 Garden in motion at Altaura Farm (follow up) -
Casale di Scodosia
August 10, 2012 - Lebanon
Towards the end of May I gather peas from my garden. These peas, to me, are the best peas in the world! During that same time, when the peas of my garden are ready, the fields are also sown with barley which will then be made into soup for my piglets. Honestly, to taste, touch, and see these harvests transports me to the Sensory Garden of Lebanon. Evidently my threshold for sensitivity is still very low! In my garden, selected plants are left to go to seed which ensures the spontaneous continuation of my garden’s growth.
I realized that seedlings of thistle and artichoke were sprouting here and there as well. These plants are the three daughters of thistle and artichoke plants which have inhabited my garden for several years. The plants had previously been denied the right to reproduce when, with the coming of winter and "the preparing of the ground", the land was plowed. The silvery color of these plants makes them easily recognizable among all other herbs. I immediately marked these seedling plants with a length of bamboo, which was placed close to each, and now they are tall, beautiful and lush. The artichoke as well now has two beautiful purple flowers from which the plant will make new ‘baby plants’ to join the party.
The First Steps of the ‘Garden is Motion’
Traditionally, the organic garden at Casale di Scodosia was plentifully planted with salads and small leaves of mallow, plantain, mint, strangolaochi, and Daisy flowers. From these basic elements, a thousand other flavors have now been born.
From the end of May, and lasting until the middle of June, Personal sorrows forced me away from my garden. During that time, the garden became filled with wild growth - which in only twenty days - reached a height of more than a meter and a half, hiding all the garden plants and inhibiting their growth. When I returned, I was filled with strength and determination to save my garden, which had been nearly given up as lost. The wild Meddle is not difficult to eradicate using only ones hands, even if fully grown and very strong. By working in small increments, I was able to “pull-out a bit 'at a time”, which meant at least an additional 15 days of work to save the garden. I was especially careful to remove all the seedlings. In particular, the tomatoes had become twisted, and they appeared too thin and flimsy to survive the upright posture that their recovery would require. However, the tomatoes were tied to upright bamboo sticks. The chances of success for my recovery attempts were doubtful! But, it was to be a great achievement.
The Eggplants also suffered from my temporary lack of interest. But today those same plants provide me a great satisfaction and immense pride. Just the other day, members of my farm gathered to witness the healthy size and appearance of these plants. It is a miracle!
We have already collected a lot of celery for soups. Finding these plants among the high wild growth was also practically impossible, and the celery was a real treasure hunt to find. I was hoping that they had not lost the desire to grow. We kept all the leaves of the celery plants, for they make very useful teas that ease a sore throat or Aphonia. We also created a soup using just those leaves. It was delicious! I do not know why we usually throw away the leaves of celery. I certainly will not be throwing them away any longer! Celery seeds can also be used when making bread!
If the celery was difficult, I knew the parsley would require all of my patience, focus and determination. But, we are now able to prepare the excellent dish "Tapuli", a typical Lebanese appetizer, which is made with parsley. We enjoy the dish now, as well as store preserves of it for the winter. As well as parsley, the Lebanese also use mint or oregano leaves as fundamental elements of this dish. We so often eat salads containing mint or oregano. Now we can use the same ingredients, along with a bit of parsley and a few pieces of tomato, to make “Tapuli”.
All in all, the wild growth from around the garden has been brought under control as quickly as it had invaded. Vegetables resumed their growth and, we now have many other plants producing in the garden as well. In practice we do not work to make all plants produce at once, rather the plants are allowed to go into production ‘a bit at a time’, each according to their own timescale. This is great gardening!
The removed wild growth was then used as mulch and fertilizer for the other plants.
My hope is that in the coming years there is not haphazard growth, but only "zones" where each plant most enjoys growing itself. This mainly pertains to celery, parsley, and the ‘salad’ plants. Strawberries, which were in the vegetable garden for a few years, have already made a second flowering and harvest this year. And the second strawberry harvest was much larger than that of the spring. I think this is due to our new irrigation methods. In past years the plant went into dormancy after the harvest and would rest until spring of the following year.
The beetroots are delicious. Their flavor contains a fair amount of sugar. We have made ravioli stuffed with beets here, and we have served them with a cream which was made from the leaves of those same beets! The combination has been very warmly received by the palates of those here, on this farm, and I suggested that my friends at the Angle of Flavors Farm, come to our restaurant so that they might also enjoy the dish.
It occurs to me now, that a few leaves and fruits are put into jams. Nowhere I have I found this written in a recipe, but it seems to me that the leaves would be a natural enhancement to the overall taste!
We now turn to the turnips. They are delicious when boiled and "mixed" within the Greek dish Zaziki which is made using cucumbers, garlic, and salt. Using yoghurt as an accessory to this dish is recommended. I tried this dish two nights ago at Casale di Scodosia, and I enjoyed every bite.
In our kitchens, the "magical" organic salt of Sicily and our chopped farm herbs are mixed together. This mixture is a wonderful flavor addition to plain pasta.
Sicilian Courgette Peppers are not yet ready, but the Sicilian Zucchini has long have been harvested here, (see photo of three days ago at Casale di Scodosia) and we preserve the seeds for the coming year. As usual, some seeds are left to seed themselves on site. Other zucchini, such as the local version, are not particularly flavorful. Indeed, some are bitter and inedible. Using organic seeding, everything finds its proper place and order with minimal interference.
No additional spinach is sewn. There is so much of that plant offered to us by nature, and it is always ready when we need it. We need only water it, and give it care to enjoy its delicious treats!
We also began to cook using Amaranth, the so-called Veneto Albioni. These are tasty, but we need to experiment more in order to better realize their flavor.
Here, even the Burdock is under observation!
We began, in the winter garden, by planting all sorts of broccoli, cabbage and kale. I have also included a new series of zucchini, beans, lettuce, radishes, and fennel. We have also sewn corn which should come to maturity within 50 days.
While the corn seeds brought from Lebanon did not produce great results, we will continue to try new things in an attempt to better understand our garden. And, the Sensory Garden in Lebanon will grow the bean seeds which occur spontaneously here. These beans are prevalent in the local meadows which surround the convent of Saint Sauveur, Sidon near my home. And, if I find should happen upon any little cedars, they too will be going to Lebanon, and the winter onion will not be far behind!
Herb Gardens in Motion
A report indicates that seeds of an older site, which were donated and cultivated within our garden, originated from Mother Grass which is a typical plant from the time of Veronese. This plant has been almost completely forgotten, but we hope to re-introduce the plant into our kitchen’s recipes, including the original recipe for ravioli fillings.
The fruit tree branches which live in the open spaces of the garden have never been pruned. The weight of fruit ripening upon them nearly lowers these branches to the ground. Once the fruit has been harvested, these branches raise in height by several meters. The weight of plants may be a trivial consideration, but we see that plants which rise and fall can make quite an impression on the garden as a whole! Where-as, up until a few days ago, I had to lower my head to navigate those patches of garden, I can now stand upright while walking through them.
Another of our considerations is that of the oak leaves which had fallen upon the garden. They may become an excellent and durable mulch and fertilizer when spring returns. Who knows what benefits may be contained within this natural occurrence. We will be sure to study the effects with interest.
Luckily, there has been no invasion by pests or mold which could bring damage to the leaves, but we will remain vigilant!
The fencing keeps our chickens and poultry outside of the garden, at least for now. The bunnies are also kept at bay so as to protect our cabbage! The peacock, however, is a frequent visitor to the garden, and I still have not figured out what his interest there is!
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Gardens in motion, 
