2016 Maple Syrup Run

The sugar maple grove is much cleaner this year

Black walnuts are also tapped

Maple syrup run has started in Southeast Wisconsin.  I purchased 10 more taps and hangers, so I am up to 20.  I have 14 on sugar maples and 6 on black walnut.  Saturday was a very beautiful day to get out and put the taps in the trees.  The day before we hit over 50 degrees in our area with extremely high winds.  The bags would have been all over the woods if I had them up any earlier.  I was also thankful to have some assistance with tapping the trees this year.  My daughter got involved with tapping the walnut trees and did a great job on her first time installing the taps (spiles).

We did some clearance with equipment around the fence line this winter, so we took advantage of the opportunity to eliminate the buckthorn that had grown up around the maple trees so thickly.  It was a dream to walk from tree to tree with the collection containers and not be fighting thorny branches at every turn.  I had to take my hand saw out and clear up around the base of the trees which was nothing in comparison to what the machine accomplished.  It also cleared up some of the larger fallen limbs and formed some decent mulch around the roots of the trees.

A family first

We had some help on Sunday to collect the first round of sap.  Friends moved back from California to the old neighborhood.  They had been watching the process via social media last year and were missing Wisconsin and the activity going on here.  I made sure to give them a call and let them know the sap was running.  It was great to have help with the collection process especially with the extra bags on the trees this year.  We all had a fun time getting around and exploring as well.  Their daughter wasn't nearly as interested in the syrup process as the exploring.

The sap has started off slow as the temperatures fell overnight and didn't come up much in the morning.  We had more rain than snow this winter, so we are also not getting that slow soaking with the snow melt.  You can see that the 50 degree Friday did not leave any cover on the grass at all.  I am not sure if this will affect the sap flow this year yet or not.

The kids leave the collecting up to the moms for a selfie shot

In all we ended up with about 15 or so gallons of sap from the 14 trees.  There was much less sap from each of the black walnut trees.  We kept that separate for boiling down separately.  This was done completely on the propane stove as there was less than two gallons from the six trees.  

Many hands make light work so we soon had all the sap back and by the fire for boiling.  I made a small investment in some deep pans from the restaurant supply store.  I also put together a wood burning unit to save on money on the propane investment. The wood had been cut and stacked last year.  My husband had a loaner splitter and was able to put up a full cord plus of wood last summer.

There is still some tweaking to do with the system, but I was able to patch something together with things literally laying around the place.  I put a bunch of holes in the bottom of a barrel bottom and laid it on its side.  Some old grating in odd sizes fit both inside the barrel to form a wood burning grate and over the barrel supported on cement blocks.  After the first boil down, we have decided that we need to add burner holes along the top of the barrel to up the heat coming directly under the pans.  These will have to be drilled rather than punched with a railroad pick though.  An piece of metal flops up in front of the opening to hold the heat inside pretty effectively.  Not a high efficiency stove, but the price was right.

I also purchased a hydrometer this year to measure the sugar content of the syrup.  I did not receive instructions so I researched on line for videos and such.  I thought I knew what would happen, but the hydrometer did not float at the level I thought it would when I reached my boiling point of 219 degrees.  It wasn't even close.  I will have to send some photos to the company and get a little help here.

All in all it has been a good first day of the 2016 season.  There are about 6 ounces of black walnut syrup in the frig.  It has a very nutty flavor that was worth the time and effort.  I also have two and a half pints of maple in jars with a smidge left over for breakfast this morning.  Life is sweet.

Expanding my garden life with home brewing

I am expanding my gardening hobby into another area...home brewing.  Those who know me have come to realize that beer and gardening go hand in hand in my backyard.  I like to keep a cold beer close by while sitting and weeding.  I do weeding as a method to relax and unwind.  It is not a job, but therapy.  Beer is self-medication in my self-therapy sessions.
The next logical step for me in my quest to learn new things and become a bit more self-reliant is making beer.  My daughters bought me the starter kit as well as a couple of brewing options to get going.  I finally sat down and spent some time on Northern Brewer which has lots of tutorials.  My kit was purchased here, so this was the first logical step in my learning process.  I decided that I needed to purchase a hygrometer to do this right.  I was in the neighborhood of the Purple Foot Store so I stopped there to get a hygrometer for beer making.  I have picked up items for hard cider and such from this smaller store in the past.  You would be amazed at how much hobby can fit in a small space.
The next step was acquiring enough bottles that could be recapped for home brewing purposes.  You have to love social media for how quickly you can get the word out and find something odd that you need.  I finally tackled the task of cleaning all these bottles and removing the labels.  In the end, I have enough to bottle two batches of brew...almost.  I was fortunate to have the old dibble boards that have been collecting dust in the potting shed rafters for over three decades, at least.  They ended up pairing with old bulb crates beautifully to create a drying rack for dozens of bottles.  Now that I have this step done, I will allow myself to open the boxes and start the home brewing process.  Stay tuned.

