Follow-up on Collecting Flower Seeds from Purchased Annuals

Last week in the comments, Teresa was interested in photos of the seeds I'd saved from some annual flowers I'd purchased. I have to admit I goofed in that post and kept calling my marigolds, geraniums. My apologies. I've since fixed that mistake and now will provide some photos and information on petunia and marigold seed collecting. 

In spring of 2021 I bought some petunia and marigold plants for the pots around my house. I wanted to save some of the seeds from both of these plants. I had mentioned that I didn't know what I'd be looking for with the seeds when it was time to collect them, so I had to go online and search for images of what I'd be wanting.

The marigold seeds didn't really look like seeds to me. But it turns out that they are. 

photo source: 
https://www.thespruce.com/how-to-save-marigold-seeds-1388591

After the blooms had ended for the summer, I was left with what looked like dead flowers on the stems. I didn't cut the fading flowers off earlier because I wanted them to set seeds.  When I pulled these dead "blooms" apart, they broke into bunches of long narrow seeds. Each little narrow whole piece is a seed.

To plant the marigold seeds this spring, I covered them in a light layer of soil in a pot indoors (under lights), then kept them watered. The seeds took a couple of weeks to sprout. I don't remember exactly, but about 2 weeks. 

Within a month of sprouting, I had a mass of small plants growing in this one pot. 

Today, I now have blooms forming on several of the small plants. I'll be planting them out in pots in early May for blooms all summer.

With the petunia plants, again I wasn't sure what the seeds would look like, so I searched online for photos. 

photo source:
https://www.gardenstew.com/threads/any-one-else-have-polka-dot-petunias.25755/

Petunias set seed pods at the base of where the petals had been attached to each bloom. At first, the seed pod is just a green protrusion, growing right out of that part of the flower, getting larger with each passing week. 

photo source:
https://indiahomegardening.blogspot.com/2014/04/collecting-seeds-petunia.html

When the pods are ready to harvest, they look like small, pointed paper-like balls. Each ball contains dozens of incredibly tiny seeds. If you don't physically harvest these seeds, the pods will burst open on their own and spread seeds themselves. 

the outer husks that once held petunia seeds

As I was transplanting some of the petunias I'd grown with collected seeds, I came across some parts of exploded seed pods.

I also came across this little guy poking his head out from under the pot.

To plant petunia seeds, I began indoors and under lights in March. I sprayed the top of soil-filled containers with water then pressed the seeds gently into the soil. I didn't add any soil on top of the seeds. I kept the seeds and soil damp until the seeds germinated, then began a regular watering schedule. 

You can also begin petunias outdoors after danger of frost has passed by pressing the seeds into the soil and keeping watered. With my pot of new petunias, I also added some seeds to the top of the soil after transplanting the seedlings. I did this to ensure I have a mix of colors that I want for blooming. Later in the season I'll thin these new seedlings to the best 3 or 4 plants per pot. We're still in our rainy season, so I expect these seeds will stay damp long enough to germinate.

I hope this gave you the information and visuals you were hoping for, Teresa.

I'm Working With a New Garden Fencing Material

Last year I showed you a rudimentary rabbit fence we made from sticks and wire. This actually worked well to keep the rabbits and squirrels out of the strawberry beds. However, it was time-consuming to install. 

Pros to the stick fence: free and if you place the sticks close enough, a good barrier against small animals. If you have an abundant supply of small branches, this can be made on the spur of the moment -- no need to order supplies or visit the hardware store.

Cons to the stick fence: it's time consuming to break all of the sticks and poke them into the ground. I spent a couple of hours making just one fence.

Hard to see -- there is a fence of chicken wire around the near bed.

We also have 2 beds enclosed with chicken wire fencing. While this is very effective at keeping critters out of beds, it rusts.

Pros to chicken wire fence: very effective at keeping all of the small critters that do damage out of the bed. Chicken wire is thin and easy to bend to fit a bed. Compared to other fencing materials, chicken wire is fairly inexpensive.

Cons to chicken wire fencing: it rusts, as I said above. It can bend out of shape and not look as tidy.

I wanted something more lasting for garden bed fencing for the remaining beds, so I ordered some coated, heavier wire animal fencing (about 28 inches high) and plastic-coated stakes. I've surrounded 2 of our garden beds so far with these new supplies. It's a hard job for one person (I did one by myself), but more do-able with a partner (got help on this other one). The wire is stiff, which is hopefully a sign that it will be durable and lasting. But the wire fencing comes on a roll that does not want to unroll, hence the need for a partner. The spaces between wires are close together near ground level, meaning animals can't crawl through near the ground. The spaces get larger toward the top. In theory, one could r4each through these wider spaces to pick something. But I think it's just as easy to bend over the top of the fence, as it's not that tall, (but tall enough to keep most animals out). The fencing was mostly easy to cut with wire cutters to make my fencing to size with the bed. The top and bottom wires are thicker and more difficult to snip. I'm pleased with how it looks so far. We'll see how it holds up over the season.

