What did you do in the garden today?

[NorthTexasWink]

Yes there are females. Just yellow looking and not opening. I'll recheck today.

That sound like quite a process. Here I thought I'd buy plugs and plant them in the oak trees.

You can certainly do that! But I wanted things I couldn't reliably grow that way. At least not in my area. And not in winter. I harvested enough chanterelles, porto bello, various asian and button mushrooms to set a lot by (dehydrated and canned alone and in soup mixes), plus enough to share. My chef buds were in 'shroom heaven!

 

[CapricornFarm]

Been off a couple of days. Picked banana peppers and made 12 pints of salad peppers. Picked and cut up two gallon bags of okra. Canned 14 qts of soup starter.

Tests Tuesday results: the burning pain in my hands is not from my cervical discs but is severe carpal tunnel syndrome. Was happy that neck surgery doesn't need to be done. Doctor will recommend to the neurosurgeon that I need surgery on both hands. The left hand is further damaged in that the nerve is half the size of the right hand. The right hand nerve is half what it should be. Since the right hand is the most painful, surgery will stop the pain. For the left hand, surgery will stop the impingement saving what nerve I have. Will look at mid fall when things slow down some. Six to eight week recovery for each hand...one hand at a time.
My sister had surgery on her right hand and several years ago...said she was glad she did...avid gardener.

I had both mine done, very happy with the results.

 

[igorsMistress]

I've been pulling tape off boxes and making a pile of cardboard to put around the apple tree. Going to put my little fence back up and add more mulch, gotta keep those girls from the root zone and they love the soil under there. Watering a few things, digging holes for the crepe myrtles so they can be planted on arrival.

 

[NorthTexasWink]

We have had the oddest weather this season! Everything so green and I've hardly used any of my rainwater stores. Need to empty a rainbarrel into the few empty storage jugs I have before it rains tomorrow. Might even get a shower today. Cool clouds this morning, but didn't have camera handy. TV and online had other folk's pics of it, called a roll cloud. Very cool, but no rain.

More painting today, if the rain stays away. Got waterer hung in the henhouse to go with the one in the run. Working on bulk feeder still. Cutting the holes for the PVC elbows is harder than I thought without a hole saw. Just trying to keep all my fingers attached!

Okra gonna bury me! Time to make gumbo base to put by. Might try making spicy pickled okra too. Had some of my bread'n butter hot pickles last night, one jar slow to seal. Mmmm.

Watching some of the fall seeds already coming up. Going to have beans for a long time, and more okra, hopeful the tomatoes will do well too. First time trying a late crop here. The transplants are looking good so far, but no blooms yet.

 

[NanaKat]

Picked okra, tomatoes and peppers. Got 1/2 inch while town north and south got over 3 inches...storm split before getting here.
Going to see sister today.
Will begin canning again this evening...taco sauce.

 

[chickmom3941]

Been off a couple of days. Picked banana peppers and made 12 pints of salad peppers. Picked and cut up two gallon bags of okra. Canned 14 qts of soup starter.

Tests Tuesday results: the burning pain in my hands is not from my cervical discs but is severe carpal tunnel syndrome. Was happy that neck surgery doesn't need to be done. Doctor will recommend to the neurosurgeon that I need surgery on both hands. The left hand is further damaged in that the nerve is half the size of the right hand. The right hand nerve is half what it should be. Since the right hand is the most painful, surgery will stop the pain. For the left hand, surgery will stop the impingement saving what nerve I have. Will look at mid fall when things slow down some. Six to eight week recovery for each hand...one hand at a time.
My sister had surgery on her right hand and several years ago...said she was glad she did...avid gardener.

Nanakat, I'm so glad to hear that you don't need the neck surgery! Still sounds painful (the carpal tunnel), but I've heard about good results with the carpal tunnel surgery. Hope it goes well.

 

[chickmom3941]

Missed the mushroom spawn part last time. Where do you get starts, wild or bought in box? I was extremely lucky to get some morels this year in my compost pile. After looking at the morels map they don't usually grow this far south in California. Must have been all the rain we received.

I was so interested to get into mushroom growing that I actually bought a book about it. I never finished reading the whole book, as it sounded a little difficult to me. Do you guys grow them? I am really still interested in doing it, just got a little discouraged that it would be too hard.

 

[chickmom3941]

Haven't been on for awhile, due to computer problems and other issues. Tuesday night we successfully slipped the four baby chicks underneath Bertha (the broody hen), and she accepted them! I'm so glad she did because I really didn't want to have to raise them in the house till they are big enough to join the flock, and didn't want to have to integrate them into the flock, either. It's so much easier with a momma hen. And they are SO CUTE!!

 

[pennyJo1960]

Haven't been on for awhile, due to computer problems and other issues. Tuesday night we successfully slipped the four baby chicks underneath Bertha (the broody hen), and she accepted them! I'm so glad she did because I really didn't want to have to raise them in the house till they are big enough to join the flock, and didn't want to have to integrate them into the flock, either. It's so much easier with a momma hen. And they are SO CUTE!!

Oh boy that does make life easier right

 

[lazy gardener]

I've never grown mushrooms before, and decided to try the Wine Caps b/c they would be compatible with my BTE garden. However, I think my chosen areas got too much sun, and I didn't water them enough. I'm glad that my friend had success with her site. Hope springs eternal, and I may try again next year... and all hope is not lost, b/c the supplier states that a summer spawning may not produce until the following spring.

Today, I picked beets. Have a pot of beets and greens and garlic cooking on the stove for supper. also dug a hill of potatoes. Adirondack Reds. Great yield in a section of BTE. Especially awesome since I did not plant them! (they sprouted from last year's crop.) I need to set a few aside for next year's crop. Picked green beans, and some carrots. Not enough beans to can yet.