Weekend Rewind: Rediscovered Riches

Vocal moves at the speed of light. In a whirlwind of submit, hearts and comments, the enthusiasm quickly wanes as publications move on-wards through the conveyor belt of creation. The new overshadows the old. This is the way of the world but, as a result, our words are buried, forgotten or are never even given the daylight they deserve. Treasures missed, gems left in the history of the ever scrolling feed.

But nestled within the archives of this articulate Aladdin's cave there are diamonds cut and shimmering with the profundity of insight and beauty, waiting to be revisited, rediscovered and found.

Our "Weekend Rewind" aims to be something of a time machine, transporting you backwards and shining a metaphorical candle on creators and creations that you may have missed as life, love and the universe took centre stage. We offer a gentle reminder of the timeless nature of truly impactful writing.

This weeks hidden gem comes from:

In 2020 we, like so many people, started a pandemic garden. This was not just a few plants stuck in the ground. Oh no!

My husband carefully planned, rototilled, enriched, built a high deer-proof fence with a door, added two bluebird boxes, put in a sprinkler system, and bought a painted octopus (as one does).

Because it’s the Octopus’ Garden.

That first garden had a LOT of different veggies and fruits. In 2021 A few things were swapped out (we just can’t grow spinach!), and in 2022 we finally got to pick some of the asparagus.

Keto

Also in 2022; we went keto.

To make a long story short, and remain on the topic of gardening: my blood sugar levels were inching past pre-diabetic and I HAD to make a change. On my own: out went the sugar and wheat, rice, legumes, grains. Then I joined a study with the University of Michigan and was put in a group that maintained a keto diet.

After 12 months working hard on the new lifestyle my blood sugar is in the normal range, I’m down several sizes, and my blood chemistry shows normal levels and decreased inflammation.

My husband also maintains the same eating lifestyle and he has dropped 6 inches from his waist, and his blood tests show amazing improvement.

We are sticking with this lifestyle.

What Do We Eat?

Keto diet is maintaining a daily level of 15–30 net carbs, which are the total amount of carbs you consume, minus fiber and sugar alcohols. Carbs are the lowest of a person’s daily macros (macronutrients): 70% fat, 20% protein, 10% carbs are a common goal.

There are many resources for information on keto so I won’t go into a long explanation; the goal is to move your body away from running on sugar and switch it to burning fat for fuel.

I don’t believe that keto is for everyone, but I know it works for me. My body, like those of my grandparents, does not use sugar well, and it runs better when sugar is eliminated.

That’s where the garden comes into the picture.

Veggies and Keto

Vegetables are an important part of the keto diet; it’s not just bacon, cheese, and butter! However, many of the veggies I used to grow and purchase just don’t fit into the daily net carb goal.

A guideline to help people eating keto choose their vegetables is

Eat almost every vegetable that’s grown above the ground and almost none that grows under the ground.

If your mind went straight to potatoes- you are correct. They are root vegetables that grow under the ground and are not on the keto-approved list. Neither are beets, carrots, and sweet potatoes.

The reason root vegetables are so high in carbs is, well, the root. These vegetables store the food for the plant and that food is sugar. It’s what lets potatoes brown and onions caramelize… and that sugar has a negative impact on my body.

For that same ‘food for the plant’ storage reason, legumes (beans), grain, corn, rice are also high in carbs and not part of the diet.

Good Veggies for Keto Lifestyle

If it’s leafy and green it’s likely low in carbohydrates. That means celery, lettuce, spinach, cabbage, asparagus, kale, arugula, bok choy, and chard are all safe to eat. So are cucumbers, zucchini, and in moderation, bell peppers, green beans, and brussels sprouts.

Not always green, although there are green varieties, cauliflower is a staple of the keto diet. So is avocado (a fruit) , although they don’t grow here in Michigan!

Food-storage dynamos like tomatoes (a fruit!) and onions can be eaten in moderation, as can radishes. Mushrooms are another great addition to our diet, although I haven’t yet tried to grow them.

Our 2023 Keto Garden

The planting area in our garden is about 20 feet across and 40 feet long. Starting from the right side of the garden, as you enter the door under the Octopus, this is what we have planned for our 2023 planting.

