An excerpt from North Coast Voioce Jan 2023 Homegrown! Spotlight on Local Food

Happy New Year, friends and family! This article focuses on the local food movement and happenings related. 

Winter bee watch: While we may be cuddling up, the worker bees are busy. A conversation with several local bee enthusiasts 

During the last big snow storm, with hands around a thick ceramic mug filled with mint tea and honey, the question arose, where do the bees go when it snows in NE Ohio? Fortunately, a few days after the question, several bee enthusiasts happened upon the shop and were able to sit down and chat for a bit about honey and bees. 

Whether you drink honey or not, bees play a vital role in food generation. Pollination is the act of moving pollen from the male part of the plant flower to the female enabling growth and reproduction. Over 250,000 species of plants depend on pollination to reproduce and one-third of crops eaten by United Statesians comes from crops pollinated by bees; called entomophily. Imagine a life without apples, watermelons, cranberries, pumpkins, squash, broccoli, zucchini, roses, blackberries, raspberries, cherries,  and blueberries as these are some of the plants that require pollination to reproduce (ie.form seeds). Wild plants require pollination, too. Fortunately in Ohio, we have over 500 species of native bees and we have many honey bees, too. Honey bees are not native but we foster their existence and growth for the reasons listed above plus their ability to produce honey is widely appreciated. 

The fascinating honey bee story as told by Zana of Coltman Apiary and Linda Dole of Windy Hill Farm goes like this: there are three kinds of honey bees in a hive – the Queen, worker bees and drones. The Queen bee can lay as many as 1500 eggs in a day during peak production while the worker bees, all females, tend to the work of keeping the hive clean, producing and storing honey, caring for the larvae, building cells, guarding the nest and foraging/pollinating. These worker bees are wonderfully productive and live 4 to 6 weeks during the summer. The drones are male bees who wait to mate with the Queen. When winter comes, the drones are kicked out of the hive. The worker bees will form a cluster around the Queen and flap, shiver and shake to keep her warm. These workers take turns eating and clustering and a hive can go through as many as 80 pounds of honey in a season. This is why it is important for beekeepers to allow the bees to keep some honey for their wintering months. There is no hibernation and sleeping for these bees – winter is a musical and collaborative dance in admirable teamwork. 

Honey bees, valued for their sweet honey production, have an agricultural benefit 10 to 20 times that of honey. They estimate $15 billion in added crop value nationwide. They are necessary in the work of pollination and we, in NE Ohio, would find it difficult to eat as well as we do without the bees. Included in this process are native bees that do not produce honey but work hard at pollination. Native bees have a much higher pollinating capacity than honey bees. They work hard at keeping food production alive through the summer. Our symbiosis with bees ensures delicious gardens! So what can an average person do to keep these pollinators happy? 

We can keep bees fed, happy and working by easily adapting a few concepts into our own gardening. Enjoy looking around your own garden environment this spring and notice these tiny creatures performing subtle work that makes all of the difference. 

• Start a pollinator garden 
• Plant many flowers in between your garden rows and around trees 
• Plant flowers that will be in bloom throughout the whole spring, summer & fall 
• Let your lawn grow – go wild! 
• Minimize the use of pesticides and herbicides 
• Build bee housing 
• Involve the kids – neighbors, too
• Plant more natives 
• Don’t cut back all the old plant stalks and brush in the fall, these are great nesting places 
• Leave piles of compost, leaves, and grass clippings around, these are great nesting sites for bumble bees
• Go to a virtual class this winter to learn more (see below) 

In other local food-related news: There is a large hazelnut farm in Geauga County – Newcomb Nut Farm – inspiring folks to consider planting more nut “trees” in NE Ohio. They were in Ashtabula recently giving a demonstration of all the tasty vittles one can make with hazelnuts including hazelnut butter, cream, toasted as a salad topper, chocolate covered and hazelnut oil! 

A few events happening this winter: 

Jan 11 – Mar 8; Wednesday. 1-3pm; virtual and free: Western Reserve Land Conservancy hosts “Inviting Biodiversity into our Gardens.” This is the first in a series. Register at www.wrlandconservancy.org/events. Free 

Jan 11 – Mar 8; every other Wednesday. 7pm. Northeast Ohio Pollinator Society. “Homegrown conservation: Stewarding our landscapes for pollinators and other wildlife.” register at go.osu.edu/neops. Free – donations happily accepted. 

