Garlic Planted Today

A couple of weeks ago I ordered two kinds of garlic from Seed Savers Exchange. As I was planning on using the sweet potato bed for the garlic, I have been waiting to get those harvested...and those have been waiting on parts for my pressure canner--which are still not here. I do not have the means to cure the sweet potatoes to keep them over as fresh root crops.

Since we are expecting five days of rain starting this afternoon, I had to hurry up and get the garlic in. If I did not get it done today, chances are it would not be done at all. We have been fortunate to have such lovely weather this late into the fall.

Time to 'Do' Geese

We still have not finished off most of the geese. We still have twelve, maybe thirteen to do. Last month DH butchered three and since we don't really eat organ meat, we skinned the birds and saved the filleted breast meat and the entire legs with the bone in. The organ meat went to waste. Did not feel too good about that. We have asked several people that we know if they were interested, but with no takers. I had a few more people I'd thought to ask--one a caterer and the other a restauranteer... but now I am thinking that since I have decided to try my hand at making goose stock with the carcasses, then surely I can come up with something for the organ meat. Here are some recipes that sound like they have potential... and more recipes--this time using goose fat.

And a recipe for goose stock that is the base for a Borscht.

Eggs, Eggs and more Eggs

I spent all day today cooking with eggs. The girls are doing very well---producing an abundance of eggs, eggs, eggs! I am sure that we had at least 11 or 12 dozen eggs in the fridge, as I have not been working too very hard at keeping up with them. I have already made mucho noodles. We have eggs for breakfast, use them in baking, feed them to the cats (raw or scrambled)... if I drop one while collecting them, the hens automatically get those.

While perusing my cookbooks this morning, looking for recipes, I decided to make Rosy Pickled Eggs, Golden Chiffon Cake and Deviled Eggs. I have made and enjoyed the Rosy Pickled Eggs before-- they are pickled in a solution that includes beet juice and are quite pretty to look at when finished...tasty, too! These will sit in the fridge for a few days before they are ready to eat.

I boiled over three dozen eggs for the Deviled Eggs, which I will take to Mom and Dad's tomorrow. That left me extra to make egg salad for lunch.

Amazingly, I was not hungry for dinner! DH had the pork chops all to himself and then we had the Golden Chiffon Cake for dessert with homemade raspberry preserves warmed and drizzled on top.

As the day is winding down, and I am cleaning up after dessert, I open the fridge and see nothing but Eggs, Eggs, and more EGGS!

Illinois Farm Direct

I found the Illinois Farm Direct website today and I want to be sure and keep this handy. There are places very nearby that I would be patronizing if only I remembered them. The most interesting thing I saw today is a farm within 15 miles where I can go to buy organic goat's milk. And another sells raw honey.

Homemade Noodles

My girls are hard at work-- each faithfully popping out a smooth, pastel egg almost every day. I had decided not to sell eggs this year. Even at the $3.00 a dozen that we ended up selling them for in the past, I figured that it was still a not-for-profit venture. These jewels are way too good to sell at a loss when we can find ways to put them to good use right here. I would rather feed them back to our chickens and the cats also love them. Most of them, we will eat in various ways ourselves, and then there is the occasional dozen given away to visiting family and friends.

Today, I pulled out my trusty KitchenAid mixer along with the pasta attachments and made three batches of noodles and hung them to dry in the pantry. I LOVE my pasta machine! I honestly would not make noodles if I did not have this...rarely...probably almost never. But with this I can whip out beautiful homemade noodles in no time at all.

The three batches used up a good 15 or 16 eggs and I used Hodgson Mill unbleached white flour. I have some Bob's Red Mill organic semolina flour which I will use the next time and then I can cook a batch of each up and do a little taste test. I did not realize that semolina flour is higher in gluten than all purpose flour. This is supposed to make for better pasta, but the noodles made from the Hodgson Mill all purpose flour seem to be pretty darn good.
We do not have any known intolerances to gluten, but since many people do, I will still be looking for tasty noodle recipes that are gluten free. I may try to make a small batch from Bob's Red Mill gluten free flour (made with garbanzo beans, fava beans, potatoes, sorghum and tapioca).

It took me two and a half hours to finish up the three batches. By the time that was done, I whipped up a quick dinner: NOODLES (!) with leftover chicken breast, some chicken stock thickened with arrowroot, sliced organic carrots, some of Mom's vidalia onions that I had sauteed and keep handy in the freezer, green peas and all seasoned with sage, parsley, sea salt and black pepper and a little lemon juice for a tasty twang. Yummy homegrown comfort food!

