‘How-To’ Canning Guides for Garden Harvest
September 4, 2011
It’s garden harvest season, and what to do with all of that bounty? You can only eat so much of it while it’s still fresh, you may give some of it away, but don’t forget about the best of all – preserve it for later!
I came across some resources from the University of Gerogia which may help you with preserving some of your garden crop.
The following ‘how-to’ canning guides are from the USDA and may offer some insightful information to even the expert Canner.
They are ‘PDF’ files, so, Adobe Acrobat Reader is required to view them (most everyone already has this).
Selecting, Preparing, and Canning Fruit and Fruit Products
Selecting, Preparing, and Canning Tomatoes and Tomato Products
Selecting, Preparing, and Canning Vegetables and Vegetable Products
Preparing and Canning Poultry, Red Meats, and Seafoods
Preparing and Canning Fermented Foods and Pickled Vegetables
Preparing and Canning Jams and Jellies
When canning however, be aware of the 12 Lifesaving Canning Rules
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Heirloom Seeds Keep Giving Year after Year
June 2, 2011
Heirloom Seeds. Why do you want them? Because after the plant has grown, you can harvest the seeds from one of the vegetables and use them for future growing seasons. Why can’t you simply use the seeds from a vegetable of non-Heirloom Seeds? Because those seeds will not grow into mature healthy producing plants. You many get some harvest from them, and if you do, it will not be the same or as productive as the original. Heirloom Seeds produce the same crop time and time again.
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I Planted My Potatoes Today
May 9, 2011
I’ll bet that many of you have at least one unused portion of your yard, maybe a corner, fence-line, or border, that you could use for a mini-garden, or larger. Today I decided to utilize the northwest corner of my backyard fence to create a garden spot to plant potatoes.
We don’t have one big garden at the M.S.B. homestead, but instead we utilize many different smaller areas that blend in well with the rest of the yard. I’ve used the backyard corner before (we’ve grown onions back there, zucchini, and even pumpkins), and decided this year to dig it up good with my 4-cycle ‘cultivator’, which is really a mini-rototiller… any excuse to play with power tools…
After fighting a little with some bamboo roots which were creeping underneath the fence from the neighbors yard (bamboo spreads like crazy – be warned), I tilled a good 10 inches deep or thereabouts into a rich soil that is somewhat heavy with clay. I’ve appended the soil a bit over the years to soften it up.
Knowing that last year I successfully grew store-bought potatoes as opposed to specific ‘seed’ potatoes, I used part of a bag of old Russet potatoes that we had here. I let them get older in the bag that they came in, and after several weeks they were growing some nice green shoots.
All you have to do is cut / slice the potato such that you have at least one decent green shoot growing out. For the most part, it seemed that I was able to get two decent size chunks from each potato, each chunk with several shoots growing.
I dug several trenches with a hoe, about 6 inches deep, and placed the potato chunks in there with the green shoots facing up.
Then, only cover the potato pieces with about 2 inches of soil, while saving the rest of the trench mound for later.
Once the green shoots have grown through the soil and have reached a height of say, 6 inches, then cover up about 4 of the 6 inches of leaves with more of the dirt remaining from the trench mound. When you do this, more potatoes will grow from those covered branches.
Did you know that potatoes are one of the highest calorie vegetables that you can plant in your garden? From a survival garden point of view, potatoes are great. Since you will be harvesting more than you can eat, all you have to do is slice and dehydrate the excess for later! If you have a root cellar, that will prolong your harvest too.
Check out this article that I wrote regarding calories versus vegetable choices for your garden.
Well there you have it… I will update this post with pictures and progress as these potatoes mature.
By the way, companions for potatoes are bush bean, members of the cabbage family, carrot, celery, corn, dead nettle, flax, horseradish, marigold, peas, petunia, and onion.
Don’t plant these around potatoes: asparagus, cucumber, kohlrabi, parsnip, pumpkin, rutabaga, squash family, sunflower, turnip and fennel. Keep potatoes and tomatoes apart as they both can get early and late blight contaminating each other.
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Birds, Please Stop Eating My Strawberries!
May 8, 2011
Many birds will eat strawberries, including the Common Crow, Gray Catbird, sparrows, Cedar Waxwing, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Blue Jay, Northern Mockingbird, European Starling, American Robin, an the Northern Cardinal.
