Barley

(Photo by Sierra Young)

Any plant that has spikelets ranks high on my long and growing list of cool things about Ebey's Reserve. Hordeum vulgare, or barley, is a grass grown as a cereal grain, livestock feed, and hops for brewing beer. At this time of year the spikelets give verdant fields all over the Reserve a soft look, especially when the wind creates wave patterns across acres of barley, inviting onlookers to relax and set their thoughts free onto the prairie.

Local farmer harvests barley on Ebey's Prairie in front of the Ferry House (Photo by Mitch Richards)

Barley is an annual grass, meaning it must get its seeds into the soil in order survive, unlike perennial plants, like the sunchoke, whose roots survive underground and store energy over the winter to sprout new growth the following year. Wild barley grows spikes that contain the seeds, and when these spikelets reach maturity they split open so that wind and animals can disperse the seeds. Domesticated barley, however, has a mutation so that its spikelets are non-shattering, making it easier to harvest the ears. Farmers then plant new seeds for the next year's crop.

Ancient Egyptians used barley to make beer and bread. It has also been a staple in Tibet since the fifth century A.D., where it is made into a flour product called tsampa. Today it is cultivated in temperate climates as a summer crop and in tropical climates as a winter crop. Barley thrives in cool conditions, but it not very winter-hardy, making the mild climate of Central Whidbey Island an ideal place to grow it. It is also relatively tolerant of soil salinity, making a practical seaside crop, as it is here.

(Photo by Sierra Young)

As you walk, bike, or drive through Ebey's Reserve, by all means enjoy the more distant vistas of the rugged Olympic Mountains, Mt. Baker and Mt. Rainier, but don't forget the simple beauty of barley fields on the prairie--the same fields that the pioneers began farming here more than 150 years ago.

Post by Sierra Young

Helianthus tuberosus

What do potatoes, artichokes and sunflowers all have in common? They are all ways I have heard sunchokes described. Heliantus tuberosus, known commonly as sunchoke or Jerusalem artichokes, is a type of perennial sunflower, with a tall stock that grows in the summer and blooms with a yellow flower, smaller than that of the common sunflower Helianthus annuus.

Sunchoke plants at the Coupeville Farmers Market on Saturay (Photo by Sierra Young)

After the stock dies back it grows tubers underground, like potatoes, to store carbohydrates through the winter. Those tubers can be broken off the main root of the plant and harvested all winter long. The plant gets the name Jerusalem artichoke because of its sweet nutty flavor, akin to artichokes.


Sunchokes have a crisp texture when raw and make a tasty addition to a salad. They can also be treated just like potatoes when cooking: au gratin, boiled, added to soups and casserols, you name it.

Post by Sierra Young

Lettuce

I was a "Sesame Street" fan as a kid. On the show, Kermit the Frog lamented about being green, singing "Bein' Green." That song came to mind yesterday afternoon at the Coupeville farmers market while I looked at a table of lettuce, leaves "tired" after a few hours on display.


"Bein' Green"

It's not that easy being green
Having to spend each day the color of the leaves
When I think it could be nicer being red, or yellow or gold
Or something much more colorful like that

It's not easy being green
It seems you blend in with so many other ordinary things
And people tend to pass you over 'cause you're
Not standing out like flashy sparkles in the water
Or stars in the sky

But green's the color of Spring
And green can be cool and friendly-like
And green can be big like an ocean, or important
Like a mountain, or tall like a tree

When green is all there is to be
It could make you wonder why, but why wonder why
Wonder, I am green and it'll do fine, it's beautiful
And I think it's what I want to be

The lettuce that farmers cultivate today began as a weed in the Mediterranean Basin. References to it go back more than 4,500 years in the form of Egyptian tomb paintings. Greek scholars also identified various types of lettuce. Christopher Columbus allegedly introduced it to the New World.


Available May through October at the Reserve, lettuce provides cool, crispy refreshment on even the hottest summer day. I love sitting down with my salad at dinner and reflecting on my conversation that day with the farmer who picked and washed the greens the day before. I hope to someday feel a similar connection to all my food.