Baking Powder

Since any baking powder that I have found in the grocery stores contain cornstarch, I was pleased to find not only a recipe to make my own without using cornstarch, but also discovered this Wikipedia article explaining the science of baking powder and how it works.

Baking Soda and Cream of Tartar are the active ingredients. I will use arrowroot as the starch in my homemade baking powder. This will be a single acting baking powder, not double acting as the timing will not be a problem for me, so a heat reactive acid salt is not critical. (Read the article).

Here's the recipe:

ABC 1:2:1

1 part Arrowroot powder
2 parts Baking Soda
1 part Cream of Tartar

That's it! I still have half of a can of Clabber Girl baking powder to use up so I can reuse the handy-dandy can with the straight edge made for leveling off the measuring spoon.
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Update 2/13/10:  The homemade blend has worked just fine for pancakes.  That is all I have tried it for so far.  I did find a corn starch free commercial baking powder at our local health food store.  The brand is Hain and the ingredients are monocalcium phosphate, potato starch, and potassium bicarbonate.  It is sodium free (thus the potassium bicarbonate instead of sodium bicarbonate) and also gluten free.

The Disappearing Omega 3's

In my most recent issue of Prevention Magazine I found this most interesting article 'The Vanishing Youth Nutrient' on the disappearance of the vital Omega 3's from our diet. It is becoming more and more clear to me about the problem of grains, not only in our own diets, but in the silage of our meat animals!

We have not yet purchased a pasture-raised, pasture-finished side of beef for our freezer, but have been living for the most part on our own meat chickens that we raised, wild pork and the rare traditional lot raised beef from the grocery store. We occasionally will buy a huge pork loin, which we slice into chops and freeze...because of the low price. I really want to eliminate all commercial meat...it is still a work in progress for us. It's not happening nearly as fast as I would like. We have changed MUCH in the way that we eat and think about food, but the changes that we still need to make will require even more dedication.

Once again, I say that 'Organic' is not good enough for my satisfaction if the animals in any way subsist or are finished on grains, especially corn. It is greens in the diets of our livestock that make the meat Omega 3 rich (which we need) as opposed to an excessive amount of Omega 6 (which we do not need) in the grain fed livestock.

Let me reiterate that I am not opposed to using a small, balanced amount of healthy, toxin-free whole grains in our diet. The problem is that in this country, grains tend to be used in an unhealthy way. Not only through refining, but also over-use (compared to greens and other complex carbs), and not least of all is the problem of fungal toxins that exist in stored grains, expecially the universally contaminated corn.

'Strawberry' onions not so sweet

Well, Mom gave me Grandma's recipe for her freezer pickles the other day so I had to make half a batch. Since I had already put up all of the Vidalia Onions, I pulled one of my white onions from the strawberry bed to use. Slicing them thinly for the freezer pickles, I popped a piece into my mouth...just had to see if the experiment worked...Nah! I guess the ol' sulfur in our Midwest soil wins out. The strawberries just didn't seem to do any good. I'll bet the people who make such a claim for interplanting onions with strawberries must already live in an area with less sulfur.

Here is the recipe for the freezer pickles:


Grandma’s Freezer Pickles

2 Qt. thinly sliced cucumbers
2 Tbls. salt
2 medium onions, thinly sliced

Sprinkle salt over the sliced cucumbers and onions. Let set for 30 minutes then drain off salt water.

Syrup-

1 ½ cup sugar
½ cup vinegar

Bring to a boil long enough to melt sugar. Remove from heat and let cool.

Pack cucumbers and onions into four pint jars. Mix 4 tsp. celery seed into syrup then pour into pint jars. Leave some head space to allow for expansion. You can use canning lids and rings or plastic lids. Freeze the pickles and you can eat them the next day if desired. Leave in the freezer until the day you want to eat them.

Dilly Beans

I put up a batch of Dilly Beans the other day. I have never had these before, but the recipe sounded good so thought I would give it a try. The recipe calls for either a head of fresh dill or a teaspoon of dill seed in each pint jar. I went out to the garden armed with my kitchen scissors to snip the dill heads... once out there among my jungle of 4 foot tall dill weed, I realized that I didn't know what stage of dill heads is generally used. I was pretty sure that it wasn't dry heads with the seeds... but do I want dill heads still in bloom or with green seeds? Back inside I went to call Mom. Dill heads still in bloom was her answer. This will actually give more dill flavor than dill seeds, remarkably.

