Beth, I made pickles first and then I finished dehydrating my tomatoes from yesterday and then I finished my yellow tomato sauce and THEN I made one batch of Multi-purpose Seasoned Tomato Sauce. By the time I finished it was around 2 p.m. and we hopped in the car and sped down to the Southlake Central Market to check out their produce selection. I was a little disappointed. They didn't have nearly as many heirloom winter squashes, pumpkins and gourds nor did they have as many heirloom tomatoes. However, they did have pickling cucumbers, so I bought another 5 lbs. Since I made bread-and-butter pickles today, I'll make dills tomorrow. Best of all, my own pickling cukes are about to reach pickling size, so I'll be able to make stacker-type pickles about Friday or Saturday. We also picked up a 10-grain store bakery bread that we like and a few other veggies. Then, it was off to Green Sprouts Farmer's Market a couple of miles up the road. It really is just a smaller, more affordable version of Whole Foods or Central Market, but I mean really, really, really smaller and not much selection. They had some great prices on produce, but a lot of their produce was overripe and I didn't purchase anything there. But, I did get visiting those two stores out of my system. The next time I want to go to Central Market, I'll go to Fort Worth because it has a better selection by far. I don't know this for a fact, but it seems bigger than the one in Southlake. It might be that the Fort Worth store has more autumn pumpkins and winter squash outside because they have a big covered patio type thing in front of the store where they often have musicians and cookouts when the weather is good, and I didn't see anything like that at the Southlake store. The only advantage the Southlake store has over Fort Worth is that Tim can stop by it on his way to work at DFW Airport if there's something I "need". I got home in time to spend an hour in the garden while my sweet DH grilled chicken and sausage and made dinner. I had used up all my tomatoes today making the multi-purpose tomato sauce, but I got to pick another 6 tonight, so I'm OK. Moni, I think Tulsa might have a Whole Foods or Wild Oats which are sort of similar to Central Market but more heavily focused on organics and less focused on gourmet-type fare, although there is a lot of gourmet type stuff, especially if you like artisan cheeses and breads. I'll do some research and see what I can find out about Edmond-OKC-Tulsa. Surely something in that area has a 'health food store' with a good selection. I have found they usually have the best produce in terms of variety and selection. Today I was looking at all the fingerling potatoes (six or eight varieties) at Central Market and making a mental note to buy some in December to sprout for spring planting. Two road trips in two days. I've got to stay home and weed and mow for the rest of the week or the yard and garden will be a jungle. Jan, I'll link Pendery's below. The web site is great, but if you're ever in the Fort Worth-Dallas area, you have to visit the store for the sheer pleasure of inhaling all the lovely aromas of the many spices and herbs. Don't miss their chili mixes. They are great and come in many combinations. I love that Pickling Spice and Italian Seasoning Mixes too---they look like real spices and herbs, not just ground-up powders. Dawn Here is a link that might be useful: Pendery's Spices

It depends on the kind of kale and how thick and moist it is. I will throw a handful of baby kale on top of a pizza and get that wispy effect you've described, which is great on pizza. A delicate crunch while you're chomping through the crust. Good kale chips, in my mind, are thin, however, and not toothsome like potato chips. Pop them in your mouth and crunch. Don't give them a chance to rehydrate with saliva. Also eat one at a time for the same reason. They keep best in a smaller, fuller container. Less air means less moisture. If you have a lot of humidity, more than 60%, it's probably not worth your bother, however, as they're going to moisten up. I learned the exact opposite way--low temperature. I almost always use curly kale--I prefer red kale for the color--and never, ever dino kale. I've tried different ways and it never comes out nicely. From the curly kale, I remove the all the main spines. It's tedious. I'll sit with it, in front of a good TV show, and cut with my herb snips. Each piece is about 1-2 square inches and has some curl on it. I just clip up along the spines and back down again, then cut in pieces. The pieces are irregular sizes and shapes so they can have that bit of the curl. I always use parchment paper on a baking sheet with sides (fits my oven, works like a jelly roll pan). Mound the cut kale in the middle, drizzle with oil and sprinkle with S&P. Fluff around to combine and repeat. Then I spread them out so they're more or less in one layer. Some overlap, but nothing buried. Convection bake at 240ð F, for 20 minutes, then use catering tongs to kind of flip them over. This is just going through the sheet, spiff spiff spiff, turning over the amount I can catch. It's more about releasing the steam from underneath than about which side is up, and doesn't require perfection. Then another 20 minutes or so. Forty minutes total is usually enough, but if the bunches were big or if it's particularly moist kale, it might take another five minutes. I just test a piece. Just one. Really. One. Very tempting right out of the oven... I use pint disposable containers, mostly. Our normal humidity is in the 50% range. Hope this helps.

