Another family member on the podcast! Listen to my Aunt Michelle and I talk about garlic, particularly planting, but also where to get cloves, what types to grow, fun recipes and other random things. All garlic related. It might not be too late to get some garlic to plant this Fall yet! Check out the Upper Midwest Premium Garlic Directory. 

Resources: 

Minnesota Garlic Festival

Minnesota Salsa Fest

Big Stone Garlic

Roasted Garlic and Tomato Pasta Recipe

Email: [email protected]

Instagram: ahomegrownfam

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Join my brother David and I as we talk a bit about food preservation and canning, particularly juice. Not all food has to come from a store. David also discloses his “top secret” ingredient in his salsa. 

Resources: 

Hot Water Bath Canner

Canning Starter Kit - Tools

Ball Preserving Guidebook

Email: [email protected]

Instagram: ahomegrownfam

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Fall is a busy time of year. Harvest is in full swing, and the brewing has just begun. This episode talks about harvesting and juicing apples and grapes, and also serves as an introduction to preserving and brewing the juice into wine and hard cider. Listen here to learn more about our methods, processes, and the equipment we use to accomplish the task.

Equipment:

Tree Fruit Picker

Harvest Lug

Grape Fork

Apple Grinder

Bladder Press

Grape Crusher/Destemmer

Star San Sanitizer

Campden Tablets

Resources:

Apple Harvesting - Roll Picking Method

Apple Picking Tips

Email: [email protected]

Instagram: ahomegrownfam

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How did the orchard come to be?  Join my Dad, my brother David and I as we chat about how the vineyard/orchard got started. Where its been and where its going.

Email: [email protected]

Instagram: ahomegrownfam

Resources:
MN Apple Varieties

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This episode starts off with my best Steve Irwin impersonation and rolls into the pros and cons of pocket gophers. My brother David and I reminisce about how our childhood summers were spent gopher trapping. We talk about the supplies needed, the different types of gopher traps we used, and the methods to find the gopher’s hole….among other things. 

Supplies:

-trap

-stake

-board/cover (old discs off of a cultivator work pretty good)

-Shovel (we found the spade works best)

-mode of transportation

Resources:

How to set a DK-1 gopher trap

Long Spring Traps

Gopher digging a hole

Gopher Facts

Email: [email protected]

Instagram: ahomegrownfam

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Cousin Justin and I discuss his blossom end rot experiment that uses Epsom salts as a remedy. Did it work? After that, we chat about his childhood experiences visiting his uncle's farms, particularly my Dad's. Justin talks about anything from milking cows, feeding calves, driving tractors and raking hay to trapping gophers. There's just no place like the farm!

Listening to the episodes titled "Garden Update and Blossom End Rot" and "Good Ol' Days" would be a good preface to this episode.

Email: [email protected]

Instagram: ahomegrownfam

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Listen in as I summarize what I learned recently by attending the NDSU Carrington Research Extension Center field day. Focusing on pears grown in the Upper Midwest, I discuss a little bit about everything regarding pears. What rootstock and cultivars to consider growing. The difference between hard and soft pears. The pros and cons of traditional style orchards and high density trellis systems. When should pears get pruned? When should pears get harvested? What type of potential pests or problems do I need to be aware of when growing pears? These are all questions answered in this episode. 

Email: [email protected]

Instagram: ahomegrownfam

Resources:

USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map

Sweetland Orchard - Gretchen Merryweather

Fedco Seeds

St. Lawrence Nurseries

Schlabach – 585-798-6198

Ugly Stub Pruning for Fire Blight

Growing Fruit in the Upper Midwest

Recommended pear rootstock options: OHF87(75%); OHF97(full size)

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Beetles, worms, and borers, oh my! In this episode, we talk about garden pests like the crucifer flea beetle, imported cabbage worm, and the vine squash borer. Learn about preferred host plants and different preventative measures or strategies to help prevent the demise of your garden by the mandibles of these insect pests. 

Email: [email protected]

Instagram: ahomegrownfam

Resources:

Vine Squash Borer

Crucifer Flea Beetle

Imported Cabbage Moth

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The hard work in the garden is finally paying off! Join my brother David and I as we talk harvesting produce, specifically cauliflower and garlic. We also discussed some of the differences between hardneck and softneck garlic, and when should one harvest garlic and how should it be stored.

David’s Garlic Variety Trial:

Musik – largest cloves
Chesnok Red – medium sized
Germain Porcelain – large cloves
Northern White – medium sized
Spanish Roja – small cloves
Vietnamese Red – small cloves

Email: [email protected]

I posted a video on my Instagram on when to harvest cauliflower. Check it out! 

Instagram: ahomegrownfam 

Resources:

USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map

Hardneck vs Softneck Garlic

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This episode stretches a bit farther back in time to the childhood of my 98 year old Grandma, a time when nothing went to waste and children truly learned the value of hard work. She is one of the few remaining that can personally recall living in the “Dust Bowl”. My Grandma lived in a time when there was no electricity, no freezers to store food, and no snow plows! However, there was still bacon! After marrying my Grandpa, she continued the life of a farmer. A lifestyle that has been passed down to the next generation and hopefully more to come. 

Email: [email protected]

Instagram: ahomegrownfam

Link to the song, "Tell Me 'Bout The Good Old Days"

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