After cutting about two pounds of beautiful green beans into four inch pieces, in went the dill head, a clove of garlic and some cayenne pepper into each pint jar. Finished that off with the pickling solution and a water bath for ten minutes. I was surprized in that my new "So Easy to Preserve" Book called for processing in a water bath as opposed to pressure canning. I guess there is enough acid in the amount of vinegar to make it safe.

I will wait until Mom comes for her visit to give these a try.

Update: tried the Dilly Beans. YUM! The beans were nice and crisp and the cayenne gave it a real kick! Plenty of dill flavor and the garlic a nice background.

Sweet Vidalia Onion Relish

On the 4th, my MIL brought us fifty pounds of Vidalia onions. I had mentioned to her that back in April or May DH had made a business trip out to Florida, passing through Georgia on the way. I had asked him to bring me a fifty pound bag of Vidalias from Georgia. As it turns out, the timing was a little early for the Vidalia season. So now, here it is July and I have my onions!

I have a new book, 'So Easy to Preserve', published by the Cooperative Extension of the University of Georgia. I am real excited about the information in this book! I found out about it at a class on preserving the harvest taught by Beverly Coombs of the University of Illinois Cooperative Extension Service. She calls it her canning and preserving bible, and I can see why... but you will have to buy the book and see for yourself!

Here is the recipe for Vidalia Onion Relish that I made today...
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Vidalia Onion Relish

1 1/2 gallons ground Vidalia onions (about 20 lbs)
1/2 cup [canning] salt
1 quart apple cider vinegar (5%)
1 teaspoon turmeric
4 teaspoons pickling spice
4 tablespoons pimento, chopped
4 1/2 cups sugar

Grind enough Vidalia onions to yield 1 1/2 gallons, add 1/2 cup salt and let stand 30 minutes. Squeeze juice from onion-salt mixture and discard juice. The pickling spice in cheesecloth. Combine onions, vinegar, sugar, turmeric, spice bag, and pimento in a large saucepot. Bring to a boil and cook until thick, (approximately 30 minutes), stirring often. Remove and discard spice bag.
Pack both onions and cooking liquid to cover in hot jars, leaving 1/2 inch headspace. Remove air bubbles. Wipe jar rims. Adjust lids. Process 10 minutes in a Boiling Water Bath.
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The recipe says that this will yield about 8 pint jars. I ended up with almost nine, the ninth jar being about 3/4 full went straight into the fridge to use right away.

Another bonus is the two quarts of onion juice that I drained off before adding the salt. I thought that if I freeze the juice into ice cubes, this will make an easy way to pop some flavor into soups or stews, etc. I also saved about a quart of the onion juice that was extracted after the salt was added. Why throw this away when I can make good use of it? :)
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This recipe and others like it are found on Cooks.com.

Processing Day

This is the day that I dread and I try not to think about it too much. It's actually painful, but as DH says, "We gotta eat!".

We have thirty-two broilers to do in all. We were only able to handle seven today. Not that it was such hard work, but we were set up outside on the picnic table and anytime the breeze was not blowing (most of the time) there were those pesky flying buggers buzzing us.

This is only our second time raising meat chickens, but we have figured out the best way for us. I am not very good at this whole thing, but DH has all kinds of experience processing wild game. He says the chickens are 'just like a pheasant'.

So this is what we did: The birds have not been fed since the night before---fresh water only for the last twelve hours. First thing in the morning, I got up and separated all of the layer pullets out and locked them into the coop with food and fresh water so they could eat. Then two by two, we take the meat birds over to the picnic table (which is out of sight of the chicken run). DH dislocates the necks to kill them quickly and humanely as possible. We then hang them upside down from a rod between two trees using twine. He cuts the jugular veins so that they bleed out. After they have stopped flapping and the blood stops flowing, we can start cleaning them.

We have decided that for us, we do not need the skin, so we do not bother with plucking them. We simply skin them and this seems to go alot faster for us than the idea of plucking the birds clean of all those feathers. Outside at the picnic table, we get them skinned and gutted. The remainder of the whole chicken then goes in a tub, the livers, hearts and gizzards go into a bowl for the cats and all of the waste goes into a wheelbarrow to be hauled to the burn pit. We have a large cutting board on the picnic table and a couple of sharp knives to get the job done. All of the carcasses are hosed off before going into the tub.



