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- #2,931
BarredBuff
El Presidente de Pollo
Hey there! Thanks for stopping in!!! Don't be a stranger!
BarredBuff's Homesteading Shenanigans
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baymule
Sustainability Master
I am impressed with your level of achievement. It is rare to find it in a young person and I am always blown away to find a man who cans. Kudos to you! Maybe you can encourage others to garden and grow their own food.
milkmansdaughter
Super Self-Sufficient
BB, I really enjoyed the music! I've never heard that group before, and I really like tgat quiet guitar music. It's nice to be able to hear and understand the words of a song without closed captioning!
I also really like how much fun that lead singer was having. I think I'd LOVE to spend time getting to know her. And isn't it absolutely amazing to have the Holy Spirit interceeding on our behalf??
I'm hoping to make blueberry jam this year too. Our bushes have a lot more berries than last year. You said your jam is tangy. Do you add lemon juice? I'd love the recipe if it's not a secret. I just used a scraper yesterday morning to get the very last of my blueberry jam out of my last jar. Time to add more to the cupboard.
I also really like how much fun that lead singer was having. I think I'd LOVE to spend time getting to know her. And isn't it absolutely amazing to have the Holy Spirit interceeding on our behalf??
I'm hoping to make blueberry jam this year too. Our bushes have a lot more berries than last year. You said your jam is tangy. Do you add lemon juice? I'd love the recipe if it's not a secret. I just used a scraper yesterday morning to get the very last of my blueberry jam out of my last jar. Time to add more to the cupboard.
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- #2,934
BarredBuff
El Presidente de Pollo
They are great. The lead singer is a firecracker. We saw them in "concert" a few years ago for a benefit auction for the eastern Kentucky gospel radio folks, and they were a spirited bunch. I like most of there stuff. We use a lot of their works too in our singing. One I like and lead for our group is this one:
It is one of my all time favorites.
And yes, it is great to have an advocate speaking to the father on our behalf. It is a great way to live and walk.
I made another batch on Saturday, and added a cup of blackberries. I believe I like it mixed better than separate. It was even tangier with the blackberries. I don't have a secret really. I just use the recipe from the pectin box. Its 4 c. crushed blueberries, 4 c. sugar, and the pectin. Then, on the last batch, I used a cup of mashed blackberries in with the blueberries (4 cups in all).
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- #2,935
BarredBuff
El Presidente de Pollo
Thank you. I am just blessed with good mentors, and supporters along the way. I learned to can when Gran couldn't anymore. I am her little helper at heart. I took it and ran with it. I didn't want the tradition to die and then it morphed into this lifestyle really. I read a lot of articles and books about it and homesteading--- then I became intrigued and started it myself. Then, ironically, I started writing how-to articles for Backwoods Home Magazine and Self-Reliance Magazine too. I did that for a few years, and it helped fund a few extra projects and put gas in the truck. I want to start writing again, but I have to get my projects in line before I get back to that.
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- #2,936
BarredBuff
El Presidente de Pollo
I sometimes wonder what it would be like if we experienced a summer where it rained a normal amount once every week. Other times, I feel like we moved to Oregon and no body told me about it. It has rained non stop for the past four or five days. It has also been HOT.
My garden is doing well. I am harvesting several cucumbers and saving up for a batch of pickles. The blueberries continue to strut their stuff. I picked another bunch this evening and plan to make some muffins with these and snack on the extras. The squashes are growing like wildfire. You blink and they are up two more inches. My beans are vining everywhere. Sweet potatoes are everywhere too.
My tomatoes are another story though. I am still losing one or two here and there. However, the ratty replacements I got for free are doing great. They have livened right up and look like they will grow right out of it. My extension agent messaged me again and he thinks that instead of fertilizer burn they are dying from "damping off". A bacterial infection caused by lots of rain and cool temperatures. I'm not sure if I buy it or not. However, I have a few of my robust San Marzano plants that aren't looking too well anymore so he might be right. Either way, it is what it is. I can't control the weather. I might have tomatoes to can up and then I might not. The corn is also iffy. It came up okay. This has been the year of replants. Everything in this garden has been planted at least once. I have got to work on the soil this fall.
