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Beans Drying 1 Help! The Grocery Store Shelves are Empty
Think this couldn't happen? Think again. Supermarkets typically have only 3 days of food available. What if delivery was interrupted? This could, of course, be from a natural disaster or from a terrorist attack. The idea is to plan ahead, especially if you are like me and have many mouths to feed. O.K. So what do you do? Do not panic; think! Have at least 4 weeks of food on your shelves. By this I mean canned meats, hearty vegetables such as beans, corn, and some starch. Pasta or rice... Read more →
Strawberries Home grown Strawberry Jam!
Our neighbor gave me a few dozen strawberry plants several years ago. I set out a single row, and they have been spreading over a wider area each year. Now I have a bed of strawberries 60 feet long and 15 feet wide. I pick gallons of these sweet berries, and many of them are made into jam. Bending over and picking so many berries near the ground is hard on your back, but all our children are eager to get jars of homemade strawberry jam. You don't need to... Read more →
Evening Tea
Few people have the luxury of enjoying an evening cup of tea by going out on their deck and collecting a handful of healthful herbs. I have a raised bed off of our deck with a melody of plants including peppermint, spearmint, and lemon balm. I use a little of each to make a delightful after-dinner beverage. These herbs, the experts say, help one to relax and also aid in the digestion of food. Perennial herbs, such as the above mentioned, are easy to grow but can become invasive. I... Read more →
Corn in early August Food Security, a Trip into Our Past.
Until a hundred years ago, the majority of Americans were farming the land for a living. Most foods were locally produced and consumed. In my home library, I have a number of market garden books written by Peter Henderson in the late 1800's. He started out growing food for the New York City market, and became an authority on the subject. Henderson bred new varieties of vegetables, and founded a large and successful seed company. He recommended one able bodied man for each acre of market garden. My own great... Read more →
Bulk Foods 3 Repacking Bulk Foods
I save a lot of money for other projects by buying large containers of foods, and repacking them. This article will describe a few examples. I love to add garlic to all sorts of foods, and a very inexpensive way to buy it, is chopped and dried. Garlic prepared like this will keep on the shelf for a long time, if it is protected from moisture and sunlight. We use small canning jars, and repack the large tub of dried, chopped garlic, and store it inside a cabinet, protected from... Read more →
Ode to the Humble Dandelion
When I was a young girl, Spring was ushered in with freshly caught rainbow trout and dandelion salad. My dad and I got up early on the first day of fishing season and caught our limit. Mom would have some tender young dandelions already picked over so she could put them together in a salad. Oh what a wonderful lunch that was! I still love the taste of fresh young dandelions. Picked early in the season, they are tender and mild and delicious in a salad or steamed. The flowers... Read more →
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What about Carrots, Parsnips...?
Carrots and parsnips are both excellent served as boiled vegetables and cooked in soups and stews. They are hearty sources of carbohydrates as well as vitamins and minerals. This is very important to anyone who is actually hungry. We live in a time when diet foods are constantly promoted for having few calories. That is good for couch potato TV watchers, and those whose life's 'work' is behind a desk. When we need to be more active, we will need to eat more calories. Carrots are easy to grow, but... Read more →
What about Onions, Garlic...?
I love all the members of the onion family, and the tastes they bring to our table. Claims are made they improve our health, and help our bodies fight disease. So why aren't I selling them, you ask? Onion seed has one of the shortest lifespans of any garden seed. Germination rates fall by the second year, so it cannot be kept for long term storage, no matter what you do to preserve it. Bulbs or cloves cannot be stored reliably for more than one year either. Onions and garlic... Read more →