At this time, we take them inside the house to finish up. Using a sharp pair of kitchen scissors, I cut on either side of the spine to remove the legs. Another short cut with a sharp knife separates the leg (thigh and drumstick together) from the carcass. The final once over and rinsing under fresh cool tapwater, then into a clean tub. I filet the breasts, removing all of the bone. Using the sharp filet knive, I slice on either side of the keel, keeping as close to the ribs as possible. These then are rinsed and go into the tub. The wings are disjointed with the knife, rinsed and into the tub. Last, but not least, the neck is cut off and this goes into the bowl for the cats.



Not to waste anything good, all of the carcasses, bones and all go into the stock pot. I will add water, carrots, onions, celery, bay leaves, salt and pepper. When this is all cooked down and full of flavor, the solids are strained out. I will can them by the quart using the pressure canner, of course. Wish I had a lot more carcasses as I could always use more chicken stock than what we will get from the number of birds that we need.

Viola! Well... seven down and only twenty-five more to go.

Some Seeds Started Today

Before I get too far behind the curve, I went ahead and started some seeds in a protected seed bed to be transplanted later. This is just a few things to get me started and I will add more when the new garden bed is ready. I have a BUNCH of beans and I am thinking about a whole new place for those. Most are hybrids, but one is an heirloom kidney bean. I will not plant all of them, but hold some for next year and maybe try to save some seed then-- when I learn more about preventing cross-pollination. I especially wonder about the surrounding soybean fields...lots of questions! Also one thing I did not realize, but read recently is that most or all of the bush beans are harvested at once like determinate tomatoes!? Unlike the pole beans that I have always grown and are harvested over a longer period of time. This is actually fine that I have chosen several types of bush beans this year as most of them will be for freezing and canning. I will plant those over several weeks to try and space out my canning work and also I will go ahead and plant some of the Kentucky Wonder pole beans that I still have on hand for fresh eating. All of my tomatoes are heirlooms and indeterminate, except for one that is a hybrid.

This is what went into the seed bed today:

Cilantro
Florence Fennel
Basil; Cinnamon and Swift
Sage
Italian Parsley
Muskmelon; Hale’s Best
Hot Pepper; ‘tabasco’ and ‘Santaka’
Acorn Squash; Table Queen and Table Ace
Sweet Pepper; ‘Sweet Havana’ and a color mix of bell peppers
Zucchini; ‘Black Beauty’
Summer Squash; Yellow Crooked Neck
Okra; Clemson Spineless
Tomatillo; ‘Salsa’ and an unnamed variety (I think these are the same)
Beans; ‘Fejol Huerto’
Tomato; heirloom rainbow blend
Cucumber; ‘Sweeter Yet’ and ‘Cool Breeze’
Milk Thistle
Summer Squash; ‘Cashflow’ and Medley Blend

Why Can't I Grow a Sweet Onion?

The following is an exerpt from a newspaper column written by Jan Phipps, Master Gardener Extraordinaire. She writes in behalf of the Edgar County Master Gardeners. This appeared in the Paris Beacon in January of 2001. I think Jan wonders where on earth I come up with some of these gardening ideas (such as strawberries making onions sweeter)...well, in this case it was on the internet-- and you know that if its on the internet, then it must be true! LOL! We are both waiting on pins and needles to see how my 'strawberry' onions turn out this year.

WHY CAN’T I GROW A SWEET ONION? You buy onion seed or onion sets advertised as “sweet”, or advertised as the same seed used to produce Vidalia onions. You plant them, grow them, harvest them, and dry them according to the directions. The big moment arrives. You take a bite of your expertly grilled hamburger with a deliciously thick slice of onion expecting that sweet Vidalia taste but get the same hot zing of every other onion you have ever grown. Why? Two reasons: the growing conditions and the soil in Edgar County. Vidalia onions are a yellow granex type F hybrid grown in many areas of the country, but only in a 20 county region of southeast Georgia are the weather and soil conditions just right to produce the mild, sweet flavor. In Georgia onions are grown in the winter, in sandy soil that doesn’t hold sulfur, and are affected by the amount of sunlight, heat and water of that region. In Illinois we grow our onions in the summer in heavier soil. Sulfur is trapped in the soil and is what gives an onion its heat. Therefore, gardeners living in the southern part of Edgar County with sandier soil probably have the best chance of growing an onion that has the least amount of burn. Everyone else will have to be content with hot onions.

