I took all day Saturday and just vegged out, you know what I mean. Zippo, nada, nothing. I read a book, took a nap and eyeballed my filthy house and shrugged. It can wait. It always does.
Easter Sunday I got a bit more motivated and cleaned the house up and made Easter dinner. And read a book, took a nap and eyeballed my backyard and shrugged. It can wait. It always does @;)
But getting back to the weekend, look what we've got!
Yep, fresh picked strawberries! We drove through our tiny town Saturday and saw the berry was stand up! I walked up and talked to the kid running the stand. $12 a bucket (same as last year) and we were his first customers. He said they'd gotten a late start picking that morning (light frost).
I bought 2 buckets, one for us and one for my good friend Deb, who helps me with the dogs whenever SM and I have a long day at work. Deb is the kind of neighbor who's priceless. She keeps her eye on what's happening on the block. All I have to do is give her a buzz and she's over at my house to let the pups out. She came over with a bit of pound cake for SM a month ago. I toss her some tomatoes and cucs and squash when we're in season. I'm very lucky to have a neighbor like Deb. We take good care of each other @;)
Gosh, it's hard to believe that we're picking strawberries already this year. I remember last year was early but this is the earliest yet! My favorite UPick is about a 1/2 hour up the road. With the cost of gas it's just cheaper to buy directly from the stand.
I still have a lot of frozen strawberries from last year. For some reason SM and I are all about the applesauce so we haven't touched the frozen berries or cherries at all. Since these are all going on a year old, I really need to use them up.
Can I just thaw them out and cook them down and make preserves out of them? Does having them in the freezer impact the pectin ratio at all? What's been your experience?
The Seascape strawberries I planted 10 days ago are starting to develop leaves and I even found one with a bloom already!
I'm considering planting another batch of berries this fall or next spring. This time I'd plant a June-Bearing variety instead of the Ever-Bearing I planted this year. I'd like to mix it up a bit and stagger the season.
Yay for the Melatonin! and the strawberries! and the neighbor! Man, you just got it made, now!
ReplyDeleteIm glad your back and happy you were able to rest! Those strawberries are beautiful! I just planted some tiny little things I got at the Big Box store, so I doubt we will get any this year... I really must look into UPick places around here. Thanks for the inspiration! As for using up frozen berries, I am at a loss... Im sure some one will know!
ReplyDeleteGorgeous strawberries and I can't believe they're ready for picking in April! Ours won't be here until end of May at the earliest.
ReplyDeleteThe strawberry stand in my neck of the woods just opened up too! My strawberries (Sparkle)are full of blooms...hope I get some nice berries before the bugs! Glad the melatonin worked for you...my gf started using it a few years ago to help with menopause symptoms...now it's something all of us use...even my husband (his new meds cause insomnia). A good night's sleep is priceless!
ReplyDeleteHappy to read you're feeling better. I must say, I'm very jealous about the strawberries. They make me drool.... :)
ReplyDeleteWe got our first bucket of Berries the other day. Big and juicy! I made a chocolate cake last night and cleaned out the mixing bowl, using the the berries as a spoon and had eaten 8 before the bowl was clean.
ReplyDeleteStrawberries and cake batter! YUM!!
Tom