News

LUCERNE, Calif. – A wildland fire burned a small amount of acreage near Lucerne on Sunday.

The fire was reported just after 11:30 a.m. off Highway 20 just east of Lucerne, according to Cal Fire Battalion Chief Greg Bertelli.

“It took about an hour to contain,” Bertelli said of the fire.

Altogether, about two acres were burned, he said.

Northshore Fire and Cal Fire responded, and the U.S. Forest was standing by to assist as well in case other fires broke out, Bertelli said.

A helicopter, bulldozer, two Northshore Fire engines, two Cal Fire engines and one handcrew responded, according to Bertelli.

He said no structures were threatened.

For a few hours afterward firefighters remained on the steep hillsides where the fire had burned for mop up, he said.

The fire’s cause remained under investigation Sunday, Bertelli said.

John Jensen contributed to this report.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

Wild radishes grew prolifically along roadsides and in fields during my childhood, and their slender seed pods provided my friends and me with a handy snack when we were out and about.
 
Some say these invasive plants are ancestors of today’s cultivated radishes, but that’s open to debate.
 
One thing’s certain, however. The name “radish” is well-deserved, as the green pods we ate out-of-hand mimic the spicy taste of radishes farmed for food.
 
Peppery and pungent, radishes come in all shapes and sizes. Even their colors vary, expanding far beyond the bright red or deep magenta we see on small globe radishes in the supermarket.
 
For example, French breakfast radishes are red ovals with white tips; icicle radishes are, not surprisingly, elongated and white; Easter egg radishes, while not an actual variety, are ovals or rounds sold in bunches of white, purple, pink, and red; and watermelon radishes can be as large as a baseball with white surrounding a pink center.
 
The time for radishes is now. A spring or early summer crop, they’re one of the first things to sprout up in the garden, taking less than a month from seed to table in most cases.
 
Some varieties hold up better in the summer heat than others, but most don’t do well once it gets hot, becoming overly spicy or bitter.
 
In addition to spring or summer radishes, there are winter radish varieties, which are sown in late summer or early fall.
 
Winter radishes are slower to develop than spring radishes, growing much larger. Typically crisper and more pungent, they hold in the ground and store longer than the spring varieties available now.
 
Winter radishes include the Spanish black radish, which can be large and round or elongated with tough black skin and spicy white flesh, and Asian radishes, also known as daikon (Japanese for long root), Chinese radishes, Japanese radishes, Oriental radishes, or mooli in Britain and India.
 
There are many varieties of daikon, both long and round, some growing quite large. The variety which with we are most familiar is white and carrot-like in size and shape.
 
Asian radishes can be pickled, used in stir-fries, fermented for kimchee, and even made into a savory Chinese cake with shrimp and egg.
 
A cruciferous plant, radishes are related to other vegetables in the brassica family, such as cabbage and mustard.
 
The entire plant is edible: its leaves, root, seeds, seed pods, flowers and sprouts.
 
The leaves may be used when young and tender in salads or on sandwiches, or sautéed like its cousins, mustard or arugula.
 
Certain types of radish are grown solely for oil production from its seeds. Advocates of radish seed essential oil claim such benefits as liver detoxification, kidney health, and relief of ailments as various as skin disorders and constipation.
 
Sprouted radish seeds yield delicate, peppery-flavored sprouts, perfect for adding piquancy to salads and sandwiches.
 
Some radish varieties are grown exclusively for their seed pods, left in the ground after their normal harvesting season. Seed pods develop after the plant has flowered and, like the wild radish pods of my childhood, offer crunchy zest when eaten.
 
The aptly-named rat-tailed radish is an old European variety that has long, curly pods, often pickled, that can grow to lengths of more than 8 inches. A German variety supplies spicy seeds for eating raw with beer.
 
The roots of the radish plant are most often eaten raw, whether out-of-hand, on vegetable platters, in salads, or on sandwiches, and there are an amazing variety of ways to cook with them, as well.
 
In addition to topping lettuce in a traditional salad, they may be shredded and mixed with colorful carrots, beets, scallions and other veggies to make a confetti salad; added to slaw; or pickled in a number of different ways.
 