Photos and post by Sierra Young

Rain and Smiles

"Don't rain on my parade!" We all know the expression, but the clouds chose not to listen. The Memorial Day Parade went through downtown Coupeville on Saturday and despite the rain, many smiling spectators lined up along Main Street and Front Street to show their support for the community. The parade opened with the Northwest Junior Pipe Band and included veterans, local businesses, candidates, schools and many community groups. Memorial Day on Whidbey Island would not be complete without this long-standing tradition.

After several rainy days here at the Reserve, the sky now looks brighter and the rain has stopped. Silvery droplets still cling to the leaves of the wild roses and the bees fly among the fragrant pink flowers, stopping frequently to drink nectar from the yellow centers.

The rain hasn't stopped me from smiling and I can only imagine it has been good for the fields with their rich, chocolaty brown soil and neat rows of recently-sprouted squash leaves. In other fields, the bright yellow of the cabbage plants is already beginning to fade, reminding me that whatever the weather, the season keeps changing and summer really is on its way. Finally, the sun found a hole in the clouds and shines through the window, warm on my face, to keep me smiling for awhile longer.


Photos and post by Sierra Young

Cabbage Seeds

I arrived in Coupeville on Monday to work at Ebey’s Landing as a summer ranger. I was struck by the large field across from the Sunnyside Cemetery where huge sprigs of bright yellow make even a foggy, rainy day seem bright. The yellow flowers are so dense I barely see the green of their stems and leaves. Cabbage plants, I learn, are grown here on Whidbey Island for their seeds, which are sold to markets all over the world. In fact, Washington State supplies 75% of U.S. production and 50% of the world production of cabbage seed.

At the end of one of the rows stands a stack of boxes painted white. Bees fly (somewhat slowly on a cool day like today)in and out of these hives. They share an important relationship with the cabbage plants. The bees fly through the field of flowers and get nectar which they use to make honey while pollinating the cabbage plants, thus allowing them to grow their valuable seeds.

When I travel to Germany and eat sauerkraut, I will remember the bright yellow field at Ebey's Landing National Historical Reserve and consider how plants, though seemingly immobile, can connect places and people over thousands of miles.




Note: No cabbage was damaged in the taking of these photographs.

Photos by John Chao and Steve Olson
Post by Sierra Young

Painting a prairie spring portrait

All over Washington, the earth is reawakening. Can you see it?

In a period of only a few weeks, spring has come, a monumental paintbrush caressing the landscape, stirring it back to consciousness. Dabs of bright white, pink and yellow compliment deeper streaks of lavender, red and orange, all placed upon a backdrop of fresh green. Buds change to blooms on wildflowers and the hardier of the tree species sport new-growth fuzz.

As part of the 17,500-acre Ebey's Landing National Historical Reserve, the 3.5-mile Ebey's Bluff trail provides a vivid representation of western Washington shoreline plants in spring. Located on central Whidbey Island, this trail is one of many that provides an opportunity to see both the natural and agricultural communities come alive this new season.

I have created a photographic guide to some of the spring wildflowers just now blooming on Ebey's Bluff and Ebey's Prairie. I have created this guide based on the plants' family common names, followed by the plant common name and latin name, in order for easier identification to those who enjoy field guide identification. Enjoy this spring on Ebey's Prairie and see how many of these beautiful colors you can find in your own backyards, as well as new spring additions.

ASTER FAMILY – Asteraceae

Common dandelion – Taraxacum officinale

FERN FAMILY – Polypodiacea

Bracken fern – Pteridium aquilinum

LILY FAMILY – Liliaceae

Common camas – Camassia quamash

Death camas – Zygadenus venenosus

PEA FAMILY – Fabaceae

Seashore lupine - Lupinus littoralis

PINE FAMILY – Pinaceae

Douglas fir - Pseudotsuga menziesii ssp. menziesii

PINK FAMILY – Caryophyllaceae

Field chickweed - Cerastium arvense

STONECROP FAMILY – Sedum

Brittle prickly pear cactus - Opuntia fragilis

VIOLET FAMILY – Violaceae

Alaska violet – Viola langsdorfii

This post provided by Kelsi Franzen. All photos courtesy by and copyright 2010, Kelsi Franzen. They may not be printed or used without permission.

