Ann Marie's Farmstand in Port Jefferson Station displays some of the many different varieties of squash available in the fall. Photo by Ellen Barcel
By Ellen Barcel
Squash, the genus Cucurbita, are grown today extensively throughout the world as a food source. They are one of the Three Sisters (corn, beans and squash), which were developed in the Americas and then taken by European explorers back home.
One of them, zucchini is so closely associated with Italian cooking that most people don’t realize that it is a native of the Americas, not Italy.
Squash are generally grouped in two categories, summer squash and winter squash. Most are vines and, although some are perennials, they are grown in temperate regions as annuals. The plants easily self-seed. I’ve even seen them growing along sidewalks from seeds that overwintered from decorative pumpkins left outside.
Incidentally, although gourds look similar to squash, they are not native to the Americas, but rather Africa.The same is true of melons. Gourds and melons, however, are related to squash (family Cucurbitaceae, but a different genus).
Ann Marie’s Farmstand in Port Jefferson Station displays some of the many different varieties of squash available in the fall. Photo by Ellen Barcel
Squash, botanically are fruit, in the same way that tomatoes are. They are the ripened seed pod of the plant. Summer squash are harvested in summer, before the skin hardens. Summer squash include zucchini, yellow summer squash, scallop squash and yellow crookneck squash.
Winter squash are harvested in fall, after the skin has hardened. Therefore, these squash need to be peeled before use. Varieties of winter squash include hubbard squash, turban squash, pumpkin, butternut squash, acorn squash and spaghetti squash. We tend to think of winter squash as traditionally served at Thanksgiving (pumpkin pie and butternut squash in particular); however, spaghetti squash is available in supermarkets year round and is frequently roasted and served with tomato sauce, in place of spaghetti made from wheat to cut down on carbs.
Squash are known for their high vitamin content (particularly A) and trace minerals, making them an excellent addition to the diet.
My favorite butternut squash recipe takes butternut squash cubes cooked with sausage, thyme, salt and pepper in a skillet in chicken or beef broth with some onions until the sausage and squash are done.
Squash blossoms are edible as well. The ones generally seen in markets are zucchini blossoms. They are usually fried, but they can be baked, stuffed with cheese and spices, served with spaghetti or in soups. There are plenty of recipes online to satisfy all.
Since zucchini plants are so prolific, you’ll still get plenty of squash if you eat some of the flowers.
Squash grows in a wide variety of soil types but does need fertilizer (for example, composted manure). They produce the most fruits in sun. They grow in a soil pH of 5.5 to 7.5 (very acidic to mildly alkaline, with 7 being neutral). They can be grown in large containers, so if you have a small yard, you can put the container on a deck or patio.
According to the seed company Burpee, cucurbits don’t like to have their roots disturbed, so either plant them directly outside, start them in peat pots, which can be planted whole in the garden, or buy seedlings from a nursery, being careful not to disturb the roots. They also suggest adding fertilizer when the plants begin to blossom and set fruit since squash are heavy feeds (like tomatoes).
Like tomatoes, these are tender plants. They like warm soil (so don’t put them out too early in a cool spring) and need a steady supply of water, so be aware of weeks of little or no rain.
Winter squash can also be used as outdoor decorations in the fall. Some squash develop into really weird shapes naturally while others are accidental crosses between two varieties producing things like green pumpkins.
Ellen Barcel is a freelance writer and master gardener. Send your gardening questions to [email protected]. To reach Cornell Cooperative Extension and its Master Gardener program, call 631-727-7850.
The parsley worm caterpillar. Photo by Ellen Barcel
By Ellen Barcel
There are many gardening chores to accomplish in the fall. One that I’m currently working on is bringing in some herb plants to try and keep them growing over winter. Mainly, I want to keep some of my mints growing, but the parsley plant is lush and gorgeous, so I’m going to make a stab at keeping that growing on a bay window. When I went to take a look at the plant, I saw an absolutely beautiful caterpillar on one of the stalks. I knew it wasn’t a monarch, because they go for milkweed (several dined on my butterfly weed, Aesclepias tuberosa, a native variety of milkweed), and besides they have orange strips while my new guest was basically green and black.
Parsley worm caterpillar
A bit of research told me that it was a parsley worm caterpillar, which would eventually change into an American swallowtail butterfly, black with blue markings. How was I going to deal with this critter since I really wanted to see it turn into a butterfly, but I also wanted to bring the parsley into the house so I’d have fresh parsley all winter.
