Fences are Amazing!
25 Aug 2025 12:41 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
ursulas_alcoveJust fencing off a small portion of the yard made a HUGE difference compared to last year. I harvested 110 pounds of produce so far. It's nowhere near what we'd need to be totally self sufficient. Really to do that, I'd need a lot more compost than I have. Actually, there is a choice. The permaculturalist in me says to feed the soil organisms. The farmer in me says to just feed the plants. Compost, mulch, and any other amendments feed the soil. Compost tea feeds the plants. I am going to have to experiment with making compost tea next year. I'll still make compost but it will fill the void since I can't begin to make enough compost. Note to self: Buy more worms for vermiculture.
The Farm for Profit Uganda YouTube channel recommends green bananas soaked for a week to ferment. Then you add a cup of that stinky water to a gallon of water before watering your plants. She uses grow bags so feeding the plants is important. Another Instagram channel recommended taking the leaves of a comfrey plant, one per month and doing the same thing. I have comfrey. I may start doing that now.
Keeping an eye on what the Preppers are saying (with background drums and chants of "doom, doom, doom"), the serious shortages should start September 1st. Folks who are paying attention already know that coffee and chocolate are being impacted. My only surprise was that vanilla is set to triple in price. I picked up on a channel that follows Costco buys. Yes, olive oil should be impacted too. It would anyway with a war on Gaza plus Spain and Napa Valley on fire. Tariffs only make it worse. Italy, Greece and parts of northern Africa are producing it. Does Jordan produce olive oil? Californian oils will taste smoky. That has happened before. I don't care for that off flavor.
With all that nonsense going on, I set some goals.
Can corn. Recipe calls for 18 ears. Should produce 9 pints. Thank you Farmer's Market!
Can Beef in wine sauce. Note to self: Buy Red Wine.
Can tomato sauce. The bags are piling up in the freezer. Soon I'll have enough to get a batch started.
Make yellow tomato jam. Goes great on grill cheese sandwiches.
Dehydrate some of the plum tomatoes. Adding powdered tomatoes to soups really kicks up the flavor.
Do another batch of pickles.
Possibly can roasted tomato soup as well as butternut soup.
Plum butter and applesauce would also be good.
Harvest the lettuce seeds. Oak Leaf is ready. Then red romaine in a couple weeks.
Can the beets. Buy distilled white vinegar.
We tried the home canned sloppy joe mix. It was fantastic. I need to pick up more ground beef next time I hit up the meat market. Definitely canning another batch.
All the meat sauces and the non acidic vegetables are pressure canned.
Fall planting: Napa cabbages have been transplanted. I managed to get 4 plants. The green cabbage and red had poor to no germination. It looks like I might get one. The lettuce is again a crop failure. What is up with that? I must have gotten the seed packet wet at some point. Guess I shouldn't plant in the rain. Spinach, I got four plants out of the 40 I planted. I will try again with a new seed packet. Fall is on the way. We had our first windfall apple and it was perfect!
Meanwhile today, I made butterscotch pudding with our raw milk. I pulled cream to make butter later. I am making banana nut muffins in the solar oven. (We'll soon see what nut prices will do) After a weekend of shows, Chrono is in the kitchen making something with our apples and with the farmer's market plums.
The Farm for Profit Uganda YouTube channel recommends green bananas soaked for a week to ferment. Then you add a cup of that stinky water to a gallon of water before watering your plants. She uses grow bags so feeding the plants is important. Another Instagram channel recommended taking the leaves of a comfrey plant, one per month and doing the same thing. I have comfrey. I may start doing that now.
Keeping an eye on what the Preppers are saying (with background drums and chants of "doom, doom, doom"), the serious shortages should start September 1st. Folks who are paying attention already know that coffee and chocolate are being impacted. My only surprise was that vanilla is set to triple in price. I picked up on a channel that follows Costco buys. Yes, olive oil should be impacted too. It would anyway with a war on Gaza plus Spain and Napa Valley on fire. Tariffs only make it worse. Italy, Greece and parts of northern Africa are producing it. Does Jordan produce olive oil? Californian oils will taste smoky. That has happened before. I don't care for that off flavor.
With all that nonsense going on, I set some goals.
Can corn. Recipe calls for 18 ears. Should produce 9 pints. Thank you Farmer's Market!
Can Beef in wine sauce. Note to self: Buy Red Wine.
Can tomato sauce. The bags are piling up in the freezer. Soon I'll have enough to get a batch started.
Make yellow tomato jam. Goes great on grill cheese sandwiches.
Dehydrate some of the plum tomatoes. Adding powdered tomatoes to soups really kicks up the flavor.
Do another batch of pickles.
Possibly can roasted tomato soup as well as butternut soup.
Plum butter and applesauce would also be good.
Harvest the lettuce seeds. Oak Leaf is ready. Then red romaine in a couple weeks.
Can the beets. Buy distilled white vinegar.
We tried the home canned sloppy joe mix. It was fantastic. I need to pick up more ground beef next time I hit up the meat market. Definitely canning another batch.
All the meat sauces and the non acidic vegetables are pressure canned.
Fall planting: Napa cabbages have been transplanted. I managed to get 4 plants. The green cabbage and red had poor to no germination. It looks like I might get one. The lettuce is again a crop failure. What is up with that? I must have gotten the seed packet wet at some point. Guess I shouldn't plant in the rain. Spinach, I got four plants out of the 40 I planted. I will try again with a new seed packet. Fall is on the way. We had our first windfall apple and it was perfect!
Meanwhile today, I made butterscotch pudding with our raw milk. I pulled cream to make butter later. I am making banana nut muffins in the solar oven. (We'll soon see what nut prices will do) After a weekend of shows, Chrono is in the kitchen making something with our apples and with the farmer's market plums.
