HomeGrownVegetables

That’s what I said, then I started reading and whammo, this sounds interesting.  I’ve heard of the layering of sawdust and wood chips as a mulch, breaks down , feeds the soil, you know the drill, but this is burying whole logs and large branches. This goes against everything I have ever heard about composting, small even pieces… what happened to that?

I am intrigued my friends, I’m going to read some more on this and I will get back to you, I mean really, all I have to do right now is read, the fall garden is pretty well a no-go unless some serious rain comes soon, so I guess we shall see, but i’m not going to get my hopes up!

Anyway, check these links out, they have some basic info, when I find more I will let you know, and sorry for the dry spell …lol!

Treehugger.com

Hubpages

We have not seen any real rain in I don’t know how many months, A check of the NOAA web site says were are in exceptional drought territory and not looking good for precip until possibly next year sometime!  Whats a farmer to do?

Well this one is gonna hunker down and wait for it! , It will rain again I have no doubt, Its just when and how much patience do you have?  I have alot!

Just a Visual reminder .

This is circa 2007 , nice and green

Same pasture maybe 2008

Now fast forward to 2011 and take a look at the same pasture, brown , dry and brittle.  I’m afraid that the cows just walking across it will cause a spark and set the whole county ablaze!!

Look at this moon scape!

Same pasture, different angle! Not any better.

So there you have it, that’s why we are waiting for the rains to come back for a fall garden!

A good little storm came thru yesterday, I think we got an inch or so, Now for about 15 more… not in the same day, jus sayin!

Look at that, sweet rain is coming!

And after, we had a little pond out front, the ducks loved it!

Don't worry, its only an inch deep!

The sunflowers loved it too!

The forecast says maybe some more rain until Friday, let’s hope!

We haven’t seen any good rain around here in quite a while and the veggies are showing it. I got my water bill for last month, $100 just to keep everything alive. I hope we get some rain soon!!

Anyway enough cry babying , With the drought still on we do have some stuff coming in, although not as much as we would like.

Green Beans

The green beans are doing good, not gangbusters but good enough. We picked two gallon sized buckets full last week, gave some to my dad and cooked some up for supper one night, we also froze a couple bags for later.  Like I said there are enough for us for now, it would work better with rain though!

Bucket of Green Beans

Yellow Zucchini

The squash vines are starting to show some signs of life, they have been slow to get a good start. There are getting to be a foot or two tall and making fruit, so far just the yellow zucchini, that’s ok though, the green zucchini and the crook neck squash are starting to poke thru. Patience is what we need, along with alot of rain!  My other question is , why do the weeds do so well in these condition ! hehehe

Yellow Zucchini

Cucumbers

The cucumbers took a hit at the beginning when the chickens scratched them up, but with some fencing and stakes , that’s not a problem now!  the cukes are a little slow right now too, all we can do is keep the water going and hope for the best. I did see a ray of hope the other day though!

One lone cuke

Well I hope the weather is better in your neck of the woods!

Til next time, garden away!

What do you do on a rainy and cold, 41degrees cold, January day??  You whip out the seed catalogs that’s what!

With a steady rain this morning and the cold temps, nobody wanted to get out today, luckily we fixed the fence we needed to yesterday when it was sunny and nice!

So today on this cold blustery day, I start the annual seed selecting ritual.

Cold January day

Looking through these seed catalogs reminds me of one thing, I don’t have near enough money as I do want for new seeds to try, so what ya gonna do?   Guess i’ll just get the ones I can afford and hope have way more money next year!

Seed Catalogs

The Catalog Review!

As usual Johnny’s Selected Seeds has the deluxe catalog, 205 pages of full color seedy goodness, they never fail to impress. Johnny’s has an awesome website too. I have ordered from Johnny’s in the past and  have never had an issue .

Pinetree Garden Seeds has a nice catalog , not as glossy and large as Johnny’s, but still chock full of seeds, info and tools.  One thing I like about them , they have sections of ethnic and region seeds for example French, Asian and Latin American.  They also have some seeds you don’t see in other catalogs, tobacco for one.

Willhite Seed Inc. is a Texas seed company out of Poolville, Texas. They have a well laid out catalog in full glossy color, they arent as big as Johnny’s or Burpee but they have what looks like the largest selection of watermelon varieties I have seen, along with several different sweet potato varieties.

Burpee has another very nice catalog, but then again, they have been around forever, they know how to do this stuff.  With 146 pages of stunning color photos, you will love this one, I know I do!

So there you have it, my list is long and expensive at this point, I will narrow it down soon and place my order, Can’t wait for it to warm up and the gardening can begin!

There are several other catalog that I order from, but they haven’t arrived yet…stay tuned!

I know, I know it should be Black Eyed Peas, but we had a bumper crop of Purple Hulls this year so why not?  The Cabbage is this years fall garden wonder, the freezing temps have been crazy this year with the latest being Dec. 23 at 23 degrees, but the cabbage keeps going, so this will be fried up in some bacon grease yum yum!

Purple Hulls in the Pot

See they even look like black eyed peas, these have been cookin all day and they smell good!!