Strawberry Onions

Today I interplanted my onion sets into my new strawberry bed. I found in several 'companion planting' sites that the onions are supposed to help protect the strawberries from pests and the strawberries supposedly will give the onions a sweeter flavor. I still have two of the three types of onions left, so I think I will try planting them elsewhere for comparison's sake. So fun to experiment!

I love the idea of companion planting...and so many other gardening ideas to explore...so much to learn. Crop rotation along with companion planting makes things a little more challenging and fun. For example; my June bearing strawberries will remain in the same bed for three to five years (or more). If the strawberry-onion pairing turns out to be valid for me, then how would I rotate my onions? I guess I would need a new strawberry bed every year. If I grow day-neutral or everbearing strawberries, then I could keep the onions with the new strawberries if I treat them as an annual. But do I need to treat the day-neutral or everbearing strawberries as annuals here in Illinois? Being frugal, I would have to say that I would not turn them in after one year. I would have to over winter them and see what happens.

I only have so many places that I can move a strawberry bed, especially if I am supposed to avoid any area that has had other Verticillium Wilt susceptable crops in the last four or five years.

Companion Planting

Golden Harvest Organics
Companion Planting--The Natural Way to Gardening
Rodale's Organic Gardening
Ed Hume Seeds
No Dig Vegetable Garden
MSU Problem Solvers-Companion Planting

Pastured Chicken

As noted, (Check out these chicks!)we bought Rock Cornish cross chicks for the freezer a couple of weeks ago. It has been four years since we bought chicks, but I think that this will become a new annual tradition for us. We are going to need another freezer, but each spring we can raise enough meat birds to get us through one year.

I have found that the price of chick starter/grower feed has gone up at least 50% and even 100% since four years ago. Right now that seems like our only option. What we are using is Purina non-medicated chick starter/grower and paid $18 for a 40 pound bag at one place, but have since found another place that charges $13. I have not done the math since the chicks are not yet ready to butcher, but considering how much these birds eat, it seems like I am going to need to look for another way to feed them. Ideally, I should have a portable brooder that I can move daily onto fresh green grass. This would be the healthiest option for the birds and also for us. They will still need more according to what information I have found so far. Here is a website on chicken feed which looks like it has some good information, but I have not yet had the time to read it thoroughly.

It will be easy to graze the goslings as the adult geese should protect them, but the chicks will need some more protection. That is where the portable chicken tractor will come in...I will think about electric fencing too, but that will not address our main concern around here which is winged predators.

Giant June-bearing Strawberries from Gurney's

Well, I ended up buying strawberries this year afterall. I was planning on adding a strawberry patch, but had wanted to take the time to prep the bed properly. That probably would have been the better thing to do, but when I saw these, I just had to jump on the chance...for the LOVE of strawberries! Gurney's claims that these
'giant' June-bearing strawberries might grow as large as peaches in my garden.

The bare roots came in the mail yesterday and look really nice--thick, long and healthy looking. Now I have to hurry up and figure out where I am going to put the bed. The place I was thinking of gets some afternoon shade, which is not ideal. Think, think, think!

Update, 2 April 2009: Held the strawberry plants in the fridge until today. Probably too long, but they still look fine. I had finally decided on the only reasonable place; the south side of my fenced in garden. I don't have anywhere else where the ground is even remotely ready for strawberries, and this may not be ideal as there were tomatoes nearby last year...not exactly in this same section, but close enough. My tomatoes never had any wilt that I am aware of, so perhaps the strawberries will be OK.

I was able to get them heeled in before the afternoon thunderstorm hit. Had to get it done, as it may be a few days before the ground is dry enough to work again.

Growing StrawberriesU of I Extension
Growing StrawberriesPurdue
Tips for Growing Strawberries-Horticulture Magazine
Midwest Small Fruit Pest Management Handbook
Growing Fresh Strawberries in the Home Garden

Clover Field Meats

Today, I am very happy to say, we discovered Clover Field Meats just south of Marshall on IL Highway 1 , not so very far from us. We chatted with the very congenial owners for awhile and it looks like we may have found a very good source for beef and pork. Although the meat is hormone and antibiotic free and pasture raised, they are still fed corn for the marbling. Hey, we are taking steps and this is a major step in the right direction. Just like the organic milk that I buy from the store is not my absolute ideal with the corn fed dairy cows, this is OK. I still feel good in taking this route. Also the owner seemed very open to talk to us about raising a beef for us and keeping it from any grain! Win-win. His overhead for that beef would be reduced and that equals more profit for him and we would get our corn-less beef. (smile)

Please do go and check them out if you are looking to upgrade your beef and pork. Another plus is that it is local and sustainable. You can rest assured that this meat was not shipped from Argentina or even from 1500 miles away in the USA. It's a very good thing.

