I watched your making tomato sauce in a roaster and used this method last summer, so easy, I’ll always process tomatoes that way, thank you! We had a furnace guy in our basement and when he saw our home canned goods he commented “wow, I didn’t think people still did this!” Then he pointed to a jar of beans, one of elk and one of tomatoes and said “these three together is the best meal ever”. Needless to say I sent home home with those three jars. Thanks for a fun basement storehouse video.
Remember that every season is different...you may be overloaded with tomatoes now but you may have a blight the next....I preserves what God gives us trusting that he knows more than I do about my future needs...Maybe Todd should build you an overflow for the overflow pantry.
Try Peppermint Oil for mice. My house was abandoned for years before I moved in. So, for the past six years, I've had problems except this year because I poured Peppermint Oil in a Spray bottle with water and every week I spay my cabinets, just the edges of the house and everywhere I had them coming in which was everywhere. I have not had a single mouse this year. And the house smells like Peppermint.
Do you think this would work for cats? There is a stray cat that comes and yowls on our deck. I would never want to hurt it but I’d like it to move along because of the yowling🤨
@@cherylirvin3919 the peppermint won't work, but if it's not cold where you live, you could squirt it with a water bottle. Use the stream setting, not the mist. It'll get the hint and it wont harm it.
@@cherylirvin3919 is there a female cat in your home? Have you checked to see if it belongs to neighbors. It would be sad if someone just dropped a cat off and its just looking to get warm. Will it let you touch it? Ive rescued and rehomed probably 20 cats in my lifetime. Not counting the ones I've kept as companions. Where I live I guess cuz ive got small outbuildings and chickens that its perfect place to abandon cats and the occasional dog. People treat them like disposable diapers. If it does belong to neighbors try to live trap and call animal control to get them to be responsible. My cats usually stay inside except one who, in summer, sneaks out the door for a few hours if the kids aren't looking (should have said hubs here as hes about 75% more likely to oops! Cats out sorry hun than the grandkiddos lol) but im out with flashlight if my furkid is not in my house and its getting dark. But we have great horned owls that roost in a tree out back and there are coyote up the wahzoo here lately. Plus a fox who watches me while I garden. I do love my trail cams. Hope you don't mind the questions. And so far I haven't found a cat repellent or my poor abused house plants and herbs would have it. Winter better end soon or I won't have any lemongrass left. 🤣 Sorry for any typos ive developed cataracts in one eye worse than the other and the double vision is driving bonkers. 5 more weeks til I get my new fangled bionic vision!
@@cherylirvin3919 Light a fire cracker and toss it out there when the cat arrives. After a while it will stop coming around. We do this for coons and coyotes. It works for us.
Store your jars upside down in your boxes. It will keep dust and critters out. Easier to wash at canning time. Our basement in the old farm house was damp, so my boxes would get musty. I finally made a system of storing my canned goods on one side of my shelves and empty jars on the opposite side. The next year I swap sides. Which ment I moved any leftover goods over and rotated the old out first. All tomatoes on one shelf and beans on another, etc. Maybe screen wire attached all around your potatoes and over the top would keep the mice out. Use mouse traps down there. You have pets in the house, so poison is out. Have a blessed day stay safe and healthy 🙏🥰👍👌🥰🦅🔔🗽🇺🇸🙏🇺🇸🙏🇺🇸🙏🇺🇸🙏
You've tons of good advice on mice. And about sprouting onions and garlic. I love to dabble in Asian cooking from several different countries and I saw that many of the ladies and gents sprouted their onions and garlic in winter for the green tops. So for the last few years I've always just taken a pot and crammed in as many little cloves of garlic as I can squish in. Let them sprout as they want and clipping the greens for dishes. Same with any onions that start sprouting. Now since I'm using only the tops and not planning on planting just fill the pot with as many that fit. As the sprouts slowly stop growing and I have cut off them for several dinners I just compost the spent ends/roots. That fresh green onion/garlic in winter very yummy. Your onion harvest was and still is beautiful! I only grew about 20lbs of assorted onion/shallots and used the last of them at Christmas. But it was my first year with growing from seed. Ive already doubled down and have little green grass seedlings under the lamps and about to start 3 more batches as my seeds finally arrived. The best shallots from seed are ones I saw on the UK allotment videos. Zebruune it is a chicken leg shallot and even tho I abused the seedling they made wonderful, quite large shallots. I do have some left from my harvest last year but they are going out this year for seed stock as their seeds were a tad pricy. I checked them this past weekend and they are solid and still dormant. Wonderful flavor too. I have also started in soil mix a murasaki purple skinned cream colored flesh sweet potato to try this year. Cross fingers for me.
Y'all are still one of our favorite channels. We always learn so much. Loved seeing your basement pantry...very very cool! Hope yall have a blessed day.
put the sweet potatoes in the onion bags and hang them up in the ceiling (in the middle of the room) by a hook or something, over 1 meter from the floor, mice can jump, but they do not like to be on anything that swings when they move This is how we also store potatoes, etc. In the hen house, food and water also hang up in the chicken height in a chain from the ceiling .. this minimizes the risk of mice and rats in the food and they do not waste as much feed 😁
Mice are a pain. It took us a long to get rid of them. They hate certain strong smells. We buy boxes of Irish spring soap and place them at the bottom of each shelf. I also buy larger bottles of various essential oil. Eucalyptus, peppermint, clove cedar and pine. I literally open the bottles and place them in various corners of the room and shelves. I'll shake them once in a while to release the scent in the room. No problems now after 10+ years of headaches.
My grandmother would leave out a little trail of old Borax flakes/granules and said it kept rodents and bugs away. One neighbour has used peppermint oil in the way you describe and had much better results than with her traps.
