Whatcha Up To???

[ErnieCopp]

I picked, sliced, and seeded some Kumquats for a couple more batches of marmalade. This time i am not going to add any sugar at all, as the fruit is sweeter than it usually is.

Maybe everyone else knows this but it is news to me. We do not have a large double boiler, but of course that is the only way to cook jam and such down without constant stirring to keep it from scorching and sticking. But while looking for a larger double boiler, i saw a tip that suggested just placing a larger pan on top of the one you are boiling water in. Last batch i used a large stainless steel bowl, but decided the portion of the bowl that was above the other pan was serving as a heat sink, so this time i am using a medium sized SS bowl, that is just barely big enough to not fall through. It works just as good as a double boiler.

Ernie

 

[w_r_ranch]

Picked up & burned the rest of the Crape Myrtle 'trash'. Pulled some of the spent garden plants & fed them to the cattle.

Made bread, stuffed jalapenos & a pot of spicy pinto beans to go along with our supper. Mrs Ranch made an apple pie for dessert.

Brought up a load of firewood as the next 3 nights are forecast to be in the 30s.

Moved cattle to the back pasture, fed them & put out 2 rolls of hay.

 

[w_r_ranch]

Started sprinkling around 2200 hrs last night & we have a continuous light rain falling with a steady 16 MPH wind out of the north, so it cold again. Built a fire this morning per Mrs. Ranch's request.

I'm so bored that I sharpened all our knives to a razor edge...

 

[ErnieCopp]

I picked the rest of the Kumquats, giving half of them away and will make one more batch of marmalade. i will have more than i need as i had very few on the tree last year, and do not know if it just bears every other year or if last year was a fluke.

But being able to make marmalade just the way i like it is surely worth while. The last back i added just a half cup of sugar to a condensed quart of marmalade to remove a little bitterness, and then lemon juice to enhance the tartness, so not only me, but other people think it is delicious.

I have made each of the first three batches differently, but the next one will be just like the last, as i have the recipe the way i want it.

Ernie

 

[w_r_ranch]

Cold, wet & nasty here. Been hunkered down in front of the fire, although I did the jewel case covers for some DVDs that I recently purchased (the complete series of 'The Shield' & 'The Commish'). Slowly but surely, I'm building up our video library.

Tomorrow is suppose to be in the lower 60s, so maybe I'll be able to work again.

 

[w_r_ranch]

It warmed up today, its 58!!! I going to grill a couple of steaks while the getting is good!!!

Started planting the seeds, got the marigolds, basil, jalapeno & poblano peppers done. Will do the tomatoes tomorrow.

 

[w_r_ranch]

Planted the tomato seeds this morning (both the 'Health Kick' & the 'Big Boy'). Also started a mixed flat (tomatoes & peppers) for a gal at the local lumber yard.

Pulled more of the spent plants from the fall garden & fed them to the cattle.

Start pruning the oak trees.

 

[Mr_Yan]

Did 1104.3 miles since Wednesday AM. All of these were with a 2.5 year old and a 4.5 year old in the car. Had to loop over to the Detroit area for a funeral. Drive around the Detroit area and get home. I'm ready not to drive for a while.

 

[Mike]

We received about 4" of snow on Friday evening. Yesterday it started warming up and raining now we have a nice soaked mess with all the water. I'm ready for spring.

 

[ErnieCopp]

Another productive day here. First, we laid a brick border to separate the begonias from the cyclamen, [Sun loving X Shade loving], and planted more Cyclamen as part of them got too much sun last summer. Will provide shade cloth for them this summer.

Then we severely pruned the old Apricot Blossom tree. I refer to as that because so far, while it has had thousands of blossoms, there have not been any bees to pollinate them that early, so no apricots. Not sure the pruning will help, but it will reduce the shade it throws on my melons.
I pruned the Rosemary Bush in to a beautiful Rosemary tree, as pretty as any Christmas tree and smells even better. It is covered with blossoms now and has been for some time. It is about 8 feet tall. and about 5 feet wide.

Then Vicente vacuumed up the Pecan leaves again fron the Statis beds, and did some weeding.

I foresee a problem with the Babcock peach, as this unusal weather we have had is confusing it and the buds are starting to swell and some of the twigs are showing green, so we will probably lose that early life to a February frost.

Other big news is that the Beets and Cauliflower that was planted late has half sprouted and showing good growth, so hoping the other half of the seeds will sprout if the weather stays warm, 80 degrees today, but down to forty at night, We have desert weather when the barometer is high and coastal weather when the barometer is normal or low. I threw away the coated beet and carrot seeds and will go back to the regulare ones now. I just did not get the germination that i expected both times i used them.

Ernie

 

[ErnieCopp]

I did a little bit of Rain Making. Not sure how the Old Indian Chiefs did it, but i find that if I give up waiting for rain and start doing some irrigating, if it is in the right season, that usually makes the Rain start. So, that is what i did today. Been piddling around but has started coming down real good now.