Monarch butterfly caterpillar. Stock photo
Again, research told me that they overwinter in the garden as a chrysalis (that is, a pupa) and emerge from the cocoonin spring (April to May usually) as the beautiful butterfly. So, if you are bringing any plants into the house, check them for hitchhikers. Break off some of the parsley and set it with the caterpillar in a safe place outside to overwinter. I’ve read that it’s a nasty tasting caterpillar so birds tend to leave it alone.
Some people object to the parsley worm (which is attracted to other plants in the carrot family, such as dill, carrots and Queen Anne’s lace). They can be hand picked off the plants if you want. Personally, I don’t mind sharing a bit of my parsley with them knowing that they will turn into beautiful butterflies.
Green tomato hornworm
Another caterpillar you may find on your garden plants is the large green tomato hornworm. I remember as a kid my father finding them on some tomato plants he was growing. One was covered with white insect eggs, parasitized by braconid wasps. My father removed the caterpillar with the eggs, but I later learned that the wasps perform a valuable service to the home gardener, that of devouring other insect pests.
Like the parsley worm caterpillar, they can be easily removed from the plant by hand picking. While the parsley worm will eventually yield a beautiful butterfly, the tomato hornworm can quickly defoliate tomato plants (and other nightshade plants like potatoes, peppers and eggplants) causing serious damage to the garden.
After going through the pupa stage, a large moth will emerge. No, I’m not willing to share my tomato plants with these critters. But, if you find one covered in white eggs, leave it alone since the wasps that will emerge from the eggs will kill the caterpillar and control other insect pests.
So, monarch butterfly caterpillars are good, parsley worm caterpillars are also very good and tomato worm caterpillars are bad, unless they’re covered in wasp eggs.
There are many other varieties of caterpillars that are sometimes beneficial and sometimes not. Remember the gypsy moth caterpillar can be very bad. (See my column of last July 16 for details on this one.)
Check out any caterpillars you find by typing the description into your computer’s search engine to find similar photos to help identify it. Only when you know what you have, should you decide what to do about the critter or critters in your garden.
Ellen Barcel is a freelance writer and master gardener. Send your gardening questions to [email protected]. To reach Cornell Cooperative Extension and its Master Gardener program, call 631-727-7850.
In late September of this year an aging Italian immigrant from Argentina, who is the leader of one of the largest religious denomination in the world, landed at Andrews Air Force Base in Maryland, just outside our nation’s capital.
This man addressed a joint session of Congress, the United Nations, led an interfaith prayer service at the 9/11 Memorial, spoke to a standing room only crowd at St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City and addressed a packed house at Madison Square Garden.
Over 100,000 people waited for as long as 10 hours to get a glimpse of this holy man in Central Park. He concluded his historic visit to the United States with a final stop in Philadelphia where more than one million people came out to greet him.
Catholics call this holy man the Vicar of Christ on Earth. The rest of the world knows him as Pope Francis. In his brief stay among us he challenged our leaders, both politically and religiously, to do more for the poor, for the undocumented, for the discarded and for the marginalized in our midst.
He embraced the homeless, visited immigrant schoolchildren in East Harlem and prison inmates at the largest prison in Philadelphia. Pope Francis gave 26 public addresses in his short time with us.
Everywhere he went people came out in record numbers to merely catch a glimpse of this prophetic voice, this humble pilgrim who is changing the landscape of the world. I was privileged to be the religious consultant for WCBS radio in New York, so I had access to all of his written speeches before he gave them.
Everywhere he spoke he challenged us to do more for the discarded and the marginalized. He spoke about being more inclusive, not being judgmental, not hiding behind rules and regulations but rather sharing and living the faith. He said to the cardinals, bishops and priests like myself that “we have to build bridges and not walls for that is what Christ did!”
New York City was on fire with Francis Fever. Everywhere I walked on that Thursday and Friday he was among us, and people from every walk of life and perspective commented on his simplicity, his humility and his persuasive choice of words.
What amazed me about this holy man is that he leads by example; he practices what he preaches. At the joint session of Congress he spoke about his four American heroes — Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King Jr., Dorothy Day (co-founder of the Catholic Worker Movement,) and Thomas Merton, a Trappist monk — probably among the most prolific spiritual writer of our time.
Each person was painfully human but also profoundly prophetic in calling us to respect the human dignity and human rights of all people who share our “common home.”