A pantry is a constant job, always something that needs doing. A tip for cleaner stored jars, turn them upside down in the boxes. I also keep the plastic around the bottom part of the boxes so they'll last longer, it helps protect them from moisture. Most of mine are the older boxes, when they came in a full box that had lids, those are all duct taped now to help hold them together. If you have an Avon dealer nearby ask them to save their boxes for you, they hold a dozen jars perfectly. I plant all my sprouting produce once it's close to springtime. I like to dehydrate my onions that need using, they last for years and years and are quick to re-hydrate for use. Thanks for sharing!
Instead of stocking up on ground flour maybe think about stocking up on whole wheat berries. We sprout them, dehydrate them and then grind the sprouted dried berries to use in our baking and cooking. So much better for you, and flour tends to go rancid if not used quickly enough. We store them in 5 gallon sealed mylar bags, with oxygen absorbers down in 55 gallon barrels to prolong the wheat berries ability to sprout and protect from mice.
Build potato and onion bins from thick wood - and use galvanized wire mesh graded to prevent rodents from getting through yet able to provide the produce the necessary ventilation required. Keep the bin(s) for onions on the opposite side of the room from the bin(s) for the potatoes -- otherwise, the onions can cause the potatoes to sprout.
@@TheTexasBoys mice cannot chew through metal. Those old type filing cabinets are metal bottom, top and sides with metal drawers. No one wants them much anymore so you can get them free many times.
Scatter a generous amount of Altiod mints in and around your pantry. The mint naturally repels rodents and they dont melt. It's also not poison for your pups. Give it a try!!
Your storage area was pretty great actually, not messy at all. Some years you will have a lot of extra stored food, but it'll keep - it's really hard when you have an abundant crop to not over do with preserving. If you end up with another year of abundance start sharing last year's stuff with family members who appreciate the effort and final product - but you won't know how much you'll have until well into the season.
I had heard that they were discontinued years ago but, I have found them a few times this year at Meijer if you are near Michigan. I grab 2 cases each time I find them.
For empty jar storage: use a box or plastic tote, use a piece of cardboard between layers if more than one layer fits. For ease of what mouth size is in the container: Store wide mouths right side up as these can be washed easy, regular mouth upside down to keep dust and mess out.
I always store my jars upside down so nothing can come and try to live in them! Get a cat! Haven’t had a mouse problem in years, because I got a kitten! My husband was never fond of cats, but patch’s made a big difference in how he felt and we have had a cat ever since! They grow on you!
Thank you! You mentioned that it's time to tap the maple trees. When I heard that, I stopped what I was doing and hit rewind. After quick research, now I am getting ready to tap the maple trees on my property. Last year I seemed to be about a month behind the curve. Thanks to you I am on time to tap the maple trees.
Miss Rachel - I stumbled onto your RUclips channel and it's become quite expensive for me. LOL Seriously though, thank you for the inspiration. I've also checked out other homesteading sites regarding gardening, canning and such topics. This year we will be having starting raised beds in our new home (we've been here 4 years). I've gardened in the past and have met with some success; however, I've only canned convenience foods - pickles, chili, beef stew, chicken stew, pasta sauce. This year I am going to expand my canning to include more of the foods we typically eat - carrots, green beans, tomatoes, etc. Mainly because I'd like to know where my food came from. My husband is going to be re doing part of the basement for food storage and canning supplies so I'm excited and looking forward to a busy yet hopefully productive year. I've also been scouring the area for canning lids but am unable to find them. Fortunately I am able to get jars and will be picking some up each week to add to my collections. Maybe I'll shoot you a picture this fall to see if my pantry looks like a miniature of yours. Looking forward to seeing more of your videos. Patty (from southern Ohio)
My suggestion is to use 5 gallon Mylar bags inside of the tubs with gamma seal lids. I’ve used them for years. I’ve found that the Mylar bags, filled then twisted and pushed down inside the tub helps the food to stay fresher longer. Plus do not stick them very high the ring around the tub will crack from the weight.
Idea for storing sweet potatoes and onions away from mice. Can you put in mesh bags and hang from the rafters so they can’t get to them? Same with squash.or hang those crates from the rafters in mid room?
Hey for storage on your sweet potatoes to keep them from mice. Pick yourself up a new critter terrarium with a steel mesh lid. Works perfect and no mice.
My husband and I also LOVE the sweet onion jam! We served some at a family dinner and then got all kinds of quesitons as to why no one else got any. Once we tasted it, we kept it all for ourselves! LOL
I sew a pumpkin seed onto the tab and put a bit of peanut butter on the seed. Works for several times. Or until one waits for the unlucky mouse to trip it then comes in after but I rarely have that happen. Love my 114 year old house I do but I'm sure there are critter runways behind the walls like in the secrets of Nimh! We use old wide mouth canning jar lids to nail over small entry holes under the house but there just seems to be no way to cover them all
Maybe labor intensive (?) but make wood framed boxes with rabbit wire sides and top and bottom? To keep the mice folks out of them. I bet you have some healthy little guys eating all those delicious yam/sweet potatoes.
Also...peppermint essential oil on cotton balls where you really dont want the mice, eg drawers, in the sweet potatoes, etc. and traps elsewhere. If you also have a rat problem try wiring a dead mouse to the paddle. My rats are carnivores. Found this out by accident when a mouse sprang a rat trap. Not much left when I checked it a couple days later.
I returned some lids I got from Amazon because they were from China. They were in Ball's boxes, but regular and wide were both in the same size boxes, and the lids were very thin made. I'm afraid to order anymore. I did get my Tattler lids today, though :-).
This video made me realize just how old the sweet potatoes, onions, and garlic are once they get to the grocery store ...Geesh! I’ll definitely be growing my own this year if it can last up to 2 years!
I'm glad I am not the only one who has a messy pantry right now. I was supposed to clean it Sunday but being a volunteer EMT disrupted that plan! You've inspired me to clear the basement of my 1800s house and use it next year for more of my root veggies. Thanks to all the folks with ideas for getting rid of mice.
