When the Grocery Bill Gets Too High...Grow Your Own!

part 1 of 4

I have been following world commodity pricing with some interest over the course of the past 30 months or so. How governments and society at large have chosen to deal with the global economic crises has made a substantial impact on the dietary choices/realities of many families, as rising food prices have caused many of us to contemplate working more, cutting back, or searching for lower end options. Where the outlook of going without or increasing your workload simply to maintain your dietary status quo may be unpalatable (writer's pun number 1), there is, in fact, a very easy, very enjoyable, very healthy solution: instead of purchasing all of your food from others, grow some of your own! With only a modicum of sunny space, anyone can enjoy fresh fruit and veggies, straight from your own garden to your table! Over the course of the next month, I will be highlighting some of my top picks for easy to grow, health-packed produce.

1) Tomatoes

Tomatoes are well known for being replete with antioxidants. Along with vitamins such as C and A, tomatoes also contain an antioxidant compound called lycopene,which has been shown to greatly reduce the risk of certain cancers. I once found myself sharing a flight to Denver with a prominent cancer researcher, who told me tomatoes really were the magic fruit for men, as there was a direct correlation between tomato consumption and healthy, cancer-free prostate glands. Gentlemen, eat up!

There are several great tomato varieties for our area. Early Girl (medium sized with a meaty and mild centre, much like the tomatoes you commonly purchase at a grocery store) and Tiny Tim (cherry sized, juicy, and quite sweet) are the shortest crops to grow, with fruit maturity approximately 45 days from seeding. Beefsteak tomatoes are longer to fruit and mature (approximately 65-75 days from seeding),but they are the tangy tomato of the backyard barbeque. Measuring 3-5" across, they are the perfect size for a hamburger bun. Try Bush Beefsteak if you prefer more substance (and less juice) in your tomato. Roma and Pear tomatoes are oval shaped,mid-length crops (55-65 days from seeding). These tomatoes tend to be quite mild with thicker skins and very meaty innards. They are perfect for cooking. Yellow pear is known for it's mild and smooth flavour. Patio tomatoes are great for growing in containers as they don't mind their roots bending. This is an early-midseason crop (50-60 days from seeding) that features medium sized, sweet and juicy fruit. (If you are thinking about starting your own tomatoes from scratch, now is the time to get them seeded; all varieties will also be found at your local garden centre, grown into 4" and 1 gallon pots in mid-May.) Also, keep your eyes peeled for the new cherry tomato called Tomaccio this spring: growing like a regular Sweet100 cherry tomato, Tomaccio tomatoes are great eaten fresh, have robust skin that makes them suitable for cooking, and are also very easy to dry. You will have topurchase this plant already grown into a 1 or 2 gallon pot, as their is no seed stock currently available on the market.

2) Potatoes

Mashed, scalloped, fried, in soups or salads...potatoes are both delicious and a very healthy starch. Eat them with the skin on and you benefit from their vitamin and antioxidant repertoire as well. A single potato typically contains 7g of protein, 70mg of vitamin C, 1500mg of potassium, 210mg of phosphorous, and over 1000mg of aspartic and glutamic acids (proven to help maintain a healthy metabolism.) Unbeknownst to most aspiring potato gardeners, potatoes don't need to be grown in the garden; they will produce ample, high quality tubers when planted into any deep, well drained container such as an old garbage can or a couple of rubber tires stacked up on top of each other. You can also buy a reusable "potato bag" planter at eco-conscious garden centres.

When potato lovers talk about growing their own tasty potatoes, there are generally 3 main factors that they use in determining which variety is right for them, namely: crop time (early or late), skin color (i.e. red, purple, blue, white, oryellow), and storing qualities. Because potatoes are a highly cultivated crop, you may also hear gardeners discussing disease resistance. With so many choices, it is difficult to pick just a few great varieties, but there are some that stand out in their fields (pun number 2; gardeners don't always make the best comedians!): Dakota Pearl (mid-season, yellow skin, good storing, resistant to scab), Sangre (mid-late season, bright red skin, great storing, resistant to scab and hollowheart), Purple Viking (early-mid season, purple skin, good storing, resistant to scab), and Yukon Gold (mid-season, yellow skin, excellent storing, resistant to scab and hollow heart.)

