What did you do in the garden today?

[jerryse]

Seed squash . Hand pollinated reciprocal cross . That is both ways . Trying to get borer resistance into a bush summer squash .

 

[Wee Farmer Sarah]

I have a confession. I've been so busy with canning I did not keep up with the labeling. I'm so glad I make note of what I can in my posts. I just went back a couple of weeks to see what day I canned what so I could make my labels. So back to label making.

 

[Sueby]

Hahaha @Wee Farmer Sarah! When I unband the jars to store them I just write on the lids, I don't bother with labels. I don't reuse lids so they get thrown away anyway.

Holy cow, I can barely keep up with the green beans! Now I wonder if I should be vacuum sealing them for the freezer. I have more than I thought I would, they're going to last me quite a while into the winter. Has anyone vacuum sealed their frozen green beans?

& one more - do ya'll store your seeds in the fridge?

 

[RoseHawke]

I've always got my 'phone on me so I immediately put the timer on so water is sure to get turned off. Since we're also paying sewer fees for any water that we use it's horribly expensive. I think Birmingham Water Works Board is among the most expensive in the country. We've got a well that we're trying to get back going although it's been slow collecting the parts plus there's a portable outbuilding about six feet away from the well that we want to get moved first. I don't want the moving people to have to maneuver around any kind of a wellhouse we build, right now the wellhead is just poking up out of the ground.

 

[Wee Farmer Sarah]

Hahaha @Wee Farmer Sarah! When I unband the jars to store them I just write on the lids, I don't bother with labels. I don't reuse lids so they get thrown away anyway.

Holy cow, I can barely keep up with the green beans! Now I wonder if I should be vacuum sealing them for the freezer. I have more than I thought I would, they're going to last me quite a while into the winter. Has anyone vacuum sealed their frozen green beans?

& one more - do ya'll store your seeds in the fridge?

I blanch my green beans then lay them out on a parchment covered baking sheet then cover with a layer of plastic wrap and a dish towel and freeze flat in the freezer. Then I just bag them and I do label the bag. No sealing. They last a long time in the big freezer. And sadly I don’t refrigerate my seeds over the winter.

 

[Sueby]

I blanch my green beans then lay them out on a parchment covered baking sheet then cover with a layer of plastic wrap and a dish towel and freeze flat in the freezer. Then I just bag them and I do label the bag. No sealing. They last a long time in the big freezer. And sadly I don’t refrigerate my seeds over the winter.

That's exactly what I've been doing, but I have so many!

 

[RoseHawke]

Seed squash . Hand pollinated reciprocal cross . That is both ways . Trying to get borer resistance into a bush summer squash .

Man, I hope you're successful, I'd certainly pay top dollar for some seed. We gave up on summer squash some time back because of the SVBs. I can keep them under fleece or insect netting and hand pollinate but it seems like when I do that they're very susceptible to powdery mildew. Normally I don't have any problems with powdery mildew.

 

[Wee Farmer Sarah]

That's exactly what I've been doing, but I have so many!

Keep doing it. No more grocery store green beans for a year, that would be awesome.

 

[Sueby]

I'm hoping for that @Wee Farmer Sarah!

@RoseHawke holy cow what I wouldn't pay for a squash plant that didn't get squash bugs! I just recieved seeds for squash that is resistant to powdery mildew - we shall see next year if it actually is or not.

 

[NewBoots]

@NewBoots how long have you been getting soft shelled eggs? It's been a while, hasn't it? Do you know who's doing it?

I think it's been a week now. They're all new layers so I haven't worried too much yet. No soft shelled eggs this morning (it's always on the poop boards so they're doing it while roosting) so far so I'm keeping my fingers crossed. I've had oyster shells out in two places since it appears it's the lower ranking girls with the issue. And I switched to a pelleted layer feed with no treats other than kale and some plain greek yogurt. Given the placement of the thin eggs, I know it's the speckled sussex and 2 of the 3 swedish flower hens. Their combs aren't as red as everyone else's are so I don't think their hormones are fully ramped up. Can you think of anything else I should be doing? The amber links and the bo are sure dependable so far, once they started they are egg machines.

You know those little spiral, stretchy plastic keyrings that managers wear near their elbows to hold essential, frequently used keys? Or those same ones that they treat with mosquito repellant? We have one hanging on all the faucets. Turn on the water, wear the bracelet of shame. Turn it off, and put it back on the faucet handle.

That is a great idea! I'm ordering some too.

The leeks never grew a whole lot, I'm guessing it wasn't happy after I pulled the carrots. I will let them overwinter in the ground and see what happens.

My leeks didn't do much either but the tomatoes and flowers around them are crowding the heck out of them so I've blamed that.

There's a light dusting of ash on everything outside and the air is still full of smoke. East wind is rare enough that I keep hoping the west wind will start doing it's job again. No gardening today, saw to the critters and after leaving them out to get their jobs done, I brought the dogs in again. It's so stuffy and warm in the house (no ac, we normally don't need it) I would love to be able to open the windows. DP wants to make bug out bags, not a bad idea but the fires are far from us. That said, the whole state is dry as dust so a fire can start anywhere. The sky here yesterday and this morning:

I have plenty to keep me busy inside, 2 pounds of huckleberries to clean, split into bags and freeze, maybe make muffins with some first. We have 2 small wild huckleberries in the yard and will be planting more once we have a little more protection for them. There's a big bowl of green cherry tomatoes still waiting to be pickled and there's fish in the freezer that need canning too. I think we'll have fritters for lunch and I'll make a tiny pot of tomato soup for the small bit of leftover sauce. Here's my sauce:

Labeled and screw tops taken off now.

Here's the dried stuff:

The oil packed tomatoes are in the fridge.

Okay, time to get a wiggle on, take care all.