The Beginning Farmer's Wife

2020: Where are we now?

2020-10-17T08:10:00.007-05:00

The Beginning Farmer Show Podcast and YouTube Vlog!

It has been a LONG time since I've posted last, and almost as long since I've even signed on here.

Honestly, I miss documenting what we've been up to, miss the community and encouragement from all who comment, and miss looking back over where we have been.

Even so, I was starting to miss greater things with keeping up my blog. We now have 6 children, and I was missing time with them - which led me to slowly and eventually fade off of blogging. I don't plan to start back up anytime soon, (although I would be thrilled to find the day had an extra hour reserved for me to do just that!), but I did want to provide a quick update for those who started this journey with us, before we had even moved out of town.

Currently, we are still continuing our farm and are about to start our 12th year. Our 4 sons and 2 daughters, ages 2 -16, bless us with a richness that far outweighs the slower pace of farm progress that happens with a young family of 8. I continue to homeschool all of the children as well as produce and preserve the vast majority of what we eat throughout the year. (Usually 500 quarts are canned in addition to the freezer and storm shelter being filled.) Ethan continues to work as a pastor in town to provide for our living expenses while the farm income is devoted to continuing to set up our farm. He also does his best to keep sharing our journey, knowing how helpful resources have been to him as we have started up our beginning farming journey.

Recently, Ethan started documenting what is going on here on again on his YouTube channel and has been consistently sharing a number of videos each week.

He has also produced over 150 podcast episodes since 2013.

I am thankful that he has been able to keep up with documenting our journey, and am glad to have our journey pieced together for sharing with the generations down the road. I also hope that it is helpful and an encouragement for anyone else out there who might be starting or considering to start a beginning farming journey of their own. Thanks for joining along with us!

Inexpensive, Interest and Skill Building Children's Gifts

2016-11-22T15:03:00.003-06:00

Hannah, trying a rag rug on her weaving loom.

Over the years we have have tried to look for inexpensive gifts for the kids that will not only be meaningful in connection with our farm and lifestyle, but will also develop skills and talents that they can build upon. With the gift giving season approaching, I thought it would be fun to share with you a collection of what has been shared with the kids over the years.

Here you will find a compilation of toys, activities, books, and videos. (Many videos reach out to interests we can't commit to off farm.) For ease of viewing, I've grouped them by girl/boy, although they are often enjoyed by both genders. Also, they are listed somewhat in order from younger interests to older interests.

Enjoy!

Girls

Boys

(the above affiliate links help support our family and farm)

Five Helping Hands

2016-06-13T22:41:00.000-05:00

Sometimes things are more sweet when they have included the ones you love.

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Strawberry Blossoms!

2016-04-18T16:42:00.001-05:00

We're coming upon my favorite time of the garden year!

Last year we had as many strawberries as we could eat, freeze, and preserve for family. I also had enough to make Crooked Gap Farm Jam to sell throughout the year. This year I am looking to have 3 times the berries as last year.

Hmmm. . . What to do, what to do?

Planning Pumpkins and Projects

2015-03-10T07:47:00.001-05:00

It's that time of year again. It's time to start planning your garden!

Have you made plans yet on how you can include your kids in your garden? Or if you don't have children at home, how about grandchildren, neighbors, or friends.

After all, growing a crop is wonderful, but what a blessing gardens can be to help grow relationships.

One of my favorite family crops: pumpkins!

If you don't have a lot of space, mini pumpkins are a ton of fun to grow and then decorate with.

If space isn't an issue, be sure to grow the big ones too!

What a blast the kids will have scooping out a pumpkin they planted themselves . . .

to carve it into a favorite face!

The kids helped me carve out this cat for our cat lover on his 6th birthday.

A Jack 'O Lantern isn't the only way to carve a pumpkin though.

Once scooped clean, it can be baked . . .

to be cubed and canned or pureed and frozen.

Seeds can be baked for fun snacks (don't forget to dry and save some for planting next year!), and the pumpkin can be pulled out for delicious baked goods.

Our dog lover was thrilled to get a doggie pumpkin pie to share at Thanksgiving for her 10th birthday.

Not only that, but the kids can learn to bake as well. From our 4 year old up, our kids work together to measure and mix up their pumpkin bread for snack time.

Our 10 year old has also learned how to mix up and roll out a pie crust from her great grandma's pie recipe.

She carefully forms the crust in the pan to fill with the pumpkin mix she also prepared . . .

to make pumpkin pies for her dad, his favorite!

And from her trial piece of chocolate chip pumpkin pie, I think she might be on to something!

When you plan your garden this year, be sure to plan for crops to enjoy throughout the growing season and maybe even crops to feed your family for the year. I encourage you, however, to also use your garden to nurture year round the relationships that you have been blessed with.

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Tools of My Trade

A couple years ago I received a set of pastry rolling pin covers and a pastry cloth from my mom. She picked them up for me at the Amish near where I grew up and told me about how her aunt use to use them. Reluctantly, I gave them a try, and now I LOVE using them. They are wonderful to prevent doughs from sticking and reduce the amount of flour needed when rolling out doughs, which in turn benefits your dough. Not only that, they are great to use with beginning bakers as they making the rolling out process so much easier.

A digital food scale, such as this one, is a very handy kitchen tool. I will use mine when pre-measuring out my purees for freezing. By filling a baggie set in a container, I can quickly see when I have measured the amount needed without making a mess of spatulas and measuring cups - and my counter!

The Thrill of Laundry

2015-02-27T16:17:00.001-06:00

Cooking, dishes, cleaning, teaching (if you home school), laundry . . . these things can pretty much consume your days. And unless you are a lot better story teller than I am, the stories of the day are not so interesting.

Don't get me wrong, I am incredibly blessed to have the job I do, but sometimes I feel like if I really shared my days with people, I would end up looking into a lot of bored faces.

But they ARE my days.

And sometimes, even when you feel like what you have to share is incredibly boring, you still just want to share.

So at the risk of boring my readers, I am going to share how we do laundry around our house. (Okay, so I wrote this post last year, and am now just risking boring everyone!)

And at the risk of inviting comments and receiving none, I'd love to here how you do your laundry at your house. :)

I try to teach my kids to do as many "family jobs" around the house as they are able. From the time they are young, they are required to sort their own laundry into the appropriate laundry baskets. Before they are able to read, they know what each of the color coded tags mean on each basket, although I still do write the words. (I think it helps Ethan!)

I used to try to do 2 loads of laundry a day, but I was often discouraged about the non-stop piles of laundry cycling through the house that needed to be dried or put away.

Now, I attempt (*attempt*) to have all of my laundry done in 2 days - 3 if it takes a bit to dry.

Mondays, are my wash day. Since I have 7 loads that I do and only 4 laundry hampers, there is a small bit of sorting, but the majority has been done already throughout the week. My youngest enjoys tossing the last sorting of clothes into the washing machine with me.

Throughout the day, I have a number of laundry baskets that clothes get dropped into straight out of the washer. In the summer, I would go outside and hang up clothes on the line right after I threw the next load into the washer. In the winter, however, the wet clothes accumulate in baskets until evening. After supper, it's go time.

I have 2 closet poles that come out of the laundry room that get stretched between our dining room chairs. While I am setting this up, my kids are sent on a hanger hunt to collect all of the hangers from their closets.

We then turn on Pandora and have a little race. The kids have 5 songs to get their clothes that are hung in their closets put on hangers, their clothes that go in dressers in one laundry basket, and socks and wash clothes in a second laundry basket. Nothing really happens if they don't beat the song, but they enjoy the challenge - and it helps keep them focused.

While they are working, I am also working along beside them. I hang up Ethan and my shirts, hang all of the dresser clothes on our 2 taller-than-me Amish made drying racks which my mom gifted me (from the settlement in Hazelton close to where I grew up), and finally throw the socks and wash clothes into the drier. Why do I only dry the socks and wash cloths? Dryers are expensive to run!

When we are done, this is what the area between the living room and kitchen looks like. (Can you see why I might enjoy summertime when clothes can be hung outside?)

Our wood stove, which is right by my drying area, is fired up with its drying heat, the 2 steam pots which supply our house extra humidity are removed from the wood stove, and the ceiling fans are turned on for the night.

When morning comes, I will pull off all of the dry clothes from the drying rack and rearrange the wet clothes on to one rack, letting me put one of the monstrosities away. The shirts on hangers (which are usually still slightly damp) are taken into the laundry room to be hung in designated spots for each person until they finish drying.

Once Tuesday evening rolls around, its time to put laundry away. Pandora is set to 5 more songs, and the sorting begins.

The dryer is emptied of socks and wash cloths, and the kids start sock sorting. Everyone has their own sock spot which the kids deliver socks to, as well as match up matches. Caleb and Hannah each have a bookshelf, Ethan has the couch, I have a blue chair and Isaac and Jonathan share the piano.

As they sort socks, I cycle around behind them and fold socks together. We also make a little race of this. I try to get all of the socks folded that are matched up before they get done, and they try to keep ahead of me. I have attempted to let them fold their socks together, but I have found that just leads to me sifting through dressers picking out socks that have came apart and are floating around. Maybe when they are older . . .

All of the laundry from the drying racks is also dumped out and folded. As it is folded, it is stacked on the back of the couch. Each of the kids has their spot on the couch where their folded clothes go. (Ethan and I have a spot on chairs and the towels on a bench.) When these spots are full, Caleb puts his clothes away and helps Isaac with his, and Hannah does the same with hers and Jonathan's.

Along with the clothes folding, is the diaper and wash cloth folding. (Okay, if you count the diapers and work wash clothes, there are 9 loads of laundry/week.) Isaac and even Jonathan (5 yrs old and just turned 3 yrs when this picture was taken) are pros at this job. As the wash clothes and diapers are folded, they are loaded up into a laundry basket to be carried to the bathroom and put away.

And not to be forgotten are those shirts. I usually leave them hanging in the laundry room one more night, but bright and early Wednesdsay morning they are placed on the kids' spots on the couch, to be whisked away into closets when they wake up.

