Garden 2015

[the_rayway]

Epsom salt is good for magnesium deficiency are you using calcified seaweed?

Hey there,
I'm using this: Organican 2-5-2: Organic Seaweed. Punches up the quality of all plants and makes other fertilizers work better. Contains natural growth enhancers, amino acids and micro-nutrients. Punches-up blooms, crop yield, taste, disease and insect resistance , germination rate, frost resistance. It is that good! 30 gram package will make 20 litres of concentrate, which in turn will make 300 litres of usable fertilizer. Easy-to-mix.

Lol, can you tell I'm new to the whole "fertilizing" thing? Historically I just added manure and compost every year!

@JohnT
Those pickles look fantastic! I'm a total pickle addict - but no bread and butter for me. I've somehow never acquired a taste for them, but I make them for others

 

[barbiek]

Ray Im trying To go organic as much as possible this is the first year
using seaweed no blight, don't know if that has anything to do with it or not but I was a mother hen always picking the lower leafs off and making sure there was good air circulation and Burned all the plants last year instead of leaving them to fertilize the soil or poison it lol Might do the same this year just with the tomatoes and maybe pepper plants chop and drop everything else for nutrients Did notice a big difference in my crop this year

 

[the_rayway]

Interesting! I've found that since I started spraying with the epsom/seaweed a few weeks ago the new tomatoes are looking ok on the plants that had started developing blight. So that might be the ticket.

Also, I was always told never to till under the tomatoes into the soil. Always throw away in case of blight diseases or bacteria. Peas and beans I was told to always till under for nutrients.

 

[fabrictodyefor]

I've never put my tomato or potato plants in my compost. Read it somewhere, just can't remember where!!

JohnT, the pickles look great. I also use Mrs. Wages, but I do like the Zesty B&B, not a lot of zing, but just the right amount. I've got 3 gallons of "old fashioned" dill going. Put them in a crock with salt, vinegar, water, dill, garlic and let them sit for several weeks. I made these for the first time last year and we really have enjoyed them. This is the way my mom made them all the time! Back to Basics!

 

[JohnT]

I've never put my tomato or potato plants in my compost. Read it somewhere, just can't remember where!!

JohnT, the pickles look great. I also use Mrs. Wages, but I do like the Zesty B&B, not a lot of zing, but just the right amount. I've got 3 gallons of "old fashioned" dill going. Put them in a crock with salt, vinegar, water, dill, garlic and let them sit for several weeks. I made these for the first time last year and we really have enjoyed them. This is the way my mom made them all the time! Back to Basics!

I always wanted to make pickles that way. If not too much trouble, the next time you make a batch, could you take pictures and post a step-by-step??

 

[the_rayway]

I've got 3 gallons of "old fashioned" dill going. Put them in a crock with salt, vinegar, water, dill, garlic and let them sit for several weeks. I made these for the first time last year and we really have enjoyed them. This is the way my mom made them all the time! Back to Basics!

This is the same that I am doing with 2 gallons of cukes! I'm 1.5 weeks into it and it appears to be going well It smells like heaven!

 

[JohnT]

OK,

So now I have "Pickle Envy".

 

[the_rayway]

OK,

So now I have "Pickle Envy".

Bhahahahaha!!!!

 

[JohnT]

Bhahahahaha!!!!

OK,

So that REALLY did not sound good!!!

 

[the_rayway]

OK,

So that REALLY did not sound good!!!

Here JohnT I'll help you out This is the basic recipe that I'm using for mine:

Deli Dill Pickles

INGREDIENTS

3 to 4 lbs pickling cucumbers (Kirby, Northern Pickling, etc), washed and ends trimmed

Brine

8 cups filtered water
1 cup white vinegar (at least 5% acidity)
3/4 cup of pickling or canning salt

Flavorings

1 head garlic (about 12- 16 cloves), cloves peeled and left whole
scant 1/2 cup pickling spice
1 large dill flower head, or 4 tsp dill seed, or 2 fresh bunches dill

