Urban Farm Hub

Ginger Bug!

June 2, 2021 by admin

This zesty fermented drink is the base of a great ginger ale or beer. You can also use it for rhubarb or other flavored sodas.

Fresh, organic ginger goes in with the peel still on.

Making it is a easy as chopping up some ginger, putting it in a jar, adding dechlorinated water and some sugar. The recipe calls for two teaspoons of ginger, two cups water and two teaspoons of sugar but I just tossed in equal amounts of ginger and sugar and splashed some water in.

Cover the jar with a piece of cloth to let in air but keep out insects.

Each day give it a good stir and add two more teaspoons of sugar and ginger. After about a week it will start to bubble and you’re all set. You can have it as is or I have been cutting it with some soda water. You can also make a naturally bubbly soda with this starter but I haven’t gotten that far yet.

It’s a bit startling to look at but it tastes quite nice. The fermentation uses up most of the sugar so it’s tangy and just a touch sweet.

Posted in Cooking | Tagged ginger beer, ginger bug | 3 Comments »

Rhubarb Crisp

May 31, 2021 by admin

The rhubarb is exploding out of the ground – it’s time to make a crisp! There are many ways to eat this tangy plant but my favorite way is in a crunchy, nutty, sweet and sour dessert.

Ingredients:

Fresh rhubarb stems
1/4 cup tapioca or flour for thickening the juices
2 cups sugar
One cup flour
1/2 cup melted butter
1/2 cup rolled oats
1 teaspoon cinnamon
One cup nuts

Here’s how to make this tasty dish:

Harvest rhubarb stems by pulling them firmly up and out of the base of the plant. Trim the leaves and the ends off so you are left with the ruby stems.

Wash and cut into pieces about 1/2 inch wide.
Put the cut pieces into a baking dish, set the oven to 375 degrees
Sprinkle tapioca or flour and, depending on the amount of rhubarb and the degree of your sweet tooth, about one cup sugar over the cut rhubarb

Streusel topping directions:

Mix melted butter, oats, remaining sugar, nuts and flour together so it is a crumbly mixture.
Sprinkle this over the cut rhubarb
Dust with cinnamon

Bake for 50 to 60 minutes until the dish is bubbling, the top is brown and the rhubarb is soft.

Ready to bake!

Let cool a bit then serve as is or with ice cream or milk.

Posted in Cooking | Tagged fruit crisp, rhubarb, rhubarb crisp | 2 Comments »

Making Pickled Asparagus Spears

May 28, 2021 by admin

Crisp asparagus

I have always love pickled asparagus but never thought to try making my own so I decided to give it a try!

The first step is to sterilize your jars by boiling them for ten minutes.
Next pack them with a clove of garlic and washed, trimmed spears. As with most canned products the fresher the better; these crisp spears were barely a day out of the field. Pack the spears as tightly in the jar as possible as they will shrink during processing
Make sure to leave at least a half-inch of head room in the top of the jar.

Once they are well packed make up a pickling solution with:

4 1/2 cups of 5% acidity vinegar
4 1/2 cups of water
1/2 cup of pickling salt
Hot pepper flakes
Dill seed or other dried herbs to flavor your pickles

Bring ingredients to a boil then pour this solution into the jars, making sure to cover the spears and leaving a half inch of space at the top. Seal the jars and process for five minutes in a hot water bath.

Let sit for at least five days for flavors to blend then enjoy!

Posted in Cooking | Tagged Growing, Policy and Advocacy | Leave a Comment »

Making Rose Petal Beads

May 28, 2021 by admin

Have you ever wondered where the name rosary comes from? Originally the beads were made from rose petals!

Here’s how you can make your own scented beads.

Pick lots of petals. They don’t need to be fresh but a strong scent will result in more perfumed beads.

It’s ok to collect petals over a few days.

Put petals in a blender with water and blend until they are a fine purée. The smoother the blend the smoother the final beads.

Next step is to evaporate off enough water to make a moldable clay. I used a crockpot but you can also use the oven on a very low heat. High heat destroys the odor.

Ready clay pulls away from the side and is easy to shape.

Beads will shrink to half their size. I used a nail to make the hole for stringing.

Drying beads. Turn them each day or dry them on a screen. Some got moldy on the side touching the mat.

