The Thrifted Planter

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What to do with your garlic harvest

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It’s garlic harvesting season and you’ve got more than you know what to do with! I completely understand. Here are my ways of using my garlic harvest.

This blog post may contain affiliate links. I may earn a small commission to fund my houseplant habit if you use these links to make a purchase. You will not be charged extra, and you’ll keep me in the garden. It’s a win for everyone, really.

garlic harvest

Cure and store it

Garlic has a long shelf life based on variety. Curing and storing until needed is the most common way to use your garlic. Just be sure your garlic is fully cured before storage and you’ll be able to utilize those bulbs until your next harvest.

To learn how to cure your garlic bulbs read this post

Make Garlic Powder or Garlic Salt

If you’ve got a dehydrator or oven you can dry garlic cloves and grind them into a powder. Store in a mason jar and use as needed. Here’s the grinder I use and I love it!

garlic harvest

Use it right away

You don’t have to wait for your freshly pulled garlic to cure in order to use it. You can cook with it right away!

Freeze it

You can freeze peeled cloves of garlic in airtight zip locks or food storage containers. They lose their crisp during the freezing process but are still good to use.

garlic in white ceramic plate

Share it

If you feel like you have way more than you’ll need then share with family, friends, neighbors or coworkers. Everyone loves fresh garlic!

No matter what you do there’s nothing like having home grown garlic at your fingertips.

Happy Gardening

Ciearra

Cats and Houseplants: How to Make it Work

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I’m just going to say it… I love cats but they are crazy and some days hard to read. Huhhhh that felt good. Don’t @ me I’ve only been a cat owner for 23 months and have already acquired 4 cats! Cats are like potato chips you can’t just have one… any hoo! How do you keep your plants safe from your cat babies? I’ll give you my suggestions and I say suggestions because every cat is different. They all have different quirks and you will need to adjust for that. Here are five things that I do personally to keep my plants safe from my babies.

three cats on wooden flooring. Cats and Houseplants
Cats and Houseplants Photo by cottonbro on Pexels.com

This blog post may contain affiliate links. I may earn a small commission to fund my houseplant habit if you use these links to make a purchase. You will not be charged extra, and you’ll keep me in the garden. It’s a win for everyone, really.

1. Fill the space

Let’s say you have a windowsill you want to put plants in. Fill that space completely. No ledge space to jump on. If cats think there’s room they will take advantage of that and knock a few things down to make more space. They are jerks that way.

2. Make spaces off limits

If you live in an open floor plan I am sorry this won’t work for you unless you put plants in a bedroom or bathroom. So I live in an old house where every room has a door except the kitchen. If you have the ability to close the doors, close the doors haha. We open the doors during the day when we can keep watch. Meaning we are in and out of the rooms all day. At night we close them so that there are no midnight mishaps. If you do not have doors then I would suggest trying Scat cans to create a barrier.

gray tabby cat lying on white surface
Photo by Inge Wallumrød on Pexels.com

3. Scat cans of air.

Ssscat cans have been so helpful for us. We set these cans in any doorway we don’t want the cats to enter. Or on kitchen counters/ tables we don’t want them on. They spray a puff of air that isn’t harmful when anything crosses the sensor. My cats respect the puff and when they see the cans they stay back.

To checkout the Ssscat cans go here!

4. Use their keen sense of smell against them

My cats hate citrus smells. They will back away if I put and orange, lemon or lime anywhere near them. So I tested this method last year when I was starting elephant ear bulbs indoors. I had huge pots of soil sitting out that I didn’t want to get mistaken for a litter box. So I sliced up lemons and laid them on the top of the soil. I replaced them every few days and those pots of soil remained untouched.

I also love to buy cinnamon scented pine cones during the holidays to put in pots or leave in areas I don’t want the cats.

sliced orange fruits
Photo by freestocks.org on Pexels.com

5. Pine cones, sea shells or foil balls

If you have larger pots I recommend adding pine cones or medium to large sea shells to the surface of the soil. Your kitties will not like walking on these items. Thus keeping them out of your pots. Some cats don’t like walking on foil and if you lightly crumple foil into a ball you can add those to the soil surface.

Photo by Visually Us on Pexels.com

6. Create special spaces.

This is probably the most important tip of all. Create spaces for your cats to lounge, scratch, bird watch and play. Sharing spaces with your pets doesn’t have to be stressful. Most cats grow to know what they shouldn’t do and more often than not they are well behaved. Mishaps happen and it’s ok. We can expect them to think like we do.

orange cat sleeping on white bed. Cats and Houseplants
Photo by Александар Цветановић on Pexels.com

7. Get creative with styling your plants

Design your spaces with your cats in mind. Add hooks to the ceilings or walls for hanging plants or add floating shelves to keep your plant babies away from your fur babies

photo of green snake plant
Photo by Wendy Wei on Pexels.com

Beware that some plants are not cat friendly and if ingested or even just bitten can make your cat(s) very sick or even kill them. Check out this post for cat safe plants.

brown wooden wall mounted rack
Photo by cottonbro on Pexels.com

8. Grow Them their own plants

Grow your babies their own plants! You can grow them Cat grass or Nat Nip to nibble on

Cat Grass

Aside from all the tips above we consistently correct bad behavior by using certain tones of voice saying no. We also praise them with a higher pitch voice when they listen. Providing spaces that they are able to climb and scratch and look out of the window will help keep them out of trouble. Also just getting their extra energy out with play time can help. Again cats are weird so if there is a particular plant that they are favoring it might be a good idea to hang that one from the ceiling. I hope some of these tips helps!

