What did you do in the garden today?

[Farmer13]

Put ice on it for a while, a couple times this evening. I think that will help your damaged coccyx.

My lower back got strained picking peppers from one of those folding stools. Feels like a 16 penny nail stuck in just to the right of my top of my butt crack & goes down the right side of my leg.

Tried heat/cold & the thing that helps most is, Arnicare Gel.
Nothing else comes close to stopping the pain. It beats Tylenol or Narcotics.

https://www.amazon.com/Boiron-Arnicare-Homeopathic-Medicine-Bruises/dp/B012ROWQ0I/ref=sr_1_5?crid=4RLHFTK3PZOU&keywords=arnicare+gel+pain+relief+4.2+oz&qid=1694865048&sprefix=arnicare+gel+pain+relief+4.2+oz,aps,464&sr=8-5

 

[igorsMistress]

Does anyone know what it is in the canning process that would give canned beef or chicken a higher level of uric acid? Just the high pressure temperature?

It’s not the canning process, unless something added is high in purine. The goal is to avoid foods high in purine, which impacts uric acid in the blood. My dad had gout. He still had a beer once in a while, ate steak and canned chicken and spam without issue. The key is to limit those things and drink lots of water. Lots of water to flush your system and keep your kidneys working well.

 

[igorsMistress]

My lower back got strained picking peppers from one of those folding stools. Feels like a 16 penny nail stuck in just to the right of my top of my butt crack & goes down the right side of my leg.

Tried heat/cold & the thing that helps most is, Arnicare Gel.
Nothing else comes close to stopping the pain. It beats Tylenol or Narcotics.

https://www.amazon.com/Boiron-Arnicare-Homeopathic-Medicine-Bruises/dp/B012ROWQ0I/ref=sr_1_5?crid=4RLHFTK3PZOU&keywords=arnicare+gel+pain+relief+4.2+oz&qid=1694865048&sprefix=arnicare+gel+pain+relief+4.2+oz,aps,464&sr=8-5

Love this stuff! We use it on bruises and bumps too.

 

[igorsMistress]

That's probably an Eastern Prickly Pear (opuntia humifusa) or something similar. They grow in the pine forest around here and they're generally just small, and unimpressive with lots of thorns

Down here within 100 miles of the coast we have the Coastal Prickly Pear (O. stricta) and it's a very fruitful plant. I harvested most of mine from a patch around the size of a football field

Here's an example one from google
View attachment 3636666
There's even bigger and better species than this out there but I can't get them to grow in Florida with our rain. Mexicans are very lucky to get these huge cactus trees that are loaded with fruit

They grow all over the place and pop up wherever they want it seems. I don’t like to deal with the spikes, but you can find them without also. We usually make jelly with the fruit, don’t care at all for the pads.

 

[Sueby]

Hope you feel better today @fuzzi!

@WthrLady it looks beautiful! Is there meaning to the design or colors?

@Wee Farmer Sarah - so glad we dodged that bullet. Last thing we needed was more rain & then wind on top of the ultra soaked ground.

I don't know where you live, but our nights are getting down to the high 40's F every night right now. I was wondering if I could plant some cold weather seeds in a raised bed, and then put a frame cover over them to extend the growing season? I have some 2X2 frames with chicken wire on them to keep out the rabbits. I was thinking I could easily staple some plastic over the wire and make it into a mini greenhouse, cold box, or whatever they are called. Also, using that type of cover on the raised bed, maybe I could also start some plants outside earlier in the spring.

That's exactly how I did my lettuce for years. I would start it as soon as the soil was workable (thawed). Throw the seeds down & make a small hoop & cover with plastic. Repeat the same in the fall. I've had lettuce into Jan that way. People around here will put a small set of Christmas lights under there for tiny bit of warmth too, I never tried it.

