Tomato Jelly

Tomato Jelly

Tomato Jelly

Tomato Jelly !? Sounds gross, but just like Zucchini pancakes, it’s something you have to try before passing judgment. I was quite reluctant to try it, but since then, I’ve been dieing for more. It actually tastes like Strawberry Jelly, due to the jello involved in its production. The recipe is very simple:

Recipe for Tomato Jelly

Start by blanching tomatoes, which helps remove the skin, then mash them in a bowl.

Add 5 cups mashed tomatoes to a pot, along with 4 cups of sugar.

Cook for 15 minutes on medium heat, then remove.

Add 1 box of Strawberry Jello (6 oz.), Stir well.

Pour into preheated canning jars, apply lid.

Preheated canning jars will help the lid seal, as well as sterilize the jar.

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A Few Good Grapes

Concord Grapes

Concord Grapes

The last two years, have been brutal for grape production. I’m not sure if it is something I’m doing wrong or if the weather is too blame. Last year all of the grapes withered before they began to turn purple, and this year, there were not many actual grapes. I’m thankfull for the bunch above though, because it’s at least an improvement from last year. The vines have grown out of control on the trellis by the small creek, and I need to spend a day retraining them to grow up the trellis, rather then every other direction. 

 These vines were planted about five years ago. When they were placed in the ground, they were about the same size as the small plants I’ve been cloning the last two years. So I can expect five years of growth before the first grapes are produced from my little clones.

All in all, Even though there are few, they taste Great !

Posted in Cloning / Propogating, Grapes | 1 Comment

Some Like it Hot

Hot Cayenne Peppers

Hot Cayenne Peppers

I’m not much of a spicy food eater, but some members of my family like their food served as if still on fire, so I grew some hot peppers for them. So far, five people have been daring enough to try these peppers. Two of my nieces tried them, even though I told them not too. I’ve seen kids run fast, but when they are in search of milk or bread, to calm the fire, they turn in superhero’s with gifts that rival those of Flash Gordon. I gave them a stern warning, and told them if they must try them to take a tiny bite. I bet they’ll give my advice more consideration in the future.

Nate and Davey also tried them, although they were prepared for the results. Nate surprisingly didn’t eat one whole, and Davie sampled one of each color, much to my sisters dismay. He then wiped his eye with the same hand that he used to pick the peppers, which resulted in me duping half a bottle of eye drops in his eye. I also sampled a small piece, and knew better then to try more.  I was expecting a burn, but it moved far faster then I imagined. I’ll pass next time !

So kids: If an adult tells you something is hot, trusting them is sometimes better then finding out yourself.  Adults: Keep your hands out of your eyes after picking these, it’s just a good policy.

Preserving Hot Peppers: The peppers in the dish above will sit in my kitchen, and I’ll stir them every once in a while. This should allow them to dry, at which point they can be ground up and added to spice up winter dishes. Maybe this winter after I’ve forgotten my lesson, I’ll try another.

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Feeding Babe

Food For Babe

Food For Babe

Everyday I spend about 20 minutes gathering two five gallon buckets of food for Babe, the pig my Mother and I have invested in. Usually I try to find fruits and veggies that most people wouldn’t eat, such as that terribly ugly tomato above. Babe seems to enjoy sweet corn and eggs the most, so I’ve been picking the smaller husks of corn. There is no need to remove the husk though, as she rips it off with little effort.

Babe

Babe

Here’s Babe, just after she devoured some corn. It took a while to distract her from the goodies shown, and I can’t blame her. Freshly picked sweet corn is delicious, cooked or raw.

All in all, I’ve never seen an animal that is so very good at making a mess….

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A Lesson: Good Things Take Time & Effort

Cloning Takes Time

Cloning Takes Time

As the growing season is winding down, I hope to post some of the lessons I’ve learned this year.

2010 is my second year for cloning grapes, also known as “propagating”. This year, I’ve made it a point to take exacting notes about when and how I’ve cloned these plants, as well as cloning multiple varieties of grape plants. In the photo above, you can see 49 days of growth. The left most picture was taken February 7th, the center on March 6th, and the right photo taken March 28th. I’ve documented the whole process here: Propagating Grapes Revisited. What I didn’t stress much at the time was just how cold it was that day:

A Very Cold Day

A Very Cold Day

In order to prune grapes without harming the plant, it needs to be very cold, or the vine will “bleed”. If you cut a grape vine in the summer months, the life giving sap of the plant will ooze out, and the damage may even kill the plant. The day I picked for pruning was particularly cold, around 10 F, with bone chilling winds. When I was finished cutting the vines, I took them to the greenhouse, where it was much warmer, about 60 F.

So you see, Patients really is a virtue, and good things require effort, no matter how cold it is.

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Children in the Corn

Kids Goofing Off in the Corn

Kids Goofing Off in the Corn

In the past, I’ve always tried to keep the kids out of the garden, as they always seemed to step on my most prized plants. This year, I’ve taken on a new mindset: Kids should have fun in the garden, so when it was time to pick some corn, I knew just who to ask for help. They in turn decided that corn could not be picked with out some puppy power, and if you look close in these photos, you can see them.

