EXTRACTS OF THYME
April, May, June 2016
APRIL IS NATIONAL GARDENING MONTH!
Celebrate National Gardening month by planting memories with your family. Gardening is a great way to teach
children where food comes from, encourage healthy eating, and connect with the whole family. When your
children have the opportunity to plant, water, and nurture plants, even the pickiest eaters will be eager to taste
what they have grown.
Whether you have a large back yard or no yard, don’t worry…it is possible to grow a great garden on a windowsill,
balcony, or even a small stoop. The key is to know what can grow in your location. Plants, like people have
different likes and dislikes. There are many plants that prefer smaller spaces and are perfect for small container
gardens. Below are a few vegetables that you can grow with your family this spring.
Leaf lettuce is easy to grow in containers that are at least 4-6 inches deep, with a good
potting soil mix. Simply keep the soil moist, provide plenty of spring sunlight, and thin out
crowded new seedlings when they start to come up, to give the plants plenty of room to
grow. To harvest, trim the leaves with scissors and the leaves will grow back and can be
harvested a second time! Lettuce prefers spring and fall over the hot summer sun and is
usually ready to harvest in 30-45 days.
Carrots can grow well in containers that are 6-12 inches deep. These plants like plenty of
nutrients, sunlight, and water to grow. Use a potting mix that has fertilizer added and mix
in some bagged compost for the healthiest plants. Keep the soil moist, but not too wet!
Place your container in sunny location and be sure to thin, or pull out crowded seedlings
when the leaves are 1-2 inches tall, to make sure the plants have enough room to grow.
Look for colorful varieties, such as purple, yellow, or white carrots and harvest by gently
pulling out of the soil in 75-80 days, when the leaves are full. (If temperatures drop, the carrots will rest for a
while, then begin growing when it warms up again.)
Swiss chard can be grown in containers that are at least 8 inches deep. Keep soil moist and
provide plenty of sunshine. The leaves and stems can be harvested by cutting them with
scissors and the leaves will grow back for 2 to 3 more harvests. Swiss chard is colorful,
easy to grow, very healthy, and tastes great! Seeds planted in April should be ready to
harvest in June.
Source: http://eatsmartmd.blogspot.com/2016/04/april-is-national-gardening-month.htm
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HOW TO PUT SOME SPRING IN YOUR STEP THIS APRIL
Spring is finally here and we can once again welcome warmer weather and longer days. Shake off the cold
winter months and celebrate the season of new beginnings by going outside and getting active! Not sure
how to begin those first steps on your journey to better health? Consider participating in the American
Heart Association’s National Walking Day, an annual spring event that raises awareness about the
importance of being physically active.
National Walking Day 2016 takes place on Wednesday April 6th and participants commit to walk for at
least 30 minutes to promote physical activity and well-being in their communities. Why walking?
Walking is a great exercise whether you are just beginning a more active lifestyle, or are regularly
physically active. There are many positive reasons to start walking:
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Walking reduces the risk of many diseases. Walking for just 30 minutes a day can help you reduce
your risk of developing heart disease, improve your blood pressure, and enhance your mental
well-being.
Walking does not require special equipment or advanced athletic skills in order to achieve these
amazing health benefits.
Walking is a low-cost and easy way to increase your energy, prevent weight gain, and reduce your
risk of serious diseases such as diabetes, stroke, and obesity.
With so many great reasons to take part in National Walking Day, why not encourage others to walk with
you? Invite members of your workplace, school, and faith-based organization, as well as friends and
family to join in on the fun! The American Heart Association’s website provides a resource guide and
toolkit to help you plan for the event whether you are participating as an individual or as part of a group.
The toolkit also includes a four week action plan for those who want to extend the fun for the whole
month. More information on National Walking Day can be found at www.heart.org/WalkingDay.
Need more inspiration? Walking is the state exercise of Maryland! Visit University of Maryland
Extension’s Walk MD! website to find helpful online tools such as an interactive map to track your steps
and take you on a virtual walking tour around the state of Maryland. Recording your steps can be a great
way to track your progress and motivate you to stay active! For more information on resources found
through the Walk MD! program visit www.extension.umd.edu/walkmd.
