Saturday, November 8, 2008

Let's keep blogging!

Are there any RS ladies still using our RS blog? I thought it has been a great way to communicate.
Nikki R.


UPDATE: I think it's a great way to communicate as well, however it's hard when I'm the one always updating. Part of being involved in a community blog is that everyone can help author and post. So if someone would like to post about the Visiting Teaching activity or anything they think might be useful (Education Week, Conference) that would be greatly appreciated. I can continue to help post and update Calendar information when I get feeling better but it's a lot of work for one person...if some one is interested in having access to posting on the blog just let me know and I can send you an invitation. I don't want to create more work, I just have seen it successful in other wards and thought I'd try it. Thanks to those who still check out the blog every once in awhile and for those who have posted or commented in the past. We don't want to make anyone spend time on it if they don't want to, it was just an experiment into another way to communicate and journal our events and activities.

Thanks Nikki for asking about whether people are still interested.

Adrienne

Tuesday, July 29, 2008

Latter-day Stripling Warriors

I have a copy of the latter-day stripling warriors book if anyone would like to borrow it before Thursday's book nook at Sister Rosie's. The book is quite short and is a very quick and enjoyable read. Call Tiffany if you would like to read it! Hope to see you at Thursday night at the book nook!

Monday, July 14, 2008

Book Nook Information

Hi gals......
There has been some confusion about the book nook book title and where to purchase the book. The name of the book is What Latterday Stripling Warriors learn from their Mothers by Ardeth G. Kapp. You may purchase the book at the Rexburg Deseret Book. They have three copies and you may find them in the "parenting" section of the store. If they tell you the book is out of print, it is NOT. One of their computer screens shows it is no longer in print, but as they inquired further, they found the copies for me. Or, you may purchase the book at Deseretbook.com or Amazon.com or Barnesandnoble.com. Barnes and Noble has only used copies, but they start around three dollars.
We hope lots of sisters will read the book and join us for a great discussion. Book nook is scheduled for July 31st at Rosie's. We may change the date to later due to the delay in getting the book. Watch the blog for further details or call Tiffany Jenkins for details. Please read and join us........ or just join us!

Thursday, July 3, 2008

What a fun night!

Adrienne is a grilling guru!
Thanks Adrienne for all of your preparation preparing for the grilling/marinade enrichment. Fun was had by all. The food was delectable. Watch for recipes to be posted. For those of you who missed out, plan to come next time. The next domestic kitchen will be held in September. Watch for upcoming details!

Tuesday, June 24, 2008

Vegetable Gardening

For all of you ladies that missed RaNae Foster's great demo on vegetable gardening, and those that have lost their notes, this is for YOU! These are notes I took so they might not be too organized but I'll try to make a method to my madness.

FERTILIZER

Fertilizer

All fertilizer has 3 numbers (for the dummies like me out there). 1st : Nitrogen, 2nd : Pot Ash, and 3rd : Phosphorus.

:::Use Commercial fertilizer sparingly, it doesn't take much to get things going and you don't want to burn the veggie seeds before they even have a chance to germinate (or really burn them at any phase really)!

If you are transplanting (potted plants, spring starts from your green house or home) RaNae says Miracle Grow is a great starter. Sprinkle a little bit in each hole where a transplant is to go. 

Fertilizer by law carries a guaranteed 'N-P-K Analysis' -- a promise that inside the bag you'll get a certain percentage of Nitrogen (N), Phosphorous (P), and Potash (K). All green plants need 13 minerals to grow. But three -- Nitrogen (for green leaves), Phosphorus (for strong roots) and Potash (also called Potassium, used for life processes and cell growth) -- are used a LOT. Since plants need so much of them, the theory goes, the plants will use all of them up. Your bag of fertilizer is supposed to replace used up N P K.

A plant with a lot of leaves is going to need a lot more Nitrogen than a plant with a few leaves. A plant that flowers will need more Phosphorous than a plant that is not producing flowers. So you can see that a bright green blade of grass is not going to need Phosphorous to make flowers or fruit.

If you are growing Vegetables -- Carrots, Tomatoes, Broccoli, maybe Basil or herbs -- you must separate these into the kind of plant you have. Chives and Basil are LEAVES, so a little Nitrogen is going to be great for them! BUT if you are thinking of using a bag of Scotts Lawn Fertilizer, make ABSOLUTELY SURE it does not have any weed killer mixed in. Because the weed killer will nix any chances of growing vegetables once you put it down.