Winter garden dreams

I have winter garden dreams every January.  I sit with my seed catalogs and dream about all the things I can do this next year.  I have so much energy to get it all done.  I never get tired and my body never aches.  

It is always a good idea to make your lists, fill out your order (in pencil), and take out your box of seeds and notes from last year (if you are one to write things down) and then let it ferment.  I like to let all my plans sit on a stack for at least a week before I commit to the purchase of next year's plants and seeds.

While I am waiting for my plans to ferment, I find ways to use of some of my fruits and vegetables in my crisper drawer that are awaiting new life as a side dish to the beef ribs I have in the oven.  Today I cut up the pears that we picked up late last fall, mostly Asian varieties, and added some chopped walnuts and blue cheese.  I have tossed it with a few dried herbs and fresh ground nutmeg.   I will toss in some balsamic vinegar just before serving.

Another item which I have in large quantity is daikon radishes.  I did a bit of searching to get some fresh ideas and came across several recipes for a fresh pickle.  One that caught my eye was posted by a Japanese blogger.  It had less liquid in it than all the rest which fit the sparing amount of rice wine vinegar I had left in my pantry.  It is just a blend of sugar, vinegar, salt, chili pepper and sliced daikon.  Everything is mixed in a Ziploc baggie and sealed with as little air as possible.  It is recommended to let it sit for a couple days and can be used for up to a month just kept in the refrigerator.  I am eager to see how this will come out in a few days.  

I also came across quite a few varieties of carrots that got lost under the lettuce and kale.  Crisper drawers should be shallow with four rather than two that are deeper.  I think these are going to join the slow roast process as long as the oven is hot.  I will venture up to the cold storage in the attic and grab a couple of parsnips to toss together with the carrots.  Roast vegetables always turn out so sweet.

Enjoy those winter dreams.  Until you place the order, those dreams are free.  Until the spring comes, there is very little effort involved.

Winter Canning

There are different reasons why I pull out my canning tools in the middle of winter.  Some years, I freeze my summer fruits when they are ripe and pull them out in the dead of winter to make jams and jellies when I want the house to warm up with all that cooking time verses in the middle of a heat wave in July.  Last year I was making maple syrup and needed to bring out the jars and lids for putting up the syrup (which is almost gone so maple syrup season should be just around the corner).  This time it was red potatoes that were determined to sprout and shrivel before they could be used.

I had never canned potatoes before, but I have used store bought canned potatoes as a quick camp meal.  I par-cooked the rest of what was in storage for easy peeling.  I left most whole but halved the larger ones to fit through the mouth of the jar.  I heated new water with canning salt for the fluid and pressure canned them according to the recommended pounds and time.  One jar oddly lost all its fluid and had to go right into the refrigerator for use now.  The others sealed well and are now back in the basement on the shelf.

The other item that needed to be processed into a finished product was my spaghetti squash.  I had some rot starting on one, so I pulled the whole bin out of the basement to process.  I cut into quarters and stood them up in my deep stainless steel pan with some water just in the very bottom to help steam them.  A good size sheet of foil capped it all.  It took about two hours to bake all the squash until it was soft, but it was worth it.  I scraped all of it out, drained the excess liquid and froze it in vacuum sealed bag for individual meals.

The last of the Ailsa Craig onions were also starting to sprout.  I cut and sliced them all on a mandolin and froze what I didn't use for immediate cooking needs.  Part of that was pulling out more soup bones (you get lots of soup bones with half a cow) and cooked up a hearty beef broth which I also processed in the pressure canner for later use.  The meat which came off the bones went into the freezer for addition to soup or casseroles at another date.  I used the Tattler lids for this for the first time.  They are reusable canning lids with rubber rings that are BPA free.  Only one did not seal that had to be used instead of stored.  I figure it was beginner error since it was my first time using this set up.  The rest are holding their own.