And just like that, we are done with laundry until the next Monday morning. 5 beautiful laundry free days.

On a good week.

For some odd reason, I kind of enjoy hearing about how my friends do their laundry. Maybe it's because I find it facinating how each family has a different rhythm to making laundry work in their family . . . or maybe it's just in hopes that my life isn't that boring itself and someone enjoys hearing how I do laundry.

Either way, I'd love to have you share your laundry routine!

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Tools of My Trade

This folding drying rack is similar to the drying racks that were made by the Amish area where I grew up. They are wonderful for hanging multiple loads of laundry, sheets, towels, jeans, etc. Not only are they very sturdy, but they also allow for good air flow. I couldn't not use my dryer without one!

Although it isn't as heavy duty as some, this laundry hamper has served me well for the last 10 plus years. I also like the mesh bags which allow you to see in and allow any damp or soiled laundry to breathe.

Hobbies and Birthday Cakes

2015-01-06T22:06:00.001-06:00

Over Christmas, when talking with relatives about hobbies, Ethan told me that I should get a hobby.

My sister-in-law was the one to notice "the look" I gave back, as she knows that my hobbies have taken a shelf in the upper cabinet (or have been heaved up in the attic) as we have gotten our farm going with now 5 children whom are being home schooled.

When I think about it though, I still do have some things I would consider hobbies. They aren't really activities I do regularly for leisure, but little extra things I do to enjoy occasions. Things that wouldn't need to be done apart from the fact that I find enjoyment in them or want to bring others enjoyment through them.

One of these "hobbies" is making a special birthday cake for our kids' birthdays. I started this when our oldest, who is now ten, turned one. For the weeks leading up to their birthdays, I think about what has stood out in their previous year. I then dig through my pans and bake ware to find just the right shapes to construct a cake to signify this - a cake not necessarily professional looking but one that is always greeted with excitement each birthday morning from kids who have been eagerly anticipating just what their cake will be.

As I have baked cakes and decorated them in preparation for birthdays, so many wonderful memories come back from the year before. And although I have had some major frustrations while trying to prepare their cakes as I have envisioned them, I thoroughly enjoy the time of reflecting on how each of our children have blessed us with just being themselves from the year prior.

For this, I am happy to leave my hobbies in the attic.

Our Jonathan turned 4 today. All year he has tagged along beside us with his level helping to farm and doing "what farmers do." No matter if it was a building project or working with livestock, everything got checked for level - so why not his cake too?

After he put on his safety glasses, he got to take off the level to check it himself. He also was able to measure it,

pound in the nails,

and screw in the screws.

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A Christmas Tree Mouse

2014-12-29T20:48:00.003-06:00

We don't get out much.

And really, I'm fine admitting it.

And most days, I'm okay with the fact too.

I have learned, however, that there is such a thing as cabin fever. I have also had times when I have come to the understanding of how those lone prairie wives and moms did have a few breakdowns - or worse.

When you have days on end in a compact house with kids all day (homeschooling days or non), and when some weeks the main time Ethan is around is when he crawls into bed preparing to hop out and leave again bright and early . . . well, you have to get a bit creative to keep your wits for the days.

Through the years on our farm, I do feel like I have become a better "not getting out much" person. I have looked for ways to make our days enjoyable, especially on those days when there is so much to do that I can't wait to crawl into bed and pretend I don't need to hop right out the next day.

So if you ever are in our house, there might be some curious things going on. You might think these things are a bit odd, but really they are for sanity sake.

Like the little mouse hanging right under our star topping the Christmas tree.

This little mouse is a guest in our house. And again, if you are ever in our house, I invite you to look for him.

Our kids know that this mouse likes to travel around the house. Each of them has a magnet on the fridge, and when they see the mouse has moved, they move their magnet to a designated spot after finding him.

When all of the kids have moved their magnet, the mouse prepares for another move. Sometimes he only takes an hour. Sometimes a week. But unannounced, he does move. When the kids notice, the hunt begins to find where to, and the magnets return to their prior location as they find him again.

Like I said, we don't get out much. And although I'd be thrilled to be able to squeeze some extra family and friend time in, I am blessed to be able to be at home to support my husband. And I am also so blessed to be at home with my children during these years as they grow and change so quickly, soon to scamper off seemingly unannounced to their next location . . . just like that little mouse.

How about you? What are some things you do to enjoy and cherish the years at home?

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Farmcrafted Soap Giveaway!

2014-12-02T17:44:00.003-06:00

That's right! I'm giving away 2 bars of my Crooked Gap Farmcrafted Soap for free! Why? Because I've been wanting to have a giveaway for all of my online farm friends, and I have just gotten around to doing it. :)

A Bit About our Soap
Our natural, fragrance free soap is handmade here on our farm using as many ingredients as possible that are produced on our farm, gathered from local sources, or commonly found available on a farm.

Not only is our soap gentle on all skin types, but it is loaded with glycerine and will leave your skin feeling incredibly soft and moisturized. (More info on our soap can be found on our website, here)

How to Enter the Giveaway
For your chance to win, simply check out the varieties available in my Etsy Shop (also tabbed in this blog's sidebar and on my The Beginning Farmer's Wife Facebook Page), and comment on this Facebook post as to which two varieties you would like shipped or delivered to you. A winner will be picked on Saturday through an internet randomizer. Good luck!

Don't Waste that Turkey!

2014-11-25T20:59:00.002-06:00

This past Sunday we had our Thanksgiving meal at church. Ethan volunteered to cook a turkey, and I got ready to can up some turkey and broth.

Although we have yet to raise our own turkeys, I have been canning turkey for at least 7 years according to this blog post. It almost pains me to see a cooked turkey disposed of without continuing to cook it down to get off the extra meat and to make broth. There are often so many meals left on a turkey - meat for casseroles and sandwiches and broth for flavoring rice and noodles or for making soup.

When it comes to not wasting our turkey, a bit has changed over the years: We have switched from cooking our turkey in the oven to cooking it in a roaster, from cooking the broth in a pot to just continuing to cook it in that same roaster (You can find my photo tutorial on cooking broth on our CGF recipe blog.), and even my turkey soup recipe has changed from my original recipe.

A few things still remain the same though. I still get excited when I have stocked my pantry with canned turkey and turkey broth, and Ethan continues to declare his turkey feelings every year.

If you are cooking a turkey this Thanksgiving, I encourage you to not throw out the carcus but instead try making your own turkey broth. If you don't pressure can (or aren't ready to try out my series of posts on Beginning Pressure Canning), you can always freeze your broth and leftover turkey meat or just go ahead and make a big pot of soup to enjoy.

CGF Turkey and Vegetable Soup

1 qt turkey broth
1 pt turkey
1/4 cup + 2 T dehydrated carrots (1 1/2 cup fresh or frozen)
1/4 cup +2 T dehydrated green beans (1 1/2 cup fresh or fozen) or 1 pt green beans with juice
1/2 cup frozen or fresh chopped onion
2 cup frozen sweet corn
1 qt canned diced potatoes or 4 cups raw
2 stalks celery chopped
1/4 cup lentils
1/4 cup wild rice
1/2 cup barley
2 tsp salt
1/3 tsp pepper
1/2 tsp garlic
1 bay leaf (remove before serving)

** This recipe is based on the different ways I have preserved my produce. Ingredients can be substituted, omitted, or additional ingredients added depending on availability and tastes.

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Tools of My Trade

Although a roaster might be hard to find at a garage sale or from an individual no longer needing one, you might be able to snatch one at an estate auction. I placed a 22 qt roaster (vs the 18 quart) on my Christmas list. I use it for multiple projects, and not just ones where I need to heat with it. I can't remember how I functioned with out it! Here is the link to the roaster I own, and I am very happy with it..

Much of what I preserve is pressure canned due to the foods' low acidity in order to kill all bacteria that would cause dangerous food born illnesses. Foods can be safely canned by using the recommended times and pressures given for your altitude. I have a couple older Mirro pressure canners given to me that work wonderfully, and my mom has a newer one that she loves as well. If you do some asking around, you might find someone who has given up canning and has one available, or you can look for one like the one pictured below. It should hold around 9 pint jars or 7 quart jars. This link will take you to my series of posts on Beginning Pressure Canning.

Perserving Peppers

2014-10-24T16:02:00.002-05:00

It is October 22nd, and although we have had some light frosts, it hasn't been enough to knock out the garden yet. Because of this, I am still bringing in tomatoes and peppers. which I have been enjoying having this late in the month!

Not too long ago, I brought in a nice batch of peppers to put away for winter use. This year I am freezing sweet peppers mainly for pizza toppings and pickling banana peppers to put on our sandwiches.

To start with, I'll give you a glimpse of how I freeze my sweet peppers. It's really pretty simple.

After washing them up, I cut around the core in order to pull out the seeds. I then cut them into thirds with the contour of the pepper. I used to dice them up when I froze them fresh. Now I just leave them in their thirds since they are so easy to break or chop into different sizes when frozen.

If you have the time to chop (which I didn't this year), I would suggest blanching them. If you add this extra step, you will help stop the enzymes that cause the breakdown of nutrients. To do this, simply chop the peppers into the size you wish to use them as, drop them into boiling water for 2 minutes or steam them until tender, and then cool them in ice water for the same amount of time to stop the cooking process.

Whether blanched or prepared fresh, I then spin the water off of them to help them freeze nicer and bag them up.

My favorite method of bagging things for the freezer is to portion out meal size portions into sandwich baggies and then place these into a gallon zip lock, which I will reuse and redate from year to year. I have found this keeps my foods easy to use, keeps them from being frosted, and is more economical than lots of smaller freezer bags.

And that's that. I love to pull out sweet peppers for not only our pizza toppings, but also for casseroles, stir fry, or other dishes!

Another favorite way to preserve peppers is pickling banana peppers. This is a tad bit more involved, but it is well worth it for me.