Pros of the heavier wire critter fencing: it's very sturdy and is coated in plastic, so it will hopefully last a long while. While I prefer a "no fence" look, as far as garden fencing goes, this one is fairly attractive, at least it's tidy looking.

Cons of heavier wire fencing: it doesn't want to stay unrolled while working with it. You really need a second person to hold the fencing at one end while the first person unrolls and works the stakes in. It's also more expensive than chicken wire.

We're working harder at keeping the critters out of our vegetables and berries. It's so frustrating to plan on a harvest only to have half of it devoured by the animals. Hence more beds fenced in this season.

I also thought I'd show you what a water-permeable insect barrier cloth looks like. Unless you spray these plants, cabbage family vegetables are plagued with cabbage worms year after year. I can rub these small green worms off of kale and turnips, but they get into cabbages, Brussel sprouts, broccoli, and cauliflower. Right now I've got a piece of the fabric over the cabbage and Brussel sprout seedlings. Some folks use earth staples to hold this cloth in place. I've anchored the edges down with stones instead (I don't want to poke holes into it) and pleated the center of the cloth by folding it at the ends and placing stones over the folds. This will allow for growth of the plants for a few weeks. For the time being, insect cloth is keeping both the rabbits and cabbage moths off of these plants. This bed has a chicken wire fence that I'll put up after I redo the insect barrier cloth. As the plants grow, I'll need to adjust the fabric to fit taller plants, turning the lengths sideways and adding additional panels. If you're careful with insect cloth, it will last a few seasons. I've used these pieces on a few different patches over the last 2 years. This year I noticed a couple of small holes, but overall I think it will do an adequate job.

I'm also using the top 2/3 of plastic milk jugs to protect some plants from the bunnies. I saved these homemade cloches from last year's garden, so they were not only free, money-wise, but time-wise as well this year. Right now I have them over the celery transplants until I can get some fencing around this bed, hopefully in a couple of weeks.

Our garden is comprised of 15 raised beds. We have wet springs and soggy soils. The raised beds mean I can plant earlier than if our garden was at ground level. But 15 beds is a lot to try and enclose. Up until the bunnies arrived 3 years ago, our critter problems were not overwhelming. Squirrels weren't interested in most of what I grow. Raccoons only occasionally got into the veggies. They're mostly interested in the fruit trees and corn plants. And the birds limit themselves to the cherries and blueberries. With the addition of rabbits, it seems that all of our garden is now at risk. 

If, as the saying goes, that good fences make good neighbors, how do you suppose the critters will feel about the people of this garden?

If Only Mishaps Didn't Happen

I'm sure something similar has happened to you. A favorite top. You're doing what you can to take good care of it. Gentle wash, cold water, line dry. And then that fateful day when an edge gets caught on something sharp. Rats! A hole. My morning took a bit of a nose dive. 

I thought for several hours what I wanted to do about this. I love this top because it looks good on and the colors and print are so springlike. It just slaps a smile on my face when I put it on. What perhaps makes this shirt even more of a favorite is I bought it with a gift card at, wait for it, a thrift store, paying all of $3.99 for it. So, I was kicking myself when I caused a small hole.

The next morning, I decided to give mending it a try. First, I used a small piece of iron-on patching fabric on the underside. This little bit of fabric stabilizes the knit to keep it from stretching as I machine stitch over the hole.

I attempted to color-match thread to the print. I had varying shades if dark purple, light lavender, and some hot pink. The hole was in a patch of medium purple.

I zig-zagged over the hole with colored thread. Unfortunately, I made the wrong choice (going with one of the paler shades) and had to unpick the mending thread before trying another color choice. 

I searched my threads again and found a small amount of a color closer to the bit of fabric where I was mending. 

I zig-zagged over the hole with the new color. The end result was a mending job that while it doesn't exactly match, it blends in with the print so well that when a daughter asked me where the hole was, I had a hard time finding it at first. I'd call that a success.

I've repaired several other knit tops in exactly the same fashion. They hold up well to wear and laundering -- sometimes the patch job outlasts other areas of the shirt. My favorite spring top will now go on for many more wearings and the mend job cost me exactly zero $.

Still -- if only mishaps never happened. Sigh.

Cheap & Cheerful Suppers for Early April

I don't know what happened to my post. Something caused it to revert to an original draft. I'll do my best to recap what I'd originally written Thursday evening.

Another week of my daughters' cooking, with exception to Easter's main meal (which we did as a late lunch to take advantage of warm outdoor air). This has been a fabulous gift all month, with the two of them cooking the main meal each night. I feel truly spoiled.