Rather than compost things that I can't get on the table fast enough, winter canning and freezing provides another option to extending the harvest season.

Take your flowering kale into winter with style

Flowering kale in October

The flowering kale has been transformed into Christmas planters with the cold weather coming in.  Our temperatures have been extremely mild in Wisconsin this year so far.  The kale made it through the normal fall frosts and freezes.  The color has intensified as it should.   The addition of evergreens and curly willow twigs has added to the beauty of the display.
There are lots of natural items that can come together to add to your landscape enhancements.  If I had power in this area, you can bet I would also have lights.  Use your imagination when foraging for your own decorative touches.

Enjoying the last of the season

Some people may feel that the first frost is the last of the season.  If you have planned well and researched even a little bit about your region and crops that will continue to grow past frost, the first frost will bring a whole new season of crops your way.  There are so many cold weather crops that actually improve after they are exposed to some cold weather.  Kale, cabbage, and other cole crops will often take on a sweeter edge as they adapt to the cold weather after frost.  I still have several things in the garden and we have had at least half a dozen frosty mornings on our garden.  
The leeks are still standing tall as are the parsnips.  I have also put in a few carrots and salsify which are durable root crops.  The celery root is just starting to take on the best flavor for flavoring stocks.  I even found a stray potato when cleaning out the debris from the potato patch.  Many people will dig this as a late season crop for long season varieties.
I just cut  some of the cardoon yesterday.  I cannot give you full details on the best ways to use this plant, but there are plenty of references with a quick search.  I am parboiling a bit of it to mash with some califlower (also cut after several frost) to try the infamous fake mashed potatoes recipe I have seen on line.
I harvested many of my winter squash just prior to the frost, but they have stayed on the porch to harden their skins before winter storage.  I am cooking up a Turk's Turban for supper.  I also have two large spaghetti squash in the oven to prepare ahead of tomorrow's supper.
Apples are still coming in to many of the orchards.  We have not had a terribly cold night into the low 20's so the fruit is still wonderful.  Apple cider is starting to flow heavily from the orchard extras at this time of year.  My favorite are the apple cider donuts that are a guilty pleasure.  Apples store well, so they can be enjoyed fresh for months to come.
There is a patch of dinosaur kale that I have been harvesting for use this summer.  I have been using little bits with the cold weather and will do a final harvest before a total freeze.  Kale is a crop that develops more sugar in the plant which acts like anti-freeze making it more and more cold tolerant as time goes on.  There is a bed of ornamental kale (which is also edible) at the entrance to our nursery which has gotten very colorful with the cold weather.  It wasn't even on people's radar two month's ago even though it has been growing in that bed since June.  Sort days and cold temperatures have literally turned this green ghost into a violet glowing beauty accented by it's pure white sister that has caused passer-bys to take notice.  It will be beautiful well into our Wisconsin December weather.
One of my favorite foods that is improved by cold is one that I don't even eat.  Many ornamental crab apple varieties hold their fruit into winter.  The fruit ferments on the tree with the freezing and thawing.  Birds love to partake of this fermented fruit causing flocks to go absolutely gaga.  Watch for this on your cold weather walks through your own neighborhood.
So don't worry about the arrival of cold weather.  Embrace it!

Too much gardening, no time to journal it

I started this blog as a way to journal my gardening efforts.  I have used it that way to look back on some of the things I have done in years past, a way to repeat successes and avoid past mistakes.  Putting things down in words has also helped me work through problems by putting my thoughts into some sort of sequence.  Kind of like talking to myself.

The blog has also been useful to answer questions for family and friends looking for gardening answers.  It gave me quick reference to provide step by step with pictures for someone doing something for the first time.

This year I had the biggest garden I have had since I was young.  In addition to the huge vegetable garden, I had all sort of new garden beds to plant and maintain.  Then there is my job which requires my attention to the various flower beds and 160 acres of nursery and woodland patches.  By the time my day is over, I just haven't had time to track some of the things that happened this year.  I learned so much having so much to do.  I want to jot down some of those highlights so I can remember what I did this year.