Probably the most powerful image that will stay with me forever about this pope was the picture of him in the popemobile driving from Philadelphia International Airport and all of a sudden, once again off script, telling the driver to stop. He opened the door and stepped out of his little Fiat.
The emotion of the crowd was beyond words. He walked up to a young teenager who was laying on a stretcher with his mother standing next to him, knelt down, hugged the boy and kissed him on the forehead. He took hold of his head and blessed him. He then stood up, hugged the teenager’s mother, walked back to his little Fiat and continued the motorcade to the city of brotherly love!
Fr. Pizzarelli is the director of Hope House Ministries in Port Jefferson.
Eggplants come in many different shapes, sizes and colors. Photo by Ellen Barcel
By Ellen Barcel
Growing an eggplant is relatively easy on Long Island. Eggplants are in the Solanaceae (that is, nightshade) family. Cultivation of the eggplant is very similar to that of the tomato. It is a perennial in tropical regions but in our climate is grown as an annual. Like tomatoes, night temperature must be warm enough (65 degrees or more) in order for eggplant blossoms to set fruit. The plant will stop fruiting when the air temperature drops below 65.
Generally, the fruit is large and a deep purple or aubergine color. In fact, in some parts of the world, it is called aubergine, rather than eggplant. Size and color of the fruit, however, vary depending on the cultivar. Some eggplants produce a cream-colored fruit, making it really look like an egg, hence its name.
There are dozens of varieties of eggplant. ‘Jade Sweet’is smaller in size and has a pale green-colored skin. ‘Black Stem’ eggplant is an ornamental with black stems and looks more like a tomato than an eggplant.‘Cookstown Orange’ also resembles a tomato. It has yellow, nonbitter flesh. ‘Casper’ is long and slim with ivory-white fruit. ‘Clara’ has a medium-sized white fruit. There are even varieties with long, slim fruits such as ‘Mackinaw’ and ‘Orient Express.’ Eggplant flowers in general are light to dark purple with yellow centers, but some cultivars have white flowers.
Eggplants grow best in a soil pH of 6.3 to 6.8, which is only mildly acidic. Test your soil first, but generally, on Long Island you will need to raise the pH by adding lime. If you grow the plant in a large container with potting soil, this will be less of a problem since most potting soil is closer to being neutral.
Eggplant grows best in a sunny location with well-drained soil. Make sure you water sufficiently, several times a week, especially when Long Island is going through its periodic droughts. Fertilize as you choose: compost, composted manure, compost tea or commercial fertilizer. Remember that you are going to be eating the fruit, so don’t put anything on the plants that is not rated for human consumption. Some chemicals tell the gardener to stop a certain number of days before harvest.
Mulch to keep the soil cool and conserve moisture. Space each plant two to three feet apart as these can be large plants. Like tomato plants, which usually need some support, large eggplants need support as well. Use stakes or a tomato cage.
If you decide to grow them from seed, it is recommended that you start the seeds indoors two months before you will move them outdoors. Harden the plants off before moving them permanently into the garden, in late May. That means start them in March. Since so many houses on Long Island do not have enough indoor light (plants get very leggy without enough sun), you might want to consider buying several plants from a nursery instead.
Because the raw fruit can be somewhat bitter, eggplant is usually cooked. Eggplant parmigiana is made basically the same way as veal parmigiana. Remove the skin first, slice, bread and fry. Serve with tomato sauce and mozzarella. A favorite recipe of mine is a turkey and eggplant casserole. Eggplant can also be grilled — season and coat with olive oil.
Other plants in the nightshade family include tomatoes and potatoes as well as bell peppers. Tobacco and petunias are also in the nightshade family. Atropia belladonna (also a nightshade) is toxic so pull it out if you see it growing wild in your garden. While tomatoes and potatoes are completely edible (unless you’re allergic to one or both), the leaves are not. Never, I repeat, never eat potato or tomato leaves.
Ellen Barcel is a freelance writer and master gardener. Send your gardening questions to [email protected]. To reach Cornell Cooperative Extension and its Master Gardener program, call 631-727-7850.
Whew!! Hurricane Joaquin has drifted out to sea! Unfortunately, we have become all too familiar with natural disasters — think Superstorm Sandy. If another disaster were to occur, would I be prepared not only for myself, but also for my pet? What about for everyday emergencies?