So, what did they cook? Here it is:

Friday

pepperoni pizza (using a Great Value  pizza crust mix and canned pasta sauce), kale and cabbage slaw, canned green beans

Saturday (my birthday dinner)

frozen eggrolls, frozen orange chicken stir fry, rice, scratch chocolate cake (the cake that had a layer which wouldn't come out of the pan, becoming 2 batches of chocolate pudding cake later)

Sunday

Easter Luncheon (as I posted earlier this week) -- baked ham, scratch dinner rolls, sweet potato casserole, green bean casserole, kale-almond-cranberry salad, roasted Brussel sprouts, carrot cake cupcakes, chocolate pudding cake

We didn't cook a dinner on Easter. It was fend for yourself. I had a bowl of more chocolate pudding cake and a cup of tea for my dinner. Others had leftovers from the luncheon.

Monday (sorry, no photo)

reheated leftovers from Easter

Tuesday

bean and ham soup (using ham stock and meat from Easter ham plus beans cooked from dried), scratch biscuits (using ham fat in the dough), mixed green slaw

Wednesday

bean and cheese burritos (using canned refried beans and commercial tortillas), canned tomatoes, mixed green salad

Thursday

hummus (using canned garbanzo beans), crackers, celery sticks, slaw with cabbage and thinnings from the garden

Everyday breakfasts included leftover dinner rolls, toast, homemade yogurt, eggs, milk, fruit, juice, peanut butter, and smoothies. As Saturday was my birthday, I made sure to have exactly what I wanted -- croissants and bacon. Trader Joe's sells frozen croissant dough. I picked up a box of 8. We baked 4 and will save the other 4 for Mother's Day. When I buy bacon, I split the package into smaller packages of 8 or 12 uncooked slices (depending on whether my son and daughter-in-law will be with us, hence 12 slices for 6 of us). I thaw one of these smaller packets in the fridge overnight. I have a good friend who frequently reminds me that if I want something to happen, and I have some control over the situation, to make it happen myself. That's what I did for my birthday.

Our lunches included cream of broccoli soup, cheese sandwiches, peanut butter sandwiches, eggs, raisins, bananas, juice, carrots, cabbage, crackers, leftovers, and various baked goodies.

That's what was on our menu this week. What was on yours?

Wishing you all a lovely weekend!

The Thrill of Saving Flower Seeds

one of several petunia plants I grew from seeds collected from last year's purchased plants--
it's even beginning to bloom!

You all know that I save seeds from one season's plants to grow vegetables in the next season. It's not a huge savings, but it's one of those satisfaction things. But do you know what I find really exciting in the gardening realm? Saving seeds from flowers that I bought in the garden center and growing them the next year into actual flowering plants. It's as if I made something. So exciting!

a bundle of marigold seedlings --
I can already see where they will be setting flower buds in a month or so.

This last year I saved nasturtiums (but those fall into the edible category for our house, so not as exciting), "Patriot Mix" (red, white, purple) petunias, and autumn-colored marigolds. I started the seeds for the petunias and marigolds in March under lights. The plants look wonderful. Last summer, I wasn't even sure what to save -- what was a seed for both of these plants. I looked both plants up online to see what to look for as seeds. And I luckily found them on both plants.

Now I have annual plants for my pots and garden for zero cost! I would have bought the petunias for sure, as I plant these every year in a couple of pots in the front yard. The autumn marigolds will give me end of summer color to enjoy, once again.

Free annuals grown from my own collected seeds -- now this is excitement!

Easter Luncheon Photos

Dessert first, because that's the fun part!  Carrot Cake Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting, decorated with either chopped pecans or garden violets

Chocolate Pudding and Cake (a failed chocolate cake that I crumbled and topped with scratch cornstarch pudding and some chocolate chips)

Green Bean Casserole (the standard cream of mushroom soup recipe)

Sweet Potato Casserole with Praline Topping

Kale, Cranberry, Almond Salad with a sweet citrusy dressing

Roasted Brussel Sprouts

Pan Dinner Rolls

Plus we had a baked ham -- I didn't take a photo

A Ten-Year Anniversary

I don't expect anyone here to know why today is a special day for this blog. But, today is the 10-year anniversary of when I began blogging (April 18, 2012). I haven't mentioned anniversaries in past years. However, I do think 10 years is remarkable for me (maybe not other bloggers), as I didn't really know how long I'd blog, or where I'd take this website. I just started one afternoon. Though I have to say, this anniversary belongs to you, as well. You've contributed content, links, recipes, directions, inspiration, and encouragement, not only for my benefit, but for all of us. Thank you.

Since what I really wanted to celebrate about this anniversary is you, here are some insightful, helpful, and informative comments from you for each of these past 10 years:

May 2012 -- in talking about making tastier rhubarb sauce

"Mmm, love rhubarb, too! We just can't seem to grow enough, but I have experimented and discovered that replacing half the rhubarb amount with blueberries makes a super yummy sauce that I have to fight my kids for! (we live near many blueberry fields so we have a plethora of blueberries in our freezer)."