SEED INFO
You can buy seeds anywhere. Park Seed Company, American Meadows...However you must plant the seeds the year they are purchased, there is an expiration date on the back usually. The reason for this is that there are micro-organisms that will eat up the inside of the seed leaving you with the shell and a useless seed if they are left at room temperature past the expiration date. If you wish to keep a storage of seeds beyond that year you may freeze them for up to 10 years, it's similar to yeast in that freezing them sort of de-activates them and keeps them from getting eaten out.

RaNae suggested storing regulars (that are in your garden year after year) in the freezer and rotating the oldest packs. 

If you are planting seed that have a longer gestation than our season it's best to start them about 8 weeks before the last frost in your home or greenhouse.

HOME STARTED PLANTS
If you are starting some plants early inside you'll want to give it enough room to grow for the next 8 weeks before they get out into the garden. RaNae suggested using peet moss plugs, or something equivalent. Park Seed sells a bio-dome kit that is supposed to be really good for plants started at home. When your spring plants start growing out of their peet plugs or the bio domes and there is a good stem, plant in a larger pot for growth. It's also great to plant in biodegradable pots as you can plant those straight into the garden when they are ready. 

Your plants are ready to set out to acclimate at about 50 degrees F outside. You'll want to pull them in at nights if it drops below 35 degrees. When the average night temperatures hit 50 then you are safe to plant (granted you don't think there will be any more frosts). 

When transplanting, put plant deep enough that dirt comes up to the  lowest leaves, this will excel the growth.

THE GARDEN
The first thing to do is plot out your garden on paper. Draw it out so you can visualize where everything will be going and catch any plants that might need to be moved before they go in the ground. See Below for the Veggie Companion Worksheet with tips on planting certain veggies. YOU WILL WANT THIS!

Vegetable Companions List

You'll want to prep the garden with compost and/or vegetable fertilizer so it has enough nutrients to sustain the vegetables and give off a good crop. If you are doing a raised bed you can put fabric down on the ground for weed control and then fill in with new dirt.

Once the bed is made, mark it out with stakes and string it so you have straight rows to follow for building your hills and planting the seed. Make all rows 24" apart with an exception for Squash, Pumpkins and Cucumbers. Once your seeds and transplants are in, label the plantings for your brain!

MAINTENANCE & HARVESTING
It is best to water in the morning as plants will wilt if you wait until the afternoon to water. When sowing seed directly, it is pertinent to keep the ground wet at all times during germination until plants are well established as the wind and sun will dry the seeds out quickly. Then you may cut back on the watering to once a day. For the most part, consider the package directions of the specific seed for germination and gestation time as well as for harvesting. On the chart above there are tips on some vegetables too. Good luck!

Blog Progress

Since I now have three callings to occupy my time, I'll be making a few mega posts to catch all of you up on the past events, but will not be updating with posts as much. I'll still be behind the scenes on the rest of the blog but PLEASE anyone that has attended any enrichment activities or has a new recipe they'd like to share or whatever, post away. I think the blog would be so much better than just my bland posting vs. guest posts from some of the amazing women in our ward. If you'd like to post but have no idea how to log on and post, you could even email me your post and I'll put it on for you for the first couple of times. I hope this can survive, but don't want to shoot a dead horse if you know what I mean!

Wednesday, June 11, 2008

New Host for July Book nook

Ladies,


We are in need of a host for July book nook. You may host at your home or at the church, either is fine (just let us know if you need the church so we can schedule it). 

Also, I've been super busy with work and family engagements so I apologize for not keeping up with the enrichment posts. Any of you that have attended the past enrichments and would like to post a re-cap would be greatly appreciated for not only your insight but so that I'm not the one turning this into a personal blog ;) 

I'm going to try to post soon on the veggie garden enrichment, as well as southern cooking this week unless someone else beats me to the punch! Look for more updates soon. Thanks for being patient and I'll see you all on Sunday!

Lastly, thanks to those who have hosted already, it has been so great to be welcomed into each or your homes and learn more about you. I'm sure all the sisters that have had the opportunity to attend feel the same. Nikki, I'm sorry I couldn't stay longer at your book discussion, as it was such a great discussion. If you wouldn't mind posting the recipes I'm sure everyone would love to add them to the collection. Have a great snowy day everyone!