Harvested a second 5 gallon bucket of prickly pear cactus pads today, then threw them all into new places to grow. Miraculous plant
View attachment 3636354

• No watering required
• Natural defenses
• Any portion of a pad can grow an entire new cactus easily
• Entire plant is edible
• Lots of delicious fruit

It's the ultimate permaculture plant for southern regions of the US. Opuntia strica does great in Florida. The fruit tastes like raspberries

My grandmother used to grow some kind of cactus just like that here & your pic reminded me of it! I remember being amazed cactus could survive the snow we get. But it did! I have no idea if she harvested it or if it was decorative.

My PT told me that 1 in 3(? Can remember, but it was a lot) women past menopause will break either their back, hip, or wrist. Of those choices... I'm glad I got the easy one, the wrist. He made it sound like you'd only do one, so I'm in the clear, right....? (Um... no.)

I broke my back in perimenopause...does that count? LOL

Beautiful weather. Slept with the window open. I need to clean the chicken coop & pick some sungolds.

I'm having a hard time starting my spinach. Maybe only 1/4 have popped up. I've never grown it so it could be me. Maybe I should have soaked the seeds first.

 

[Sally PB]

I'm having a hard time starting my spinach. Maybe only 1/4 have popped up. I've never grown it so it could be me. Maybe I should have soaked the seeds first.

I have never had really good luck with spinach. My step dad said that spinach will grow where it wants to grow. I guess it doesn't like my place that well.

 

[igorsMistress]

Hope you feel better today @fuzzi!

@WthrLady it looks beautiful! Is there meaning to the design or colors?

@Wee Farmer Sarah - so glad we dodged that bullet. Last thing we needed was more rain & then wind on top of the ultra soaked ground.

That's exactly how I did my lettuce for years. I would start it as soon as the soil was workable (thawed). Throw the seeds down & make a small hoop & cover with plastic. Repeat the same in the fall. I've had lettuce into Jan that way. People around here will put a small set of Christmas lights under there for tiny bit of warmth too, I never tried it.

My grandmother used to grow some kind of cactus just like that here & your pic reminded me of it! I remember being amazed cactus could survive the snow we get. But it did! I have no idea if she harvested it or if it was decorative.

I broke my back in perimenopause...does that count? LOL

Beautiful weather. Slept with the window open. I need to clean the chicken coop & pick some sungolds.

I'm having a hard time starting my spinach. Maybe only 1/4 have popped up. I've never grown it so it could be me. Maybe I should have soaked the seeds first.

How did you break your back?

 

[Dadanga]

I have never had really good luck with spinach. My step dad said that spinach will grow where it wants to grow. I guess it doesn't like my place that well.

Sometimes I wonder if it's seasonal dependent. I've never had much luck in the past with spinach either but maybe with the Egyptian Spinach I might try the soak method. In the past I have used a pill organizer to germinate seeds with a bit of moist paper towel. It gets fun when you start adding a bit of mycorrhizae to it. I always add that stuff to seeds if it's going on a hydroponic system. I do hope this is Malabar breaking through.

Also, in the previous pic you may have noticed me overseeding a few cells. I'll probably end up picking a bunch out, putting a foam collar on them and sticking them in my NFT system. With the remnants I'll probably plant in the raised beds here and there to fill in spots and use as borders.

Out of the three spinach. I suspect the Medania (Is it viking spinach?) to die out in the heat first. But which would handle the heat better? Malabar Indian spinach or Egyptian? I suppose the quail and chook population will care not long as their bellies are getting full.

 

[Wee Farmer Sarah]

I’ve never had much luck with spinach. One year when I actually got to the harvesting stage in my 10 square foot space I was really excited but picking it all it only amounted to about 1 cup. I generally have better luck with chard, kale and romaine lettuce.

 

[Dadanga]

I’ve never had much luck with spinach. One year when I actually got to the harvesting stage in my 10 square foot space I was really excited but picking it all it only amounted to about 1 cup. I generally have better luck with chard, kale and romaine lettuce.

I'm the same. Is romaine the same as cos? I did a whole bunch of that last summer and they turned out great! Did red kale in a raised bed that was grown alongside an eggplant and some rainbow/normal chard. I regretfully pulled the last of mine recently and fed it to the chooks. I will say. I did empty a bit of old powerfeed (fish emulsion) around the red chard which it seemed to like.