Mango and lime is an interesting match for radishes in a salad, as is cucumber and dill.
 
Good partners for radishes on sandwiches include brown bread and butter (these make great tea sandwiches); cream cheese or butter and olives; avocado; egg salad; or roast beef.
 
Butter tames the spicy taste of radishes, and a simple but elegant way to serve them is on a platter with sweet butter and flavored salts, which may be made with such seasonings as roasted fennel or paprika and a dash of cayenne pepper. Simply dip a radish in butter and into one of the flavored salts for a perfectly balanced bite.  
 
Radish’s characteristic zing is mellowed by cooking, which brings out a rich, earthy flavor. They can be braised, sautéed, roasted, even added to stir-fries, or even incorporated into pasta dishes.
 
Radishes are a very good source of fiber, vitamin C, folic acid, and potassium. They also contain riboflavin, vitamin B6, calcium, magnesium, copper and manganese. Other nutrients, like iron, are found in trace amounts.
 
They’re mildly anti-inflammatory, which helps to control allergies and illnesses.
 
If you’ve got radishes in your garden, plop them in a bucket of cold water to keep them cool if it’s a hot day when you pull them from the ground.
 
When choosing them at a market, radishes should feel firm when gently squeezed. If they yield to pressure, the flesh will be spongy.
 
Whether from the ground or market, remove the leaves before storing in the fridge, where they’ll keep for up to three weeks.
 
And here’s a tip. Before serving fresh radishes, soak them in ice water for extra crispness.
 
There is a delicious array of radish-inspired recipes I could offer you – sautéed radishes with mint, quick pickled radishes, roasted caramelized radishes, creamy rich radish green soup, glazed radishes, even radish butter – but the one that made my heart skip a beat is the cabbage-radish slaw with peanut dressing offered below.
 
The Asian-inspired recipe utilizes both daikon and red radishes, and should be a wonderful summertime treat. I hope you enjoy it.
 
But before I go, did you know that radishes inspire a yearly holiday festival in Mexico?
 
Citizens of Oaxaca City celebrate “Radish Night” (“Noche de los Rabanos” in Spanish) on December 23.
 
Folk art and agriculture are combined in this Christmas festival when ornate sculptures – from small animals and human figures to representations of events such as the Nativity – are carved from radishes and displayed on the town square.
 
The festival lasts just a few short hours as vegetables have a limited life span as art.
 
Even so, it’s an immensely creative way to celebrate one’s “roots.”
 
Cabbage-radish slaw with peanut dressing

1 tablespoon finely chopped peeled fresh ginger
¼ coarsely chopped shallot
¼ cup plus 1 tablespoon creamy peanut butter
½ cup rice-wine vinegar (not seasoned)
3 tablespoons soy sauce
3 tablespoons packed dark-brown sugar
¼ cup canola or safflower oil
1 small green cabbage (about 1 ¾ pounds), finely shredded
1 medium daikon radish, cut into 1/8-inch-thick matchsticks
16 red radishes, halved lengthwise and cut into thin half moons
4 scallions, cut on the diagonal into long, thin slices
½ cup dry-roasted peanuts
 
Blend ginger, shallot, peanut butter, vinegar, soy sauce, sugar, and oil in a blender until smooth; set aside.
 
Put cabbage, radishes, scallions, and peanuts in a large serving bowl. Pour in peanut dressing and toss thoroughly to combine.
 
Recipe is courtesy of www.MarthaStewart.com .

Esther Oertel, a freelance writer, cooking teacher, and speaker, is passionate about local produce and all foods in the vegetable kingdom. She welcomes your questions and comments and may be reached at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

MIDDLETOWN, CA – The 10th annual EcoArts: Lake County Sculpture Walk will open in June, and the installation of sculptures in dialogue with nature will be available for viewing through Oct. 13 at Middletown Trailside Nature Preserve County Park.

A grand opening event is scheduled for Sunday, June 10, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

All activities are free, family friendly and fun.