I searched WI And MN Menards, Fleet Farm and Walmart for Wide mouth canning lids last week. LaCross had 24 (too far away) and 1 WalMart in Milwaukee had 9 boxes. I got those. Hope they will get easier to find later in year...
Mint keeps mice away. I grow it all round my house as well as use the essential oil on cotton balls in the nooks and crannies where the mice like to travel, and I haven't had a issue with mice since.
You should try the red onion relish recipe from food in jars. Carmelized red onions with malt vinegar, so so good! My favorite breakfast is a fried egg sandwich with red onion relish. ❤️
Just enjoy watching the both of you. The love and respect you have for one another is very evident. Not a lot of couples have that. I’m also very blessed god bless the both of you.
Rachel, you and Todd are so cute together., It’s so cute how are you both finish each other sentences. There are so many reasons I love watching you guys. I lost my husband a couple years ago and you guys just remind me so much of my husband and I. It brings me so much happiness to watch you guys. I love the gardening, I love the canning, I love the interaction. And also the togetherness you to have it’s it’s so heartbreaking. God bless you guys Linda from Ct
I found the gamma lids at Lowe’s for around $8/ea. Use hardware cloth to protect your goods from mice. It is made from wire but the holes are 1/4”. The holes need to be small enough that those little critters can’t get through.
ooh, about garlic.. you could lactoferment a few heads of peeled cloves. The fermentation turns them bright green, I believe, and you have to keep the opened jar in the fridge, but it does nothing to marr the taste and it will keep for longer and is probably even healthier for you. Check out some video's about lactofermenting garlic here on RUclips. I remember doing this about eight years ago because I'm just a one person household and don't eat that much garlic to begin with, so I would use three cloves of a bulb and then the bulb would get mushy and moldy. But while the fermenting worked like a treat, I still don't eat much garlic (and find garlic powder far easier to use in recipes anyway) so after about a year I just gave up and removed the immaculate but almost-still-full jar from the fridge...
Same deal here in Iowa, NO LIDS!!!! You have an amazing spot with shelves to store all your jars. Thats great. Your basement looks nice and Tidy and clean.
Look for the gamma lids at TSC mine has them for $7.99. If you dont find them ask if they can order them for you. Also my local home depot and lowes sells the gammas for $7.99
I am so grateful that even tho I have been a gardener for 47 years I learn new things all the time..., I tend to keep doing things the same way I always have ...you are teaching me a lot...
Darn 🐁's. Me being relatively new at potatoe and sweet potato growing threw them in like a potato and got beauuuuutiful plants and 1 sweet potato 😆🤣. I have slips growing now.
Have you ever looked into the reusable Tatler lids. You can buy them in bulk like 144 lids in a box on Amazon. I think 80¢ per lid is what the price breaks down to.
Just cleaned my pantry yesterday. Feels good once again to know exactly what we have and what we'll be needing and tidy up, it bring a sense of security. I'm actually excited to start canning again in few months, I can't believe how much canning I did this past summer & fall.
It must have been about a year ago that I first came across your RUclips channel. It was the episode where you were taking inventory in your pantry and deciding how much food to put up in the coming season, and I’ve been an avid follower ever since (I don’t think I’ve ever commented before) Here you are again mid winter in the pantry. It feels like coming full circle in the cycle of your homestead 😍
I have a mouse problem. I resorted to suspending potatoes in a mesh bag. I just put my last 2 sweet potatoes in a grow tote for slips. It's real early, but they were sprouting.
My husband found 9 "cases of Kerr lids, 36 boxes of 12 lids each for $3.79 per box" of regular mouth lids at a grocery store in Centralia, Washington yesterday, 2-21-21. He bought me 1 case. Then today, 2-22-21, he found 2 cases of wide mouth Kerr lids at Walmart in Warrenton, Oregon. He bought only 1 case (24 boxes of 12 lids each for $3.19 per box) so others could get lids. I am saying all this that the manufacturers must be starting to send them out to the stores. Keep looking.
For the mice, I hang mint to dry around the house (pretty too), bay leaves placed in many areas on shelving and in my food grade buckets. Mice love cardboard too.
Most effective mouse trap is a cat. I am cleaning my cold room tomorrow...not looking forward to it either! I just throw my sprouting onions in a Ziploc bag in my freezer and when it's full, I make onion stock. My favourite recipe for carmelized onions is Sweet Onion Jam from Linda's Pantry. Thanks for sharing your experiences.
I got my Gamma lids for $8 from Azure Standard. You might look the up, if you don’t already know about them. They are a co-op that you pick up your delivery once a month. The have wonderful organic fresh and frozen food. They sell grain and flour too.
I just did pantry inventory on what I have. I just learned how to can back in June of last year so this is my first time to see how I use what I've canned. I'm loving my canned potatoes and carrots for quickly putting things together. I also have decided I won't can cabbage again. One thing I will continue to can is MirePoix. I love having carrots, onions and celery canned together because it can easily be used to make so many soups. I of course use it for chicken noodle soup, but I used it to make my broccoli cheese soup and it was so good! I also want to can some more breakfast sausage. I cooked it up as I would to use for biscuits and gravy. It can be put together so quickly now. I've only got 2 jars left and hoping I can find a good deal on it again and get it canned up. I'm still learning though how to use some of the meat that I've canned up. I do use my pork shoulder to make quick bbq sandwiches. So good! Hope you catch that mouse!
I am so lucky I don't have to deal with mice in pantry! My husband put out our 20 taps here in NY, the sap is starting to run. The last couple of years I have had sweet potatoes from 2 years ago sprout in the root cellar, it worked great for my slips!