This comment got me thinking about other flavors I could add to rhubarb sauce. I've since made raspberry-rhubarb sauce, blueberry-rhubarb sauce, and my family's favorite blackberry-rhubarb sauce.

August 2013 -- how to make microwave scrambled eggs with easier clean-up

"I like to put a slice of ham or Canadian bacon in the bottom of the bowl I'm cooking in and put the egg on top of it. None of the egg sticks making clean up easier. Cooking takes about a minute this way in my microwave. Sometimes there is a little raw egg that has to be moved to the edges to cook a bit more and sometimes there isn't."

August 2014 -- using meat fat in cooking later, a great salad dressing recipe

"We don't have bacon very often now, but when we do, we save the drippings in a container. My favourite way to use it is for a very yummy salad dressing. The recipe calls for cooked slices of bacon, but it is just as good using a couple of spoonfuls of the bacon drippings in a frying pan, add about three tablespoons of brown sugar and three tablespoons of vinegar. When dissolved in the frying pan, pour over a mixture of leaf lettuce, red pepper strips and sliced fresh mushrooms. serve immediately."

February 2016 -- about gift-giving dilemmas

"This is one of those tricky questions. I love giving gifts much more than I like receiving gifts. I have found a lot of times the gift presentation is worth as much as the gift itself. Several years ago we were facing a very difficult financial time and it was right at the time my friends kids began to marry. I made a few "go-to" gifts that were well received and years later I still get an occasional call about what I put in them. It seems presentation can make the difference between a simple gift and something spectacular.

 

One gift was a cast iron medium skillet. ($7-8 bucks) I put a wooden spoon, cornbread mix, homemade potholder and trivet (tile square with glued on felt bottom) inside the pan. I wrapped a red check dish towel (Dollar Tree) around the pan part, gathered the remainder at the handle and tied a big red bow around it. It was very well received.  

Another go-to I used was an inexpensive metal colander filled with an inexpensive cruet, salad tongs,vegetable brush, a bag of croutons, a shaker (dollar store) of spices , homemade lettuce storage bag (made from an ikea dish towel, 
$.59) I had a ton of muslin on hand so I sort of encased these in the muslin and pulled it up over the colander creating a Pebbles Flinstone "pony tail" I tied it off with kitchen twine and attached a couple of nylon scrubbers as the bow. 

The 3rd go-to was a variation on the colander theme but was filled with spaghetti noodles, and items for a spaghetti meal
All of these idea has very little cost but all the brides really did love them, they looked cute and I didn't exceed my limited budget. Plus they remember the gift rather than just being another dinner plate or goblet."

August 2016 -- getting labels off of containers

"with all those jugs you are re-using we have to revisit removing the sticky labels. We discussed this a while ago but I found the answer. Ready? Spread a layer of peanut butter over the sticky stuff and wait an hour or so. It comes off like magic! Plastic or jars."

May 2017 -- on stretching butter

"If you watched the second episode of Victorian slum house you can use milk to stretch that butter. The grocer said it took him two hours though so maybe just limit the butter. When you do watch it, let us know what you think."

July 2018 -- repurposing glass jars

"I have too many jars and my husband thinks so too. The problem is that they are very pretty and very useful. The big carafe-like glass jars that had a special juice in them are now re-purposed as water jugs and milk jugs when I want to freeze a gallon by first pouring some off. Marinara sauce sometimes has the measurements on the jar which makes it useful for a careful liquid measurement. All other jars hold pasta, rice, beans, flour and make great drinking glasses."

So, this past weekend I was cooking up a storm and needed a clean liquid measuring cup immediately. All were dirty. I fished through the jar cupboard and came across a pasta sauce jar that had the liquid measurements on the side. canning jar -> measuring cup

May 2019 -- two separate comments on preserving onions for cooking to take advantage of seasonal low prices

"Do you freeze onions? I diced them all up and flash freeze on a cookie sheets. When frozen, I package them up in zipper bags for use for many months. We love getting lots of onions and freezing them diced. A handful here and a handful there and I don't have to dice them."

"I’ve mentioned before I chop and sauté over a weekend at the end of summer a 50 pound bag of onions when they get to the rock bottom, buy in bulk price. I use an ancient roll of aluminum foil and put the onions in packets. Future me when cooking way in the winter thanks present me for having done the onions:)"

October 2019 -- on changing my perspective 

"When I taught high school in Eastern Europe, I saw plenty of cheerful teens who rotated, at most, 2 sets of clothing. They didn't own any mobile devices. Their large families often lived in one-bedroom apartments. In spite of that, those kids were well-adjusted, happy and unspoiled. It was a real eye opener for me and really put things in perspective. Most of us here live with much, much more than I ever saw over there."