Stroll along the center trail of the 107-acre County Park to view the sculptural expressions of award-winning artists, as well as local schools and community groups.  

Bring a picnic lunch and enjoy your meal at one of the tables located through out this naturally scenic park.  

Visitors will enjoy the sculpture walk as well as the beauty of the park that is also home to many types of wildlife.

The park is located at 21435 Dry Creek Cutoff, Middletown, California and is open daily from dawn until dusk.  

The Trailside Nature Preserve Park is accessed via Dry Creek Cutoff off of State Route 175. Sensible shoes and water are recommended.

Admission to the Sculpture Walk is free.

Please visit www.ecoartsoflakecounty.org or call Karen Turcotte at 707-928-0323 for more information.

CLEARLAKE, Calif. – Few things are more overwhelming than having nowhere to live.

For homeless youth – who are often on their own, without the support of family, friends, or church communities – the anxiety and disconnection can be devastating.

A safe place to not only sleep, but also to reestablish a sense of community and belonging, hope and confidence in the future, can make a lifelong difference to youth experiencing homelessness.

That’s why two directors from St. Helena Hospital Clearlake, Suzette Lewis and Kathleen Soones, volunteered to help the homeless youth served by Safe House of Lake County plant a kitchen garden for the shelter. They purchased plants, then joined Safe House’s residents in planting their garden.  

“This was a wonderful opportunity for us to give back to the community. St. Helena Hospital is a very mission-driven organization,” said Soones, director of medical staff. “Our mission includes sharing God’s love through service, and relieving suffering by treating the whole person, body, mind and spirit. Gardening is one of the most healing activities we know, so this project was a perfect fit for us.”

The Safe House opened its doors in 2009, and has since provided shelter, food and services to 45 teens from around Lake County.

Located in a quiet neighborhood, the ranch home includes a fenced back yard, large oak trees, two beautiful palm trees and now a vegetable garden.

“The garden is a personal sanctuary these kids can grow and maintain, something both beautiful and useful that they can build with their own hands,” Soones added.

“There’s a sense of connection with life that comes from working in a garden and growing your own food,” said Lewis, director of medical surgical unit and intensive care. “Gardening draws people into the community and provides opportunities to contribute that go far beyond the food value of what they can grow.”

Programs across the country recognize the value of gardening for vulnerable youth. Gardening reinforces academic learning through a variety of hands-on experiences.

It teaches practical skills, teamwork and cooperation, leadership, and habits of responsibility that successfully transfer to later employment and other life situations.

That Safe House welcomes donations from the community. For more information please contact Dr. Bill MacDougall at 707-279-8935.

Observations from NASA's Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer (WISE) have led to the best assessment yet of our solar system's population of potentially hazardous asteroids.

Also known as "PHAs," these asteroids have orbits that come within five million miles (about eight million kilometers) of Earth, and they are big enough to survive passing through Earth's atmosphere and cause damage on a regional, or greater, scale.

The asteroid-hunting portion of the WISE mission, called NEOWISE, sampled 107 PHAs to make predictions about the population as a whole.

Findings indicate there are roughly 4,700 PHAs, plus or minus 1,500, with diameters larger than 330 feet (about 100 meters). So far, an estimated 20 to 30 percent of these objects have been found.

While previous estimates of PHAs predicted similar numbers, they were rough approximations.

NEOWISE has generated a more credible estimate of the objects' total numbers and sizes. Because the WISE space telescope detected the infrared light, or heat, of asteroids, it was able to pick up both light and dark objects, resulting in a more representative look at the entire population.

"The NEOWISE analysis shows us we've made a good start at finding those objects that truly represent an impact hazard to Earth," said Lindley Johnson, program executive for the Near-Earth Object Observation Program at NASA Headquarters. "But we've many more to find, and it will take a concerted effort during the next couple of decades to find all of them that could do serious damage or be a mission destination in the future."

The new analysis suggests that about twice as many PHAs as previously thought reside in low-inclination orbits, which are roughly aligned with the plane of Earth's orbit.

