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Sunday, October 13, 2013

Do You "Prepare" for Winter?

Around here, we prepare for winter.
Though there are a few more things 
I would like to see finished up before the snow flies,
I am beginning to ease up a bit.
Over the past couple months,
we have been working in the garden
in order to stock up.
And I am actually glad to say that I think
my love affair with my pressure-canner
has come to an end for the season.
I finished stacking the wood this morning.
There is still some bark mess to deal with,
but the wood is in order.
I dug a few spuds this morning as well.
I'm not sure why it is that digging spuds
makes me feel so successful.
Maybe it's because you have to trust
that they are there even when you can't see them.
Most of mine still have green plants 
so it might be November before I get to dig more.
I also pruned my tomatoes,
having just learned about that this year.
A dear friend told me she had finished
pruning hers.  It sounded so funny.
I told her my plants were loaded
with green tomatoes.
She said if you prune all the 'tops'
and any new growth,
the plant will feed the tomatoes better.
We will probably get one more salad
worth of lettuce from the garden
as it is beginning to bolt.
I feel pretty fortunate.
We haven't had to buy lettuce since June.
I just planted some in with a house plant
to see if I can get some to grow inside.

No matter where you live,
it's probably a good idea to be prepared
for at least a couple days
of no power, closed roads, or whatever
might come about.
If you have a barbecuer,
make sure it has propane (if it's that kind:)
It's still possible to cook on it in winter
~just not as much fun as in summer.
And last but not least,
don't forget water...
that one's pretty important.

All done?
Time for a cup of hot cocoa.
Yum.

Until next time,
Nimble Fingers and Even Stitches


8 comments:

  1. Looks like you're ahead of the curve! Congrats!

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  2. Your shelves look stocked. The wood pile as my dad would call it looks like ours when I grew up as a child. We would put it close to the house so we didn't have to go far for it, but then my mom cooked on a wood stove part of the time especially if we had no electricity. I have a small charcoal grill that we can cook on incase of an emergency. You just have to keep the charcoal burning. It can be done. Have a wonderful day. Hugs and Prayers from Your Missouri Friend.

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  3. you are certainly prepared for a hard winter, lots of goodies on those shelves from your own garden, have to admit to not growing any veg myself. We are fortunate here, might not get out for a couple of days if too icy etc but the electric never seems to be effected although they were saying on the radio a few days ago that supplies are low so will get a few candles, I cook on gas so that will be okay, I wish you not too hard a winter.

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  4. It's so fun to stock up! I, too, am putting up my canners this week... with a sigh of relief. I love getting them out and I love putting them up!

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  5. We're ok for food and fuel but we need more wood cut into smaller pieces. We have gone through several situations where power has been out for days at a time. Not much fun in the winter or when you're dependent on a deep well.

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  6. Looking over a full pantry is satisfaction !
    I used to cover my lettuce and beans with a sheet or old comforter during the cold nights and then uncover them when the temps would warm up during the day.
    Anything to extend that harvest !
    Rose

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  7. Do we? Not as much as we should...

    Interesting tip, on pruning tomato plants. Actually, at this point (in the NE), we've given up on tomatoes, not expecting much of the green ones there. This is worth a try!!! Thank you and your friend.

    Tessa~

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  8. Love your pantry pictures :) That is also a favorite subject of mine! Have a wonderful week of homemaking!

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