After washing these peppers, I prepare them by slicing off the top and stem, running a slit lengthwise down the pepper, and using my finger to slide out the seeds. The pepper is then cut in rings. I used to remove the seeds without slicing the pepper so that I would have true rings, but that didn't last many batches after considering the time it took. If you don't mind your peppers a bit hotter (I prefer as mild as I can get), you can also leave the seeds in.

Here are my peppers, all sliced up.

The next step is to let them soak in a cool salt water bath. This helps keep your peppers crisp when they are canned. I prepared 12 cups of peppers so I used 1 cup canning salt dissolved in 12 cups of water.

I just combine my salt, water, and pickles in the pot I will be cooking them in, and stick it in the fridge overnight.

The following day, when I get around to it, I finish preparing them. I thoroughly rinse and drain my peppers and set them aside while I prepare the rest of the ingredients. Using the pan they had been soaking in, I combined 2 cups water, 6 cups vinegar, 3 T sugar, and 2 cloves of garlic. I then simmered this for 15 minutes.

Once it was done simmering I discard the garlic cloves, brought the liquid to a boil, and added in the peppers so they could heat before packing them into my jars.

The jars were packed, the hot liquid was added until 1/4 inch of head space, and lids and rings were put on. Finally, I processed my jars in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes.

And there you have it, pickled peppers to be used throughout the year, a great addition to many sandwiches, as pictured in this post!

The next pepper preserving recipe I would like to try is pepper jelly for our pork chops. Anyone have a blue ribbon recipe? :)

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Tools of My Trade

The recipe for my pickled peppers was adapted from this preserving guide, which includes the complete instructions and process as well as many more wonderful recipes!

This little salad spinner is perfect for spinning water out of peppers and berries for freezing, which greatly improves the quality of the frozen produce. Not only that, but it is wonderful to spin batches of lettuce from the home garden, helping the lettuce to last longer in the fridge.

The Not so Urgencies in Harvesting Garlic

2014-10-08T23:53:00.001-05:00

About 10/11 months ago I wrote a post about The Urgencies in Planting Garlic. I was grateful to not only have the help of my children, but to also have the time together with them.

When spring came, the garlic greens appeared. As summer progressed, the greens eventually died back. I knew soon enough that I had missed the prime time to harvest my first ever planting of garlic, but my summer had struck a difficult balance as I was attempting to not overdue things and stay rested with the little one that I am carrying.

Because of this, my garlic continued to rest in the garden soil.

As I have needed garlic this year, I have dug what my recipes call for. And as the seasons changed to fall, the greens of my garlic reappeared - reminding me just how many bulbs remained from my planting last fall.

Today I headed out to the garden to gather tomatoes and peppers that are tempting the first frost to come. While in the garden, I caught a glimpse of my garlic greens again, tempting me to dig them up.

Although I had decided that my work in the garden was done after the Farm Crawl, to be replaced with a more restful pace and preparation for our little one to arrive in the next few weeks, the call of garlic got the best of me. So I slowly and carefully dug up my garlic.

As I mentioned, this was my first attempt at planting garlic. Because of this, I haven't gathered much knowledge when it comes to garlic growing . . . but I'm guessing that digging garlic when it has started to regrow again isn't the best for flavor or storage. Even so, I am hoping that it will at least be better than no garlic.

After I dug my garlic, I brought it in the house. There was quite a bit of mud on them so I broke apart the cloves, cleaned them off, and divided them into two piles. (I'm sure I would have been better off digging them when it was drier and leaving the cloves together - but they they probably never would have been dug. ) The first pile that contained the larger cloves was braided and hung up to dry. The pile with the smaller cloves was put into a breathable produce storage bag in the fridge, in hopes that they can be replanted this fall (maybe after Baby is born??) for some sort of garlic harvest next year (Yeah, I know I'm probably supposed to plant the bigger cloves - but I wanted to use these this year, especially not knowing if I will be able to replant.)

Trial and error is common here on our beginning farm, and with this garlic growing attempt there was probably as much error in my trial as any. I'm sure there are probably garlic experts out there chuckling at me, especially when I have Google at the tip of my fingers telling me what I could do or should have done at this point. I won't feel offended though if comments are shared to guide me in future garlic growing attempts, and I'd much rather here from my blog friends than from Google anyway. :)

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Recieve a Free Bar of My Soap!

2014-09-20T15:03:00.000-05:00

I realize I've been absent from my blog for awhile. It's been a full summer with trying to prepare and keep in good health with the new baby coming (less than 2 months now!), along with keeping up with the garden. Our tiller blew up earlier summer, just about when I was ready to put the mulch down. Because of that, I've been battling weeds by hand - a battle that I've had trouble keeping up with. Thankfully, we have a new tiller engine in our kitchen, and next year I plan on very little weeding again after a good tilling and layer of mulch!

Another project I've been working on is restocking our Crooked Gap Farmcrafted Soap supply for the upcoming Farm Crawl. I completely sold out this spring with one of our events, and it has been a slow processes restocking my supply since I'm pretty exhausted after the kids get to bed - which is my soap making time. I think I've finally built up a good supply for the Farm Crawl though.

With that said, these two bars are my newest bars, and I am having trouble naming them. I would love your suggestions, and if I pick a name you suggest, I will mail you a free bar for your help!

The first bar is made with my basic soap recipe, tumeric, and cocoa powder. The second soap is made with my basic recipe and tumeric powder as well. (I was excited to recently stumble across tumeric as a natural colorant with great benefits. You can read about it here.)

If you have any great name suggestions, just click on this link to my Facebook post and leave them in the comments. I'll decide on my final name before the Farm Crawl, this October 5th.

County Fair 2014

2014-07-29T15:09:00.002-05:00

Early this month was our county fair.

I usually don't get super excited about county or state fair. I was in 4-H growing up, and I would go to fair just long enough to take my projects, participate in the pet show, and take part in the pie baking contest. One year I did the broiler project - having to raise and process 50 broilers. One year was enough for that.

I rarely walked through any parts of the fair besides where I needed to go. I really prefer to stay away from big crowds (unless it's a gathering of people I know or will get to know), and if I have to dodge piles of manure and smell animals, I would rather do that on a farm.

Even so, over the last number of years we have taken a handful of trips to the county fair and almost yearly trips to the state fair. State fair was something Ethan grew up doing with his dad each year, and he dreamed of being a fair kid hanging out with his livestock in the livestock barn. They made a full day of their trip, checking out all the fair had to offer - minus the food stands as they would retreat for an afternoon lunch at the car. Once we started our family, Ethan became excited about taking our kids. And although I really was not that interested in the fair experience, I did really like spending a day Ethan and the kids.

Now that our oldest has finished 4th grade, however, fair has taken on a new twist since he is also in 4-H. If you've listened to Ethan's podcast that includes Caleb as a guest, you might have caught that we spent more or less an entire week at the county fair mid July as Caleb took took in his projects and showed sheep, chickens, and rabbits, adding in the daily chores at the fair too. Even though we have made sure that what Caleb takes and shows reflects his work, Ethan can now be a "fair dad" in those barns even though he didn't get to be a "fair kid".

I do have to say, that fair is much more enjoyable when you have someone you know showing things there - especially when it is your kid. And I will admit that I really didn't mind hanging out at fair so much this year, and I did spend quite a bit of time in the livestock barns too.

And to also add a bit more draw for me, I discovered that there is a building previously hidden from me on the fair grounds for open class entries - a place where you can take various homemaking items to be judged for awards. I found out about this last minute, but I was able to dig through my closets and pantry to grab a few things to enter that I had worked on over the year, many of which received placings.

I didn't take a ton of things since I didn't know if my jars would be opened (and unable to be consumed after fair), and I didn't want to spend the money on ingredients for baked goods that we wouldn't get to eat either. Now I know though that jars aren't opened, that garden produce does not have to be fully ripe, and that you also get to take home 3/4 of each baked good once they have been judged. (And that pies go in 2 days after canned goods . . . something good to know so your crust stays nice!)

So here I am, just weeks after the fair, and I'm thinking about what all I can set aside to take to fair next year. Part of it is because it adds a little excitement to the mundane tasks of my day/year (I would have taken so many more canned goods if I knew they would have remained sealed.), and some of it is that it is fun to get a little bit of premium money which I have picked a purpose for (although there are lots of ways to save money at home, it's a bit harder to generate money.).

Still, I think the best part of county fair is the time spent with my family, and now also seeing our kids enjoy taking part in fair with their interests.

Caleb's Livestock Awards for Sheep, Poultry, and Rabbits

Caleb's Projects and Awards


Hannah's 4-H Clover Kids (K-3rd grade) Projects and Recognitions

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Preserving Strawberries

2014-07-02T23:01:00.000-05:00

One of my favorite seasons in the garden is strawberry season. I have to say that it is by far my favorite garden crop.

When I was a young girl I used to sit in my mom's strawberry patch and devour the strawberries. In high school I worked at a strawberry patch for a few summers as a picker in the morning and sales in the afternoon. I also consumed a bit of strawberries (and strawberry shortcake and strawberry smoothies!) there.

Now I have my own strawberry patch. And yes, I still sit in the middle of the patch and eat strawberries. Lots of them.

I have grown to know my habits though, so I have planted a big enough batch to support my in patch strawberry eating, to supply fresh strawberries for my kids to enjoy, and to have extras to preserve.

Strawberry season is now over, but for about 2 1/2 - 3 weeks, weather pending, I bring in a batch of strawberries like the ones pictured here every other day. (Not pictured are the cups of strawberries that I have eaten in the patch that day.) The best thing is that my patch is still expanding!

It takes around an hour or so to work through the patch to pick the berries. Remember, I pause often. When I get them into the house, I find a spot for them in my fridge until I can spend another hour or so preparing them, which is usually the opposite day of picking.

Last year I would freeze or preserve them as jam by the individual batch. This year, however, I have shaken things up a bit and separate out the larger berries for freezing and the smaller berries for jam within each batch. This has seemed to work out well for me.