Yes, your pantry is quite the show!! I always feel like I got a backstage pass when I get to see the pantry! It's gorgeous!!! Thanks for sharing guys! Please show your syrup journey this year (details on the boil down). We're tapping for the first time this year. Just like you guys, Chicago taps in the next week or two. ❤
When we had our last house even tho it was 900 square feet we had a mouse 🐭 problem. It was an old house . One of our lap dogs left his toy out side and it froze a little and he decided to bring the toy in and out jumped a baby mouse and from then boom mice . I think we got rid of them before we moved. I hope. No fun. I still love your house.
I store a crisper full of onions in a crisper drawer and they last until April or may. I go through them in the fall and dehydrate the onions that are double or don't look like they will last. The crisper is the best for onions. Im in Northern Wisconsin
Menards sells white food grade gamma lids and buckets separate for a decent price too.they are solid white. No print. We had a mouse issue and only set traps bc wildlife eat them. Hang potatoes and onions from the rafters or make a box with some hardware cloth.
My local Asian store has an abundance of both sizes of just lids and lids with rings. I buy 2 boxes of each size of lids every time we shop there. I have a ton of rings and jars. I find them all the time at estate sales. Just an idea to check those unusual places.
I live in Utah and they sell them at our grocery store and they're usually about $78 a piece so to buy them on Amazon for that high price seems ridiculous thanks for letting me know that, also you can put bay leaves in with your dry goods to keep the bugs out and the creatures.
I have a thought about protecting your potatoes from the mice. I know however you store them, they need air. What if you used one of those TSC buckets... drilled a bunch of holes in the side and bottom, and then sealed it up with a gamma lid? It would take an investment of time initially (to drill the holes), but they could be cleaned and reused in following years. Just a thought.
I shuffle through my freezer and pantry every few months and I'm always amazed at what items are surviving (me). I'm constantly trying new things to find better ways to store my root crops. Potatoes have been so hard for me - it's such a pain but I'm finally figuring it out. It's not space efficient so technically I'm still trying other options. It never ends.
Potatoes are hard to store successfully for me too. I usually sort the ones that im going to use as seed for the upcoming year and the minute the rest start to show sprouting or shriveling I process into dehydrated hash browns or I cube and blanch and pop in the freezer for quick potatoes O'Brian. I used to can them but almost none of us like them canned.
I read this viewers comment on another channel on how to rid your space of mice/rats . Mix equal parts of fine cornmeal and tiling grout. Put it next to a container of water . It evidently works very quickly in killing rodents.I haven't tried it yet as my rodent problem is outside near the greenhouse and gardening cottage, and it's too wet to do anything out there. Keep this bait away from any and all pets. Good luck!
You taught me about pickled onions and onion jam. I tried them for the first time. Enjoyed some on top of my meatloaf tonight. Great change and delicious.
I would suggest 1/8" hardware cloth with small metal clips to line the outside of the milk crate. Like a basket to set your milk crate in. You could make a lid out of the hardware cloth or plywood to keep droppings out. If you use poison, it is often in the droppings and you don't want that in or touching your food, poison or no poision.
Funny story...I had stored some red onions in a Rubbermaid tub in the garage for the winter and one day I went to get one out to use and there was a hole chewed right through the plastic and some of the onions had been nibbled on. Not sure whether it was mice - or squirrels! I didn't know that they liked onions either, Todd!
I just started to do this. I was gifted a box someone found cleaning out their parent's garage full of jumbled up jars. The lids were rusted and I threw them away once I could get them off, lol. But, the rims had been kept perfect because they were protected! It's great!
For a natural solution put out some mint. Mice don't like the smell of mint. I use mint scented trash bags. My step son put some mint in his kitchen cabinets and it got rid of the mice
![Felix "Unfair" | [Stray Kids : SKZ-PLAYER]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/Oswujxm2Ag0/mqdefault.jpg)
You can find gamma lids at Tractor Supply for under $10 per lid
I watched your making tomato sauce in a roaster and used this method last summer, so easy, I’ll always process tomatoes that way, thank you! We had a furnace guy in our basement and when he saw our home canned goods he commented “wow, I didn’t think people still did this!” Then he pointed to a jar of beans, one of elk and one of tomatoes and said “these three together is the best meal ever”. Needless to say I sent home home with those three jars. Thanks for a fun basement storehouse video.
That is Awesome!!
Remember that every season is different...you may be overloaded with tomatoes now but you may have a blight the next....I preserves what God gives us trusting that he knows more than I do about my future needs...Maybe Todd should build you an overflow for the overflow pantry.
True great perspective
Try Peppermint Oil for mice. My house was abandoned for years before I moved in. So, for the past six years, I've had problems except this year because I poured Peppermint Oil in a Spray bottle with water and every week I spay my cabinets, just the edges of the house and everywhere I had them coming in which was everywhere. I have not had a single mouse this year. And the house smells like Peppermint.
Do you think this would work for cats? There is a stray cat that comes and yowls on our deck. I would never want to hurt it but I’d like it to move along because of the yowling🤨
Iv'e done the same thing inside, abd outside all around my house.
@@cherylirvin3919 the peppermint won't work, but if it's not cold where you live, you could squirt it with a water bottle. Use the stream setting, not the mist. It'll get the hint and it wont harm it.
@@cherylirvin3919 is there a female cat in your home? Have you checked to see if it belongs to neighbors.
It would be sad if someone just dropped a cat off and its just looking to get warm.
Will it let you touch it?
Ive rescued and rehomed probably 20 cats in my lifetime. Not counting the ones I've kept as companions.
Where I live I guess cuz ive got small outbuildings and chickens that its perfect place to abandon cats and the occasional dog.
People treat them like disposable diapers.
If it does belong to neighbors try to live trap and call animal control to get them to be responsible.
My cats usually stay inside except one who, in summer, sneaks out the door for a few hours if the kids aren't looking (should have said hubs here as hes about 75% more likely to oops! Cats out sorry hun than the grandkiddos lol) but im out with flashlight if my furkid is not in my house and its getting dark. But we have great horned owls that roost in a tree out back and there are coyote up the wahzoo here lately. Plus a fox who watches me while I garden. I do love my trail cams.
