide product."

Emerald Ash Borer Suspected of Spreading to White Fringetrees

http://entomologytoday.org/2014/10/10/emerald-ash-borer-may-have-spread-to-different-tree/
Potential scary news from Professor Don Cipollini, a researcher from Wright State University, who noticed the damage on ornamental White Fringetrees (Chionanthus virginicus) near his home in Southwestern Ohio.

photo: MissouriBotanicalGarden.org

Farmers and Environmental Groups Challenge EPA's Approval of Enlist-Duo

http://www.foodsafetynews.com/2014/10/another-lawsuit-filed-to-block-enlist-duo-registration/#.VEmdqRYylfg
Challenges to EPA's decision reported in my  October 16, 2014 Post continue.

Seeds of Fall

Everyone knows and appreciates the bright colors of the changing leaves, but if you look a little closer at the plants in the fall, you will see another colorful attraction - that of seeds ready to break open and begin the cycle of growth again in the spring. I know that many of these plants are classified as invasive in New England.  Their prolific seeds, which can be spread by birds and wind, is one reason why they can easily take over the landscape if given the opportunity. I still can't help but admire their bright colors amongst an increasingly dull landscape. Note, that other than the Autumn Olive, all of the invasive plants shown have only appeared on our property within the last decade.  

Asparagus Seeds

Oriental Bittersweet (Invasive)

Unidentified Bush with Bright Red Berries

Pokeweed

Autumn Olive (Invasive)

Rugosa Rose Hips

Maple Leaf Viburnum

Multiflora Rose (Invasive)

Autumn Olive and Bittersweet Intertwined

EPA Approves Registration of Dow Chemical's Enlist Duo, Herbicide Containing 2, 4-D and Glyphosate

Since the commercial availability of glyphosate as an herbicide (e.g. Monsanto's Roundup) and the creation, also by Monsanto, of genetically modified (GM) crops that can withstand its application, weeds have developed their own defense mechanism to survive being sprayed. These "super weeds" have become a problem for large scale farmers in the field and have resulted in an increase in the volume of herbicides being applied on fields planted with GM crops. What better way to deal with this problem than to create an even stronger weed killer that combines two pesticides together for use on genetically modified corn and soy bean plants engineered to withstand both 2, 4-D and glyphosate? This is exactly what Dow AgroSciences has done with Enlist Duo.

In its announcement that this decision ensures protection of human health and non-targeted species, EPA has included restrictions on when and how it can be applied as well as monitoring and reporting requirements to ensure that weeds do not become resistant. EPA will also review its approval in six years. This approval only applies to the six states of Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin). EPA is accepting comments until November 14th on registering Enlist Duo in the states of Arkansas, Kansas, Louisiana, Minnesota, Missouri, Mississippi, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Tennessee and North Dakota.   

In its press release Dow writes "EPA Registration Supports Company's Progress against Key Strategic Targets" and refers to the commercialization of Enlist Duo that will be used with its Enlist corn and soybeans as "necessary, innovative technology that is expected to deliver significant growth for Dow."

Reuters UK October 15 edition reported (October 15, 2014) that EPA received more than 400,000 comments about Enlist Duo and that the Environmental Working Group presented a petition with over 77,000 names requesting denial of the application.

In response to its decision The Natural Resources Defense Council immediately filed a lawsuit challenging EPA's decision. 
 
"Enlist Duo™ should not have been approved for a host of reasons, including some that are directly relevant to human health, like:

• Multiple streams of evidence (including molecular, animal, and epidemiologic studies) demonstrating adverse impacts of 2,4-D on the thyroid;
• High potential for infants, children, and women of child-bearing age to be exposed to Enlist Duo™ via air, food, and water;
• The complete absence of information on how the combination of 2,4-D and glyphosate will impact human and ecological health (including habitats for the iconic Monarch butterfly); and
• EPA’s hopelessly out-of-date health risk assessment for glyphosate (the last EPA human health risk assessment for glyphosate was completed over 21 years ago)." http://switchboard.nrdc.org/blogs/kpullen/question_answered_epa_approves.html

Butternut Squash Risotto

It was a very disappointing year in my garden for winter squash with early squash bugs and then powdery mildew. My only two butternut squash have ended up as decorations in my basket of gourds.

Fortunately, gardeners typically also have friends who are gardeners, so I was happy to receive a more respectable sized squash from a friend at work to make this recipe for Butternut Squash Risotto.

Ingredients:
2 cups Arborio rice
6 cups broth
4 tablespoons margarine
1 cup chopped onion
2 cups butternut squash peeled and cubed 
1/2 cup white wine
1/4 cup fresh Parmesan cheese
chopped chives
Melt margarine in large saucepan. Add onion and saute for 1 minute. Add squash and saute for 10 minutes. Add rice and saute for 2 minutes. Add wine and cook until absorbed, then add enough broth to cover, cooking gradually while stirring frequently. Keep adding broth until rice is no longer hard. Just before removing from heat, add Parmesan cheese and sprinkle with chives. This is a great comfort food dish.