"Our team was surprised to find the overabundance of low-inclination PHAs," said Amy Mainzer, NEOWISE principal investigator, at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory. "Because they will tend to make more close approaches to Earth, these targets can provide the best opportunities for the next generation of human and robotic exploration."

The NEOWISE analysis suggests a possible origin for the low-inclinaton PHAs: Many of them could have originated from a collision between two asteroids in the main belt lying between Mars and Jupiter.

A larger body with a low-inclination orbit may have broken up in the main belt, causing some of the fragments to drift into orbits closer to Earth and eventually become PHAs.

The lower-inclination PHAs appear to be somewhat brighter and smaller than other near-Earth asteroids.

The discovery that PHAs tend to be bright says something about their composition; they are more likely to be either stony, like granite, or metallic.

This type of information is important in assessing the space rocks' potential hazards to Earth. The composition of the bodies would affect how quickly they might burn up in our atmosphere if an encounter were to take place.

"The NEOWISE project, which wasn't originally planned as part of WISE, has turned out to be a huge bonus," said Mainzer.  "Everything we can learn about these objects helps us understand their origins and fate."

The NEOWISE results have been accepted for publication in the Astrophysical Journal.

Dr. Tony Phillips works for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.

UPPER LAKE, Calif. – California's newest casino officially opened its doors to the public at a Friday afternoon ceremony.

Running Creek Casino has been a longtime goal for the Habematolel Pomo of Upper Lake, a small tribe that has worked for more than a decade to bring the project to fruition.

The new facility has 349 machines, six gaming tables, two restaurants and a full bar, run by a staff of about 150.

The casino project, like the long span of the Habematolel's history, has tested the mettle of its tribal members.

“This tribe's history can be described in one word – survival,” said Tribal Chair Sherry Treppa during the ceremony.

That includes surviving the attack at Bloody Island in May 1850 – when hundreds of Pomos were massacred by the U.S. Army in retaliation for the murders of Andrew Kelsey and Charles Stone near modern-day Kelseyville – up through the process of “termination,” which involved dissolving reservations.

As well, the 227-member tribe survived Arnold Schwarzenegger, Treppa quipped, referring to the former governor whose compact with the Habematolel ultimately would be rejected in 2010 by the federal government because its onerous financial demands violated the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act.

In March 2011 the tribe signed a new compact with Gov. Jerry Brown, the first compact he negotiated and signed, as Lake County News has reported.

After years of work, the project has moved quickly as the tribe pushed to be open for Memorial Day. Treppa pointed out that the casino site was “just dirt” six months ago.

A new construction firm had to be brought in after the last firm reneged on its agreement with the tribe, Treppa said.

There were many obstacles over the past four years, said Treppa, “but we never stopped believing.”

She credited a very positive working relationship with Lake County's government for helping the tribe move forward.

The Habematolel began acquiring the 11-acre property where the casino sits in 2004, she said. That process included putting it into federal trust.

Treppa said most tribes opening casinos face bitter opposition and lawsuits, but the Habematolel said they have experienced neither.

The tribe estimates that it will be able to repay its loan and begin building a new permanent structure to replace the “sprung,” tent-like structure within four years, Treppa said.

Treppa recognized the tribe's executive council and management staff, and gave special recognition to her vice chair, Angelina Arroyo, who she said has been with her through the most difficult of times, personally and professionally.

Indeed, the two women have been a steady presence on behalf of the tribe, making countless trips to Sacramento and Washington, DC, and pushing to keep the project on track when it seemed to have hit insurmountable obstacles.

On hand at Friday's ceremony were county officials including Northshore Supervisor Denise Rushing and County Administrative Officer Kelly Cox.

“Our government-to-government relationship has been absolutely stellar,” said Rushing.

She said it was amazing how many obstacles the tribe had overcome, adding that the county was happy to have the casino there. Rushing thanked the tribe for bringing the new jobs.

Cox echoed Rushing's sentiments, and recounted how the Habematolel had approached the county to ask about officials' concerns about the project. He said he was glad to see the project happen.

Arroyo thanked people for coming to share in the event. “I thank you as a community for the support.”

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .