… I see trellises…. $2 each for the ones that look like a deck railing and $1.50 each for the vertical ones!
….and since I already had the truck to get the blocks I thought I might as well take advantage of the shelves for $5 each and the almost-new-I-can-believe-someone-would-get-rid-of-the-chairs-just-because-the-glass-table-blew-away lawn chairs that are REALLY comfortable!
OMG! I bought 54 concrete blocks at ReStore in Appleton today for $.25 each…. that’s twenty-five cents each!! Can you say “RAISED BEDS”!
A ripe pear is a sweet pear.
A little known fact about the pear is that it is one of the few fruits that does not ripen on the tree. The pear is harvested when it is mature, but not yet ripe, and, if left at room temperature, it slowly reaches a sweet and succulent maturity as it ripens from the inside out.
As tempting as the pear might be right from the grocer’s stand, a little bit of patience and know-how will ensure the pear reaches its peak flavor.
So, how do you know when the pear has ripened to sweet and juicy perfection?
While a Bartlett’s skin color brightens as it ripens, most varieties of pears show little change in color.
The best way to judge ripeness for non-Bartlett varieties is to Check the Neck™: Apply gentle pressure to the neck of the pear with your thumb. If it yields to pressure, it’s ripe. Easy, isn’t it?
Here’s what you need to do to ripen your pears:
Keep a fresh fruit fresh.
Like many fruits, the flesh of cut or peeled pears will eventually brown. This natural oxidation process won’t affect the taste or quality. However, to keep your pears looking appetizing and to prevent browning, dip them in a mild solution of 50% water and 50% lemon juice!
Remember, don’t refrigerate an unripe pear!
Ripened pears can be used at once or put under refrigeration (35º to 45º F) until you want to use them. Refrigeration will delay further ripening but will not stop it altogether, giving you adequate time to include fresh pears in your menu planning. Remember, pears need to ripen at room temperature, so don’t refrigerate an unripe pear!
Flavor well worth the wait
Place underripe pears in a fruit bowl at room temperature near other ripening fruit like bananas, which naturally give off ethylene and will help speed up the ripening process. And if you find yourself with a few too many overripe pears, blend them into smoothies, soups, sauces and purees!
The front of the raised bed!
The rear of the raised bed!
Waiting to see what this is!
Yum… little tomatoes slightly bigger than cherry tomatoes.
So what the heck are tomatillos? We’ll see!
Raspberry plants hate wet feet, and they are gross feeders. We addressed these two critical points by building a 20-inch-high raised bed and filling it with a mixture of four-fifths good garden topsoil blended with about one-fifth sand, peat, and well-rotted manure. If, like us, you have acidic soil, you will also need to add some lime, because raspberries prefer a soil pH of around 6.0. We left one end of the box open to allow easy access with our wheelbarrows, then closed it in when the box was full. This job can be done in the fall, so you are ready to plant, come spring.
If you have rich, deep soil that drains well year-round, you can simply plant your raspberries in a permanent garden site. Not us. The Pacific Northwest gets rain all winter, and many gardeners lose raspberries to root rot because they make the mistake of planting their raspberries' fussy little toes directly in the ground, which is often soggy clay covered with a skim of topsoil. We also experience a two-month drought most summers. Raised beds allow us to have deep soil that holds moisture evenly yet drains well.
It is important that you do not establish your raspberry patch in an area where you have recently grown tomatoes, peppers, or potatoes, to avoid verticillium wilt, which these vegetables can carry, and raspberries can catch.
Striped and Bi-Colored Tomatoes
Black, Purple, and Brown Tomatoes
White Tomatoes
Leftover chili,
carrot tops ( a good substitute for parsley flakes) and
green peppers (25 dehydrated to make what is in that jar!)
My neighbor and my go-to person… I guess you would say “mentor” with this whole gardening thing!
Peach Leaves
Who knew that peach leaves could be edible? Well maybe not edible, but useful in flavoring what you are about to eat. Someone, at some point found out that peach leaves impart a beautiful almond and floral flavor to whatever they might be steeped in. You can pick a few brand new tender peach leave to steep in milk for about five minutes and use that milk to make ice cream or a peach leaf custard.
Peach Leaf Custard
Every European country has it's own version of custard. And why not? Little children love it. It is easy to digest and very delicate. The ingredients are always on hand. Here is a version Nona Zurlo made occasionally. It no doubt hearkens back to a time when flavorings did not come in little bottles. Whenever we paid a call on anyone, Nona would invariably ask her hostess for a tour of the garden. Little "slips" of flowers and shrubs would always be requested and if there was a peach tree a few leaves would be tucked into Nona's bag. The taste is delicate and unique. If you are having John Ash or Martha Stewart to dinner sometime we guarantee they will be asking you for this recipe and wondering about the source of the flavor.
2 1/4 cups milk
6 fresh peach leaves, washed and dried
5 egg yolks
7 tablespoons sugar
pinch of salt
Must have been planted by a squirrel! It’s right in the middle of the path where we walk!
Right down my alley…. I think the blueberry bushes are going to get a raise!
The practice of growing fruits and vegetables on raised beds has proved to be successful for blueberries, providing growers with a cheaper, more beneficial alternative production method.
Ohio State University research has found that blueberries grown on raised beds produced comparable yields to blueberries grown on flat, tile-drained soil.
"We can say with 90 percent certainty that raised beds are sufficient for blueberries," said Dick Funt, an OSU horticulturist. "There's no need to install a costly tile drainage system when a grower can get equal or better yields on raised beds."
….water plants really good and hang clothes out to dry!!!
If that’s what it takes – I’m THERE!
The tree hasn’t died after falling over!!
Wonder why my fingers look pink.. they weren’t!
Here I am in Waupaca at the UW extension at the courthouse learning how to can… it was hands on… very cool! Carrots and tomato sauce!
….and this was the temperature when I got in my van to come home… and it stayed that high!