So say farewell to those winter blues by lacing up your sneakers and heading outdoors! Sunny days and
better health are right around the corner and just a few feet away.
Source: http://eatsmartmd.blogspot.com/2016/04/how-to-put-some-spring-in-your-step.html
YOUTH GARDENING FOR NUTRITION
Monthly Teaching Ideas: April 2016 Themes for April:

National Gardening Month: The month of April is National
Gardening Month! Create an outdoor classroom with a school
garden and incorporate gardening and eating new fruits and
vegetables
into your lessons this month. Visit the National
Gardening Association website for additional information:
www.nationalgardenmonth.org
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Earth Day: Friday, April 22nd is Earth Day and what better way to celebrate the planet earth than
through gardening. Gardens provide more than food for people, but are also play an important
role in the environment, absorbing excess CO2 in the air we breathe, retain rainwater to prevent
runoff, and provide food and habitat for many beneficial insects. Additionally, growing your own
produce reduces the pollution created by shipping food from far away farms. Use the “Keep it
Growing” unit in Growing Healthy Habits to start the discussion of how you can save water in the
garden, then discuss other ways of conserving natural resources through gardening.
National Raisin Day: April 30 is National Raisin Day! This wrinkly fruit is the result of drying
grapes, which preserves the fruit for later use. Compare the flavor of raisins versus fresh grapes,
noticing that raisins are sweeter due to the concentration of sugars during drying. Use this
experience to discuss why you should eat smaller portions of dried fruit.
April Nutrition Nugget: Homegrown Salad
Chilly March weather (and PARCC testing) may have delayed planting of early spring veggies, but
if you plant lettuce and radishes at the beginning of April, you may have a harvest by the end of
the month! Sow leaf lettuce seeds in wide strips to cut as baby lettuce for the fastest harvest.
Ingredients:
Tools:
 Salad greens from your garden or
 Sink for hand washing and
grocer
cleanup
 10 radishes from your garden or
 Salad spinner
grocer
 Large bowl and serving
 2 Tablespoons vinegar or lemon
spoons
juice
 Plastic lettuce knives or
 3 Tablespoons olive oil
disposable plastic knives
 1 teaspoon honey
 Paper plates for cutting
 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
 Small paper bowls, napkins
 ¼ teaspoon salt
and forks for serving
 ¼ teaspoon black pepper
 1 Tablespoon chopped and washed
fresh herbs, such as chives or
oregano or 1 teaspoon dried herbs
Directions:
1. Have students help wash salad greens by submerging in bowl of water and drying in the salad
spinner. (Garden lettuce may take three washings to remove all grit.)
2. Have students wash, cut off stems and slice radishes using plastic knives.
3. Combine vinegar, olive oil, honey, mustard, salt, pepper and herbs in a jar and shake
vigorously to mix the vinaigrette.
4. Toss greens, radishes, and dressing in a large bowl and serve.
5.
YOUTH GARDENING FOR NUTRITION
Monthly Teaching Ideas: April 2016
Growing Healthy Habits in April

Keep it Growing is the recommended unit for April. This unit helps students understand the
reasons behind garden maintenance tasks: watering, weeding, and mulching.
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o After completing these lessons, set up more experiments to test the importance of these
maintenance tasks: 1)Grow several seedlings, watering some and not the others, 2) Mulch
surface of classroom plants with a thick layer of shredded paper and leave others bare, 3)
Check how long the soil stays moist between waterings.
Math Link: Have students chart the amount of water needed to grow each plant in the experiment
above.
Science Link: Using the Scientific Method, ask students to write down their hypothesis for how
each plant will grow and track changes as the plant grows. After 3-4 weeks, have students
compare their conclusion to their hypothesis.
April Gardening Activities
 Outdoor: Transplant broccoli, collards, and kale seedlings to your garden. Also plant cabbage and
lettuce seedlings if they weren’t planted in March due to freezing weather.
 Indoor: Grow your own sweet potato vines to plant in your garden in May or June (below). They
require almost no summer maintenance and are be harvested in the fall.
