Way too early.......

Way too early......., originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

I know it looks nice but I hate it and November is way too early for this. The forecast has it warming up again over the next few days so hopefully it will all melt.

The Ladies in the Snow

Our first snow that accumulated on the ground so I had to go out to the coop and consult the ladies to see what they thought about it. Also a look at the snow on the Hoop House.

The girls in the rafters ready for bed

The girls in the rafters ready for bed, originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

My cat walk in the rafters seems to be working there is much less bickering over positions when the girls are ready to be tucked in for the night. The four little bantam hens go up first and claim the first rafter just inside the door and everybody else falls in behind on the other rafters and the cat walk. Except for Prince Leah he is all by himself on the top rung of the roosts that I built for them to sleep on. He has never slept anywhere else and doesn't see what all of the commotion over the rafters is all about.

Mid November harvesting in the Chicken Coop and Hoop House

Still harvesting food from the Hoop House even though the temperatures are dropping daily. A look around at the remaining crops and harvesting the broccoli. In the chicken coop I'm getting more eggs with a new record today and all of the eggs are now full size, large to extra large for the six full size hens and small to medium for the bantam breeds. The hens are determined to sleep in the rafters so I'm doing some alterations to make it a bit easier for them.

Martha Lays an Egg

A look at my little chicken flock now full grown and laying eggs on a daily basis. Martha the Silver Sebright Bantam and by far the smallest bird in my coop laid an eggs this morning.

Planting a Mediterranean Fig in my zone 5 garden

Planting a fig, Ficus carica 'Celeste in the hoop house.

The Bird Formerly Known as Princess Leah

Things are still thriving in the hoop house even with the cold weather. I managed to get the soil mix that I like and bags of sheep manure compost so I've got the raised beds filled and ready for spring. In this video I plant my garlic and get some spring bulbs ready for forcing.

Three more great gadgets.

Method for making the Dutch Oven Bread

http://youtu.be/GG6aAj4Oloc

and


http://www.flickr.com/photos/dalecalder2003/3090207520/

Making Apple Chutney

Making Apple Chutney, originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

Trying to use up some of my Pumpkin Sweet Apples, I hate to see them go to waste. I had never tried making chutney before so I looked up a recipe on the internet and gave it a try:

recipehelpers.com/spreads-preserves/80694-apple-chutney-c...

I used my own fresh hot chilli peppers instead of the chilli flakes and I didn't have crystallized ginger so I added extra powdered ginger. The chutney has a real zing to it and I love it.

Video Response to Work With Nature - Lazy Garden Bed

Checkout Work with nature's Channel for some great videos and his explanation of this type of garden bed along with some excellent explanatory graphics:

http://www.youtube.com/user/workwithnature

Winter preparations in Hoop House, Chicken Coop and Gardens

It's time to get some chores done before winter arrives. Making the Chicken Coop yard a little more comfortable for the chickens this winter, building more raised beds in the hoop house, starting a new bed made from chicken poo and compost and a look at some things in the hoop house.

Lemons

Lemons, originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

I recently bought an Apple Time Capsule 2TB WIFI Harddrive\Rotor to go with my new MacBook to keep a safe backup incase anything should go wrong with the computer. Now that it is installed and working I have transferred all of my older digital photographs to the new computer so they will be saved too. In the process I've been looking at photos that I haven't seen in a few years and having fun reworking some of them. Let me know what you think.

The Very First Egg October 12, 2011

One of the girls, not sure which one, laid the first egg this morning and she laid it in the nest box next to the ceramic nest eggs. Amazing how they understand what to do even for the very first egg.

Confessions of a Gageteer - Gadget Video # 1

This video is the first in a series of short videos talking about my collection of gadgets. They are being produced at the request of one of my subscribers JaxRL have a look at her channel she says we are kindred spirits when it comes to collecting gadgets.

http://www.youtube.com/user/JaxRL

Large wasp nest high in an Ash Tree ill omen for winter...

