The 3 Busiest Months Growing Your Own Food - Free Range Homestead Ep 45

[@gilbertdavies1182]

As with the Freerange Sailing lifestyle, still so well presented and unbelievably inspiring 👌🏼🙏🏻💫😉

[@mikegray-ehnert3238]

Southern US treat is fried green tomatoes, sliced around 3/8" thick soaked in buttermilk, battered in flour and corn meal and fried! Wonderful side dish goes great with pork or chicken meals!

[@bake162]

Exactly

[@waterboy8999]

Sounds lovely!

[@isnoo1]

You are making me want to get back out into my garden again.......... Thank you

[@nigelmorgan3449]

What a fantastic job you’ve done on your garden and growing your vegetables

[@jeffslaven]

What a fantastic episode! Always a pleasure to see and learn from you two. Thank you!

[@richardp4544]

I look at what you've done with the garden this season and think of it as a complete success, even though Troy says it got away from you a little. This season probably was more about lets plant this and see how well it does. Lets try this type of bed instead of digging and add nutrients to the soil this way and that way and see what works best. Basically this season was the experiment season. In my mind, from what I see, this experiment was a great success. Next season you will start already knowing what works best for you. You will have a better idea about how you want to lay out the garden. There will be far less trial and error involved and your garden is certain to be even more productive, possibly with less work. I'm very impressed what you two sailors have accomplished on your little farm. Keep up the good work and keep these great videos coming.

[@FreeRangeLiving]

You are completely right about the trial and error. We've combined our observations with advice from the community garden group here and have a list of veges that are productive in our area without too many pests and problems. We certainly have more respect for recommended cucurbit spacing!

[@richardp4544]

@@FreeRangeLiving We learn, we share, we grow and you two are masters of that mindset.

[@johndixon5097]

Great looking garden! Keep up the good work!

[@teebones4572]

As usual, a serene and very calming video...Thank You

[@peternairn4474]

Thankyou gardeners for the inspiration, makes me hungry looking at all those veges

[@lorrainestafford3809]

That's how I did mine too I flipped over😊

[@nigelmorgan3449]

Hi Pascale your looking well and blooming you’ve got that glow

[@campbellmj9405]

I can only hope you pickled some of those beets. Pickled beets are so good. And maybe had some stuffed zucchini blossoms as well.

[@robdurie5141]

hi guys , i was living in France 30 something years ago , they always turned the jars upside down for jams , chutneys and preserved fruits or veges. ps still miss the sailing

[@FreeRangeLiving]

I think we'll have to build a little trailerable sailboat soon. Lots of interesting country to explore.

[@americanbornwalkaway9110]

WOW I LOVE your GREEN Thumb!!!!! AMazing Garden

[@silverfoxes65]

Two tips regarding corn. We use a mandolin to cut off the tops of the kernels. Then we use t use a butter knife to strip down the cob to get out the juice and the bran which is a thick liquid. Mix the two together and you have the best creamed corn you will ever eat.

[@bobuncle8704]

The garden that just keeps on giving. What a bountiful harvest

[@oltroutjunkman3471]

Great harvest. Yha, I know what you mean when you said your sick of Zucchini.

[@pauleohl]

Butternut makes great soup. Cut it in half, wrap the halves in aluminum foil and bake with the flat side up at 350F until tender. Now blend everything with some water, shell, seeds and flesh. Remove the stem before blending. It takes a little time for the seeds to be totally obliterated. Season with soy sauce and sweeten as required,

[@FreeRangeLiving]

Including all the 'scraps' is a new take on this recipe to us. We'll give it a go as it certainly saves work. We're not short of test subjects.😉

[@davidalbright7335]

Correction: You had a 50% harvest and 0% failure. The harvest rate is never 100%. You planted and food was grown. There is no failure in that - only success.

[@laclefdeschamps28]

Bonjour à vous deux avec vos tomates vertes vous pouvez faire de la confiture avec des citrons ,c'est succulent .

[@rolandtb3]

Compost looks great. Like the options for weed separation: thick newspaper or corrugated packed with straw, layered with compost/manure. Thanks for the various recipes.

[@johnphillips519]

Seeing all those green tomato's reminded me of the green tomato jam mum used to make when I was a kid👍

[@johnansell2707]

That's an awesome pressure cooker!

[@FreeRangeLiving]

Buying a product that will outlive us is very satisfying 😌

[@WmCRobison]

Here in LA I have had good luck leaving the tomatillos in the husk and keeping them in a wicker basket over winter in my kitchen. There may or may not have been a few ancho chillies mixed in. I was using they well into May or June (if I didn't run out). I was always told to never reuse the lids of canning jars. There are some newer silicone seals that they say are reusable. The glass jars from the commercial food brands are not intended for reuse. They are find for refrigerator storage or storage of dry goods.

