“Why Bok Choy?” is the topic of a June 24 webinar offered by University of Maryland Eastern Shore Extension. The 10 a.m. virtual seminar will be conducted by Dr. Nadine Burton-Stubbs, an alternative crop specialist with the Small Farm Outreach Program.
“There is an old saying, ‘Let food be thy medicine and thy medicine be thy food,’ that has been attributed to Hippocrates,” Burton-Stubbs said. “Bok Choy, which has been used for centuries for medicinal purposes, is such a food.” Hippocrates, the famous Greek physician, considered nutrition one of the essential tools for a health practitioner and it is incorporated into the original Hippocratic oath.
The ancient vegetable (Brassica Rapa Subspc. chinensis) has been slowly gaining popularity among small farmers in North America, Burton-Stubbs said. Two predominant markets have emerged, California and Alberta, Canada.
The webinar will introduce participants to the basics of bok choy and its health benefits and offer an in-depth look into the production and economics of the vegetable as an alternative crop for Delmarva farmers.
Burton-Stubbs has been growing bok choy on the UMES Demonstration Farm in Princess Anne and will share her insights from experience and research with the crop.
Interested persons including small farmers and home gardening enthusiasts can register for the webinar at whybokchoy2020.eventbrite.com. The webinar is free and open to the public. For more information, contact Burton-Stubbs at nmburton@umes.edu or Berran Rogers at blrogers@umes.edu.
Gail Stephens, agricultural communications and media associate, School of Agricultural & Natural Sciences, University of Maryland Eastern Shore, 410-621-3850, gcstephens@umes.edu.