January 2021 -- a recipe for homemade laundry soap that doesn't leave a funky smell after laundering

"Another success is homemade laundry powder and after researching before making it, I have used a box of gain detergent as part of the mix so that I wouldn't get funky smell some talk about when making homemade detergent. So its a success.

1 box borax, 1 box arm and hammer washing soda, 3 bars pink zote soap (shredded)

1 box of gain (or your choice of powdered detergent), 1 container of laundry crystals.

I put all of this in my food processor to make it more powdery. We like it and it doesn't smell funky after several washes like I have heard some say."

July 2021 -- several comments on developing a waste not, want not attitude and eating those leftovers eventually

"Both our parents lived during a time when food was scarce so they wasted nothing and that's how we grew up. I still do the same now as well as when the children were young. I told my kids "you'll eat it one way or another"! Something not eaten was always transformed into a more desirable offering."

 

"We (hubs and I) are notorious leftover eaters. That is how I raised our five kids as well. . . they know that we will eat anything left so we are the recipients of quite a few meals - both purchased and home cooked."

"I worked most of the weekend and we had potlucks to make it more fun. My coworkers kept leaving baked products uncovered and I was making jokes about being the mom and covering them back up. I wonder how much food goes to waste simply because people don't take simple steps to keep the food safe and fresh."

"Add me to the crowd of eating everything on your plate - however not at once if you're not that hungry, so as not to encourage overeating. That's the way my mother did it and the way I did it with my kids, and we continue that today."

Thank you for so freely offering your thoughts, advice, suggestions, instructions, and recipes.

Cheap & Cheerful Suppers: More 20-Something Cooking

Friday

homemade pepperoni and mushroom pizza, steamed broccoli, carrot sticks

To make this dinner easier, they used a pizza crust mix and canned spaghetti sauce for the pizza (with cheese, pepperoni, and canned mushrooms).

Saturday

bean burritos made with commercial flour tortillas, canned beans, cheese, salsa, plus canned tomato chunks and a radish green and watercress salad

I was hungry and forgot to take a photo. All I have to do is show up, right? And I can't even remember to take a picture! Sue me. I was hungry. Ha ha. 

Sunday

"Pasta Tina" from Jimmy Kimmel, a sauce made from canned cannellini beans, roasted garlic, olive oil, chicken soup base over cooked macaroni (Parmesan garnish), plus steamed carrots and roasted canned tomatoes

This was much better tasting that it looks. I thought Pasta Tina was delicious. I was hungry and didn't think to take a photo until I was half finished. My daughter says she will make this again for us.

Monday

Homemade tomato soup (canned tomato paste, basil, garlic, chicken soup base), ham and cheese sandwiches, radish greens and cabbage slaw

I've never done sandwiches much for dinners. But I think I will going forward. I love soup and sandwich meals.

Tuesday

Canned chili boosted with fresh peppers, onions, canned tomatoes, and more cooked pinto beans, scratch Virginia spoon bread

Wednesday

do it yourself nachos -- tortilla chips, canned refried beans topped with melted cheese, salsa, mixed vegetables, canned pineapple chunks

Thursday

chicken and rice casserole (a church favorite recipe), steamed broccoli, orange juice

Over the weekend I baked 3 kinds of muffin, blueberry, raisin bran, and chocolate chip-pecan. I baked the batches one right after the other, using all the same utensils, mixing bowl, and tins. I made 40 muffins in total and froze most of them to take out of the freezer a few at a time throughout the week. We also had homemade yogurt, oatmeal, toast, eggs, bananas, juice, and milk for breakfasts.

Lunches included more homemade soups, pureed carrot and chive-potato-cheese, plus peanut butter sandwiches, cheese sandwiches, apples, crackers, and leftovers.

I love having my daughters do the cooking. Everything is delicious and all I do is eat and help clean up. The two of them use more convenience products than I do. However, I don't think they're choosing terribly costly convenience items. Just items like canned beans, spaghetti sauce, pizza crust mix, sandwich fixings, canned soup for a casserole, etc. I'll be giving them the day off for Easter and doing the cooking myself.

That's what we ate this week. What was on your menu?

Grocery Shopping This Week

I shopped in-person earlier this week and noticed a few things. 

First off, the produce section seemed much less full than I'm used to. The apples I'd planned on buying weren't there, and there wasn't even a section with their tag indicating they'd sold out. The loose apple bins were only partially filled. I'm used to seeing apples mounded up, stacked in layers 2, 3 or 4 deep. There were plenty of bananas, however. Green cabbage is one of those items that have been hard to find at Fred Meyer this past year. Some weeks, there were no heads of green cabbage at all. In previous years, the green cabbage took up a large section, with a minimum of 30 heads from which to choose. This week, there were 8 heads of cabbage for me to choose from. This is the week before Easter. In other years, this week has seen a large shelf/bin just for asparagus. I didn't even notice any asparagus and reflected on that after I got out to the car. Most of the produce shelves appeared to be about half full, in contrast to other years when produce has been overflowing. 

