March, 2011 by Okaloosa County Master Gardeners

…for

discerning weeders

A Newsletter of the Okaloosa County Master Gardeners Association –– March 2011

Master Gardener Meeting, 9:00 a.m., Wednesday, 2 March Shalimar Baptist Church Eating the Invasives

Lynn Fabian

I have long advocated (tongue in cheek) that if we could persuade people that the stuff growing in some inland lakes was good to smoke, we would soon clear our waterways of Hydrilla verticillata. Same goes for kudzu and any other unwanted plant material. Now there is a movement to ʻEat Invasiveʼ and some chefs are getting behind the movement. Visiting other countries (or states) really points out the variations in diet that exist worldwide. Whatʼs the most populous critter on the planet? As a group, insects win hands down. How many insects are in our diets? (Accidental inhalation aside!) James Gorman reported in The New York Times (December 31, 2010) that a fishing derby in the Florida Keys was held and the species

was the lionfish. Bermuda has a campaign called “Eat ʻem to Beat ʻem”. UF lists a Lionfish Cookbook (http://monroe.ifas.ufl.edu/) The lionfish is a native of the Western Pacific Ocean and is flourishing in our SE coastal waters and in the Caribbean. It Pterois volitans has few enemies and feeds on immature native aquatic species. If you go hunting this one, watch out for the venomous spines. If we eat enough of them, it may go the way of the Passenger Pigeon.

Hunger is the best sauce Okaloosa County Master Gardeners

Entomophagy

Lynn Fabian

How many insects do you normally include in your diet? According to one source the average human eats about one pound of insects each year. There are some allowable limits in our food standards and some insect extracts are allowed by the FDA. This is a U.S. Standard of course.

other parts of the world, insects are part of the diet mainstay.

According to the FDA website, frozen broccoli can have an average of 60 or more aphids or mites per 100 grams of product. This is preharvest infestation. It is not clear how many are allowed in the finished product.

But think about it for a minute. What sounds more appealing: a scavenging crustacean or an insect that feeds on living plants. Insects pack a protein punch. Its the ʻeewʼ factor we have to overcome.

For fresh food, it is theoretically possible to find and remove any of the unwanted additives but some foods defy even the most exacting of cooks. One friend related a story of preparing a head of cauliflower for guests. She had steamed the head and poured the cheese sauce over just before placing it on the table. Heads were bowed for the blessing and she peeked up just before the Amen and saw aphids crawling in the cheese sauce. The dish was immediately whisked to the kitchen. I do not know what the replacement dish was.

Perdue, Illinois State University and the University of Wisconsin are among the institutions that are studying “microlivestock”. Maybe some day we will see a wider acceptance of insect consumption in the western diet. We have learned to eat snails and tofu. Maybe there is room for something new.

What insects do find their way into our food may just add a bit of unexpected protein. In

http://www.essortment.com/entomophagy-using-insects-f ood-source-22027.html

Most Americans shy away from insects but eat other arthropods with relish. Crustaceans and insects are both arthropods. Bring on the shrimp and hot sauce! Hold the grasshoppers!

http://www.fda.gov/Food/GuidanceComplianceRegulatory Information/GuidanceDocuments/Sanitation/ucm056174. htm#intro http://www.insectosphere.com/

Lord, I’ll get it down if you’ll keep it down. A missionary friend’s prayer while serving in South American

Not a Book Review

Amazon.com

I know if I had given Klare enough lead time she would have been glad to review some of these suggestions. Maybe even tried a few of the recipes. But I did not think that far ahead. If you want to explore the world of insects from the insectivore's viewpoint, here are a few select titles.

Creepy Crawly Cuisine: The Gourmet Guide to Edible Insects Man Eating Bugs: The Art and Science of Eating Insects Bugs for Lunch

Eat-a-Bug Cookbook: 33 Ways to Cook Grasshoppers, Ants, Water Bugs, Spiders, Centipedes and Their Kin

The first time you see something that you have never seen before, you almost always know right away if you should eat it or run away from it. — Scott Adams.

