The Garden Thread - June, 2024

June 1, 2024 | Diana in WI/Greeneyes in Memoriam

[Diana in Wisconsin]

The MONTHLY Gardening Thread is a gathering of folks that love soil, seeds and plants of all kinds. From complete newbies that are looking to start that first potted plant, to gardeners with some acreage, to Master Gardener level and beyond, we would love to hear from you.

If you have specific question about a plant/problem you are having, please remember to state the Growing Zone where you are located.

This thread is a non-political respite. No matter what, you won’t be flamed, and the only dumb question is the one that isn’t asked.

It is impossible to hijack the Gardening Thread. Planting, Harvest to Table Recipes, Preserving, Good Living - there is no telling where it will go - and that is part of the fun and interest. Jump in and join us! Send a Private Message to Diana in Wisconsin if you'd like to be added to/removed from our New & Improved Ping List.

NOTE: This is a once a MONTH Ping List, but we DO post to the thread all throughout the month. Links to related articles and discussions which might be of interest to Gardeners are welcomed any time!

[Augie]

Mrs. Augie and #1 Marine Daughter have both tested positive for AGS within the last three months. We have over 400lbs of frozen beef and venison that they are no longer able to comfortably eat. It’s liable to take me ten years to eat it all. I really ought to fill a cooler and donate some of it to the local food pantry.

[Augie]

Do a web search for “Cub Cadet LTX 1042 KW idler pulley spring”.

[metmom]

Sorry to hear that.

You have any family or friends to give it to? I have no idea how receptive food pantries are to taking meat.

Maybe some soup kitchen?

Or a church?

[Pollard]

Did they have some kind of reaction to mammalian meat/beef/pork? If so, what kind, hives, worse?

---

I've been living with it for near 20 years. I have it mild and am not one of those people who will have a reaction by eating chicken off a grill that beef was cooked on prior. I don't fully even believe that to be possible but it could be I suppose. Could also be psychological. Have the hives once and get paranoid from there out. Some people are like that. I noticed the initial MSM articles about it years ago were all about people who almost died because a spatula used on beef was used on their chicken. Same MSM people are telling us that cows are gonna kill us all. I do know from personal experience that the allergy is real though.

Cleaned up mo-in-law's 5 acres of woods in North FL back in the day and got a lot of tick bites, seed ticks and Lone Stars. After that, I would wake up at about 2am with the hives which lasted a couple of hours but at that point, had no idea what it was. We tried new laundry detergent and bed sheets but that made no difference. I searched the web for food allergies and all happened within 15 minutes of consumption so I searched delayed food allergy and found the two doctors at a medical university in Virginia had discovered the Alpha Gal fat cause. One of them actually had it himself which helped them find that it was set off by tick bites, specifically Lone Star here.

At the same time, two doctors in Australia discovered the same thing but with a different tick that we don't have here. They also don't have Lone Star. It's been discovered elsewhere since.

It's generally thought that this allergy has been around forever but no one could figure it out due to the delayed reaction. On the other hand, Lime disease was possibly caused by scientists releasing modified ticks. Who knows?

I've noticed that over time, with no new Lone Star bites, it gradually lessens and I can eat more mammalian meat, which is mostly beef for me because we don't eat a lot of pork. Ribs did set me off one time and the very worst time was homemade ham from a heritage breed. Definitely not "the other white meat".

I haven't eaten a full ribeye on nearly 20 years which is how I confirmed what was going on back then. Wife and I would have ribeye night every couple of weeks. Sure enough, 2-3 ribeye nights in a row, I'd wake up with the hives. NY Strip is my preferred steak now and half of one is my serving size.

Stumbled across a study from Turkey of all places where they desensitized two people by having them consume ever increasing doses of beef starting with some drops of beef extract. They made that themselves by boiling a certain amount of beef in a certain amount of water.

That's kinda what my non scientific practice has been for years. Steal one bite of the wife's steak this time. Two bites next time etc and working my way up to an actual serving. That lasts until I get a Lone Star bite.

If that happens, I'll grab some beef jerky or deli sliced beef or steak-um and spend the weekend munching on it staring with a little and working my way up. I don't weigh or measure it in any way. Then through the week, I'll continue that but go easy on increasing so I don't end up missing work. In two weeks, I'm good for an actual serving.

By the time they came up with a test for it, I pretty much had it all figured out, including the lessening effect over time. By the time I saw the desensitization study/program, I had already been doing that for years in my own very non-scientific way.

Here's the study - https://www.researchgate.net/publication/312956156_Successful_beef_desensitization_in_2_adult_patients_with_a_delayed-type_reaction_to_red_meat

I know, it's Turkey but it was some Turkish doctors taking care of some Turkish people and like I said, I've already been doing the same program for years, minus actual measurements of servings. Just going by God given instinct and the desire to not have to eat nothing but chicken and fish the rest of my life.

My latest reaction was to Tri Tip. First time buying it and when I sliced it, it kinda looks like ribeye in a way. I didn't eat much because I had found a Lone Star on me a few days prior. Found it because it had just gotten it's feeding tube in and caused an itch. Pulled off easy due to that so I was hoping it did nothing but I woke up at 2am with the hives. They only tasted an hour and I was able to go to work the next day, although I had low energy because even a mild anaphylaxis condition takes it's toll.

Been munching on beef jerky in ever increasing amounts ever since. I'm ready for NY Strip the next time I see it down around $10/lb.

I keep my grass short and spread Sevin granules around my little perimeter at the start of every tick season and don't do the woods until they're all dead from a good freeze. I haven't spread Sevin around the High tunnel area which is how I go the Lone Star bite. Need to do that soon.

[Pollard]

Cool idea with the solar lights.

