Pretty in pink

I have so many photos of the flowering plants in my yard that I don't get too excited about wandering around the property, camera in hand. However, I don't recall the rhododendron ever blooming this heavily before. I'm glad I took this pic despite the windy conditions because the next day, after a frosty night, most of the petals lay on the ground in a pink carpet.

The fruit trees did arrive, as did the underground utility guy. I had to help him find the gas lines because 1) he was not aware that when my neighbor to the south installed a gas furnace, NIPSCo ran the line across a corner of my property, and 2) the utility maps shows the main line to the north to be on the property of my neighbors on that side of the house. I've lived here over 20 years and generally have the utilities marked every year, so I guess that now makes me the expert.

I'm not such an expert when it comes to transplanting fruit trees. Different instructions from different sources do not help, either. The trees are in the ground, hopefully at the correct depth given the root stocks. Now all I need to do is cut them back to where I want the branches to form a scaffold, in my case at about 24 inches, per Grow a Little Fruit Tree. Gulp! Since I finished planting last night in the dark, I have not made this cut yet, as I wanted to be able to see what I was doing. Today is wet and windy and cold, so I will gardener up and do it tomorrow.

By the way, here is what I planted:

Apples:

• Liberty
• Wolf River
• Pristine
• Nova EasyGro

Cherries:

• Black Gold Sweet
• Balaton Tart
• North Star Tart
• Hedelfingen Sweet

When life hands you apples

I usually buy apples by the half-bushel from Cook's Orchard, for baked goods and applesauce. What varieties I use depends on what is available when I visit their little store. This year I wound up with a half-bushel of Macintosh and a half-bushel of Jonagold. I also purchased a half-bushel of Enterprise and Gold Rush from Bender's Orchard. I keep the apples in the garage until I get around to using them, not always the best idea. This year I lost quite a few Jonagolds to rot before I could get around to them.

My method is to wash the apples, quarter them, cook them until soft, then put them through the sauce maker (after they have cooled a bit). While reheating the applesauce, I heat the water bath with the jars in the water (saves a step). When the water starts to boil, I remove the jars from the water bath, VERY CAREFULLY dumping 3-4 quarts of water into a spare pot, in case I need to top up the water bath. Some of the boiling water is poured over the new jar lids (another saved step). Then I fill the jars to within 1/2 inch of the top, wipe the rims, add the lids and bands (finger-tight). Then CAREFULLY place the jars into the water bath rack and lower them into the water, topping with the saved water if necessary so that the jars are covered by at least an inch of water. Once the water returns to a boil, I start timing (20 minutes for quarts). When time is up, I turn off the heat and wait about 5 minutes before removing the jars and placing them on towels on the kitchen counter. They sit there for 24 hours before I remove the bands, label the jars, and put them away.

(Note to self: my "8-quart" Farberware pot holds what resulted in 6 quarts of applesauce, from about a half-bushel of Macintosh apples. A full half-bushel of Enterprise and Gold Rush yielded seven quarts.)

A couple of weeks ago I processed the Macs. I added 2 c. water when cooking down the apples to prevent scorching. The resulting applesauce was tasty but kind of watery; each jar had about an inch or so of liquid at the bottom with the applesauce floating on top. (With tomato sauce, the liquid rises to the top.) With subsequent batches, I added only one cup of water (you can also use cider), but I think some apples are just more watery than others. The following day I processed the Jonagolds. They have a really greasy feel to the peel, especially if they are overripe; this waxy layer helps provide protection from pests. I baked a couple of the Jonagolds for dessert and they were rather flavorless, but the applesauce is quite tasty. Maybe something in the processing releases more flavor?

Last week I finished by canning the Enterprise and Gold Rush (the latter is also rather waxy). Even though the two varieties were mixed in the bag, I separated them for processing, just for fun. Since there was little delay between purchase and processing, I lost none to rot, ending up with five quarts of Enterprise, one quart of Gold Rush, and one quart of half-and-half.

A little surprise I noticed this year is the different colors of the applesauces. The Macintosh and Gold Rush are brown, while the Jonagold and Enterprise are pink. I don't add any sweeteners or spices when canning, as I like applesauce just as it is. One of my favorite snacks during the winter is a half-cup of applesauce sprinkled with about a half-ounce of raw pecans.

Canning applesauce takes a certain amount of effort. I have not calculated whether it saves money, but as with knitting, that is beside the point. I have to ignore the little voice in my head that tells me this is a waste of time; it is simply something I enjoy doing. Besides, what else would I do? Watch "Dancing with the Stars"?

16 tons

Today my SO helped me move the dirt from the patio beds to the newly located blueberry beds. It was a lot of dirt. Without his help, it would have taken me days, assuming I did no lose heart and give up. He truly helps my gardening dreams come true.

Re the rest of the garden, I can't wait for a hard frost. I am so sick of zucchini and tomatoes, and am eager to harvest the pumpkins, butternut squash, and sweet potatoes. The fall plantings show mixed results: some beans, some kale, something else as yet to be identified (turnips?), the rest no-shows.

Re the incipient mini-orchard, I have been taste testing apples. Today I went to a farmers market and picked up an apple sampler: Jonagold, Swiss Gourmet, Cortland, and Sweet 16. The vendor also turned me on to a new resource, Orange Pippin. I see an orchard tour in my future.

A new toy

I always try to take vacation days between xmas and New Year's, not to fly off to exotic (or even warm) places, but to stay at home and hibernate a bit. I also get the chance to do some of the things I have trouble finding time for while working. Like playing with my new food dehydrator.

After reading The Feast Nearby, I was inspired to purchase a dehydrator, but between the disaster otherwise known as the garden and a pinch for time, I never had the chance to try it out. Yesterday I decided I was tired of tripping over the Ida Red apples in the garage and dragged them inside for a transformation.

My peeler-corer-slicer produced relatively uniform slices of apple, which took about 5 hours to dry. At least, I hope they are dry. I don't purchase dried apples ordinarily, so I'm not sure exactly how they should feel. I sampled some of the thicker slices, though, as I put them in jars, and they were delicious.

The peels, cores, and the apples that would not cooperate with the peeler-corer-slicer went into a pot, along with culls from the apple collection (Fuji and Cameo) that needed to be used, to become applesause (after a trip through the sauce maker). So besides two "quarts" of dried apple slices, I also have seven pints of applesauce.

Besides rethinking the garden, I am also being forced to rethink the freezer and just what I put in it. When I purchased it, my intention was to fill it with fruits and vegetables, so I would not have to water bath or pressure can anything; I'm lazy that way. But now that I am purchasing grass-fed meat from Honored Prairie, the freezer has proven to be too small for bulk purchases. I expect I will have to can some stuff, but the dehydrator now offers another option.