New Potatoes

On a whim … I decided to see what was underneath that volunteer potato plant that's been growing outside the herb bed. Whoo! Hoo! Purple viking potatoes! Tender little tubers. I'm sure there are plenty of 'taters to dig in the bona fide potato beds, but isn't there something extra special about that serendipitous plant that survives "outside the box"?

 

Making Stevia Extract from Fresh Leaves

I've never made my own extracts before. Here goes the stevia experiment … This is MY experience based on instructions found at http://www.commonsensehome.com/stevia-grow-your-own-sweetener/.

First, I cut the plant back to allow and encourage branching. This will result in more leaves later this summer.

I stripped all the leaves from the stems. I rinsed the leaves in cool water, then spun them out to dry in the salad spinner. (BTW … I could not live without my salad spinner!)

The leaves were very clean, but I did find a few of these guys hanging out … some sort of leaf hopper?

I packed the leaves into a quart-sized glass canning jar. I poured the cheapest vodka I could find over the leaves, making sure they were all submerged. It took the entire 750 ml bottle (i.e. a fifth of vodka which is 4/5 of a quart).

I screwed the lid on and put it to rest for two days in the cool, dark pantry, with plans to gently jiggle or shake the jar a couple times per day.

To be continued ...

Wondering how to use Home-Grown Stevia

Found some good info via Google! I have only one plant in the herb garden, but it's a second year plant and is growing well. Reading all about using stevia makes me want to experiment with the leaves available. If I get good results I'll plan for increased yield in the future.

Harvesting
Use fresh leaves for tea or eat a few right off the plant. They taste great with mint leaves. Sweetness (Stevioside content) is greatest just before flowering, which is triggered by short day lengths (Brandle et al., 1998). The onset of blossoming ranges from mid summer to late fall. Plants should be harvested before the first frost or as soon as blossoming begins, whichever comes first. Cut entire plants just above ground level. When growing Stevia as a perennial or for early harvests, clip the plants 6 inches from the ground so they will survive and re-grow (Shock, 1982). Harvest in the morning, after dew has evaporated.

Plants are easily dried by hanging upside down in a dry, warm, drafty location. Bunch a few plants together and bind at the stem end with a rubber band, then slip a paper clip bent into an "S" shape under the rubber band. Hang by the other end of the paperclip. If you have lots of plants, hang them from strings or wires strung across the ceiling. After a few days, rake leaves from the stems with your fingers and gather for storage in a clean container such as a glass jar. They keep well for years. Stems are less sweet, so toss them on the compost pile. An alternative method is to strip fresh leaves from stems and spread on elevated screens in the sunshine, on a day with low relative humidity (less than 60%). If drying takes 8 hours or less, according to Steve Marsden, very little Stevioside will be lost. A food dehydrator on low heat (100 F to 110 F) will do an excellent job as well. Leaves are crisp, crumbly, and bright green when fully dry.

While whole leaves are great for making tea, it's easy to turn them into Green Stevia Powder with a kitchen blender, food processor, or coffee grinder with metal blades. With the blender bowl half full, process dry leaves at high speed for a few seconds. Collect the fine powder for use in recipes calling for Green Stevia Powder. Use a clean glass jar for long-term storage. From: http://www.stevia.com/stevia_article/growing_your_own_stevia/8077 

http://www.motherearthnews.com/organic-gardening/stevia-plant-zm0z13fmzkin.aspx?PageId=2#ArticleContent

http://www.commonsensehome.com/stevia-grow-your-own-sweetener/

http://healthyeating.sfgate.com/use-stevia-leaves-6944.html

http://www.livestrong.com/article/286554-how-to-use-fresh-stevia-leaves/

It's hard to capture in a photo just how delicious the berries are this year … but I'll try!

It's Cukes and Beans right now

The cucumbers are really starting to produce. I trellised the long cucumbers … the thin-skinned Asian variety, as well as the American long cucumbers. I love the result! The fruits are hanging free, allowing them to grow perfectly straight.

The pickling cucumbers are growing well, too. I have a large jar of refrigerator pickles "cooking" in the 'fridge. It's so easy to make these pickles. Why not start a jar yourself, today? Refer back to my previous post of July 7, 2013 for the recipe: http://sueisinthegarden.blogspot.com/2013/07/sweet-pickles.html

I've been picking jade bush beans daily. They are so tasty! The edamame has pods, with beans growing fatter by the day within. The "garden of eden" Italian flat beans and the "rattlesnake" pole beans are maturing. We will soon be enjoying a delicious variety of green beans!

Annual Hot Date … to the berry patch!

We have wild blackberries that we have encouraged to grow on our property. These are adequate for eating out-of-hand or for adding to the morning bowl of yogurt. But when we want a big bunch of berries for making cobblers, jam, and freezing for future use, we head for the backroads of Chatham County searching for the mother lode of berries. By "we" I mean me and Rouse the Spouse. We both love berries and all the good things that can be made with berries, so it's become an annual team project.

Today was the day! We donned protective clothing, applied insect repellent, and pushed into the brambles. This year we were rewarded with the biggest, sweetest, juiciest, most prolific crop we've ever witnessed in these parts. We stopped at 10 pounds of berries … enough to share with our son and daughter-in-law, dry freeze a quart bag full, sugar pack two more quarts, fill up 8 jars of blackberry jam, and try a new berry cobbler recipe. That's what I call a good day!

First Mess of Jade Bush Beans

Cooked perfectly done, 4 minutes in the pressure cooker; tossed in butter and sautéed garlic; salt and pepper added to taste. Now THAT is a delicious green bean!

Potatoes are flowering …

The potatoes are flowering and I need a refresher on when to harvest "new" potatoes:

http://awaytogarden.com/growing-potatoes-organically-when-and-how-to-plant-hill-and-harvest/

Poultry Processing Info, Chatham County

From Debbie Roos, Ag Extension Agent:

"Chaudhry’s Poultry Processing in Siler City has closed (just the poultry plant - the red meat plant is thriving!). In its place Carolina Premium Foods is going to lease the plant.

The new company will primarily be processing birds that are raised organically according to their company’s policies using out of contract former Townsend and Pilgrim’s growers. They hope to process up to 50,000 birds per week at the former Chaudhry Processing plant.

Additionally, as a community service, they are offering to process small flocks of locally raised poultry on a limited basis by appointment.

Sonya Holmes will be the contact person for Carolina Premium Foods. We recommend contacting Sonya Holmes to establish tentative processing dates and costs BEFORE you buy biddies and place on your farms to raise meat for sale or family use.

Her contact information is: sonyaholmes88@hotmail.com or 910-984-5309."

Black Raspberries are Ripe!