Happy Gardening!

Ciearra

5 Things You Can Do To Start Homesteading

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Self-sufficiency is something many of us are yearning for, but what does that mean? Does that mean you have 40 acres, farm animals, and you make your own clothes? It can, but homesteading covers many activities, and you don’t need acres of land, or to raise chickens, or make your own soap to be considered a homesteader.

The beauty of homesteading is that you can you can gradually incorporate homesteading activities into your life as you feel comfortable. It doesn’t mean you have to operate a farm or live off the grid, or even be 100% self-sufficient; instead, you can take incremental steps towards more ownership in the items and products you use.

wood apple glass farm
Photo by Hannah Grapp on Pexels.com

1. Start Composting

This can seem like a big task, but I want to encourage you that it’s only as hard as you make it. There are many different composters on the market, but you can make one with simply a storage bin. Add equal parts fresh fruit and veggie scraps to browns. The browns are things like un-died cardboard and dried leaves.

2. Start a Garden

For those new to gardening, pick 2 to 3 vegetables that you like to eat. You can buy starts from a store or you can start them on your own from seed. Starting small with a few plants helps keep you from being overwhelmed, as the garden can get out of control very quickly for beginners.

For tips to help get your garden started check out this post

3. Consider Livestock or Buy from Local Farmers

If you have the time, space, and interest, consider keeping chickens or other livestock. Fresh eggs taste much better than store bought. If this isn’t something you are interested in, you can buy fresh eggs or meat from local farmers or homesteaders.

basket filled with poultry eggs
Photo by Rodolfo Clix on Pexels.com

4. Plan

Planning before you start is probably a good idea. You’ll want to decide what kind of homesteader you want to be. You can go all in, or you can target specific changes that can accommodate your lifestyle.

5. Preserve

Preserving is a big part of homesteading. Preserving can look like many things. You could be canning your harvests, drying and storing herbs, freezing tomatoes, the list goes on and on! You get to decide how to make your harvest last through the year.

food wood vintage farm
Photo by Dale Jackson on Pexels.com

When your first starting out its best to plan and start small. Gradually increasing as you feel comfortable year after year. The more you grow your own food or meet your needs on your own the more confident you will be.

Happy Gardening

Ciearra

4 Lemon Scented Herbs you need in your Garden

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photo of lime fruits and thyme
Photo by Nadi Lindsay on Pexels.com

I love the smell of lemon. It smells so fresh and clean and screams spring. Every year I make a point to grow lemon scented herbs in my garden. Mainly for smelling but we also dry and store them for cooking and tea. Here are my favorite herbs to grow for the lemony scent.

Lemon Thyme

Lemon Basil

Lemon Balm

Lemon Grass

All of these lemon scented herbs are easy to grow from seed. Start them 4-6 weeks before your first frost date and you’ll be harvesting them before you know it! Or you can find them in many of the greenhouses and big box stores.

Drying herbs for storage can be a daunting task but it’s so easy and pretty satisfying once they are dry. You can air dry herbs by hanging them in a shady space outdoors or you can hang them indoor in a space that gets good airflow. You can also put them in a dehydrator or your oven to dry.

To store your fresh dried herbs you will want to use an airtight container like a mason jar or any other container with a lid.

Happy Gardening

Ciearra

12 best places to buy seeds online

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Its seed shopping season! Actually all year long is seed shopping season but we buy the bulk of our seeds between January and May. I buy most of my basic seeds in store but when I want something exotic or not available in stores I scour the internet for what I need. Here are 12 of my favorite places to buy seeds online.

brown pots with white seeds
Photo by Karolina Grabowska on Pexels.com

This blog post may contain affiliate links. I may earn a small commission to fund my plant habit if you use these links to make a purchase. You will not be charged extra, and you’ll keep me in the garden. It’s a win for everyone, really.

1. Seedville USA

I absolutely love Seedville USA! They have a website and also sell through Etsy. They have a HUGE collection of seeds ranging from Vegetables to Annuals to Perennials. Their prices and shipping fees are fair and I’ve always had a great experience shopping with this company.

2. Bakers Creek Heirloom Seeds

You could spend your whole paycheck on this website. The Bakers Creek Seeds site is so beautiful each photo so vivid it’s hard not to put everything in your cart. They offer so many unique seeds for your home garden. With instructions on every seed packet you will not go wrong buying from this site and what’s even better is that they are offering free shipping within the USA!