Believe it or not, many of the same precautions and treatments we would use on ourselves we can also extend to our more “furry” family members: a basic first aid kit specifically for our pets, an emergency plan available in advance, etc. A basic first aid kit for your pet should include a blanket, thermometer, pen light, sterile 4×4 gauze pads, sterile dressing (small, medium, large), roll gauze, 1 and 2 inch white tape, Telfa non stick bandages, triangular bandages and safety pins, cloth strips, betadine or triple antibiotics, scissors, tweezers, instant cold pack, hydrogen peroxide, splint, veterinarian’s phone number, local animal emergency clinic’s phone number, Poison Control’s phone number, Glucose concentrate (e.g., Karo Syrup or other syrup), canned dog or cat food and bottled water.
Once you have your first aid kit prepared, you will be ready for most emergencies at home. Here are some tips on handling most general emergencies:
*If an animal is frightened or in pain, it may bite, even friendly dogs or cats. Consider using something like a small piece of rope or a tie to muzzle your pet, or throw a large thick blanket over the pet to pick it up. Please do not get yourself hurt trying to help a scared, injured, potentially dangerous animal.
*Anything makes a good stretcher — a flat board, an old door, etc.
*If an animal is vomiting for whatever reason, do not offer any food or water for at least three hours. We know there is a concern of dehydration, but many times that is the time an animal needs to rest the stomach, if it is a less serious cause of vomiting, and giving any food or water too quickly may make things worse. If you are very concerned, it is better to check with or visit your regular veterinarian or an emergency veterinary hospital before considering food or water.
*For bite wounds or penetrating wounds, try to keep the wound clean and moist until the animal can be transported to your regular veterinarian or an emergency veterinary hospital. Moistened clean cloths, gauze, etc can be used. If there is excessive bleeding, direct pressure should be applied; consider an ACE bandage. Do not try to remove anything that is impaled into the pet.
*Bone fractures can be immobilized with a splint. A splint can be made of rolled up magazines or newspapers, cardboard, a metal hanger, or wood. If it is an open compound fracture, cover it with a clean moistened dressing. If the animal cannot or will not allow a splint, just try to keep them confined until you can transport them to either your regular veterinarian’s office or an emergency veterinary hospital.
*If you suspect your dog has ingested poison, call a veterinary emergency poison hotline. If possible, have both the trade name and the generic name of the poison.Do not try to get the animal to vomit before speaking to a veterinary emergency poison control representative or licensed veterinarian. Certain poisons, particularly those that are caustic, may cause more damage on the way back up, and if your pet is disoriented from the poison, you risk aspiration and aspiration pneumonia.
The emergency clinic I work for recommends the National Animal Poison Control Center: (888) 299-2973. They are staffed 24 hours a day, 365 days a year with veterinary toxicologists. There is a $45 consult fee, but it is well worth it. I hope this information helps to make us all better prepared for emergencies.
Dr. Kearns has been in practice for 16 years and is pictured with his son, Matthew, and his dog, Jasmine.
The author, second from right, hiking at Mt. Monadnock in New Hampshire, with fellow WWOOFers, from left, Matt Cook, Greg Mizar and Camille Horace. Photo by Melanie Glissman
By Stacy Santini
This is the last installment of a four-part series. Miss part three? Read it here.
Jack Kerouac did it, John Steinbeck did it; there is something to be said about being on the road. Not for everybody, there are countless moments when the vexation of it all can be overwhelming. Living out of suitcases and spending more time crouched over a steering wheel than being vertical most definitely takes a toll, but for me, those inconveniences were small in comparison to what I was feeling and the perspective I gained.
“My life is my message.”
— Mahatma Gandhi
After so many years of ignoring the spirit that now guides me, I felt completely and utterly free, treasuring every mile of my journey. Revelation upon revelation unfolded itself and I got to know a person that had been a stranger for all too long — myself.
I unfolded my crumpled-up bucket list and placed check marks where there had been blank spaces, and WWOOFing it in New England served as a springboard to extraneous adventures I took advantage of while I was away.
During my time in the Northeast, I was able to reconnect with my family in Concord, New Hampshire, and stay with dear friends I don’t often get to see in Exeter. Sitting around dinner tables, breaking bread and talking to familiar faces was a comfort.
I felt empowered and strong as a result of farming and did not feel out of my comfort zone when I read poetry at an open mic in Portland, Maine or dined al fresco in Saratoga Springs. There were strange faces along the way that quickly became native as I was invited to join them to observe jam bands at local venues.
Friendships were made and alliances amongst my fellow WWOOFers were welcomed. I took my Southern California comrades from Owen Farm to Melanie and Matt’s organic farm in Fitzwilliam, New Hampshire, to hike and assist them in turning sap into maple syrup in the sugar shack.