With all the rain and heat, the weeds are also bolting at an alarming rate. I doubt I will be able to tame them completely, but I can try when it dries out. According to the weather, I may be able to get back to it from Thursday to Sunday.
Today, I took the day and went shopping for work. I had to get supplies to start teaching my summer leadership development content next week. I also started to bring a few things home from Lexington. In the process, I went and picked up the extra roosters a student from last semester hatched out from my eggs. I took them from her and plan to get them fat and can them up this fall. I have three buffs, two blacks, and a white one. No idea where the white one comes from. I have zero white birds.
On the bright side, I have recovered from my ear infection. I got very sick on Thursday and had a horrible fever. It turned around on Saturday and I even was able to preach Sunday morning. So, I am on the mend...
My garden is doing well. I am harvesting several cucumbers and saving up for a batch of pickles. The blueberries continue to strut their stuff. I picked another bunch this evening and plan to make some muffins with these and snack on the extras. The squashes are growing like wildfire. You blink and they are up two more inches. My beans are vining everywhere. Sweet potatoes are everywhere too.
My tomatoes are another story though. I am still losing one or two here and there. However, the ratty replacements I got for free are doing great. They have livened right up and look like they will grow right out of it. My extension agent messaged me again and he thinks that instead of fertilizer burn they are dying from "damping off". A bacterial infection caused by lots of rain and cool temperatures. I'm not sure if I buy it or not. However, I have a few of my robust San Marzano plants that aren't looking too well anymore so he might be right. Either way, it is what it is. I can't control the weather. I might have tomatoes to can up and then I might not. The corn is also iffy. It came up okay. This has been the year of replants. Everything in this garden has been planted at least once. I have got to work on the soil this fall.
With all the rain and heat, the weeds are also bolting at an alarming rate. I doubt I will be able to tame them completely, but I can try when it dries out. According to the weather, I may be able to get back to it from Thursday to Sunday.
Today, I took the day and went shopping for work. I had to get supplies to start teaching my summer leadership development content next week. I also started to bring a few things home from Lexington. In the process, I went and picked up the extra roosters a student from last semester hatched out from my eggs. I took them from her and plan to get them fat and can them up this fall. I have three buffs, two blacks, and a white one. No idea where the white one comes from. I have zero white birds.
On the bright side, I have recovered from my ear infection. I got very sick on Thursday and had a horrible fever. It turned around on Saturday and I even was able to preach Sunday morning. So, I am on the mend...
frustratedearthmother
Sustainability Master
Despite a few challenges - sounds like your garden is rolling right along. Glad you're feeling better too!
baymule
Sustainability Master
I just got cucumbers planted, I am out of pickles! I hope your tomatoes can pull through enough to give you enough to can.
sumi
Rest in Peace 1980-2020
Glad you're feeling better!
This year seems to be a "take what we can get and be grateful for it" one for a few of us. The weather has been so crazy.
Love those pics of your plants and produce, you should post them on the POW thread
This year seems to be a "take what we can get and be grateful for it" one for a few of us. The weather has been so crazy.
Love those pics of your plants and produce, you should post them on the POW thread
- Thread starter
- #2,940
BarredBuff
El Presidente de Pollo
Still recovering from all the monsoons. It is supposed to be dry all weekend. This morning, I got up with the intention of staking my tomato plants. However, I thought it was too wet to walk the rows so much. So, I managed to pull and chop weeds around my upper patch of winter squash. It was still probably too wet, but I did it anyway. I also fertilized them and mulched them. I also got the okra mulched too. It got weeded last night.
Prior to the rains, I had all of that free and clear from weeds. Luckily, they are still doing well and should be left to their own devices now with some manure tea and pest control along the way.
The worst thing right now is that I am on the clock to get everything done by Sunday night. I start work on Monday with a group of kids headed to summer camp. I need everything cared for by Sunday night. If not, provided no rain, it will be Friday night before I can work in it.
Prior to the rains, I had all of that free and clear from weeds. Luckily, they are still doing well and should be left to their own devices now with some manure tea and pest control along the way.
The worst thing right now is that I am on the clock to get everything done by Sunday night. I start work on Monday with a group of kids headed to summer camp. I need everything cared for by Sunday night. If not, provided no rain, it will be Friday night before I can work in it.
