A Seed Saver's Garden

[heirloomgal]

I wondered all summer if anything was happening under there.

My daughter couldn't wait any longer, so she dug up a plant. Turns out that yes! chufa nuts have been growing!!! It also turns out that chufa nuts need to be dried before they taste like something besides dirt!! 😂

 

[ducks4you]

@heirloomgal , I was out picking beans today

and I noticed that my asparagus bean/cowpea plant was growing THIS. Is this a seed pod, or does my plant have cancer?

 

[flowerbug]

... I noticed that my asparagus bean/cowpea plant was growing THIS. Is this a seed pod, or does my plant have cancer?

i think it is just a partially pollinated pod. due to weather/heat/dry spell or whatever.

 

[Ridgerunner]

i think it is just a partially pollinated pod. due to weather/heat/dry spell or whatever.

 

[heirloomgal]

@heirloomgal , I was out picking beans today View attachment 51991and I noticed that my asparagus bean/cowpea plant was growing THIS. Is this a seed pod, or does my plant have cancer?

I think flowerbug's response is the same thought I had, a pollination blip! But that peach flower though! 😍

 

[heirloomgal]

The rains are on. Pulled out of the garden what I could. A few of the poles for the beans I had to break off because they were so deeply lodged, much tighter fit this year than last for some reason.

Pea seeds are all collected and dried. First row of lettuce stalks are inside too. I'll be curious to pull the bags off and have a looksee at what's inside. The varietal differences are really showing, as the 4 other varieties are only just beginning flowering now, while this one is 100% dried.

My legume experiment - favas, lupinis, teparies, cicerchia and cowpeas - has been mostly encouraging. Most did rather well, considering a pretty major cold spell that caused bean flies to descend, and the lupinis were all killed by them unfortunately.

Tomatoes are 75% done as far as seed collecting goes. I tried a new method this year; instead of using red Costco cups and baggies secured with elastics I used glass jars w/lids. This seemed a wonderful improvement, until I cracked my first jar and it boiled over. Seems obvious now, but I didn't think they'd build so much pressure. @ducks4you do you think they could blow?

Wow @Zeedman the marbled soybeans are taking their time! I started them 1 month in advance, spaced each plant 1 foot apart, and they're still fully green! Hopefully they'll wind down soon. The good news is zero rodent problems thus far. I pulled the fully dried (and unmauraded) Gaia's a few weeks ago. They did so well where I put them I think I'm gonna dedicate that whole bed to soybeans in 2023.

When all is finally in, I'll be curious to evaluate how everything did. Tried lots of new things this year.

 

[ducks4you]

@heirloomgal, I have been hot water bath canning for over 20 years, pressure canning just this year.
I was concerned about pressure canning, but I realize that there are two place in the lid where pressure is released constantly as it heats up. the "rocker" helps to hold in pressure, but it still allows for pressure to release.
The gauge shows how Much pressure it is experiencing at the time.
AGAIN, you must watch the gauge. It heats up faster than you think.
My pressure canner is a Presto, but the directions don't tell you what I have learned and Read online, about turning Down the heat on the burner to adjust after you hit the recommended pressure, and I often PC at 15 when it calls for 11 bc you don't want the pressure to fall BELOW the recommendations.
Tomatoes can be PC'd for only 25 minutes.
Most of my PCanning has been meat based, and that takes 75 minutes to complete.
Regarding cracked jars, I had to do some creative thinking bc the instructions for the pressure canner say to start with cold water. IF I have hot produce and put them into cold water it will crack the jars. Also, cold to hot will do the same. I will boil water in either type of canner if the produce has been boiling and start cold produce in cold water. I follow directions pretty closely with the pressure canner. I sometimes add MORE time when I hot water bath can, just to be sure and I often process tomatoes for 45 minutes.
I am NOT in a hurry to remove the jars, either, often letting them cool completely overnight. It's a time saver and does no harm, and, with the pressure canner, the outside is usually still hot the next morning anyway.
Also, I have started to only hot water bath can 4 quarts at a time, even though it will hold 7 quarts, bc the water boils over onto the stove. You need to have a good inch of water over the jars for a good seal. The only difference is that you need to babysit the pressure canner to keep the pressure, or lower the dial so it doesn't heat up too high. With hot water bath canning I can wear a watch and walk away.
I have started to use my freezer more, especially since I keep two 7 cu ft freezers and one 14 1/2 cu ft freezer--lots of space. I prefer to can and store bc it takes no electricity to store.
Hope I answered your question!

 

[ducks4you]

Pressure Canning: Beginner's Guide and Recipes

Pressure canning is the safest way to preserve your hard-earned harvest and expand your family's food self-reliance.

www.almanac.com

I am sure that you have been online looking for advice on this. This article is pretty good--if you have inherited a pressure canner make sure that you replace the rubber seal on the lid, and you might need to replace the gauge, too, just to be sure.
I suggest that you make broth the first time that you pressure can!
Broth is made by boiling down the bones from a recent meal (and old vegetables added which add nice flavor,) it's not a big $investment if you fail the first time, not like buying expensive meat, or sacrificing a recent haul from the garden. I cook my broth in my crockpot. One broth making cooked for 5 days straight.
Be sure to use NAME BRAND lids. I have had a dozen cheapo lids fail me. The broth failures have gone to my dog's dinner's, adding broth to dry kibble.
I tried to pressure can pork bbq and HATED the taste. It works better, IMHO, by freezing.
Chili is an excellent food to pressure can. I like using pints, and the large pressure canners are designed to process up to 14 pints. You can only process 7 quarts, which I know is the same volume. I like to empty and eat the whole jar, so any leftover doesn't die in the fridge.

 

[Zeedman]

Wow @Zeedman the marbled soybeans are taking their time! I started them 1 month in advance, spaced each plant 1 foot apart, and they're still fully green! Hopefully they'll wind down soon. The good news is zero rodent problems thus far. I pulled the fully dried (and unmauraded) Gaia's a few weeks ago. They did so well where I put them I think I'm gonna dedicate that whole bed to soybeans in 2023.

I knew the DTM would be a challenge up there; but figured that if you could grow so many pole beans to seed successfully, those soybeans might have a chance. I really want someone besides me growing them. Your Gaia soybeans look great. I'm not growing anything especially glamorous this year, had to focus on varieties nearing the end of their seed life.

About 1/2 of my soybeans are still green too. Two of the eight varieties appear unlikely to make it before the freeze.

 

[heirloomgal]

I knew the DTM would be a challenge up there; but figured that if you could grow so many pole beans to seed successfully, those soybeans might have a chance. I really want someone besides me growing them. Your Gaia soybeans look great. I'm not growing anything especially glamorous this year, had to focus on varieties nearing the end of their seed life.

About 1/2 of my soybeans are still green too. Two of the eight varieties appear unlikely to make it before the freeze.

Saw the slightest shift away from green today! Found a new vole hole nearby though so I hoed and made sure if they try to make it over to my beans they'll need to risk their lives in open space to do it. I made sure to eliminate any possible easy access and then propped all the sagging plants up with little flower fences.

Given that I've taken away a big armload of broken branches from them, and therefore lost a lot of pods as a result, there is still a fair bit there. Got my fingers crossed! Next year (if I succeed), I'll grow 'em in tomato cages.