Local Food If you are looking for locally grown food, be sure to check the Okaloosa County Farmerʼs Market. They are located near the fairgrounds and are open year round on Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday from 6 a.m. until 12 noon. Akerʼs in Baker should be about ready to begin the strawberry season and later there will be local blueberries. They carry fresh produce in season.

Lynn Fabian

If anyone knows other locations to purchase locally grown food, let me know so we can spread the word. Last year there was some mention of a farmerʼs market in Destin. There is now a fruit and veggie stand set up at the corner of SR85 South (Government Ave) and John Sims Parkway. So far there have been no sellers, but the stand is there. 3

Two food co-ops are listed for Okaloosa County: Emerald Coast Organic Not-for-profit Co-op 119 Truxton Ave Ft. Walton Beach, FL www.emeraldcoastorganicfoodcoop.org 850-225-9188

And Off the Vine Organic Produce Contact Shana Wolf www.offthevine.org 850374-2181

Gourmet (n.) Anyone whom, when you fail to finish something strange or revolting, remarks that it's an acquired taste and that you're leaving the best part.

Coming Events

–MG General Meeting Wednesday, Mar 2nd, 9:00a

Shalimar Baptist Church

–Crestview Landscape Workday, Tuesday, Jun 1st 7:30a ‘til –Mar Board Meeting, TBA, Mar 16th, 9:30 a –Plant Clinic at Annex, Wednesday, Mar 17, 10a-1p –Field Trips coming soon –Nursery Workday/Training, Annex; topic TBA; check with Jenny or Andy

A Walk on the Wildside I'm sure we are all enjoying these unusually warm days with Spring officially starting the 20th of this month. Wildlife are becoming more active as well. Here are some of the activities you can look out for this month.

Linda Meyers

Amphibians Male frogs and toads move to ponds, streams,and ditches to breed during rainy nights.

Birds Migrating birds from Central and South America visit the state. Mourning doves nest now through November. Carolina wrens are nesting now. Summer tanagers and great-crested flycatchers arrive to breed.

(One has to assume the females move with them or are already in residence?) Lynn Fabian

Reptiles Snakes become active and move to favorite feeding areas Fish

Listen for Great Crested Flycatcher newlyreturned chuck-will's-widows calling after sunset. Plant columbine, coral bean, and other wildflowers to attract hummingbirds. Wild turkey and quail begin breeding in central and north Florida. Quail are breeding in many parts of the state.

Largemouth bass are spawning throughout central and north Florida.

Mammals Look for red foxes emerging from remote beaches. Striped skunks are fighting over mates watch out!

Plants & Trees Chickasaw plum and crabapples bloom in north Florida. http://www,wec.ufl.edu/extension/wildlife_info/

By Larry Korhnak

ÂŠ Okaloosa County Master Gardeners

If you read this issue of The Compost Pile, send me an e-mail NOW. Be the first to respond and receive a small (very small) Chickasaw plum tree. Elfabian@cox.net. Deadline 8:00 a.m. March 2, 2011

Presidentʼs Message It’s definitely the slow season around here. The cold weather isn’t going away soon, so there’s not much going on outside. There are many things we can do, however. We can man the offices and tend to the Extension landscape and the Annex nursery, getting them ready for spring. The offices, in particular, need help, as this is the time of the year when the big stores are pushing 5050-0 with “bonus” weed & feed at $25 a pop, and folks need some real lawn advice.