Jan 14, 2023; Saturday. 1-2:30pm; Henderson Memorial Library hosts, “Youth Intro to beekeeping.” 

Feb 16-18: OEFFA Conference (Ohio Ecological Food & Farm Association). Join in person and learn to grow your own farm, business, adventure!

Want to get more intimately involved with bees? Check out your local beekeeping association! There are several in Ashtabula, Geauga and Lake counties. 

Question for the new year: how can we become completely self-reliant regarding food in NE Ohio?  We have the land, access to fresh water, clean air, knowledge and equipment. What steps are needed? 

Native Sochan, a towering, edible & gorgeous perennial, and a native pollinating bumble bee in Ashtabula 2021 (photo by Gallo, garden by Sarah Brower) 

Local bee enthusiasts enjoy a cup of tea with honey at Harbor Gardens in December, 2022. L to R Quin Coltman, Zana Coltman, Linda Dole, and Ethan Coltman (of Coltman Apiary and Windy Hill Farms). Photo by Gallo 

---

written by Gallo, taken from North Coast Voice October 2022

The hot, slightly spicy, colorful crock of warming chile is the quintessential NorthEast Ohio (NEO) staple that makes for a cozy treat on any crisp autumn day! There was a time when some folks attempted to convince me that chile is just meat, beans, a few spices and tomatoes. And in our southern sister-city of Cincinnati they will eat theirs with meat and tomatoes and add the beans on request. However, for those who grow, know it is the joy of colorful chiles in various sizes, shapes and hues of red, yellow and orange that make this pot most delicious, honored and revered! A salute to the chile pepper – the spicy, tasty, lively, born-of-the-Americas plant that is now grown on every continent and celebrated in nearly every country in the world. 

Naming: All chiles – the 25 wild and of those, 5 domesticated, which were around since humans arrived in the Americas between 15,000 and 25,000 years ago – belong to the genus Capsicum. As a tribute to the location, Christopher Columbus “discovered” and mistakenly named the chile, with its spicy kick, and which reminded him of the black pepper, chile peppers. Chiles were the major spice of the New World, and El Capitan Gonzalo de Oviedo noted, “Indians everywhere grow it…because they eat it continuously with almost all of their food.” It continues to intrigue and enhance all dishes it graces, now globally integrated into most cuisines. 

Health benefits: what fruit or vegetable has the most vitamin C? Just when you thought you need to move to Florida for some citrusy vitamin C… the sweet bell pepper rules this category and it is safe to stay! Capsaicin, the crystalline alkaloid that causes the heat in chile pepper, has also been used to treat pain, prevent cancer, improve blood circulation and decrease build-up in the arteries making them heart healthier. 

How to eat, prepare, enjoy, preserve: Chile, the one pot meal, is just the beginning, or, in this case, the middle! This year, try lightly pan-frying, in a cast-iron, shishitos with a bit of olive oil and salt and pepper as an appetizer. Stuffed peppers come in a variety of nuanced dishes like the classic Eastern European dish to the Chile Rellenos. Fermented chile pepper sauce, fresh pepper sauces like harissa and berbere paste, chutneys, curries, nuac cham sauce will make any meal better, brighter, more satisfying and all feature the chile. For dessert hot cocoa with chile (Xocolatl) or a spicy Scott bonnet marmalade and fresh Chevre. The spice may just act as a digestive. Best ways to preserve include freezing, canning, drying and fermenting. 

Where to get yours: chiles grow especially well in NEO as evidenced by the abundance found at farmer’s markets and even some chain grocery stores sell this local staple. There is a list of farmers’ markets following this article and several weeks left in the season. It’s not too late to get yours. 

For fun: next time you make a batch of chile, start with as many various chile peppers as you can…make it a feast and a celebration of autumn color! 

For more love of peppers: Read Dave DeWitt’s Chile Peppers: A Global History. 2020. University of Mexico Press. 

Best Chile Recipe to take off the Autumn Chill and celebrate the color of the leaves 

Best ingredients will be locally grown and fresh – Try it! 