In the center aisles, there were numerous pockets of bare shelving. In some cases, products that I knew from before 2020 weren't even there. This has been an ongoing issue with grocery stores since spring 2020.

The milk, butter, and cheese refrigerators were full. The egg refrigerator has shrunk and was about 2/3 full. The eggs on sale (18-ct) for the week were nearly sold out. The price was excellent (sale plus digital coupon brought the price to $1.47/18 ct. carton), so that is understandable. I was able to buy the amount of eggs that I had intended (about a 2-month supply), and still leave some cartons behind. Cheese appears to be becoming a luxury item. The name brand cheese (Tillamook) was $10 for 2 pounds. My family would not be eating cheese at that price. The store brand (Kroger) was on sale and had a digital coupon, bringing the price down to just under $5 for a 2-lb block or bag. That's a reasonable price to me and slightly lower than a few months ago. I bought the limit of 5 packages, again about a 2-month supply. There was plenty of milk, but it has gone up about 80 cents per gallon. I didn't buy yogurt, but I noticed large bare sections of shelving where the store brand usually is displayed. 

I still look for bargains every time I shop. This time it was butter. Kroger had been packaging some of its butter in 2-packs, two 1-lb boxes over-wrapped together, with a slight discount for buying more than one pound. Evidently, this wasn't as popular of a marketing gimmick as they'd hoped, and many of these 2-packs were about to expire (30 or more double packs). The sell-by date was April 13 and I was shopping on April 11. They'd marked the butter 2-packs down to $2.99 ($1.50 per pound) to sell them quickly. I scooped up ten 2-packs, or 20 pounds. I also had a coupon good for Kroger brand products, valued at $6. Applying this $6 to the butter brought my price per pound down to levels I remember from when my kids were small children ($1.20/lb). I left plenty of marked down butter for anyone else bargain shopping that morning.

I didn't buy everything on my list. A couple items weren't even there any more, so I had to rethink my plans. Some categories were just too expensive (meat). I stocked up on ground beef summer and early fall 2021, paying $2.88/lb. This week at Fred Meyer, the same grade beef was $4.79/lb. I still have some in my freezer, so we can go on with the ground beef that we have. I was just looking for something other than ground beef (way, way out of my price range). 

I passed by the Easter candy section and noticed huge price hikes that I think shouldn't have been there. I wanted some jelly beans and the best I could find in the holiday section were $3 for a 12-oz bag. I headed over to the regular candy aisle and found a 10-oz bag of Kroger brand jelly beans for $1.25. I also noticed exorbitant prices on what I consider ordinary chocolate Easter candy (Mars brand) in the special Easter aisle, $4.50 for 9-oz bags -- that's $8 per pound! I can make molded candies (using my rabbit molds) or mounded chocolate and coconut "nest" candies for a third of that per ounce price, by using chocolate baking chips.

Prices are up, that's for sure. There are still some bargains to be had. But you have to look for them. My other thought is that I'm very glad to have a garden planned for this spring and summer. I hope that many people across the globe will be planting gardens this summer to offset some of the shortages to come.

Stocked up on Rice and Beans? Eliminate Pantry Insects Before They Hatch

Many of us have stocked up on some dried foods in the past year or two, like grains and dried beans. Pantry pests that have been dormant or not yet hatched may now be about to become a problem. Open packaging and older products are most at risk. But pantry pests, such as the Indian Meal Moth, can infest products that you've just brought home from the store, too.

Prevention is the best cure

While we can't ensure there are no insect eggs in our purchased food, there are two things that will kill eggs or larvae of most small pantry insects, heat and cold. Both treatments will prevent these pests from becoming a problem in the future. 

If you have freezer space, and your freezer can be set to 0 degrees F, you can kill these pests before they become a problem by freezing packaged grains for 4 days. Simply place the goods, right in their package, into the freezer and wait 4 days. Pest problem solved.

If you lack freezer space or your freezer can't be cooled to 0 degrees F, you also have the option of heating the dried food. Spread dried rice or beans in a shallow tray. Heat in a 130 degree F oven for at least 30 minutes. (both methods are recommended by the University of Minnesota Extension.) Cool completely and store in an airtight container.

Since I stocked up on rice, meals, flour, beans, and popping corn this past year, I have been cycling all of the grains and beans through my large deep freeze before storing in airtight containers. After 4 days of freezing, I bring the products into the house to warm gently at room temperature, turning the packages over every 4 hours, to air-dry any condensation that develops upon thawing.

There's a further heat option, and one that may appeal to canners, dry canning. Dry canning kills the insect eggs and seals the jars in one process. Here's a good explanation for how to dry can in this article.

