Prep Genrl Weekly Prep Thread: March 7 ~ 13, 2021

ReneeT

Veteran Member
Good Morning, All! What are your prep plans for the week? My plans seem to change with little warning, but when we are lucky enough to have beautiful weather in March, I run with it!!

I spent quite a bit of time yesterday eradicating that nasty weed Creeping Charlie from one - just one! - flower bed; ended up with a 40# mixed birdseed bag of it and other detritus. I've heard that borax will kill it, so am going to look for the recipe and try it in a couple of areas where it won't damage plants I want to keep. I understand you can eat the stuff as cooked greens but I can hardly stand the smell of it when I pull it, so it probably won't show up on the menu any time soon!

Today, I'm waiting for a call from daughter to let me know when to pick up the grandsons - it's going to be a pretty day and the ground has dried up enough that they can ride their dirt bikes without getting covered in mud - although the little one will probably seek out the mud; all boy that one is :lol: I think that it has dried up enough that Hubby can get the rest of the rock moved to where it needs to go - he ended up working late yesterday, so it didn't get done.

While the tractor is out of the shed, I'm going to drag the old lawn sweeper out and see if I can get the yard around the house cleaned up. I'm also going to take down a few birdfeeders - the ones closest to my clothesline, and the ones that have worn out over the winter. I noticed a bunch of honeybees swarming the mixed bird feeders so put out sugar water for them - forgot to bring it in last night so the raccoons have probably carried it off to who knows where - the wretched beasts!

According to Hubby, I also need to put down some bagged mulch that he is getting tired of having to walk around. Last fall, I asked him to put the bags we had left way back under the shed porch roof where they wouldn't get wet; instead, he put them at the front, so they are soggy; that means he's going to have to be the one to load them in the buggy because they are too darn heavy for me to do more than drag them a few feet - guess I'm getting wimpy in my old age lol! I tried to move the frames for the raised strawberry bed yesterday and discovered that I'm not strong enough to do that by myself either, so will have to ask for his help with that as well. He is off work tomorrow, but the neighbor lady has made plans for after we go to the pool, so I likely won't be home until it's time for me to take a nap before work.

Rain is forecast for 6 days in a row starting on Wednesday; couple of the days we are supposed to receive about an inch, minimal the other four days but likely enough to keep us from doing much outside. At least it's supposed to be warm-ish - no frost in the forecast until late next weekend so that will be nice.

Well, I hear Hubby stirring around so I guess I'd better post this and get started working on something. You folks all take care out there - stay safe!
 

SouthernBreeze

Has No Life - Lives on TB
It's going to be a full week for Cary and myself.

Today, we have home church at our house, which is always refreshing to get together with family and friends to study the Word.

Tomorrow morning, Cary has to go in for his pre-op tests, and will fill up my car with gas. We are also supposed to find out the results of all his heart tests.

Tuesday is house cleaning day, and getting our overnight bags ready to go. I'm taking a change of clothes, a new book, lots of snacks, and enough personal hygiene items to last 3 days, etc.

Wednesday is surgery day. We don't yet know what time. Surgeon has told us that it will be a 4 hour surgery. If all goes according to plan, the surgeon will remove about 1/3 of Cary's right kidney.

Thursday and Friday, Cary will still be in the hospital recovering. If all goes well, he may get to come home late Friday afternoon. I plan to stay at the hospital with him for the duration. Our oldest DS will be taking care of our fur babies, and watching our house while we're away.

Thankfully, our weather forecast has us going up into the upper 70's all week, and no rain!

Any and all prayers would be appreciated. I'm getting so nervous and anxious about all of this. It's all I can seem to think about. I may have to dig out my anxiety meds. I know that Cary would certainly welcome and appreciate any prayers ya'll could offer up for him.
 

psychgirl

Has No Life - Lives on TB
(((Southern Breeze)))

You’ll be fine and so will your DH! And don’t feel bad if you temporarily need those meds; that’s what they’re for!
 

hiwall

Has No Life - Lives on TB
Medicinal Uses of Creeping Charlie : Both Internal and external.
  • Soothes inflamed mucous membranes.
  • Sinusitis.
  • used for inner and middle ear remedy.
  • tinnitus (ringing in the ears)
  • kidney and lung disorder.
  • head colds, especially with congestion in ear tubes.
  • bronchitis and viral pneumonia.
  • cough remedy.
 

psychgirl

Has No Life - Lives on TB
Medicinal Uses of Creeping Charlie : Both Internal and external.
  • Soothes inflamed mucous membranes.
  • Sinusitis.
  • used for inner and middle ear remedy.
  • tinnitus (ringing in the ears)
  • kidney and lung disorder.
  • head colds, especially with congestion in ear tubes.
  • bronchitis and viral pneumonia.
  • cough remedy.
Interesting! Isn’t creeping Charlie the stuff that grows in sidewalk cracks and such??