Last year I battled with the birds over my two little strawberry patches, each measuring about 3×3 feet – but stuffed full of strawberries. Last year my biggest bird problem was with the Mockingbird and the Robin. This year we are battling with the Blue Jay.
What they do of course is the moment that the berries begin to turn red, their built-in birdar (their version of radar) zeroes in on the delicious color and they begin to pick and devour at the strawberries.
(I have a similar problem with my Merlot grape vines which span across about 100 feet of trellis across some of the back perimeter of the yard. The very time when the grapes begin to turn blue, the attacks begin.)
Today I have decided to get much more serious about the perimeter security of our two precious strawberry patches. No, I didn’t load up one of the firearms… Instead, I made a trip down to ‘OSH’ Orchard Supply Hardware and went through the arsenal of bird deterrent technologies ranging from fake bobble-head birds-of-prey to flashy aluminum shiny ribbon. Since I already have the bobble-head birds-of-prey and a bobble-head owl which I normally reserve for grape season (so they don’t get too used to it), I decided to go with a protective bird netting.
Having just completed the strawberry patch fortress, I now know that unless you are a net fisherman, you will probably have a bit of frustration while dealing with a net. Nets are magnets for getting stuck on every little thing imaginable, not to mention the fact that you can hardly see it when you’re working on it or cutting it (at least it was true for this one).
The nets come in fairly large rolls. This one (the smallest I could find) was 14 feet by 45 feet (about $25 – ouch). I only needed to cut a square of about 10×10 feet, but I’m sure I’ll use the excess as I continue the bird battle down the road with other yummy treats.
For those that are going to attempt to build a preventative bird net, be aware that it is best to support the net in some way such that the net is not directly on the fruit itself. It’s Okay to lay the net over things like grape vines and such – because the fruit is suspended underneath and the birds can’t get it. Strawberries however are just lying there and the birds could just sit on the net and pick away…
Also be aware that birds will apparently try to get underneath and walk their way in to the feast – little sneaky buggers… So be sure to do your best to seal off means of entry.
Be creative and just work with what you have. Everyone’s little patch of goodies are different and the netting structure will have to be custom applied for effectiveness.
Since I’ve just now completed the strawberry patch bird net, I cannot yet report on it’s overall effectiveness. I will update with first hand results, as the patch is within my direct view of the office bay window. Maybe I’ll be able to catch a photo of a frustrated Blue Jay, and declare VICTORY!
On the other hand, I have a feeling this battle may continue… 
Update (the next day)
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Plant these Companions with Tomatoes
May 7, 2011
COMPANION PLANTING: Many plants have natural substances in their roots, flowers, and leaves that can repel or attract insects. In some situations they can also enhance the growth rate and flavor of other varieties. Using companion planting through out the landscape is an effective form of pest management, allowing nature to do its’ job. By using companion planting, many gardeners find that they can discourage harmful pests without losing the beneficial allies.
There are many varieties of herbs, flowers, etc. that can be used for companion plants and could be used as a border, backdrop or inter-planting in your vegetable beds.
TOMATOES: Tomato allies are many: asparagus, basil, bean, celery, chive, cucumber, garlic, head lettuce, marigold, mint, nasturtium, onion, parsley, pea, pepper, and sow thistle.
Basil repels flies and mosquitoes, improves growth and flavor. Bee balm, chives and mint improve health and flavor. Borage deters tomato worm, improves growth and flavor. Dill, until mature, improves growth and health, mature dill retards tomato growth.
Enemies: corn and tomato are attacked by the same worm. Kohlrabi stunts tomato growth. Keep potatoes and tomatoes apart as they both can get early and late blight contaminating each other. Keep apricot, dill, fennel, cabbage and cauliflower away from them. Don’t plant them under walnut trees as they will get walnut wilt: a disease that attacks tomatoes growing underneath these trees.
Consider planting these easy companions with your tomatoes
BASIL: Plant with tomatoes to improve growth and flavor. Basil also does well with peppers, oregano, asparagus and petunias. Basil can be helpful in repelling thrips. It is said to repel flies and mosquitoes. Do not plant near rue or sage.
CHIVES: Improves growth and flavor of carrots and tomatoes. A friend to apples, carrots, tomatoes, brassica (broccoli, cabbage, mustard, etc) and many others. Help to keep aphids away from tomatoes, mums and sunflowers. Chives may drive away Japanese beetles and carrot rust fly.