Large wasp nest high in an Ash Tree ill omen for winter..., originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

The legend says that if the wasps build a large nest very high up in a tree then we are in for a bad winter with lots of snow. If that is true this is going to be a horrible winter. I think this was the largest wasp nest that I have ever seen and it was at the very top of a Mountain Ash Tree.

Hot Pepper Jelly

These recipes are quoted from allrecipes.com the free online cook book a great source for whatever you want to cook.

The cups and ounces version:

Hot Pepper Jelly
Submitted By: ranger1
Prep Time: 30 Minutes
Cook Time: 15 Minutes

Ready In: 1 Hour 45 Minutes
Servings: 48
"Enjoy this spicy treat on crackers with cream cheese. It also makes a festive holiday appetizer."
Ingredients:
2 1/2 cups finely chopped red
bell peppers
1 1/4 cups finely chopped
green bell peppers
1/4 cup finely chopped

jalapeno peppers
1 cup apple cider vinegar
1 (1.75 ounce) package
powdered pectin
5 cups white sugar
Directions:
1. Sterilize 6 (8 ounce) canning jars and lids according to manufacturer's instructions. Heat water in a hot water canner.
2. Place red bell peppers, green bell peppers, and jalapeno peppers in a large saucepan over high heat. Mix in vinegar and fruit pectin. Stirring constantly, bring mixture to a full rolling boil. Quickly stir in sugar. Return to full rolling boil, and boil exactly 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat, and skim off any foam.
3. Quickly ladle jelly into sterile jars, filling to within 1/4 inch of the tops. Cover with flat lids, and screw on bands tightly.
4. Place jars in rack, and slowly lower jars into canner. The water should cover the jars completely, and should be hot but not boiling. Bring water to a boil, and process for 5 minutes.

Metric version:

Ingredients:
390 g finely chopped red bell
peppers
185 g finely chopped green bell
peppers
20 g finely chopped jalapeno
peppers
235 ml apple cider vinegar
50 g powdered pectin
1000 g white sugar
Directions:
1. Sterilize 6 (8 ounce) canning jars and lids according to manufacturer's instructions. Heat water in a hot water canner.
2. Place red bell peppers, green bell peppers, and jalapeno peppers in a large saucepan over high heat. Mix in vinegar and fruit pectin. Stirring constantly, bring mixture to a full rolling boil. Quickly stir in sugar. Return to full rolling boil, and boil exactly 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat, and skim off any foam.
3. Quickly ladle jelly into sterile jars, filling to within 1/4 inch of the tops. Cover with flat lids, and screw on bands tightly.
4. Place jars in rack, and slowly lower jars into canner. The water should cover the jars completely, and should be hot but not boiling. Bring water to a boil, and process for 5 minutes.
Category:
Howto & Style
Tags:
hot pepper jelly chilli black pearl capsicum annum chili peppers Chili pepper red Fruit preserves eating
License:
Standard YouTube License

Hoop House Survives The First Hard Frost

A look at what happened in the gardens and inside the hoop house after the first hard frost of the autumn on October 7, 2011.

Canning Pumpkin Sweet Apples

My beautiful heirloom Pumpkin Sweet Apple Tree is loaded with fruit again this year. Following a recipe posted by Ivan & Magda when they canned Pears grown on their farm in Poland, with some adjustments for my tastes I canned some of the apples. Have a look at Ivan's and Magda's channel all of their videos are very interesting:

http://www.youtube.com/user/ivankinsman

Of course I also couldn't resist the chance to show off my little flock of chickens 19 weeks old now and getting very close to egg laying time.

Soon they will be on the ground.

Soon they will be on the ground., originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

First hard frost this morning but it warmed up nicely as the day went on and the forecast is for Indian Summer for the next week wonderful warm above seasonal temperatures and no risk of frost. Beautiful day for a walk today to enjoy some of the beautiful Autumn colours before it all disappears.