Whale watching boat makes a stop in Coupeville

The town of Coupeville welcomed the Victoria Clipper dockside today during the lunchtime hours. Today was the first of many wale watching trips which the Victoria Clipper plans on stopping in Coupeville. One hundred and one tourists disembarked the Clipper at noon and made their way to the various shops and restaraunts in Coupeville after a successful morning with at least one sighting of a Grey Whale in Saratoga Passage. The crew anticipated seeing more during the return trip after lunch. The Grey Whales have made their annual stop in the Saratoga Passage on the eastern side of Whidbey Island in search of food during their long migration.

The Victoria Clipper operates from Pier 69 in Seattle.

Their Grey Whale Watching information can be found at: http://www.clippervacations.com/whalewatching/packages/gray-whale-watching

A 150 year lookout from the edge of Ebey's Prairie

For 150 years, the Ferry House has nestled into Ebey's Prairie (bottom by Mitch Richards). Old newspaper is still visible lining the walls in the upstairs of the Ferry House (top).

(From "Ancestral Walls" by Sally Hayton-Keeva)

Buffeted by storms, struck by lightning, enlarged by careless carpenters, neglected and, at last, abandoned, this 1860 structure teetered on the doorstep of its own demise. Enter the National Park Service and Nature Conservancy which, in the very nick of time, rescued the Ferry House from ruin.

Old buildings are sometimes the best - at times the only - eyewitnesses to their own history, exposing the past to the present by the testimony of their walls. Architectural elements like staircases and porches leave evidence behind when they disappear, and restoration experts search for these clues to learn what the building looked like during its evolution through time.

Early Spring at the Ferry House

It's a beautiful March day at Ebey's Landing NHR. I decided to go for a short walk this morning and take advantage of the early morning light to photograph the Ferry House and the beach at Ebey's Landing. The crisp March air quickly reminded me that I'd left my jacket in my car but the bright sun and cloudless sky hints that the day will be much warmer if I am patient. I opt to leave the jacket where it is.

There was a light frost last night, still visible where the ground is most shaded. The rest of the ground glimmers from the water droplets clinging to blades of grass along the path.

The Ferry House's white paint faded a long time ago leaving weathered gray siding that suggests the house is a natural part of the prairie, that it grew, nutured by land, just as the grove of trees that stand behind it. One hundred fifty years and several generations have passed since the house was first built to mark a new start for Col. Isaac Ebey's children. As I walk around the house, I wonder about the people that have walked through its doors or looked out its windows. I imagine Eason or Ellison Ebey driving the stage to Coupeville for travelers that had stopped at the Ferry House for the night. I picture the women and men gathering for conversation in their separate sitting rooms and guests looking out the window toward Admirality Inlet as they think about tomorrow's business in Port Townsend across the way. As the local highway, the Admirality Inlet must have been bustling with steamer traffic and other merchant vessels.

I spent about a half hour walking around the Ferry House, taking pictures and day dreaming about the past. The sound of the waves lapping the shore of Ebey's Landing, uninterrupted by traffic in the early morning make it easy to imagine I have stepped back in time. A beep from my cell phone brought me back to the present and a reminder that I have more work to do today so I started to walk back toward my car, turning back to look at the Ferry House one last time. The sun was a little higher, shining more light on the house and affirming for me that the Ferry House still has a bright future.

The Ferry House has a facebook fan page. http://www.facebook.com/pages/Coupeville-WA/The-Ferry-House-on-Whidbey-Island/332890913105?ref=ts#!/pages/Coupeville-WA/The-Ferry-House-on-Whidbey-Island/332890913105?ref=ts

Wild Fall Ebey's Day

Photo from an Ebey's Visitor.

Ebey's Forever Conference welcomes keynote speaker Judy Wicks

Ebey's Forever Conference and Community Event is quickly approaching, now just 6 days away! This year's conference keynote speaker is Judy Wicks, a nationally recognized entrepreneur promoting local economies through service, community, employees and the natural environment. She is also the founder of Philadelphia's renowned White Dog Cafe and the Business Alliance for Local Living Economies. The Alliance strives to bring together small business leaders, economic development professionals, and community leaders to promote flourishing local economies. She has won numerous awards including Oprah Magazine's "5 Amazingly Gifted and Giving Food Professionals."