[@FreeRangeLiving]

That's quite interesting regarding the tomatillo storage. We'll have to try it next autumn. Our use of second hand jars is confined to acidic foods, which are not prone to botulism poisoning and are generally processed in the waterbath method, rather than at pressure. Modern lids also pop when the seal fails which is nice. Anything that is close to neutral in pH would be Russian roulette in anything but the correct jars, and then we are sticklers for the food safety standards!

[@abder1349]

What an amazing harvest - well done! We are so envious 👍😊

[@FreeRangeLiving]

The wheel-barrow got a serious workout!

[@alanrobinson5109]

Hi Troy & Pascale, you’ve done really well with your garden. Looks like it’s been very productive and the harvest has been good. Great videos. All the best from the UK.

[@thezz199]

❤️👍🏼

[@richardmcbride538]

Wonderful! Thank you…I liked we failed we did good story…a garden has a mind of it’s own…I also, liked weather 21 afternoon, cool on morning…a touch of details helps us understand. You get a sense, once my garden gloves are on…I am going to hear “ bring a shovel Richard, we’ll meet you near the pig-pen”. Relaxing, thanks again.

[@elizabethmiddleton5613]

Wonderful! I’m sure that you are getting lots of new parent advice, but my biggest tip is to make and freeze easy, complete meals that you can just pop into the oven or in a pot.

[@chrisp308]

They lived on a sailboat I'm pretty sure they got it down to a science

[@lindahenderson2987]

@@chrisp308what does living on a sailboat have to do with being new parents? Don’t understand the comparison.

[@chrisp308]

@@lindahenderson2987 the comment in question was talking about easy to prepare meals

[@FreeRangeLiving]

Missing the sashimi though :( The ultimate in easy to prepare!

[@elizabethmiddleton5613]

@@FreeRangeLiving absence makes the heart grow fonder! What a wonderful place you have created … and what a lucky little person you are bringing into the world.

[@krisgarwood5733]

Pascale, we need a recipe book from you! Please?

[@FreeRangeLiving]

working on it.

[@cjtoomey1321]

Been wonderful to watch your brilliant transition away from sailing and your deep , largely successful commitment to your new life. Thanks for sharing all that. I am not sure I should ask this but I am hoping that you might consider changing out the big plastic cutting board for a good heavy butcher block style. I ask this because of the problem of micro plastics ingestion over time that can occur with these boards. As you know the wood is anti-microbial and easily cleaned with vinegar and treated with olive oil. I am sure you get tired of the kibbutzing so thanks for your forbearance. Again thanks for these vids and plethora of solid tips for managing success with this way of living.❤️❤️❤️

[@FreeRangeLiving]

That large board was initially just for butchering our pigs but it seems to have just become a general table top any time we handling bulk foods. I am curing some slabs taken from our fallen trees to use as cutting blocks.

[@fredshoney6458]

Very useful info on goats. My wife had goats growing up. They can also get heat stroke. When are you getting honey bees? Might be time to hang up a swarm trap.

[@glennwilken8209]

Next summer try laying some sheets of corrugated iron over your onion weed in full sun. I inadvertently killed my lawn doing that! Not sure if the heat would get deep enough to kill the wee bulbs but worth a crack.

[@FreeRangeLiving]

we did lay black plastic on a lot of the beds which was effective, but we do get some seed blown in or air-dropped by birds.

[@davidstoddard9160]

By leaving a jar not full I like to store those and others up side down and that is another way to ensure there is a better seal if at all concerned.

[@christopherforster6555]

Wow 50 percent is great all looks good to me gardening is fun keep it up have a good autumn from the UK.

[@Quarry4x4]

Great to see the harvest continues.

[@matttrevenen2435]

Hi. I loved your marine based adventures and am enjoying your switch to terraferma. I’m just wondering what brand and size of pressure cooker you using in this episode. Looking fwd to more of you cooking and preserving too. I watch a lot of KZbin but you guys are the only channel I support through Patreon so keep up the good efforts. PS congrats on the bump too you 2 will be great 😊

[@FreeRangeLiving]

Cheers legend and thanks for your wonderful support. We are using an All American Pressure Canner. A bit on the pricey side but we looked at it as a lifetime investment to be handed down from generation to generation.

[@matttrevenen2435]

@@FreeRangeLiving ripper thanks. I ordered one today ✌🏻

[@memashes]

For sealing the jars. My Nan's method was dip the top of the jar in melted paraffin wax. Just about little finger width past the edge of the lid.

[@FreeRangeLiving]

Another comment mentioned this and we feel it is worth exploring, especially if we get bees to care for.

