Celebrate the Humble Cow with COW BEANS!
We are still going on and on about how plants take calcium from the soil, then the humble cow eats the plant and puts the calcium into milk. The calcium in cow milk helps kids grow strong and healthy. So why not do something different. CELEBRATE THE COW! by making a cow-planter and planting some cow beans.
We use Vaquero beans from Rancho Gordo. They are an heirloom dried bean that most people use for pot beans, chili and stew. We soak them over night, wrap them lightly in a damp paper towel and them put them into a plastic bag until they sprout. (They take less than a week to sprout.) Almost all the beans sprouted which tells us they are fresh, wholesome beans. Kudos to Rancho Gordo!
Got milk?
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What's a cow have to do with the garden? EVERYTHING! After all, we depend on cows for things like milk and even manure and cows depend on plants!
Milk is high in calcium. Calcium (Ca) is a mineral. Plants need calcium for growth of young roots and shoots. It makes cell walls healthy. You can tell that they may not be getting enough calcium if the edges of new leaves curl or die. On tomatoes you see “blossom end rot” which looks like a sunken, decayed spot on the end of the tomato farthest from the stem.