Grow Your Own Sweet Potatoes
By now, students should be familiar with plant life cycles and the mechanism by which seeds produce
new plants. Some plants are also able to reproduce vegetatively, which means they can sprout new
plants from mature plant parts. This is a form of asexual reproduction. Sweet potatoes are usually
grown through asexual propagation—the roots store energy during the growing season that can be
used to sprout new plants the next season. This produces sweet potato vines that can be planted in the
garden or a large container in May or June for a fall harvest!
Materials:
Sweet potatoes
Large glass jars or plastic cups
Toothpicks Process:
Introduce or review the different types of plant reproduction (this may require a full lesson).
Scrub sweet potatoes to remove any anti-sprouting agent. (Organic sweet potatoes should
not be treated.) Large sweet potatoes may be cut in half.
Place toothpicks around the mid-section of each sweet potato and insert in a jar, cut side
down, if needed. The sweet potato should not touch the bottom of the jar.
Fill jars with water about halfway.
Place cups in a warm location.
Sprouts should form in 2 to 3 weeks. About a week before planting, twist off vines and place
in a cup of water to form roots.
Plant in a sunny spot in the garden in late May or early June and harvest in the fall.
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SO YOU THINK YOU HAVE A FOODBORNE ILLNESS-NOW WHAT?
This article was modified from Henley, S., and McCoy, L. University of Maryland Extension, AGNR-Food
Safety (2016). How to Report a Foodborne Illness in Maryland fact sheet (FS-1034). College Park, MD.
Chipotle Mexican Grill has been in the headlines since its first foodborne outbreak was reported back in
July 2015. What happened at Chipotle brings up a good question of what you should do if you suspect the
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food you and your family are eating is contaminated. Contaminate could be from work, a restaurant, a
meal you prepared at home…
This is what you should know…
Foodborne illness is a disease that is either infectious or toxic in nature, and occurs through the ingestion
of contaminated food.
1. A foodborne disease outbreak happens when:
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
two or more people get the same illness from the same contaminated food or drink3
one case of botulism, cholera, mushroom poisoning, trichinosis, or fish poisoning such as ciguatera
poisoning, scombroid poisoning, paralytic shellfish poisoning, and other neurotoxic shellfish
poisoning.
There are Three Important Reasons to Report Foodborne Illness
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Contact your local health department if you believe you or someone you know became ill from
eating a certain food.
Reporting illnesses to your local health department helps them identify potential foodborne
disease outbreaks.
Public health officials investigate outbreaks to control them, so more people do not get sick in
the outbreak and to learn how to prevent similar outbreaks from happening.
When to Consult Your Doctor
Symptoms include:
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Fever over 101.5°F, (measured orally)
Blood in stool
Prolonged vomiting that prevents keeping liquids down
Signs of dehydration, including a decrease in urination, dry mouth and throat, and feeling dizzy
when standing up
 Diarrheal illness that lasts more than 3 days
If it is an emergency, call 911
How is Foodborne Illness Diagnosed?
Your health care provider may ask for:
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Food and drink eaten the past few days
Physical examination
Vomit sample (if available)
Stool sample (if available)
Local Health Departments
Baltimore City
Baltimore County
Carroll County
Cecil County
Frederick County
410-396-4436
410-887-2724
410-876-4900
410-996-5100
301-600-3342
Tips for if You Think You Are Sick
1. Seek immediate medical attention: consult your health care provider.
2. Contact your local health department.
3 Practice good hygiene:
-Wash hands with soap and clean, running water, or
-Clean hands with a hand sanitizer that contains at least 60% alcohol.
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4. Prevent dehydration.
Common Symptoms of Foodborne
5. Request laboratory testing. Knowing which pathogen
Illness
is making you sick will help to get the right care.
 Diarrhea
 Bloody Stool
6. Record foods eaten the past 7 days. The last thing you

Vomiting
 Abdominal Pain
ate is most likely NOT what made you sick.
 Nausea
 Chills
7. Save your receipts. Save all relevant food and drink

Fever
 Muscle Aches
receipts for the time period you think the illness took
place.
8. Save suspected food products. Label food items so no one else eats them.
9. Handle suspected food as little as possible and keep them sealed and cold/frozen, so they can be
tested if necessary.
10. Reach out to your community or the media. Social media may let you know if others in your
community have a similar illness.