[@andrewhorwood1058]

The unripe squash (pumpkins) will ripen indoors and continue to mature over winter. Fantastic harvest. Some of your methods of preserving are quite different from ours in Canada. We blanch and freeze a lot of greens and vegetables. I wouldn't have thought of preserving peppers your way but it looks so good.

[@FreeRangeLiving]

We just had a roasted butternut last night and it was remarkable how much better it is now compared to at harvest. A few weeks curing in indirect sunshine has really made them something special.

[@jennifercash1093]

your compost looks excellent! If it is getting about 60 degrees C then you should be fine to put stuff with seeds in onto it, as the heat will essentially kill them. CHarles Dowding talks about that in his videos, and we've certainly seen some success with that un the UK

[@earlashton1342]

Recently I made Zucchini fritters with bacon pieces & parmesan cheese. Yum. It was an internet recipe I'm not that good. but thought the idea may not bad if you've not already thought of it.

[@atir4u]

Hi, it’s great to see you canning or jarring your harvest. I find that and maybe you do this but I put the lids in hot water, like a simmering hot water that way the rubbery part inside the lid is soft and it will seal well with your hot jar, your hot mixture whatever it may be in your hot glass jars the hot lids will seal better. My mom used to put the jars in a warm oven when she finished jarring her Harvest. She would leave them in the warm oven for a few hours then she shut the oven off and leave the preserves in the oven for the day or overnight. I don’t know if that made any sense lol. But hot mixture in hot jars with hot lids in warm oven. She was pretty successful in sealing the jars.

[@chrispy104k]

Great video. Pascale, I could not help but notice that you are favouring your left thumb. Did you injure it?

[@FreeRangeLiving]

Yes, a bit of a cut to the web which is healed now, but was pretty uncomfortable and in a very awkward spot.

[@davidstoddard9160]

You can bake all those butternut squash and remove from the shell by scraping the inside and freeze or can it and keeps well .

[@FreeRangeLiving]

That's a good but of advice for the ones we don't eat by spring. Thanks.

[@beggarsbanquet3420]

Great work guys 👍

[@oomwat6101]

I don't know about goat milk, but with frozen cows milk the trick is to defrost it slowly (in the fridge) and completely in a container and give it a goodly shake before you use it .. elsewise it doesn't seem to come back together right. Peas

[@GaryDeWitt-t6p]

That looked like dill next to where you were planting onions. We used to find that growing wild in my childhood neighborhood (Hollywood, CA). Great flavor when chewed on!

[@FreeRangeLiving]

There is a boggy dip at the foot of the property that we liberally sprinkled fennel and dill to see if we can get a 'wild population' to soak up some nutrients down there. We hope to make the pond there not get so full of algae.

[@simonmaton]

Hi Folks, love your work, I'm a hanger-on from the sailing channel but love what you are doing now. I was interested in how you manage your lessons learned, I know we all believe that we are infallible and firmly (and foolishly) believe that we will remember all the little things we learn, but alas! it is not so! we are poor retainers of memories and REALLY need to document what we have learned. What is your process?

[@FreeRangeLiving]

The videos help as a record of our successes and failures but I also journal from week to week and Troy keeps a daily farm log.

[@elizabethhaines6299]

Love the garden! Did you ever figure out the blossom rot on the tomatoes? I always add ground egg shells to my garden to increase the calcium,. Also, you can freeze tomatillos to use later. A quick fresh tomatillo salsa recipe: 1 lb tomatillos, 1/4 cup chopped onions, 1 to 4 jalapeños (depending on heat), 1 clove garlic and 1/2 cup cilantro packed. Throw all ingredients in a food processor except for the cilantro. Zip a few times then add the cilantro. Also, save your cilantro roots! It is a great meat tenderizer. I have an excellent Thai rib recipe for you from when we lived in Asia!

[@FreeRangeLiving]

Pretty similar to the tomatillo salsa sitting on the shelf here!

[@FreeRangeLiving]

Please send the Thai rib recipe. Is it for pork ribs? We are processing a pig this week.

[@arthurme1911]

Will you be making a cook book I would love to have 1

[@FreeRangeLiving]

We 'missed the boat' on a marine cookbook, but we have been speaking about another based on our experiences here as we are blessed with a lot of variety to work with.

[@townsville69]

I don't miss the cold winters of the South West (or the cold winter sea temps). I do miss a nice warm Jarrah log fire though (and piping hot cray mornay).

[@FreeRangeLiving]

We were just saying how much we missed fresh abalone! Something must be done.

[@townsville69]

@@FreeRangeLiving Abs are tricky to find in WA but worth the effort. Your def in the right area. I'm sure some of the local speros would take you out to snag a few.

[@ForzAvantiVelez]

You can also make a basil infused juice. On the same principle as elderflower juice. Maybe worth a try for the future. Its really good for the stomach!

