Posted on 06/18/2022 4:30:46 AM PDT by Diana in Wisconsin
You should’ve added water from ‘The Cement Pond’ to prevent that overheating, LOL!
One of my fondest memories is sitting with my Granny, aunt & my mom under the big trees in the front yard at my Granny’s place. We were in shade, but it was hot, sweat rolling down my legs occasionally & the locusts were ‘singing’. There was an occasional breeze. We had bowls in our laps and shelling butter/lima beans. I can’t remember how old I was - maybe 10-12? Could have been as young as 8. I didn’t realize then how much of a cherished memory that event would become.
Happy Father’s Day weekend to all the dads out there! It’s great weather here for the next couple of days with highs near 80 or just above and low humidity. There’s not a cloud in the sky this morning. Considering we had a high of 97 yesterday with suffocating humidity & 3 confirmed tornadoes in the county next to us Thursday night, calm and cooler weather is welcomed. We have a church picnic this afternoon & we’re doing some steaks for my dad tomorrow.
Although yesterday was miserable with heat/humidity, I made it to the garden about an hour before sunset & got my Celebrity tomatoes staked up. There were storms nearby & I was afraid heavy winds might damage them – one blew over the night before, but did not break off, thank goodness. I was waiting to get cattle panels to make supports, but the person with the trailer to haul them has been sick. Tractor Supply, where I want to buy them, does not deliver. I called Southern States – they do deliver, but want $50 to do it and their panels are $7 more expensive – I want four, so it was all too pricey. So …. got out the mini bolt cutters & cut up/sacrificed one of my round tomato cages. The wire sections are similar to what I’d have if I used a cattle panel. The tomatoes were in a “puddle” of foliage – they were borderline past the point where I could really stake them up, but being very careful, I managed to get most of the plants up on the wire or headed that way – I used some soft rope that I can tighten as the plants grow more upright. I have some nice green tomatoes already on those plants. The Sungold is going “wild” - it’s going to be out of the raised bed and fencing before I know it. Those are some crazy growing tomatoes – they just take off! The crows are keeping an eye on ‘things’ – they’re sitting on the pasture fence at least twice a day and checking out those tomatoes – got the fencing around the beds up just in time. A small pleasure is to see the crows “marching” around the fencing, looking in at ripe tomatoes they cannot get to.
Waiting as patiently as I can for word from a relative that her pig has farrowed. She’ll be a first time mom, but the breed has a reputation for being good moms. She’s made her ‘nest’ and her due date was Thursday. She’s going to have decent weather for having piglets – if she’d had them earlier/on her due date, it would have been in the broiling heat. Her owner has provided her with a fan to help out – she’s huge and average litter is 8-14 piglets. The breed is a heritage breed: Gloucestershire Old Spots. If you look at folk art and see white pigs with black spots, those are the GOS breed. They’re friendly pigs, good meat, good moms, and good for pasturing – she’s on a farm that is being turned into a regenerative farm. Waiting for piglets reminds me of waiting for my mare to foal – I was sleeping in the barn aisleway at night for weeks. She was late 2 out of 3 foals, late enough I called the vet for the first foal. She had him 3 days later. Anyway, if I get any cute baby pig pics (I better get some pics!!), I’ll post them.
++++++++++++++++++++++++
https://gospbu.org/new-breeders/about-the-breed/
From link:
Appearance
“The Old Spots pig is friendly, funny, and floppy-eared, with a large, rounded body. They are white in color and can be sparsely or liberally decorated with black spots. Their endearing, comforting appearance is romanticized in illustrations and folk art, and even on the “big screen”. (Have you seen the well-endowed boar that appears in a recent movie adaptation of Jane Austen’s “Pride and Prejudice”?) A laid-back, multi-purpose pig supplying succulent bacon, pork, and vitamin-d rich lard, they are well suited to the small farm, especially those striving for “sustainable agriculture” systems, as they are hardy to outside climate extremes, do well on pasture, can eat virtually anything, and are excellent breeders and mothers. A mature boar can weigh over 600 pounds and a mature sow, over 500 pounds or larger depending on age and food intake.”