To start with, I fill my sink with cold water and dump my berries in. I swish them around a bit with my hands, drain the water, and repeat until the water is clear. It usually only takes a couple of fills.

Next, I fill my strainer as much as possible to drain some water, followed by placing them in my salad spinner. I don't have too many kitchen gadgets in the house, but I do love my salad spinner. Not only does it help my garden lettuce to stay fresher longer, but it has made preserving all of my varieties of berries so much more efficient and improves their quality. (Especially the raspberries which hold water so well in their empty core.)

I spin the water off of the berries, one bowl at a time. As I remove them from the spinner, I destem them. I have tried many methods for destemming strawberries, including using many gadgets at the berry patch. My favorite method is by far using a thin baby spoon which quickly scrapes/pops off the tip with very little berry waste. The berries are then divided into a bowl for smaller berries and a bowl for larger berries. The smaller berries are placed back into the fridge until there is enough for a batch of jam, usually within another picking or two.

The next tool that I use is an egg slicer. This slicer quickly and evenly slices berries to the perfect size, and held upside down, it drops them right onto my pan for freezing. I could freeze them whole, but I have found that the berries don't get used up as quickly when they are sliced as you can get so many more berry bites with sliced berries.

For my freezing pans, I just cover cookie sheets with washed cereal box sacks. They are cheap (free), sturdy, and the berries come right off of them. As pictured, I spread my berries across the pan, being careful that they don't overlap much which helps them freeze individually.

I used to just flash freeze them to the point where the outer layer was frozen, but I have changed to freezing them overnight to where they are completely frozen. I have found that they are just easier to work with this way. Once they are frozen, I simply crumple up the cereal bag from the outside in, make a pile of berries in the middle, and then lightly push on the pile with the cereal bag covering them in order to separate any berries that have stuck together.

They then get put into sandwich baggies, 2 cups at a time. Just as I do when canning my sweet corn and other veggies, these sandwich baggies get placed into a gallon freezer bag. This method allows me to grab out, or shake out, just the portion of berries that I want.

This year I froze a new record of 32 baggies, or around 64 cups, of strawberries. They will be enjoyed in our homemade oatmeal and occasionally over ice cream. I'm looking forward to freezing even more next year!

And then there is the jam. As I mentioned, the smaller berries get set aside and used for jam. This year I made 2 batches of strawberry jam, equaling 18 1/2 pints. I could have made another batch or two, but we had a big event coming up on the farm that needed my attention so we just ate the rest of the little berries, which was just fine!

You can find the instructions for jam making in any Sure-Gel packet, but I thought I would just add some snap shots of my kids helping me and some basics of the process.

Jonathan, my 3 year old did a great job helping smash the berries for me with a potato masher.

Isaac, our 5 year old, helped measure out the sugar needed. I have heard that when making jam you want to use 100% pure cane sugar and not sugar which includes beet sugar. Apparently, beet sugar does not allow the jam (or jelly) to set well, and it can end up runny. I've never experimented with the sugar which contains beet sugar, but the 100% cane sugar has always given me a nice set.

Once the berries were mashed and sugar measured, Hannah, our 8 year old, added in our packet of Sure-Gel to the berries.

The berries were then heated to a rolling boil, and then the sugar was quickly added in, returning everything to a rolling boil again for the appropriate amount of time. This is a step where I ask the kids to stay back since there is often some very hot splattering going on.

Once the cooking process was done, preheated jars were filled with jam.

Rims were wiped clean.

And heated lids and bands were placed on the jars as Hannah fished them out of the heated water.

The jars were then placed back into the pot to process which I had them heating in, this time filled with berry goodness.

And after their processing time was complete, they were pulled out to cool.

Once the jars were cool, I labeled them and had each of the kids who helped put their initials on the rim of the jar as well. As talked about in a previous post, throughout the year, as we enjoy produce preserved from our farm, we acknowledge who all helped with the meals being served and remember the memories made, something that the kids now find great enjoyment in!

Usually, after strawberry season I am move right along to the next season of my garden. This year, however, there is a bit of a lull due to the garden getting in later than I would have liked - a combination of a rough 1st trimester of pregnancy, a challenging end to our home school year, and projects that needed to be accomplished on the farm outside of the garden.

As I try to remind myself often, I just need to be faithful with what I have been given and trust the Lord to provide in His own way through the areas and times that seem to be challenging as well as the times areas and times filled with ease. At least I know that this year I will get to enjoy the (strawberry) fruits of my labor!

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Tools of My Trade

;

I was given an egg slicer as a wedding present, and I don't think I have sliced more than a dozen hard boiled eggs with one. I have, however, sliced gallons upon gallons of strawberries to freeze and bananas to dehydrate with one. My original egg slicer broke a wire, and I tried to replace it with one from a nearby store which quickly broke as well. After reading many reviews, this slicer went on my Christmas list. It is a tad more expensive than others, but I give it heavy use and it is holding up great!

This little salad spinner is perfect for spinning water out of berries for freezing, which greatly improves the quality of the berries frozen. Not only that, but it is wonderful to spin batches of lettuce from the home garden, helping the lettuce to last longer in the fridge.

Guinea Keets are Hatched!

2014-06-05T22:56:00.003-05:00

These past few days my first batch of guinea keets have been hatching. It has been a rather strange hatch, since one hatched on Monday, Tuesday the majority hatched, Wednesday a few more, and this afternoon (Thursday) I found another egg that has just started pipping. Considering I set them all the same day in the same incubator, I have been a bit confused at the spread of the hatch, but I'll take it.

Tonight I pulled the eggs from the incubator that did not show any signs of development, using a flashlight shining through to illuminate the egg. Normally, I would have done this before I put them into the hatcher (a few days before the hatch), but because there were eggs starting to pip through early, I just wanted to get them in the hatcher.

So for my counting and math - I set 150 eggs, 45 did not show signs of development, and only a handful of the unhatched eggs left did show development to some degree. These appeared to have stopped developing partway through though. I had 92 chicks hatch, giving me a hatch rate of 87%. (If you are observant, you may have caught that 2 of the keets are a different color too.)

I'm pretty happy with the hatch rate, a little disappointed with the number of undeveloped eggs. We keep a rooster to hen ratio of about 1:5. Considering these guineas are not enclosed by any means, maybe that ratio needs to change a bit. I also held onto the eggs approximately 5 weeks before putting them into the incubator, which could have been a bit long to collect and hold onto them.

If you remember in my previous post, I was unsure of if my guineas would continue laying after I set this batch, as I was having trouble finding more eggs.

Well, they hadn't. They just changed locations.

While I was in the garden one afternoon, I heard a few guineas across the road and in some trees by the ditch. I had heard them here a few times so I decided to take a little walk.

A wonderful thing happens when the grass gets taller. You can see the guinea highways. It is hard to tell from this picture, but they trample down a path through the tall grasses on their most frequently traveled routes. If you look carefully, you should be able to find this route by the grass seed heads that cannot be seen, as they have been laid down.

I hopped on this guinea freeway, and it quickly led me to a new stash of eggs, which held over 60. It didn't take me long to have a new batch of over 150 eggs collected to put into the incubator, which were all under 3 weeks old when I put them in. (If I wasn't so far behind this spring, I would search to see if I could find another nest, but this one will do for now.)

I asked Ethan just how many guineas he wanted me to hatch this year, and it looks like I will continue collecting eggs!

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Storm Shelter Blunders and Waiting Projects

2014-05-31T21:44:00.000-05:00

We are now entering our 6th summer living on the farm. Isaac, just like each of the other kids when they were born, accompanied a major life change. (Which makes me a bit curious to see what will happen with this baby!) We moved into our partially finished house on the farm in October of 2008, and Isaac was born in November.

I would think that after 5 full years of living on the farm, we would be a bit more settled in. With Ethan still working off of the farm, however, and with the kids at home and homeschooling, there is still much settling in to do.

If you would switch one of the above - either Ethan being on the farm full time or myself being on the farm without kids, I'm sure we would be settled in. The fact is, starting up our farm would be impossible without Ethan working extra jobs, and we have kids.

I have had a number of young couples considering farming and family ask me if it is a good idea to start a farm and start a family at the same time or if it is a good idea to start a farm with a young family.

My response . . . it is hard. It would be so much easier for me to not have children right now so I could be a better help to Ethan in our farm setup. Either I could go to work and provide more income to allow Ethan to be on the farm more, or I could do more of the farming. Everything would move along so much faster - getting settled in, getting the business established, and turning profits sooner. But I wouldn't trade our kids for any of that. They are a blessing, and they add richness, joy, and fullness to what we are doing. I can't imagine farming without them.

So with that introduction, here are some projects that I worked on today. Projects that I wish were further along then they were, in terms of weeks and years, but they aren't. Projects that I'm sure would be done if we didn't have kids or if I wasn't expecting, but projects that will get done in due time.

First off, the storm shelter. The picture below (sorry for the post in the middle) shows the dirt work around our storm shelter before last spring. It was roughly done with a skid loader when they installed the shelter in 2010, and for 3 years after that it was used by any animals that made it to the yard (which the cows and sheep did often before we got our yard fence in) for king of the mountain.

The dirt work badly needed to be redone, not just for visual appeal and the ability to plant on it as I wanted, but also to keep the storm shelter insulated properly to be used as a root cellar. It had been put on hold amidst our settling in for too long, so late last spring I spent 8-9 hours one day with a shovel on the storm shelter moving dirt and shaping the storm shelter mound. I remember vividly because it was about 98 degrees that day and I ended up sick with mild heat stroke that evening. (Yes, having children slows me down, but I am also very stubborn when I want a project done badly enough.)

Even so, I got the project done.

Or so I thought . . . until this winter.

One day, after a thaw and refreeze, I went to go get some produce from the storm shelter, which was packed with potatoes, apples, carrots, and squash.

I would soon discover that with the dirt work I had done the spring before, I had made the lowest part of the storm shelter's base right in front of the door. Perfect for melting snow to collect and refreeze into a solid chunk of ice, making it impossible to open the door.

