Mint miracle: Organic gardening gone right

I just adore mint, and it's notoriously easy to grow. I say notoriuously because if you plant it in a spot where it's not contained, it will spread out through underground runners and take over your garden. My two favorite uses for fresh mint are Tabbouli (use a lot of mint and parsley for a true middle eastern version) and a salad my Iranian friend Massoud taught me to make (which he just calls "salad" but I call it Middle Eastern Salad.) It's equal parts of finely diced tomatoes, cucumbers, sweet onions, mint, and parsley with a dressing of olive oil and lemon juice. The sum is so much greater than the parts. I could eat this all day.

Kalyn Denny
Kalyn's Kitchen ( http://kalynskitchen.blogspot.com )

Hopefully my mint'll be easier to contain, since it has its own pot :) I LOVE tabbouli -- used to eat it all the time while in France -- and am now off to look for yummy tabbouli recipes -- greenlagirl.com ( http://greenlagirl.com )

If you want a really fine tea, grow chocolate mint. It's like drinking a girl scout cookie. Just don't grow it next to spearmint which will crush it's little life.

As for urban gardens - I've been growing organic veggies with teen moms for a couple of years. This weekend some eagle scouts put in a drip irrigation system and already everything looks happier. The California sun on raised beds made it difficult to keep them hydrated.

Chocolate mint! I'll see if the herb woman at the farmers' market sells them, or look into getting a clipping from someone. Drinkable thin mints sound fun :)

greenlagirl.com ( http://greenlagirl.com )