I don't know about you, but with the looming worldwide food shortages, my plan is to keep all of my household's food in usable condition. But I thought this little reminder might help someone else.

If you find you have overstocked pantry supplies, community food pantries will be more than happy to take the excess (and still unexpired) goods off your hands. 

Success of the Amish

This weekend I  watched a bunch of videos about Amish communities. I sometimes find a topic that really intrigues me and I hyper-focus on it for a weekend. Do you do that, too?

My real-life experience with Amish communities has been the sum total of a one-day visit to a Pennsylvania Amish farm when I was in high school. In middle school we read about the Amish and Mennonite people in two paragraphs in our text book. So, not much. Some of you have Amish or Mennonite communities nearby. So your experiences may be much richer than mine. These videos and interviews were fascinating and opened my eyes to ways modern society misses the mark when it comes to personal finance. 

If one is simply looking at the outward appearance of the Amish, one might assume that many of these families were struggling financially. When in fact, many are quite prosperous. There are many financial lessons to be learned from their lifestyle and attitudes.

rejection of most of modern technology and other material goods 

While adoption of technology varies from one community to the next, for the most part, most Amish don't fill their houses and pockets with televisions, computers, game consoles and handhelds, all of the "I" gadgets (iPods, iPads, iPhones). As we know all too well, all of these electronic gadgets become outdated very quickly, leaving its owner wanting the latest and greatest upgrade on the market. How often do you replace your smartphone or laptop? I am on my second personal laptop. My first one lasted 6 years. In a lifetime (if I hadn't been born so long ago), I might own a dozen or so laptops. Some don't use phones at all. Many don't use electricity, central heating, or municipal water/sewer.

simplified clothing, hairstyles and home-furnishings

Their personal appearance is tidy, but not at all tied to current fashion. Their homes are furnished with high-quality, long-lasting but not overly ornate pieces. Quality and durability appear to be key qualities when choosing home and personal goods. There's a clothing concept that I think would almost align with the simple Amish clothing style, that's the capsule wardrobe. Capsule wardrobes feature a handful of pieces that can all be mixed and matched. I've worked out (on paper) my own capsule wardrobe for this current age of mine. I really do think it's more about the tidiness of appearance (whether home or person) that makes an impact as opposed to having designer labels or ornate embellishments.

use of free or almost free entertainment

Without televisions/DVD players/streaming services, computers, or game consoles, most of these families seem to rely of free or low-cost entertainment options, such as board games, reading, singing, group ball sports, conversation, or participating in hobbies. How much money would we save if we cut all of the cords -- the television, streaming services, computers, electronic games, etc. Better yet, how much money would we have saved if we had never brought any of these devices to begin with? Entertainment centers on the family or their church.

mend and recycle

With everything they own, they repair, mend, remake and reuse as much as possible. Commercial food jars become storage containers or plant cloches. Worn adult clothing may be remade into a child's size. Once even that is too worn for wear, strips of the cloth will be made into quilts or rugs. Machinery is repaired rather than replaced. As many of us here do, I continue to find ways to mend and reuse our belongings. I'm sure I could take this to a higher level.

close-knit community that supports each member

When one member of the community suffers some sort of set-back, health, accident, etc, the rest of the community steps up to do the work needed. It isn't just barns that are quickly raised with the hands of many members in the community. When a school needs to replace their classroom building, it's the members of the district who come together as the construction team. When a farmer suffers an illness or accident right at planting or harvest time, neighbors generously give their time to do the ailing farmer's work. When an illness racks up an astronomical medical bill, the community chips in as much as needed to make that gigantic payment. There seems to be more of a servant attitude amongst their people than we see in our general society. Imagine how reassuring that would be to know that you are never going to face a financial catastrophe on your own. My daughter and I were talking about community and how to build one within our own church. What I've always believed is that the best way to build this sort of community is to offer yourself to others. We can't sit back and wait for others to "take care" of us. Instead, a loving and giving community begins with someone first giving.

strong work ethic 

Work has value. They take pride in doing a good job and having a good relationship with their chosen work. In addition, many of their hobbies are profitable hobbies, such as quilting, baking, gardening, wood-working. Compare this to a modern western interpretation of hobbies, where a lot of folks spend a lot of money maintaining a hobby that doesn't provide any material benefit to daily life. This work ethic begins in childhood. All members of the family contribute to the family's well-being. Children have chores that help the family succeed as well as the adults. A lack of modern convenience and entertainments likely helps this work ethic. Imagine how much more any one of us could get done in a day if the internet and television didn't exist. 

They begin working at a young age.

