My sweat smells good...

...to mosquitoes. That's because I emit a wonderful proportion of carbon dioxide, octenol, nonanal (I prefer to put the accent on the first syllable), and other compounds. Yes, a large part of the mosquito's sense of smell is devoted to human targets like me. In fact, of the 72 types of odor receptors on the antennae of mosquitoes, 27 detect chemicals in human perspiration.

Some other facts about mosquitoes...

• They are vector agents for not only malaria, but yellow fever, dengue fever (which a friend of a friend is now recovering from), and chikungunya. Now, I don't know if you know what that is, but I bet it's something you could probably do without.


• You may have heard that bats and purple martins devour mosquitoes, but actually only about 1% of the diets of these winged friends consist of mosquitoes.


• There are all kinds of breeding grounds for mosquitoes in your backyard - consider the more hidden places that may collect pools of stagnant water - a dip in a bag of mulch, kids' toys, a shovel left out, a watering can, a wheelbarrow, etc.


• We know DEET is a great repellent, but also that it's dangerous. There are all sorts of recipes for repellents out there, but the compound in catnip essential oil has been found to be 10 times more effective than DEET (and your cat may put on a good show if you wear it)! Do you have a recipe that works? I want to hear from you especially if you typically get mosquito bites but have an effective repellent!


• A mosquito not only sucks your blood, but actually injects you with saliva first. The saliva contains a sort of anti-coagulant that keeps its horrid proboscis from being clogged with blood clots.

This is all bad news for me because I happen to be highly sensitive to insect bites. A single bite will often swell up, and itch intensely for several days. What I can confirm for you though, is that as you may have seen on My Big Fat Greek Wedding, Windex does work to relieve the itch! Maybe it's because the burn of the chemical offers relief from the itch!

Once, a mosquito made its way up my pant leg and I ended up with a zig zag of 6 bites from ankle to butt cheek. Imagine what happens when the butt bite starts itching during a meeting at work. So now I tuck my pant legs into my socks (it's not a great look). Another time, I must have been bent over doing something and got 4 bites around my waist. After this, I began to cover any exposed skin with bug spray. Thinking that the bug spray would prevent the usual bites on my legs and arms, I then got a bite on my eyelid. My eye was swollen for 2 days.

This all brings me to the motivation for this post. Yesterday, a mosquito was in our bedroom. I was brushing my teeth and heard a loud SLAP. Then my husband said, "Sorry buddy, I didn't want to kill you".

I felt no compassion for the dead mosquito.

Growing, buying, cooking: bamboo

Bamboo is not quite the nemesis that people make it out to be. It’s a beautiful and sustainable material made into screens, furniture, flooring, paper, yarn, most anything. My father has a large stand of bamboo he’s taken advantage of by crafting his own natural brooms, serving spoons, garden trellises, tomato cages, and the cheapest high quality mulch around.

Unlimited supply of mulch!

There are two main types of bamboo – clumping and running. Clumping bamboo can be kept contained but the running type is what may give pause for concern. The running type of bamboo, which is what we typically envision when we think of bamboo, is spread by underground rhizomes that can run long and varying distances. As with many plants that send runners, new bamboo rhizomes are vigorous and can run deep. For someone like my father though, it poses no problem. Then again…he maintains an eight acre property and can afford to allow bamboo to happily reside in its several hundred square feet spot. In fact, the large stand greets visitors with a sense of serenity as it gently sways in a wind. For backyard gardeners though, it would be wise to either plant bamboo in a lovely container, to plant a clumping bamboo without fear of too much spreading, or to take the time and care to install a metal or concrete barrier so that running bamboo can grow in a contained space. The barrier would ideally be at least 60 mil thick, and at least 30 inches tall, peeking about 2 inches above ground.

New bamboo plantings need to watered regularly and kept from drying out. Aside from that, bamboo is not too fussy, and only asks for full sun. Bamboo can withstand cold and snowy seasons. In fact, during our last blizzard which dumped four feet of snow, I took notice of the bamboo pushed almost completely down to the ground and had a clear understanding of why bamboo is known as the great symbol of resiliency.

The versatile and resilient bamboo, once again standing tall


Clumping bamboo is typically harvested in summer/fall, while running bamboo is harvested in the spring at about 8 inches high. To harvest, cut at ground level. To make it simpler, do like my mom does – put on a pair of sneakers, and kick the bamboo shoots off – they’ll break off at ground level.



Bamboo shoots, ripe for the kicking!


Once harvested, bamboo shoots are best eaten within two to three days. To prepare the long, thin shoots of running bamboo, slice in half lengthwise as shown in the photo. Find the tip of the tender heart in the center of each side, and using your thumbs, cut the heart out of the bamboo shoot.

Bamboo shoots are a mainstay in Chinese cuisine. Bamboo shoots can be sliced in stir fry dishes, julienned in soups, and in any number of ways in between. Because bamboo shoots can be bitter and tough, it is necessary to cook them first (if you’re using canned shoots, first of all, you’ll be making an inferior dish - (I'm just saying!), and second of all, you won’t need to pre-cook).

Below, the recipe for braised short ribs and bamboo shoots. I almost laugh in anticipation of sharing this recipe as it is such a typical dish my mother loves to make - Extremely time-consuming, fairly complex, totally delicious, and quickly devoured. I urge you to make this dish using fresh bamboo at least once in your lifetime. It will give you an appreciation for bamboo shoots you could not gain otherwise.

