Wednesday, April 28, 2010

History of Bay leaves


Tenth grader Daniel shows off our new Bay leaf tree ~

Bay Leaf
Laurus nobilis
French: feuille de laurier

The bay tree is indigenous to Asia Minor, from where it spread to the Mediterranean and then to other countries with similar climates. Bay, or laurel, was famed in ancient Greece and Rome. Emperors, heroes and poets wore wreaths of laurel leaves.

Apollo made the tree sacred and thus it became a symbol of honour. The association with honour and glory continue today; we have poet laureates (Apollo was the God of poets), and bacca-laureate means “laurel berries” which signifies the completion of a bachelor degree. Doctors were also crowned with laurel, which was considered a cure-all. Triumphant athletes of ancient Greece were awarded laurel garlands and was given to winners at Olympic games since 776 BC Today, grand prix winners are bedecked with laurel wreaths.

Spice Preparation and Storage
Dried leaves should be whole and olive green. Brown leaves will have lost their flavour. Whole leaves are often used in cooking and crushed or ground leaves can be used for extra strength. Kept out of light in airtight containers the whole leave will retain flavor for over two years.

Culinary Uses
Bay leaves are widely used throughout the world. It may be best known in bouquets garnis or used similarly in soups, sauces, stews, daubes and courts-bouillon’s, an appropriate seasoning for fish, meat and poultry. Bay leaf is often included as a pickling spice.

Attributed Medicinal Properties
It was once used to keep moths away, owing to the leafs lauric acid content which gives it insecticidal properties. Bay leaf has many properties which make it useful for treating high blood sugar, migraine headaches, bacterial and fungal infections, and gastric ulcers. Bay leaves and berries have been used for their astringent, carminative, diaphoretic, digestive, diuretic, emetic and stomachic properties. Bay Oil, or Oil of Bays (Oleum Lauri) is used in liniments for bruising and sprains. Bay leaf has been used as an herbal remedy for headaches. It contains compounds called parthenolides, which have proven useful in the treatment of migraines. Bay leaf has also been shown to help the body process insulin more efficiently, which leads to lower blood sugar levels. It has also been used to reduce the effects of stomach ulcers. Bay Leaf contains eugenol, which has anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidant properties. Bay leaf is also an anti-fungal and anti-bacterial. Bay Leaf has also been used to treat rheumatism, amenorrhea, and colic.

http://www.theepicentre.com/Spices/bay.html

Rain barrels


THANK YOU to Mr. Jay Callegari, of Callegari & Son Seamless Gutters, who installed free gutters on our potting shed to harvest water in our new rain barrels!

Our goal here at the APCS Edible Schoolyard is to become completely sustainable within a few years.
Each rain barrel holds 50 gallons of run-off water to nourish our garden, and the bonus is there are no chemicals in the water.

Ms. Polly and 4th graders Peyton & Hunter demonstrate...

Tuesday, April 27, 2010

April's progress...





With April winding down, here's a few snapshots of the crops progressing. We now have baby green tomatoes, sweet peas on the fenceline (the children love tasting these fresh!), our corn is growing tall and the potatoes will be ready for harvest soon!
Spring is such a lovely time of year to come take a stroll through the garden!

Monday, April 26, 2010

Nesting in the garden


A killdeer (bird) has created a nest in the middle of our green onion patch. While the children are excited to see the beautiful eggs up close, the mama bird gets quite vocal when we come near! She flaps her wings and acts injured to draw us away from the nest.

We have since learned about this bird, which likes to nest in open prairie ground. They usually lay four eggs, and our nest does have four. It takes almost a month for the eggs to hatch. The mother & father killdeer take turns sitting on the nest. The adult birds like to eat beetles, snails, caterpillars, & fly larvae.

In the bluebird boxes, we have eggs...
Aren't they gorgeous!!!
see below...

Organic pest control


ladybugs are beneficial insects and eat potato beetle eggs, as well as aphids


colorado potato beetle eggs on the underside of a potato leaf


the harmful potato beetle (before we destroyed them)

Our potato crop is doing great, but recently, we found quite a few Colorado potato beetles in various stages on the leaves. Pesticides can be especially concentrated in root vegetables, so it's especially important to grow organic potatoes for our children!
We simply picked the beetles, larvae and eggs off the leaves and squished them. The 3rd graders loved this somewhat gruesome task!

We also collected a few eggs, larvae & adult beetles in a jar to share with the 7th/8th grade science classes. The children are learning to tell the difference between harmful insects and beneficial ones, like ladybugs.

Petite Chou

All of our students study French here at APCS. Today we had a French speaking visitor in our garden, escorted by the owner of the Avoyelles Journal, Mr. Randy Decuir. Our guest, Mme. Florine Pary-Mille, is the mayor of a town, ville d' Enghien, in Belgium and a member of the Parliament. Since she didn't speak much English, she loved all the French signs labeling the crops!
Here are a few of our 5th grade girls' drawings of petite chou (small cabbage) from the garden...

Victoria Juneau

Amber Lemoine

Hannah Wilson

Caleigh Normand

Saturday, April 17, 2010

Our 1st Crop...Shallots!


This was from the Marksville Weekly News~

Friday, April 16, 2010

Marksville Farmers Market


a mirliton sprouting

spotted heirloom lettuce

The APCS Edible Schoolyard will have a booth this June at the Marksville Farmers' Market, selling all the organic goodies we can harvest! It takes place every Saturday morning in June from 8 - 11 am on the Marksville Courthouse Square. I've also heard that the sewing club will also have a booth in the Arts & Crafts area selling hand-crafted items.
Word-of-mouth is the best advertising, so tell your friends, and
please help us spread the word! www.marksvillefarmersmarket.com



4th graders dry cut chives to sell at the farmers' market

Earth Day this Thursday!

The 40th anniversary "Earth Day" will be celebrated this Thursday, April 22nd at the APCS Edible Schoolyard. We still have a few fruit trees to get in the ground, and I can't think of a better way to celebrate the earth than planting a tree!

Thursday, April 15, 2010

Re-cycle your green onions



Did you know that you can replant the root end of a green onion and it will continue to grow?
We got these from Panaroma Foods and see how they look after less than 2 weeks in the ground.
Many thanks to Mr. John Ed Laborde!


these are on the east side of the potting shed

Strawberry Fields Forever...





Did you know that the strawberry is the Louisiana state fruit?

Well, we now have about 80 strawberry plants in our garden! Recently, the 7th grade girls class did a taste test of the ripened fruit.
Their verdict...DELICIOUS!!!