Thankfully, Ethan came to my rescue a couple of times and chipped through inches of ice so that I could gather up a couple week's worth of produce to store in the house to be used, but with his full schedule of off farm work, I only asked this of him a few times.

So the majority of the winter my produce was frozen shut in its cozy root cellar. By this spring, bags of potatoes has sprouted (I used them for my seed potatoes) and the squash and carrots were done for. Thankfully, the boxes of apples remained good and are making rounds through my food dehydrator to be apple chips now.

This spring has been a slow spring for me. Since the start, this pregnancy has knocked me down a bit more than the others. I have just entered my 5th month and have been over the sickness stage for a couple weeks now, but I can still tell that this pregnancy is effecting me a bit differently. The humidity of the last week or so has especially been hard, mainly making the air feel much heavier and more difficult to breath than it has before.

All of that to say, I am a bit behind where I would like to be concerning all things outside. But it is a season, and one that is well worth it.

So this evening, seeing that the forecast was bringing rain, I decided to start my grass seeding - hoping that it isn't too late yet.

Over the last week I have very slowly been trenching out around the storm shelter to provide proper drainage in front of the door. I finished up tonight by tilling the area I trenched to smooth it, and then I seeded it. My kids by the way, joined me by helping rake seed in and bringing the straw over in a wagon and spreading it. (If you look closely, you will see the rock walls I made last spring on either side of the door to prevent erosion, along with the fence that surrounds the shelter to keep livestock off! There are also marigolds starting to grow which self reseeded from last year's flowers.)

Along with tilling and seeding around the storm shelter, I also tilled up and seeded two areas of hard packed dirt on the side of our house, another project that has been waiting to be done since we built our house, as the construction equipment followed by heavy traffic areas of feet and market loading (from the sliding door) has prevented grass from growing. (You might also notice the tree cages stuck in the straw that I put together in the shade of the porch today - for trees that I wish I could have acquired and planted the year we moved to the farm.)

And then there is the garden. This afternoon, when my lungs were telling me to move at a snail's pace, I did a bit of weeding . . . or mostly eating strawberries straight from the patch. I am kind of embarrassed to put a picture of my garden up. Most everything is planted now, but it is all weeks behind schedule. I would also like to have it mulched by now, but I will hit that the next cool/non humid week that comes up.

The reason for my post. My personality is one that likes to have my ducks in a row, things tidied up, and checks flying across the checklist of things to do. I often look around at all of the projects I would love to have done here on the farm. Projects that fall behind running the farm and projects that fall behind being a wife and a mom. Projects that I wish would have been completed years prior and projects that rely on seasons which are passing quickly.

But more important than seasonal projects are the seasons of life. And as I have been slowed down even more this spring, I have been remembering the gifts of the season that I am in. A season to anticipate another blessing in our family, and a season to invest in the 4 blessings we have already been given.

A season that I wouldn't trade for a list of completed projects by any means.

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Gobs of Guineas

2014-05-20T21:45:00.002-05:00

This is our third year with guineas on the farm. Last fall someone described their “buck-wheat” call as a rusty gate continuously swinging.

I think they were fairly accurate.

Even with this continuous clatter, we now have over 100 guineas on the farm. Hopefully that will soon turn into over 200.

The reason I even sought after guineas in the first place was because of their reputation for destroying tick populations. When we bought our property, our 23ish acres of pasture had been in a CRP planting of prairie grasses for well over 10 years. As we soon found out, the ticks had used every opportunity they could to reproduce in these tall grasses.

Just before a trip into the doctor, to get a large rash checked out where my young daughter had just had one of her many tick bites of the year, I posted a quick post on Facebook searching for someone who might have some guineas.

As the Lord’s provision would have it, on our way back from the doctor’s office, I noticed someone on the way home had some guineas wandering in his yard, which I had never noticed before. I immediately pulled into his driveway and asked if he had any for sale.

He didn’t, but he did have a pile of eggs he told me I could just have to try to hatch out. While visiting, I also learned that he was the gentleman who had sold us our land, and that he would be more than happy to buy it back from us as land prices shot up shortly after we bought it. Although I didn’t offer him the land, I did thank him for the guinea eggs.

As I incubated the eggs for my anticipated tick control, I did a bit of research on guineas and found they are also wonderful to have in gardens, as they are high protein feeders ravaging insects. They also do not scratch like chickens or dine on the produce – a perfect pest control companion for the home garden.

Later that fall, after the keets had hatched and grown a bit, we were asked if we were raising them for meat. We had never considered it, but with a little more research I found out that guinea fowl is actually a specialty meat – often used in high end restaurants as their game bird.

It just so happened that the guinea keets we were raising were a jumbo version, and the jumbo version that naturally reproduce vs. the jumbo version that needed to be artificially inseminated. Perfect for tick control, garden pest control, and another meat enterprise.

Which leads us back to the 200 guineas we hope to have later this year. Last year we raised around 75 of these birds, keeping back a breeding flock of 25. And although we did order some keets in that “may” reproduce on their own to get some early guinea meat, we hope to hatch out many of our own.

The thing about guinea fowl is that they do not lay in nest boxes like chickens do. Instead, they take great pleasure in hiding their eggs in tall grasses. Along with that, they are awful caretakers of their keets. The “gather the young under their wings” does not apply to guineas, and many of their keets are often overcome by the elements or just plain lost. Because of this, I have been busy collecting/searching out guinea nests to incubate and hatch more of our own flock.

Thankfully, guineas do like to cluster together to hide their nests. Most of the year they run around in one big pack scaring up insects into the air to gobble them up. During spring, however, I have found they break apart into groups of about 6 or so with a male to accompany them. This group will lay their eggs in one spot, making a large cluster of eggs in a couple days.

Before they started laying, I set up a trap nesting spot with hay bales stacked to make a little cave. When I found an egg in this nest, my search began. This spot has also by far been my most productive nest, and I should have made more in various locations around the farm.

So this spring, when it was just too wet to garden or when I needed to get outside but didn't feel quite well enough to garden, I took some walks to look for guinea eggs.

I found one of these nests on the far corner of the farm while checking on the electric fence. I just happened to scare a guinea up off the nest or I may have missed this one.

Another nest I went searching for, as I knew that there was a group of birds hanging out in this area. This nest was made in a tent like structure of weeds, and I’m sure I would not have found it if I wasn’t intently searching for it.

A third nest was found again in an area where I had seen guineas gather, but I didn’t have to search as hard as I came across it when a guinea was on it, scaring her up again. This nest seemed to be popular as there was a trail of eggs around the next from guineas most likely waiting their turn!

It didn’t take me long to get 150 eggs to set in our incubator, and I have another 50 or so waiting to go in when these hatch, not because I am waiting on the room but so that we can space out our available meat.

Unfortunately, my guinea nests have dried up this last week or so. I know a predator found the location of one nest as evidenced by some egg shells, but I’m wondering if they have just slowed down on laying since my trap nest has even slowly dwindled down. Or they are just getting smart, and I need to do some more searching for nests, although I have gone on a couple morning walks and have not scared up any guineas in the ditches lately.

In a couple of weeks, however, we’ll see just how well these guinea eggs were fertilized this year, and we’ll see how this year of focused guinea raising goes. We have a few kinks to work out, such as corralling these flighty birds to keep them where we would like them and catching them during processing time. We do have some different plans of attacks for the year including sending off the year old guineas who have taken to wandering a bit more than we would like and roosting in the rafters, setting up a roosting area where we can shut the door and actually catch them, as well as some ideas to keep them in the pasture area more.

I’m not sure if guineas will be a permanent part of our farm or a “It was fun while it lasted” part of the farm. Even with the challenges of these skiddish wandering foragers and the times of unwanted, not-stop rusty gate noise, they do provide wonderful pest control, a unique meat, and quite a great deal of entertainment as they charge though the pasture in mass, scaring an array of insects into the air, and darting around to gobble them up.

Do you have any experience with guinea fowl? If so, I'd love to have you share!

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Cancel School - It's Time to Plant!

2014-04-23T15:22:00.001-05:00

As I have been trying to balance getting enough rest this trimester, keeping the kids' school moving along, helping Ethan with the farm/marketing as I can, and just managing family life, I have let some prime garden planting days pass by.

Last weekend, after a string of these nice days, we received about 4 inches of rain which made the garden quite muddy. Over the last couple days the garden has been slowly drying, but the forecast this morning showed rain coming around noon - with more rain to follow again this week.

Upon seeing this when I woke I decided that even if we had to tack on another school day to the end of our school year, I was rounding up my troops to plant as much as I could in my garden which has been calling for spring attention.

Even though I had tilled up the entire garden a little over a week ago, I pulled out the tiller to fluff up the soil in the rows that I was able to mark last night. Some might say this extra tilling is a silly step, but I have found that when dealing with a garden my size I would much rather hoe through powdery soil when I plant. It might take slightly more time re-tilling planting rows, but it ends up taking significantly less effort.

While I was tilling up the rows, I had the kids gather the sprouting potatoes from our cellar that I had cut last night in hopes of planting this week. Each potato is cut in two or three portions, making sure at least 2 eyes are on each portion. They are then set aside to callous over. This step prevents disease from entering the potato. Although I should have let mine sit a day or so longer, I decided this morning to take a chance since it might be now or never (or at least a few weeks more).

Once the paths were tilled, I stretched out my line (gotta love having extra stick in fence posts and reels of poly wire free!), started making the trenches for the potatoes and path for the peas with my hoe, and called in my crew who were all excited to help as they grasped the value of our garden from the produce we have been enjoying since last gardening season.

Caleb, who just turned 10 last week, was busy planting peas along the outer fence line using a milk cap I gave him to get the spacing I desired.

Caleb has learned the importance of these peas since I don't let my kids just wander and graze through the garden yet, mostly because of the excited little feet that forget to watch where they are stepping (although the kids do get to enjoy grazing some if they have come in to help.) These fence line peas, along with a couple fence line cherry tomatoes, are free for the taking when they are out playing.