Local film producers Melissa Young and Mark Dworkin recently featured Judy Wicks. Check out http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-3033909137706747300&ei=MMbpSpbYNImaqAOTwsznBQ&q=finding+solutions+-+movingimages.org&hl=en# to view a preview.

If you haven't registered for the conference yet, head on over to http://www.ebeysforever.com/. Friday's fieldtrips are filling up quickly, and the whole event is shaping up to be an fun-filled learning experience. We look forward to seeing you!

Life on the Reserve

Life keeps moving on the Reserve. Farmers are busy tilling in the wheat and barley stubble, preparing the fields for a new crop. The beets were mowed a few weeks back, helping to control the weeds- but also reducing the cover for those persistent few pheasants on the run. I saw a male out on a date with two hens in a drainage ditch the other day. Not the most romantic local, but it is out of the way of those strangers dressed in Orange.

We are less than two weeks away from the start of the conference. If you have not registered yet, or know someone who needs to, now is the time!

Orcas off Ebey's Landing

Ebey's Landing National Historical Reserve residents and visitors had a special treat twice this week as resident orca pods swam past Whidbey Island along the Admirality Inlet. The pods were heading south early in the week and passed by again heading north on Wednesday, October 21, 2009.

Observers at Fort Casey State Park had a great view of the pods as they passed leisurely by, hugging the Port Townsend side of the waterway.

The orcas have passed by several times this summer, including in July when Ebey's Landing National Historical Reserve Interpreter Lauren Gansemer snapped this phot of a J-Pod orca spy hopping near the Keystone Ferry landing.

Fall Is Here

After a gorgeous weekend it feels like a real Whidbey island fall has blown in. Neither the rain nor the rainbows want to stick around long. With the clouds moving fast, the sun has just enough time to light up the golden straw in the Fields, highlighting the leftovers of the season's grain crops.

The last Coupeville Farmer's Market of the season attracted large crowds Saturday. The Harvest Festival was complete with gourd bowling, an overgrown zucchini competition and the heaviest pumpkin contest. This year brought a Harvest Festival competition record for the heaviest squash, almost tipping the tractor at 1016 pounds.

You may have seen our booth at the festival handing out information on the 2nd Ebeys Forever Conference. Registration continues for both the field trips on Friday the 6th of November and the conference classes on Saturday the 7th. Also look for our posters around town and at our sponsors like Whidbey Island Bank. Where you see our displays you can pick up registration cards to mail in which also have information on how you can register by phone or on the Ebeys Forever site.

Have fun walking the gorgeous trails of the reserve this week, keep an eye out for all of the mushrooms popping up and those few wiley pheasants still hiding out in the leafy beet fields. Hopefully those pretty Olympic Mountains will continue to keep us out of the major rain showers for a little longer. Happy Exploring!

2nd Ebey's Forever Conference

This November 6 & 7th help celebrate America's rural roots once again. The 2nd Ebey's Forever Conference & Community Event features a new slate of behind the scenes field trips, hands-on workshops, music and a taste of Ebey's - hosted by leading voices in agriculture, historic preservation and sustainability.

Visit www.ebeysforever.com or call 360-678-6084. We hope to see you there!

Ebey's Forever Conference - Nov 7 & 8 - REGISTRATION NOW OPEN

You can register today for the Ebey's Forever Conference. Click here for the schedule and the registration form. There is limited space and this is sure to become one of Whidbey Island's signature events. The amazing array of partners who are participating in the conference will make this a fascinating and inspirational event.

Field trips, national keynote speakers, community potluck, panel discussions, and barn dance.

Go to the EbeysForever.Com for more information.

Memories of the Bluff

Ebey’s Landing holds so many memories for our family that I will only mention a few or it would take up too much space! It all started for us 28 years ago with one of our first dates. It consisted of a romantic gourmet dinner prepared in secret and carried up the bluff to be set up with wine and music. That summer dinner date was followed by watching many sunsets from Hill Road, walking the beach and building a relationship that would grow into a family of five children. The bluff and reserve have become an integral part of our family’s lives and memories.