Finished necklace! The beads smell wonderful and body heat releases more perfume. Beads may stain clothing so do be careful what you wear them with.

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Goat Shed to Greenhouse

May 26, 2021 by admin

The goats and chickens have moved out so time for a she-shed with a greenhouse!

I used low cost cedar fencing boards and corrugated plastic for the walls.

Once the walls were up time for shelves!

With heating mats it was warm enough to start seeds.

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Return to New Roots Community Gardens

May 17, 2021 by admin

This 2.3 acre San Diego community garden is flourishing with 85 families growing everything from greens to bananas.

The First Lady visited back in April, 2010.

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Plant Labels

April 6, 2021 by admin

Cut stick with a point to easily go in the ground.

Use wood burning tool or marker to write name.

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Balm of Gilead

March 1, 2021 by admin

Balm of Gilead is good for cuts, scrapes and sore muscles.

On a walk yesterday I found a downed cottonwood tree with ripening buds.

To make the balm fill a mason jar half full of the resinous buds then add olive oil to the top of the jar. Cover with a paper towel and stir each day for a few weeks. After that put a cap on and let it sit for two to six months. Once the oil is well saturated with resin, strain the buds out and it’s ready to use.

Two months later here is the finished oil. It smells wonderful and is very soothing.

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Time to Plant Onions!

February 15, 2021 by admin

I like to plant when the crocuses are blooming.

Why grow onions when they are pretty cheap at the store? Because they taste better!

There are many different shapes, sizes and even colors of onions and most can be pulled young as green onions.

I like to plant my onions when the crocuses are blooming; they are a cool season crop and do best when planted early. You can grow onions from transplants, sets, or seeds. Transplants are seedlings started in the current growing season and sold in bunches, sets are immature bulbs grown the previous year and are the easiest to plant, the earliest to harvest, and the least susceptible to diseases. Growing onions from seed offers a wide choice in cultivars but it’s hard to start seeds here as we have such a short growing season. You will need to start your onion seedlings indoors.

Plant with the pointy side up.

If you are using sets then plant them two inches apart, 2-3 inches deep with the pointy side up. I like to lay them out on the bed before planting as I lose track what I’ve planted where.

I like to lay the onions out ahead of time.

There are short and long day onions. Short day onions form bulbs when the days reach 10 to 12 hours long and are better for southern latitudes. Long day cultivars need 13 to 16 hours and are the ones best suited for our area.

Once I have planted onions I cover them with Reemay less to provide heat than to protect them from the ravenous crows who view my yard as their private pantry.

Using large binder clips keeps the Reemay from blowing away.

With well prepared soil no fertilizing should be needed. If onions are in soil that has a lot of nitrogen then you will get great tops but small bulbs. Onion do like to be watered regularly but are a good crop if you are going to be on short vacations this summer as they will tolerate some gaps in watering.

Harvest onions when the tops turn yellow. Pull and hang in a dry place until thoroughly dry. If you harvest them too early or don’t let them dry enough they will rot. If well dried they will last 6 months to a year. If you don’t eat them all before then!

Onions are in, peas are next!

Posted in Growing | Tagged growing onions, planting onions | Leave a Comment »

Elder Flower Syrup

February 8, 2021 by admin

Elderberries can be planted in the garden soon. For consumption use the Blue or the Black Elderberries instead of the Red Elderberry.

These fragrant white to pink flowers can be gathered, steeped, then the liquid sugared to make a delicious syrup. If you have the patience to wait, the dark blue berries can be gathered in the late summer to make into a dye, syrup or wine.

Here is a recipe for making a quart of syrup:

Ingredients:

30 elderflower heads
1 quart water
4 cups sugar
Juice of 2 lemons or limes
zest of 2 lemons or limes
2 tablespoons citric acid

Zest the lemons or limes and put in a large bowl, then the citric acid and lemon or lime juice.
Remove the flowers from the stalk and add to the bowl

Flowers, citric acid, zest and lime juice

Bring the sugar and water to a boil, stirring occasionally to dissolve.
Pour the syrup into the bowl and stir to combine.

Cover the bowl with a tea towel and let it sit for 2-4 days.
Strain the mixture through a sieve lined with cheesecloth into a clean jar. Store in the fridge for up to six weeks.