Official schooling often ends with the 8th grade. As early as age 16, Amish young men and women may be working or apprenticing in their careers. The average age of the teachers in one school district was 18 years old. That was the average, indicating that some young men and women were teaching at even younger ages. Many careers are along the lines of skilled trades, such as furniture-making, construction, hat-making, metal work. Embarking on a trade at an earlier age often results in bringing in a living wage much younger than an outsider who graduates from high school at age 18 and university at age 22 (or later). Building a small business has built-in marketing advantage for the Amish. With their strong work ethic and integrity rooted in their faith, most Amish goods are associated with high quality. Even in an economic downturn, Amish goods are still sought after for their lasting value. Obviously, at my age, I can't  really get an early start on a career. But there's no time like the present. I can always begin something new, at any age.

The skills the Amish develop are practical ones. 

They not only earn a living with these skills, but these are the very skills that are useful in one's home and family. Sewing, baking/cooking, construction, repair, furniture-making, hat-making, farming and gardening -- they've developed the abilities they need so they don't have to outsource a lot of work. I know my husband and I could work at a couple of additional practical hobbies. We do outsource some of our needed repairs. And aside from assembling kit furniture and making simple shelving units, we've never built anything significant. What we have done, though, is refinish garage sale and free pile furniture.

avoidance of debt

When faced with a financial need, most Amish families look for a solution other than debt, such as taking on additional work. The interest rates on any kind of bank-financed debt add substantially to the cost of an item. I've often thought about what my family could do to bring in extra money should the need arise. Renting out a room to a church friend is always a possibility and is less risky than renting to a random stranger.

This is not to say that all Amish enjoy financial prosperity or all Amish people are alike in all of their values. But on average, Amish have a higher personal savings rate than the rest of the American public, and a higher savings rate is regarded as an indicator of financial security.

This is not an extensive list. I'm sure I missed many lessons from the success of the Amish. But I did find myself rethinking some of my own attitudes, which could result not only in greater financial prosperity but also in a shift in how I see my place in my own community. 

What can you add to my thoughts above?

Cheap & Cheerful Suppers Provided by My Daughters

I've been baking more this week. I made a blackberry pie,
3 loaves of bread, and a batch of brownies.

More of my daughters' dinners . . .

If you missed it, my daughters are cooking dinners for the entire month of April (except Easter) as my birthday gift (later this month). Earlier this week I reviewed my daughters' first four dinners for the month of April. I'll briefly mention those then move on to the rest of the week.

Friday
Homemade pizza, using a scratch crust and canned spaghetti sauce, greens from the garden with shredded cabbage for a salad with scratch dressing, carrot sticks.

Saturday
Hummus, made with canned garbanzo beans, crackers, carrot and cucumber sticks.

Sunday
Meatball sandwiches, using commercial frozen meatballs, rest of canned spaghetti sauce and shredded cheese from the pizza, hotdog buns (instead of pricier sub sandwich buns), plus steamed carrots and canned green beans in a sauce of cream of mushroom soup.

Monday
Homemade bean and vegetable soup, graham cracker and peanut butter "sandwiches", sautéed turnip greens from the garden with onions.

the rest of the week. . .

Tuesday

tacos, frozen corn, garden greens salad (radish greens, watercress and sorrel), blackberry pie

My daughter used some of the frozen meatballs (Sunday's meatball subs) to quickly make the meat filling in the tacos. She used the vegetable masher to break the meatballs up in a pot and seasoned with spices from our spice cupboard. I baked the pie earlier today, using frozen blackberries from last summer's foraging and scratch pie pastry I keep in the freezer.

Wednesday

vegetarian burrito bowls with brown rice, pinto beans, corn, canned tomatoes, cheese, and salsa, plus sautéed kale and onions, and blackberry pie. A simple meal. but tasty and filling.

Thursday

tuna salad, celery sticks, garden greens salad (radish greens, watercress, sorrel), crackers, my favorite scratch brownies. The brownie recipe is a microwave recipe, but I baked them in the regular oven today. I substituted vegetable oil for the butter -- worked great. To bake this recipe in a regular oven, bake for about 20 minutes at 350 degrees F. I like the texture that a standard oven helps these develop, a bit more chewy on the edges than when microwaving.

Although my daughters purchased a few convenience items (meatballs, crackers, canned garbanzo beans), I think their meals still qualify as cheap & cheerful.

Interesting breakfasts this week -- I had made a large batch of steel cut oats in the crockpot that didn't seem to interest anyone. With leftovers growing older, I decided to remake the leftover oatmeal in a pot on the stove. I added maple extract, butter, and brown sugar to the oatmeal and heated thoroughly. This did the trick and the steel cut oats got eaten finally. We also had toast, yogurt, fruit, juice, milk, eggs, and cheese.

Lunches included more soup, this time chive and potato soup, twice. We enjoy it, and we're using up the frozen chives. Also there were toasted cheese sandwiches, peanut butter and peanut sandwiches (extra crunchy this way), fresh and dried fruit, carrot sticks, cabbage salads, juice, eggs, corn tortillas, lentils & rice, and leftovers.

What was on your menu this past week?