METHODS

Pickling

Day 1. Add water, vinegar and salt to a medium stockpot and bring to a boil over high heat. Stir to dissolve salt; remove from heat and cool to room temperature.
In a large glass or ceramic bowl or crock or clean plastic pail (avoid metal, as it can turn garlic cloves blue), add about half of the flavorings. Add cucumbers. Pour brine over cucumbers to cover. Scatter the remaining flavorings over the top. Weigh down cucumbers with an inverted, clean plate. Cover bowl with a clean kitchen towel or cheesecloth. Let stand at cool room temperature (70 – 75 degrees F).
Days 3 -21. Every couple of days, check your pickles and skim off any scum that rises to the top of the bowl. The pickles will bubble as they ferment; when the bubbling ceases, after about 3 to 4 weeks, fermentation is complete, but you can pull the pickles any time during the process, whenever they taste the best to you. If not canning, move pickles to the refrigerator to stop fermentation: pickles will last for months refrigerated.

Canning

Prepare canner, jars and lids. Be sure to sterilize jars with a full 15-minute boil prior to filling.
Strain brine into a large saucepan, reserving pickles and flavorings; bring brine to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat and boil gently for 5 minutes.
Pack pickles into hot, sterilized jars with a generous 1/2-inch head space. Add a few pickled garlic cloves and a spoonful of spices to each jar if you wish. Ladle hot brine into jar to cover pickles, leaving 1/2-inch head space. Process in a boiling water bath for 5 minutes.

Yields 3 to 4 quarts, or 6 – 7 pints pickles.

 

[fabrictodyefor]

I used this http://www.almanac.com/content/how-make-dill-pickles, I think it is about the same as rayway's. The 2 gallon container has a pot in it that seems to almost cover everything up, and I don't seem to get as much "scum" on the top of that one. I put the pot on top to keep the cucumbers immersed. Because I ended up with dill on the top of the one gallon container, I just take the dill weed out and rinse it off and put it back in. I've also stirred around the ones in the gallon container as this one seems to have "scum" floating around! It usually brings the scum to the surface. These are usually covered up with a cotton cloth. As my instructions were not detailed as far as the dill goes, I probably use a lot more dill than rayways instructions! But as far as I'm concerned these are the best dills I have ever made!

 

[roger80465]

An easy way, I have found, is when you empty a jar of your favorite pickles, simply add fresh ones to the brine. Leave them for a week or 2 in the fridge then chow down. Quick and tasty refrigerator pickles. Yum!

 

[JohnT]

Fabric,

Man, I need to invest in some crocks!

The only question I have is this.. If the container is kept open, how can you tell if some nasty bacteria didn't work its way in? Is it a case where bacteria can not thrive in the brine's environment??

 

[fabrictodyefor]

Fabric,

Man, I need to invest in some crocks!

The only question I have is this.. If the container is kept open, how can you tell if some nasty bacteria didn't work its way in? Is it a case where bacteria can not thrive in the brine's environment??

I do keep a cotton cloth over the top. The fruit flies don't seem to bother it. I'm guessing the bad bacteria can not grow in this environment. That is why you can just water bath anything with vinegar or acid and it does not have to be pressure canned. The first time I skimmed off the scum I was skeptical! But we've been eating the dills since last year and we still feel fine! I got the 2 gallon glass crock at Wal Mart, it was not that expensive. I have also used it for making wine. You can use crockery or glass, but I don't think anything else.

 

[fabrictodyefor]

It is supposed to get to 37 tonight...what the heck, very late spring and now an early winter! If the smoke doesn't kill everything green, the cold will.

 

[Larryh86GT]

The sunflowers in my garden are now over 11 foot tall. There will be lots of seeds to roast soon.

 

[fabrictodyefor]

The sunflowers in my garden are now over 11 foot tall. There will be lots of seeds to roast soon.

Nice, but how do you keep the birds away?

 

[Larryh86GT]

They haven't been bothering them yet but if they do start I will net them.

 

[the_rayway]

Score from last night:
Striped German, Roma, Mortgage Lifter, Pineapple, Black Krimm, Green Zebra, Black Cherry, Yellow Pear, Amish Paste, and Indigo Blueberry.

 

[fabrictodyefor]

nice tomatoes rayway...mine are very slow. getting cherry tomatoes, but no big ones yet.

Larry, I usually grow sunflowers just to watch the birds get the seeds! They are quite limber creatures as they attempt to sit on the top of the flower and pick out the seeds!