I hope all of you will stop by.
This is typically a low volume ping list. Once a week for the thread and every once in a while for other FR threads posted that might be of interest.
If you would like to be added to or removed from the list please let me know by FreepMail or by posting to me.
My greenhouse plants are all sprouting and doing fine. I have a system for maintaining the temp at night.
Heat lamp until I retire at night - then I take a metal bucket of coals from my wood stove and put it on a conrete slab (some airflow leaks so no danger of CO2) - that lasts 5 hours - then a timer kicks on a low wattage heater.
So far so good.
Broccoli is almost done then I start on the seed catalogs and dream of spring.
I had just put in tender seedlings of Bok Choy, Head lettuce, Romaine, Broccoli,Peas and Green onions...and then last weekend we had 14 INCHES of rain.
The backyard was flooded. I despaired of my little guys making it through.
But today, they are thriving. Amazing! :-)
Hope all the Mass and CT residents are doing well after the freak Halloween storm. Now that the snow has melted, the cleanup begins. I lost a beautiful twenty year old Crimson Queen and part of a split rail fence. All the Oak trees in this area took a real beating because they are one of the last to loose their leaves. We lost power for about 48 hours and it looked a little like a war zone here. As bad as it was, Connecticut was worse. I never realized how much I depended on the internet. Having it out for four days was worse than losing our phone service.
4 cups green tomatoes, finely chopped in food processor & drained
1/2 cup butter
2 cups white sugar
2 eggs
2 cups all-purpose flour
1-1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1-1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
half a pinch of ground cloves
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Grease and flour a 9x13 inch baking pan.
Cream butter and sugar. Add eggs and beat until creamy.
Mix together flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, ground cloves, soda and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Add raisins and nuts to dry mixture; add dry ingredients to creamed mixture. Dough will be very stiff. Mix well.
Add drained tomatoes and mix well. Pour into the prepared 9 x 13 inch pan.
Bake for 35 to 45 minutes in the preheated oven, or until toothpick inserted into cake comes out clean.
Sprinkle the finished cake with confectioners' sugar or frost with your favorite caramel or cream cheese frosting.
My notes: This cake is rich, rich, rich!!! If you frost with cream cheese frosting, as I did, you may want to do it sparingly. I think next time I will do the confectioners' sugar. It took us 3 days to finish off the cake, and I would have to say that it got better each day.
You can vary the degree of chopping the tomatoes according to your personal taste. I chopped mine so finely that they were just short of pureed.
Enjoy!
Finally got my hands on an old whiskey barrel for my hydroponic setup. Got it all cleaned up and weather proofed. It isn’t water tight, but I think that may be a good thing. I got some very large, thick, contractor trash bags to hold the water. With a twist tie I can keep the bag tight around the water and power lines, hopefully keeping the mosquitoes out. And come cleaning time, I can just replace the bag.
It’s also nice that I can use the extra space inside the barrel to keep my nutrient mixes, measuring container, etc. At some point, I’ll have to work up a shelf in there.
And, since this summer I ran pvc from my rain barrels up front through the yard into a garden valve right next to the whiskey barrel, I’ve now got everything in one handy place.
Hey R.D! I have a non-garden related question. My thicket next to my garden is where I feed the wintering birds that will start visiting soon. The whole area has been inundated with mourning dove. I believe they are using it for their personal coop and multiplying fast.
Do you or anybody have any suggestions other than clearing them out with bird shot?