The wild lady slipper orchids are blooming
We have a secret spot where the wild lady slipper orchids bloom abundantly around June 24th. Not just one or two of these rare orchids (that are the Minnesota state flower), but dozens and...
Q and A: baking bread and controlling bamboo
Baking bread
A reader recently asked you a question about the bread she bakes. She said that she gets a large pocket under the top crust, and that when she cuts the bread, the crust...
Q and A: canning caramels and blight on tomatoes
Canning caramel
I have checked the archives and your canning book, but still wondering about canning caramel, not caramel sauce. My husband found a great deal just after the holidays ($2 for 5lbs, we ended...
Even though it’s going to be twenty below tonight, I’m starting peppers
February weather in northern Minnesota can be huge swings between thawing and sunny, to blustery and sub zero. Tonight and tomorrow night, they're calling for the latter, dipping down to twenty below. Brrrrrrr. But...
Blueberries are ripe!
I've been watching the wild blueberries since spring. Last year, after suffering that cold winter with drought and no snow cover, many of the bushes died back and those left didn't produce enough to...