Change, Change, Change

I have been thinking about either cutting way back, or stopping altogether my consumption of milk and coffee. These are two things that a) we spend alot of money on, b) are not necessarily good for our health and c) there is no way we are going to 'grow' or 'raise' ourselves.

Allright...I confess: we are serious Starbucks fans. It is like an addiction. Everytime we go into town for any reason, or hit the road, we must grab that almost $2 cuppa Joe (fortunately we gave up the fancy dancy Mochas, Lattes, Cappucinos a long time ago). We even broke down recently and purchased their new Gold Card for $25. This gives us a ten percent discount with every purchase and there are freebies occasionally for cardholders. Believe me, at our current rate, we will get our money's worth out of the price of the card. If I quit Starbucks altogether, what I might miss most of all is the free used coffee grounds that we always grab on our way out the door. Or my garden will. Just ingenious, whoever thought of that idea...having the customers happily haul all of your coffee ground waste for you! I hope that guy got a huge bonus from corporate ; )

As far as the milk...I have been buying Organic for about a year. This makes the cost of drinking milk significantly higher. I have still not been happy with the fact that Organic Dairy Cows are fed corn. My ideal dairy cow would live only on organic pasture grass... I figured organic corn-fed dairy cows without added hormones or antibiotics is better than no milk at all.
However, there is much research that testifies to the fact that bovine milk or any other kind of milk is unnecessary even harmful to adult humans or any other adult mammals. I quit eating breakfast cereal a long time ago. Cold cereal is really not yummy without real milk...so what would I be missing? I enjoy a glass of milk every couple of days, or now and then a mug of hot cocoa (I use Hershey's plain, unsweetened cocoa). May not be so difficult if I still allow it as a rare indulgence.

Now if only I could have some of that Horchata like I had in Korea instead. Hard to believe...best Horchata that I've ever had was at a Mexican restaurant in Seoul while visiting brother. There were, in fact, several 'best-I've-ever-tried' at restaurants in Korea. Hmmm...

Seed Starting Tips

Amishland Seeds
Heirloom Tomatoes
Seed Starting BasicsMother Earth News article
Grow it! (a Mother Earth News blog)

Small Fruit in My Garden

I now have several different small fruits in my garden, so in keeping with my purpose of this blog I will post some applicable links here as I find them.

I have Latham and Heritage red raspberries and an unknown black raspberry. This site from the University of Illinois Extension on the care of raspberries is helpful.

Recently purchased were Doyle's Thornless Blackberries. They have not been planted yet, but are sitting in the cold foyer waiting for spring. These will need a wire trellis in a good sunny location.

Two articles from Dave's Garden:

Time to Tame the Raspberry Jungle

Okay, so you have raspberries, blackberries or other brambles… How do you control them? With a Bramble Trellis!

There was an unknown grape vine here on the property. It was a young start and was easy to move to our preferred spot next to the chicken run a couple of years ago. It did fruit last year, so we do know that it is a red grape with seeds. I am not real fond of them for fresh eating, but the chickens love them! I need to build a trellis for the vine this year.

We also need strawberries. There is so much work to do outside, that it may be awhile before I have a good permanent site prepared for a strawberry bed. The grubs are really bad, so I should put grub control on my list of things that I must handle this year! The plan is to apply beneficial nematodes and Milky Spore.

Midwest Small Fruit Pest Management Handbook

Average Last Frost Date is April 25ish.

Well, I don’t know what I was thinking! After looking back into my manual, it appears that the average lost frost date for my county is April 25, not Memorial Day…a whole month earlier! I must have had Memorial Day in my head from before we moved down here. Kane County, where I lived for over ten years, has an average last frost date of May 5th. Still not as late as Memorial Day, but somebody must have told me that and it just stuck. I was just winging it back then. I had never gardened before we lived there. I was always pretty happy with the results, though. I guess it was just beginner’s luck. Hmmm.

Now that I am paying better attention to what I am trying to do…
Well, one thing that I have learned is to keep a gardening journal. Another thing is to do some research. It certainly doesn’t hurt…better than ‘winging it’ for sure! Advice to self: research, take note of the experience of gardeners before me, but also don’t be afraid to experiment a little.