Hope you don't mind the questions.
And so far I haven't found a cat repellent or my poor abused house plants and herbs would have it.
Winter better end soon or I won't have any lemongrass left. 🤣
Sorry for any typos ive developed cataracts in one eye worse than the other and the double vision is driving bonkers. 5 more weeks til I get my new fangled bionic vision!
@@cherylirvin3919 Light a fire cracker and toss it out there when the cat arrives. After a while it will stop coming around. We do this for coons and coyotes. It works for us.
Store your jars upside down in your boxes. It will keep dust and critters out. Easier to wash at canning time.
Our basement in the old farm house was damp, so my boxes would get musty. I finally made a system of storing my canned goods on one side of my shelves and empty jars on the opposite side. The next year I swap sides. Which ment I moved any leftover goods over and rotated the old out first. All tomatoes on one shelf and beans on another, etc.
Maybe screen wire attached all around your potatoes and over the top would keep the mice out. Use mouse traps down there. You have pets in the house, so poison is out.
Have a blessed day stay safe and healthy 🙏🥰👍👌🥰🦅🔔🗽🇺🇸🙏🇺🇸🙏🇺🇸🙏🇺🇸🙏
You've tons of good advice on mice.
And about sprouting onions and garlic. I love to dabble in Asian cooking from several different countries and I saw that many of the ladies and gents sprouted their onions and garlic in winter for the green tops.
So for the last few years I've always just taken a pot and crammed in as many little cloves of garlic as I can squish in. Let them sprout as they want and clipping the greens for dishes. Same with any onions that start sprouting.
Now since I'm using only the tops and not planning on planting just fill the pot with as many that fit. As the sprouts slowly stop growing and I have cut off them for several dinners I just compost the spent ends/roots.
That fresh green onion/garlic in winter very yummy.
Your onion harvest was and still is beautiful! I only grew about 20lbs of assorted onion/shallots and used the last of them at Christmas. But it was my first year with growing from seed. Ive already doubled down and have little green grass seedlings under the lamps and about to start 3 more batches as my seeds finally arrived.
The best shallots from seed are ones I saw on the UK allotment videos. Zebruune it is a chicken leg shallot and even tho I abused the seedling they made wonderful, quite large shallots.
I do have some left from my harvest last year but they are going out this year for seed stock as their seeds were a tad pricy. I checked them this past weekend and they are solid and still dormant. Wonderful flavor too.
I have also started in soil mix a murasaki purple skinned cream colored flesh sweet potato to try this year. Cross fingers for me.
You can use the tomato sauce to make a quick tomato soup. Serve with grilled cheese. It's an easy meal.
Y'all are still one of our favorite channels. We always learn so much. Loved seeing your basement pantry...very very cool! Hope yall have a blessed day.
Thanks friends! We just watched your busy pipe fun down there. Hopefully all is recovering well and y'all handled it like champs
put the sweet potatoes in the onion bags and hang them up in the ceiling (in the middle of the room) by a hook or something, over 1 meter from the floor, mice can jump, but they do not like to be on anything that swings when they move This is how we also store potatoes, etc. In the hen house, food and water also hang up in the chicken height in a chain from the ceiling .. this minimizes the risk of mice and rats in the food and they do not waste as much feed 😁
Moved to South Carolina a few years back and I sorely miss my northern basement!!!😭😭
Mice are a pain. It took us a long to get rid of them. They hate certain strong smells. We buy boxes of Irish spring soap and place them at the bottom of each shelf. I also buy larger bottles of various essential oil. Eucalyptus, peppermint, clove cedar and pine. I literally open the bottles and place them in various corners of the room and shelves. I'll shake them once in a while to release the scent in the room. No problems now after 10+ years of headaches.
Irish Spring soap did the trick for us too. My dad also puts it in his RV when it sits for a while...no critters. 🐀
My grandmother would leave out a little trail of old Borax flakes/granules and said it kept rodents and bugs away. One neighbour has used peppermint oil in the way you describe and had much better results than with her traps.
A pantry is a constant job, always something that needs doing. A tip for cleaner stored jars, turn them upside down in the boxes. I also keep the plastic around the bottom part of the boxes so they'll last longer, it helps protect them from moisture. Most of mine are the older boxes, when they came in a full box that had lids, those are all duct taped now to help hold them together. If you have an Avon dealer nearby ask them to save their boxes for you, they hold a dozen jars perfectly. I plant all my sprouting produce once it's close to springtime. I like to dehydrate my onions that need using, they last for years and years and are quick to re-hydrate for use. Thanks for sharing!
Instead of stocking up on ground flour maybe think about stocking up on whole wheat berries. We sprout them, dehydrate them and then grind the sprouted dried berries to use in our baking and cooking. So much better for you, and flour tends to go rancid if not used quickly enough. We store them in 5 gallon sealed mylar bags, with oxygen absorbers down in 55 gallon barrels to prolong the wheat berries ability to sprout and protect from mice.
Build potato and onion bins from thick wood - and use galvanized wire mesh graded to prevent rodents from getting through yet able to provide the produce the necessary ventilation required.
Keep the bin(s) for onions on the opposite side of the room from the bin(s) for the potatoes -- otherwise, the onions can cause the potatoes to sprout.
Get yourself a free filing cabinet or a metal stationery cabinet from fb marketplace. Keeps the rats and mice away from your produce.
That’s a great idea!
Awesome idea
Splain... Please Lucy🤔
@@TheTexasBoys mice cannot chew through metal. Those old type filing cabinets are metal bottom, top and sides with metal drawers. No one wants them much anymore so you can get them free many times.
Scatter a generous amount of Altiod mints in and around your pantry. The mint naturally repels rodents and they dont melt. It's also not poison for your pups. Give it a try!!
