Canning Recipies

Green beans (two cups)
  Wash all beans and trim the edges
  Fill canning jars tightly leaveing one inch of space at the top (if wanted add one teaspoon of canning salt per quart)
  If using a dial-gauge pressure canner, process for twenty minutes
  If using a weighted-gauge pressure canner, process for twenty minutes

Tomatoes (one tomato)
  Wash and dip in a pot of boiling water until the skin splits then dip it in cold water
  Peal off the skin and take out the core
  Add lemon juice of citric acid to the jar
  Boil a pot of water then pour in jar over the tomatoe leaveing half an inch of space at the top
  If using a boiling-water canner process for forty minutes
  If using a dial-gauge pressure canner process for fifteen minutes
  If using a weighted-gauge pressure canner process for fifteen minutes

Some Freezing Recipies

Green Beans two cups
  Compleatly submerge in salt water and let soak for fifteen minutes
  Put into pot of boiling water for three minutes
  Rinse in cold water
  Put in a freezer bag then place it in the freezer


Broccoli two cups
  Compleatly submerge in salt water and let soak for fifteen minutes
  Put into pot of boiling water for three minutes
  Rinse in cold water
  Put in a freezer bag then place it in the freezer



Tomatoes one tomatoe
  Place in a freezer bag and put it in the freezer
  If you want it diced then dice the tomatoe, place it in a freezer bag and place it in the freezer

Plant Trouble

Are you haveing troubel with your plants? Is there an unknown problem?
Here are a few links that can help.

University of Minnesota Extension Service

 

http://www.extension.umn.edu/garden/

 

http://www.extension.umn.edu/gardeninfo/components/info_vegetables.html

World Wars and Gardening

Durring World War 1 and World War 2 things like store bought veggies in a can were not common. Insted of buying canned goods from a store people would plant their own gardens called Victory Gardens. They would grow all their vegetables in a Victory Garden and can their own vegetrables. A good source for learning more about this is the American Girls; Molly because her family has a Victory Garden.


Here is an add from  World War 1

Here is an add from World War 2



Coloring pictures

Below are some pictures you can color or you can print it small and use it as a labels containers.

Food Preservation Links

Here are some interesting links that I used to learn about food preservation.

http://www.scienceclarified.com/Ex-Ga/Food-Preservation.html New and old ways of preserving food

http://www.freshpreserving.com/ Ball caning recipes

http://www.uga.edu/nchfp food-Preservation recipes

Seed to Your Table

How does a seed go from a plant in a field to a store to your table?

 The process isn't complicated but it is a long one. For this example I'll use corn because it is easy to undersand and most people know what it is. First the corn seed is planted in a field with a lot of other corn seeds. The seeds are then watered by an irigation system or rain or both. Some times the plants are treated with pesticids to keep the bugs off. They are also treated with nitrogen, phospherus and potassiam to promote growth. Once the corn has finished growing it is harvested and sold to a processer who prepares it for selling to a store by canning it, freezing it or just selling it as is. The store buys the corn and puts it on a shelf where you grab and by it. After you've bought the corn you take it home and prepare it for your table.

Watering Tips

If your plant is starting to get droopy then it needs water.
If your plant startes to turn brown then it needs water
Feel the soil at the base of the plant, if it is damp then your plant should be fine and not need more water, but if it is all dried up then your plant could use some more water.
Do not over water your plant. If you are going on vacation then ask a neighbor to water your plant for you, don't pour a bunch of water into the raised garden thinking this will keep the plant going because this will drownd your plant.

Dangers to Indoor Plants

When picking a spot to place your plant in the house bewere of the following dangeres to your plant: cats, dogs, younger siblings, lack of water and placeing it in a spot with no sun light.
Cats eat your plants and lie down in them.
Dogs sometimes eat your plants and knock them over.
Younger siblings are usually okay to have around but sometimes you have to watch them so they don't 'weed' your indoor garden.
If your plant lacks water it will dry up and die.
If your plant has no sun light it won't grow very well.

A cute and cuddly danger to your indoor plants

Raised Garden Plan

This is the origanal plan for a raised garden. You need to be sure to make this out of sturdy matereals. It will be heavy once you add in the dirt and the water for watering the plants.

Below is the chart for why growing your own vegetables is benificial.

Soil Mix

ingredients: 1 bag potting soil

1/3bag mushroom compost

1/3 bag hummus

1/3 bag peat moss

1/3 bag worm castings

1/3 bag vermiculite

Mix

1. pour all ingredients onto a large tarp potting soil first then the others in any order
2. use your hands to break up any chunks
3. work the mix together with your hands
4. once the soil is well mixed have two people grab the corners on the same side
5. have both people walk with the tarp pulling equally until the soil in 1 foot from the end of the tarp
6. walk the two corners back so the tarp in flat again then go to the side that the dirt is on and grab those two corners
7. repeat steps 4-6 until the soil is well mixed
8. use your hands or a shovel to put the soil into a pot (in my experience hands are the best method) do not compress the soil.
9. You are now ready to plant

this makes 13 square foot pots

Gardening all year! Even in cold climates

My blog will have information for you to download to make your own garden inside your house summer, winter, whatever.  That way you can have fresh food all year round.