“Many things happen in the garden in spring. The weather is starting to get nice and the gardeners are getting the planting bug. When the asparagus begins to break through, I know for sure that spring has arrived. From that moment on, the planning of the garden and the preparation of the soil go at full speed,” writes Lucy Mora, in the recently published From the garden to the stove (Librooks publishing house). The book is a hymn to the earth and what it gives us, a tempting proposal to open the windows of our homes and turn the windowsills into small mini-gardens that contribute a grain of sustainability to society: “Zucchini can reach up to one meter in diameter in a pot (…) Tomatoes cherry They work wonderfully well in pots, along with basil and salad vegetables (…) Vegetable gardens are a good way to grow vegetables in containers” How and when to plant? How to prevent plant pests and diseases? What to do with the 'weeds'? What are 'good company' in a garden? This book answers many of the doubts you may have when you consider becoming a home gardener. What products we should plant according to the season and which ones to consume, and along with all this, a simple recipe book, but with the aim of enhancing the flavor and properties of seasonal products.
“One of the things to keep in mind is good company in plants (…) That is, some plants are favorable associations, they mutually benefit when planted close to each other, either because they keep pests at bay, “They help pollinate, make better use of space, attract certain insects or increase productivity,” says the book cited above. Thus, one discovers, for example, that legumes (read, peas or beans) favor the growth of nearby plants because they are capable of fixing nitrogen; or that carrot roots, apple trees, berries and tomatoes could be grown together on the same plot of land. And certain aromatics can cover up the odors of some plants and stop pests.
![Cover of the book 'Growing aromatic plants', by Holly Farrell (Editorial Blume).](https://imagenes.elpais.com/resizer/TBrEgREE96Kqf5dZ7xuYsgcH_kI=/414x0/cloudfront-eu-central-1.images.arcpublishing.com/prisa/LPCFYOSJGVBRDO5KXRPCISY2Z4.jpg)
Speaking of aromatics, from the first moments in which man dedicated himself to collecting or growing his food, aromatic plants have been a substantial part of our diet and economy. In addition to the countless culinary applications, they have been used to dye fabrics, cure diseases, perfume the body and home, and have even served as currency. This is how Holly Farry's book in the Blume publishing house begins, Grow aromatic plants. This small, hardcover, illustrated book is a discovery of how, where and when we should plant our herbs. It opens the eyes to wild gardens with plants, some edible and others simply aromatic or functional, that is, useful to combat pests or to enhance the growth of other species. It teaches us what to grow in each season and how to protect our aromatics the rest of the year. For example, in spring “it is time to sow seeds and plant chives, fennel, mint, sorrel and lemon balm.” But, if we want to have a beautiful and original terrace, we should “start with the basics (basil, thyme, mint, rosemary), but go further, be daring, try to grow something different.” Different? Without a doubt, this book opens our eyes to other species, some useful for flavoring our daily cooking, others for enlivening the habitat and many for brightening our eyes or stimulating florist inspiration.
![Interior of 'Seasonal Cuisine', by Alain Ducasse, Paule Neyrat and Christophe Saintagne (Akal Editions). In the image, recipe for vegetable spaghetti (celeriac, carrots and zucchini) with hemp seeds, photographed by Pierre Monetta.](https://imagenes.elpais.com/resizer/i1bIi4wDt7ndeEIl78MOqpHSygU=/414x0/cloudfront-eu-central-1.images.arcpublishing.com/prisa/37KL7YBKFRAWDFUO7CYE2JKCQY.jpg)
Whether they are aromatic, fruits or vegetables, the truth is that, more and more, we live worried about what we eat. With globalization, markets have become internationalized, making our shopping basket, on more occasions than desired, not understand temporality. However, today, fine dining repeats its mantra of “product above all else.” They create their own gardens in the restaurant, they seek to unite talent and creativity with the seasonal product, and they even sing the commands referring, by name and surname, to the producer. But this is relatively new. If we delve into the essay by Alain Ducasse and Christian Regouby, Eating is a political act (first edition in Spanish published by the Txalaparta publishing house in 2018), we will read the following “In the seventies, in the wave of the nouvelle cuisine, the product was never talked about. The only requirement was creativity (…) Today, restaurateurs have become product specialists (…) A quality product is, above all, the story of the person who produced it.” Thus, the era of artisans and concern for origin begins. Proof of this was the publication of Estate (SpainMedia Books) by the Roca brothers, a tribute to the producer, and seasonal cuisine (Akal publishing house) by the aforementioned Alain Ducasse, both books published in 2019. In the latter case, the French chef made that small seasonal cookbook a simple and tasty manual of 150 ideas to get the most out of our garden. “Go back to the essentials: eat good seasonal products to enjoy their original flavors. “Nature offers us wonderful resources that we have to learn to respect daily.” And for that there is nothing better than growing on time, collecting the fruit and enhancing the imagination in the kitchen based on the product of each season.
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