Your storage area was pretty great actually, not messy at all. Some years you will have a lot of extra stored food, but it'll keep - it's really hard when you have an abundant crop to not over do with preserving. If you end up with another year of abundance start sharing last year's stuff with family members who appreciate the effort and final product - but you won't know how much you'll have until well into the season.
If you’re going to give gifts anyway, something homemade or home canned is always a special gift. 🦋
Wow! I haven't seen 24 oz jars in a couple of years!
I had heard that they were discontinued years ago but, I have found them a few times this year at Meijer if you are near Michigan. I grab 2 cases each time I find them.
You need a work table and a couple of chairs down in your pantry make organizing so much easier.
Was thinking Todd could set up a motion activated trail camera, too! If only for a few seconds of content to update us on #Mousegate. 😀 😉👍🏻
For empty jar storage: use a box or plastic tote, use a piece of cardboard between layers if more than one layer fits.
For ease of what mouth size is in the container: Store wide mouths right side up as these can be washed easy, regular mouth upside down to keep dust and mess out.
TSC have them for $8.00 here. Gamma lids
TSC carries Gamma lids too! They are $8.99
You could take the sweet potatoes and store them hanging in the mesh bags.
You beat me to it by 21 minutes lol.
Difficult to store small potatoes in our Indiana root cellar. The large potatoes do a lot better. But I'm with you: canning potatoes is the best!
I always store my jars upside down so nothing can come and try to live in them! Get a cat! Haven’t had a mouse problem in years, because I got a kitten! My husband was never fond of cats, but patch’s made a big difference in how he felt and we have had a cat ever since! They grow on you!
I have 4, they do their job well!
Mouse trap: 5 gallon bucket filled 1/3 full smear peanut butter above the water level. Next day you’ll have that mouse and his siblings.
Great idea! Do you make a ramp for them to climb up on? I would think that it would be necessary 🤔
Thank you! You mentioned that it's time to tap the maple trees. When I heard that, I stopped what I was doing and hit rewind. After quick research, now I am getting ready to tap the maple trees on my property. Last year I seemed to be about a month behind the curve. Thanks to you I am on time to tap the maple trees.
Miss Rachel - I stumbled onto your RUclips channel and it's become quite expensive for me. LOL Seriously though, thank you for the inspiration. I've also checked out other homesteading sites regarding gardening, canning and such topics. This year we will be having starting raised beds in our new home (we've been here 4 years). I've gardened in the past and have met with some success; however, I've only canned convenience foods - pickles, chili, beef stew, chicken stew, pasta sauce. This year I am going to expand my canning to include more of the foods we typically eat - carrots, green beans, tomatoes, etc. Mainly because I'd like to know where my food came from. My husband is going to be re doing part of the basement for food storage and canning supplies so I'm excited and looking forward to a busy yet hopefully productive year. I've also been scouring the area for canning lids but am unable to find them. Fortunately I am able to get jars and will be picking some up each week to add to my collections. Maybe I'll shoot you a picture this fall to see if my pantry looks like a miniature of yours. Looking forward to seeing more of your videos. Patty (from southern Ohio)
My suggestion is to use 5 gallon Mylar bags inside of the tubs with gamma seal lids. I’ve used them for years. I’ve found that the Mylar bags, filled then twisted and pushed down inside the tub helps the food to stay fresher longer. Plus do not stick them very high the ring around the tub will crack from the weight.
Idea for storing sweet potatoes and onions away from mice. Can you put in mesh bags and hang from the rafters so they can’t get to them? Same with squash.or hang those crates from the rafters in mid room?
Hey for storage on your sweet potatoes to keep them from mice. Pick yourself up a new critter terrarium with a steel mesh lid. Works perfect and no mice.
My husband and I also LOVE the sweet onion jam! We served some at a family dinner and then got all kinds of quesitons as to why no one else got any. Once we tasted it, we kept it all for ourselves! LOL
We had a mouse in our shed eating the sweet potatoes. We super glued a peanut to a trap and caught it in less than a day. Sweet potatoes saved!
I sew a pumpkin seed onto the tab and put a bit of peanut butter on the seed. Works for several times. Or until one waits for the unlucky mouse to trip it then comes in after but I rarely have that happen.
Love my 114 year old house I do but I'm sure there are critter runways behind the walls like in the secrets of Nimh!
We use old wide mouth canning jar lids to nail over small entry holes under the house but there just seems to be no way to cover them all
I cant believe how much I learn from each video you all post. Thank you so much for all your hard work to help us learn and enjoy
Funny... it must be a day to do pantry organizing and cleaning. My husband and I spent all day doing just that. And tonight it looks fantastic! ❤️
Maybe labor intensive (?) but make wood framed boxes with rabbit wire sides and top and bottom? To keep the mice folks out of them. I bet you have some healthy little guys eating all those delicious yam/sweet potatoes.
Also...peppermint essential oil on cotton balls where you really dont want the mice, eg drawers, in the sweet potatoes, etc. and traps elsewhere. If you also have a rat problem try wiring a dead mouse to the paddle. My rats are carnivores. Found this out by accident when a mouse sprang a rat trap. Not much left when I checked it a couple days later.
Your pantry is a thing of beauty! Get the mice quickly because there is NEVER just one mouse😬
I returned some lids I got from Amazon because they were from China. They were in Ball's boxes, but regular and wide were both in the same size boxes, and the lids were very thin made. I'm afraid to order anymore. I did get my Tattler lids today, though :-).
This video made me realize just how old the sweet potatoes, onions, and garlic are once they get to the grocery store ...Geesh! I’ll definitely be growing my own this year if it can last up to 2 years!
I have root cellar envy 😂. Amazing setup you guys have. Thanks for sharing!
I'm glad I am not the only one who has a messy pantry right now. I was supposed to clean it Sunday but being a volunteer EMT disrupted that plan! You've inspired me to clear the basement of my 1800s house and use it next year for more of my root veggies. Thanks to all the folks with ideas for getting rid of mice.
