At Home My Way

  Garden Granny Era   2025 Spring Garden Update  (US Hardiness Zone 6B-mid Missouri) I am now in my garden granny (Mimi) era so I thought this meme was perfect, although I'm not nearly as hip as the person in the photo.  Yes, I still work in an office but being a garden granny is definitely where my heart is! (Obviously I must not be cooking much from scratch lately because all of my posts have been about the garden and here goes another one.) I love my garden!  I love mothering my seeds and plants, and  most of all-watching them flourish as spring turns into summer.  As winter came to an end, I enjoyed learning new things like starting seeds in jelly rolls (the internet knows this as "snail rolls") but they seem more like jelly rolls to me.  This worked REALLY WELL for starting quick seeds (marigolds, cucumbers, squash, and even carrots) when I wanted lots of plants and needed to maximize space under my grow lights. I used packing foam from ...

  INSTRUCTIONS AT THE TOP - CHIT CHAT AT THE BOTTOM! I have lots of seeds started under lights this year and decided I have spent enough money!  I could not spend more money for up-potting baby plants when there is a nearly free way to do it.  Here's how I make easy paper pots for gardening AT HOME MY WAY! How to Make Paper Pots (for garden seedlings) Supplies needed: Paper (Large sheets of paper from paper grocery sacks, packing material, newspaper, old wrapping paper would probably work) Jar (no lid) with straight sides (approximate diameter of the paper pot you want) Scissors Tape-optional Instructions  (See pics & video at the bottom of this post): 1.         CUT PAPER IN STRIPS.   (LENGTH of the strip is enough to wrap the jar in several layers. WIDTH of the strip is equal to the height of your desired paper pot PLUS enough paper to equal the diameter (width) of your jar.  (My strips were about 7 inches which gave me a 4 inch ta...

My Six Favorite  Gardening Channels on YouTube    Am I the only person who has a thing for YouTube garden channels?  Talk about an infinity of garden information – plus links - to all of the best supplies and equipment to use.  The folks who create these channels are like your favorite teachers times 100. They have extensive knowledge and use their very own homes and gardens as their classrooms. They can take a beginner (like me) and give her garden wings to really grow some good stuff!  Gardening has arrived and the coolest kids are doing it!   If you are like me and life has gotten stressful, then take yourself away. These trips are only a few clicks away.  Switch off Forensic Files and the nightly news, and enjoy the gardens.  Or - when the view outside your window is frozen with ice and snow - head on over to YouTube and enjoy learning to start seeds, see lush zucchini plants, skyscraper tomatoes, and happy little beans plump fo...

Cream Cheese Brownies Printable Recipe Here The brownie recipe itself in Cream Cheese Brownies is a variation of my Homemade Brownie Mix recipe .  (The dry ingredients can be mixed and stored in baggies or jars in your pantry for mixing up a pan of brownies at a moment's notice and Ditching the Box.)  You can find other "Ditch the Box" recipes HERE .   Brownie Ingredients: 1 cup white granulated sugar 1/2 cup all purpose flour 1/3 cup cocoa powder 1/4 teaspoon salt 1/4 teaspoon baking powder 1/2 cup (1 stick real butter) (or oil works in a pinch) 2 eggs (I use medium or small eggs for this) 1 teaspoon vanilla Cream Cheese mixture : 8 oz block cream cheese 1/2 cup white granulated sugar 1 Tablespoon all purpose flour 1 egg (using only the egg white will result in a whiter cream cheese mixture but I used the whole egg) 1/2 teaspoon vanilla Directions : Preheat oven to 350°. Spray 8 x 8 square pan w/ cooking spray. Mix up the brownies first: Melt butter (I used the micr...

  What are Purple Hull Pinkeye Peas: Purple Hull Pinkeye Peas are a variety of cowpea.  They look similar to Blackeyed Peas but in my opinion, are wayyyyy more delicious!   For the non-southern pallet, if I had to describe their flavor, they are a combo of English sweet peas and Blackeyes because they are creamy like English sweet peas.   Trust me when I tell you they are delicious, easy to grow, and can grow in baking hot heat in poor soil.  Purple Hull Peas are like the low maintenance sister of your everyday peas.  )They do not need a trellis.)  Even a small patch of peas can generate a good amount of peas.  In my small, zone 6B, central Missouri garden, I grew no more than 10-12 plants last year in a small section of a raised bed crammed in beside a large tomatillo plant.  I still managed to make out with a gallon of peas for my freezer! Like English sweet peas, these peas are shelled and you eat the peas inside the pods.  ...