These are from a discontinued kit I got at KnitPicks.com, called the “sock cocktail”. It has a bunch of different patterns for the sock’s body, heels, toes, and cuffs that you can mix and match, along with enough yarn for five socks. Since there are five of us (including my DD who just got married, but I’ve been putting this off), I plan to make a pair for each of us. The yarn for this pair is called Essential Ash Tweed, and is 65% Superwash Merino Wool, 25% Nylon, 10% Donegal. My husband loves them!

This one I did toe-up (first time for that), with a round toe, “shifting rib” body pattern (I had to learn cabling!), a mitered heel and ribbed cuff. A lot of learning with this pair, which is good.

Now that that’s done, I’m back to work on the sweater. One more arm and the finishing to go!

If you’re a relatively new gardener (and even if you’ve been doing this a while), this time of year you’re being inundated with seed catalogs. How do you pick seeds?

There’s a bit of controversy about whether to buy seeds from companies outside your USDA frost zone, or with markedly different climates than yours. I prefer to buy local in any case, not only to support my local economy (although that’s always good), but because a seed company in Oregon or Maine might not be growing the best seeds for Georgia or New Mexico. At least with locally-produced seeds and plants you know they have a decent chance of growing in your climate.

In any case, buy seeds for things you like to eat. There’s no sense in buying something because you feel you’re “supposed to”. And if you do try something new, don’t buy a pound of seed for it! You can often get very small amounts (10-30 seeds) for great prices online, or ask your local grower if they’ll give you a sample to try.

If you’ve never saved seeds, this might be the year to start. A good book for this is Seed to Seed: Seed Saving and Growing Techniques for Vegetable Gardeners by Suzanne Ashworth, but often it’s as simple as letting some of your beans dry and putting them away for next year, or saving the seeds from an overripe tomato.

One thing to think about, though, is which seeds to save. Do you want lettuce plants that grow when it’s really cold, before the others sprout? Then those lettuce plants that do grow early should be protected and allowed to go to seed, not picked and eaten! If you want beautiful big tomatoes, then save the seeds from those really nice big ones. What I’m saying is that what you save is what you’re selecting for. If you just save the seeds of the plants that are tough, bitter and bolt before all the rest then guess what you just selected for?

If you’ve already saved some poor seed, all is not lost. Some of those seeds from dud plants will turn out great; save those seeds! Compost the tough, bitter babies or feed them to the animals, and chalk it up to experience.

Make sure you grow out some of your seed every year. Some people catalog and rotate their seed stock; the easiest way to do this is to go through your stock and plant the oldest seeds. If your seed packets say 2007 or earlier you probably should plant as much of those as you can this year.

It’s wise to plant in staggered plantings, a quarter of your seed at a time, at least two weeks apart, making sure the first set has sprouted at least some before you start the next batch. Then a sudden late frost or early heat wave won’t wipe out all your seed, and you can get an idea of how this seed is germinating. (alternately, you can sprout the seed indoors before planting it)

It’s way too early to plant outside unprotected, although I did plant some snow peas back when it was 60 degrees (before Christmas) that are covered with row covers. I’m not sure if they’ll survive.  I have lettuce outside in a cold frame, lettuce indoors on my bathroom windowsill, and tomato seedlings on the kitchen windowsill (and larger ones by the window in my garage). Have you started any seeds yet, and if so, which ones?

The states they leave are usually blue states, those that receive them are more likely to be red states. Good for the states getting them, right?

Not necessarily. If the people moving are fans of small government and self-reliance, sure. But if not …

They want all the services that they had back home. And with more and more people flowing into a state demanding their due, they elect people willing to give them what they think they’re entitled to, and we end up blue state broke.

So what’s the answer? Not to keep out people who want to move here but to exercise some fiscal responsibility and make sure the people elected do so as well.

I’ve been making bread more often. I found that if you use the Five Minute Bread recipe but divide it and put it in regular bread molds, it comes out really well! I still put the pizza stone under the bread molds, as it keeps the temperature more even. It’s nice to be able to have some sliced bread I made myself.

Some bad news for you canners: Come to find out that canning jar lids contain BPA, which has been linked to hormone changes, particularly in boys. Which is infuriating!

That link is really nice, as she gives a long list of alternative canning options. It’s a nice blog, too, I’ve been enjoying it.

I know very well that when you’re being worried like a rat by economic problems (and the health and other problems coming out of that), it can be hard to see anywhere near a full range of options. I doubt that many people who are in serious poverty will be reading this and picking up ideas, unfortunately. It might give some ideas to someone who’s more temporarily down on their luck, the way economic conditions are right now.

Good advice. I’d also add that learning what plants on your lot and in your neighborhood are edible will save you a lot of money as well.

For example, I get a case of Kleenex (we have allergies) every six months. They send an email before they ship it just in case I want it shipped sooner, want to skip that shipment, or cancel altogether. For us, a case every six months works out perfectly.

Now, if I wanted to stock up on Kleenex it would be easy to order a case every three months, or even sooner if I needed to stock up quicker. Just click a button.

Amazon doesn’t carry everything under this program, but I’ve found it really helpful in keeping stocked up with things I use on a regular basis that isn’t made locally. They offer a discount for using the program and free shipping.

Hope everyone is having a lovely time.

We had our daughter and son-in-law over for dinner (after they dug their car out of the snow!): local ham, baked beans with local bacon, locally-grown baked potatoes, sweet potatoes, and onions, homemade cherry and peach/apple pie. The apples and peaches were locally grown as well.