Charlie, my morkie, and I traveled west to our beloved Catskills, walked part of the Appalachian Trail and held fort in New Paltz for several days, shopping at Groovy Blueberry and chowing down with a women’s motorcycle club at The Gilded Otter.
Returning home was not easy, as there was so much more I wanted to explore, but I have learned to trust timing, and without hesitation I know that Charles Crawford and I will one day again be road warriors embarking on the unknown. I am not sure whether or not I thought I would return to Long Island a farmer, but regardless, I knew I would come home different and better for this undertaking. Mission accomplished.
Stacy Santini is a freelance reporter for Times Beacon Record Newspapers. If you would like to find out how to become a WWOOFer, visit www.wwoofusa.org.
This small berm has stone edging as well as a decorative planter. Photo by Ellen Barcel
By Ellen Barcel
Do you have a problem spot in the garden or a garden that you feel is vulnerable, for example, to cars along a road way? You may want to consider building and planting a berm. Berms are described as an artificial ridge or embankment, used for defense or as a barrier — basically it’s a little hill. It’s also a way of providing privacy, redirecting foot traffic, creating a noise barrier, directing and controlling rainwater, blocking an unattractive view, creating a focal point or as wind protection. You can probably think of other uses, including creating interest in a flat landscape or as the center in a circular driveway.
To create the berm, make a plan on paper first. Generally, the berm should be four to five times as long as it is high. In general, berms are one to two feet high, but that is really up to you. They could be higher, even five or six feet.The bigger the berm, the more fill you will need to create it. If you are using a contractor (strongly recommended if it’s a big job), the firm can provide the fill. If you are doing the work yourself, then make sure you don’t use fill that will add chemicals to the soil/groundwater. Also, don’t use wood as it will decompose and the berm (or at least part of it) will sink down into the surroundingground.
This section of a berm is adorned with large trees and hostas. Photo by Ellen Barcel
Once you or your landscape contractor have created the berm, you need to plant it. What plants you select really depends on why you created the berm in the first place. For example, if you did it as a noise barrier or to block an unsightly view, then you probably want evergreens since they will protect year round while deciduous trees or shrubs would not in winter. If it’s for privacy in an area that you only use in summer, then you could use deciduous plantings.
Another considerations is where the berm is located. If it’s in a very shady location, then you need to plant shade-tolerant plants. You could use rhododendrons (some reach a height of 10 or more feet tall), hostas and ferns. If it’s to create a focal point in a sunny location, you could use perennial flowers such as coneflowers, black eyed Susans, mums, etc.Berms also work well as a place to install a rock garden.
Depending on the use, you might want a variety of plantings to supply year-round interest — rhodies in the spring, coneflowers in the summer, mums and ornamental grasses in the fall. Grasses are also lovely in winter with snow and ice on them. Red twig dogwood adds color to the winter garden. Don’t forget the mulch for spaces between plantings.
Berms can create a microclimate. If it blocks the sun, then one side could be cooler than the other. Or, if it blocks the wind, it might allow more tender plants to survive well on the protected side. Follow general landscaping principles, for example, put taller plants in back (or for a very large berm in the center) and shorter plants near the edges. Two plants create a more formal appearance while three (or five) create a more casual look.
When planning out your berm, you might want to add some small statuary, a birdbath, a bird feeder or in a sunny location, a sundial. Plan how you will access the center of the berm — for example,several stepping stones. You also need to decide how you will edge the berm. You could just put some simple edging in where the berm meets the grass. Or you could put in a number of decorative stones. If the berm is very high, four or five feet tall or more, you may want to terrace it.
Autumn/winter is the ideal time to plan out what you want to do and how to do it. Research the plants that will be installed. Then come the first mild days in early spring, you can get started.
Ellen Barcel is a freelance writer and master gardener. Send your gardening questions to [email protected]. To reach Cornell Cooperative Extension and its Master Gardener program, call 631-727-7850.
The Village of Port Jefferson will be awash in pink all through October as part of John T. Mather Memorial Hospital’s breast cancer awareness and outreach called “Paint Port Pink.”
The event’s mission is to stress the importance of screening, early detection and education about breast cancer and to help raise funds for the Fortunato Breast Health Center Fund for the Uninsured at Mather. “Paint Port Pink allows Mather Hospital to build on our breast cancer outreach efforts by involving the entire community in a month-long campaign that is highly visible and offers important breast health information,” said Mather board member Judith Fortunato. Participating partners will distribute breast cancer education cards containing information on breast self-exams.