2 lbs of chiles – mix it up! Poblanos, Serranos, Cubanelles, Scotch bonnets for spicy, bells in purple, green, yellow, orange, red, diced 

4 – 6 cayenne chiles

2 ½ cups dry kidney beans (try Ohio-grown), soaked for a few hours or overnight 

1 cup tomato juice

1 cup spelt berries 

2 Tbsp. olive oil 

2 large onions

2 heads garlic 

2 carrots 

2 celery stock 

2 tsp cumin, basil, chili powder, salt black pepper 

4 large tomatoes, chopped

Additional toppings: finely minced parsley, green onions, grated cheese 

1. Place beans in pan and cook for 2 hours or until tender 
2. In a small pot, cook the spelt berries in the tomato juice (or water) until tender 
3. Place olive oil in a large stock pot and saute onions, garlic and cayenne. Add chiles, carrots, celery and spices. Add chopped tomatoes 
4. Add the beans and spelt berries to the stock pot and simmer for 20-40 minutes to several hours. 
5. Bowl up and add additional toppings. Enjoy the taste of the season! 

Which of these chiles are hot? While they all look gorgeously spicy, the red St. Croix, orange habanada, small orange Biquinho are on the fruitier side and mild. The yellow Scotch bonnet is the hottest of this bunch! While in season, these specialty chiles can be found at Harbor Gardens in Ashtabula.

Making fermented chile pepper sauce – by the hand of Sarah Brower – 2022. This version includes fresh fruit to round out the taste. Save the seeds for next years’ garden.

Local farmers’ markets near you – how many have you visited? Ask your local farmer about their chiles, what varieties they like to grow, what part of regenerative farming are they engaged and how to purchase a whole bushel for freezing and/or making soup to can: 

Tuesdays: 

My Neighborhood Project 

At ACMC Health Plaza 

11-2pm 

Thursdays: 

Painesville Farmers’ Market 

12-4pm 

Painesville Square, Painesville, OH 

Fridays: 

Mentor 

2-6pm through Sept 23 

Eleanor Garfield Park 7967 Mentor Ave, Mentor, Oh 

North Kingsville Community Farmers’ Market 

9-1pm

6546 Church St (at N Kingsville Presbyterian Church) 

Saturdays: 

Conneaut Farmers’ Market 

9am – 1pm 

Located in the Moose Lodge parking lot at 

280 Park Ave, Conneaut, Oh 

Geauga Fresh Farmers Market 

9am – noon 

5205 Chillicothe Road, South Russell, Oh 44022 

Geneva Farmers’ Market 

9am – 1pm 

Hosted by Geneva United Methodist Church (GUMC) 

89 S. Broadway, Geneva, Oh 

Jefferson Farmers’ Market 

9am – 1pm 

Located behind the Historical Society, 

42 E Jefferson Road, Jefferson, OH 

Shaker Square Farmers’ Market 

Year – round from 8am – noon 

13209 Shaker Square, Cleveland, OH 

Willoughby 

8am – noon 

City Hall Parking Lot; 1 Public Square 

Sundays: 

Ashtabula Farmers’ Market in Historic District 

10am – 2pm

No markets during festival weekends 

1105 Bridge Street, Ashtabula Harbor, OH 

Photos by T Gallo 

Hi, Friends and Neighbors!

We hope you enjoyed a long winter’s rest (two years, in fact). It’s feeling like spring….growth is all around us and babies are hatching in the pods and in the tree nests.

Folks have been requesting a class schedule…here it is for May…let’s enjoy some of it together!

The seed starts on their way: Kale, salad burnet, florist’s blue balloon flower, anise hissup, biquinho pepper, butterfly milkweed, Canterbury bells, compass plant, Eastern Columbine, green shiso, Malabar spinach and perennial beans!

SPRING SCHEDULE AND CALENDAR:

---

The general store is open on Bridge Street and ready to serve you – Ohio-grown organic corn meal, spelt/whole wheat/buckwheat flours, beans, tortillas and kombucha. We also carry Lodge cast iron cookware, pressure and water bath canners, glass jars, fermenting crocks, air locks and yeasts.

Additionally: art work by Julene Schwarz and organic bath and body products made locally by Red Beet Row’s Steph Blessing and Stacy Bryan of As Nature Intended.

---

A few photos from April 2022:

Email us at HarborGardens21@gmail.com

https://www.facebook.com/AshtabulaCountyOhio

Hi, Friends and Neighbors!

We hope you enjoyed a long winter’s rest (two years, in fact). It’s feeling like spring….growth is all around us and babies are hatching in the pods and in the tree nests.

Folks have been requesting a class schedule…here it is for May…let’s enjoy some of it together!