FRENCH MARIGOLD: They have roots that exude a substance which spreads in their immediate vicinity killing nematodes. For nematode control you want to plant dense areas of them. There have been some studies done that proved this nematode killing effect lasted for several years after the plants died back. These marigolds also help to deter whiteflies when planted around tomatoes and can be used in greenhouses for the same purpose. Whiteflies hate the smell of marigolds. Do not plant French marigolds next to bean plants.
PEPPERS, BELL (Sweet Peppers): Plant peppers near tomatoes. Harvesting tip: The traditional bell pepper, for example, is harvested green, even though most varieties will mature red, orange, or yellow. Peppers can be harvested at any stage of growth, but their flavor doesn’t fully develop until maturity.
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Heirloom Tomato Seeds, Preserved
April 4, 2011
Tomatoes are extremely popular in backyard gardens, but unfortunately they are dominated by commercial F1 Hybrids which are bred for industry and economy – high density, thick skinned for mechanical harvesting, to name a few.
Heirloom tomatoes can be bred true from seed and are living legacies. The seeds from F1 Hybrids for example, cannot be bred effectively, if at all, from seed.
How to save Heirloom Tomato Seeds
You can use the simple method of squeezing out the seeds and air-drying them. This often works well enough. However there is a better way, using Fermentation.
Tomato Seed Fermentation
The fermentation process destroys the gel sac surrounding the seed (including growth inhibitors and any diseases). This is the process that happens naturally in nature when a tomato drops from the vine and rots on the ground.
Choose a container that will fill about half-way (not terribly critical though) with the pulp/seed mixture. For example, a pint size canning jar filled half-way will hold several tomatoes worth of pulp and seeds.
It is best to use one of the healthiest and largest tomatoes of the variety. Using just one variety (to keep track), cut the tomato, and squeeze out the juice, seeds, and pulp into a container. Work at getting as many seeds out of the tomato that you can.
For four days, keep the uncovered container (or with cheese-cloth on top to keep critters out) in a room temperature or slightly warm environment. Several times a day, stir the pulp mixture that floats to the top so that it mixes with the juice. The goop will smell a bit after awhile and will grow mold – not to worry – just keep it away from your daily traffic
After four days, fill up the rest of the container with water and stir it. Pour out the pulp stuff while leaving the seeds which should be at the bottom of the container. Add water and repeat the process several times while trying to get as much pulp mixture out of the solution while leaving the seeds at the bottom.
Dump the seeds into a fine strainer sieve, and rinse with water while mushing what’s left of the pulp through the mesh.
Dump the seeds on to a paper plate by snapping the strainer up-side-down to the plate.
Spread the seeds around and let them dry for several weeks at room temperature.
Put the seeds in an airtight container and store them in a dark, cool, dry place. Keeping the air-tight container (Tupperware or Ziploc bag) inside of a brown paper bag does the trick too. Refrigeration will extend the life for many years. Be sure the storage container is air-tight though because humidity will cause degradation.
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Container Garden Onions, Sand Soil Mix
March 31, 2011
We somewhat regularly grow a quantity of onions in our garden each year, along with everything else, but this year we’re going to try something a little different as an experiment. That is, growing some of them in a container (bucket). Many homes do not have the space for a full-on garden, so container gardening is often a great alternative, and actually has its benefits!
A container can be moved around or placed anywhere. In other words, you can find the sunny location and put it there.
A container will keep underground critters from getting to the roots of your plants (gophers, etc…).
The soil mixture can be specifically tailored to each container and variety of vegetable that you are growing.
The soil to grow onions (bulbs) needs to be porous and sandy. Thick clay soils, packed with lots of organic matter, are too dense for good growth, but adding some sand to clay soil will greatly assist in onion growth (should be good for carrots and other vegetables too).
Onions are very high in moisture content and that moisture is taken directly from the soil. The goal is to have moist soil but not wet soil. To test the moisture content, take a handful of the soil and clench it in your fist. If water squeezes out between your fingers, the soil is too wet for onions to do well. Having an amount of sand mixed in with the soil will help to avoid soggy wet soil because of the increased drainage properties that the sand provides.
In today’s short video, I am simply mixing a quantity of sand with the soil, to provide a nice loamy and well draining loose soil mixture which is best for growing onions.
It’s as simple as this:
Gardening, of any sort, is one of the underlying basic essentials of survival preparedness skills that lead to further self-sufficiency and self-reliance, less dependency on other systems, and definitely adds a level of peace-of-mind that is hard to explain. We challenge you to give it a try
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