3. Seed Savers Exchange

Seed Savers Exchange is a Non Profit dedicated to protecting biodiversity and heirloom seed varieties. A mission we should all be aware of as plant lovers. Many of their seeds come with a back story of where the seed came from. With many seeds being passed down through generations it’s exciting to grow something with a tangible history.

4. Burpee Seeds

Burpee Seeds is a well known Seed company. You’ve seen them in your big box stores all over the country. I buy a TON of Burpee Seeds in store and have always had success germinating their seeds. The website carries tons of seeds, live plants, supplies and even a collection of houseplants! This is a great place to buy seeds online.

5. Etsy

Etsy has just about everything! I won’t name any specific shops because there are too many but if you go on Etsy and type in the kind of seed your looking for you will find some great shops. There are a wide variety of prices and shipping costs so be aware of that. I have had many good experiences buying seeds and plants online from Etsy.

6. Park Seed

Park Seed is another great site to buy seeds online, with a wide variety of seeds including organic seed, Live plants and products to get your garden off to a great start! I love reading the about page and learning how Park Seed became the company it is today.

7. Seeds Now!

Seeds Now! is a new to me company. I haven’t shopped there yet but I felt they were worth mentioning because they have pretty great prices. They are on my list of companies to try this year.

8. Amazon

What doesn’t Amazon sell? If i’m trying to find seeds that I cannot find anywhere else I’ll often check Amazon. You’d be surprise at what they have. Now I have been burned ordering from them in the past. I ordered one seed and upon growing it noticed it’s not what I ordered. Read the reviews before placing your order but this is a decent resource for seeds.

9. Harris Seeds

Harris Seeds has a great selection of seeds for your gardening needs. What I love most is that Harris offers more than just seeds. You can also find bubs and live plants on their website.

10. Territorial Seed Company

Territorial Seed Company is family owned and offers many varieties of seeds. They have open pollinated seeds, Garlic bulbs, Fruit trees, organic options the list goes on.

11. Floret Flower

Floret Flower is great for the budding flower farmer or the home gardener looking to create a cutting garden in their space. With so many beautiful varieties to choose from you will spend a ton of money on this site.

12. MIgardener

MIgardener has a pretty great seed selection and at great prices! I buy seeds from them every year and what’s even better they have a youtube channel with tons of vegetable gardening videos.

assorted flowers photo

No matter where you order or if you buy in store cheers to a new year and garden season!

Happy Gardening

Ciearra

Turmeric Powder | How to make your own

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This blog post may contain affiliate links. I may earn a small commission to fund my houseplant habit if you use these links to make a purchase. You will not be charged extra, and you’ll keep me in the garden. It’s a win for everyone, really.

Turmeric is a spice used in many food dishes today. It comes from the root of the Cucuma longa plant, which is part of the Ginger family. It is a superfood with medicinal properties and worth adding to your spice cabinet. One of the prominent active ingredients is Curcumi, which is said to have strong anti-inflammatory properties. It also shows promise in helping with depression. There are so many wonderful benefits of adding Turmeric to your diet that it’s a no brainer! To learn more about the benefits of Curcumin, check out this article.

Let me teach you how easy it is to make your own Turmeric powder.

Turmeric Roots make easy Turmeric powder
Turmeric Rhizomes

List:

Gloves

Sharp Knife

Cutting Board

Grinder or Mortar & Pestal

Air-Tight Container

Dehydrator or Oven

Buy Turmeric

I chose to buy organic Turmeric, but feel free to purchase what you have access to nearby.

Clean your Turmeric

I gave my Turmeric a good rinse in the sink to make sure there wasn’t any dirt or debris. You don’t need to peel your Turmeric. You will dry and grind up the skin with the root.

Using your cutting board and knife, slice your Turmeric roots into round slices. You can also slice them lengthwise. No matter how you slice them be sure they are not to thick. Be sure to put your gloves on before you begin slicing. Turmeric will temporarily stain your fingers, cutting board and clothing.

Turmeric in dehydrator

Oven Instructions:

Lay your sliced Turmeric out on a parchment lined pan. Set your oven to 200 degrees. You will need to check your Turmeric every 30 mins making sure it’s drying. Once your pieces have reduced in size and are hard, they are done.

Dehydrator Instructions:

If you are using a dehydrator, you will want to follow the directions for drying. My dehydrator took about 12 hours to dry. I checked the slices every three hours to make sure they were drying properly.

Dried Turmeric

Grind:

When your Turmeric has dried, it’s grinding time! I ground my Turmeric using this grinder from Amazon. If you prefer Mortar & Pestle, it’ll require more effort but it’s always worth it.

Grinding Turmeric Yellow nail from not wearing gloves

Storage:

Now that you’ve made Turmeric powder, it’s time to store it in an airtight container. Stored this way, your powder can last for 3-4 years.

Turmeric Powder

Now you have your own stash of this amazing spice. You can use it in your everyday cooking including baking and smoothies; the list goes on! How will you use your Turmeric powder?

Happy Gardening

Ciearra

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