The fall carrots and beets germinated nicely, we are pleased. Now it is critical to complete one round of weeding so that the weeds do not overtake the seedlings. Because the planting is so large, we are doing a 'rough' weeding, quickly getting most of the weeds and not thinning yet. As soon as this is done, we will start over in greater detail, getting all of the weeds and thinning the carrots and beets to their proper spacing. Last winter, Kyle made a cute little wire weeder that is great for weeding around tiny plants because it does not disturb the soil much and does not bury anything. Last week, he quickly fashioned a long-handled, stand-up version to go through these fall roots and is making excellent progress.
It gets a little jungly around here in August. The winter squash patch is so thick that you can hardly walk out into it. The sweet potato patch is also a solid mass of vines. Sweet potatoes are neat plants to grow. They are in the morning glory family, Convolvulaceae, and look like it with heart shaped leaves on vines. The mat of vines shades out weeds, but sweet potatoes are also allelopathic, they release chemicals into the soil that inhibit the growth of competing plants. We just barely have a long enough season to grow sweet potatoes here. The are very frost sensitive; As soon as it freezes we will mow the vines and quickly harvest them.
We always plant a row a zinnias, mostly for fun. I send the boys out with snippers every few days to bring me bouquets that I put above the sink to admire while I am washing dishes. I might cut some this week and bring them to town!
I know that no one needs instructions on eating potatoes! But here is a super simple recipe that I make when I am in a hurry:
Hash Browns
Grate some potatoes. Heat a skillet and add a generous amount of coconut oil. Heat the oil until hot, but not smoking! Squeeze handfuls of grated potato to get most of the liquid out. Form thin patties and drop into the hot oil. Fry until crisp and brown. Flip and brown the other side. Sprinkle with salt.
We made some refrigerator pickles this week. They are quick and easy. They do not require canning. You simply make a brine, pour it over your veggies (or fruits) and put the jars in the refrigerator for a few days. If you don't eat out of the jar or reach your hands in, you can reuse the brine... And it's not just for cucumbers. Carrots, onions, garlic, peppers and cabbage make great pickles. There are many refrigerator pickle recipes online if you are interested.
A few people have asked me about sauerkraut. I am including some basic sauerkraut instructions here, but unless you have a consistently cool location for the fermentation, I would recommend waiting until the weather has cooled off a little. Ace Hardware sometimes has nice stoneware crocs for sale on the top shelf of the kitchen aisle. Made in USA.
Sauerkraut
Once you are set up, sauerkraut is easy and fun to make. We use 2 tablespoons of salt to every 5# of finely chopped cabbage. Mix in a big bowl then pack into a crock. Pound the mixture down until the liquid that the salt draws out of the cabbage completely covers the cabbage. You should not have to add water. Place a weight in the crock that holds down the cabbage but allows the liquid to stay above it. It is important that the cabbage is completely submerged. Cover the crock with a towel and ferment in a relatively cool place. The temperature will determine how fast the fermentation occurs. A slow, cool fermentation is desirable. The fermentation time will depend on the temperature, but 2-3 weeks is normal. Frequently check to make sure that the liquid level is well above the cabbage and weights. Test the sauerkraut now and then and when you like how it tastes, put it into containers in the refrigerator to halt the fermentation. A layer of mold/ funkiness on the top of the liquid is normal and should be carefully removed. The cabbage, however, should be safely underwater. This is why it is so important to keep the cabbage well below this line with a weight.
Some good variations:
•Add a little caraway seed.
•Add a handful of grated carrot, some crushed red chile and black pepper. A little bit of spice goes a long way in sauerkraut so start small with any additions
2020 CSA Archives