After a quick lesson on positioning potatoes and being careful of the already forming sprouts, Isaac (5) and Hannah (8) helped me fill 4 rows of potatoes using sticks for a spacers that I had broken to just the right length. Jonathan (3) was Hannah's runner, bringing her potatoes down the row to plant as she zipped along.

As you can see, it wasn't the beautiful 70/80 degree sunny days that I missed out on last week, but it was temporarily dry.

Around 10:30 Ethan arrived back home with 2 lamb and 3 hogs from the locker. We quickly covered our 4 rows of potatoes and row of fence line peas so that I could help inventory the new meat. Caleb and Hannah set to work on their math while Isaac and Jonathan played on Starfall, a wonderful online early literacy site that they get to enjoy during the random school times when Ethan needs my help.

Around noon the meat was inventoried and the rain began. I still have 2 more rows of potatoes to put in, another area of peas, and some onions, greens, carrots, broccoli, and cauliflower that I would like to get caught up on, but I am happy that we were able to at least get a start.

If I'm feeling well enough, we'll also try to plug away at some more school tonight (the older two continue with scheduled independent school in the afternoons while the younger rest) and maybe avoid that extra day at the end of our year. :)

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Tools of My Trade

This book is a wonderful resource on companion planting in order to grow foods without the use of chemicals. It details good and bad companions, how various plants work together for increased flavor, productivity, and pest control. It includes information not only for the vegetable garden, but also for companion planting with fruits, nut trees, ornamental plants, and much more. Copies of this book can be found used or you can purchase a new copy from the link provided.

<br clear="all" />This book is a wonderful resource on the technical aspects of seed saving. It shares about the heritage and classifications of different garden seeds (heirlooms, hybrids, etc) and how the different types of seeds react to seed saving. It shares about how to effectively maintain pure varieties of seeds with respect to how the plant pollinates and through different seed saving techniques. Seed clean and storage techniques are also described. A large portion of the book is given to explaining each type of vegetable family, the classifications of families to avoid cross pollination, and how each vegetable family responds to seed saving and storing. If you are interested in saving and keeping your own pure strains of seeds, this is a must have book!

Encouragements of Garden Perennials

2014-04-21T21:30:00.000-05:00

After having my potatoes, onions, lettuce, and a few other early spring plants in the ground by April 5th last year, I would love to say that I have a decent start this year. Although I have managed to get the garden tilled up, that is really about all I have gotten done.

I was hoping this first trimester morning/afternoon/evening sickness and exhaustion would be fading a bit faster around the time the garden was ready to start planting, but it is still sticking around. And so I rest and wait - wait for that perfect combination of dry enough spring soil and a day where I have a bit of energy.

Today was one of those days where I had a little afternoon energy, but the soil was a bit muddy from the early morning rain. Even so, I took advantage of the energy I did find and stepped out to enjoy the warm day and fresh air.

As I did so, I was encouraged by the perennials crops and plants in and around my garden, the bits of growth in an anxiously awaiting plot of otherwise bare soil. I know that I will eventually get my spring crops planted, but until then I will enjoy the plants in my garden that wintered over and are now greeting me with their fresh spring colors.

Rhubarb

Asparagus started from seed - Enjoyed over a cup tonight!

Strawberries

Fall planting of garlic

Red Raspberries in orchard adjoining garden

Cherry tree in orchard adjoining garden

Peonies in corners of the garden

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Changing Seasons

2014-04-13T20:45:00.003-05:00

You may have noticed over the last couple months that my blogging and The Beginning Farmer's Wife Facebook page activity has significantly decreased.

I would like to say that I have been filling my time with spring garden preparations, keeping up with housework, steadily checking off those last days of homeschooling, taking care of outdoor farm needs, or even putting together a new blog post.

I haven't.

The garden is a bit behind schedule, the dishes and laundry and general housework are piled high, we've extended our school days a bit further into the year than originally planned, I haven't been as productive and helpful with the farm as I would like, and I've rarely thought about internet activity.

So what have I been doing?

Well, I've been doing a lot of laying on the couch staring or sleeping, and when I am not laying around, I am moving very slowly around the house trying to work up the motivation and energy to complete tasks that are piling up.

Yes, the seasons are changing. But right now my change of activity has not been based on the changes for spring but on the changes we are excitedly anticipating late fall.

You see, there are a new pair of winter boots that are waiting to be filled this November, and the first trimester has always been a tricky part of pregnancy for me.

We'll get through it though. After all, it's only for a season. :)

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Gardening To Feed a Family

2014-03-25T15:15:00.002-05:00

If you have been following my blog long, or if you have read my series of post on Beginning Pressure Canning, you might have picked up that I do a bit of gardening and canning.

As shown by my garden in 2007, gardening was once something that I considered a hobby, something that I enjoyed doing in my free time and something that I could stop if I wanted to (although I would miss it).

Now, however, gardening has become more of a job, something that still has to be done when there are lists of other things calling my name as well.

The transition from gardening being a hobby to being more like a job has come with the opportunity to help provide for our family, which is now considerably bigger and hungrier than when gardening was just a hobby. By growing and preserving as much of our food as I am able, I can help decrease the amount of money that Ethan needs to earn off of the farm while continuing to stay at home to raise our children and support Ethan.

I have had many people interested in the details of the garden I grew last year, which has finally become established enough to feed a family of 6 throughout the year. Because of this, I am sharing with you my garden plans for 2014, which are quite similar to last year's garden.

My drawings aren't super detailed, but I have included the dimensions of each area so that you can get an idea of how long each row is, as well as a guesstimate on row spacing. You may need to click on the drawings to enlarge them (you can open up a new window to do this as you read along), and free to shoot me any questions if you would like clarification on anything. :)

Garden Overview

My garden is made up of a variety of areas with perennial plantings as well as areas for rotational plantings of annuals. These areas have been set up to provide for the food that our family enjoys.

This first picture, although not to scale, is a drawing of my garden area, which meets up with my orchard. My orchard and garden have been completely fenced in to keep livestock . . . err . . . pests, out of the garden. (I hope to post more about my orchard at a later time.)

Dividing my garden from my orchard is a long asparagus patch which was started from seed. This is a perennial planting so it doesn't get tilled, although I do till alongside the asparagus on the orchard side to keep the grass from growing into the garden. This also makes for a nice dust bath area when we have poultry in the orchard. (The chickens are kept out the garden with a temporary fence between the orchard and garden since they will destroy the mulch and tomatoes. The guinea fowl, on the other hand, are more than welcome in the garden. They not only leave the produce and mulch alone, but they ravage insects and pests.)

Below the asparagus is where I have my 4 quadrants which are rotated yearly for disease control and to avoid nutrient depletion. (I will describe each of these quadrants more in depth below.) To the right of my quadrants, there is a 5th quadrant (can I say this??). It is the width of my other 4 quadrants, although a bit longer, and it is a permanent area for my blueberries and grapes. I have decided to have them in my garden area to keep them within the safety of my fencing and away from the shade of my fruit trees.

At the very front of my garden is a hydrant positioned in the mid-line of my 2nd and 3rd quadrants. On either side of this hydrant is an area for melons and one for strawberries. These are rotated on a 3 year basis to avoid nematodes in my strawberries. The melon patch gets tilled yearly, and the strawberry patch gets tilled every three years.

Directly above the strawberry/melon area is a length of green and red rhubarb. These plants are also perennial plants, so this area doesn't get tilled, but it makes a wonderful dividing line between the area I rotate yearly and the area I rotate on a 3 year rotation.

Along the west fence (this picture is oriented as a compass would be), on the inside of my garden, I plant extra peas. Along the south edge, on the inside of my garden, I plant herbs and greens.

I also plant a border of annual flowers completely around my garden and orchard along the outside of the fence. These flowers, which we save the seeds from for the following year) serve many purposes, and I'm not sure yet which is most important to me. My main purpose was to have a planting that would stop grasses and weeds from growing under the fence (which would be a nightmare to clean without a spray) and into the garden. Annual flowers are dense enough to prevent weed growth, and they can also be tilled up every year to keep that strip free of any weeds that do sneak in. This is also a wonderful way to bring in flowers that encourage pollinators, attract predatory insects for garden pests, and that serve as traps crops for those garden pests as well. Not only that, I have let my kids each have a section of fence to plant, tend to, and pick from, giving them some ownership of the garden. And the fence line is just plain beautiful as the garden welcomes people to our farm and relaxes me outside my kitchen sink window. (We don't have a dishwasher, so I spend many hours at that window!)

Quadrant 1

This year quadrant 1 is my sweet corn patch. If we didn't have livestock that terrorized sweet corn, this would be a much bigger patch somewhere else, and I would rearrange my quadrants. But, I work with what I have. This year I am planting my successive plantings in quadrants within the quadrants, rather than in rows. I had some pollination troubles last year by only planting 2 rows at a time. I'm pretty sure that planting my corn in blocks will help solve this.

Within my corn, I plan on planting pumpkins and squash every other row as I have done in past years. The large leaves help keep the weeds down within the rows, but you will want a nice walking row every other row since the leaves and vines get dense and prickly. When a plant starts growing into a walking row, I just twist it back to a growing row. Pumpkins and squash have traditionally been grown in sweet corn patches to keep out racoons who don't like the prickly plants either. I have not yet had a raccoon problem in my sweet corn, although that could be attributed partially to the fence, but more likely to our great pyrenese dogs.

I have also planted pole beans within my corn some years, another common companion to corn, but I much prefer picking and eating bush beans so I probably won't plant these this year. Although not on my sheet, I will probably try to sneak in a row or two of some purple snap beans along the outside of the corn for fun.

Quadrant 2

This year quadrant 2 will be for my potato and sweet potato planting. This is a pretty straight forward area. When I harvest a row of potatoes, the row will be tilled up, and I will put in some fall beans. The sweet potatoes will be pulled out late summer so they will occupy their area the whole growing season.

