Kincora Food Sustainability Project

Kincora Food Sustainability Project A project to help provide local food sustainability

What are you growing to nurish the soil, soul and senses?
02/11/2025

What are you growing to nurish the soil, soul and senses?

As gardens are being built up right now, I thought I would talk about the dreaded Creeping Bellflower, sometimes called ...
06/03/2022

As gardens are being built up right now, I thought I would talk about the dreaded Creeping Bellflower, sometimes called CBD.

But this time I thought I would talk about the fact that it's almost completely edible (leaves, rhizome/root and flowers).

Here is a repost from Alex Gray in Calgary Gardening speaking about the leaves and flowers:

Creeping Bellflower is edible, and it's delicious!

Gather new shoots + basal leaves.
After thoroughly washing, gently boil for 5-10 minutes.

Extremely mild flavour on its own, and takes on other flavours well. I am enjoying it here seasoned with sesame oil & seeds, garlic, & green chillies.

Compared to spinach, it is far less chewy/way more tender, and it lacks the bite of the oxalic acid that lends spinach some of its bitterness.

The flowers can also be used as a decorative garnish, although there isn't much flavour to them at all.

If there ever was a cut-and-come-again edible to beat the band, it'd be this one 😅

Enjoy!

Edit: Obligatory 'please don't eat plants you cannot 100% positively identify'!

Here's a good article on eating the rhizome and roots (think carrots and ginger): https://www.latifasherbs.com/creeping-bell-flower-campanula-rapunculoides/

Sharing...
05/14/2022

Sharing...

Do you have a rain barrel that needs some TLC? Bring it down to Shawnessy Co-op today between 10am and 1p and our wonderful Barrel Doctor will fix for a small fee!

Looking for a rain barrel... $75.  Go with a blue one, or paint the white ones to prevent algae growth.
05/09/2022

Looking for a rain barrel... $75.

Go with a blue one, or paint the white ones to prevent algae growth.

Welcome to Rain Barrel Season! Rain... use it up. Refills are free! Green Calgary's annual Rain Barrel Sales are a Calgary tradition! Join 1 in 3 Calgarians this year in harvesting rainwater by purchasing a rain barrel. You can also order your barrel online for delivery or pickup at any sale locatio...

05/08/2022

Happy Mothers Day to all Mothers, fur baby Mothers, aunt mothers and father Mothers out there today!

Here's some interesting facts about cucumbers (taken from a post originally shared by All Pagan Loot):

I didn't know this... and to think all these years I've only been making salads with the cucumbers...

1. Cucumbers contain most of the vitamins you need every day, just one cucumber contains Vitamin B1, Vitamin B2, Vitamin B3, Vitamin B5, Vitamin B6, Folic Acid, Vitamin C, Calcium, Iron, Magnesium, Phosphorus, Potassium and Zinc.

2. Feeling tired in the afternoon, put down the caffeinated soda and pick up a cucumber. Cucumbers are a good source of B vitamins and Carbohydrates that can provide that quick pick-me-up that can last for hours.

3. Tired of your bathroom mirror fogging up after a shower? Try rubbing a cucumber slice along the mirror, it will eliminate the fog and provide a soothing, spa-like fragrance.

4. Are grubs and slugs ruining your planting beds? Place a few slices in a small pie tin and your garden will be free of pests all season long. The chemicals in the cucumber react with the aluminum to give off a scent undetectable to humans but drive garden pests crazy and make them flee the area.

5. Looking for a fast and easy way to remove cellulite before going out or to the pool? Try rubbing a slice or two of cucumbers along your problem area for a few minutes, the phytochemicals in the cucumber cause the collagen in your skin to tighten, firming up the outer layer and reducing the visibility of cellulite. Works great on wrinkles too!!!

6. Want to avoid a hangover or terrible headache? Eat a few cucumber slices before going to bed and wake up refreshed and headache free. Cucumbers contain enough sugar, B vitamins and electrolytes to replenish essential nutrients the body lost, keeping everything in equilibrium, avoiding both a hangover and headache!!