My Father-in-law raised a lot of sweet potatoes he also wrapped them in newspapers and kept in a cool place they kept for years
You should try dehydrating your red onions! I dehydrated red onions for the first time recently, and they rehydrate so well!
I Lso out bands back on empty jars, to stop any damage to jars and it's easier to store bands
I searched WI And MN Menards, Fleet Farm and Walmart for Wide mouth canning lids last week. LaCross had 24 (too far away) and 1 WalMart in Milwaukee had 9 boxes. I got those. Hope they will get easier to find later in year...
Mint keeps mice away. I grow it all round my house as well as use the essential oil on cotton balls in the nooks and crannies where the mice like to travel, and I haven't had a issue with mice since.
I scored wide mouth lids today at Ace🙌🏻. I wish a had a basement-finding places to store/stash things is challenging!!!
You should try the red onion relish recipe from food in jars. Carmelized red onions with malt vinegar, so so good! My favorite breakfast is a fried egg sandwich with red onion relish. ❤️
Just enjoy watching the both of you. The love and respect you have for one another is very evident. Not a lot of couples have that. I’m also very blessed god bless the both of you.
Rachel, you and Todd are so cute together., It’s so cute how are you both finish each other sentences.
There are so many reasons I love watching you guys. I lost my husband a couple years ago and you guys just remind me so much of my husband and I. It brings me so much happiness to watch you guys. I love the gardening, I love the canning, I love the interaction. And also the togetherness you to have it’s it’s so heartbreaking. God bless you guys
Linda from Ct
I pray you are reminded with joyful memories of the love you shared
I found the gamma lids at Lowe’s for around $8/ea. Use hardware cloth to protect your goods from mice. It is made from wire but the holes are 1/4”. The holes need to be small enough that those little critters can’t get through.
ooh, about garlic.. you could lactoferment a few heads of peeled cloves. The fermentation turns them bright green, I believe, and you have to keep the opened jar in the fridge, but it does nothing to marr the taste and it will keep for longer and is probably even healthier for you. Check out some video's about lactofermenting garlic here on RUclips. I remember doing this about eight years ago because I'm just a one person household and don't eat that much garlic to begin with, so I would use three cloves of a bulb and then the bulb would get mushy and moldy. But while the fermenting worked like a treat, I still don't eat much garlic (and find garlic powder far easier to use in recipes anyway) so after about a year I just gave up and removed the immaculate but almost-still-full jar from the fridge...
Same deal here in Iowa, NO LIDS!!!! You have an amazing spot with shelves to store all your jars. Thats great. Your basement looks nice and Tidy and clean.
Look for the gamma lids at TSC mine has them for $7.99. If you dont find them ask if they can order them for you. Also my local home depot and lowes sells the gammas for $7.99
I got more at TSC yesterday for $8.99 each. Not fair! 🤣🤣🤣
I store my clean jars with the used lid on upside-down and the ring. It keeps the jar clean and lets the moisture our.
I am so grateful that even tho I have been a gardener for 47 years I learn new things all the time..., I tend to keep doing things the same way I always have ...you are teaching me a lot...
Darn 🐁's. Me being relatively new at potatoe and sweet potato growing threw them in like a potato and got beauuuuutiful plants and 1 sweet potato 😆🤣. I have slips growing now.
Have you ever looked into the reusable Tatler lids. You can buy them in bulk like 144 lids in a box on Amazon. I think 80¢ per lid is what the price breaks down to.
I found the gamma lids cheap at Menards!
Just cleaned my pantry yesterday. Feels good once again to know exactly what we have and what we'll be needing and tidy up, it bring a sense of security. I'm actually excited to start canning again in few months, I can't believe how much canning I did this past summer & fall.
Build a heavy gauge wire mesh box with a latched lid for sweet potato storage.
It must have been about a year ago that I first came across your RUclips channel. It was the episode where you were taking inventory in your pantry and deciding how much food to put up in the coming season, and I’ve been an avid follower ever since (I don’t think I’ve ever commented before) Here you are again mid winter in the pantry. It feels like coming full circle in the cycle of your homestead 😍
I have a mouse problem. I resorted to suspending potatoes in a mesh bag. I just put my last 2 sweet potatoes in a grow tote for slips. It's real early, but they were sprouting.
My husband found 9 "cases of Kerr lids, 36 boxes of 12 lids each for $3.79 per box" of regular mouth lids at a grocery store in Centralia, Washington yesterday, 2-21-21. He bought me 1 case. Then today, 2-22-21, he found 2 cases of wide mouth Kerr lids at Walmart in Warrenton, Oregon. He bought only 1 case (24 boxes of 12 lids each for $3.19 per box) so others could get lids. I am saying all this that the manufacturers must be starting to send them out to the stores. Keep looking.
For the mice, I hang mint to dry around the house (pretty too), bay leaves placed in many areas on shelving and in my food grade buckets. Mice love cardboard too.
For the sweet potatoes make a hardware cloth box and store them in that.
We love dry canning sweet potatoes. Then you can just put them in the oven and reheat them and they’re like roasted potatoes!
I have found the cheapest gamma lids at Lowe’s. Order online and have delivered to home at no extra cost. Around $7 each.
Most effective mouse trap is a cat. I am cleaning my cold room tomorrow...not looking forward to it either! I just throw my sprouting onions in a Ziploc bag in my freezer and when it's full, I make onion stock. My favourite recipe for carmelized onions is Sweet Onion Jam from Linda's Pantry. Thanks for sharing your experiences.
I recommend taking off a few layers of onion shells, it won't break that much if You do that.
I bought mainstay lids at Walmart, they had 2 boxes, 50 % fail rate:)
Slice your garlic, dehydrate them then grind and make your own garlic powder.