The seed starts on their way: Kale, salad burnet, florist’s blue balloon flower, anise hissup, biquinho pepper, butterfly milkweed, Canterbury bells, compass plant, Eastern Columbine, green shiso, Malabar spinach and perennial beans!

SPRING SCHEDULE AND CALENDAR:

---

The general store is open on Bridge Street and ready to serve you – Ohio-grown organic corn meal, spelt/whole wheat/buckwheat flours, beans, tortillas and kombucha. We also carry Lodge cast iron cookware, pressure and water bath canners, glass jars, fermenting crocks, air locks and yeasts.

Additionally: art work by Julene Schwarz and organic bath and body products made locally by Red Beet Row’s Steph Blessing and Stacy Bryan of As Nature Intended.

---

A few photos from April 2022:

Email us at HarborGardens21@gmail.com

https://www.facebook.com/AshtabulaCountyOhio

Harbor Gardens – 1022 Bridge Street – Ashtabula – OH – 44004

Be on the lookout for all-things (especially food) from Ashtabula County. We will be opening up the demonstration kitchen for locally-grown vittles and classes on how you can do it, too! For example – we will be having a sweet and spicy pepper class, fermenting class and canning class this fall. You will be able to sign-up and register in person or on-line.

We look forward to seeing you soon!

This is an example post, originally published as part of Blogging University. Enroll in one of our ten programs, and start your blog right.

You’re going to publish a post today. Don’t worry about how your blog looks. Don’t worry if you haven’t given it a name yet, or you’re feeling overwhelmed. Just click the “New Post” button, and tell us why you’re here.

Why do this?

• Because it gives new readers context. What are you about? Why should they read your blog?
• Because it will help you focus your own ideas about your blog and what you’d like to do with it.

The post can be short or long, a personal intro to your life or a bloggy mission statement, a manifesto for the future or a simple outline of your the types of things you hope to publish.

To help you get started, here are a few questions:

• Why are you blogging publicly, rather than keeping a personal journal?
• What topics do you think you’ll write about?
• Who would you love to connect with via your blog?
• If you blog successfully throughout the next year, what would you hope to have accomplished?

You’re not locked into any of this; one of the wonderful things about blogs is how they constantly evolve as we learn, grow, and interact with one another — but it’s good to know where and why you started, and articulating your goals may just give you a few other post ideas.

Can’t think how to get started? Just write the first thing that pops into your head. Anne Lamott, author of a book on writing we love, says that you need to give yourself permission to write a “crappy first draft”. Anne makes a great point — just start writing, and worry about editing it later.

When you’re ready to publish, give your post three to five tags that describe your blog’s focus — writing, photography, fiction, parenting, food, cars, movies, sports, whatever. These tags will help others who care about your topics find you in the Reader. Make sure one of the tags is “zerotohero,” so other new bloggers can find you, too.

This is an example post, originally published as part of Blogging University. Enroll in one of our ten programs, and start your blog right.

You’re going to publish a post today. Don’t worry about how your blog looks. Don’t worry if you haven’t given it a name yet, or you’re feeling overwhelmed. Just click the “New Post” button, and tell us why you’re here.

Why do this?

• Because it gives new readers context. What are you about? Why should they read your blog?
• Because it will help you focus your own ideas about your blog and what you’d like to do with it.

The post can be short or long, a personal intro to your life or a bloggy mission statement, a manifesto for the future or a simple outline of your the types of things you hope to publish.

To help you get started, here are a few questions:

• Why are you blogging publicly, rather than keeping a personal journal?
• What topics do you think you’ll write about?
• Who would you love to connect with via your blog?
• If you blog successfully throughout the next year, what would you hope to have accomplished?

You’re not locked into any of this; one of the wonderful things about blogs is how they constantly evolve as we learn, grow, and interact with one another — but it’s good to know where and why you started, and articulating your goals may just give you a few other post ideas.

Can’t think how to get started? Just write the first thing that pops into your head. Anne Lamott, author of a book on writing we love, says that you need to give yourself permission to write a “crappy first draft”. Anne makes a great point — just start writing, and worry about editing it later.

When you’re ready to publish, give your post three to five tags that describe your blog’s focus — writing, photography, fiction, parenting, food, cars, movies, sports, whatever. These tags will help others who care about your topics find you in the Reader. Make sure one of the tags is “zerotohero,” so other new bloggers can find you, too.