Category Archives: Garden

Food Storage, Garden, Health And Wellness, Journal

Why I Chose Convenience Over Preparation in Life

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I made my first Substack post and who knows if I will make another one. I barely remember (or don’t know what to share) to post here.

So, here’s the link if you want to read it there, or just scroll down and read the pasted text here.

https://open.substack.com/pub/brendanolen587563/p/it-isnt-prepping-its-laziness?r=cg71s&utm_medium=ios

I used to be a prepper. I used to have a full inventory of everything we would need to survive whatever catastrophe could befall us. I live in California, so my disaster plans included drought, earthquakes, and flooding but mostly civil unrest. Then, through a mind shift that changed my focus from lack to plenty, I reverted back to my original way of thinking: I’m lazy.

I could use terms with a more positive connotation: frugal, thrifty, organized, budget-friendly, etc. I could pretend it’s for health reasons but that would be a lie. My base feeling towards all-things-storage is laziness.

I can’t stand leaving my house every day to purchase food or supplies. I can’t stand planning every meal months ahead of time so I know what I need for the future. I know people who shop every day for that night’s meal and it drives me crazy! They actually love it and I just don’t understand how!


Do you know what I love? Knowing that I can just walk over there and grab whatever I need off of the shelf without getting dressed and driving through “shouldn’t all of you be at work or something?” traffic. That was the only good thing about the Covid lockdowns: everyone was so paranoid that virtually no one was out shopping!

That’s why I grow food, too. It isn’t to control what goes into my body or to save money (because anyone who has grown food knows it is cheaper to buy a crate of tomatoes from Mexico than grow tomatoes while dealing with the “what is wrong with this plant now?” issues. I grow food so I only have to walk 10 feet to get food and only have to wear enough clothing to not scare the neighbors.
Technically, we are healthier. Before we moved back into our house (we lived with my in-laws for 2 ½ years), we ate out a lot (there simply was no room for us there). Since moving back and building up our supplies, we have lost weight, become stronger, and are so much happier. Whoever said laziness was a bad thing obviously didn’t know us!

Garden

DIY Capsicum Tincture: A Natural Pest Solution

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I have to share this with everyone!  I was told about this a while ago, forgot, and was just reminded.  So, I made this up last night, sprayed, and my prayers have been answered!  Those cabbage loopers that have wreaked havoc all over every bit of food I have been growing are DEAD!  There was no new damage this morning (after me going out every night with a flash light and take care of the little buggers but always missing some) AND I found a number of them dead!  I am SO HAPPY!  Thank you, Don!

Hi Brenda,

I don’t know if I have told you this before so here goes.  I make up a tincture of capsicum.  It is made by putting a large can of Cayenne Pepper into a pint of Vodka.  Sit in the sun for two weeks, shaking twice a day.
Strain.  Make sure you label it because it is liquid fire.  Now for chewing and sucking insects, I put several cloves of garlic and a coarsely chopped onion in a blender with water.  I puree and then strain out the large pieces.  Add an ounce or more of the tincture of capsicum (from above) and add some liquid soap.  The liquid soap helps the proper ingredients to stay on the leaves when the water dries.  Put into a spray bottle.  Since this is a water based insect repellent, it will have to be sprayed on after each rain or sprinkling.

I have used this on many plants and it can also be used to stop chewing animals.

Give it a try.  To do things simply, you could probably put a large quantity of cayenne into water and let it simmer for a while and use it in place of the tincture. B*B, Don

Garden

Strange Weather and Planting

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As most of you know, we have not had our typical California weather this year.  It is June 7 and today is supposed to be a high of 77 degrees F.  Plus, possible showers tonight.  I’m tired of waiting.  Tired of waiting for the weather to cooperate and tired of waiting for a house of our own so I can STOP growing in these dang pots!

So, I am making a truck garden.  While I’m still growing in containers, the plants will get all the sun they need, and we may be able to get a little more food aside from sugar snap peas and tomatoes this year (though the tomatoes are questionable).  Here’s what I already have planted (and growing):

Sugar Snap Peas and Mixed salad greens, which didn’t really perform like I had hoped.  Next time, I’ll just stick with spinach in its own container.

Carrots (yes, they are there somewhere)

Cherokee Purple tomatoes (only had room for this one, Toni, but THANK YOU FOR THE SEEDS!)

Early Girl Tomato (which isn’t all that early … dang thing just now got it’s second set of leaves)

Zucchini

And I’m going to tempt the weather gods by planting … tuscan melon!  Please let us have a mild/warm autumn!  This isn’t including the pots I’m not moving: brussel sprouts, collard greens, celery, three different mints (peppermint, spearmint, and chocolate mint) plus a couple kitchen herbs (basil and oregano … I need more of these).

Like I said, all these are in containers.  The only problem (aside from weather, which I’m going to complain about constantly) is the lack of sun in my back yard.  This is my back yard:

Notice the HUGE pecan tree?  Well, it just keeps getting bigger (at least one thing is growing well this year) and now my pots get sun until about noon.  That’s it.  So, I complain every time I go out there to take care of them, just about ready to put the pots on the roof of the garage when it hits me.  Our truck!  We non-oped it a couple years ago because 8 miles to the gallon!  I love the truck.  I love the fact that if we need to move a whole bunch of stuff, we have the truck.  BUT, it’s just sitting there, in the driveway, getting more sun than any spot in my back yard!  So I took out the tool box, sprayed the wasp nests all over the place (they really like the side rails), knocked the nests down, and raked out the truck:

I hosed it out and put my containers in the bed … oh, I also drilled an extra drainage hole in the dent in the bed where the water keeps pooling.  Then I found a set of misters that have been sitting in my garage for about 5 years (I keep finding uses for all my junk and I’ll NEVER throw anything away again), took off the misting heads, and voila!  Drip system!

Now, I have a garden that may actually produce this year!  Do you see that?  That’s sun!  As you can see, there’s plenty of room to add more!  BTW, those are water containers cut in half and the blue container is one of those toy containers you can buy just about anywhere.  Since the kids are no longer kids, I recycled!

Oh, see that upside down recycling bin?  That is a REAL multipurpose tool!  As it is right there, it’s my step ladder (which I need because the tailgate is chest level).  Turn it over and it holds the weeds, leaves, and garbage.  It holds my clippings.  I can hold harvested food (sturdy and has handles).  AND whenever it’s time to move, it will hold miscellaneous garage items!  I love these things!

So, anyway, here are the links I found while trying to figure out what I could plant now:

list-of-companion-plantsDownload

What to do in your Northern California garden in June

Monthly Vegetable Gardening Tips – Sacramento Master Gardeners

Now, I’m tired.  I did this, trimmed, weed-eated, and mowed my weeds (I mean lawn) so I’m done!  Time to wash up and eat lunch!

Garden

Great Depression Cooking with Clara

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I hope and pray that all those that can are preparing for the growing season. Now is the time, especially with the state of our nation. I see this time as a combination of rationing during World War II and the Great Depression. If we do not now take care of ourselves as much as possible, there may be no one there who can (or will). Even if all you have is a giant pot of dirt, plant something. Ask a friend who has a yard if you can utilize some of their land for growing food in exchange for a share of it (or a share of the prepared food). We need to do this if we are to survive the coming financial storms. Oh, and just so you know I am not even close to being a great gardener (like Gladgrower), I’ll take a few pictures of my house and yard when it stops raining (I won’t even clean up the mess my dog made of a bag of cans). It was bad this past year. I am to change that this year!

On that note, I found the neatest website! It’s called “Depression Cooking with Clara”. She has some You Tube videos of some dishes her mom made when she was growing up.