I got my Gamma lids for $8 from Azure Standard. You might look the up, if you don’t already know about them. They are a co-op that you pick up your delivery once a month. The have wonderful organic fresh and frozen food. They sell grain and flour too.
If you are still looking for lids. I ordered some wide mouth lids and rings from Filmore Containers. This was 2.weeks ago. Good luck with your search.
I just did pantry inventory on what I have. I just learned how to can back in June of last year so this is my first time to see how I use what I've canned. I'm loving my canned potatoes and carrots for quickly putting things together. I also have decided I won't can cabbage again. One thing I will continue to can is MirePoix. I love having carrots, onions and celery canned together because it can easily be used to make so many soups. I of course use it for chicken noodle soup, but I used it to make my broccoli cheese soup and it was so good! I also want to can some more breakfast sausage. I cooked it up as I would to use for biscuits and gravy. It can be put together so quickly now. I've only got 2 jars left and hoping I can find a good deal on it again and get it canned up. I'm still learning though how to use some of the meat that I've canned up. I do use my pork shoulder to make quick bbq sandwiches. So good! Hope you catch that mouse!
I am so lucky I don't have to deal with mice in pantry! My husband put out our 20 taps here in NY, the sap is starting to run. The last couple of years I have had sweet potatoes from 2 years ago sprout in the root cellar, it worked great for my slips!
Yes, your pantry is quite the show!! I always feel like I got a backstage pass when I get to see the pantry! It's gorgeous!!! Thanks for sharing guys! Please show your syrup journey this year (details on the boil down). We're tapping for the first time this year. Just like you guys, Chicago taps in the next week or two. ❤
When we had our last house even tho it was 900 square feet we had a mouse 🐭 problem. It was an old house . One of our lap dogs left his toy out side and it froze a little and he decided to bring the toy in and out jumped a baby mouse and from then boom mice . I think we got rid of them before we moved. I hope.
No fun. I still love your house.
I store a crisper full of onions in a crisper drawer and they last until April or may. I go through them in the fall and dehydrate the onions that are double or don't look like they will last. The crisper is the best for onions. Im in Northern Wisconsin
Empty jars stay cleaner if they're stored upside down, or stored with a used lid & loose ring.
Menards sells white food grade gamma lids and buckets separate for a decent price too.they are solid white. No print. We had a mouse issue and only set traps bc wildlife eat them. Hang potatoes and onions from the rafters or make a box with some hardware cloth.
Just so y’all know.... watching your channel is inspiring
My local Asian store has an abundance of both sizes of just lids and lids with rings. I buy 2 boxes of each size of lids every time we shop there. I have a ton of rings and jars. I find them all the time at estate sales. Just an idea to check those unusual places.
I live in Utah and they sell them at our grocery store and they're usually about $78 a piece so to buy them on Amazon for that high price seems ridiculous thanks for letting me know that, also you can put bay leaves in with your dry goods to keep the bugs out and the creatures.
I have a thought about protecting your potatoes from the mice. I know however you store them, they need air. What if you used one of those TSC buckets... drilled a bunch of holes in the side and bottom, and then sealed it up with a gamma lid?
It would take an investment of time initially (to drill the holes), but they could be cleaned and reused in following years.
Just a thought.
Monday Funday here, dehydrator going, bread baking and both pantry clean out , organization!!!
I shuffle through my freezer and pantry every few months and I'm always amazed at what items are surviving (me). I'm constantly trying new things to find better ways to store my root crops. Potatoes have been so hard for me - it's such a pain but I'm finally figuring it out. It's not space efficient so technically I'm still trying other options. It never ends.
Potatoes are hard to store successfully for me too.
I usually sort the ones that im going to use as seed for the upcoming year and the minute the rest start to show sprouting or shriveling I process into dehydrated hash browns or I cube and blanch and pop in the freezer for quick potatoes O'Brian.
I used to can them but almost none of us like them canned.
I read this viewers comment on another channel on how to rid your space of mice/rats . Mix equal parts of fine cornmeal and tiling grout. Put it next to a container of water . It evidently works very quickly in killing rodents.I haven't tried it yet as my rodent problem is outside near the greenhouse and gardening cottage, and it's too wet to do anything out there. Keep this bait away from any and all pets. Good luck!
I found wide mouth lids at Walmart (in-store, not pick up) last week. I am in Va.
You taught me about pickled onions and onion jam. I tried them for the first time. Enjoyed some on top of my meatloaf tonight. Great change and delicious.
I would suggest 1/8" hardware cloth with small metal clips to line the outside of the milk crate. Like a basket to set your milk crate in. You could make a lid out of the hardware cloth or plywood to keep droppings out. If you use poison, it is often in the droppings and you don't want that in or touching your food, poison or no poision.
Funny story...I had stored some red onions in a Rubbermaid tub in the garage for the winter and one day I went to get one out to use and there was a hole chewed right through the plastic and some of the onions had been nibbled on. Not sure whether it was mice - or squirrels! I didn't know that they liked onions either, Todd!
You can dehydrate and powder the garlic. Fermented homestead does amazing videos on that and onions
FYI I store my jars back with the rings on and jar turned upside down to protect the jars from possible chipping.
I just started to do this.
I was gifted a box someone found cleaning out their parent's garage full of jumbled up jars. The lids were rusted and I threw them away once I could get them off, lol. But, the rims had been kept perfect because they were protected! It's great!
You could dehydrate the sweet potatoes. Love your channel, you all have so much great information. Thank you.
thats where i am now i just need lids but i cant find them so anytime i want to can i have to buy more jars i dont need the jars though i need lids
For the mice try using One Bite, break it up mix with dry oatmeal.
For a natural solution put out some mint. Mice don't like the smell of mint. I use mint scented trash bags. My step son put some mint in his kitchen cabinets and it got rid of the mice
I think I'll try EO on cotton
@@1870s I have heard other people do that and it helped