WEEKLY GARDEN THREAD VOLUME 52 DECEMBER 27, 2013

Free Republic | Dec. 27, 2013 | greeneyes

[greeneyes]

The Weekly Gardening Thread is a weekly 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. This thread is non-political, although you will find that most here are conservative folks. 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 Weekly Gardening Thread. There is no telling where it will go and... that is part of the fun and interest. Jump in and join us!

NOTE: This is a once a week ping list. We do post to the thread during the week. Links to related articles and discussions which might be of interest are welcomed, so feel free to post them at any time.

[JRandomFreeper]

Because I overplant, I sometimes have a glut of stuff. Not often, mind you, but sometimes.

I always have a plan for the 'best case scenario' and a way to process/store/use a windfall. One year when I had a glut of tomatoes, I wound up making tomato paste powder. That greatly reduces the volume of the product, and it works great with cooking. I just ran out of the stored tomato powder this year.

/johnny

[bgill]

Thanks for the info. There are two recommended for my area but it's iffy but I'm going to try anyway - Green Globe heirloom and Imperial Star which is a hybrid and less vigorous than the Green Globe. The obvious choice is the heirloom.

There are warnings about not brushing against it because it's a thistle so should I grow it since I break out something TERRIBLE? Also, would deer stay away from it? If it's a deer deterrent, could plant it in a spot where it would discourage those munchers from getting too far into the garden.

[Silentgypsy]

I haven’t tried to grow cukes, so thank you for this post!

[greeneyes]

Your recipe sounds fine. Those spices are somewhat different from my recipes, but very much worth trying. I do have a bit of a problem with only 5 minutes of processing, as most recipes call for at least 10 minutes, but the reduction in time is probably meant to help keep the pickles crisp.

IIRC, the salt helps to draw the water out of the cukes, in addition to helping to infuse the saltiness into the pickle.

I will also note that if you have a jar of sour pickles, you can make them into sweet by just adding a cup or more of sugar to the dills, shaking to mix/dissolve and let them sit in the refrigerator overnight.

Since I am the only one that likes sweet pickles, that is what I usually do. I also don't like super sweet relish, so bread and butter style sweet is what I do for my relish.

You can buy something called Pickle Crisp to help with keeping the pickles crisp - directions are on the package. Adding a grape leaf to the jar as you are filling it, is also supposed to help prevent mushiness of pickles(not relish). Discard the blossom ends too.

Here's my recipe for cuke/veggie relish

Cucumbers (approximately 4 larger)
1 green bell pepper
1 red bell pepper
1 medium onion-I use the red sometimes
1 stalk celery
1/4 cup salt
1 1/2 - 3 cups sugar
2 cups white or apple cider vinegar
1 Tbls Dill Seed
1 Tbls Mustard Seed
1 1/2 tsp Turmeric Powder
1/4 tsp red pepper
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 tsp garlic powder

You can use a food processor to grind the veggies to a coarse grind. I usually do mine by hand using a chef knife. I use the vegematic on the pickles to get slices and then the chef knife to finish the coarse grind of the cukes.

Put all the veggies in a large crock, sprinkle on the salt, and cover with cold water and a tray of ice cubes. Let stand 4 hours. Drain in colander and press out excess liquid.

Combine Sugar, Vinegar, and spices in pan, and heat to boiling, stirring till sugar is dissolved. Add veggies to the pot and simmer for 10 minutes.

Pack hot relish mixture into hot jars, leaving 1/2 inch head-space. Remove air bubbles, wipe jar rims, put on lids and adjust. Process 10 minutes in boiling water bath.

[greeneyes]

Hubby likes the excercise, and we are too cheap to buy a tiller.LOL He uses pick axe, shovel, etc when breaking new ground.

[greeneyes]

I have not used lemon grass, but I have used lots of basil to surround the patio, and it seems to help.

[greeneyes]

Ha Ha. That would mean too much time outdoors in the cold. I run and dump it fast, and run back inside even faster.LOL

[Marcella]

The seeds I got are for pickling cucumbers and I read about each one before I decided to get it, but a cucumber is a cucumber and you could cut them up and put in a salad.

I learned you want a thin, soft skinned cucumber for pickling. I read about one with a thick, hard skin and customers were dumping it as a pickling cucumber.

[greeneyes]

We are having another spectacular day here. Sun is shining and the temps are still very moderate. If I get my indoor chores done, I am going to do a little patio cleanup this afternoon.

Stay warm and feed the birds.

