SLOW FOOD IN A FAST CITY

Alice Waters, often called " The Mother of American Cooking " was in Chicago to promote her new book THE ART OF SIMPLE FOOD, a subject I know a lot about since I grew up doing what the book advocates : Eat seasonally, eat local and sustainable, shop farmers markets, conserve, compost and recycle, cook simply; cook together, eat together and remember that food is precious. She's also the Vice President of Slow Food International which was started in Italy in 1986. Apparently the Italians, like the French, enjoy cooking and eating fresh, local produce instead of fast food. The slow food movement is catching on in major cities in the U.S. There's a Slow Food Chicago organization that lists restaurants that feature dishes from local sources.

Alice met with Hiz Honor Da Mayor, Richard M. Daley, and she pitched her innovative model public education program , an Edible Schoolyard ,which has students involved in all areas of food production from growing to eating. What better way to teach our youth ? Our Mayor has done a lot to green up Chicago and is always interested in gardening. He can't help it, he's a Taurus like myself. Salt of the Earth.

Alice promised the Mayor that she would be back to help put the Edible Schoolyard program in place. How exciting for Chicago !

Besides talking slow, eating slow is one thing we know about in the South. I remember one summer when my cousins from Detroit came for a visit. They were fascinated when I asked them to come with me to the garden to pick vegetables for dinner ( Southern for lunch ) . A simple meal of fried okra, freshly sliced tomatoes and cucumber salad, sweet corn on the cob , cornbread and blackeyed peas to go with the fresh chicken sacrificed in honor of their visit was an experience they talked about for years.

I am so spoiled now living in a time when almost everything that used to be seasonal is at our fingertips year round. I mean, lettuce, tomatoes and cucumbers in the winter ? These were always early summer fare to us and I still find it hard to enjoy a salad in the winter. Winter always meant stews , soups and comfort foods to keep us warm and toasty.

I like the title of the first half of the book - " Starting from Scratch ". That's how I like to start. And it concludes with " Recipes for Cooking Everyday. " Simple, honest and tasty.

COURTESY OF CATHY

Iris Germanica 'Thai Orange '

A new addition to the Sweet Home and Garden Chicago Fall bed, courtesy of my daughter Cathy who ordered an amazing reblooming Iris Germanica ' Orange Popsicle ' for me. What arrived, instead, was a substitute labeled 'Thai Orange. '

Problem is I couldn't find any description for 'Thai Orange' as a rebloomer so Cathy called the nursery and they said it was . However, I've searched online but no one is listing it as a rebloomer.

We'll see next year. I've never seen an orange iris before so this is very exciting to have in my Fall garden bed.

BLOG ACTION DAY -OCTOBER 15, 2007

GARDEN BLOGGERS : Let your voices be heard - put up a post on October 15 :

A Southern Secret

At the garden center where I work we carry a new soil amendment, Back to Nature Cotton Burr Compost. That sure brought back a lot of memories from down on the farm. My daddy used to plow the entire cotton plant into the soil at the end of the season and of course I had to ask the proverbial why ?

It's a secret, he'd say, which only makes a curious kid more determined to find out. After a lot of please, daddy, please he let me in on what was so good about the cotton burr. See all them puffy white balls of cotton , he'd say. All the good stuff I put in soil this Spring got sucked up into the burr and there she is. I'm returning it to the soil so that once Spring comes the field will be ready to plant more cotton. You see all this red Alabama clay ? It also helps break that up better than anything else. Glad I asked, pops.

Southern farmers have been using cotton burr compost since the civil war era. Research has found that in addition to being a soil conditioner that provides all the nutrients needed, it also acts to combat diseases. It can be used as a top dressing or mulch as well. I'm planning to dress my entire front and back garden with it this Fall. It was the only soil amendment I used in my vegetable garden this year and I had a wonderful crop of tomatoes and cucumbers.

And one more thing : If you have a tree or shrub that's not looking so good, cotton burr compost will perk it up.

If you can't find it at your local garden center, visit http://www.backtonaturecompost.com