Kids, Puppies and Corn

Kids, Puppies and Corn

Since the corn field has giant chunks of corn knocked over, the kids have been treating the area as a playground.  I’m hoping to teach the kids about healthy food, not by putting it on their plate, but instead by growing it all around them. They can select what is appealing to them, and I know they will eat well. I should note, the kids shown are my nieces and nephews.

The Lil Gardener

The Lil Gardener

Above is the Little Gardener. I had a hard time getting pictures of him because he loved treating the corn as a huge maze. When I finally tracked him down, he was smiling as usual.

Corn

Corn

After harvesting a garbage bag full of this wondrous food, I took it to my Mother’s home for her to freeze it. I though it was neat how the Blue Dent corn mixed with the corn next to it, which has me believe that the pollen for each kernel must be different, as there are three color’s shown.

Posted in Corn, People | Tagged | 4 Comments

Squash Line-up

Winter Squash

Winter Squash

It’s that time of year again, time to wonder just what we’ve grown. I can identify the first two from the left, as Baby Blue Hubbard, and Acorn Squash. I’m not sure what the third one is, but the forth is Waltham Butternut, and the Fifth is Spaghetti Squash. So, I’ve got about half of their names, but they are all Winter Squash, which should keep well into the winter, if stored properly. On a humorous note, I’ve found my sprinkler which was buried in a sea of green for so long.

Pile of Squash

Pile of Squash

Since the plants have started to die, we decided to pile up the squash so that it could be more easily managed. There are two piles shown, one of which will become food for my pig: Babe. These squashes have small bite marks, which I’m told are the remnants of curious chipmunks.  The others I’ve loaded into the trunk of my car and transported to my Mother’s house, as she has more room for storing this motley mix. I had nearly a trunk load of squash, and was quite proud of the bounty.

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Guest Post: Nature’s Rules

Farmer's Daughter

Farmer's Daughter

I enjoy reading many gardening blogs online, and I noticed a call for guest posts on one of my favorite farm life blogs, so I wrote up a guest post, and the Farmer’s Daughter has posted it on her blog today. Check it out !

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Fall Plantings

Broccoli Seedling

Broccoli Seedling

On August 19th, I worked the soil, and planted some Cabbage and Broccoli. The timing is something I’m a bit unsure of, and I wanted to make note of it for next years planting. It’s also been very dry lately, so I water these tiny plants every day or so after I finish up my other chores.

Cabbage

Cabbage

I got a little creative when I took the picture above. I wanted to capture the leaves from a different angle, as the two different types of seedlings have very similar starter leaves.  Now that I got a good look at the picture, I can’t help but notice just how much this micro environment looks like a desert. After seeing the lack of moisture in the soil, I’m contemplating adding a layer of hay or stray to keep the water from evaporating away.

Fall Planted Cucumbers

Fall Planted Cucumbers

Finally, I thought it appropriate to show how my cucumbers planted at the beginning of August are doing. These plants are not cold tolerant, so I’m hoping to get some really late cucumbers, just before the first frost. The plants are looking pretty rough, but I remain hopeful, as the ones that are growing, are growing fast. Perhaps it’s time for some more manure…..

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Weekend Roundup 8/29/10

Morning View of the Valley

Morning View of the Valley

I’ll admit it, Saturday, I slept in, and really didn’t do much of anything other then take pictures for my sister. So when I awoke Sunday, I was rearing to go, and not in the mood to sit around. I got up and out early enough to catch the morning sun, finishing up with it’s daily burn off of the nights fog. You can still see some of the once all-encompassing cloud by the foot of the hills.  

Weekend Harvest

Weekend Harvest

In the afternoon Sandy and Davie came over, and we finished harvesting the onions, and learned it’s a bit late in the season for them. Some of the Onion bulbs had begun to rot. Next year I’ll make it a point to finish picking them by the beginning or middle of August.

 The string beans have collapsed half of the stick constructed trellis I made for them, and the beans shown are only about a third of the crop. Also shown are Okra, my least favorite garden food.  The plants grew very well, and produced a healthy offering of seed pods.

Watermelon

Watermelon

The little Gardener’s Watermelons are just starting to ripen up. My sister Sandy discovered a great rule of thumb to tell when a melon is ripe: It’s ripe when the little worms and bugs just start to nibble a bit at the outer shell. Once they know it’s ripe, we should know it’s ripe. I also made it a point to show the 4 year old gardener that started these plants what he accomplished. When I asked him if he would do it again next year he said “No”, I replied “Why not ?”, to which he said “It takes tooooo long”. I guess the lack of instant gratification is a symbol of ones age.  

Garlic Planted Early

Garlic Planted Early

At the end of the day, I decided to plant the Garlic a few weeks early. Garlic should be started early enough to give the plants time to build a basic set of roots before freezing temps set in. I’m hoping the early planting helps them grow nice big cloves. I’ve added several things to this soil to help out the plants, including bio-char and peat moss.

Posted in Beans, Garlic, Melons, Okra, Onions, People | Tagged , , | 1 Comment