Braised Short Ribs and Bamboo Shoots (serves 8-10)

1 pound short ribs, marinated for at least one hour
Marinade: 2T soy sauce, dash pepper, 1T sesame oil, 1T cornstarch

5 cups fresh bamboo shoots, peeled and pre-cooked (Boil in large pot of water for about 40 minutes, then drain and rinse in cold water. This step can be done ahead of time)

2T Shao Xing rice wine or sherry
2T rock sugar
1/8 cup dark soy sauce
½ T salt

2T cornstarch

Remove ribs from marinade and set marinade aside. In a large pot, brown ribs in oil. Add bamboo shoots and stir. Add marinade and water to just near the top of the meat and bamboo shoots. Bring to a boil, and then reduce heat to simmer. Add the wine, rock sugar, soy sauce and salt. Simmer for an additional 45 minutes or until meat is tender and sauce has reduced by half. To thicken sauce, remove about ½ cup of sauce from the pot and stir in about 2T of cornstarch. Add to pot. Raise heat, add cornstarch mixture and stir while cooking for another few minutes. Serve with rice.

Recipe for pizza parties

My 5 year old was regaling me with the details of the wonderful pizza party her school had yesterday during which all the students made their own pizzas using herbs from their student-tended garden. I helped her record the recipe so that we (and now you!) can have your own fabulous pizza party at home!

Preschool Pizza (do it with a grown up)

Ingredients:

4 muffins if you all want to make one

4 cheese

5 scoops tomato sauce

4 leaf herbs from the garden to make it taste good

Method:
Pick the herbs and wash them, then put them in the sauce.

Put the muffin on your plate and put the sauce on with a spoon.

Put the cheese on, then sprinkle it all around.

Bake it in the oven on warm until you count to 60, then count to 30.

Enjoy!

Nora's garden

Though we've lived in the same neighborhood for a long time, I'd never met Nora until this morning. Her husband has always been the mainstay of their backyard garden, and during my beginning days of experimentation with my own garden, he was on my list of people to one day consult. I'd see him in his garden during drive, walk, and jog bys, recognizing him from afar with his trucker's cap, work pants, and button-down short-sleeved shirt. He'd be casually working his plot, hoe hanging from the low branches of the tree that frames his vegetables.


Detailed in my (from the vault) post My Neighbor's Garden , I'd always thought it would be a good idea to seek out our gardening neighbors and learn their stories, but of course, there have been many excuses not to stop and chat. I'm working on jumping on more of these opportunities.



On my run this morning, I thought it strange to see this woman working in the garden instead of the man I'd seen working on it every other time. Nora and I met when I asked her if I could snap her photo for my blog. I commented that I'd noticed a man typically working this plot. She said her husband has leukemia and recently had a stroke. He is in a wheelchair now. These days, Nora tends to the garden, finding relaxation and peace in her work.



This morning, she told me she was working on tomatoes, and I noticed that she has moved some things around since she's taken over. Despite the changes this little garden has experienced, one thing that so obviously has carried over is the solace it provides the gardener. Join me in sending positive thoughts to Nora and her husband.

Scenes from my father's place

In the vegetable garden. Top: left side of the garden, ready to be planted. Bottom: funky scapes.

The landscaping in the circle of the driveway...

To watch these duckings hatch through a series of photos, click on this old post...

And at the end of a long day maintaining this property, one must take time to unwind...

Click here for a more detailed tour and other photos from late last summer.

Still more strawberries...

"What are we going to do with the strawberries today, Mom?"

Perhaps chocolate-covered...

Maybe topped with sweetened vanilla whipped cream...



And if we're patient and put some effort into it, we could make homemade strawberry ice cream...

Profile of a volunteer (cont'd - and MYG)

In my post about both human and flora volunteers, I described some of the stories behind why people volunteer. Here, you see other volunteers in action. Scenes from today's morning at the Washington Youth Garden at the National Arboretum...

Weeding, weeding, weeding. Many hands make quick work of this necessary chore.

Cheerfully mulching tomato plants.

Chris - one of a few WYG employees - skilled in gardening and giving orders in the kindest manner, with the ability to detect from 200 feet away with eyes closed when one of the army of volunteers is stepping in a garden bed. Chris is particularly happy today (does the energy jump off your computer screen like it does mine?). This is Chris moments before he calls out, "Who's feeling good?!!"

Volunteer gardeners wheeling mulch over and planting new rows of carrots, beets, Swiss chard, and pak choi (need info on pak choi - try this post). I should really alert people before I take pictures of their butts.

In the distance at the National Arboretum. It definitely catches your eye. Perhaps if the weather looked less ominous, it would appear less creepy.

****************************************

Now for an update on the flora volunteers I posted about a few weeks ago...

The grass that sprouted on my back slope turned out to be something really pretty. It's a keeper.

The plant I thought could have been the Japanese lanterns I planted and forgot about was...not. Not a keeper.

Allium shubertii ended up being really spectacular. Their tendrils reach probably close to 2 feet from end to end. These bulbs bloomed this year for the first time, after turning to mush the past few years (late frost). Interestingly, these bulbs volunteered to live in their new spots (talk about creepy).

Poor schubertii. The good news is that the garden attracts butterflies. The bad news is that the butterflies attract the kids down the street who don't get the difference between a play area and a do-not-trample area. Allium schubertii - definitely a keeper. Neighborhood kids who trample my garden - well, I won't say it publicly.