Ernie

 

[w_r_ranch]

Pruned up 4 more oak trees & burned the 'trash'.

Continued pulling up spent plants from the garden & fed them to the cattle.

Watered the flats in the greenhouse... Believe it or not, the basil is breaking the surface already (4 days).

 

[w_r_ranch]

Continue pruning oak trees...

Cleaned up the 'Texas Star' hibiscus & pruned the bay leaf back to keep it shaped.

 

[w_r_ranch]

A cold front is in-bound (currently in the 50s) so I brought up another load of firewood.

Picked up the seed potatoes this morning... Mrs. Ranch 'suggested' that we plant 2 varieties... so we will be planting my 'Red Pontiac' & her 'Kennebec', LOL!!!

I've had a slow rim leak on one of the tiller' wheels that I got tired of dealing with all the time so I took both of the wheels to town & had tubes installed.

Lightly watered the seed flats in the greenhouse... about 1/3 of the tomatoes have sprouted (planted 5 days ago).

Making a pizza for supper as today was our shopping day.

 

[Mr_Yan]

Shoveled snow twice so far today. Will have to go back out later. I don't know if we're getting new snow fall or if it's just blowing off the roofs. Only about 1/3 of the typical attendance at church this AM. Some places I shoveled were about 4" deep others were about 18" deep - it all depends on where the wind slowed and the snow settled down.

I did just notice the red light was flashing on our weather radio. Apparently we're under a blizzard warning.

 

[ErnieCopp]

Very different problems here than you are having. I was doing some weed killing yesterday and noticed buds about to break on the Nectarine tree, and the Peach has been showing that for two weeks. But no pollinating bees or bugs out yet.
I know that sometimes shaking tomato plants helps pollination for them. Does anyone know if shaking fruit trees during bloom will help with pollination? If so, what stage of bloom should the shaking take place?

Ernie

 

[w_r_ranch]

It's warm here today (currently 75) however another front is suppose to move in around supper time & the forecast for the next couple of days is 50/40.

Watered everything in the greenhouse (marigolds are starting to pop up). Turned the heater & fan back on & sealed it back up.

Picked up & burned the 'trash' from the tree pruning.

Continued pulling the spent plants from the garden & fed them to the cattle.

Fed the cattle & put out a couple rolls of hay.

 

[Mr_Yan]

I know that sometimes shaking tomato plants helps pollination for them. Does anyone know if shaking fruit trees during bloom will help with pollination? If so, what stage of bloom should the shaking take place?
Ernie

From what I have read the peach flowers are self-infertile but the tree may be self-fertile. My peach tree is like this - so if the flowers are pollenated and pollen spread from flower to flower it fruits even through there isn't another peach tree in the neighborhood.

 

[ErnieCopp]

Yan,

I will find out, when the blossoms are at different stages of open, i will shake the tree. Last year my Babcock peach, no other peach trees close, had a peach every two inches on every branch but i was not watching it closely for bees, but it is so early this year with the buds because of the warm weather, i am concerned.
Ernie

 

[whistech]

I got my pepper and tomato seeds started today. I have a hard time getting pepper seeds to germinate so I bought a heat mat this year to see if it helps any.

 

[ErnieCopp]

I had to hook up the Garden hose time clock again and water the garden as we have not had any rain recenlty. Grass still looks good, but young Avocado is loaded with blossoms so watered it, too. Cauliflower was starting to wilt a little bit.

Sitting on the Veranda this eveing, we saw our first BlueBird for this year. We have had two kinds of Hummers all winter but a new one of a variety we have not seen before showed up just before we came in. Lots of Purple Finches and Doves and a smaller finch like bird have joined the resident population of those types. The first Towhee came back a week ago, and i prize them highly as they eat most of the bugs that are close to the ground in the garden. We also have a resident Phoebe, but it has a hard time making a living as it has been too dry for very many bugs.

Not much natural food for any of them yet, so they are really pounding the bird feeders here.

Ernie

 

[Mr_Yan]

I made a list of things I hope to grow this year - looks kind of short. I don't think I'll need to buy seeds even. Then again the ammo can I use to store seed packs in is very full.

I'll shovel snow again once kids are down for the night.

 

[w_r_ranch]

Watered everything in greenhouse.

Brought up another load of firewood... getting tired of this cold weather...

 

[ErnieCopp]

First blossom opened on the Nectarine tree. Just three years old and blossoms form on two year old wood i think, but as it is a month early, i do not have hopes for fruit from it.

Ernie

 

[w_r_ranch]

Still chilly here... I did manage to refill the bird feeders & pick some lettuce.

Changed the oil in the rototiller, then oiled the cables, washed it & let in run for 30 minutes in preparation for use later this month.