Posted on 04/24/2021 7:11:16 AM PDT by Diana in Wisconsin
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A woman’s got to do what a woman’s got to do! :)
My Ex rarely lifted a finger to help me with anything; unless it was directly for HIS benefit, of course. Beau is a dream come true on comparison.
With the exception of the 8-year roofing project (a leak in the upstairs ceiling finally lit a fire under his butt) and the now 3-year house painting project, he’s almost always Johnny on the Spot for garden-related things. He likes to eat, LOL!
Wednesday:
Thursday:
In Wisconsin there is a 'Pagoda Dogwood' tree that's quite pretty, but not as gorgeous as the Florida strains of Dogwood.
Pagoda Dogwood Tree:
However, we can grow really nice Magnolia Trees, which seems odd. They were absolutely GORGEOUS this spring, but are pretty much done, now. I have a small one my BFFs gave me last year to plant in memory of Dad. It's doing well.
Grilled Radishes? Interesting!
I love the first Radish Sandwich of the season. Dark Rye or hearty Wheat bread, butter, radishes, Sprouts if you have them and S&P. Yum!
It was a crazy weather week here in Central Missouri. It was cool last weekend, then it turned cold for two nights and we got some snow, then it warmed up and rained Friday and Saturday. Sunny today headed for a high in the mid 80°s.
I have a feeling the two nights of sub-freezing weather wiped out my chance for apples and peaches. Those trees were in full bloom. Now, not so much.
My battle with the Bird Feeder Gang continues. Chicken thief #4 and chicken thief #5 now have a new home in my freezer.
Made a little progress with Mr. Clarence on Saturday, but I’m fighting a Woodruff key that’s stuck in the lift control shaft. I’m not ready to admit defeat quite yet, but it may come down to the smoke wrench to get it apart. The cylinder head is back from the machine shop with a nice shiny set of new valves, seats, and seals.
Been finding some morels, but they have been few and far between. Ran across some beer can sized yellows yesterday down in the river bottom. With the moist soil we’ve got and a few days of warm temps there’s still a chance for a bumper crop.
I meant the GMC.....I like GM Ford and Dodge. Loved my suburban. Presently have an F150. Prefer layout and I terror of my GM cars over the Ford.
I also have a 1980 “stingray” style corvette.
I saw a recipe in a magazine for French Breakfast Radishes - sandwiches, I think. They looked delicious & I believe the French Breakfast variety are milder, not as much peppery zip. I think. I’ll find out! Ok, here’s a link with the answwer(s):
What Are French Breakfast Radishes?
https://www.thespruceeats.com/what-are-french-breakfast-radishes-5076162
What Do They Taste Like?
“French breakfast radishes are milder and sweeter than common red radishes while still retaining a hint of that peppery, mustardy piquancy that is associated with radishes. Spring and fall radishes will be milder than ones grown in summer—the warmer the soil, the spicier the radish.”
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Went by the local nursery today - my SIL had been last week and they hardly had anything, she said. Well, just got back from from checking them out - they were MOBBED!!! They did have quite a few veggies - I got some cherry tomatoes, bell peppers & cukes. At $1,79/4-pack, it’s not worth the time/trouble for me to sprout my own - our veggie garden is small since it’s for my folks (if I could grow cows in a raised bed, that would be for me!).
I also now have zip ties so my garden fence can go up ... and Epsom salts to make more DIY weed killer. It’s breezy, cool, but bright sun so a good day to work. The gnats were starting to come out yesterday (we get them in May) so the breezes will keep them away/at bay.
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Ok, couldn’t find that specific magazine article for the French Breakfast radish sandwich, but here are some radish ideas:
Radishes with Butter and Salt (Ina Garten - I love her recipes!) - Herbed butter recipe, too
https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/radishes-with-butter-and-salt-recipe2-1945613
A couple of these look good to me & I’ll try them
How to Eat Radishes: 10 Radish Recipes to Try Tonight
https://www.epicurious.com/expert-advice/how-to-eat-radishes-article
Oh, and one more thing - I ran across this recipe totally by accident .... I am SO going to do this! I couldn’t find jalapeno plants today and there are no cranberries to be had, but this fall, I should be able to make it.
Cranberry Pepper Jelly
https://abakerswife.com/2011/01/cranberry-pepper-jelly.html
Some description from the link:
“This was a beautiful appetizer my fabulous niece Ashley made for the holidays this year. I love Pepper Jelly in general, and I have many a neighbor who make a beautiful batch every summer. It’s delicious draped over a block of cream cheese and then dipped into with a Wheat Thin. This recipe had something a little different about it. It was the prettiest pepper jelly I’ve ever seen. Beautiful! Most pepper jelly’s rely on food coloring to make them a pretty color. This one had cranberries. A bright, bold shocking pink color and a hot sweetness that was delicious.”
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Note from me - I do not use food coloring. I make my Jalapeno pepper jelly with red, ripe peppers only - the color is sort of a light amber/gold & with the bits of red pepper bits, it’s really pretty.
Hen of the Woods = Grifola frondosa
What you have there with your morels are pheasant backs/dryads saddle - Polyporus squamosus
No matter what you call them, they are very tasty if you find them before they get woody, and just a few nice ones will add a lot of weight to your shroom sack.
Oh, yes! I’ve had really tasty ‘Pheasant Backs’ and really awful ‘Pheasant Backs,’ LOL!
That said, for a while I saved dryer lint to put out for the birds, but I heard that that could be a problem for them because of the laundry soap and/or dryer sheets we use? I use those wool balls in lieu of dryer sheets in the winter months, otherwise I hang laundry to dry. Anyone know the skinny? I stopped saving dryer lint just in case.
Impressive! Great catch. :)
I’ve never seen the black Morels; we have the grey and tans.
^Baby Picture.^
^Taking one of many daily treats.^
^Now, a Toddler, soon to be an unruly Teenager.^
Beautiful apple trees. Thanks for sharing!
Our local (Munchkey Apples) has about 9,000 trees and they are all pruned to look as if they have no branches, and the apples look ‘columnar’ on each tree. I guess that makes for easy picking for staff or those that want to pick their own.
Mom & I go there each fall and split a few pecks of different varieties for pies and sauce and such. They have good prices on ‘scratch & dent’ apples.
I buy locally and seasonally whenever I can. :)
‘Useful Tool’ Ping!
State Drought Monitoring Map.
My part of Wisconsin is currently in an ‘Abnormally Dry’ period, which is true. They keep TALKING about rain, but nothing is developing. I had to water my garden yesterday, which is odd because we’re either treading water or still shoveling snow at this time.
Wishing you a drought-free growing season, BUT I have found that having a drier growing season is better than too much rain. ;)
The guys are working hard, and early, to get crops planted all around us. This is the earliest either of us can remember in many, many season.
https://droughtmonitor.unl.edu/CurrentMap/StateDroughtMonitor.aspx
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