Saturday, August 11, 2012

Smells like green pepper

The zucchini in the CSA box is now being outdone by the peppers. I have given many peppers away, and have chopped them and sliced them and put them in the freezer. Today I decided to try dehydrating them. I have not dehydrated very many things, so I am the first to admit that I don't know what I am doing. First I dried them for several hours at 135 degrees - hmmm, leathery but a little crisp around the edges. After a while, I decided I'd rather have them crispy, so I could grind them into powder. Back into the dehydrator, but at 125 degrees instead. We'll see how they turn out.

The CSA beets accumulated enough to bother with cooking them. They will be chopped and frozen, for later use in red flannel hash. Assuming I remember to make a note of their presence in the freezer AND will be able to find them. Things get lost in there!

Today I planted peas and snap peas, hoping for a fall harvest. There were just enough pea seeds for one 1'x4' patch. I planted two such patches of the snap peas, but for one I doubled the number of seeds. In the past, I have planted peas in broad rows and never thinned them. I'm thinking they can be a bit denser in my square foot garden than what I planted in March.

The Irish potatoes have behaved rather oddly this year - growing, blooming, dying back, then partially recovering. It was probably too hot for growing potatoes in grow sacks. Today I emptied one of the grow sacks and found more potatoes than I planted in it, but not much more. Maybe next year I will plant them in the ground.

Although raised beds are not exactly "in the ground". And when it comes to watering, raised beds are basically large containers. Large enough that the dog can climb into them in pursuit of rabbit scent.

Yes, my attempt at rabbit-proofing the backyard is turning into a big FAIL. There are at least two bunnies now, one adolescent and one baby. Betsy Beagle has been having a ball, and so far there is no plant damage, but I am rethinking how best to move forward.

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