I had already had the thought about needing lighting in the tunnel for working on installing and wiring all the automation stuff at night when things get down to the wire next Spring. That and checking on or doing things after dark. Thought about how it will probably look cool from here or being in there.

Now you have me thinking about low watt incandescent or at least LED lighting down around 3000K in color. Do they still make clear glass incandescent Christmas lights?

[ArcadeQuarters]

They’ve killed two of my cabbages and are doing damage to at least 2 others. They’re getting nuked.

[Diana in Wisconsin]

“Do they still make clear glass incandescent Christmas lights?”

Amazon says YES! :) C9 or C7 bulbs are still out there!

https://www.amazon.com/incandescent-christmas-light-bulbs/s?k=incandescent+christmas+light+bulbs

[Pete from Shawnee Mission]

Augie; Last visit for a tune up, my HVAC people quoted about 5K for a generator and exterior outlet. I would prefer an automatic transfer panel with auto start. The city would still have to inspect to make certain that the generator would not be too loud and disturb my neighbors, but I do not think that you have that problem.

NorthernTool keeps spamming me with generator sales. Some of the Honda generators can be coupled up and synched. That would be for RV and camping I suppose.

Good luck! Anyone out in the the country needs some sort of Generator back up, if only so that you can run your freezer and refrigerator and fans, or, AC if possible.

(Herself is highly resistant to relocating from our suburb.... admittedly a quality place to live...to some country place, ideally a place where town lights can only just be seen over the hills several miles away.)

[Pete from Shawnee Mission]

See Pollard's post 161.

(I was just going to refer you to the same Cub Cadet site.)

Cub Cadet Riding Mower

[Pollard]

That's them. Having lived in FL for 25 years, there was no shortage of those being used for lighting nighttime areas. Screened in decks out back. Docks along rivers, lakes and canals. Bars that had and area out back. Indoor bar lighting too. (people looked good, especially with a little alcohol - ymmv - your morning may vary) For $15-25, you could light a big area with low level incandescent ambience.

Well duh, I'll have 12vdc running all over the tunnel and there are no shortage of small 12vdc incandescent bulbs from the auto parts store. A taillight bulb on each side of every truss frame about 8-10 foot up would do it.

[MomwithHope]

I use a dozen or so of the El cheapo dollar store solar lights you just stick in the ground. I only use them up on our patio where all our container gardening is done. They seem to keep away the raccoons. Most will last longer than one summer. Then I put them in the garage for the winter. It’s a good solution for me.

[Pollard]

URPOWER - https://www.amazon.com/s?k=urpower+solar+lights+outdoor

One of the best there is. I’ve got a small one on either side of our back door that faces NW and that little bit of afternoon sun charges them enough to work until morning.

But like all LED and fluorescent lighting, they’re a bright white/blueish light and it’s nice to get a break from that and for some yellowish light that only flame and incandescent gives.

[MomwithHope]

Those are nice looking. Still not in our budget until the market takes off for us. The belt is tight.

[Liz]

Tuscan Kale Soup / delicious, healthy, easy
Kinda hearty and wintryish soup but uses summer garden
veggies in a savory herbed broth, a super comforting meal.

Ing 2 tbl best ol/oil 1 med onion, diced 2 ea med carrots, celery stalks, diced 3 gar/cloves, minced 4-5 cups veg broth 2-14 oz cans cannellini beans, drained/rinsed 1 tsp dried thyme Pinch or more red pepper flakes 1-1 1/2 lbs stemmed Tuscan kale, rough-chp 1 tbl lemon juice S/p

Steps Coat pot w/ ol/oil and set over med heat. Add onion, carrot, celery. Sweat/stir/soften about 5 min. Stir in garlic; cook a minute, til very fragrant. Stir in broth, beans, thyme and red pepper flakes. BTB, then simmer 20 min, til vegs are soft. Remove to counter. Blender 1/2-1/3 of soup (depending on thickness desired) w/ immersion blender. Return to heat, stir in kale in batches, stirring each addition til it wilts. Bring back to simmer; cook/stir 10 min, til kale is tender. Offheat stir in lemon juice, s/p. Ladle into bowls and serve.

[MomwithHope]

That sounds delicious, just the kind of soup we like. Thanks. But I would use bok choy instead of kale.

[deport]

https://www.thekitchn.com/know-your-cabbages-green-red-s-112856

Take a peak of the variations seven to choose from.

[Liz]

Makes a lot so you can have seconds.

[MomwithHope]

I usually do. And with some soups more than that so I can freeze in small containers. Like my garlic soup for the winter.
I roasted a leg of lamb last week. Took most of the meat off. Put the bone in the freezer for lamb and cabbage soup later on.
Start with cooking the bone in just enough water to cover it, an hour at least on low heat. Take it out. Add a good beef broth, sautéed onion, cabbage, and a little shaved carrot. Season, always some good ground pepper and granulated garlic. Take off all the lamb from the bone and cut up if needed. Add the lamb to the pot and serve. I never freeze any leftovers. It’s not a big pot soup. If you have a dog they will love the bone.

[MomwithHope]

I usually do. And with some soups more than that so I can freeze in small containers. Like my garlic soup for the winter.
I roasted a leg of lamb last week. Took most of the meat off. Put the bone in the freezer for lamb and cabbage soup later on.
Start with cooking the bone in just enough water to cover it, an hour at least on low heat. Take it out. Add a good beef broth, sautéed onion, cabbage, and a little shaved carrot. Season, always some good ground pepper and granulated garlic. Take off all the lamb from the bone and cut up if needed. Add the lamb to the pot and serve. I never freeze any leftovers. It’s not a big pot soup. If you have a dog they will love the bone.

[Diana in Wisconsin]

No commercial for Vegeta? Since you recommended it, Mom, I use it in soups and it makes a world of difference. No need for salt if you use this: