B6 Terrace Review — Wednesday, May 15, 1991 WEDNESDAY WITH FAE BY FAE MOONEY I remember a sunny spring afternoon, a happy-face day that beamed bright memories through open windows of a heatt... The back screen door banged shut. Little feet ran down the hall. There he stood with his Dennis-the Menace smile, a lock of golden hair sticking straight up, hands hidden behind his back, What was my little leprechaun "up to... Out stretched my four-year-old’s arm, a dimpled fist clutching two feathery bright yellow flowers. The first dandelions of the season. His sparkling blue eyes smiling at me, "I love you," he said, and — bang — dashed outside again. Not what they appear to be How many moms through how many generations have received the loving gift of a bouquet of sunshine-bright dandelions from little lovers... Much-maligned, the humble dandelion is not what it appears to be. A bad reputation precedes this ubiquitous herb. Dandelion, prolific member of one of the largest groups of flowering plants, worldwide in distribution (except for Antarctica), is related to let- tuce, sunflower, daisy, chrysanthemum, and many other well- known and beneficial plants. : . Did you know that the Burpee Seed Company sells dandelion seeds? And did you know that this bane to lawn lovers is really a gardener’s good friend? With a little help from friends _ To help clear the dandelion’s name, I’ve enlisted the help of . some friends: Louise Riotte, in her popular companion books Roses Love Garlic and Carrots Love Tomatoes, comes to its defense by writing this testimonial: ‘Pandelions on your lawn may frustrate, but actually they are not in competition with the grasses... Even if they grow in thick patches on your lawn, (they) are not competing with grasses because of their long, very deep taproots... They are therefore returning to the soil minerals which have been lost through seep- ing downwards... They bring up minerals, especially calcium, from beneath the hardpan which they penetrate, depositing them nearer the surface.”’ Grass roots are not very deep and therefore actually benefit from the nutrients the dandelions make available. “Dandelion is considered one of the ‘dynamic’ weeds since it likes a good, deep soil as do clover and alfalfa, Soil around dandelions is liked by earthworms, for this is a natural humus- producer,”’ she continues. “When dandelions die their root chan- nels act like an elevator shaft for earthworms, permitting them to penetrate deeper into the soil than they might otherwise.” Nancy Lee Maffia and the editors of Organic Gardening magazine offer this in praise of dandelions. ‘Those little yellow disks... that turn to fluffy white balls... are beneficial in the companion garden... The soil around dandelions is especially fertile, usually on the alkaline side. Earth- worms love these conditions, especially slight alkalinity, and are more apt to be found where dandelions are present.’’ So if your soil ig too acidic, now you know what to do. Grow more dandelions...? | The Rodale Herb Book records that the “dandelion has a long and interesting history as a medicinal plant and foodstuff. That yellow-flowered, toothy-leaved plant infesting lawns, vacant lots, and open fields... in Chinese medicine,”’ it is regarded as a blood cleanser, tonic, and digestive aid. Valued more than other plant parts for medicinal uses are the roots. Some areas of Europe pur- posefully cultivated dandelions for their roots. During their sec- ond year of growth the roots were collected and dried. Juliette de Bairacli Levy states in her Herbal Handbook for Everyone that “this is one of the most esteemed plants of the herbalists... It is blood-cleansing, blood-tonic, lymph-cleansing. Also has external uses for treatment of warts and hard pimples. A diet of greens improves the enamel of the teeth.”’ What else can a dandelion do? It can help other flowers to grow, It can stimulate fruits to ripen faster. Its dried and ground roots can be used as a coffee substitute. The unopened buds, cooked with leeks, ‘‘lightly seasoned with butter, salt, and pep- per,’’ are said to be a delicacy. The hearts may be eaten raw if the leaves are tied together and the hearts blanched. Dandelions have been used for making wine, sharpening a green salad, and enriching a diet with vitamin A. Besides all that, blossoms can provide a pale yellow dye, when the dye is made from the plant’s roots, a deeper yellow-brown colour is obtained... Through the eyes of the beholder And when they are held lightly in an outstretched tiny dimpled hand, they are the ntost beautiful flower in the world. Joan Rysavy: Making young people spokespersons for their own health promotion. Contributed by Joan Rysavy Elementary and secondary schools in the Northwest have been selected to participate in an ‘action research project, “Flame Out’’?. The pilot project, tar- geted at teenage smoking, is pro- moted by the Skeena Union Board of Health under a grant from the British Columbia Health Care Research Founda- tion. . The project’s purpose is to enable young people to be spokespersons for their own health promotion. The primary concern is to provide them with the ability to deal effectively with the problem of tobacco use among their peers. _A logo competition and es- tablishment of student commit- -Plans under development for ‘Flame Out’ in local schools tees are planned for the re- mainder of this school year. In. the 91-92 year it is suggested that student-developed strategies will be converted into a demonstra- tion format and presented at a Northwest regional conference in April 1992. Plans are not firm as-the em- phasis is on participation and enabling young people to make their own decisions. It would be inappropriate to plan and im- plement an actual program without the input of our young people. The solutions and strategies developed by local youth will be passed on to the B.C. Health Research Foundation and made available to schools and health organizations throughout B.C. Bone marrow donors being registered About a year-and-a-half ago, a Kitimat youngster’s: life was threatened by leukemia. A bone marrow transplant was needed to save her life, and as a result about 750 Kitimat residents registered as unrelated bone marrow donors. A match was made and Laura Beaion is alive today because of it. We don’t have a Laura Beaton in Terrace to spark such enthusiasm but Monica Peacock, one of the organizers of an unrelated bone marrow _ information/recruitment meeting in Terrace, thinks we can match or beat Kitimat’s registra- tion anyway. Because, as Peacock puts it, "Let’s get ahead of the game." In other words, if you wait for our own Laura Beaton to be diagnosed before you register, it could be too late. The victim might be dead before the match is found. Currently, there are 17,500 regis- tered bone marrow donors in 638-1586 or the Canadian Red Cross Society, Unrelated Bone Marrow Donor Registry, at 879- 9400. Canada and more than half — - 9,100 of that national total — are residents of B.C. These numbers might seem impressive, but in reality a leukemia patient with access to a bone marrow registry of 100,000 people has only a 75 percent chance of finding a com- patible donor. What’s your best guess of the odds in a donor regis- try that contains. only 17,500 names? The unrelated bone marrow information/recruitment session took place Jast night at the R.E.M. Lee Theatre. For more information you can contact Monica Peacock at laundered. hatever you wear | e clear with care. 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