Last spring, Mike and I learned about wild morel mushrooms, and discovered people scoured the land clean of ‘em! Knowing garlic mustard was edible, we thought if it was promoted as a highly desirable delicacy, like the morels, we might actually eradicate it. I researched and found various recipes online.

Last week, I harvested some from the yard and made pesto for pasta sauce. It was REALLY good!!! It has a mild, nutty flavor. In fact, it was so good, we joked about planting a small square of it in the garden. (I promise, it was just a joke!) Because it would be so easy to grow, and is so good, it may not be a great idea to widely promote it…but I thought I’d share the recipe with everyone here. Now that we have so much spare time (since the garlic mustard fields have been greatly reduced compared to previous years), it may be a reward for pulling the remaining straggling plants each year.

I only used the leaves, as this recipe instructed, but I read in other recipes, that the tap roots may also be used. It was suggested to rinse thoroughly 2-3 times, to wash off any animal urine (that sounded kind of gross, but it would be the case with any garden vegetables, wouldn’t it?). I used a mortar and pestle, but had to resort to a knife to help shred the leaves. I think a food processor may work better. It was very easy and very tasty!! Here’s the recipe:

Garlic Mustard Pesto

I recommend two high-end Italian cheeses here, but you could easily substitute the domestic varieties. Don’t use the powdery stuff in the green cylinder, though. It’s full of so much cellulose you’d be better off shredding the cardboard it comes in.

From pest to pesto.
2 cloves of garlic
4 cups (packed) fresh garlic mustard leaves, washed
1 teaspoon of coarse sea salt
2 tablespoons of oven-toasted pine nuts
3 tablespoons of grated Pecorino cheese
3 tablespoons of grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese
1 cup of olive oil

Put the garlic, the washed garlic mustard leaves, the salt (which helps to preserve the green of the leaves), and the pine nuts into the mortar.

Slowly mix with the pestle and add the mixed cheeses a little at a time.

When the mixture is smooth and creamy, add olive oil to taste (to the texture you prefer) and stir to incorporate.

To dress your pasta with the pesto, always dilute the pesto with a little of the cooking water from the pasta.

James Kutnow writes:

Below is an announcement that we recently posted in our parent newsletter. If you think that there are members of the Adena Brook Community that would be interested in chipping in for our “Planting Day”, we would be honored and very grateful.

Thanks!

WE NEED YOUR HELP!
Please come and help on “Planting Day” for The Rain Garden at The Graham School on Saturday, May 16th.

We will begin at 8am. Food and Drinks will be provided! If you can, please bring your work gloves, a shovel and garden rake!

Rumpke is working through the new system. There are a few kinks. If you’ve enrolled in the new system, Adena Brook neighbor Kip Patterson reminds us to make sure your house number is on your waste can or bags.

Kip writes:

“You might want to let folks that subscribe to the Rumke service know that unless it is immediately obvious what house number is associates with their waste containers they need to put out an address sign with their waste.

Mine was picked up only because I was out there. Another neighbor was missed because the house is back a long driveway with no house number at the street.”

Molly Ryan-Fisher writes: This is neat info from my office enviro committee – thought it might be worth sharing on the web site.

“The cultivation of trees is the cultivation of the good, the beautiful,
and the ennobling in man.”

These are the words of the founder of Arbor Day, J. Sterling Morton. Do
you know the history of Arbor Day?
J. Sterling Morton and his wife, both avid nature lovers, were among the
pioneers moving into the Nebraska Territory in 1854. Once they
established their new home, they made sure to plant many trees, shrubs,
and flowers around their homestead. Morton worked as a journalist and
became the editor of Nebraska’s finest newspaper. He used this forum as
a means to spread his enthusiasm for trees and agriculture, and as his
prominence increased, Morton became secretary of the Nebraska Territory.
In early 1872, Morton proposed setting aside a day to encourage
individuals, groups, and civic organizations to properly plant trees.
His fellow pioneers missed the trees back east, but more importantly,
trees were needed for windbreaks to keep soil in place, for fuel and
building materials, and for shade from the hot sun. Because of Morton’s
advocacy, April 10, 1872, became the first official celebration of Arbor
Day. It was estimated that over 1 million trees were planted in Nebraska
on that day!

Throughout the 1870s, many other states passed legislation to observe
Arbor Day. Today the most common date for observance is the last Friday
in April; however, a number of states celebrate at times that coincide
with their best tree planting weather. Arbor Day is celebrated as early
as November in Hawaii, in December in South Carolina, in January and
February in many southern states, and as late as May for some states in
the north.

STORMWATER RUNOFF
If you watched Frontline’s “Poisoned Waters” last night you learned more about the very serious problems caused by stormwater runoff. I encourage all Adena Brook neighbors to watch this program and then figure out things you can do on your own property to reduce impervious surfaces and contribute to cleaner water. Let me know what you’re doing and I’ll post our collective good on the Adena Brook Community website.

http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/poisonedwaters/view/

Here’s one: Neighbor Greg Cunningham removed a 10′ x 30′ area of asphalt near his garage and created a custom composting area. It’s not only functional, it’s beautiful! When you walk by his property at 670 Glenmont Avenue, check out the rain garden in the front yard, too!

Thank you to Malcolm Pirnie volunteers and Adena Brook neighbors!

Saturday was our 7th Earth Day effort to remove garlic mustard from Overbrook Ravine Park. Last year we removed 2 tons of it and this year we had to look for it! Earth Day is also our annual native tree planting. Our focus was encouraging neighbors to plant native trees in their ravine-adjacent yards. All volunteers were invited to take native trees home to plant on their properties. What a beautiful and successful morning!

