Celeste in the Garden
September 12, 2017
It’s important to get the garden beds cleaned up in the fall. Here are some helpful tips.
Any of the plant remains and the leaves need to be moved into the compost. Otherwise, they can hide insects and foster disease conditions for next spring. Leaving a nice, clean bed helps you to get a head start after the winter.
If you live in the United States east of the Mississippi, as I do, you will also need to lime your garden beds. We tend to get acidic rain so a dusting of lime is necessary each ... more
July 20, 2017
A crop that can be planted often is lettuce. This is actually my husband’s favorite so I plant lettuce early and often in the spring, starting two weeks before frost. In fall, I start sowing again eight weeks before the fall frost. The trick is to stagger plantings every 10 to 14 days so you don’t have all your lettuce at once.
See your average frost dates for spring and fall.
Here are seven tips and tricks on growing lettuce—so that your garden space yields the maximum harvest!
Lettuce is best... more
July 17, 2017
Beet kvass is a fermented vegetable drink that is easy to make and loaded with probiotics. Learn how to make beet kvass here!
What is Fermentation?
Canning and freezing—as methods to preserve food—are relatively new in the Grand Scheme of Evolution.
Our ancestors (who did not have the advantage of electricity) largely fermented their crops in order to eat them at a later date. Pickles, relish, ketchup, mayonnaise, sauerkraut and mustard were all originally fermented. Depending on the... more
July 14, 2017
Add flowers to your food! Many gardeners forget that flowers not only are beautiful, but also can be raised to eat. Here are the best edible flowers based on firsthand experience in the garden and kitchen.
I especially love adding small edible flowers to salads, which can be made even more attractive and special with their color and subtle taste. Flowers can also be added to soups, cassroles, and other dishes.
Best Edible Flowers
Many folks know about nasturtiums.
Nasturiums’ peppery blooms... more
July 12, 2017
Here’s how to raise baby chicks the right way—from the day they arrive to the day they start laying!
When choosing to start out with chicks, it is often necessary to mail order baby ones. These generally come through the mail a day or two after they are born. It’s quite important to pick them up at the post office as soon as possible to get them out of their box and introduce them to their new home.
The Perfect Baby Chicken coop
Chicks will need a warm, draft-free, and safe environment to begin... more
May 18, 2017
Keeping Chickens: An American Tradition
Once upon a time, virtually all American households kept chickens. They were a basic necessity with their gifts of eggs for breakfast and baking. No family farm existed without fowl roaming about or roosters heralding the light of dawn. It was unthinkable.
Perhaps that is the reason that we have so many sayings having to do with chickens. “Don’t count your chickens until they hatch.” “Nest egg.” “Cooped up.” “Cocky.” “Pecking order.” “Egg money.” “Playing... more
January 9, 2017
Ready for a healthy new tradition? Try fruit kvass with turmeric! Just a splash of this fermented tonic each day improves health. Here’s more about it.
Kvass is a traditional fermented beverage that’s growing in popularity due to its many health properties, especially as an aide for digestion. I wrote about my fruit kvass recipe last year. Now, I am adding turmeric to my fruit kvass.
Turmeric has been used as a spice and a medicine for nearly 4,000 years. During his travels, Marco Polo... more
October 5, 2016
Fall is the time of year when gardens disgorge their bounty and farm stands are chock-a-block full of wondrous fruits and veggies. It’s the best time to buy and store fresh food!
Twenty-five and fifty pound bags of onions and potatoes are on sale for incredibly low prices. Right now is the time to buy for the best deals of the year. Even organic produce, which is the best kind you can buy, is available at a bargain.
Tomatoes, potatoes, onions, carrots, beets, peppers, leeks, lettuce, spinach,... more
September 27, 2016
There is nothing as delicious as a fully ripe, deep red, juicy, garden, heirloom tomato. Here’s a tomato salad recipe to die for—and tips on buying tomatoes.
I love tomatoes. Unfortunately, farmers can’t wait until their tomatoes are fully ripe before picking them and bringing them to market. They get too soft and can be damaged by the first person who picks them up. However, tomatoes will continue to ripen after they are picked. The trick is to purchase them a couple of days before you want to... more
August 30, 2016
I love bread and butter pickles. But the general kind of pickle, made with vinegar, lacks the digestive enzymes and probiotics of the fermented ones.
Here is a recipe for how to make these delicious and helpful pickles.
You will need:
3 medium cucumbers
½ cup thinly sliced onion
1 grape leaf
½ cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
3 tablespoons home made whey
1 tablespoon sea salt or Himalayan pink
½ cup honey or maple syrup
1 heaping tablespoon whole celery seeds
1 tablespoon yellow or brown... more
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Celeste Longacre has been growing virtually all of her family’s vegetables for the entire year for over 30 years. She cans, she freezes, she dries, she ferments & she root cellars. She also has chickens. Celeste has also enjoyed a longtime relationship with The Old Farmer’s Almanac as their astrologer and gardens by the Moon. Her new book, “Celeste’s Garden Delights,” is now available! Celeste Longacre does a lot of teaching out of her home and garden in the summer. Visit her web site at www.celestelongacre.com for details.
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