Flora Floof! Garden Goodies!
amylou321
13 days ago
Featured Answer
Sort by:Oldest
Comments (20)
Related Discussions
A Bit of Winter Gardening
Comments (10)Oh, schoolhouse, I feel for you sister, but you will have that moisture for your spring flowers, so it is such a blessing that you are getting it now, although I don't envy you the dreary winter days that comes with it. valree3, in Oklahoma, we have spells of warm and then cold and then warm and cold all winter. You never know what the weather will be from minute to minute. Will Rogers once said, "If you don't like the weather in Oklahoma, wait a minute and it will change for you." That is totally accurate. The changing weather can be nice in winter, but for gardeners and farmers, it can be dangerous and damaging to trees and plants. We might have a long spell of warm weather and everything starts to leaf out and starts budding, and then here comes a cold spell, which kills all that tender growth. For spring-flowering plants, that can mean no flowers or ones that are severely damaged. It can also mean no fruit on the trees. If we make it through March and April, then in May we have Tornado Season. Ugh! I just finished planting my tulip bulbs and some fancy daffodil bulbs. Dug a bucket of wood ashes from the burn pile and sprinkle them liberally all over the holes and watered it all in good. If all goes well, and the spring late freezes don;t ruin the flowers, it should be a very colorful area in April and May. There are lots and lots of irises, alliums, and of course, my roses. Lavender, sage, and rosemary too. I am going to the Herb Fest in April to load up on some new herb plants. The drought we had in 2005-2006 wiped out so many of mine, about 98%, so have to start over. I will on the scout for some new roses, too (wink wink). In Oklahoma, everything is severe - severe cold, severe heat, severe winds, severe thunderstorms, severe tornadoes, severe flooding, severe droughts. The weather radio always says, "Here's your Severe Weather Report for Today", and they ain't kidding! As most of you know, but the Newbies don't know, my property is all hill and the soil is very sandy, so it dries out quickly. That makes it nice for winter gardening and I can get out in the spring garden earlier, but it also makes it a pain once it gets hot and when we have dry spells. You win some you lose some. Right now, we are in drought since last June, and coming out of a two year drought, we only had a few years of light rain fall amounts before this one hit. Established trees and plants are still stressed and struggling, so I have had to water every day. Even now, I have to water twice a month or more just so the plant's and tree's roots don't freeze dry. I will go take some pictures and if they turn out okay, will post a few for you to see. Not much to look at now with everything dormant and brown, but you can see the bare-bones structure. I really love my new arch. It really sets off the garden having that tall element at the back. With my property on a slope, the back of the rose garden is up hill from the front of the garden, so it needed a tall structure. The American Rose that is growing back there by the gate on the west side will now have something to clamber up on, if the voles will just leave her alone (darn varmints!). Last fall, I trimmed back the Plum tree that grows over the henhouse on the east side and shades part of the garden on that side too. That should give the American rose more sunshine. It looks pretty with the plum tree hanging down on the one side. Will be lovely this spring when it is covered in snowy white flowers. TTYL...See MoreYour garden - - - -
Comments (41)With the vinegar, that's basically a pickle. As far as freezing, you know what a cuke tastes/feels like when the fridge gets too cold. So I don't know about "freezer pickles". Worth a try if you've got some that will go to waste otherwise. My slicing cukes (sliced rather thick, say 1/4" min) have kept their crunch as refrigerator pickles, but I haven't opened any jars of the canned ones yet - want to let the flavors develop a bit longer. Of course, the longer they're stored the mushier they'll get. The thinner you slice them the faster the liquid soaks in and they'll get soft too, not to mention the freezing rupturing the cells. English cukes have thinner skins and I think more water than slicing/salad cukes, so I don't think they'd do even as well as those and certainly not as well as pickling cukes. How many do you have? Using a recipe like that and storing them in the fridge might work for a week or 2, rather than freezing. This is one we like for garlic dills - don't need to can them, just put them in the fridge and wait a couple of days. I just made sweet pickles yesterday, didn't can those, did 1 quart for my uncle (who gave me quart jars that won't fit in my stockpot) and 1 quart for us, which is plenty