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Overcome the Challenges of Growing Peaches

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Few fruit say summer quite like a tree-ripe peach, dripping juice down your chin and hands all the way to your elbows. Although you are unlikely to find this perfect peach at the grocery store – peaches do not continue to ripen more once picked — you can enjoy this treat if you grow your own. Growing top quality peaches is not without its challenges. If you are prepared, however, you can conquer them with a little bit of knowledge and regular attention.

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Raising Backyard Chickens for Eggs. Part 3 – The Coop

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Your chickens have grown and thrived in the brooder and it is time for them to go out to their permanent home. By this point they have gotten too big for the brooder box, your spouse is tired of the smell and constant dust from all the flapping, and luckily they can tolerate the outside temps. So its time to move your chickens outside. Continue reading “Raising Backyard Chickens for Eggs. Part 3 – The Coop” →

Making Raspberry Jam

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Last year was the first year that we were able to harvest any of our raspberries. We were pleasantly surprised at how many we were able to gather. Many we ate right there on the spot. Wow, they were delicious right off the vine! So, of course we had to make raspberry jam too.

Fresh raspberries do not keep very long so once they started trickling in we froze what we did not eat right away. Once we had enough we planned to make raspberry jam, but things never seem to go as planned. So we just got around to making raspberry jam. Freezing is so convenient if your berries are coming in small batches or if you just do not have time to use them. We pulled the frozen raspberries out of the freezer and ran the bags under some cold water to thaw. They thaw rather quickly.
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Getting Baby Chicks - Raising Backyard Chickens for Eggs

Raising Backyard Chickens for Eggs. Part 1 – Getting Baby Chicks

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Raising backyard chickens to gather your own healthy eggs is rewarding and rather easy. As long as you have a few basics taken care of, the chickens will do the rest. You don’t need to be an expert, and there’s no reason to be afraid. Take care of these basics and you will be gathering healthy, antibiotic and growth hormone free, pastured chicken eggs in no time. Continue reading “Raising Backyard Chickens for Eggs. Part 1 – Getting Baby Chicks” →

DIY FIFO Can Rack

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This DIY FIFO can rack can save valuable shelf space. It only uses up 2 square feet of floor space and holds up to 120 cans. The concept is simple. You place the new can on the top shelf. The can rolls back, falls to the lower shelf and rolls forward. This way your cans always stay rotated without having to take them all out and place the new ones under or behind the old ones.

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How To Make Chicken Broth

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What super-food can you make for pennies, maybe even for free? Chicken broth is healthy, very simple to make, and supports your immune system. And did I say it’s inexpensive?

Whenever I make chicken for dinner – at least once a week – I remove the bones and put them in zippered freezer bags. The bags go right into the freezer.

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How to Divide Hostas

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Hostas is a perennial plant with broad oval or lobed leaves that grows from rhizomes (root mass or cluster). They grow well in partial and full shade. The are very hardy and easy to grow. I struggled for years fighting crabgrass in my flower bed bordering the house in the front yard. I tried black plastic, landscaping fabric, various plants, and lots of weeding! Initially, I only had 2 hosta plants. Over the years I learned that hostas was very hardy and would actually beat the weeds. So, I started planting more hosta in this troublesome area and less of other plants. Most of them I received from my Mama or aunt when they divided theirs, but I did buy a very few small plants of different varieties.

Now, I have 33 hostas plants of various varieties. They are beautiful and I love them. However, my L-shaped flower bed that wraps around the corner of the house is over flowing in spots and starting to look like a jungle.
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