Paint Port Pink is presented by Astoria Bank with the support of North Shore Hematology Oncology Associates, Long Island Physician Associates, LI Anesthesia Physicians, the Greater Port Jefferson Chamber of Commerce, People’s United Bank, Suffolk Plastic Surgeons, The Richard and Mary Morrison Foundation, A World of Pink, Empire National Bank, Gordon L. Seaman and Harborview Medical Services.
Many activities will be held throughout the month to bring the community together. To kick off the event, a Tree Lighting Ceremony will be held at Village Hall tonight (Oct. 1) at 6:30 p.m. Mayor Margot Garant and Mather board member Judith Fortunato will flip the switch to light up the Village Hall tree in pink lights. All are invited. Local schools will provide music, and a flock of pink flamingos will make an appearance.
At the same time, merchants will be displaying pink lights in their windows. The water in the downtown fountains will be “pinked” with environmentally safe dye. Village Hall, the Village Center, the Port Jefferson Ferry Terminal and MatherHospital will be illuminated by pink spotlights. Theatre Three’s marquee will blink with pink lights. In addition, pink banners will adorn the light poles and some restaurants will offer special pink drinks.
Through Oct. 31, several events will raise funds to benefit the Fund for the Uninsured at the Fortunato Breast Health Center as well as breast cancer treatment services at Mather. Students at Edna Louise Spear Elementary School will launch their “Your Change Can Make a Change” promotion, collecting change using the Center’s giant hourglass while Port Jefferson Middle School students will sell and wear pink shoe laces and Frisbees.
Earl L. Vandermeulen High School cheerleaders and the Student Organization will begin their “Flamingo Flocking” fundraising campaign. The pink plastic suburban icons will be placed on the lawns of friends and supporters along with a note explaining that friends or family paid to have them “flocked” and explaining that if they make a donation, the flock will migrate to any yard they choose.
The 9th annual Pink Rock Golf Classic at the Port Jefferson Country Club will be held on Oct. 5. Registration is at 11 a.m. followed by a barbecue lunch at 11:30 am and a shot gun start at 1 p.m.
Mather Hospital’s 50th annual Gala, One Enchanted Evening, will be held on Oct. 23 at the Hyatt Regency Long Island, Hauppauge, from 7 to 11 p.m. The gala will include the presentation of the Community Service Award and Theodore Roosevelt Awards for service to the hospital and the community.
Finally, on Oct. 29, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Director of Research David L. Spector, Ph.D., will speak about his research on “Searching for New Ways to Halt the Progression of Breast Cancer” at a free educational seminar at Mather Hospital’s new Long Island Anesthesia Physicians Conference Center starting at 6:30 p.m. For more information or to register, call 631-686-7878.
‘Victory at Ojai’ by Marge Governale. Image from North Shore Art Guild
Tales of survival and hope at North Shore Art Guild’s latest exhibit Mather Hospital has also teamed up with the North Shore Art Guild, the Village of Port Jefferson and the Port Jefferson Conservancy to present Artists United Against Breast Cancer, a juried art show currently on view at the Port Jefferson Village Center through Oct. 31. Featuring the works of more than 70 artists, the exhibit is inspired by the personal transformation, hope, love, fear, loss and victory associated with breast cancer. Choice of mediums included oil, acrylic, digital art, digital photographs and soft sculpture.
The show’s theme is “Victors of Survival, A Celebration of the Warrior Within Each of Us.” “Victors of Survival is not just about breast cancer. It’s about personal transformation, the person you become having faced the experience,” said Mac Titmus, vice president of the Art Guild and coordinator of the show. “It’s about the emergence of the warrior within, and the struggle that brings it forth. It’s about … how [the artists] choose to transform that passion into expression.”
Many of the artists in the show have been afflicted with breast cancer or have close family members who have.
One painting in the show stands out among the crowd. A woman stands atop a mountain, her arms raised in triumph. The woman is also the artist, Marge Governale of E. Setauket, and she is celebrating not only reaching the mountain’s summit, but surviving breast cancer. “It’s a painting of me right after I finished my treatment in October 2013, when I went with my daughter on a trip to Ojai, California,” said Governale.
In the painting, Governale’s hair is short, just growing back after chemotherapy. “I had not been exercising. My daughter said ‘let’s hike,’ and I made it the top of that mountain,” she said. It felt so good that I was able to get back to some of the things I loved after my treatment. That was a victory for me.”
