Our Mission
We serve the community by educating and promoting locally responsible gardening. Here you will find lots of gardening tips for northern New Mexico, upcoming events, how to ask a Master Gardener a gardening question, gardening links, how to become a Master Gardener and more.
Spotlight on Spring:
Spring Tips for the Gardener: Spring, 2010:
- When the forsythia is blooming, it’s times to prune your roses.
- Winter is over! It’s clean up time for your yard! Pick a warm sunny day, preferably not too windy, and start in one corner of the yard. Don’t try to do everything at once, or you will become overwhelmed. Remember, a little at a time.
- Prepare the soil. Turn your compost and work it into the soil, or dig in your fall cover crop. Add aged manure. Amend your soil; build more raised beds, or use containers for your plants.
- To lengthen our short growing season, start seeds indoors. Baby these little guys with lots of love, and turn them when they reach toward the light source. Seeds like to germinate in the dark, and remember to keep them warm.
Eat your greens! Did you know dark chocolate and red wine are good for you? Try fixing dinner for you and your family and make it a special time for sharing. Also good for you: berries, nuts, seeds, whole grains, and fish.
Recipes
It’s that time of year again. If it came from a plant, eat it!! Don’t eat what was made in a plant. We get our greens from our local CSA (beneficial farms), so we grow only some lettuce and greens. Here’s a salad recipe you change, add to or modify, depending on what you grow in your own garden. Remember: eat local, buy local.
Salad Time
- Fresh baby lettuce (grown or bought locally)
- ( Add baby spinach, arugula, herbs, dandelion greens, bok choy, chard, violets or voila flowers, nasturtium leaves and flowers, mint, chives, other seasonal greens,)
- Use your imagination!
- Add some chunks of goat cheese or feta or what you have in your refrigerator
- Add nuts and seeds (sunflower seeds, pepitas, pine nuts,etc.)
- Add chopped up fruit (apple, pear, orange)
- Mix all together in a lovely salad bowl and serve with a little olive oil, vinegar, fresh lemon juice, salt and pepper. Bon apetit!
Red Chile Sauce
I have been eating this sauce over baked potatoes or hashbrowns or with eggs.
For about 2 cups sauce:
Saute 1/2 med onion, minced and 1-2 cloves garlic about 5 minutes
Stir in 1/2 C red chile powder 2 TBL flour (for a thicker sauce)
Slowly add 2 – 2 1/2 C water or broth stirring with a whisk
Add 1/4 tsp mexican oregano (different than “oregano”)
1 tsp cumin powder or seed
Bring to a boil then reduce to simmer for about 20 minutes until thickened slightly