What are you all doing to prepare for winter?

[Mini Horses]

Yep, young 'uns! With these older ones, it's the jaw teeth that are so flat/thin, or just gone, that create the hay issues. You know, even at the higher price & higher quantity fed, the Sr feed is no more than good hay & a concentrate used to be sure all vit/mins are available. I have 2 eight yr olds, mistakes....stallion got into mare field. Next youngest is now 19. There are 11 over 23. 3 are 30+

 

[lcertuche]

I want a pressure cooker. I know it doesn't seem like winter preparation but what could prepare you more knowing you have some good food waiting in the pantry. Anyway that's my story and I'm sticking to it.

 

[baymule]

I want a pressure cooker. I know it doesn't seem like winter preparation but what could prepare you more knowing you have some good food waiting in the pantry. Anyway that's my story and I'm sticking to it.

Pressure cooker or pressure canner? I adore my All American pressure canner. I bought a cheap one 30+ years ago and regretted it all those years. I finally bit the bullet and bought my dream canner and kicked myself for not doing it sooner. It is an investment in your future, your food future and your family.

 

[Mini Horses]

Winter is a good time to look for sales on these "normally used in summer" things!

 

[lcertuche]

Definitely pressure canner (not cooker). I will probably buy a cheap one but at least I'll have one. I lost mine a few years ago in a move. I keep looking on Craig's List but I guess I'll be getting one from Wallyworld.

 

[Britesea]

I have both- an All American pressure canner, and a small Presto pressure cooker. One of our favorite winter meals is Swiss Steak, and it only takes 30 minutes in the pressure cooker. The crockpot is wonderful, but if you've forgotten to start it early enough in the day, the pressure cooker can be a life saver.

We are trying to finish the greenhouse in between the rainstorms we keep getting. The frame is up, the 2 endwalls are done and the remaining parts have been caulked to keep rain out of the flutes; we just need to do the roof/hoop.
I also still need to harvest the last of the beets, peppers, tomatoes and potatoes so I can put the garden to bed.

 

[baymule]

I put the sheep in the garden to eat the weeds. They adore ragweed. Something about 100*+ late summer days that killed all ambition to go weed the garden......

I bought cabbage, kale, broccoli plants and onion sets. The sheep are about done in the garden, so I'll finish the clean up and plant my winter plants.

 

[NH Homesteader]

Winter... Plants... What's that?

We just pulled up our tomato plants and shook the remaining tomatoes off them. We currently have free ranging chickens (they escaped and we just havent bothered fixing the fence because they're not bothering anyone) so they've been hanging out eating tomatoes. Might put the little pigs in there soon.

 

[baymule]

In my area, cole crops burn to cinders in the early summer and blow away in the full summer heat. The best time to plant broccoli, kale, cauliflower, Brussel sprouts, onions, turnips, mustard greens, collard greens, lettuce is in the fall or early, early spring. I've had broccoli with ice caps on the heads, but our "cold" never lasts more than a few days. Sometimes the plants may grow slowly or just reach a certain growth and stop until warmer weather. Other times I've had broccoli all winter.

Red cabbage

Collard greens

Green cabbage

 

[frustratedearthmother]

Yep, I've got cabbage in the ground now. Picked up some broccoli plants the other day and need to get them planted.