Farmerjan's journal - Weather

[farmerjan]

@Baymule ... I buy my vacuum seal bags online, first off Ebay... much more reasonable than in the store. Actually found a place that I got the super big ones for the turkeys I had years ago... I found a place in Canada that has the normal size bags and rolls...., heavy duty..... and they are nice. Haven't bought any in 3 years since I got a good supply back then. Plus, I cut them long, then wash and reuse once or twice for smaller quantities of things.... When the canning jar lids were hard to find, I got what I could. Since then I ordered some made in USA from a company that I believe is Amish or Mennonite, through Lehman's, when they were promoting them... and bought a sleeve or 2......(200-250 to a sleeve?) plus what packages I have still.... And I reuse alot of them at least once... put in a pan of hot water for 15-30 minutes... not boiling.. but it helps to "plump" the rubber part. If one or 2 don't seal, then I use a new one. But I have good luck with doing that also... and I know there are some that have been reused more than once or twice... but I try to mark the lid....

I also have gone to using the Tattler lids... you can buy the replacement rubbers like the old canning jar rubber rings for the glass top jars... The nice thing about the Tattler lids, they are reusable... AND... they last and do not corrode at all because there is no "coated metal" to come in contact with the food inside. The tightening part takes a little more finesse... but not that big a deal...once you get the feel for it, they are GREAT... the rubber ring is also reusable if you do not cut it getting it off.. Standard canning jar screw bands...

I actually like my old glass top bail jars with the rubbers. Sadly, the one company that is supposed to make the replacement rubbers for them, does not make them as thick as the original type, and they do not work that well... no guesswork with the tightening as they clamped down the right amount with the older style rubber rings, and when done canning and cooled, unlock the bail and they sat on the shelves... for years.....food went bad, the glass lid just got loose, vacuum gone, tossed it out...

 

[farmerjan]

So, today turned out real nice. The recording thermometer shows 65... not sure how much was direct sun... but car thermometer showed 59 earlier...
I did get the clothes off the line at least.

Made a bottle and went up to the nurse cow pasture... Cows were all out in the pasture "grazing"... looking for a blade of green I guess... and they were all ambling towards the barn when I got there. I put the grain in, and a pile for 1305 black cow since she was right there at the barn... Betsy - jersey - went in and "her " 2 calves and the littler jersey bull calf... Then I backed off, went to the other side of the car and 1305 went right in the barn too... Calf went in the barn and went right on her.. Been 2 days since she was in there... obviously he was getting some milk.. he had the typical "milk wet" nose... and then they came out and I had opened the gate and the 2 cows went out... I opened the dividing gate inside the barn and the calves all went over to eat grain with the others... and I fed the calf a full bottle. He can handle more milk and not scour now...
She sure is mercurial in her attitude and disposition... so.... here we go again... if she comes up and comes in, fine.. the problem is that she will PROBABLY never feed the calf out in the field, so they can't go out with the bull so she can get rebred in June... with the calf with her.. DS will have to make up his mind what he wants to do with her... but for now. I will just deal with it... If she keeps coming in then the calf will get extra. He is growing good... and after he took the bottle, after she had gone out, I walked over near the bunk and he put his head right in there and started eating grain... He is VERY SMART....really hate he is a bull....

 

[murphysranch]

FJ: I'm now a certified Master Canner. I took the 10 week course via one of WA extension depts. 18 page final. Passed with 89 out of 100. (it was hard!!).

Anyhoo, the rubber on canning lids is far less thick than the older days. They no longer recommend putting them in warm or hot water. It doesn't plump the rubber anymore, just adds to failure rate.

I like my Tattler lids. Most extensions don't like them. But I do. I take good care of those rubber rings...

The class taught me to not use canning lids that were more than a year old. But I still do, and am careful with testing and leaving on counter for a week before storing away.

Back to canning - there are so many new varieties of bacteria, virus, and molds, that what we used to do is scarily wrong nowadays. My mother (now 94) taught me and since I'll be 70 in 5 days, I've had alot to "unlearn".

Sorry to derail your journal.

When are you going down to stay with friends to look around??

 

[Ridgetop]

The class taught me to not use canning lids that were more than a year old. But I still do, and am careful with testing and leaving on counter for a week before storing away.

I don't reuse canning lids, but I do use glass jars that are not commercial canning jars. Oddly enough the only jars that ever broe were Ball or Kerr jars. LOL Plain old glass mayo jars never failed.

My mother (now 94) taught me and since I'll be 70 in 5 days, I've had alot to "unlearn".

When I learned to make jam from my grandmother she sealed the jars with melted parafin! I started water bath sealing with canning lids later because I didn't like using melted parafin with little kids underfoot. Now it is hard to find parafin.

 

[SageHill]

When I learned to make jam from my grandmother she sealed the jars with melted parafin! I started water bath sealing with canning lids later because I didn't like using melted parafin with little kids underfoot. Now it is hard to find parafin.

Yup. Same here. And I played with the parafin discs when we'd open a jar.