Local Health Departments Monitor Foodborne Illness in Maryland
In Maryland, local health departments receive and investigate routine disease surveillance reports and
foodborne illness outbreak reports.
1. The state health department analyzes investigates cases and outbreaks of foodborne illness.
2. The resulting reports go to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
3. Many surveillance systems are used in Maryland to provide information about the amount of
foodborne disease.
4. These surveillance systems provide data to CDC for addition in national-level monitoring.
References:
Publication Links: http://extension.umd.edu/foodsafety/food-safety/links
1. Beach, C. March, 2016, Massachusetts Chipotle closes because of norovirus. Available at:
http://www.foodsafetynews.com/2016/03/massachusetts-chipotle-closes-because-ofnorovirus/#.VvFJSuIrJhE. Accessed March 2016.
LET’S TALK FAMILY CONVERSATION STARTERS
Strong families are based on good communication. Each month we will provide some good conversation
starters for you to use with your children or the children in your care. These starters can help to begin a
discussion and are much more effective than asking “how was your day?” The idea is to increase
communication while getting to know each other better and sharing family values at the same time.
Some ideas:
What is your favorite restaurant and why?
 Have each family member try saying this three times: “Barbara
burned the brown bread badly.”
 What is your favorite book and why?
 Finish this sentence “Our family is really good at…………”
 What is your favorite song?
 Can you recite a poem that you remember?
 How old do you think you should be to vote in a political election?
Source: The Ohio State University Extension
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RECIPE SPOTLIGHT: BERRY GOOD PIZZA
This is a great treat for kids to enjoy and they can add their favorite fruits too! Berry Good Pizza can also be a
healthy dessert option after meals.
Berry Good Pizza
Serves 6
Ingredients
100% whole wheat pizza crust or 12-ounce can of
refrigerated pizza dough
1/4 cup apple butter
6 large strawberries, washed and sliced
1/2 cup blueberries
Cinnamon (optional)
Directions:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
If using dough, roll out pizza dough to desired size and thickness.
Place crust on a baking sheet.
Spread the apple butter over the crust.
Arranged the strawberries and blueberries as desired on the crust.
Sprinkle the top with cinnamon if desired.
Bake on the center rack of the oven for about 15 minutes or until the crust is brown and crisp.
Serve with a glass of low-fat milk or cup of yogurt.
Source: http://eatsmartmd.blogspot.com/2015/08/recipe-spotlight-berry-good-pizza.html
Terry Serio
Extension Educator
Food Stamp Nutrition Education
Family & Consumer Sciences
University of Maryland Extension-Carroll County
700 Agriculture Center
Westminster, MD 21157-5700
Virginia Brown, DrPH
Extension Educator
Family & Consumer Sciences
Shauna C. Henley, PhD
Extension Educator
Family & Consumer Sciences
Baltimore County
Phone:
Toll-Free:
Fax:
410-386-2760
888-326-9645
410-876-0132
If you have a disability that requires special assistance for your participation in a program, please contact
the Carroll County Extension Office at 410-386-2760; fax 410-876-0132, two (2) weeks prior to the
program.
The information given herein is supplied with the understanding that no discrimination is intended and
no endorsement by University of Maryland Extension is implied.
Please visit us online at http://extension.umd.edu/carroll-county
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Spring Clean
Your Refrigerator
It is a perfect time for spring cleaning,
which includes your refrigerator.
Follow these simple steps:
1. Empty the refrigerator and freezer. Store
foods in a cooler with ice while you clean.
Put Some Spring
in Your Step!
Try some of these family-friendly
outdoor activities, now that the
weather is warming up.
Become a physically active role model. Family
members are likely to follow your example.
2. Throw away all foods that are past their
“use-by” date or are moldy.
• Have all of the children participate in
family walks. Use a stroller for young
children.
3. Plan meals and make a grocery list using
what you have on hand in the refrigerator
and freezer.
• Older children can use a bike or scooter
to ride along with you as you walk or jog.
4. Unplug the refrigerator and use a coil
brush to remove dust underneath the
refrigerator. Cleaning the coil saves
electricity.
5. Remove shelves and bins and wash them
in warm water and detergent in the sink.
Dry with a towel or let them air dry.
