Perennial Vegetables Are a Solution in the Fight Against Hunger and Climate Change

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2. My grandma grew both artichokes and asparagus

Under the shade of a giant fig tree. I remember picking those tender asparagus spears, almost white because they were deeply bedded in loam and never saw daylight to start turning them green. The artichoke bushes produced small chokes, but they were very tasty.

We gathered up any fallen figs, they were as big as my hand, still warm from the sun and super sweet. She would scoop out the meat and mash it up with a dollup of fresh cream. Delish! You don't know what work is until you've had to manually disassemble and wash all the parts of a cream separator.

Grandma made her own mayo with eggs from her flock of big red hens and fresh lemon juice from the huge grove next to her oranges. Lunch was eaten on the sun porch, steamed artichokes and asparagus, sandwiches of lettuce leaves, cucumbers and slices of giant sized purple-red tomatoes, and everything fresh or homemade.

My grandma was a whirlwind, a diminutive woman of German descent who was always cheerful and was never idle except for a siesta she took everyday after lunch to watch her soap operas. I still miss her.