Gardeners Who Like to Garden

Why is everyone talking about gardening?

Christina W.

Oct 13, 2024

Transcript

It started on TikTok… we’ve fallen back into the dark ages and any content about the plant-that-shall-not-be-named is banished, so we have to talk in code again. We’re all gardeners here, who love to garden. Got it?

Weeds belong in the garden, it grows like a weed!

Come garden with me! If you haven’t attended one of my events yet, there are five more gatherings between now and the end of the year. Each event is unique and co-hosted in collaboration with rad people I admire.

Make a garden fresh drink. Chef Wendy and I got together to demo a new gadget and created this recipe for a garden fresh herbal beverage, smoked with tea leaves.

For the gardeners who garden. I share tips on how to spot pesky caterpillars before you harvest and dry your buds. Plus, trips for drying and curing your flowers.

Vol. 40 // In this Issue:

You’re Invited! Flower Rave
Recipe: Smoked Michelada
Gardening Club: Hunting for Caterpillars

You’re Invited! Flower Rave

Join me for a sunset dance party on Saturday, October 19 from 6-10pm at a secret garden in Northeast Los Angeles.

I’ve partnered with Nicole Kohen, host of THCnTechno for a flowerful celebration of c*nn*bis and dance music. This open-aire garden dance party includes:

Ever plucked a fresh nug off the stem to enjoy? I’m sharing my private stash, grown by LA Homegrow.
Music to dance all night by MaamSir, a genre-fluid Filipino-American DJ.
Filipino snacks, candies, and gummies curated by Dear Flor
Glow and Tonics mocktails featuring MXXN London Dry.
DIY Glow Flower Bouquet making station. Get high, be creative!
High vibrations thanks to Solis and Superbloom by The Grass Agency.
Glow-in-the-Dark makeup with my bff Lisun Goh Beauty.
Linq’d popup shop by ColbiCat. Never lose your phone again. Try on my favorite new accessory.
Za slices thanks to Prince Street Pizza.

Space is limited. $30 per person.

Get tickets

UPCOMING EVENTS CO-HOSTED BY YOURS TRULY

SAVE THE DATE

11/3 - Dia de los Muertos celebration of ancestors and tradition, a Latinas in Cannabis x Mogu Magu collaboration. | Northeast Los Angeles
11/10 - Jam Sesh, co-hosted by Fruit + Flower x Radicle Herbs. Learn how to make apple butter and pumpkin butter with regenerative weed and vegetable farmer Blaire AuClair. Enjoy homemade cheese, jam and butter on fresh baked shokupan milk bread. | Northeast Los Angeles
11/17 - Kaymayan, the ultimate Filipino food feast. Presented by the Dab Dinner and hosted by Mogu Magu. | Northeast Los Angeles
12/12 - Canna Culture Club collaboration h@sh dinner with Mogu Magu. Details tbd. | Northeast Los Angeles

Smoked Michelada Recipe

Recipe by Wendy Zeng and Christina W.

A spicy Michelada with an Asian-American flair – made with fresh garden tomatoes, Thai beer, Sichuan hot sauce, and gravity-smoked with Jasmine tea leaves for a sweet floral nose to complement the bold, spicy Tajín-rimmed drink. Makes 4 servings

INGREDIENTS:

3 cups (600g) ripe tomatoes
2 tablespoons (1 oz.) vinegary hot sauce (Fly by Jing Secret Sauce, Cholula, or Tapatio)
1½ tablespoon (3/4 oz.) umami seasoning sauce (Maggi, Green Mountain (gf), or Worcestershire)
2 bottles Singha Beer
3 limes

For garnish:

Loose leaf Jasmine tea, for GravInfuse™ smoker
Tajin seasoning, for salt rim
Fresh herbs, e.g. Thai basil, chive flowers, mustard flowers
Cherry tomato, sliced

DIRECTIONS:

1. Make tomato juice. In a blender or food processor, blend tomatoes until smooth. Strain the liquid through a fine mesh strainer into a clean jar. Add hot sauce and umami seasoning sauce. Add fresh squeezed lime juice from two limes. Stir well and set aside.

2. Prepare glassware. Pour about 4 tablespoons of Tajín seasoning onto a small, shallow plate. Set aside. Cut the third lime into wedges by slicing it lengthwise. Cut a slit down one of the wedges but do not cut all the way. Slide lime wedge slit around the rim of a lowball/rocks glass and rotate all the way until the entire rim of the glass is wet with lime juice. Dip the wet glass rim into the Tajín seasoning.

3. Mix the drink. Fill the glasses halfway with ice and pour the spicy tomato mixture into the glass, filling the cup 1/3 way. Fill the rest with Singha beer and stir. Once the foam clears, fill up again with beer until full.

4. Gravity-smoker. Using a GravInfuse™ cocktail enhancement device, fill the small glass bowl with a pinch of loose leaf Jasmine tea leaves. Place the drink under a glass cloche or container to catch the smoke. Flip the GravInfuse and light the glass bowl with a torch lighter to start the smoker. Flip the device a few more times until the cloche is filled with smoke. Allow the smoke to linger for a minute or two to impart the smoky tea flavor onto the drink.

5. Garnish. Add a slice of cherry tomato and a generous bouquet of Thai basil and/or other herbs to the drink and serve.

Gardening Club

It’s October! Some of you may have already harvested your plants, or if you’re like me you’re having a late harvest and waiting for the plant’s tasty “fruits” to ripen. If you give your buds a squeeze, it should feel firm, the hairs will look orange, and the white trichomes will turn milky white.

If you seed brown dead spots on your buds, that’s a sure sign of caterpillar damage. Those pesky buggers will hide in the largest, sticky gorgeous top buds and burrow themselves in the center while they gorge and poop. A blacklight can help spot some varieties of caterpillars, like the neon green cabbage loopers. Unfortunately, the caterpillars decimating my plants are a dark brown-purple color and don’t pop in the blacklight.

How to hunt for caterpillars using a blacklight:

Caterpillars can ruin your whole harvest, check for these buggers before you dry.
Check your plants in the dark with a blacklight.
Many species of caterpillars and their poop are UV responsive and will glow neon green!
Pick off those f*ckers and discard any buds with rot or caterpillar damage.

How to search for caterpillars in the daylight:

Look over the buds to see if there are any brown dead spots.
Gently pull open the big buds and look inside for caterpillars or poop.
Snip off the caterpillar affected bud, and discard.
Caterpillars tend to like the biggest, best, top buds.

Helpful drying and curing tips:

Hang the whole stem upside-down in a cool, dry, dark room.
Make sure there’s air ventilation and circulation for proper drying to prevent mold and mildew.
Keep the sugar leaves and a few fan leaves on while it dries.
The leaves will help manage moisture for a slow, even dry time, and protect those precious trichomes.
When the buds are dry, remove any large dried leaves and store in glass jars or a large opaque container to continue curing in a dark place.
Open the jar/container for a few minutes each day during the first week of storage and curing to allow fresh air to circulate, and excess moisture to escape.
Dry time: ~2 weeks, depending on your drying conditions
Cure time: ~2-4 weeks