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++==
The Japanese Beetles have arrived and are on my zinnias, which have buds, but no blooms yet. I have a Japanese Beetle spray that contains pyrethrin …. it’s lethal. I “spot shot” the beetles only so I don’t poison any buds & blooms for bees/butterflies. This method/spray worked great last year and I was able to keep the zinnias from being eaten to nubs. We’re keeping an eye on some nearby knockout roses – one year the person responsible for them (it’s not me) wasn’t paying attention and the leaves got virtually stripped – it was awful. So far, I don’t see any beetles on them yet.
Hummers are draining the feeders in 2 days now. I made sun shades from large red bowls last year for 2 feeders that are out in full sun most of the day – they were getting hot & the nectar spoiled quickly. The shades work like a charm. During a heavy rain, one hummer was sitting on a shaded feeder, just enjoying his big umbrella. He could stay dry and snack whenever he wanted, too. They are so cute and entertaining. If you wear a red shirt out near the feeders (I have some red T-shirts), you will likely get “buzzed”. :-)
I’m trellesing my tomatoes. Figure I can just lop them over when they get too long.
juveniles gotta eat and beans will make them poot ..
Mantras abound
My great-grandmother (from the Appalachian Mountains) made leather britches. They strung them around the wood stove.
I have a fine electric dehydrator and use it to dry green beans.
Dried green beans have a whole other flavor and texture of fresh/canned/frozen beans. The first time I ate them, it was like discovering an entirely new vegetable.
so much wisdom was imparted while snapping beans or shelling peas on the front porch
How do you cook dried green beans?
Sister K, I never cooked mine, they were just at our mountain cabin for a bit of authenticity, but here is a recipe I found…..
Appalachian Style Leather Britches
Ingredients:
Dried green beans (as dried, above)
Water
1 teaspoon salt, or more to taste
2 inches square salt bacon, bacon grease, ham hock, or oil for a vegetarian option.
Directions:
Wash the dried green beans in a colander. Place in a pan with enough water to cover the beans and let stand overnight.
The next day, pour off the water and rinse beans. Place them in a large pot with a tight-fitting lid. Add the salt, 3 cups of water, and seasoning meat or oil. Cook over medium heat for roughly three hours. Check for doneness after a couple of hours, adding more water if needed.
After fully cooked, add some salt, pepper, or even a tad of sugar to taste. Leather britches tend to swell up as they cook, so be careful how much you cook up. A little goes a long way! The cooking liquid improves the longer it’s allowed to simmer.
This traditional Appalachian dish is wonderful served alongside some hot cornbread and sliced raw onion.
That’s because the snowflakes hide thinking it’s gun shots.
Thanks, Pete!
LOL! True Dat! ;)
Probably one of my favorite memories as a kid was being with my Grandma and snapping green beans with her. Such a favored memory that many years after she passed I was given a choice of a few of her things, I chose her bean bowl and colander. No one else wanted them, so I have them, and use them, too! In fact I used them yesterday afternoon! That illustration is nearly a perfect one of my grandma and her hands. Thanks.
I soak them about 10 minutes, then slowly boil with lid on the pot. I use barely enough water to cover them. When the water is almost cooked away (actually absorbed into the beans), then they are done (approx. 15 minutes). They will be chewy. After removed from the heat, I do not drain, then lightly salt and drizzle with oil.
By the time I was old enough to cook, there was nobody to teach me how to prepare them, so this is my method. I have no idea what the true Appalachian method was...and they probably used lard instead of oil, cooking the lard into the beans.
LOL
I see this after my post.
Try them...they really are delicious...but on the chewy side.
Thanks for the info.
I never soak overnight...at the most 30 minutes if I get distracted....
My Aunt Alice always made the BEST Green Beans with Bacon.
Fry up 4 slices or so of bacon. Remove bacon to paper towels, crumble.
Keeping the bacon fat in the pan, add your raw, cleaned green beans and brown them a bit in the oil. Lower heat and add some water to the pan, just enough to cover the beans and cover, but keep the cover vented a bit on one side. Steam the beans until they’re to the desired texture, but at least until all of the water is gone. Add the crumbled bacon and some black pepper to taste.
Heaven on a plate! :)
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.