Quadrant 3

Along the top of quadrant 4 I put a cattle panel for planting some more peas. On the back side of the cattle panel, I plant a row of cucumbers which will use the panel when the peas are through. I will also plant lettuce between my cucumbers, which enjoy the shaded side of the cattle panel, thanks to the vines growing on the panel.

On the front side of the cattle panel I have an area for broccoli and cauliflower. I might add a couple cabbage here as well. Between these plants and the peas, I will try to grow a few more melons, allowing them to vine between my broccoli, cauliflower, and cabbage, although I'm not sure if they will appreciate the shade of these plants. We'll see.

The main part of this quadrant is reserved for my green and yellow beans, of which I can many of. To be honest with you, the main reason I grow yellow beans is because my Grandpa Kies did and they look pretty canned up with the green beans. Otherwise, those rows would be green beans as well.

Dividing my green and yellow beans is a row of eggplant. Eggplant are supposed to benefit by being planted between beans, but this is as much effort as I'm willing to put into eggplant. I don't eat a lot of them fresh, but they do get dehydrated to be added to dishes (or half of the dish for Ethan's sake) during the winter.

Quadrant 4

Last but not least, is quadrant 4. Tomatoes seem to take up most of this quadrant, but there is much more going on in here than tomatoes.

This year I am planting 72 tomato plants which will produce just about the right amount of tomatoes for much fresh eating and canning for our family of 6, if the growing season cooperates. I have planned their rows according to height (except my last row) and sun exposure, with the tallest plants being planted east, to avoid shading out of smaller growing plants. When I plant my rows of tomatoes, I put a t-fence post on either end of the row and one in the middle. Up and down these posts I stretch fencing wire, and I tie and train my tomatoes on these wires as they tomatoes grow.

It has taken me a decent amount of experimenting to come up with a combination of tomato plants to serve our eating and canning needs, but I think that I finally have it!

On the west side are my Roma tomatoes. These are not my favorite sauce tomatoes, but they do come on earlier than the San Marzanos (my favorite). Planting these allows me to can some early spaghetti sauce, and they give me a back up if my San Marzanos have troubles. Next are the Ruttgers. These are an earlier tomato, very prolific, and long lasting. Much of my tomato juice and stew tomatoes come from these, which will be used as tomato soup, in stews and other soups, and to cook rice or noodles in for extra flavor. After the Ruttgers are my San Marzanos. I LOVE these tomatoes. They are smaller, but their sauce qualities make up for their size. They are an amazing sauce tomato with a low water content and great flavor. They are a bit later, but once they are going they are very prolific. I have found that these are prone to blossom end rot in my garden, more so than the other tomatoes. (Blossom end rot is caused by calcium fluctuations brought about by inconsistent watering. Last year, however, when many were battling blossom end rot, not even my San Marzanos had trouble. I attribute it to a saving my egg shells through the winter, which I crushed and worked into my tomato rows, as well as having a nice layer of mulch around my tomatoes.) After my San Marzanos, are the San Marzano Redortas. These tomatoes are completely amazing in their massive size and sauce qualities, although I did struggle with them a bit last year which was my first year of growing them. The tomato horn worms love these plants more so than the other plants (they like the regular San Marzanos too), some of the plants just didn't take off as well, and they were a bit later than the San Marzanos only giving me a short harvesting season. The tomatoes I did get impressed me so much though, with one tomato producing enough for almost a pint of sauce, that I am going to give them a try again. I will make sure to give them an extra dose of our rich compost and keep a better eye out for those pesky horn worms. My last row is mainly my fresh eating row, with extras being canned for stew tomatoes or juice. The cherry and Riesentraube are wonderful little tomatoes to snack on while gardening (for both myself and my kids). The Crimson Cushion and German Pink had wonderful flavor last year and both earned a repeat spot. (As you might guess, the German Pinks were a huge hit!), and I have a couple spots open to experiment with new varieties, which one day might take over the spots of another.

Around the tomato plants I have a bit of companion planting going on. Right within my tomato rows, between the tomato plants, is where I plant my onions. They did very well last year being planted this way. Also, nestled right up alongside the tomatoes and onions are my rows of carrots. They also did wonderfully last year.

In this quadrant I also have my peppers for salsa, freezing, and pickling. In addition, I have one zuchinni plant and one yellow squash plant, which provide sufficient squash for many breads, soups and meals - either fresh during the summer or grated and dehydrated to be used throughout the winter months.

What Do Groceries Look Like Throughout the Year?

As for feeding our family of 6, including lunch since we homeschool, I budget an average of $35 per week for our food groceries. That gets us 3 gallons of milk, cheese for our pizza night, rice, beans, noodles, oat groats or rolled oats for breakfast, and wheat berries to grind for flour, along with a few other random things. (The oats and wheat berries come in bulk from an Amish store by where I grew up, along with my bulk spices.)

Last year I canned/dehydrated/froze 522 quarts of food, with 445 quarts coming from our farm. (We had fruits and some extra veggies given to us locally.) We also filled our storm shelter/root cellar with root vegetables, squash, and gifted apples.

I cook almost everything from scratch and don't make a lot of treats or fancy meals, but we eat well from what we have preserved. For our meat, we eat mostly shanks and hocks that I can from our farm, with random other cuts that are end portions or that get packaged funny, which we won't sell. We also enjoy our eggs sporadically when they don't all sell. When they do, we go without. Hopefully we will have a milk cow in the next couple years as I am in the process of training/taming some heifer calves.

As I mentioned, gardening to help feed our family from the farm is comparable to having a job. Many summer days I would prefer to be hanging out with friends at the lake, sipping lemonade or reading while watching the kids play in the yard, or doing a bit more traveling and visiting. But my garden is a job that keeps me at home with the kids, and it's a way to support my husband - and for that I am blessed.

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Tools of My Trade

This book has been a wonderful resource to me on companion planting in order to make the most of my garden space and grow foods without the use of chemicals. It details good and bad companions, how various plants work together for increased flavor, productivity, and pest control. It includes information not only for the vegetable garden, but also for companion planting with fruits, nut trees, ornamental plants, and much more. Copies of this book can be found used or you can purchase a new copy from the link provided.

Much of what I preserve is pressure canned in order to kill all bacteria in low acid foods that would cause dangerous foodborne illnesses. They can be safely canned by using the recommended times and pressures given for your altitude. I have a couple older Mirro pressure canners given to me that work wonderfully, and my mom has a newer one that she loves as well. If you do some asking around, you might find someone who has given up canning and has one available, or you can look for one like the one pictured below. It should hold around 9 pint jars or 7 quart jars.

Crooked Gap Farm Snapshots :: Beauty Within the Thorns

2014-03-07T20:57:00.002-06:00

I love this little bird's nest my son and I came across in the brambles today while working on a school project.

It is a reminder of the seasons that each have their place, as well as a reminder that even within the tangled thorns in life there could be a beauty hidden that brings forth newness and life.

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My Hows and Whens of Starting Vegetable Seeds

2014-03-04T14:50:00.002-06:00

Although it is the first of March, I'm having a hard time convincing myself that spring is coming. Last week temps were hovering around 0 degrees, with a low of -14 one day, and that without wind chill.

Even though spring seems ages away, my seedlings are telling me differently. Last week my tomato seedlings broke through the soil and are soaking in the sun from our South facing window. The first of my peppers are just starting to peek through too.

I have tried starting my seedlings many different ways over the years. Time, space, and lighting have always been a challenge to work with, which has led me to trying so many different methods.

I think the first year I tried starting my seeds, I just cut off the bottoms of 4 or so milk jugs, filled them with soil, and planted my seeds. It wasn't beautiful, but it worked for the few seeds that I wanted to start.

The following year, Ethan bought me a seed starting tray with the expanding soil discs. These were great to use, and the following year I went this route as well. The only difference was that being my frugal self, I didn't want to buy replacement discs. Instead, I made my own planting pots out of newspaper and potting soil, detailed in this post that I put together.

My homemade planting pots worked just as well as the store bought. The roots could grow right through them, preventing the young plants from being root bound. And by planting the seedling with the pot, there wasn't much disturbance to the roots. The main things to watch for were just making sure the pots didn't dry out (both the store pots and the home pots dry out quickly) and making sure to bury the pot completely when planting to prevent drying out as well.

I used this method for another year or two, but soon I was wanting to start more plants than I had room for with trays. I was also needing to spend a considerable amount of time making my homemade planting pots for all of the additional seeds I wanted to start.

Because of this, last year I tried something new to me. I took a 6 inch high rubber maid that I had laying around, filled it with my planting soil, and started rows of plants in my tub.

I ended up planting them quite close together due to the amount of space I had to work with and seeds I wanted to start. I planted 2 seeds every inch or so, planning to pinch off the weakest of the two once they got growing. To separate my varieties of plants, I stretched a length of yarn between each row, using a toothpick to hold it in place at each end.

This worked well enough for me last year that I decided to go this route again this year.

As I did last year, I have my seedlings by our south facing window. I am again using 2 grow lights that Ethan gifted me (he knows me, huh?!) to keep my plants from becoming spindly from trying to stretch towards more concentrated light. I also have a fan set on low to help develop strong stems on my seedlings, replicating a light breeze outside. In addition, I rotate my container daily so that different sides of the container are right next to the window.

By planting my seedlings in a container like this, the evaporation of the soil is decreased considerably compared to the planting pots that dried out so quickly. I use my finger along the edge of the container to test the moisture level of the soil, being careful that it doesn't dry out or become too wet, which could lead to problems for the roots.

I have switched from a clear container to a black container, hoping to absorb some of the sunlight and heat coming from the window to aid in germination and growth. I have marked my rows by writing on a spoon with permanent marker - which I am sure will be much more effective than the tags I taped on the side of the container last year (that would fall off). I have also planted my seeds in blocks instead of rows to make it easier to remove the seedlings that I am wanting to plant, even though I do plan on planting them all pretty much at the same time. (Last year, after I hardened off my plants outside, I used a gardening knife to cut through the soil and remove the plants as I was planting them. I didn't feel like I caused much root damage, even though the plants were so close together.)