“I only started painting because I had breast cancer,” she said. “Good things sometimes come from bad things.”
The winners were announced on Sept. 1. The judges included Judith Fortunato, Holly Gordon, Ward Hooper and Lori Horowitz.
Best in Show went to Len Sciacchitano for “What Will He Think.” “I remember the terror in my cousin’s eyes when she first told me she had cancer and a breast had to be removed. I can only imagine how she felt when she was faced with that diagnosis, the moment she heard, “You have breast cancer,” said Sciacchitano. “I’m sure it is a moment that remained in her mind for the rest of her life. I do not know how it feels and tried to visually imagine her emotions when she realized she needed major surgery and a portion of what she had known was being taken away,” he said.
Joanna Gazzola garnered first place for “Defiant Yet Vulnerable.” “I have had two friends and one relative who had cancer and who handled their illnesses with grit, determination and courage. One has survived for almost a decade so far and does walks to raise money for cancer research every year. The other two have passed, but provided so much inspiration to me,” said Gazzola. “I can only hope that I live and die with as much grace and thoughtfulness as they had,” said Gazzola.
Second place went to Zhen Guo for “Breasts are the Essence,” soft sculpture. Said Guo, “A woman’s breasts are symbolic of her multifaceted nature in many ways. They are the source of nourishment for infants, of warmth and security for her children, of sexuality and attractiveness for her mate. When they are injured, her whole being and all the people who know her are injured, too.”
Evelyn Adams, whose painting, “Unite & Fight For A Cure” won third place, said, “My mother passed away of breast cancer in 2008 at the age of 60. I became so mad with the disease. However, as time passed by, I began to accept the reality of the disease and now I really do support the fight for breast cancer. Showing my support, I expressed my view for a cure in a special way. I cast my hand and then incorporated clay made breast, and also placed over 100 pieces of pink ribbons around a pedestal in which represent all families who are coming together and bringing awareness to breast cancer.” She went on, “Therefore, my main idea of this piece is to encourage viewers, families who had a family member died of breast cancer and those who are fighting breast cancer of hope for a cure.”
Honorable mentions went to Bernadette De Nyse for “Mortality Realized,” Joanna Gazzola for “Conflict, Denial and Understanding,” Neil Leinwohl for “New Blooms,” Lynellen Nielsen for “Grace,” Susan Silkowitz for “Abuela” and Angela Stratton for “The Protector.”
The Port Jefferson Village Center is located at 101A. E. Broadway. An artist reception will be held on Saturday, Oct. 3, from 4 to 7 p.m. on the second level with raffles, blind auctions and art sales. All of the artists have agreed to donate 25 percent of any sales to support breast health care at the Fortunato Breast Health Center of Mather Hospital. For further information about the art show, call 631-802-2160.
False buckwheat suffocates a bush as it reaches for the sky. Photo by Fred Drewes
By Ellen Barcel
Well, it’s fall. You’re doing your autumn cleanup before the garden goes to sleep for the winter. One thing you can do that will be very helpful is to remove any invasive vines you have now, while they’re small.
I’ve mentioned a number of times that plants can grow roots in the fall, even into December if there is no hard freeze. That means that if you leave invasive vines in the garden now, they will be getting a good start on next year’s growth, making it harder to remove.
So, what invasive vines should you be removing now? And, are there any native, but pesky, vines you may want to remove now?
Wineberries
One of the most prolific and nasty vines that volunteer in the garden is the wineberry. Wineberries were introduced into thecountry from Asia to possibly be crossed with raspberries. But, wineberries (Rubus phoenicolasius) are extremely invasive, taking the place of native plants. They pop up all over. I’ve even pulled them out of planters. Make sure you are wearing gardening gloves when you pull this nasty one since the stems are filled with thorns. I found this out the hard way many years ago.
Ccreeping Jenny. Photo by Ellen Barcel
While you might like the idea of eating wineberries — they are edible — they’re only okay and are not as flavorful as raspberries. So, if you want raspberries, plant them and pull out the wineberries. Due to their extremely invasive nature, they are on Suffolk County’s Do Not Sell List.
Oriental bittersweet
Oriental bittersweet (Celastrus orbiculatus) is a woody vine that volunteers easily in the garden. It was introduced into the United States in the late 1800s and has spread extensively. It seems to like virtually any environment — climate, soil conditions, fertilizer or lack thereof — meaning that it easily competes with native plants. Birds and small mammals eat the berries and spread the seeds, as happens with the wineberries. One vine I didn’t notice grew up in my garden behind some other plants and actually broke my wooden fence. It’s on the Do Not Sell List for good reason.
