Christopher Weeks

I haven't observed the hazels as closely as R, but other than having less specific knowledge, my experience is the same. I can harvest them green but I have *never* gotten a ripe hazel from our woods.

Flatbread?

Pearl Sutton wrote:Check the skies tonight if you are in the north :D

Checking in from 46.66 MN — nothing at 0400.

I’d be looking at tadelakt with a drain, but given what you’ve said about prices, it’s hard to imagine anything really working. Steel mesh over a dry well would be too expensive.

Mushroom, onion, cheddar omelette.

Onions are tossed in toasted sesame oil and oven roasted. The “baby Bellas” were sliced and marinated in yuzu BBQ sauce and roasted. Then Cathy made the omelette in a special pan approved by Julia Child.

I ordered one of these when this thread was brand new -- it seemed like a good thing to have on-hand. I finally got around to using it a couple of weeks ago!

I have driven them off from an established hive by putting the hose right into the mouth of their nest and leaving it on for 48 hours. But even then, it doesn't always work. I don't think a bucket of water will do anything but hydrate them.

The last work I did on this was September of '22 -- man, that's crazy. I injured my back badly enough to go to urgent care or the hospital five times in 2.5 years and have now done a year and a half of PT. I'm feeling pretty good about that except that a cluster of tendons in my left foot/lower leg are now screwed up. But it turns out I can get work done slowly like this. My henhouse now has a roof and can stop being exposed to the weather -- though I'd like to finish it up this year if I can figure out how to make that work and start a flock in the spring.

I had to make some minor repairs to the 'flying' overhangs because one sagged on that tall side, so I jacked it up and added a lot of extra wood blocks and nails to hold it in place. It'll never be as good as if I'd made things right from the start but I think it'll hold with the roof done. I used OSB sheets as the sheathing (cheaper than plywood and different sources say either: just as strong or stronger (shear strength)). And then GAF Weather Watch rubber-felt-tar-sand rolls. A lot of people online say that's good enough roofing by itself. I'm hopeful but also skeptical. If it turns out not to be, metal roofing reclaimed from our collapsed pole-shed will go over it.

I've been drying foraged greens this spring and summer to see how they keep through the winter. I briefly blanch them in boiling water, then drain them and crumple them up on a tray in the electric dehydrator when the night is cool.

I just punched a question about this practice, just looking for more ideas or variations, into DuckDuckGo and the "AI" overview produced a link to this thread. But it's been almost ten years since the last post. So, permies, any new info on how to dehydrate greens for storage? And what you do with them?

And I'd be curious about stalks, too. Lambs quarters stalks steam nicely, but should I be drying them too? I'm sure they're impossible to reconstitute and enjoy like a fresh vegetable but maybe they chop for soup just fine.

I like this info, but my understanding is that you can't saute in a tall-sided pan (like the Dutch oven example) because it retains too much heat and steam above the food. I was told that by a chef buddy a few years ago who corrected my use of the word. And I just found this explanation in case it's interesting: https://www.ice.edu/blog/sloped-vs-straight-sided-pans. (I could also get by with just a dutch oven, and it's super versatile, but it can't do all things.)