Roasting sweet potatoes

 They are almost too pretty to eat!

Germination testing

It's seed germination testing time.

Any seed we want to carry over from last year or was saved by us last year, gets germ tested.

Seeds get laid on old cloth diapers in numbered rows, then another diaper is put on top. We keep them warm and moist.

Within 4-6 days the seeds have germinated enough for us to decide if they are healthy enough to use this growing season.

 

Eating local in the winter

  There's really nothing to even scavenge in the garden these days.  The extreme cold a couple weeks ago put an end to everything except for the remaining carrots that got a foot thick blanket of hay.  Some years we still have some fresh greens mid-winter, but some years, like this, there is nothing to be found.  

  Cold weather or not, one can still eat local all winter long.  It just takes some planning ahead.  Canning, freezing, dehydrating, and root cellaring can provide a constant supply of a wide variety of things to eat.

  Here's an okra dish we made recently with all dried vegetables: okra, tomatoes, onions and powdered garlic scapes.  We added some water then cooked it a short time in a pressure cooker.

 

Sweet potato tastings

 We've been doing some family sweet potato tastings now that the sweet potatoes have fully cured. If you'd like to do your own tastings, try our sweet potato sampler bag which includes at least 8 varieties. It's an easy way to explore the range of tastes, textures and colors sweet potatoes come in.