Healthy Spring Green
It’s spring, the trees are producing leaves and the flowers are starting to show up. I was at the local feed store the other day looking over the plants they had in the green house. We are far from frost free or even snow free yet. End of May perhaps. The growing season in Bend, like Santa Fe, is short but intense. I have started several plants in pots that move inside at night and outside if it’s above 50 F during the day.
Why talk about plants and gardening? Both are good for you. Getting outside and playing in the dirt is a healthy thing to do. It’s calming, inspiring and will feed your creative soul. The box of seeds I ordered is sitting on the kitchen counter waiting for the soil to reach a paltry 50 degrees F. Once my raised beds are warm enough I will be putting seeds out with wild abandon!
In that seed collection are numerous packets of greens: lettuce, mixes, baby greens. Fresh greens are super easy to grow right up until it’s really hot outside. I grew them in pots at my Santa Fe home. I had to have screens to cover the pots that kept the lizards from eating up the tender shoots when they sprouted. I used hardware cloth to make the tops. Once the plants reached the top of the pot they were usually harden enough that the lizards left them alone. Bend is new territory for me with greens. Time will tell how well I do.
I grow greens to feed me and my brain. Greens are super good for your gut microbiome - which is where your immune system starts. A healthy gut microbiome will keep you in good health. The goal is to have at least 4-6 cups of greens daily. That is measured as uncooked. If you cook up say, 6 cups of chopped chard and it looks like one cup, it counts as three cups. Half cup cooked greens equals one cup fresh. Of course it’s easy to eat four cups of lettuce in a big salad. Get your greens, with a bit of oil or oily fish, avocado or olives to help the body process all the good stuff in the greens. Watch the sugar in pre-made dressings. Vinegar and oil are your best bet for healthy dressing, or none at all.