[@MausMasher54]

One or two items you forgot to add to the planting, Jalapenos(nevermind), Habaneros and Vidalia Onions(IMHO the tastiest onions), also Feed Corn to feed the critters along the Garden Boundary....Thank all the Odd God's of the Galaxy, you did not plant Yellow Squash(LOL) IMHO....Once the harvest is complete(before composting), turn the critters lose to fertilize and have a Party....What, No earthworms to the Compost????Want to choke weeds out, add Centipede Grass seed....

[@FreeRangeLiving]

Vidalia onions is a new name to us as is centipede grass. Time for some research...

[@mikegray-ehnert3238]

Saw you tomatillos and thought of green chili! Roasted tomatillos, onions peppers,etc with the usual spices, stock and browned pork pieces or plain minced pork browned. Really good and a nice change from regular chili!

[@FreeRangeLiving]

That's timely because it's almost fresh pork season once again!

[@mikegray-ehnert3238]

@FreeRangeLiving And tasty! Chili freezes well too!

[@allredtail]

I see you did not scrape the cobs after cutting the kernels off. I find some of the best flavor is in the germ which is still on the cob. If you cut deep enough to get the germ, you will cut some of the cob at the same time. I also saw you put the red beets into the wheelbarrow without the greens attached. I hope you didn't throw them away as they are great when boiled till soft and served with a good Balsamic Vinegar. I have seen in previous videos that you were able to get the Guineas to stay around. Have you cracked any bowls trying to break the Guinea eggs. They are tough aren't they?

[@FreeRangeLiving]

Do you scrape the cobs with a butter knife or similar? We do eat ther greens from the beets, but we do have so much of it. Those tops are cherished by our goats, poultry and especially the pigs so nothing is wasted. We are still waitinjg for the spring flush to get the guineas laying- then we can have a little easter egg hunt.

[@allredtail]

@@FreeRangeLiving I just use the knife I cut the kernels off with. Just turn the blade and use the back side. A butter knife would also work. Typically you will find 30 to 50 eggs in a nest. They are VERY hard to crack. I don't know how the keets can even get out.

[@briangilliland3620]

Trying to place you-near Manjimup or Bridgetown? 😊 Loved your sailing, inspired by your transition to the land 💕

[@FreeRangeLiving]

We are closer to Manjimup, though I did live in Bridgetown pre-1996

[@timothyjones6736]

👍

[@TheBeaker59]

I do the flipping technique but different to you I flip the jar once then stand right side up my theory is the air space is instantly heated thus all bugs dead and air expanded early so get a better seal etc but then too I really wonder if it makes a difference as I have never had a jar not work for many seasons now. By either method and I also find the inside of the lids dirtier by that method when I clean them for the next batch. Yes I recycle the lids too also not an issue though I discard any damaged rusty or coating compromised ones. Some are more than a decade old and I guess could be 10 batches old. Mind you mine are all basically plum Jam or Marmalade which you barely need a lid for, wax is fine usually.

[@FreeRangeLiving]

Wax is a popular suggestion this time around. Very intriguing.

[@TheBeaker59]

@@FreeRangeLiving careful though wax is only suitable for fairly safe durable preserves like Jam even then only for a short period.

[@nooneanybodyknows7912]

Where do you get the newspaper from? What's the name of the local newspaper? I ate an ear of silver queen corn as I watched. BTW, beautiful garden, soil preparation, and end result. Thanks for sharing.

[@FreeRangeLiving]

We take all of my sisters old newspapers and any others we can scavenge. I'll have to look on the cover next time before I bury it!

[@nooneanybodyknows7912]

@FreeRangeLiving Thanks. With pixels replacing print around the world, it's interesting to learn that there are some still hanging on.

[@ImTheDudeMan471]

My mom used to seal preserves (when she ran out of metal lids) with poured melted wax. Is this a practice for jams and jellies only? Or could it work for everything?

[@FreeRangeLiving]

Something else for us to put on the research list. Seems like a good thing to use the product of bees in a novel way.

[@michaeladdington1447]

Weeds in America was very bad. This year for you???

[@FreeRangeLiving]

We don't have any weeds in the vege patch, but our pasture growth was very pronounced.

[@richardmcbride538]

Don’t know if helpful…picking up city-compost, it steams with heat once shovel in…here‘s my key point…the City web-site says only use as a 20% addition to soil…and do not plant directly into just compost. Good hearted, non-gardener, city gardener. Richard

[@FreeRangeLiving]

Planting into compost has worked very well for us so perhaps the city is being over cautious with their compost. If it is still steaming, it probably could sit for another month before use though.

[@benschulz3871]

My complaint is that i cant taste test the things u cook 😁 thanks for sharing love ur work 💛