EARTH DAY WORK SUMMARY
Number of volunteers: 53
Hours worked: 2
Garlic mustard pulled: 38 bags
Trash: 6
Euonymous removed: 10′ x 5′ x 3′ mound
Honeysuckle cut: 30′ x 5′ x 3′ mound
Native trees planted in Overbrook Ravine Park: 65
Trees distributed to volunteers to be planted in yards: 400

THANK YOU SO MUCH TO THESE VOLUNTEERS (listed on sign up sheet)!
Bob and Judy Robinson
Stephanie and Ryan Phillips
Nancy Jesser
Derek Hansford and Ann Florentine
Becky Camfield
Justin Lutz
Ken Burkhard
Jim Dury
Agnes Dury
Will Reiss
Lucas Jordan
Susan Meyer
Leslie Partridge
Lorraine and Eric Cathala
Bill and Nan Platt
Walter Reins
Diana Webster
Keith and Molly Fisher
Ellen Hoover
Chas Krider
Scott Pearson
Bob Shingledecker
Karen Chernesky
Tyler Steele
Garet Miller
Phil McCutcheon
Kathy Brunner
Chad Kettlewell
Cindy Jacobsen
Georgia Blum
Steve Herminghausen
David Leppert
Kurt Monnier
Kathy Steinman (and 5 young children)
Mark and Carina Carter
Sandy and Carlos Ricardo
Kenn Cahill
Karen Snyder
Bruce and Cathy Walker
Susan Michael Barrett

THANK YOU JIM ROBERTS, WATERSHED ORGANIC LAWN CARE
Jim donates his business services to maintain the grass around the Adena Brook Rain Garden at High and Overbrook. This is the second year of his service! His contact number: 774-0532.

THANK YOU WALTER REINS, REINS TREE AND LANDSCAPE SERVICES
Walter volunteers on our second Saturday clean ups! Thank you for your expertise about the native trees we planted and for sharing other information about tree maintenance and preservation. His contact number: 778-4949.

THANK YOU ADENA BROOK NEIGHBOR GEORGE DAVIS
George hauled the concrete pieces, fence pieces we found in the ravine. For hazardous waste hauling (for a small fee), call George at 634-8713.

We had a good turnout this past weekend with about 30-40 volunteers helping to collect and bag a lot of trash and garlic mustard and pull out euonymus and honeysuckle. We planted or distributed to volunteers for planting in the area a lot seedlings including hornbeam, redbud, and pin oak. Thank you to everyone who helped out this weekend.

ADENA BROOK COMMUNITY EARTH DAY CLEAN UP – SATURDAY, APRIL 18, 2009, 9 – 11 AM
This month we will meet on the THIRD Saturday, not the second. April is one of our biggest clean ups of the year and some of the most important work we will do this season. Our focus: pull garlic mustard, cut honeysuckle, and plant trees. We need every hand, even if you only have a half hour to give. If you want to plant trees, bring a shovel. Supplies will be located at Overbrook and High, Overbrook and Indianola, Overbrook and Cooke Road, Overbrook and Yaronia. Volunteers from Malcolm Pirnie will join us.

Our clean up is in collaboration with Green Columbus’ annual event called “Picture This.” This is the third annual event organized by Green Columbus. According to Tad Dritz, Director of Green Columbus, the name was selected “to encourage central Ohioans to picture how much can be accomplished in one day of volunteer projects across the Columbus metro area.” The planned event is actually a two day affair with April 18 for volunteer worksites and April 19 for a celebration at Goodale Park, in the Short North. Read more about Green Columbus here: http://greencbus.org/site/

FREE NATIVE TREES
Another reason to come to the Earth Day clean up: we have a selection of native trees to give to Adena Brook neighbors and volunteers on April 18. In response to the damage of the two big wind storms–we lost many trees. Help us sustain our woodland neighborhood by planting a native tree! Trees will be located at High and Overbrook.

The Winter Aconite are just foliage now, and the impressive though invasive carpets of blue/purple Squill (scilla) are fading, but popping up throughout the ravine area are Virginia Bluebells, Dutchman’s Breeches, Spring Beauties, and the beginning foliage of Trout Lilies and May Apples.

Unfortunately, also coming back to life are the honeysuckle, euonymus, and the garlic mustard.

Please join your friends and neighbors in the coming weeks as we remove and bag garlic mustard and other invasive plants from the ravine and our own yards to make it possible for the native plants to return and thrive.

THANK YOU JOE HARROD, COLUMBUS PUBLIC HEALTH
We pick up litter so that our neighborhood looks clean and nice. We pick up litter before stormwater runoff takes this trash downstream and dirties our rivers, wildlife habitat, and ultimately the water we drink. We also pick up litter to reduce the threat of West Nile virus–did you know that a bottle cap tossed can hold water with 100 mosquito culex ((West Nile)?

On March 30, Tina Mohn and I walked Overbrook Drive off High Street with Joe. Briefly, CPH will place mosquito traps in mid June to assess for type and quantity. Most important, I learned that there are things we all can do to prevent the mosquito-borne West Nile virus. If we all took the following measures, we can reduce the City’s need to spray pesticide chemicals. Joe said that the most important step we can take is to CLEAN OUR GUTTERS. Here are the other things we can do:

1. Keep gutters free of debris.
2. Cover open boats.
3. Repair leaking water faucets.
4. Keep swimming pools clean or covered.
5. Eliminate water collecting depressions in tarps (wood piles for example)
6. Clean bird baths once a week.
7. Keep ornamental pots and plant saucers free of standing water.
8. Keep Gambusia fish in ornamental ponds.
9. Store anything that can hold water for more than a few days.
10. Prevent old tires from collecting water.