Do you just tincture it or use in oil topically??
 

SouthernBreeze

Has No Life - Lives on TB
(((Southern Breeze)))

You’ll be fine and so will your DH! And don’t feel bad if you temporarily need those meds; that’s what they’re for!

Thanks for your thoughts and confidence! I am prone to have anxiety attacks. That's what the meds are for. I won't hesitate to use them if I feel that I need them. I just don't want to unless absolutely necessary. I would feel much more confident if our DS could be at the hospital with us during the surgery. Only one person per patient is still the protocol at our hospital, though.
 

psychgirl

Has No Life - Lives on TB
I have them for anxiety, too. Very mild, little white pills.

Those meds are stockpiled sky high because I don’t use them much, at all....They’re on automatic refill lol , so I just keep bringing more home.
 

Digger

Veteran Member
Prayers for Cary and for you, Southern Breeze.

I got the strawberries and onion plants in the ground. I still need to plant my onion sets. Tuesday I need to plant potatoes. I need to set up another cold frame to start peppers and tomatoes too.

I put up 2 swarm traps for bees. I have one hive on order, but I am hoping to catch one too.

The weather is nice for working out side. We have been cleaning some clutter up. Hubby put some stuff from his shop on pallets and hauled it to the barn. I only have 28 bales of hay left from last year. The neighbor wants 10 of those. I hope to sell all of them. I have some customers that only get 6 or less at a time. They don't have a big barn to store it.

Today we have to get soil samples from the hay field to have tested. It is time to get it tested and order fertilizer to put out. I figure it will be higher this year and diesel is already higher. I am wondering if I can raise the price of my hay a little to help offset the increased cost. I have been getting $4 a bale out of the field and $6.25 out of the barn. These are square bales using a 1950s model baler.

We have to go to a bigger town for hubbys dr appointment this week. His other appointment was canceled because of the winter storm. While we are there, we are going by the farm and ranch store to get some chainsaw chains for hubbys saw. We are also going to buy me a smaller saw. I can do the limbing and cutting to firewood lengths. His saw is just too big for me. We want to get our wood shed refilled. We already have the next 2 years wood in there, but it has never been this low and it makes hubby uneasy. Not many people sell wood anymore and the ones that do, sell out as soon as it is cut.

We still have not gotten the prunings up and out of the yard yet. I hope I get that done this week. There is always something to do or something we are behind on. But it is what I enjoy.
 

moldy

Veteran Member
Southern breeze...call and check with the hospital to make sure you can stay overnight. We allow one visitor, but none overnight. Just be sure before you go.

Digger, I have a Dewalt battery operated chainsaw that I love. Its just my size and works great.
 

SouthernBreeze

Has No Life - Lives on TB
I have them for anxiety, too. Very mild, little white pills.

Those meds are stockpiled sky high because I don’t use them much, at all....They’re on automatic refill lol , so I just keep bringing more home.

I do almost the same thing. I get my script renewed once a year with several refills. I always get it filled each time it comes due. I have lots in storage, because I only take them when absolutely necessary. I can't even remember when I took one last. It's a very mild medication.
 

SouthernBreeze

Has No Life - Lives on TB
Southern breeze...call and check with the hospital to make sure you can stay overnight. We allow one visitor, but none overnight. Just be sure before you go.

Yes, I can stay overnight. When Cary almost died from septic shock and was in ICU a few weeks back, I got to stay with him round the clock. Also, when he was transferred to a regular room. They have relaxed some of the COVID protocol since then. Before, I couldn't leave the hospital and come back. The person who was with him at admission is the one who could stay, but couldn't go back and forth. I wasn't even allowed to walk up and down the hall to stretch my legs.
 

hiwall

Has No Life - Lives on TB
Interesting! Isn’t creeping Charlie the stuff that grows in sidewalk cracks and such??