 

First Frost

Monday we had our first frost. Although I still have peppers, beans and eggplant growing in the garden, I did not cover them because I've decided that it is time to let nature take it's course. Although I had to deal with this in my driveway, the plants in the garden remained unscathed. With the forecast for more mild weather the rest of the week, the vegetables will be able to continue to grow for a few more days, although I know that the end of the growing season is inevitably coming soon.

I can't help but acknowledge that the growing season has gotten longer. My recollection is that it was typically shortly after Labor Day when the first frost would hit. I tried to find actual data on historic fall frost dates for our region, but I could only find probability data based on a thirty (30) year average. For Concord, NH the Fall 90% probability frost date is September 26th (source http://www.howdogardener.com/439-2/freeze-and-frost-dates ). I will continue to research to find the actual data on spring and fall frost dates as it would be interesting to see the variability during my gardening life-time. There is no doubt that climate change is impacting gardeners. This was apparent in 2012 when the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) revised it's plant hardiness zone map. In addition to improved accuracy and an increase in the number of zones due to using more sophisticated algorithms for calculations, the shift in using more recent temperature data ,1976-2005, compared to 1974-1986 in the previous version, resulted in about a 5-degree Fahrenheit increase for most zones, although some zones did shift on the cooler scale. Copies of this map are available at http://planthardiness.ars.usda.gov/PHZMWeb/.

Fertilizers and Water Quality

It is too early to know what winter has in store for us, but a fall application of fertilizer will encourage strong roots which will help the grass recover in the spring. I applied an organic based slow release fertilizer a couple weeks ago. Since then it has rained a couple times, but not heavily,  which is ideal to ensure that the fertilizer is soaked into the ground to be used by the grass, and not running off into a ditch where is might make its way eventually to a wetland or stream. Although the fall is a great time of year to fertilize, if you live in the Northeast, or in an area with a similar climate, than fertilizer needs to be applied no later than October 15th while the grass is still growing and well before the ground freezes.   

When you're applying fertilizer, be sure to use a rotary spreader and overlap the rows. This will ensure complete coverage. To ensure that you are getting the most out of the fertilizer, you should also test the pH of your soil and to apply lime if it is less than 6.0. If the soil is too acidic, this will impact the ability of turf grass to uptake nutrients necessary for growth. Lime should be applied with a drop spreader around planting areas since there are many plants and shrubs, such as rhododendrons, that prefer acidic conditions and will be adversely impacted by the addition of lime to the soil.

As beneficial as fertilizer can be, it can also be a source of surface water degradation if not applied correctly. More is not necessarily better.  Over application of fertilizer can result in excess nutrients not being used by the grass, but instead running off into lakes and streams, or estuaries, if you leave near the ocean. Evidence of this can be seen with increased plant growth and algal blooms. An overabundance of aquatic plants or algae depletes oxygen that is necessary for survival of fish and other aquatic life. Further, certain algal blooms, such as cyanobacteria, can cause serious illness to people and pets if ingested. These types of blooms are becoming more frequent during the summer months, resulting in the beach closures. Over the past several decades the geographic landscape has changed from urban and rural, to a more developed suburban landscape. Trees and natural vegetation have been cut down and farmland has been subdivided to make room for more houses and their accompanying lawns. It is now recognized that the maintenance of this ornamental "crop" has become a significant contributor of pollution to nearby water bodies.  To address the run-off of nitrogen and phosphorus from the over-application turf fertilizers, several states have passed legislation regulating the nitrogen and phosphorus content of  turf fertilizer sold at retail.  Minnesota was the first to initiate a statewide ban on phosphorus in lawn fertilizer in 2005. By 2012, eleven states had instituted similar bans. In 2013 New Hampshire enacted HB393 which places limits on nitrogen and phosphorus content in turf fertilizer and imposes certain labeling requirements. Since most soils in New Hampshire already have adequate amounts of phosphorus, the 2013 law prohibits turf fertilizer from exceed  a 0.67% available phosphate unless it is labeled for establishing new lawns, seeding, or being used when there is a tested phosphorus deficiency. So next time you are shopping for a bag of fertilizer and you see that the middle of the 3 numbers on the bag is zero do not feel like you are getting a deficient product, but instead know, that the product still contains nitrogen and potassium to help your grass grow and stay healthy. And, never exceed application rates as directed on the package since whatever is not able to be used by your lawn will not only be wasted, but may also result in contamination to surface waters or even groundwater used for drinking.

Here is an excellent document produced by the University of Connecticut which provides recommendations for fertilizing lawns when protecting water quality is of concern: New England Regional Nitrogen and Phosphorus Fertilizer and Associated Management Practice Recommendations .