Mother

I really hope you had a wonderful day and are up to celebrating with us again today. Two for one birthday but not any older.

Thanks, Jeepers. I’ve tried the lights both ways, with and without them, and so far I can see no difference. The bugs are still chewing, mostly at night, and other than killing a few Japanese beetles, the greenish metallic chewer ones that also love my roses, I cannot find the other culprits. It is not just on the deck. The yard plants, even tree, leaves have been decimated by something. The holly hock leaves look like lace though they did flower first. I can only assume that because fields all around us are sprayed with insecticide and we grow only organic the various insects that survived the chemicals have taken up residence in our yard. As for animals and the lights they soon get used to them so it doesn’t bother them. Blinking or color changing lights, which some of mine are, stop them for a bit longer but that is all. We have a yellow insect type bulb in our porch light and a solar motion light there as well. I’ve seen animals, including deer, pause when the motion light comes on, stay still a bit to assess the threat, and when they find none continue what they were doing. Most animals living around humans adapt very well and very fast to that environment. We also have an abundance of snails, or as permaculturists would say a lack of ducks, I had thought they were the culprit but I see no signs of them on the deck. I’ve been looking into copper strips as Kappy uses but as yet can’t figure exactly where we’d need to place them for maximum effect. (BTW Kappy, where did you get yours?) Stevia leaves are different to use than commercial stevia. Like those, however, using too much can leave a bitter aftertaste. Some people don’t notice it but I do. There are lots of sites online about using stevia. I like fresh leaves in teas and will use one or more per cup when steeping it. I especially like to use them in sun or cold brewed tea and I often add them fresh to a smoothie. In fact, when I make up my smoothie ‘kits’ for the freezer I sometimes, depending on if it’s something that needs sweetening or not, add the leaves in them so all I have to do is dump the whole thing into the blender. I sometimes finely chop stevia leaves and freeze them in water in ice cube trays for later use as I would fresh. I dry and finely powder the leaves to use in various ways. I use one or two teaspoons of dry powder to substitute for one cup of sugar in a recipe but it doesn’t cause browning in baked goods like sugar does and you have to adjust for less bulk in the batter or dough. I use honey or maple syrup almost exclusively but have substituted stevia in puddings, gelatin deserts made from pure juice, ice creams, and etc with fairly good results. Stevia is variable in its taste from plant to plant and from person to person that you almost have to experiment with what works for you. Start out by tasting a fresh leaf from your plant and progress from fresh use to dried powder and don’t be afraid to experiment with it. The one thing about stevia is it makes a great secret garden plant. It can be grown inside or out from seed and most people have no idea what it is.

Here’s a couple pictures of how my deck ‘farm’ is doing. I had trouble with a digging critter early on but since we’ve trapped and removed several raccoon that stopped. I do have an insect pest (or ten) eating the leaves on many of my plants and have had to place netting over them. I’ve been able to harvest meal sized portions of bok Choi, chard, yellow beans, tomatoes, nasturtiums, and pea shoots so far. I’ve also been able to dehydrate two types of basil, stevia, French tarragon, lemon grass, parsley, rosemary, oregano, calendula, and two types of mint. I am pleased how well these beds have produced so far even with the insect problem.

Yes, pansies, and Johnny Jump ups and violets, are indeed edible. (same family) You can eat the whole plant but the flowers are the normal part eaten. They taste a bit green, like lettuce, with a bit of flower overtones. Depending on the variety some I’ve eaten have a hint of wintergreen. Besides being able to eat them they look really pretty in a salad.

Kimba. I hope your day was WONDERFUL!

Why not just photoshop your picture and hers? My GD does great work at inserting people into photos and she’s not a professional. She took 17 separate pictures of our great grand children and made it look almost like they were all together for it. We have had a couple more great grands since then and a couple more on the way. I’m hoping she will do it again with updated pictures so I can watch them grow.

I can’t even imagine! Good luck with your oregano and peppers. How strange to be thinking of horrid heat on one hand and preparing for frost on the other. I have also been thinking of ways to extend my season here too. We almost always have frost by mid October here, sooner than I want I’m sure.

Congratulations MM. they look WONDERFUL.

Well, the whole challenge was to see what we COULD grow in containers/yards. I can’t imagine gardening in the heat in AZ and CA but then again we have been having 90 and 100° temps here in IL we aren’t used to. I have gardened for over 60 years but I still find myself surprised. Maybe that is WHY I continue to garden,

Our overhead system is made with soaker hoses that drip into the tubs. It does help cool the area but the trees have grown so much it’s almost total shade now. The ground surrounding the rows of tubs is overrun with mole tunnels and not only are the tubs sinking but so does my electric wheelchair. Over the years we’ve tried almost all suggestions to get rid of them but living on the edge of timber and fields they just come back. I love my new grow deck but realllllly miss the old area.

This has been a tough weather season for many people. DH and I were wandering the yard today trying to figure out where we could set up more tubs to expand our growing capacity. We have a lot of shade and needed to make sure the areas would have adequate sun but also access to water. The deck farm is constantly needing to be watered. We have an area all set up with dozens of tubs with an overhead permanent watering system (the old garden) but the trees now shade it too much and access with the wheelchair is impossible. We ended our search with rethinking the possibilities of figuring out a way to make it usable again.