since we don't really care for sweet pickles (though DD might if I get her to try them). I'll let you know this w/e how they turned out, and post my "recipe" (throwing things in, I'll have to try to remember measurements) if you like. Kosher Dill (Heinz Recipe) -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 4 lbs pickling cukes 14 cloves garlic, peeled & split 1/4 cup canning salt 3 cups distilled or apple cider vinegar, 5 % acidity 3 cups water 12-14 sprigs fresh dill weed 28 peppercorns Wash cucumbers; cut in half lengthwise. Combine garlic and next 3 ingredients; heat to boiling. Remove garlic and place 4 halves into each clean jar, then pack cucumbers, adding 2 sprigs of dill and 4 peppercorns. Pour hot vinegar solution over cucumbers to within 1/2 inch of top. Immediately adjust covers as jar manufacturer directs. Process 10 minutes in BWB. Makes 6-7 pints. 3-4 pint recipe (I make this size, sometimes make 4 cups of solution to make sure I have enough. My stockpot will only hold 4 pints) 2 lbs cukes 6-8 cloves of garlic (2 per jar) 1/8 C (2 Tbsp) canning salt (I haven't found it, so just use non-iodized, can use kosher but have to grind it fine to use same measure) 1.5-2C apple cider vinegar same amount or slightly less filtered water (must be 50:50 or more vinegar) 6-8 sprigs dill or 2 or 3 tsp. of dried dill weed in each pint jar 12-16 peppercorns (4 per jar) Soak cucumber slices in ice water for 2 hrs to overnight before making pickles, this will help crisp them up. If you can find it, you can also use Ball's Pickle Crisp, but I haven't tried that yet. I slice into rounds rather than spears since the cukes are so long, DH didn't plant pickling cukes this year. If you can pick them young (2-4" long) then you can pickle them whole and they'll be crunchier, but I was just trying to use up my mammoth cukes that got big and seedy....See MoreFloof! Seasonal Treats
Comments (61)Seasonal local farm stand fruits and vegetables like strawberries, tomatoes, corn on the cob, peaches, cherries (can't get enough of them), plums, crabapples, apples, squash. Trifle and fruitcake, chicken bone candy, mixed nuts, McLarens Cold Pack Cheese, gherkins and egg nog during Christmas holidays Cream eggs and decorated sugar cookies at Easter In the summer, root beer or Vernor floats, iced tea I know I am forgetting some favourites that I only buy certain times of the year...See MoreMama Floof!
Comments (30)Mom and I shared some things. We both liked travelling and eating. She liked to cook, and while I didn't do much cooking when I lived at home (Mom and Dad both cooked, and there is only so much room in a kitchen...) I enjoyed using her best recipes when I moved out on my own. We were both introverts, but Mom less so than myself. We both shared horrid menuestral cycles. We both liked gardening, and foraging for raspberries in the wild. She enjoyed woodland hiking, and was happy when I bought the land I eventually built on and moved into (although she passed long before I was able to do anything like build here). Mom passed on the Ides of March, 2001, of cancer at age 75. Other things we weren't the same on. Our musical tastes only had a slight band of overlap. She preferred classical music piano pieces without singing, and I was able to introduce her to Scott Joplin, which she did end up liking. Not much success there, otherwise. We had differing viewpoints on certain issues of the day, but some of that is likely generational and habitual. (We never yelled about them.) She was something of a neat freak, and I remain something quite less than that. She wouldn't want to drop in and see my house today, but she would appreciate the art I have on my walls - a few pieces which had once belonged to her and Dad. She was a good and considerate woman, and I miss her....See Moreraee_gw zone 5b-6a Ohio
12 days agolast modified: 12 days agoamylou321 thanked raee_gw zone 5b-6a Ohio
Related Stories
INSPIRING GARDENSNative Plants Bring 10 Southern California Front-Yard Gardens to Life
Rare plants, rain gardens and wildlife habitats are just a few of the features showcased on the 2016 Theodore Payne Native Plant Garden Tour
Full StoryFRONT YARD IDEAS10 Ideas for a Front-Yard Edible Garden Your Neighbors Will Love
Choosing attractive, well-mannered plants and sharing the bounty will go a long way toward keeping the peace
Full StoryLIFEHow to Outsmart Backyard Critters
Learn to think like a raccoon, skunk or squirrel to keep your home safe and your garden intact
Full StoryCHRISTMAS10 Thoughtful and Thrifty Christmas Table Touches
If you’re after some affordable decorative touches to add to your holiday table this year, here are a few ideas to inspire you
Full StoryBATHROOM DESIGNPowder Room Essentials to Keep Guests Happy
Set out these bathroom necessities (hello, hand towels) to make your company comfortable and your parties run smoothly
Full Story
vgkg Z-7 Va