Bill Buckellew with lots of blue, brown, amber, clear, and green flowers on it. One of them looks very much like it has a “Bud Light” label on it. Must be a mutant. Thanks to everyone who helped at the EcoExpo. It was a real success, and Mike did a great job setting it up. Watch the website and the meeting agendas for the next opportunities to participate in fun stuff. Good news: In case you don’t read the Mullet Wrapper, the E.O. Wilson Biophilia Center in south Walton County will soon be open to the public. ––Bill

It’s also a good time to plant trees. I planted one the other day, and it’s already six feet tall

Last Word With some fear and trepidation, I responded to an offer from Stacey to visit when she was working with the bees. I have had some unpleasant encounters with bees and other stinging insects and was not sure I really wanted to visit where they lived and get up close and personal. I should have known Stace would take care of us. Ed and I suited up in overalls resembling HazMat suits and tied a hat and veil around our collars and followed our leader into the “yard”. From the driveway I figured this was going to be a piece of cake. I could see a few bees coming and going from the hive nearest us...no great swarm was evident. First rule: Donʼt stand in front of the hive. Translation: Donʼt come between a bee and her home base. You might have a close encounter you do not want and she is carrying a © Okaloosa County Master Gardeners

Lynn Fabian load of pollen and is working hard to make it home. I took up a strategic location at the rear of the hive and watched as Stacey began to pump smoke into and around the hive. Talk about a change in volume! Those few bees I had seen earlier had a few thousand of their closest friends inside and the smoke signaled a change they were not happy about. But the smoke made the bees somewhat lethargic and slower to move about. That was a good thing. I only ducked once when something zoomed by my ear. Lots of protective clothing between me and the bees so not to worry. That was the last time I even thought about being stung. As Stacey opened the hive, row upon row of hanging frames appeared. This was the first opening of the hives this year and the bees had “glued” the frames together with 6

wax. The small pry bar called a hive tool that Stacey used allowed the frames to be gently separated from each other and the box or super they were hanging in. Donʼt forget the smoker because separating the frames caused all manner of flying about and buzzing round us. Stacey characterized the bees as angry and I believed her. But I was well protected in thick overalls. Glad it was a cool day as the sun climbed above the trees and the shade disappeared. Keeping the hives in full sun helps keep the bees healthy. They donʼt have to work as hard keeping the hive warm in cool weather. Opening the hive had a couple of objectives this day. Stacey was preparing two new hives for a beginning beekeeper so some frames were used to build the new hives with bees and pollen and eggs and some were returned to the old hive. More importantly, she was checking for parasites in the hive. We have all heard about Varroa mites and hive beetles. Sure enough, several hive beetles were seen moving about. A little gentle urging with the hive tool and they were corralled on the edge of the frame and taken to hive beetle heaven. And yes...some hive beetles were harmed in the opening of this hive. Varroa mites were not as easily seen and the test for them involved shaking some bees covered with a white powder over a small bowl of

water. Mites will show up on the surface of the water but none were found this time. I was concerned about this white powder coating the bees. Surely Stacey doesnʼt coat her friends in a toxic something or other. Not to worry. The white powder turned out to be powdered sugar and although the bees look a little odd, they will quickly turn the sugar into food in the hive. Because the queen is essential to the hive, Stacey carefully examined each frame, looking for the royal lady. We learned to recognize drones and of course the workers, but finding the queen was more difficult. Then Stacey spotted her...the one with the blue dot on her back. Once found, her size and shape were different from the workers, but the blue dot made recognition much easier. That queen went back into the original hive and frames containing queen eggs went into the new hives. Stacey said that within two or three weeks, the bees would hatch a new queen and the hive would begin the process of expanding and making honey. I am not ready to become a beekeeper but I was fascinated by the whole process of managing the hives to keep the bees healthy and productive. The productive part is all the lovely honey that is extracted during the year. Leave enough for the bees to flourish and take enough for us to enjoy. Thanks, Stacey. See you all in Shalimar. ––Lynn

Until you have smoked out the bees, you can't eat the honey. Russian Proverb

About Us

The Compost Pile is a publication of the Okaloosa County Master Gardeners Association.

Okaloosa County Master Gardeners Association is a volunteer organization sponsored by Okaloosa County Extension and the University of Florida IFAS.

The Foundation for the Gator Nation...an equal opportunity institution. Lynn Fabian, Editor Linda Meyers, Co-Editor Ed Fabian, First Reader Marg Stewart, Web Site Coordinator

ÂŠ Okaloosa County Master Gardeners