We'll see how this second year of starting seeds this year goes. If it is like last year, I'm sure I will be quite pleased.

As I wait for spring to arrive, I will prepare a few more smaller tubs to plant in and finish organizing my heirloom seeds, according to the planting guide I put together last winter. I found this to be very helpful for me after years of fumbling through seed packets, trying to figure out when to plant what, and scratching my head in the garden trying to remember what I finally decided. I only wish I would have made one of these lists sooner! Feel free to copy it and print it out if you would like, remembering that the dates I have set are for planting times in southern Iowa.

If you are like me, you might be finally brushing off the tiredness from wrapping up the gardening and canning season of last year and feeling a bit of excitement about getting back in the garden this spring. After this long, cold winter, any thought of spring is exciting!

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Tools of My Trade

Here are a few of the supplies I use for starting my seeds. They can be found in most home and garden departments or through the affiliate links below.

Beginning Presure Canning :: Filling Your Pantry

2014-02-25T23:16:00.001-06:00

I hope that you have had time to try out The Pressure Canning Process and that you are feeling comfortable with your pressure canner now.

If you are just jumping in on my series on Beginning Pressure canning, I invite you to read my first post about Understanding Pressure Canning, followed by The Pressure Canning Process which gives you a step by step tutorial on becoming familiar with your pressure canner.

If you you feel like you are getting the hang of your pressure canner, it is now time to start filling your pantry!

Preserving the Harvest

When most people think about filling their pantry with pressure canned products, they often think of jars filled with produce from the summer's garden. Pressure canning is a wonderful way to preserve the bounty of your harvest, especially if you don't have freezer space or a root cellar to fill.

Low acid produce such as green beans, potatoes, sweet potatoes, squash, corn, carrots, peas, asparagus, and even onions and peppers can all be safely preserved to enjoy and cook with throughout the year.

Although fruits and tomato based food with a high enough acidity (sauces, salsa, tomato juice, stewed tomatoes, etc.) can be safely canned in a water bath, they can also be pressure canned with a reduced processing time compared to the water bath.

Whenever you select produce to can, make sure that you use produce that is free of blemishes (which could contain more of the organisms that spoil food) and that is not overly ripe (for the best flavor, nutritional quality, and longevity for storage).

What if you don't have a garden? (To see my post on Gardening to Feed a Family, click here.) Don't let that stop you! Here are just a few ideas on how to acquire delicious produce to pressure can:

Join a CSA - Community Supported Agriculture farms will supply you with weekly shares of their harvest throughout the growing season.
Farmers' Markets - Farmers' markets allow you to select the types and amounts of produce that you would like to preserve. Make sure to talk to the farmers about the origins of their produce, however, since many farmers' markets allow individuals to sell produce that has been shipped in.
Produce Auctions - Produce auctions are a great way to buy bulk produce for canning. If you search around on Google, you might be able to locate produce auctions in your area. My mom and grandma often frequent the Wapsie Valley Produce Auction in Hazelton, located amongst the Amish near my hometown. More Iowa produce auctions can be found here. Although most of the produce is grown locally, it is still a good idea to ask about the origin of the produce.
Check with Friends and Neighbors - There are many gardeners out there who garden just as much to get their hands dirty in the garden as they do to consume their crops, and there are many land owners who have fruit trees but do not eat all of the fruit. These gardeners and landowners often have more produce than they can handle. Don't be afraid to ask them if they ever have an abundance to sell or barter for. You might even be able to exchange some garden or fruit picking up labor for crops. I know of many individuals who have spotted plentiful gardens or fruit trees on walks or drives and have ended up with large amounts of produce. Don't be shy! :)
Purchase from Stores - If you aren't able to grow or purchase any local produce, you can always purchase your produce from the store. This allows you to have foods on hand and ready to go without a trip to town, and you can also get nice sales on certain crops when they are in season.

When There Isn't a Harvest

The gardening season is not the only time that you can have foods to pressure can. My pressure canner runs regularly throughout the winter months as well, which is a great time to can. The heat provided by the canner is actually welcomed, unlike in the summer months. There are also many jars available that are being emptied of summer produce. These jars can be filled with ready to go meals or with ingredients for meals. This significantly cuts down on your meal preparation and clean up. Many of my winter canned goods are my "fast food" canned goods.

Here are some of my favorite things to pressure can in the winter:

Meat - What would I do without my canned meat?! I have almost forgotten how to cook with meat from the freezer. Pork shanks are cooked down to fill jars with tender pulled pork to be used in sandwiches, soups, seasoned with my homeade BBQ sauce, and seasoned with my homeade taco seasoning for tacos or fajitas. Ham hocks are also cooked down for ham for scrambled eggs, casseroles, ham and beans, pizza toppings, ham sandwiches, or ham and noodles. The same goes with chicken, turkey, and beef, all waiting to be added to casseroles, soups, or to be used in sandwiches. Canning meats can be so simple and so rewarding, especially on those evenings when you want to provide a hearty meal in a short amount of time. It is also a great way to turn lesser cuts of meats into ingredients for a wonderful meal!
Broth - Pork, beef, chicken, and turkey broth are a staple in my pantry. Broth can be made from soup bones, bones left over from a roast or broiler bird, or from the extra liquid used when preparing meat to can. The nutrients pulled out during the process of making broth are very healing and nourishing to your body. Broth is wonderful to use in soups (no more of those MSG filled bullion cubes!) and to cook noodles in or rice in for extra flavor and nutrients. Save whatever bones are leftover from your meals to use for broth or check with your local farmer or butcher if you are in search of bones to use.
Beans - I once turned my nose up to cooked beans, but now I am constantly canning dried beans: black beans and mixed beans for soups and various dishes, beans flavored with my homemade enchilada seasoning (to be mashed and used in burritos, taco dips, or as refried beans), beans flavored with my homemade chili seasoning (ready for my 4 jar chili meal), beans canned as baked beans, and even a few other seasoned bean experiments. Cooking with beans started as a necessity to add protein into our meals when we need to sell much more meat than we ate. I don't ever recall eating any beans besides baked beans when I was growing up (nor did I want to), but now our family has really grown to enjoy not only the savings of using beans in recipes, but also the flavors of all of my seasoned beans. Plus, if you use broth as your liquid, you take away much of the "reputation" that comes with beans
Soups and Stews - Soups and stews can be made up specially to be canned, or you can multiply your recipes to allow for extra soup to can. Jars of premade soups are wonderful to have on hand for days when there is sickness in the house or when you need a filling meal in 10 minutes or less. One of the best parts about these meals is that the only cleanup you have is the jar, pan you heated it in, and the bowl and spoon you used to eat it with (if you even bothered using a bowl!)
Food From the Cellar - If you are blessed to have a root cellar and produce being stored over the winter months, don't be afraid to can some of it up if it is still in good shape, especially if you are nearing the end of the season. Potatoes, sweet potatoes, pumpkin, squash, and carrots are all wonderful crops that can be pulled out and canned. It may seem a bit silly to can them, but the convenience of having them precooked is well worth it. I often open a jar of pumpkin squash to make a quick batch of pumpkin bread for the kids' snack, and the flavor of my fried potatoes when using canned potatoes beats the fresh potatoes hands down!
Produce From the Store - If you are just getting started pressure canning and are planning on canning produce during the upcoming growing season, you just might want to try heading to your favorite store's produce department, picking up some veggies, and giving them a try in your pressure canner. You probably won't be saving much financially, but the practice could save you considerably (time and money) when the bounty of fresh produce comes on fast and furious from the garden or a local producer.

Giving it a Try

Since this post is coming out in February, here are a couple links to some of my photo tutorials that can be tried out now.

Also, recipes and instructions for each of the areas of canning listed in this post can be found in the Ball Blue Book Guide to Preserving.

And since canning meat is such a help to me, I thought I'd add a quick tutorial of one of the easiest ways to can meat. This can be done with cubed meat or stew meat. This meat can be used in casseroles, soups, stir fry, or spaghetti sauce. It is so quick, so easy, and so helpful to have on hand!

Purchase or thaw cubed stew meat. I used approximately 15 lbs to give me 18 pints worth of meat.

Add just enough hot water to cover your meat. Bring your meat to a boil. During this time, you will want to prepare your canner, jars, and lids if you haven't already.

Once your meat has been brought to a boil, turn off your heat and begin filling your jars. I like to use a slotted spoon to lift out the meat, and then I dip out enough liquid with a measuring cup to fill the jar to the proper head space, both of these done with the aid of a canning funnel.

Process your jars according to time and pressure given with your pressure canner.

Here is a photo of my finished jars. The jars on the left are fully cooled, and the jars are the right are still cooling.

A note on fats: You may notice the lard that has rendered out of the meat, which has solidified at the top of the jars on the right as they cooled. I have recently been leaving more fats in my meat since it is a healthy fat from our pasture raised animals and is an important part of our young childrens' diet.

When I prefer to remove the fats, I use my fat separator (aff link) when I add in my liquids or I chill the meat overnight to remove the fat as shown in this post. After the fat has been removed, just reheat your meat back up and continue on.

Now What Do I Do?

If you have read about Understanding Pressure Canning, have gathered your materials, and are comfortable with The Pressure Canning Process, here are some next steps you can take.

Think about where you can purchase crops or meats for canning. If you can't grow or raise them yourself, try to find a local producer so that you are working with fresh products.
Try something simple. Flip through the Ball Blue Book Guide to Preserving and find a recipe that you think you would enjoy and one that doesn't require too much work. This is a great way to build confidence.
Determine what types of canned goods you consume the most. This is a great place to start since you will quickly see the rewards of pressure canning your own food.
Look forward to my next post on Organizing Your Canning!

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Tools of My Trade

You can check out the aff links below to learn more about these canning tools, and you can also read about them in the first post of my series, Understanding Pressure Canning, where I talk about how to pick out and find good used equipment.