On the East Coast, in the mid-Atlantic region, there’s a small rule of thumb: Admire gardeners but do not give in and plant before Mother’s Day. Yes, the region has been known to have a late frost or in gardening parlance, a crop killer! What happens when Mother’s Day pops up early on the calendar? Yes, it’s still the 2nd Sunday of May, but this year it’s the 8th. In 2006 it was the 14th! Those extra days are ground warmers. What’s a tomato lover to do?
Plant but acclimate and look at the 10-day forecast. Most of the gardening centers still have warning signs out about late frosts. Most likely these signs came out of the closet after the unexpected, and unnecessary, 80 degree days in early April! Tomatoes take time and full sun so as we move later into the month, the ground and the plants will be most appreciative. The sun will be do its job, too.
If you’re still in the wondering stage, remember what you grow, you control. A Salmonella tomato warning should probably be the final encouragement to become a gardener. Seize the ground: This is your year.
If you are still hesitant, check out your local farm markets or see if there is even a final short share in a CSA–be local. Support local or be your own locavore.
Some of the recalls of the past month have gotten a new round of attention. They were too meek and the recall has expanded. When we talked about potential problems with pepper, we looked at just one direction of the product trail. Well, that has changed as more companies are expanding their recalls and trying to get consumers to focus on the potential problem. In some cases, we need to be ingredient detectives as pepper has become a commonplace ingredient. Are we to skip products that say seasonings?