Do you just tincture it or use in oil topically??
A quick search will give you a lot of info on using it. We don't have it out here but I do know it is common back east. I remembered that it had some useful properties when Renee mentioned it.
 

ReneeT

Veteran Member
Well darn; if that creeping Charlie is useful, I guess I'll have to leave at least a few patches of it. I'm just afraid it will get away from me if I don't keep it cleaned out - it's covered the area under my clothesline already, and it's all I can do to keep it out of the gardens and flower beds now!
 

nomifyle

TB Fanatic
yesterday I checked out my garlic and onion patches. The one place that I had a good yield on garlic last year looks pitiful, hardly anything came up, its a low bed and I nearly killed myself planting in it, so I won't do that again. Some of the larger, higher up raised beds have done well, except one that DH dumped pine shavings all over, it killed whatever I planted in it. Pine is not a good mulch, in my opinion. Last year we planted several things that did nothing, I just could not seem to get yellow squash to do anything and I planted twice. Even with all the panic going on I'm just not into doing much in the garden this year except, of course, tomato plants which always do well.

Judy
 

SouthernBreeze

Has No Life - Lives on TB
yesterday I checked out my garlic and onion patches. The one place that I had a good yield on garlic last year looks pitiful, hardly anything came up, its a low bed and I nearly killed myself planting in it, so I won't do that again. Some of the larger, higher up raised beds have done well, except one that DH dumped pine shavings all over, it killed whatever I planted in it. Pine is not a good mulch, in my opinion. Last year we planted several things that did nothing, I just could not seem to get yellow squash to do anything and I planted twice. Even with all the panic going on I'm just not into doing much in the garden this year except, of course, tomato plants which always do well.

Judy

I've had to rethink our garden this year. With all the panic going on, I was hoping for a big garden, but that has had to change. I couldn't get my Spring garden out in time, so that was a loss. It sorta burst my bubble for gardening. After Cary's surgery, he won't be able to till the garden for 6 weeks, which puts that well into our summer gardening. All I plan to have now are yellow summer squash, tomatoes, garlic (which is already up, and doing great), bell peppers, and if I can find any, walking green onions to get started. All of that will be done in raised beds that don't have to be tilled up. I can work them myself.

I don't know why, but my garlic comes back year after year without being replanted. All I have to do to it is to keep it thinned out, so the bulbs will remain big. It multiplies like crazy. What started out as a small bed along one of our fence lines has now grown into a bed that extends the length of the whole fence line.
 
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Meemur

Voice on the Prairie / FJB!
Looks like it's going into the 70s for the next 3 days. Normal temps are in the 50s. I'm putting all of the indoor work
on hold and raking/pruning as I have energy. It's too early to plant anything outside, but the snow is gone, so I can start
clean up and spreading manure and top soil.
 

nomifyle

TB Fanatic
I've had to rethink our garden this year. With all the panic going on, I was hoping for a big garden, but that has had to change. I couldn't get my Spring garden out in time, so that was a loss. It sorta burst my bubble for gardening. After Cary's surgery, he won't be able to till the garden for 6 weeks, which puts that well into our summer gardening. All I plan to have now are yellow summer squash, tomatoes, garlic (which is already up, and doing great), bell peppers, and if I can find any, walking green onions to get started. All of that will be done in raised beds that don't have to be tilled up. I can work them myself.

I don't know why, but my garlic comes back year after year without being replanted. All I have to do to it is to keep it thinned out, so the bulbs will remain big. It multiplies like crazy. What started out as a small bed along one of our fence lines has now grown into a bed that extends the length of the whole fence line.
last year was the first time I'd ever planted garlic and I did harvest it, let dry out and then replanted around the end of October. I also did onion bulbs at the same time. We've never had much luck with onions except for green onions. DH said the cold killed a lot of tops which may be what happened in the lower raised beds, either that or squirrels got to them. He said the bulbs are still in the ground and the tops will grow back. We planted alot of both garlic and onions and filled several raised beds.

I'd like to do zucchini and yellow squash, but they just never produce here. Lots of blooms but now fruit that will grow. some tiny squash but they shrivel up and die. I even resorted to fertilizer with the garlic and onions, Triple 13.

