• Everything other than hot peppers. Questions, discussion, and grow logs. Cannabis grow pics are only allowed when posted from a legal juridstiction.

Becoming Overwhelmed

Not a bad problem but still, something to deal with. The beans, sweet peppers and cucumbers are getting ripe together, and the maters are maybe a couple of days away. I'm picking, and processing 3-5 quarts of of beans each day, or every two days, picking 3-5 pounds of sweet peppers, trying to get up a greenhouse and work about 50 hours a week at my day job.

Time does seem to fly by these days!

Mike
 
wordwiz said:
Not a bad problem but still, something to deal with. The beans, sweet peppers and cucumbers are getting ripe together, and the maters are maybe a couple of days away. I'm picking, and processing 3-5 quarts of of beans each day, or every two days, picking 3-5 pounds of sweet peppers, trying to get up a greenhouse and work about 50 hours a week at my day job.

Time does seem to fly by these days!

Mike

I hear ya Mike. It always makes me dream of having commercial processing equipment.

I think it gets worse as the Fall approaches. You get home from work and race the sun to collect pods and water your plants.
 
God, only 50 hours a week at work? Can we trade jobs? I'm pulling about 12-14 hours a day even on weekends!

Makes it VERY tough to get yard work done at all, my garden is so badly in need of work.

Add my baby girl into the mix and well I haven't felt relaxation since the plane ride back home from Germany.

At least you have ripening veggies to enjoy! Mine aren't even there yet.
 
Water plants? Are you kidding? I saw a guy today who was building a boat and had a couple of a whole bunch of animals in a pen. It has rained here every day for the last week, almost every day for the last two weeks.

I'm tired of rain, though another two inches are predicted tonight.

Mike
 
wordwiz said:
Water plants? Are you kidding? I saw a guy today who was building a boat and had a couple of a whole bunch of animals in a pen. It has rained here every day for the last week, almost every day for the last two weeks.

I'm tired of rain, though another two inches are predicted tonight.

Mike

Well, I was speaking without consideration for this years rainy summer.
 
Ciao Michael-

Haha, Noah's making his rounds, is he? I'm just starting to see some blush on a few of my early tomatoes now. I may have one of the giant pastes soon as well, but nothing on any scale to start my canning yet. The first things to put up last year were the cucumbers and it may be the same story this year. I could probably do a few 250ml jars of pickled jalapeno rings from Duane's plantation now, though, if I really wanted to.

I've got a fair amount of fruit in the freezer, but I stage the fruit canning until after the vegetables are finished. I'm going to try making a Rainier Cherry-Golden Raspberry preserve this year.
 
Sorellina,

The bean harvest so far:
Yellow Wax - 7 quarts
Green Bush - 13 quarts
Red Noodle - 2 quarts

I also have frozen 4.5 pints of corn but did not grow it - someone brought the ears to the office.

The wax beans are done, though I may have 1-2 quarts to process. The green beans are not close - I should have another 15 quarts, maybe more. The Red Noodle? Who knows! Those things are suppose to produce until the frost and the plants have 12-16 beans at a time. It's likely I get another 20 quarts, maybe more if the weather warms up a bit.

Still hoping for 100 quarts of tomato juice, 24 quarts of whole maters, 52 quarts of canned potatoes and 50 pounds of ones I will not can, 24 pints of salsa, plus all the peppers and cucumbers (pickles - if I can find some calcium chloride around here). Still have 11 tomato plants that I just started in hydro and need to add at least three more this weekend plus another 14 next week.

Fun, fun, fun! But I'll love it this winter!

Mike
 
A small harvest

This came from about 28 lineal feet. The third harvest this year. Not that impressive for bush beans, except.... this is the first time in more than 20 years that ANYTHING has grown in the area - and that includes weeds and crabgrass. I removed the top six inches of dirt, sowed wheat in the area last fall, mowed it this spring, tilled the roots in. Added a bunch of compost to it. I figure there is more than five quarts waiting!

beanharvest.jpg


Mike
 
Meraviglioso, Michael, you're doing very well! Enjoy and get sleep when you're able. I just did inventory of our remaining jars in the wine cellar. There will be a few new items to include, especially with the peppers. This is the plan (each case holds 12 jars unless otherwise indicated):

Savoury:

Italian Tomato Sauce - 500ml - 5+ cases
Italian Tomato Sauce - 1000ml - 2+ cases
Hot Salsa - 500ml - 5+ cases
Hot Salsa - 1000ml - 2+ cases
Medium Salsa - 500ml - 2+ cases
V-8 Juice - 900ml - 2 cases of 15 jars
Whole Tomatoes - 1000ml - 2+ cases
Whole Tomatoes - 2000ml - 1+ case
Tomato Puree - 2000ml - 1+ case
Enchilada Sauce - 250ml - 1+ case
Picante Taco Sauce - 250ml - 1+ case
Ketchup - 250ml - 5+ cases
Chilis in Water - 250ml - 2+ cases
Pickled Chilis - 250ml - 1+ case
Pickled Jalapeno Rings - 250ml - 2+ cases
Pickled Pepperoncini - 500ml - 1+ case
Roasted, Skinned Anaheims in Water - 500ml - 1+ case
Spicy Garlic Pickles - 500ml - 4+ cases
Sweet Cucumber Relish - 500ml - 2+ cases
Sweet Pickled Cucumber Slices - 500ml - 1+ case
Pickled Garlic - 250ml - 1+ case
Spicy Romano Beans - 500ml - 5+ cases
Caponata - 500ml - 5+ cases
Bruschetta Sauce - 500ml - 2+ cases
Chicken Braising Sauce - 500ml - 2+ cases
Lime Basil Vinegar - 1500ml - 2+ jars

Sweet:

Plum Butter - 250ml - 2+ cases
Asian Plum Sauce - 250ml - 1+ case
Blackberry-Habanero Jelly - 125ml - 2+ cases
Quince Preserves - 250ml - 2+ cases
Black Forest Cherry Preserves - 250ml - 1+ case
Red Currant Jelly - 250ml - 1+ case
Unswseetened Applesauce - 500ml - 2+ cases
Spicy Applesauce - 500ml - 2+ cases
Apple Butter - 250ml - 2+ cases
Blackberry-Maple Syrup - 500ml - 1+ case
Green Apple Jelly for Pectin - 250ml - 2+ cases
Pear-Ginger Jam - 250ml - 2+ cases
Rainier Cherry-Golden Raspberry Jam - 250ml - 1+ case
Fig Jam - 250ml - 1+ case
Blueberry Lemonade Concentrate - 1000ml - 4+ jars
Acai Berry Jelly - 125ml - 1+ case
Red Rubin Basil Jelly - 250ml - 2+ cases
Mulberry Wine - TBD - Learning Curve Required

It sounds insane, I know, but in addition to all those vegetables I have growing outside, we're blessed with fruit trees and berry bushes as well, so I take advantage of whatever food items we have growing. I'm not a "shopper", so a lot of these jars are destined for gifts..Christmas, house-warmings, hostess presents, the Hydro guy who gets our lights back on after a storm..
 
Sorellina,

That's not a wine cellar - it's a supermarket, a very well stocked one! I presume you have accumulated this abundance of goodies over more than one season?

Mike
 
Ciao all-

There are a few things from 2007 and just a couple of things from 2006. We use most of what I put up. I don't go through the tomato paste each season, so I have some of that left over.
 
Back
Top