Pecans Galore!

We're having our best pecan harvest ever, although it started out pretty ordinary.

Pecans started dropping in late September/early October. Every day we'd scour under the trees for windfall.

I picked up a pocketful here and a handful there, and over the weeks managed to find and collect quite a few.

By weighing them in batches I learned that a 5-gallon bucket holds about 20 pounds of unshelled pecans.

Then came tropical storm Zeta. We only got about 2.6 inches of rain, but the winds were so bad we kept looking for tornadoes. After it was over Dan counted five new downed pine trees in our woods. The winds also knocked down a lot of leaves.

And! A ton of pecans! 

Here's what Dan and I picked up in one afternoon.

And we're still picking them up! Every day more drop. The best harvest we've ever had.

In fact, this year I need to find someone who shells them. It's too many to do by hand. 

Pecans Galore! © Nov 2020 by Leigh 

at http://www.5acresandadream.com

Fall Foraging: Mushrooms

Our home mushroom growing attempts have not been successful. Yet, wild mushrooms so very well! Which got us to thinking that maybe we should learn something about mushroom identification.

After one of our rainy spells, we found this next to the driveway. . .

This is Hen of the Woods; kin to Chicken of the Woods but not as colorful. I gathered some for dinner.

I sliced them up

and sauteed them in olive oil.

They had a good flavor, but they weren't as tender as the button mushroom I buy at the grocery store.

Then we had another hot dry spell and no more mushrooms until it rained again. This same patch of hen of the woods grew back.

This time, I decided to dehydrate them and make mushroom powder.

I harvested about one pound and put them in the dehydrator at the vegetable setting.

By the end of the afternoon they were crispy dry. Then I powdered them in the blender.

One pound fresh filled about a third of a pint jar. So it would take about three pounds of mushrooms for a pint of mushroom powder. If I find more, I'll make more.

Mushroom powder with a few flakes.

Not exactly an appealing color, but it smells really good. I'll use it in gravies and soups this winter.

Anyone else foraging fall mushrooms?

Fall Foraging: Mushrooms © November 2020

by Leigh at http://www.5acresandadream.com

Oregano Tincture

Here's another of the fall preparations I've been working on, oregano tincture.

I first became interested in oregano as a medicinal herb when I was researching natural wormers for goats. I ran across an article that showed a study using oregano essential oil as a wormer. But I also learned that it has other useful medicinal qualities as well.

Page from my Homestead Herbal. Click to enlarge.

Oregano continued. Click to enlarge.

To make, I used my herb shears to cut up oregano leaves.

Enough to fill a jar about ¾ full. Then the jar is filled with vodka.

Vodka not only extracts the herb's medicinal qualities, but also acts as a preservative. These tinctures can keep for decades!

Freshly made

Then it's allowed to sit in a dark cool place for at least six weeks. About once a week I check my working tincture jars and give them a shake.

After steeping.

Earlier this month, my oregano tincture was ready to strain.

Like the elderberry tincture, I strain out as much as the liquid as I can through a sieve first. Then, I put the herb in the herb press, so I can squeeze out as much as possible. 

A dose is one to two droppersful, three times a day. For those who don't ingest alcohol, it can be put in a cup and boiling water added. By the time it's cool enough to drink, the alcohol will have evaporated, leaving behind the medicinal qualities and flavor. Oregano would make a good herbal vinegar too.

I find it interesting that many of our common cooking herbs carry the medicinal properties of helping relieve indigestion and gas. Coincidence? Or maybe, back in the day, cooks knew how to help folks enjoy their good cooking! Either way, this is a handy one to have around.

Oregano Tincture © Nov 2020 by Leigh 

at http://www.5acresandadream.com