That said, since my last post, I was trying to figure out what I wanted to try and ‘winter seed’ outside. I referred back to my Master Gardener class manual for help. It is February tenth and so ten and a half weeks before our average last frost date. Actually, I could even push that to ten weeks…we are bordering on the line between April 25th and April 20th. And those are just averages after all.

According to the manual, “Very Hardy vegetables will withstand freezing temperatures and hard frosts without injury. They can be planted as soon as the ground can be prepared. Spinach and lettuce seeds may even be broadcast on late snows over soil prepared in the fall.”

What I am thinking is that this would apply to direct seeding in the garden where there is no protection from the elements. Since I am wanting to get some things started outside under protection, where the temperature is several degrees higher, would it be such a risk to try starting those ‘very hardy’ vegetables right now? I have plenty of seeds, so I can try my luck now with some and also save some to start later.

Here is the list from the manual: seeds to plant 4-6 weeks before average frost-free date: kale, kohlrabi, leaf lettuce, onion, pea, rutabaga, salsify, spinach, turnip. So tomatoes and peppers are not 'very hardy', but I knew that, didn't I? There are a list of transplants as well, but I will address those later.

I have all of these seeds on hand. Some of the seeds that I have are old-- kohlrabi, turnips, etc. I will not necessarily need to save any for later seeding. If my 'pushing the limits' with these is not successful, I will just buy fresh seeds to try again later. Tomorrow, I will sterilize my seed trays and get this gardening season rolling!

Winter Sowing Seeds in Containers

I have been anxious to try and yet aprehensive about taking risks with different methods of propagation (time and money are at risk). But it is imperative to learn how to do these things, after all, or I will never have more than one year's experience gardening thirty or forty times over! And wouldn't that be a tragedy!

Even starting some seeds indoors feels a bit risky to me. I have had varying degrees of success with this in the past. As I posted previously, my intention is to start part of my tomatoes and peppers inside. But today, I read some articles found in the Dave's Garden newletter about 'winter sowing' seeds. This is not an entirely new idea to me, but one that I have never tried. And actually, I never thought about winter sowing seeds outside in containers the way 'Critter' is doing. No point in me trying to re-explain it all. Here is the article: Six More Weeks of Winter!? Celebrate by Winter Sowing Your Seeds! and here is her follow-up article just in case you have gone crazy with winter sowing:What to do with 10,000 Spring Sprouts in Your Winter Sowing Containers

Actually, an idea just came to me! I have the tops of those PVC drums that can be used to protect my winter sown seeds from the elements. These will provide filtered light, will be warmed by the sun and can be easily lifted to water when necessary and hardening off. Hmmmm...I can easily come by some fresh horse manure to use to heat up this little mini "hot house". Now I am deviating from Critter's instructions...will this still be 'winter sowing', per se?

Gurney Seeds Arrive

The seeds came today so I can begin to work on a strategy for getting them started. The Jerusalem Artichokes are not here yet, but that is fine.

The first plants that I need to think about starting are the peppers and tomatoes. I will start these indoors about 8 weeks before transplanting. It is generally said that Memorial Day (May 25th this year) is our average last frost around here. Judging by the four or five years that we have been down here, I would have to say that I disagree. It seems to me that our last frost is much earlier than that. There have been years that in hindsight, I could have set things out sometime as early as April. I truly believe that this spring will be the same. If by chance we do have a late freeze, then I can protect them. I should order some floating row cover in advance.

If I start some tomatoes and peppers inside between the second and fourth week of February, then I think that will not be too much of a gamble. I can start more seeds spaced out over a few more weeks. By the way, one thing I have observed in the past: when planting some started tomatoes from the nursery and then also direct sowing seeds...the directly sown seeds always catch up with the nursery plants. It therefore doesn't seem to make much sense to spend the money on plants. I wonder if I should even bother starting any plants inside myself, but for the sake of experimentation, I will. Last spring was soooooooooo wet and rainy. My garden was repeatedly delayed just waiting for the rain to stop and then the soil to dry out enough to get out there and work it.

Next on the list are carrots and beets. I also have some seeds for radishes, turnips, rutabagas, spinach, lettuce, etc. These can all be directly sown in the ground "as soon as the soil can be worked, while the weather is still cool".

