Recent content by NurseNettie

Thanks guys. Now-- I think you should all share your wonderful recipes :) I like the idea of jam. I hope to find some nice things to do jam with. I have a lot of blueberries-- I might do jam with those. I love seeds, too, but, hubby and I have both had major dental work this year, so...

I've picked them both ways. Sometimes if they've wilted, they can be moldy inside, though. I picked and shelled regardless of the condition of the pod-- and sorted out the good ones. I only had a few that were damp or moldy. The rest went into a container with silica gel ( sort of container...

Thank you!

I guess I'm not entirely sure of the difference. I know jelly is from juice-- jam has more fruit-- but where is the line you cross from one to the other? I've got a wealth of chokecherries nearly ready to pick ( if the birds dont' get them at the peak of ripeness during this rain), and will be...

They sure are! I used many seeds this year, that I bought from there, and elsewhere, 3 years ago. I keep them "safe and sound", and always have a nice supply of seeds, without a ton of cost ( and yes, I try to save seeds as well, though I'm no pro at it yet!)

Not sure where to post, but I got my first email today from tomatobob.com -- their 50 cent seed specials are starting this month. Not sure how many months he'll have specials, but this is when I start buying next year's seeds. For three years now, I've planted a lot of seeds from this site...

We're considering canning a lot of our potatoes this year, if the root cellar isn't complete (hubby is building me one). Can you tell me how you did it? Sliced, diced, quarts, pints etc? I've been curious if they turn out mushy at all. I'd love freshly canned, ready to heat potatoes for...

When ours are ready, they will be canned whole or chopped, with a bit of salsa made as well. We'll make sauce as we need it this year, since I just about killed myself watching over sauce last year---- it never seemed to be "done"-- so all the 'maters are going in jars, and we'll grab a...

We got our potatoes in a bit late this year, but have about 100 hills (lets hope hubby gets the root cellar finished before "harvest time")...... I've got Kennebec ( volunteers from last year that we let go-- just a few plants), Yukon gold, Arimosa, and a Red variety. Today was the day that...

Definitely read up on what the process is, and what it does-- and what types of foods fit into what categories. The quick and dirty version is------ Acidic food versus non-acidic food. Similar process, but 2 different goals. Sealing jars isn't the "goal" for canning, it's bringing your...

Definitely what he said. I buy my mints in plant form, from an Amish greenhouse- they grow all theirs from slips and are wonderful. This year I got an Applemint and an Indian Mint ( can't recall the 'formal" name of it) and I can't wait to cook with them!

I've got a few volunteer potatoes growing around my squash plants. The plants are huge ( much bigger than the spuds we planted ) and I've been thinking of digging around to see what I can find this weekend...

I guess living in Northern Maine does have it's benefits... although I'd love a longer growing season, I'd hate for that extreme heat. Do you have any means to shade your plants for any part of the day to reduce some of the radiant heat, at least? Or very heavy mulch after watering? Since...

My husband has turned into this year's gardener (he's home this year- so he's taken over). We've got lots of potato plants, and lots of potato bugs. He diligently picks and squishes them by the hundreds every day. Until now, we've used nothing but DE, beer (for slugs) etc. in the...

I sliced and dried a lot last year, to add to soups. I've also frozen the shredded zukes in the past, and used for baking. Quite nice that way also.