Decreasing reliance on grocery stores to supply household food requirements is becoming ever-more popular in today's economy. Squeezing out conventional rhetoric, ballooning food costs are prompting many of us to rethink our old assumptions about grocery stores: namely, that these outlets will continue to offer ever-present, quality food at affordable prices. As world demand for food rises and according supply diminishes, increased prices at the grocery tills are inevitable. But all is not lost - paying through the nose for quality produce is not a necessity. Simply growing a few fruit, vegetable, and herb plants this spring can save you hundreds of dollars at the grocery store. Consider this: $2.50 for a single, fresh beef steak tomato at the grocer's or $2.00 for a pack of seed that can produce dozens of better-tasting, healthier produce of the same variety...I pick the seeds!

The Nuts on Peanuts

Have you ever wondered why peanuts play such a permanent role in North American society and abroad? With all of the growing incidences of peanut allergies and horrific stories of unsuspecting people literally dropping dead after merely touching the substance to their lips, how could it even be possible that we still see this product in its many forms (peanut butter spread, cookies, candy, cooking oil, etc.) on grocery store shelves? If this were a pharmaceutical medicine, type of alcohol, or even a brand of glue, the regulatory-bodies-that-be would arrive in HAZMAT suits and usher the danger out in vacuum-sealed containers. Well, the answer is that peanuts are actually pretty amazing, and unfortunately often misunderstood.

The Nature of Peanuts

Myth #1: Some people believe that peanuts must grow on peanut trees. The vast majority of edible nuts grow this way; just think of chestnuts, almonds, cashews, brazil nuts, walnuts, and more.
The Facts: Peanuts do not grow on peanut trees. Peanut plants are herbaceous annuals (meaning they grow fresh from seed every year, and that the plants only last one season), usually growing less than 4 feet tall; the peanut plant does not bear any resemblance to a tree. Peanuts are not even nuts; heralding from the Fabaceae (bean) family, peanuts are a type of fruit called a legume. Garden peas that are commonly grown in our area are also legumes, and accordingly the peanut plant looks remarkably similar to a pea plant. As with garden peas and any other legume, one of the very notable things about peanut plants is their ability to absorb nitrogen from the atmosphere, transport it to their roots, and “fix” it in the soil. Peanut plants are wonderful revitalizers of the soil.

Myth #2: Many people know that peanuts grow underground and, as a result, reason that the brown edible morsels must be part of the root system.
The Facts: While it is true that peanuts are harvested from the soil, peanuts are not part of the root system of the peanut plant; they are the fruit that result from it’s reproductive processes. The botanical name of peanuts - Arachis hypogaea - describes the nature of the plant perfectly; “Arachis” refers to plants with yellow pea flowers and pods that ripen below the surface of the soil, and “hypogaea” further enforces the interesting way that peanut fruits ripen: “underground.” Peanut plants begin growing just like most other legumes: they sprout from a seed, grow a leafy top, and, when mature enough, produce flowers. Having the ability to reproduce without a partner, self-fertile peanuts pollinate themselves. Once the peanut flower has been fertilized, the peanut plant forces the flower stalk to grow quickly. It elongates to the point that the fertilized ovary (or “pod”) touches and is driven into the ground. Aided by hot weather, ample rains, and adequate nutrition, ripe peanut fruit are ready to be pulled from the ground approximately 100 days after flowering.

Myth #3: Peanuts are bad for you; that’s why people are becoming allergic to them.
The Facts: Peanuts are one of the most nutrition-packed foods for their size and weight. High in unsaturated fat, full of antioxidants, a good source of fiber and minerals, loaded with protein, and replete with over 30 essential nutrients, peanuts are one of the most inexpensive, healthiest foods on the world market. The unfortunate fact that allergies are rising, in Canada and other developed countries, has been a source of intense study for the scientific and medical communities. Along with focus on issues of air quality and peanut crop over-regulation (peanuts are one of the most regulated – meaning treated with pesticides – crops in the world), there has been a real interest in the North American tendency to over-protect our children from dirt and pathogens. The current leading theory in regards to peanut allergies (as with many other allergies) is that we as a society have insulated our young children so much from bacteria, fungi, and viruses that the immune systems of our youngsters have not been allowed to develop properly and as a result mistakenly detect harmless substances as dangerous; allergic reactions therefore develop. Researchers have coined this explanation to the rising trend of allergies as the “hygiene hypothesis.”

Myth #4: Hundreds of people in Canada die from peanut allergies each year.
The Facts: Approximately 100 people do die from allergies in a given year in Canada, but not uniquely from peanuts; rather, the statistic represents the mortality rate for all food allergies combined. Where there is an estimated 54% of the population that suffers from one allergen or another, only 1.1% suffer from peanut allergies (the number is slightly higher in children at 1.2%, and 20% of these children outgrow the allergy by age 6.) Concern over the rising number of peanut allergies is also somewhat over-reported: the fact of the matter is that all allergies are on the rise in developed nations. The increased percentages relative to peanut allergies may well be attributed to the fact that peanut consumption has also risen significantly over the past decade.