Now the beans. These are to be sown "in early spring after danger of frost has past". I am also directed to "plant at two week intervals for extended harvest". One thought that I have had about beans is that I should plant many hills. More than I think we could ever use in one year. I think this would be a good way of having enough properly sized beans to can a batch every few days. I think that in the past, I have let the beans mature too much for snap beans. I need to think about younger, more tender pods this year.

The winter squash, summer squash, cucumbers, and okra need to be sown "when the weather is warm and all danger of frost is past". I will also grow some gourds again this year. I am thinking about a bunch of loofa and some bushel gourds. It would be cool to grow some gigantic bushel gourds to make into....NOPE, I'm not telling. I have some cool ideas, but you'll just have to wait to see. Ha! maybe a year or longer since it takes some time for the gourds to cure!

By the way, I bought a Doyle's Thornless Blackberry at the Organic Farming conference that I went to last week. He also mistakenly sent me an additional plant along with the fish emulsion/kelp fertilizer that I ordered. I called to tell him about it and he just told me to enjoy it! We are going to have blackberries coming out of our ears in a couple of years time...each plant is supposed to yield 10 to 20 gallons of berries per year! I have already thought about some delish blackberry cobbler (made with agave nectar, and Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free Flour, of course...will have to experiment with recipes), Jalapeno Blackberry Jam....etc., etc.

I still have not ordered other seeds that I will need. Better get on the stick with that. Time's a wastin'....

Substitutions

Since I an working toward eliminating corn from our diet as much as possible, I have been wondering about different thickeners and how to substitute them in recipes. I understand that wheat flour often works, but I would like to try some other things. I have used arrowroot in soups and have seen at least one recipe that calls for 'corn starch or arrowroot' in equal amounts. Arrowroot is not always so easily found in the grocery store, but I buy it whenever I see it.

Also tapioca is used in pies. I wonder about how healthy xanthan gum is. I think that it is made from corn or maybe yeast, which is something else I am trying to reduce in our diets...but immuno supporting Beta Glucan is also made from yeast cells, but has none of the harmful effects of yeast remaining in it. So, who can answer these questions for me? Here's a page I found on thickeners but there is nothing about using xanthan gum. A little info on xanthan gum here, says its made from corn...doesn't say anything about yeast, but maybe I just won't bother with it.

University of Illinois News Release: 'Tips for Best Uses of Different Starches as Thickeners'

Vege Seeds Ordered

Order placed today through Gurneys.com:

Waltham Butternut Winter Squash,
Argonaut Hybrid Butternut Winter Squash,
Table Ace Hybrid Acorn Winter Squash,
(This may be all of the Winter Squash that I will need. I may add another if I see something interesting).

Medley Blend of Hybrids Summer Squash,
Sweeter Yet Hybrid Slicing Cucumber,
Cool Breeze IMP Hybrid Pickling Cucumber,
(If I see an Armenian cucumber, I will add that).

Sweetness III Hybrid Carrot,
Perfected Detroit Beet,
Jerusalem Artichoke- Roots,
(Will add other root crops).

Flavor Sweet Bush Beans,
Improved Golden Wax Bush Beans,
Jade Bush Beans,
(This will be enough 'green beans'. I would like to add some other varieties for dried beans).

Clemson Spineless 80 Okra,
(If I see purple/red Okra, I will add that).

Tabasco Hot Pepper,
(I need other peppers, especially sweet).

Heirloom Rainbow Blend Tomato.
(Will need more tomatoes. This blend of heirloom tomatoes has its pros and cons. A pro is that I get to try a variety of heirlooms for one small price, but...Will I be able to identify the different tomatoes if I want a particular kind again)?

Illinois Vegetable Garden Guide
Pole beans or bush beans - which is right for your garden?

What Do We Eat?

I am trying to think of what we are already in the habit of eating that I haven't listed with foods that I will put by...also what new foods can we add to the garden?

As far as veges, we often eat carrots, lettuce (anything but iceberg), spinach...I would like to try adding things like chard, bok choy and other greens such as beet tops, mustard greens...

We are rarely eating white potatoes now, but maybe I could plant a few for baby potatoes to eat in season.

I haven't grown peas for a few years. I may try it again...but on the other hand; I am ordering all bush beans this year as I really don't want to mess with trellising pole beans right now.

Do I want to add cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower and brussel sprouts?

Maybe I will try muskmelons again. I grew Hale's Best one year and they were absolutely the best I had ever had!

I still want a Dwarf Meyer's Lemon and Dwarf Key Lime. I will keep these in pots and overwinter in the house.

Hmmm...