Learn the best secrets and tips for crispy and crunchy pickles. I've read about dozens of different theories for how to keep cucumbers crispy when pickling them, and I sorted through them, tried most of them, and gathered up the best of the best tips for crunchy pickles in this post. Ain't nobody likes a mushy pickle... It's a problem that's plagued pickle-makers for centuries: how do you find a pickle recipe that results in ...Continue Reading
Simple Mint Syrup Recipe
My mint is trying to take over my life right now. Now I'm not exactly complaining, because with the gardening year I've had thus far, I'm just happy to see something, anything, growing out there... It hasn't been a good growing season for my poor little garden. I suspect I have an issue with contaminated compost, and while I can't say for absolute certain yet, it ain't pretty... As I wrote in my newsletter last week, my carefully ...Continue Reading
How to Build a Chicken Run
After all these years I still have a hard time passing up those feed store chick sales, I can't seem to resist the urge to bring home a few new additions. If this is your first year buying those feed store chicks or chickens in general then there are a few you basic things you will need to know. (For a little extra help have a listen to the Podcast episode Getting Chickens for the First Time?) Basics you need to learn about ...Continue Reading
Fruit Popsicles Recipe
There's a ring around the bathtub every night... A combination of blazing hot temperatures + TWO dirt piles + splashing in the water tank + bikes + farm animals + bare feet produces two of the grimiest children I have ever seen. Every. Single. Night. I don't even want to think about what we're gonna do when winter finally hits. It won't be pretty, and there's usually a pretty rough adjustment when they can't live outside ...Continue Reading
How to Make Compost Tea
Since when did poop and water get so complicated? When I began my research on compost teas, I figured it would be a fairly easy subject to tackle … Boy did I ever underestimate that one. It’s no secret that compost is one of the best fertilizers you can possibly add to your garden. And the sky’s the limit when it comes to all the options you have when it comes to different styles of compost piles and the ingredients that you can ...Continue Reading