Creeping Jenny
Creeping Jenny (Lysimachia nummularia) is a low-growing vine with roundish chartreuse leaves. It spreads rapidly, even into grass. It does well in zones 3 to 8. An evergreen perennial that favors wet ground, it is native to Europe but was introduced into the United States where it has spread far and wide. It roots wherever a node touches the soil. It will resprout from the roots if pulled out. Yes, this one too, is on the Do Not Sell List.
Other vines on the list include kudzu, sweet autumn clematis, some varieties of honeysuckle and mile-a-minute weed. Pull all of these out whenever you see them.
Management List
There are a number of vines that can be legally propagated and sold in Suffolk County but are invasive as well. The county suggests that they not be planted (Management List). They include chocolate vine, Asian wisteria (I personally think this one should be banned), morning glory, English ivy (another one that wants to take over the world), periwinkle, silver lace (or fleece vine) and ground ivy.
For a detailed list of invasive plants of the United States go to www.invasiveplantsatlas.og.
Native vines
Wild grapes (Vitis) are native to North America. Remember that the Vikings called North America Vinland. But, while they are native, they can be a real nuisance. A gardening friend of mine has wild grapes growing up a number of her shade trees and have really taken over. There are a number of species, but most bear grapes that are not suitable for making wine. She notes, however, that the birds seem to enjoy them.
False buckwheat (Polygonum scandens) is also a native of North America and, as the wild grapes, can be a real nuisance to the home gardener. It grows wild from Canada in the north to Florida in the south and as far west as Wyoming and Colorado.
If you can, remove wild grapes and false buckwheat whenever possible. Although native, they do take over.
Ellen Barcel is a freelance writer and master gardener. Send your gardening questions to [email protected]. To reach Cornell Cooperative Extension and its Master Gardener program, call 631-727-7850.
Social traits include ethnic or racial identification, religious beliefs, patriotism and class or family status. We recognize that one can be a sports fan and one’s team may be self-chosen the way my father was a Brooklyn Dodger fan, my brother Roland was a New York Giants fan, and I was a Yankee fan. Fan loyalty can be deeply felt, as watching fans at a game often reveals.
We also recognize that children are usually raised in a religion chosen by their parents, which they may later reject or accept. Ethnic identity is more difficult to assess because immigrants frequently keep a lot of the “old country” values and traditions going in their children. But by the time grandchildren or great-grandchildren are born in the United States the melting pot is the norm.
I used to have students in some of my classes prepare genetic pedigrees of their family from grandparents to grandchildren, including uncles and aunts and cousins. What I learned in these exercises was that some Irish married Italians, some Jews married non-Jews, some Catholics married Protestants, some blacks married whites, and it was rare to see three generations in the United States where all members were of one descent (e.g., all Irish or all Methodists).
The farther back one goes in a family’s genealogy, the more these mixtures occur.This tells me it is not innate to marry one’s own kind. “Birds of a feather may flock together” as a species, but as anyone who has observed dogs will know, any breed of dog can and will breed with other breeds of dogs.
Despite these evidences of cultural mixing and the uncertain religious identification our descendants will have, much of society likes to believe that social traits are inherited. If a family has several generations of physicians, they may believe being a doctor is “bred in the bone” (for those who grew up before World War II) or that it’s in the family DNA (for those who grew up after 1970 when DNA was entering crossword puzzles and rock music — “Hey hey hey hey, it’s DNA that made me that way”).
Most school teachers will experience parents taking credit for their good genes when their children excel in school but the parents may blame the teacher (or the school board) when their children do poorly in their classes. I have never heard a parent say, “It’s my crummy genes that made my child flunk your course.”
The danger of assigning genes to social behavior is that they lead to racist thinking, ethnic stereotyping and beliefs in social class inferiority. The eugenics movement of the first half of the 20th century was filled with these attempts to assign social failure with defective genes (or before the term gene existed to defective protoplasm).
I much prefer evidence based on experimentation or carefully controlled studies. But wishful thinking is easy to do and widely shared, making the world of politics, popular culture and taboo topics seem more real than the science that shatters these illusions.
Elof Axel Carlson is a distinguished teaching professor emeritus in the Department of Biochemistry and Cell Biology at Stony Brook University.
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