7. Looking to fight off that afternoon or evening snacking binge? Cucumbers have been used for centuries and often used by European trappers, traders and explores for quick meals to thwart off starvation.

8. Have an important meeting or job interview and you realize that you don't have enough time to polish your shoes? Rub a freshly cut cucumber over the shoe, its chemicals will provide a quick and durable shine that not only looks great but also repels water.

9. Out of WD 40 and need to fix a squeaky hinge? Take a cucumber slice and rub it along the problematic hinge, and voila, the squeak is gone!

10. Stressed out and don't have time for massage, facial or visit to the spa? Cut up an entire cucumber and place it in a boiling pot of water, the chemicals and nutrients from the cucumber will react with the boiling water and be released in the steam, creating a soothing, relaxing aroma that has been shown the reduce stress in new mothers and college students during final exams.

11. Just finish a business lunch and realize you don't have gum or mints? Take a slice of cucumber and press it to the roof of your mouth with your tongue for 30 seconds to eliminate bad breath, the phytochemicals will kill the bacteria in your mouth responsible for causing bad breath.

12. Looking for a 'green' way to clean your taps, sinks or stainless steel? Take a slice of cucumber and rub it on the surface you want to clean, not only will it remove years of tarnish and bring back the
shine, but is won't leave streaks and won't harm you fingers or fingernails while you clean.

13. Using a pen and made a mistake? Take the outside of the cucumber and slowly use it to erase the pen writing, also works great on crayons and markers that the kids have used to decorate the walls!!

Pass this along to everybody you know who is looking for better and safer ways to solve life's everyday problems.

No mow May, is big in the UK and finding its way over to Canada now.  Why no mow you ask?
05/05/2022

No mow May, is big in the UK and finding its way over to Canada now. Why no mow you ask?

Nature Conservancy of Canada suggests leaving lawns alone in May. Abandoning springtime chore can help nature.

Borrowed from a post on Calgary gardening:I’ve never understood why people seem to hate dandelions so much. Haven’t we a...
04/17/2022

Borrowed from a post on Calgary gardening:

I’ve never understood why people seem to hate dandelions so much. Haven’t we all picked the flowers to give to our moms when we were little?
🌼💛 “Hello, I'm a dandelion.
A lot of people call me a w**d but I'm a friend and come to help you!
When you see me, remember that I'm the ONLY one who wants and can grow in that particular spot. Because:
Either the soil is too compact / hard / stomped and I want to loosen it for you with my roots.
Or there is too little calcium in the soil - don't worry, I will replenish that for you with the dying of my leaves.
Or the soil is too acidic. But I will also improve that for you if you give me the chance.
Or a mixture of the above reasons, of course. 😊
I'm here because your soil needs my help so best you let me grow without disturbing me! When everything is fixed, I will disappear again, I promise!
Are you trying to remove me prematurely with my root? However meticulous you are, I will return 2x as strong! Just until your soil is improved.
You can even tell by my growth at which stage my help is at. If my leaves are flat on the ground then I'm far from ready but if they all reach up then I'm already a long way on my way.
Something completely different is that I am 1 of the first bloomers in spring so I will announce spring / summer for you.
During the day when it's hot, I open my flowers but in the evening when it cools off I close them again quickly. In fact, if it's not hot enough during the day I won't open them at all!
My flowers are the first food for insects after hibernation and unlike most other plants, I have pollen AND nectar, not merely one OR the other! And I am generous with them! 🤪😉
My flowers are even delicious for you people by the way, did you know? I used to be called ′′honey (or gold) of the poor′′ because my flowers are so sweet in e.g. jam, sauce or salad! The internet is full of recipes - check them out.
But wait until the end of May or later before you start picking and even then, don't pick everything yet! The biodiversity and bees will be very grateful!”

04/15/2022

Seeds for Change - until April 19th: sign up to get your free Rudebekia seeds:

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