LS, your house. You are being nice enough to let him stay. Remember the last time you had live in company. If I remember that didn’t work well. You could easily be headed for a similar situation with your GS. Give him a bed in a room with a door and get on with your life. You have put your life on hold for others plenty long enough.

Hope you have a great day, Reb!

I have three freezers. An old but still working well Ammana 21 cf upright, a Westinghouse 16 cf upright, and a small chest type. Plus the various sized freezers on three refrigerators. They all start out being neatly organized and end up crammed here and there with this or that. All for two people . I am working towards using what is in them and hope to down size. I will say that some of them contain dry products like flour, grain, nuts, dried fruit and etc. I cook specifically to have left overs for the freezers, doubling or tripling a recipe. Sometimes, when I am feeling up to it, I do batch cooking. Soups, cooked meat, and etc. I also like to freeze meals ahead to cook later. These are especially easy to do. I put the raw meat (sometimes already frozen ones), chopped vegetables, seasonings, marinades, and whatever a recipe calls for into sealed bags. I get them out the day before and allow to thaw in the refrigerator and they are ready to cook the next day. I often do crock pot meals this way so I can just dump them in, turn them on and forget them until meal times. This is also a great way to make sheet pan meals ahead. Those I often use still frozen and just dump them on a sheet pan. They do pour better if the pieces are individually frozen ahead in sheet pans and then bagged in mixes as they don’t stick together then. I also make smoothie packs that way putting chopped fruits, veggies, and other freezables in single layers on sheet pans and then mixed into bags. Some of these I make using boughten frozen fruit and veggies some I chop and freeze myself, like apples or pears or cucumbers (yes you can freeze cucumber chunks for smoothies. I like them frozen with mint, pineapple, and frozen peas) I put the liquid I’m using (coconut or other alternative milk, juice, or just water) into my blender, add the pack of frozen mix, and blend for an almost instant smoothie. Sometimes I make the smoothies ahead and freeze them in ‘smoothie’ zip lock bags. I get them at Amazon and love them for grab and go smoothies. They come with a straw but do have to be thawed some before you can drink them. The bags can also be used for puréed soups you reheat in the microwave. I make breakfasts for the freezer too. I cook a big batch of oatmeal or rice and put a serving in a wide mouth pint jar. I layer fruit on top and top it with cooked bacon, ham, or sausage. Sometimes I use nuts and raisins. I cap and freeze them. They do take up more room in the freezer and I could probably use square plastic containers or bags. I get them out the night before or defrost using the microwave before heating to eat. I freeze breakfast sandwiches using English muffins, fried eggs, meat and cheese and wrap individually and I do muffin pan meals where I line muffin tins with ground meat, fill the center with veggies like cauliflower and pour a beaten egg mixture over the top. Sometimes I cook it before freezing and freeze them on sheet pans before sealing in bags. Sometimes I freeze it raw right in the tins. When they are frozen I pop them out of the tins and store in bags. When I’m ready to bake then I put them back into the tins, allow to thaw and then bake. Those are just a few ways I use my freezers but I’m always looking for more that save time and especially energy yet still have healthy meals. This is a great thread.

I love it. That g-son of yours knows how to have fun! You should have joined him and had grass stains on your ….ummmm. Nether side to match your knees!!!

Annarchy. It is more than you had to begin with. It’s been hot here too and I have more insects eating my plants than ever before. Will you be able to plant more as the heat subsides a bit?

So glad you are back safe and sound Jeepers. It’s wonderful you got to spend time at G-son’s Birthday celebrations. Did you get to ride the horse too?

Can’t wait to see the pictures!!

I was thinking cole crops like broccoli, kale, and such. And perhaps peas. Anything that could stand a few frosts before harvest. Mustard, turnips, and collards would work for me too. I love them.

Good job, Miki. I envy you your harvest. You are ahead of us by quite a bit and I hope my containers will be as prolific. I’m starting to think of planting for fall. Will you (or anyone) be planting for another season?

Congratulations PW. That’s a lot of tomatoes even if they are small. And squash 👍. Way to go! My deck farm is doing good except for something chewing holes in my chard and .bok choi. My peppers are a bit leggy and not flowering yet but the solitary yellow bean plant that struggled through our recent heat wave is loaded with beans soon to be ready. I’ll try to put pictures up soon.

Dee, you have a new garage, why not look into having a canning stove out there using a 20# or even 100# propane tank?

These look really super. I am allergic to chocolate but I bet they’d be great with raisins too.

Don’ make me pull out my Mother emoticon…… Let’s play nice here people! Once again we are venturing into accusatory territory and that does nothing but put us at odds with each other. It is one thing to give your own opinion but do it with respect towards other members opinions. The original post was an opinion given by Patriot Nurse who unless I am mistaken is NOT a member. I know that many of you listen to and have found her reliable but others do not. We need to remember that just because we read it or see it or hear it doesn’t make it true. Polio is truly a dreadful disease as is many of the other diseases we’ve discussed on Mrs. S. Conspiracy theories abound about a LOT of issues. Some are probably even true but because this site is about being prepared and survival we should be discussing ways to be prepared not arguing over who’s opinion or info is right or wrong. When we do that we are falling into that trap of divide and conquer. We won’t always agree on the Who, what, and why but please remember Mrs S is not meant to be a place of contention but a place of encouragement. Let’s keep it that way!