Category Archives: Explore

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Wild Mustard Pesto

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We do not usually think about eating weeds, nor do we bother cultivating them. They are just there and grow where we don’t want them. One of these “wild” greens is mustard, which is packed with nutrients. It is one of the first plants you see all over the mid Rio Grande basin in Spring. It grows at least six inches high with serrated or jagged leaf edges. Just biting into a leaf gives you the taste of mustard to help you identify this plant.

2 c. young leaves,* well washed

1 T. vinegar or lemon juice

1 clove garlic

1 T. pine or other nuts

Blend until coarse. Add slowly

1/3 c. olive oil

1/3 c. Parmesan cheese

Store in a container with a tight lid.

            *the amount of mustard used can be increased depending on your taste.

Equatorial Winds

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Cumulus clouds. Photo: Raychel Sanner / unsplash

Since the equator is the warmest part of our planet, more warm air occurs there. This warm air rises, and a combination of the rising air and the rotation of the planet causes winds. They move from east to west and sometimes are called easterlies or trade winds. These winds set up large cumulus clouds filled with moisture or, if over dry areas, they may pick up dust. Periodically they weaken a little. The reason is unknown, but this weakening may be involved in setting up the conditions for El Nino.

The Great River

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“Great River: The Rio Grande in North American History” by Paul Horgan, Wesleyan University Press, l984
Pulitzer Prize in History

“As it came to the sea at the Gulf of Mexico the river turned from side to side in looping bends and dragging effort like a great ancient dying snake.” This 945-page history of the Rio Grande, its people over four centuries, and the various political upheavals around the river is written with accuracy and elegant language. Horgan spent nearly fifty years of his life living around this watershed and writes from a depth many authors only dream of.

Down to Earth

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“Down to Earth: A Gardener’s Guide to the Albuquerque Area” by Albuquerque Area Extension Master Gardeners, 5th edition 2018

This compendium of relevant gardening information begins with the basics as soils, compost, and weed management before going into other topics as fruits, vegetables, landscaping and local gardening resources. It is well written and easy to follow with advice based on local gardener’s personal experience. This 478-page book is a must for mid Rio Grande Watershed gardeners.

Also the Albuquerque Area Extension Master Gardeners support line can be contacted by e-mail or phone (505-292-7144) March thru October to answer questions.

Man and His Fig Tree

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The ancient Hebrew prophets had a vision for how we should live together; they imagined that each person would have their own vine & fig tree. You might not have heard of it before, but in the Prophetic tradition this image of vine & fig runs deep, both as reality and as metaphor, a sign that the peaceable kingdom was here, now, on the earth.

This image is most visible in Micah. Two thousand seven hundred years ago, Micah envisioned a peaceable kingdom, in which:

They will beat their swords into plowshares
    and their spears into pruning hooks.
Nation will not take up sword against nation,
    nor will they train for war anymore. [Micah 2:4]

That’s beautiful, but it’s rather big picture, about nations, wars, and systems. Then Micah gets personal:

Everyone will sit under their own vine
    and under their own fig tree,
and no one will make them afraid. [Micah 4:4]

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