I got is my early crops only because I did some bed prep last fall.  Once the busy season hit in the greenhouse, I had very little time for my own garden prep and planning.  I have to do that again this fall so I am ready for a quick entrance into the garden with the peas and onions next spring.

Weed barrier was my greatest friend.  I never would have maintained my sanity this year if it wasn't for all that ground cloth suppressing weed growth.  I had to weed around my plants, but I didn't have to worry about all those other areas that would have required so much attention.  The second advantage was having mud free walking.  My vining plants were able to run over all that black cloth with no rot on the fruits from soil contact.  It also made for quick clean up this fall.

Late blight took the tomatoes, but the weed barrier kept the garden from being taken over by weeds

The start of late blight on the tomatoes.  It takes over in days and the crop is lost

I lost my tomato crop but was able to ripen some of it indoors in trays.  Lay tomatoes in a single layer and check them daily for any signs of blight developing on the fruit.

I found out what late blight is and how devastating it is to a tomato crop.  What I thought was going to be an overwhelming tomato crop with multiple trips to the food pantry, ended up being just enough for my canning needs.  I had very few extras to give away.  It was disheartening to throw out all those tomatoes (and extremely heavy).  I saved those with a blush and some green that didn't have the tell-tale blight and ripened them in the basement.  I checked them at least every couple days and pulled out any that showed signs of disease.  In the end, the dozen or so flats of tomatoes I saved ended up being just enough.  The potatoes had been dug weeks earlier, and the peppers remained unaffected.  I also saved all my cherry tomatoes and froze them whole, unblanched, in Ziploc bags.  These are the only "whole" tomatoes I have.  They have been just the thing to add to dishes in place of canned whole tomatoes.

I grew corn for the first time since I was a kid.  I purchased three kinds with different maturity dates of 65, 75, and 85 days.  They were planted at the same time as the varieties would stagger the harvest for me.  I learned what cut worms are and how they move through the crop.  Fortunately, I had an organic garden product on hand which was listed for cut worms.  I had to go out and spray at nightfall when they come out.  It was successful and the corn crop suffered a limited amount of damage.  I used a radio in a water proof container to keep the raccoon and deer at bay by playing talk radio at night.  I also didn't leave the corn on the stalks any longer than necessary.  The stalks grew taller the longer the season so I have fall decorations for different locales by size.

I grew okra for the first time ever.  There were seeds in an office desk, so why not?  The flowers are beautiful (they are in the hibiscus family).  I found that I liked to harvest them young and tender.  I had enough to share with other okra lovers.  I dehydrated several batches for addition to gumbo this winter.  I will grow that again.

Okra

I grew cauliflower.  I forgot that I grew cauliflower.  I had these plants that I just couldn't remember what the heck they were.  I asked someone if it was collards and they thought so.  The white heads finally proved us both wrong.  Next time, I would tie the leaves up to keep the heads white.  I had some greening with exposure to sunlight.  My heads were also small, so I need to read up on that this winter.

After a full year in the manager's residence, I have learned the sun exposures.  I will be moving my herb garden next spring to the sunnier side of the house.  I like having it by the back door, but the magnolia tree has way too much shade.  I also lost the full sun with the waning season to the height of the house.  Herbs really need the full sun to reach their potential.

I also think I will plant a longer season cabbage.  The heads started splitting at the end of the season before I was ready to make sauerkraut.  I like the cool weather to set in to sweeten up the cabbage.  I was able to use the split heads, but there was a lot of trimming that had to be done.

I want to beef up the asparagus patch which had been neglected and mowed over too many times.  I have the weeds under control in the bed, but there are dead spots which need new roots.  I may try seed plants as an affordable way to do this as it isn't my patch forever.

The berry patch grew well for first year plants.  I put in two raspberries and one blackberry variety in the only space I had available when they need to find a home as bare root canes.  I will add stakes at the end of the row to provide support.  I also may move the whole thing to an open area for room to spread.  What garden doesn't need to have things moved?

Next year I will have my patty pan squash away from the edge of the garden.  This may keep whatever thief I had from eating 99% of my crop.  I will refine my choices of squash and grow more pumpkins.

Come the dead of winter, I will come back to this post and read what I have forgotten to do.