6. Clean the outside of the refrigerator too,
including the door handle, using warm,
soapy water.
7. Return shelves and bins to the refrigerator and freezer when you are done cleaning.
8. Don’t forget to plug-in the refrigerator
when you are finished cleaning.
9. Return food in the cooler to the
refrigerator and freezer.
On weekends, ride bikes, play outdoor games,
fly kites, or throw a Frisbee at a nearby park or
in your yard.
Pets enjoy physical activity too! Take a walk
together and bring a toy or ball to throw at the
park.
Invite the neighbors to join you in outdoor
activities.
Stretch Your Food
Budget with these
Healthy Recipes and
Farmers’ Market
Shopping Tips!
Spring Forward with
Fresh Vegetables!
The growing season in Maryland
starts in spring.
It is a great time to buy spring vegetables at the
farmers’ market or at the grocery store. These
foods are grown on farms nearby and cost less
when you buy them in season.
Here’s what’s grown and sold at the market in
Maryland in the spring:
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•
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•
Asparagus
Green Onions
Spinach, Lettuce, Swiss Chard
Fresh Herbs
Mushrooms
Potatoes
Parsnips
Radishes
Remember to wash all fresh produce
thoroughly before preparing and eating.
For more information about healthy
food choices and physical activity visit:
www.eatsmart.umd.edu
www.choosemyplate.gov
Enjoy Fresh
Asparagus
this Spring!
Try something new! Serve asparagus for a
snack, as a side dish, in soups or in salads.
Raw
Serve asparagus spears with a low-fat dip or cut
spears into one inch pieces and add to salads.
Baked
• Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
• Place fresh asparagus in a plastic zip top
bag, drizzle with vegetable oil. Add salt and
pepper to taste.
• Shake until asparagus is coated with oil and
seasonings.
• Remove asparagus from zip-top bag and
place on a baking sheet.
• Bake in oven until asparagus begins to
brown, about 10 minutes.
Steamed
Microwave asparagus in a safe bowl, or cook
asparagus on the stovetop in a pan. Add a small
amount of water before cooking. Cook until
tender, about 5 minutes. Season with salt and
pepper to taste.
Grilled
Place asparagus spears on a preheated grill
coated with vegetable oil spray and cook for
about 5-8 minutes until tender, turning
occasionally. Add your favorite herbs or spices.
*For all recipes, wash asparagus and
remove tough ends before preparing.
Fruit and Spring
Green Salad
Makes: 5 Servings
Serving Size: 1 cup
Ingredients:
4 cups fresh spinach or salad greens,
washed and dried.
1 cup strawberries, sliced or
1 cup orange segments
¼ cup nuts, chopped
2 Tablespoons lemon juice
2 Tablespoons vegetable oil
1 Tablespoon honey
Directions:
1. Remove tough stems from spinach.
2. Mix spinach or salad greens, fruit,
and nuts in a large bowl to make
salad.
3. Mix oil, lemon juice, and honey in
a separate, small bowl to make
dressing.
4. Pour the dressing on top of the salad
and mix.
5. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Visit Your Local
Farmers’ Market
Shopping at a farmers’ market is a great
way to meet local farmers and buy fresh
fruits and vegetables to enjoy throughout
the growing season.
Farmers’ markets are open spring through
fall in every county in Maryland.
Some farmers’ markets in Maryland accept
EBT cards, and many accept WIC Fruit and
Vegetable Checks, and WIC and Senior
Farmers’ Market Vouchers. For a list of
participating markets go to:
www.visitmaryland.org
Type “farmers markets”
in the search box
or call 410-841-5770.
This material was funded by USDA’s Supplemental Nutrition Assistance
Program in cooperation with the Maryland Department of Human
Resources and the University of Maryland. The University of Maryland
Extension will not discriminate against any person because of race, age,
sex, color, sexual orientation, physical or mental disability, religion,
ancestry or national origin, marital status, genetic information, political
affiliation, and gender identity or expression. The Supplemental Nutrition
Assistance Program provides nutrition assistance to people with low
income. It can help you buy nutritious foods for a better diet. To find out
more, contact the Maryland Department of Human Resources at
1-800-332-6347 or apply online at www.marylandsail.org.