Now fast forward a few years to hikes on Mother’s Day and the obligatory family photo op by the “tree” every year, to videotaping school projects, parking a car at one beach (Fort Casey) and hiking to the beach at the bottom of Ebey’s bluff and exploring every inch along the way, spending wintry stormy days watching in awe as the wind rolled the storms in, searching the beach for debris after a storm, finding with delight all those “nose cones” as we call them from left over fireworks to bringing guests and visitors to share the beauty and watch their faces as they take in the beauty.

Every January on my father’s birthday I come to the beach to toss flowers in the water in his memories. We watched an amazing lunar eclipse from the cemetery a few years ago and I thought I felt the presence of a recently departed friend in the crowd. It seems like yesterday when we hid goodies from the Bayleaf on the bluff to be discovered by our daughter and her prom date.

The Reserve is and continues to be a huge part of lives. My spirit soars as I run the bluff trail and my eyes take in the beauty of the mountains, water, eagles and the friends you run into along the way. Happy 30th Anniversary!

Lisa Bernhardt

Prairie Rambings

Today I drove down Engle Rd. through the prairie 3 times. I have driven out there the last 10 years. I don't ever get tired of it. Right now there are 4 inch tall corn plants growing, next to that is a huge field of alfalfa. There are cows lounging around the Jenne Farm and the Engle Farm off Hill Rd. I'm slowly getting the understanding about growing food - keeping it local - organic or nearly organic - supporting our farming neighbors. The Coupeville Farmers market is now full of lots of fresh, locally grown greens for an incredibly tasty and fresh salad. Greens, garlic, onions, potatoes end up in our kitchen and are regularly showing up in local restaurants. At the end of the Coupeville Wharf is the store Local Grown - it shows the variety and abundance of small farms and businesses on Whidbey. Now I'm hungry - time for a handful of miners lettuce. Yum!

Restore your Old Windows - With Help! Free Window Restoration Workshop

Looking around my home, circa 1886, I can count 3 cracked window panes without getting out of my chair. Sashes hanging down, little cracks, big cracks - I need help!

Windows are one of the most distinctive part of a house. It's great to have windows that fit the look of your house. Original windows in a historic house impart the house's distinctive character.

Before you buy the vinyl clad windows at the box store, why not consider giving new life to your old windows through repair and restoration. And . . . theres help!

Ebey's Reserve is offering a FREE, hand-on workshop for historic home owners all about restoring old windows. The Window Restoration Workshop will be led by National Park Service craftsmen and restoration specialists. It takes place in a barn/workshop - it's not a passive, sit and listen to a speaker workshop. Bring in an old window and get professional assistance and advice on how to make the needed repairs.

Plan to attend the Window Restoration Workshop on JUNE 21 FROM 10 AM - 3 PM in Coupeville. The location is the Reuble Barn at the corner of Fort Casey Rd. and Patmore Rd. Call 678-6084 for more information. See you there!

Penn Cove Water Festival - Canoes, Sun and Stories

I'm sitting here at the keyboard, falling asleep after a day of too much fun in the sun. Unseasonably and gloriously warm weather blessed the Penn Cove Water Festival today. Native American competitors from around Washington and BC come to race long, beautiful and suprisingly agile canoes around the waters of Penn Cove.

The weather made this an exceptional festival - a lot of people came to Coupeville. Good food - (we had the bbq brisket and I missed out on the Indian fry bread - dang), amazing entertainmen

t - captivating storytellers, fiddle/violin, Native American dancing, arts and crafts booths, educational and informational booths and the kids activities - my kids made boats from scrap wood, native whale hats and had their face painted.

All of these things are a glimpses of Ebey's Reserve. Old and new, good food, culture(s), natural beauty, fun, art, sport. The Native American stories and dances are about honoring and embracing the natural world, being stewards, looking back as we move forward. What a day!

(time to rub aloe vera onto by sunburned neck).

Mitch Richards
Coupeville