Trish Davis

Thanks for the advice! I’ll see what I can do with it.

I have a hillside covered in burdock. I tried drying root pieces in my dehydrator but they molded- so obviously they weren’t dry enough. Since it’s there, and I can’t get rid of even a little of it no matter how much I’d like to regain some of that space, I’d love some ideas on uses and preservation techniques. Thanks!!

Smoked a few apples last year before making a batch of sauce and it was amazing!

Also, I keep the peels and cores and make scrap jelly, syrup, and apple cider vinegar. Just fun bonus stuff to do with your compostables.

This spring I grabbed a bunch of saved seeds and also a few purchased seeds and threw them in the ground on a weedy and useless steep hill in my back yard. This is what I ended up with (plus many more I gave to neighbors and friends for decorations or chicken food). Some of these aren’t anything close to the “parent” that the seeds came out of, which is exciting and fun. Some will undoubtedly be good eating. And nothing beats this much free fall decor! 😁

Just anecdotally - I have been both water bath and pressure canning on glass-topped stoves for years. 15 at least. I was several years into it before I learned you weren’t “supposed” to, but I researched it and found enough information out in the world reporting that it was perfectly ok, so I felt comfortable with it. I don’t slam my pots around, my water bath canner is the heaviest, since it gets filled with liquid, but I’ve never had an issue. I believe the glass tops are stronger today than originally.  I want a canning set up outside eventually as well- use my brewing burner and propane or a camp stove- but that’s mostly because I live in a very small house in the southern US, and it gets hot and steamy inside.

Hi Dan! I sent you a PM.