The Old Folks Home

[superchemicalgirl]

I do have a pressure canner, I'll look and see if the book that came with it recommends anything for pumpkin. I don't know why I didn't think of that.

I've never had freezer jam - do you take it out of the freezer and put it in the fridge when you want to use it? Stupid question, I know, but I really have no idea what it is.

I'm kinda sad that our short growing season is over. I think I have a couple of cubanelle peppers out there still on the vine but it's too disgusting to go out and see.

I also have about a dozen celery plants that will require me, and soon, to make a decision on them. Does anyone preserve celery? How? I don't have a dehydrator.

 

[mickey328]

I think I read somewhere that you can can pumpkin...low acid, so has to be done under pressure. That's what made me wonder if you couldn't do the jam that way

Yep...I just follow the recipe in the pectin package. Basically, you process the fruit, add the sugar and pectin, stir it up and then freeze it. I freeze in half pint jars. When you want to use one, take it from the freezer and stick it in the fridge. It'll keep nicely there till it's gone. I've done peach and strawberry that way and the colors are more vibrant and the taste is more like fresh fruit.

I've never tried to grow celery. Was it difficult? I've dehydrated celery, and regularly freeze it for use in stocks and such. I think it's one of those things that has to be eaten fresh as celery or just used for cooking after either freezing or dehydrating. I keep a plastic ice cream bucket in the freezer and toss in all the vegetables we have that get a little beyond where we'd like to eat them. When I have the bones (and time, LOL) I dump 'em all in the pressure cooker and make stock. Once I get the liquid off, the rest either goes to the compost pile (minus the bones) or to the chickens.

 

[superchemicalgirl]

I've never tried to grow celery. Was it difficult?

I've read that celery can be difficult to grow, but I really didn't have any problem. They do take FOREVER to grow, though. Like, started in early March from seeds in my basement grow box. I gave some extra seedlings to my BFs mom, and she managed to kill them all after transplant, but mine did fine.

They are surprisingly different tasting than anything you get in the store. The stores are all light green colored (I think they're blanched) and not very celery-y - I didn't blanch ours and the taste is phenomenally strong, but good, and they're very dark. I used that in my chicken stock the last few times and have used it in soups and stews. I think I might try freezing chopped up celery bits for soups and stews in the winter. I froze some peppers for that same reason.



This was them about a month ago. They look quite different than the grocery ones. The breed is Tall Utah. It was the only breed I could actually find for seeds.

 

[mickey328]

Wow, lots of leaves! Thanks for the info...think I may try some next year. I don't use much but it seems I never have any when I want some.

 

[superchemicalgirl]

It was very "set it and forget it" - had to water it maybe twice during a particularly dry spell and weed it a few times. I've gone out a number of times and ripped off what I needed. Very convenient. I rarely eat it raw so if it freezes well it will become a new garden staple.

You may also see around the internet to regrow your celery from the rootball by placing it in water (like a grocery store one). A bunch of us on theeasygarden did this and all of ours died after transplant. In fact, it was the only celery plant that died in my row of celery. Stick with seeds.

 

[Stumpy]

I used to watch a lot of gardening shows and I remember one about celery. They recommended that you not even attempt it if you lived in the south and I've never known anyone to grow it here. If it grows well in Maine, I would think it could be grown in Colorado.

I am planning on making pear preserves -- I've never tried anything else. That vanilla sauce sounds yummy! I really need to try pressure-canning so I will not be limited to jellies, preserves and tomatoes. I am a bit afraid of it.

 

[nailladi]

IM IN!!, my husband and I are cross country truck drivers, and run 49 states with an 83 foot long tractor trailer we call the iron man. We also have a little farm in Georgia where we raise guineas, chickens and muscovy ducks. Our kids are all raised and have families of their own so we would fall along the line of old I think, lol. I am way in on the older forum. Our helpers (Ann and Dave) while we are on the road are in their 40's so they might also qualify.. (smile) .
There are so many people who would like to have what we have but are limited as the are forced (job wise) to live in cities or close to them. We are working on giving people the best of both worlds by helping them develop a backyard system to have fresh eggs they can depend on being healthy without worrying about where they came from.. We are an hour from Atlanta and have the people, the chickens and hatchery needs to help anyone interested in learning how to have backyard chickens.
Tom and Carol

 

[superchemicalgirl]

I really need to try pressure-canning so I will not be limited to jellies, preserves and tomatoes. I am a bit afraid of it.

It's not as bad as it seems. I was very nervous the first few times but have gotten used to it now. My biggest complaint is that it takes forever, time-wise.

Most of the stuff that I like to make can be waterbath canned. Glad I have the pressure one though, for things like stock.

 

[mickey328]

The idea of a pressure canner didn't freak me too much since I'd grown up with Grandma using one for cooking. I was a little nervous about jars and such but got over it fairly quickly. I learned, with my first try that you absolutely MUST leave the alloted head space, LOL. I tend to like to fill them jars, but..my first batch of green beans came out with about an inch of liquid left in them...it'd all boiled up and out. I'm really glad I got it though...and I'm using it way more this year and plan to continue using it more and more as I get more into doing veggies and soup and meat and such

 

[Cynthia12]

I've read that celery can be difficult to grow, but I really didn't have any problem. They do take FOREVER to grow, though. Like, started in early March from seeds in my basement grow box. I gave some extra seedlings to my BFs mom, and she managed to kill them all after transplant, but mine did fine.

They are surprisingly different tasting than anything you get in the store. The stores are all light green colored (I think they're blanched) and not very celery-y - I didn't blanch ours and the taste is phenomenally strong, but good, and they're very dark. I used that in my chicken stock the last few times and have used it in soups and stews. I think I might try freezing chopped up celery bits for soups and stews in the winter. I froze some peppers for that same reason.



This was them about a month ago. They look quite different than the grocery ones. The breed is Tall Utah. It was the only breed I could actually find for seeds.

Wow, love this! You own celery, I don't ever hear of it growing here..in Utah. Probably too warm here.