Cabbage From The Fall Garden

So anyway, that is our good luck, new years dinner, hope you have a good one too!!

and Happy New Year , hope 2011 is the best year for you yet!!

Looks like some pickled green tomatoes are in my future! Last week a pretty good freeze came thru our area and wiped out the tomatoes, yes the fall tomatoes that were looking real nice!!  So it goes in South East Texas, just when you think its gonna stay in the 60′s …bammm a freeze rolls thru!

On the bright side, at least we knew it was coming and were able to pull them in time.  My wife Cathy was able to get out and pick them the Wednesday before Thanksgiving!

Green Tomatoes

Most of these were about racket ball size, about ten or so were baseball size, we fried those up along with some of our purple hull peas for dinner one night….good eatin Aunt Bea!

The Bigger Ones

So like I said looks like some chow chow or some other good stuff coming our way,   I sure can’t wait to get a green house so I can extend some grow time around here!

Well that’s it for now, another dip into the freezing range expected tonight, gotta go wrap some pipes up, stay warm ya’ll!

I Wrote last time about the fall garden stuff being overall not that good, as I look back though it is doing as good as it can with the drought and all. Not to mention that I forgot about the tomatoes that were looking fairly good, when you keep the chickens off of them.

Fall Tomatoes

More Tomatoes

The plants look like they are growing just a little slower than they would in the spring, but they are chugging along, and they are loaded with blossoms!

Blossoms

The cabbage and brussels sprouts are growing well , along with the last of the peppers that were planted in the spring.

We also have a pecan tree as well as several wild persimmon trees that grow around here that are getting ripe and ready.

The pecan has started to look alot better from seasons past, I started a  fertilzer treatment this year and it made quite a few more nuts, and they started dropping this week.

Pecans

What can you say about the persimmons, they are a wild variety , so they put out a large crop darn near every year, but don’t try em till they are completely ripe….its an awful dreadful fruit until then hehehehe.

Persimmons

Red and Green Cabbage

The fall garden started a little rough this year , due in part to a late season drought!  The Burn ban is back in effect after a short reprieve, so the rain has been scarce here, and it took a toll on the early plantings. I started with a few rows of pinto beans, and they didn’t even sprout, The cucumbers that I started a couple months back are about 4 inches tall, with flowers but no real vines to speak of. The only real stars of the fall garden this year have been the brassicas, I put in some red and green cabbage and some brussles sprouts and they are still looking good, so there is our hope to hold us thru till spring! I didn’t get the garlic in yet but maybe next week I will plant a few bulbs of that.

Anyway take a look at the latest pics from our place.

Brussels Sprouts

Red Cabbage

So hopefully this will keep us occupied until the spring thaw hahahaha.

Ya’ll have fun and enjoy the weather , we sure are!

With the great Okra harvest we’ve been pulling in it’s time to put some up for a rainy, cold day …since the frost will kill it dead, so we pickled a whole mess of it.

I used one of the many recipes you can find on the web, the brine is pretty standard across the board, its the spices and other flavors that make each batch your own. So here is what we did!

First thing, sterilize the jars and lids, I have a large stock pot full of water, I put the jars and lids in the water and bring to a boil, leave em for 10 minutes and pull em out with the jar lifter, set them aside to cool.

Next gather brine supplies, recipe follows!

Pickled Okra

1 quart vinegar – white,cider,rice  your choice

1 cup water

1/2 cup pickling salt

I also add about 3 tablespoons of sugar, to balance the salt.

That’s the basic brine, the you can add Garlic cloves, red peppers , black peppercorns, mustard seeds or what ever you like!

Vinegar and Spices

Put that in a non reactive pan on the stove and bring to and bring to a boil.

In the mean time, clean and trim your okra, I make a slit in the side of each pod so the brine gets in and you get a better idea of the brine level in the jars.

Cleaned Okra

After cleaning, pack your sterilized jars with the cleaned and trimmed okra, we also put and extra clove of garlic, a medium jalapeno pepper, and a 1/4 teaspoon of mustard seed in each jar.  You have to pack the okra in there real tight or they will float around after they are sealed, that way the stay submerged in the brine.

Garlic And Peppers

About to Pack The Jars.

Packed Jars

Once the jars are packed , and the brine has reached a boil, carefully ladle the brine into the jars of packed okra , use the canning funnel its so easy!  Let the brine settle and the top off your jars with the proper headspace, about 1/2 inch, clean the top of the jar off with a damp cloth and put the lid and ring on the jar.

Brined With Lids, Ready For The Hot Water Bath

Now for the hot water bath, using the jar lifter, carefully set the okra filled jars into the boiling water and make sure there is at least 2 inches of water over the top of the lids. keep in the boiling water bath for 10 minutes.

Hot Water Bath

I topped off the water after the jars went in to bring the water level up, it doesn’t show in the picture.

After the ten minutes remove the jars carefully, don’t forget it is boiling water lol!, and set them on a dishrag to cool, if they sealed right you will hear a pop as the jars cool and the lids seal.

Jars Of Pickled Okra Cooling.

Now you could eat these after a day or so, but it’s better to let them sit for at least a week, two is better. that way all the flavors get a chance to mix it up!