Mushrooms & Memory, Basil Babes, Drag Queens & Cats
#97: Spring Happenings @ Featherstone Garden
Welcome to Featherstone’s Garden Happenings Newsletter, where we share our garden updates, plant and fungi-forward recipes, details about our farmstand and onsite events, cat pics, & more. As a subscriber, you will be the first to know about our Garden Happenings. If you’re not a newsletter subscriber but would like to be, click below to signup.
Basil Babes
By: Farmer Annie
It’s feeling like late Spring in our heated Downtown greenhouse and we are alllllmost ready to plant my favorite herb, BASIL. As I type this I feel like I am betraying all my other beloved herbs. I should mention that basil is part of the mint family, so its cousins sage, rosemary, anise, thyme, lavender, marjoram, and oregano deserve a shout-out for being a gift from the universe and yummy AF as well.
Basil originated in India over 5,000 years ago and is now used in cuisine all over the world. It has a bunch of health benefits. It’s full of antioxidants, phytochemicals, adaptogens, Vitamin K, and eugenol; which help fight heart disease, cancer, arthritis, digestive issues, inflammation and depression.
Our favorite basil varieties will be planted in the greenhouse next week alongside their besties: our heirloom tomatoes and peppers. This year we are growing spicy bush basil, Genovese basil, amethyst basil, sweet Thai basil, Tulsi, and Thai towers basil. Check out Johnny’s Seeds for even more basil varieties that you can grow at home. Reminder that basil seedlings intended for outside planting should be seeded indoors 6-8 weeks beforehand.
LFG, it’s finally Spring!
Lion’s Mane and Memory
For centuries Chinese medicine has used lion’s mane mushrooms for strengthening memory and nourishing the health of 5 internal organs: the heart, liver, lungs, spleen, and kidneys.
A 2023 study reports that active compounds in the Lion’s Mane mushroom can help promote neurogenesis and enhance memory. Preclinical trials suggest the compounds have a significant impact on neural growth and improved memory formation. Researchers believe the compounds could have clinical applications in treating and preventing disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease and dementia.
“Laboratory tests measured the neurotrophic effects of compounds isolated from Hericium erinaceus on cultured brain cells, and surprisingly we found that the active compounds promote neuron [brain cell] projections, extending and connecting to other neurons."
The study was published in the Journal of Neurochemistry.
UQ acknowledges the collaborative efforts of researchers from the Republic of Korea’s Gachon University and Chungbuk National University.
For more info on Lion’s Mane check out this 2023 Science Friday Segment from NPR.
Colony Cat Club Presents: Drag Queen Bingo
Buy your Drag Queen Bingo tickets today to support our purrrrfect friends at Colony Cat Club.
Established 2023, Colony Cat Club advocates for Detroit's cats through TNR, medical attention, community outreach, and finding homes for abandoned cats. They have helped us catch and re-home many kitties at the farm, as well as fix feral adult cats that live in our neighborhood.
Rolling Microgreen and Mushroom Signup and Pickup
Sign up for the final 3-weeks of our mushroom and microgreens subscriptions. Enjoy a rotating variety of delicious and nutritious microgreens that are perfect as a raw snack, or as toppings for tacos, sandwiches, soup, pasta, stir fry etc.
Wednesday Pickup Details for Subscribers
Featherstone MorningSide
4178 Lakepointe Street Detroit
Wednesday 12-5pm
*text or call 704-996-3711 when you arrive and we will bring your order to your car
OR
TechTown (for TechTown members only)
4040 Burroughs Street Detroit
Wednesday 12-7pm
*orders are available for pickup from the front desk
Thanks for reading!
For more about our garden, check out our website and follow us on instagram (@featherstone.garden). Feel free to email us or comment below.
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Have a great week,
Annie, Ame, and Aaron
+ Chili, Bean, Ginger & Fig (our farm cats ₍˄·͈༝·͈˄₎◞ ₍˄·͈༝·͈˄₎◞₍˄·͈༝·͈˄₎◞,₍˄·͈༝·͈˄₎◞)
Rooted in Waawiyatanong (Detroit), Featherstone garden is a femme and minority owned business that is dedicated to land stewardship and growing produce year-round for neighbors and local restaurants. As an all-natural operation, the garden intercrops veggies, herbs, fungi, and flowers that complement each other as companions, nurture soil and beneficial insects, and contribute to a healthy urban ecosystem. At both their downtown and MorningSide locations, Featherstone offers space for the community to enjoy the healing benefits of gardening and consuming plant and fungi-forward foods.