THE TERM “food forest” from the permaculture world sounds big—like if I suggested you start one, you’d probably say, “I don’t have room for a forest of any kind.”
24.07.2023 - 12:29 / hgic.clemson.edu
Any day now, temperatures should drop, and we will begin what I believe to be the best season in South Carolina – the Fall! This is not just a football-induced admiration. Fall is a great time to be outdoors and on the water. It’s also our best season to appreciate the culinary treasures of our estuaries – shrimp and oysters!
SC DHEC is our state’s authority on monitoring and managing the safety and suitability of waterways to serve drinking water, ecosystem, and recreational uses. The state maintains approximately 800 monitoring stations where water chemistry and bacteria are measured. In DHEC’s 2018 assessment of sites, 318 of these monitoring stations failed to meet standards for bacteria. Of these, 261 sites were in freshwater and failed due to E. coli colonies above acceptable limits for swimming and contact recreation. While E. coli may trigger thoughts of headlines and food recalls, E. coli is also the national recommended parameter to determine safety of our swimming freshwaters by the US Environmental Protection Agency. (In saltwater, recreational safety is determined by measuring a different bacteria, Enterococcus.)
While some E. coli is harmless and even has beneficial uses, some specific strains of E. coli can be dangerous and potentially life-threatening. E. coli is found in the intestines of warm-blooded animals; therefore, its presence in a river is an indication of fecal-related pollution. This could include more harmful bacteria, protozoa, and viruses. More information on E. coli and waterway health will soon be available in an HGIC factsheet.
Whether you live in a rural community or in one of South Carolina’s growing cities, healthy waterways are a part of our culture, enjoyment, and economic prosperity.
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THE TERM “food forest” from the permaculture world sounds big—like if I suggested you start one, you’d probably say, “I don’t have room for a forest of any kind.”
How to Grow and Care for Braeburn Apple Trees Malus x domestica ‘Braeburn’
New Trees: Recent Introductions to Cultivation by John Grimshaw, Ross Bayton and illustrated by Hazel Wilks. Amazon
Ornamental Japanese Maples are widely available for planting in your garden. The autumn colouring makes these trees spectacular when planted en mass in a woodland or Japanese garden setting.
Red, White and Blue the patriotic colours of the Hydrangea are augmented by pinks and purples like H. Ayeshia above as a variation on those themes. Flowering from mid-summer these shrubs give a magnificent display with very little effort. Did you see Hydrangea maritima on seaside holidays in large displays of sugary pink and sometimes blue.
Some Camassia species were an important food staple for Native Americans and settlers in parts of North American
As the year passes, and as each new season settles upon us, we are blessed with abundant and various seasonal crops and produce. While in most mainstream grocery stores, we can now find our favorite foods all year round; however, many prefer to eat what is being grown specifically in that season. Here in South Carolina, entities such as Certified SC Grown is just one example of an organization that is working to bridge the gap between field and plate, making finding local, seasonal fruits and vegetables more attainable.
In times of this pandemic, it is imperative that you take good care of your health, especially the respiratory system. Exposure to Volatile Organic Compounds (which are 10 times higher indoors than outdoors), Particulate Matter, Polluting Gases like Nitrogen Oxide andRadon, and Contaminants like Asbestos are commonly found inside homes.
I recently had a call from a South Carolina resident who lost power for more than 24 hours and wanted to know whether the foods in her freezer would be safe to eat. This is a very common problem in South Carolina winters and could easily affect you in the coming months.
During these uncertain times, as we cope with keeping ourselves and our families healthy and practice social distancing, many are asking how the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) affects the safety of our food supply. The US Food and Drug Administration reports that “Currently there is no evidence of food or food packaging being associated with the transmission of COVID-19” (USFDA, 2020). Unlike foodborne gastrointestinal (GI) viruses like norovirus and hepatitis A that often make people ill through contaminated food, SARS-CoV-2, which causes COVID-19, is a virus that causes respiratory illness. Foodborne exposure to this virus is not known to be a route of transmission. Grocery stores and restaurants providing take-out food, are taking the necessary precautions to keep consumers and their employees safe. However, consumers should continue to practice proper food safety and personal hygiene practices. It is also important for consumers to follow the additional recommendations given by the CDC in order to stay safe (CDC, 2020). Along with the safety precautions given directly related to limiting the spread of the coronavirus, here are some practices that should be followed when purchasing and preparing food:
Lily of the Nile or agapanthus (Agapanthus africanus and hybrids with this species) is a blue-flowered perennial that grows from a rhizome (fleshy root). Each rhizome sends up several shoots. Rhizomes also reproduce, so over time, a one-gallon plant of a vigorous cultivar like ‘Blue Storm’ will make a clump 2.5 feet wide. One of my large-leaved, unnamed cultivars has spread 3.5 feet in all directions.
South Carolina’s thousands of dams are used to establish ponds, lakes, and reservoirs that provide flood management, hydropower, drinking or irrigation water, recreation, and wildlife habitat. For many of us, the dam that helps form our backyard fishing pond supports Saturday afternoon fishing with the kids. To protect the integrity of your dam and the benefits of your pond to you as the pond owner (like that trophy bass habitat!), you should plan to perform regular inspection and maintenance of your dam.