Peanuts are a wonderful food for those that can tolerate them. Amazing nutritional attributes and inexpensive cultivation make these legumes invaluable the world around. Although developed countries are experiencing rising food allergy rates, including peanut sensitivities, there is much research underway that aims to unlock the inner workings of the immune system so that we can develop adequate and effective antidotes and immunizations to allergens. Along with being delicious and healthy, peanuts are fun and rewarding to grow. Start raw peanut seed indoors in April and transplant into a large outdoor pot in May; you will enjoy fresh peanuts come August!

Fishing for the Big One!

I have two adolescent boys. Along with an undying love for sports, a burning passion for music, and quite the bent on becoming the funniest guy in the room, these boys love to fish. And by love to fish I really mean that they are obsessed. It doesn’t matter the time of year, where we are, or how long we are going to be there: if there is a patch of open water with a chance of fish below, the sky of possibility is opened and conversation turns to fish species, lures, reels, rods, and ultimately the best way to hunt the next family dinner. I asked them the other day if they knew much about Alberta’s fish, their diets, and their habitats, and found myself surprisingly impressed by their answers. Take the following quiz about fish in our area and see how you do!

1) Q: Where do fish in Alberta live?
A: Fish can live anywhere there is suitable habitat that includes good quality water, an agreeable food source, and protection from predators and the elements. This includes streams, rivers, lakes, irrigation canals, and, when maintained, man-made ponds and dugouts. When it comes to long-term species survival, however, it gets a bit more complicated. Depending upon the species, some fish need to migrate and have their own spawning grounds.

2) Q: What do fish in local streams, rivers, and lakes eat?
A: If you guessed plants, you are kind of right! Fish actually eat a varied diet, with the seeming mantra “if it moves and is smaller than me, take a bite.” The larger the fish, the larger the lunch: tiny fish feed on zoo and phytoplankton. Small fish feed on zoo and phytoplankton, small invertebrates, and tiny fish. Medium-sized fish feed on all of the above plus small fish, etc. As the fish size increases, so does its ability to eat larger and larger specimens. Plants are important to the diets of fish less as a direct food source but more as a home to the animals that fish like to eat. The notable exception to this is the triploid grass carp, which is a voracious plant eater; so much so in fact, that it has evolved pharyngeal teeth to aid in ripping leaves. This fish species is being used in a limited way in Alberta as a test to control weeds in dugouts and ponds. These fish are so invasive that they all must be sterilized prior to being released into any water environment; introduction into lakes and waterways is not practical for this reason.

3) Q: How many types of fish are there in Alberta?
A: Unbeknownst to most, there are several dozens of fish species that call Alberta waters home. While there are approximately 20 different species of fish commonly sought after by anglers for sport fishing, there are also over 40 other species that are not as illustrious (minnows, etc). While most species are native, there are a few non-natives that have been introduced, such as rainbow trout.

4) Q: What happens to fish when the water freezes over in winter?
A: It’s a Winter Wonderland down there! Thanks to water’s very unusual habit of hydrogen bonding, ice is less dense than water and actually floats. (Compare this with the behavior of most substances, where the solid state of the material is denser and thus heavier than the liquid state; the solid state will not float on the liquid state.) Fish lower their metabolic rates and simply travel to lower depths where the water is warmer.

5) Q: Is all fishing in Alberta for sport?
A: Although sport fishing is the largest sector of fishing in Alberta (with approximately 19 million fish caught – and most released – annually by sport anglers in the province), we also have a substantial commercial fisheries market. Harvesting in excess of 1.2 million kg of fish per year, most fish caught commercially are consumed by the local market; the rest is marketed through the Government of Canada Freshwater Fish Marketing Corporation. According to RAMP (Regional Aquatics Monitoring Program), species typically fished commercially are “whitefish, northern pike, lake trout, and walleye, … cisco, burbot, and sucker species.”

Enjoying the outdoors and taking an afternoon off to go fishing is a great pastime no matter what the season. More than just throwing a line in the water, however, there is a growing recognition of the importance of fish not only to the economy but also to our local ecosystems. Support, protect, enjoy, harvest, and revitalize; these are all noble and practical goals for maintaining fish populations and fisheries, both in Alberta and beyond. Octogenarians Jack Lemon and Walter Matthau had it right when they starred in Grumpy Old Men: fishing as part of the job? Sounds too good to be true!