Strawberrytime

The abundance of berries is probably one of the best parts of summer.  My Happy Acres has a wide variety of strawberries.  Although the wild berries were at their peak about a week ago, other domesticated berries are coming into their peak right now.

To ensure that your berries are at their ripened best, buy direct from a local farmer or You Pick.  If not readily available, choose the berries that are uniformly red with no white or green or soft spots.  An unripe berry will not ripen off the plant.  We prefer the dark red varieties for flavor and juiciness.

Preparation: keep berries in a cool place (such as the refrigerator) until ready to use.  Wash and stem when ready to use them (pre-cleaning before refrigeration will cause them to deteriorate within a day or two).  Slice or halve the berries into a bowl.  Sugar to taste.  If you have very fresh, juicy berries you may not need any sugar at all.

Strawberry Shortcake
The cake portion of strawberry shortcake is traditionally a light sponge cake however try a variety of different bases until you find what you like best.  We were delighted with the results when using an almond pound cake.  These are also sometimes available at your local grocery or bakery.  Decide what tastes best.
The cream portion can sometimes turn into a source for debate.  Some people insist on only whipping cream.  Some people like Cool Whip.  We like Whipped Cream Frosting.  By slightly modifying the recipe by using only 1/4 cup powdered sugar, the Whipped Cream enhances the flavor of the berries.  Okay, I hear you.  This is not diet food.  But a little bit goes a long way.  Just one spoonful and you too will be saying, 'Life is good'...

May Flowers or Life in the Greenhouse

 

May is the time when many farmers in our area assess the land, check the health of their trees, and start planning for the coming growing season.  The deer and bunnies apparently had a good winter out in the blueberry patch.  All the plants that hadn't been protected by cages, were nibble down to their stems.  

Not to be discouraged, we had some cuttings that had been rooted.  To ensure a healthy start, these cuttings were potted is good soil and have been receiving lots of TLC out in the greenhouse.  As the weather outside fluctuated wildly, as it is known to do in May, the greenhouse temps remained mild.  

In what seems like no time at all, a little green twig in the dirt has turned into a lovely little bush waiting to join the others along the hillside.  You can be sure that when these are planted, a little extra protection will also be provided.

While clearing weeds from the raspberries, much to my surprise, I found two healthy stems nipped off at the base.  My suspicion is that this was the work of voles, a mouselike varmint that is the bane of orchardists. 
After clipping the ends to form clean surface the ends were dipped in rooting hormone, then planted in clean pots of rich soil.  In less than two weeks, the stems were putting on leaves and looking relatively healthy.  The plan is to replant these after Memorial Day.
There is something very satisfying about caring for little plants and critters.  Watching thing grow, we're looking forward to the fruits of our labor.

Enjoying the summer's bounty

Not everyone has the good fortune of a florishing garden or local orchards producing lushious peaches and apricots.  Whenever possible support your local farmers by shopping farmers' markets and buying direct.

It's blackberry time at My Happy Acres.  We have both seeded and seedless varieties.  Large, full of juice, and as sweet as summer, blackberries are delicous in cobblers, served over ice cream, or just by the handful.  Our favorite way to save the taste of summer, is to either freeze the berries for later use or to make jam.  The house was filled with the mouth watering aromas of both apricot (from a local orchard) and blackberry jams.

Of course when out picking the wild berries, some helpers are more help than others (as the puppy helps himself to another mouthful of ripe low growing berries).  Remember: those thorns can be small and hard to remove.  Showing a little caution and reserve can be rewarded with buckets of berries!

Berries of summer

Like many folks around here, My Happy Acres has a wide variety of berries available in their due season. 

Strawberry season was essentially done by the fourth of July however blueberry and raspberry seasons are just now gearing up.  We lost a number of our blueberry bushes to the cottontail rabbits so this next week we'll be taking a little time out to put the remaining ones into protective enclosures.  These baskets will need to be positioned far enough away from the main plant that the bunnies can't reach it and tall enough to also discourage the deer from nibbling. 

The raspberries are looking very good this year.  We did a little bit of pruning last year and have been rewarded with lovely red clusters this year.  Unlike some varieties, our raspberries have a full, sweet flavor that go nicely in salads, desserts, or consumed right off the bush.  Think about getting a little extra this summer and freeze them up to enjoy while the cold winter winds blow.