As an herb, there are medicinal attributes. Here's what it says in Louise Tenney's book, "Today's Herbal Health". Catnip has been called nature's "Alka-Seltzer." The Indians used it for infant colic, but it also has a sedative effect on the nervous system. It is useful for many ailments" for all cases of fevers for its action in inducing sleep and in producing perspiration without increasing heat in the body. In children it is said to speedily overcome convulsions. It is also good for restlessness and colic and as a pain killer, especially for small children and infants. It has been known to help prevent a cold when drinking a warm infusion when you notice the first symptom. It helps in fatigue and improves circulation. It is said to help to prevent miscarriages and premature births. It helps in aches and pain due to flu and upset stomach and diarrhea associated with flu. Catnip is high in vitamins A and C, and the B-complex vitamins. It contains magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, sodium, and a trace of sulphur. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ -I would caution using it on a regular basis since many herbals can cause liver toxins and even liver damage. I have an acquaintance who did herbal studies as a medical scientist this with a number of herbs and herbal blends on liver damage. -Dry it in the oven with the light on, between two layers of paper towels, rather than in the microwave if you don't have a dehydrator. Dry at a low temperature - 90-100°F. High-temp. drying will destroy many of the vitamins. -It is also suggested catnip be administered in the morning and evening. -If you take any Rx drugs or OTC medicines, check with a pharmacists for any possible drug interactions. -The tea is made from the dried leaves and flowering heads and is generally recognized as safe to use, plus it has a pleasant taste. There is one caution using it from a contemporary herbalist, Michael Moore. In general, "[catnip] may act to increase menstrual flow to varying degrees," so pregnant women should NOT use it. It can also cause spotting. -Harvesting: Gather the leaves and tops in late summer when the plant is in full bloom, and dry them carefully. Remove the tough stalks. Store in a dry place, away from light and heat. -If smoked, physicians have reported that catnip "was indeed mildly pshchoactive". -Culinary uses: as a salad ingredient -Catnip Tea: A standard beverage in England, where it is grown commercially, before the introduction of tea from China. To make catnip tea: Pour boiling water over the dried leaves/flowers and let it steep. Euell Gibbons [of the Grapenuts commercials fame decades ago] advised using a little more catnip per cup than you would ordinary tea. He also cautioned that catnip's flavor and aroma are very volatile, so he sat a saucer over his cup to "protect" his tea while it steeped. Euell Gibbons made candied catnip leaves to serve at the end of a meal, as a digestive aid or an after-dinner mint. His recipe calls for dipping catnip leaves into a mixture of beaten egg white and lemon juice. Then he sprinkled each side with sugar and let them dry for a day or so. Store in an air-tight container in the refrigerator. [Grainlady note: use reconstituted powdered egg whites, or pasteurized egg whites in a carton, for food safety since the egg white isn't cooked.] -Grainlady

Farmgardener, I'm sorry you're having such a rough time with the garden this summer. It's this darned weather. Some years we just get to a point where you cannot water enough to keep the garden producing, and it sounds like your area is at that point now. (Mine is getting closer and closer to that point by the day.) There's no shame in walking away from the garden and waiting for better weather---either in the fall or next year. Jennifer, The chickens are fine. They are bored and they are aggravated with being held hostage in a nice climate-controlled area (and I don't care that they are aggravated because I want them safe from the extreme heat). I'm thinking we'll let them out tomorrow because our forecast high for tomorrow is only 106. There's only six chickens left, courtesy of the heavy predator population we've had the last two or three years. The predators get 1 or 2 chickens a week except when I lock them up in their coop/run and don't let them free-range. This is why I'm about to give up on having chickens. We have a much, much, much worse predator problem these last few years than we had when we moved here 20 years ago. The chickens get hot or bored or whatever and wander off into the woods, despite my efforts to stop them. They ignore me and just keep going, and if you try to pursue them, which is dangerous in snake season anyway, they just run deeper into the woods, which is more dangerous for them. Then, something gets them in the woods and we never see them again. If I didn't have these 6 locked up in the mudroom, we probably would have lost at least another one this week. I call these six the smart ones because now they stick close to the house when they're out, but I don't know if they're being smart and cautious or if it just has been too hot to roam around and get very far from the house. When these are gone, I doubt we'll get more. Losing them is hard to bear. If we ever do have chickens again, they won't be allowed to free-range. If chickens are never allowed to free-range and are always confined to a fenced chicken run, they're fine with that because they don't know what it is like to be free ranging. Once they've free-ranged, though, they hate being looked up permanently and it is stressful to them to be confined. So, I try to keep these as safe as possible while still allowing them to free-range, but I'm resigned to the fact that the bobcats or coyotes will get them eventually. We went many years with only losing a couple of year, but for the last couple of years it has been 1 or 2 a week. Jacob, You've had a very adventurous couple of days. I'm glad the garden held up to the hail, and glad the baseball-sized hail didn't fall at your place. My childhood home got hit by baseball-sized hail when I was about 20 or 21 years old, and by the time all the damage was repaired, my parents practically had a new house (and new cars). I'm envious of your cool weather. When we moved here, we thought we'd be able to sleep with the windows open in nice weather. Well, that didn't work out so well as the frogs made such a racket during mating season that you couldn't sleep at all. So, the windows stay closed now. Jen, That Boston terrier sounds very, um, energetic. I hope y'all survive the weekend. Nancy, I like gravel that has been taken over by grass (and/or weeds) just like Mike McGrath described. He's one of my favorite garden writers, and Organic Gardening magazine never was worth reading after he left his job as its' editor. You can have the appearance of a grassy lawn, but the ability to park on it no matter the weather. I'd like to gravel over our entire side yard that sits between the house and garage one of these days and then let the grass grow up through the gravel. The dense, compacted clay in this area holds puddles of water forever after it rains, turning into a lake when it rains a lot, so gravel on top of the clay would be a huge improvement. Kim, I agree with you. For the 3rd or 4th day in a row, we were over 100 degrees by noon. It might have been the same at your place out there west of us. This is ridiculous heat! I'm ready for a break, even though our break here still will include highs in the upper 90s. I bet 97 will feel fairly cool after so many days between 106-111. Tomorrow should be our last triple-digit temperature day for at least a week, if the forecasters are correct. I looked at the garden about an hour ago when I went out there to check on the plants in containers. Considering the excessive heat we've been having, it looks fairly decent. Not great. Not good. Not nearly as good as usual, but mostly still alive and likely to recover if the temperatures will drop down to normal or average July temperatures. Of course, August awaits, and our hottest weather usually occurs in the first half of August so it isn't like I think the garden's hard times are over. They aren't. Maybe, though, we'll at least get a few slightly cooler days. No chance of rain though. If the drought continues to deepen and worsen, though, all bets are off. Dawn