Sunflowers growing up against the fence, a mix of mammoth and dwarf variegated varieties

Dill, to use in fall canning of pickled cucumbers and pickled cauliflower

Our asparagus bed. In its 4th year we should have a great crop for several weeks.

The cruciferous row under its netting cover: broccoli, kohlrabi, brussels sprouts

Tomato Central: Some for slicing, some cherry-sized for munching, some thick-walled to can for sauces, chili, and soups.

Peppers: some we’ll eat green and some will turn red (but will have a higher sugar content when red!), yellow bell peppers, and some sweet banana peppers for canning.

Beans: I like the purple Royalty variety that cooks into a deep green color, but we really enjoyed the yellow stringless last year, as well as the standard Blue Lake, so there will several kinds of bush beans in that 20-foot row.

Swiss Chard: it’s my answer to the puzzling issues we have with spinach; now I just plant chard. I like the lovely stems of the Rainbow chard, too, so we’ll have both. The greens are good sauteed in butter or in soup, and the stems are tasty steamed like asparagus!

Lettuce: we plant butter lettuce, leaf lettuce, and a nice variety called ‘salad mix’ . This year I’ll try for 3 plantings and two rows. When I pick it I cut it above the ground so it regrows another picking.

Radishes and carrots: Radishes are keto friendly and carrots are not. But my husband loves the carrots and we’ll use some of this row for a few feet of carrots.

Pickling cucumbers: I made sugar-free bread and butter as well as dill pickles last year; they turned out great! We’ll have two towers this year.

Zucchini: Yes, we ‘zoodle’ these and have them instead of pasta, bake them into chips, sauté them as a side dish, and bake them stuffedwith mushrooms and cheese. I also found a recipe for zucchini flour and I want to try that this year, too. We’ll have 8 plants.

Yellow squash: Looks like zucchini with mumps. Maybe this year, though, I’ll plant the smooth skinned variety, it’s more tender when sautéed. We’ll have 8 plants.

Cantaloupe: We’ve almost made it to harvest these over the past two years. I want to try again. In moderation, I can have this and my husband loves it.

Cucumbers: I’d like to have these for salads this year, and we’ll plant a tower of them. (When I say we’ll have a tower, it’s a tall metal cage and the plants planted indie the cage walls. They grow up the sides and use it as a support.

In the far left corner, under the birdhouse, we have a horseradish plant, and that will remain. Not just because we like it, but it’s an invasive species and my guess is that it will outlive us!

Just inside the far long side of the fence we have rose bushes planted and some hollyhocks. The colors are purple, pink, and dusty rose.

And in front of them we have a row of blueberry bushes that we are nursing along (blueberries are keto-friendly), and twining about the area are everbearing strawberries. This year we’ll fight the rollie-pill bugs with diatomaceous earth since they got our strawberries before us last year.

In the far right corner we have catnip planted… and that reminds me that the paper bag I have tied in the rafters of the garage with the harvest from last year should be dried by now. I need to bring that in and package it for the kitties that live outside and in our breezeway. In the summer we give them fresh cuttings when we are out there working.

Interspersed among the rows will be a flat of orange and yellow marigolds. They don’t just look pretty once they start blooming, they also attract helpful insects like lady bugs and lacewings which eat yucky bugs like aphids.

Planning is all I have to do with the garden. It was cleared out and rototilled in the fall, several layers of mulched leaves and grass clippings added to keep the soil loose and porous. All but the asparagus, strawberries, and blueberries will get another tilling before we plant.

Seeds will be in the ground once the threat of frost is past and we’ll get the netting ordered and frames ready, the towers built, and have it ready for the plants around Mother’s Day.

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Judey has been a long time member of the Vocal platform. Her pieces are often educational, informational, entertaining and inspiring. Her piece, {Planning a Keto Garden} is no exception!

This story is full of information as to how and why to select certain plants for including on a personal level, as well as why any person may want to consider those as a choice. It also provides some wonderful tips on how such an undertaking is made doable for them, and the adjustment\s to the plantings and preparations they make on a yearly basis.

She also includes gorgeous pictures of their efforts and of the plants grown and how they incorporate them into their diet and lifestyle.

An inspiring read, and Judey’s enthusiasm for the project and possibilities shows through her words!

Keila x

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