Its getting time to plant tomato plants. DH started some seeds, but I don't see any growth. I'll get plants from a couple of friends that do a lot each year and share with me. We also have not luck with potatoes. I have plenty of seeds for just about anything though, I just do not have a green thumb.

Praying for you and CaryC with his up coming surgery. DH had major surgery a few years back and his recovery was very slow. He did however, at some point, bounce back.

God is good all the time

Judy
 

moldy

Veteran Member
Plants are in the greenhouse with minimal heat support until Wednesday - will save on electricity to run the grow lights. Truck goes to the shop on Wednesday - I"m hoping it's an easy fix and not a whole new transmission. Not sure what all will be happening this week - I need to work on a couple formulations for herbal clients, and get tests scheduled for next week. My followup with the doctor is March 26 - won't lie - I"m kinda on pins and needles until then.
 

WanderLore

Veteran Member
End of winter is close I am hoping. So much dirt dog hair and mud. I clean daily but hard to tell.
Cleaned up the back yard area today. Got 2 dogs back out in their pen.
One of the big old dogs got a chicken. Looks like there was a new gap in coop up top that they were flying out. DH fixed that. Grandsons yelled for me about the chicken. Said hen is now in box on table and will have to stay out in camper till healed up. Got decent chance. She's one of my good hens too. Just exhausted from winter and hope when weather turns, will get some energy.

Tomorrow I'll have 21 years sober.
 

Grounded Idealist

Hope Always
Well darn; if that creeping Charlie is useful, I guess I'll have to leave at least a few patches of it. I'm just afraid it will get away from me if I don't keep it cleaned out - it's covered the area under my clothesline already, and it's all I can do to keep it out of the gardens and flower beds now!
Maybe grow it in a pot or other confined area to prevent spreading??
 

Illini Warrior

Illini Warrior
everybody is watching the weather for an early planting season - 60s-70s in the 1st week of March is a good sign - depending on the rain could have a few weeks of spring field work in play before planting starts ....
 

school marm

Senior Member
Last week was Fool's Spring, so in addition to running a load in the freeze dryer each day, I also got to work in the yard. DD#1 is studying ag and crop sciences, and so she showed me how to prune the fruit trees. I already had the basics down, but she added in a few tidbits. And we decided to try our hand at propagating these trees. I always want more fruit trees and her brother and SIL just bought a house and also want fruit trees. We spent some time in the yard discussing future landscaping and design ideas. She's taking an edible landscaping class and has lots of ideas. :) Also got to spend some time in the fenced garden area, raking it up, weeding, and starting a compost pile.

Second winter begins tomorrow, so I'll be canning some chicken in addition to running freeze dryer loads.
 

SouthernBreeze

Has No Life - Lives on TB
Cary got the chores done that he wanted to do. Lots of weed eating, and cleaning up the yard, especially around the wood shed, Saturday. He can now relax. He was spastic trying to get everything done.

Went this morning for his pre-op/pre-admission testing. We also got the call from Cardiology letting him know that all of his tests were normal. So, we have the green light for surgery.
 

prudentwatcher

Veteran Member
Vac-sealed the meat I bought the other day, as well as some rice and beans. The new freezer is pretty full, so we need to work on emptying the old one. Froze some strawberries and put them up in serving portions for us. Only 4 this time, but should have more freezer room for some later. Also cooked up some old chicken carcasses and made stock and froze up 7 quarts of that.

Today I popped into Publix to hit their BOGO deals. Main one I wanted was bacon. Can't believe bacon is nearly $8 a lb. Bought some for the freezer, as well as a few boxes of the Betty Crocker scalloped potato mixes at bogo as well.
 

psychgirl

Has No Life - Lives on TB
Last week was Fool's Spring, so in addition to running a load in the freeze dryer each day, I also got to work in the yard. DD#1 is studying ag and crop sciences, and so she showed me how to prune the fruit trees. I already had the basics down, but she added in a few tidbits. And we decided to try our hand at propagating these trees. I always want more fruit trees and her brother and SIL just bought a house and also want fruit trees. We spent some time in the yard discussing future landscaping and design ideas. She's taking an edible landscaping class and has lots of ideas. :) Also got to spend some time in the fenced garden area, raking it up, weeding, and starting a compost pile.

Second winter begins tomorrow, so I'll be canning some chicken in addition to running freeze dryer loads.
I’d love to pick up a dehydrator some day and get started. Are they expensive?
 
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