[greeneyes]

Delivered this AM. LOL

[greeneyes]

Stupice is a good early tomato. I have grown some of those before. We are having nice weather here, but not so nice as to break out the shorts. LOL

[greeneyes]

Well, guess you better accidentally drop those seeds at the same time this next year.LOL

[greeneyes]

I am limited in space. I plant 1 seed per 6 inch square ie: 2 per sq. foot. Last year I planted 6 and that was for refrigerator pickles which we keep going all summer.

Hubby wanted me to make some dill pickles, so he planted about 10 cucumber seeds. I have 2 or 3 cases of pickle relish and bread and butter from prior years. We were just out of dill, so we didn’t need too many.

Cukes and melons are hard for us to grow here. We only get a decent crop about once every 3 or 4 years. I’ll probably be trying to grow them in pots this year, so won’t be planting too many.

[Marcella]

I also thought 5 min. was too short a time in the canner, I'll use 10 min. if I do those sliced ones. Thanks for the relish recipe, will use it. I'll look for “Pickle Crisp”.

While I have the water bath canner and utensils needed and the Ball Book of Canning, I only have a box of quart jars and lids and I got those just to have quart jars to fill with whatever during a SHTF situation. I need to get pints and half pints, both kinds vinegar, and all those spices I don't have that are in the recipes. I also need pints for water bathing veggies. “The Joy of Pickling” has recipes for water bathing every type of veggie, plus some meats.

[Marcella]

I have a faster, easier way to make Bread and Butter pickles. Just buy “Ball® Bread and Butter Pickle Mix 12-oz”. It has all the spices in there plus their pickle crisp. They are using quarts, I would use pints or half pints because in a SHTF situation, wouldn’t have frig..

For every 2 quarts of pickles:
3 1/2 lbs pickling cucumbers (about 14 small to medium)
2 1/2 cups vinegar (5% acidity)
2 1/2 cups sugar
1/4 cup Ball® Bread & Butter Pickle Mix
2 Ball® Quart (32 oz) Fresh Preserving jars with lids and bands
Prepare Bread & Butter Pickles
1. CUT ends off cucumbers. Cut into 1/2 inch slices.
2. COMBINE vinegar, sugar, and Ball® Bread & Butter Pickle Mix in a medium saucepan. Heat to a boil.
3. PACK based on ENJOY NOW or FRESH PRESERVE steps below.

ENJOY NOW (Refrigerate up to 3 months):
1. POUR hot pickling liquid over cucumber slices in a large bowl. Cool to room temperature, about 30 minutes.
2. PACK cucumber slices into jars. Ladle pickling liquid over cucumbers. Place lids & bands on jars.
3. REFRIGERATE pickles. For best flavor, allow pickles to stand in refrigerator for 3 weeks.

-OR-

FRESH PRESERVE (Store up to 1 year):
1. PREPARE canner, jars, and lids according to manufacturer’s instructions.
2. PACK slices into hot jars. Ladle hot pickling liquid over slices leaving 1/2 inch headspace. Remove air bubbles. Wipe rims. Center lids on jars. Apply bands and adjust to fingertip tight.
3. PROCESS in boiling water canner for 15 minutes, adjusting for altitude*. For best flavor, allow pickles to stand for 4-6 weeks.

*Increase processing time: 5 minutes for 1,001 to 3, 000 ft; 10 minutes for 3,001 to 6,000 ft; 15 minutes for 6,001 to 8,000 ft; 20 minutes for 8,001 to 10,000 ft.

[Arrowhead1952]

I got several seed and plant catalogs in the mail this past week, so have to see what type of tomatoes I will order for next year.

I have several turnips that need to be pulled. Broccoli is almost ready to pick too. We love those fresh tops.

[sockmonkey]

I got several seed and plant catalogs in the mail this past week

I'm jealous. I only got a Park's catalog. I thought I had gotten a Burpee, too, but can't find it. Neither have the Tycoon tomato seeds I want for here in Central TX.

[sockmonkey]

Marcella,
Your talking about sweet pickle relish inspired me to grind up some ham last night for ham salad..Not really a fan of ham salad, but I have some ham I need to use up..

I have sweet pickle relish, and all the ingredients I need, except this am I forgot to buy bread to put the ham salad on..suppose I could put it on flour tortilla, and roll it up for pinwheels..

[Arrowhead1952]

Have you tried the natural gardener? It is on Bee Caves road. There is also a nursery on TX 95 just north of Elgin. I usually buy seeds there when I come home from the farm. I got $.75 of black seed lettuce and it has lasted for over a year - 1/4 cup.

[Nepeta]

They all ripened at once, and I had an abundance of tomatoes.

Were you planting determinant or indeterminant varieties? Determinant types tend to produce all at once for ease of harvesting; indeterminant types grow all season and produce until frost.