Chinese Red Noodle Bean

The Chinese Red Noodle bean has the most beautiful flowers, and they are the most striking bean I have ever seen. My son grew these in his three sisters garden this year. The beans were over 2 feet long, and were a dark red color. We ate some raw and we also cut them up and added them to chicken soup. They were really good. Even if you don't like green beans I would grow them just to enjoy their appearance. They did really well here in zone 6 despite the drought and humid conditions. We found that it was best to pick them when the beans were just starting to swell and had a bit of a bumpy appearance. Before that they were too stringy and after that they were too starchy. You can order these beans from Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds at http://www.rareseeds.com

Concord grapes

We have one large and two small concord grapevines on our farmstead. Most people don't like to eat them right off the vine, but we all love the extra sour taste of them. I am going to try to make some freezer jam if I get enough grapes. The resident cardinals are quite fond of them too.

Here is a recipe to try:

Spiced Concord Grape Jelly

This type of jelly is sometimes called venison jelly because it is served with venison meat.

Yield: 2 1/2 Cups.
Ingredients:

3 or 31/2 pounds (2 quarts) Concord grapes

2 cinnamon sticks

10 allspice berries

3 cup sugar

4 sterilized

1/2 pint canning jars with lids and rings

Instructions:1. Stem and wash grapes, discarding any that are withered or blemished. Put them in a 4- to 6-quart stainless steel pot; mash them with a potato masher, extracting as mush juice as possible. Cook mixture over medium heat until it comes to a boil. Simmer, stirring, 10 minutes.
2. Strain through strainer. You should have 4 cups. Return juice to the same kettle. Add cinnamon sticks and allspice berries. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat and add sugar. Boil, stirring, for 20 minutes. To test for jelling, put a teaspoonful in a dish and put the dish in the freezer for a minute. If the jelly wrinkles when gently pushed with a finger, it's ready.
3. Strain to remove cinnamon sticks and allspice berries. Pack into hot sterilized jars. Label and date. Store in the refrigerator up to 6 months.
Cooking Tip: You'll notice that unlike some jelly recipes, this one has no added pectin, the substance that helps to create jelling. That's because Concord grapes are naturally high in pectin.

The Pond

We love our pond. One of the many things that we desired to have when we bought our property was a pond. Of course I had no idea that our pond was full of snapping turtles until I found a goose floating in the pond with its head missing! We have pulled out 8 large ones so far, and 6 babies. Actually we didn't pull them out, I found turtle hunters to do it for me. What do I do with them? I let the turtle hunters take them home to make turtle soup. I have never tried turtle soup and I have no desire to.
I wonder if previous owners actually made this a turtle pond with the intentions of having an endless supply of turtle soup! I plan to build a walkway along the edge of the pond, and even a bridge across it eventually. I am going to fill the pond with catfish and bass for eating. I would also like to have a small fountain to get the water moving. Our pond is now home to crayfish, snails, spring peepers, bullfrogs, leopard frogs, dragonflies, and salamanders just to name a few! I love to stand by the pond at dusk and watch the bats fly over the pond eating insects, and I also open the windows at night and listen to the sounds coming from the pond. I would consider a pond a very beneficial addition to every homestead! It can provide a wonderful habitat for a diverse population of insects, amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals.

The other day my son harvested his blue potatoes! There were over a hundred of them, which is great considering that we had a continuous assault of the Colorado Potato Beetle. We didn't use any sprays, though. We just picked them off and put them in a jar of water to drown them. While we were harvesting we found a tomato horn worm covered in wasp parasites. We left it in the garden so they eggs could hatch. We are hoping they will be back next year to help destroy even more of the big fat green and very hungry monsters! We made chips last night and they were so yummy! The middle was a cool, they were blue and when we fried them they turned a bit golden, but still with a hint of blue. They were the best chips ever!!!

Welcome to our Farm

Welcome To Tuckers Turkey Farm. We are located in Madison County, Kentucky. We moved here in the spring of 2006, almost a thousand miles from home, far away from everyone we knew, in search of a dream. We lived by the ocean in New England and we loved it there. Soon we began to realize that we wanted more than just living in an apartment for the rest of our lives. We also wanted to live a more healthy life and grow our own food. I am a homeschooling mom of three and my husband is an electrician. Buying a farm anywhere in New England was next to impossible, so we brought out a map, closed our eyes and threw a dart to see where it would land. Just kidding. We carefully researched all over the country for a good place to raise our family and buy a small farm. We prayed and searched and soon had narrowed it down to three states. My husband posted his resume online and we finally decided that Kentucky would be the place for us to call home. Originally we wanted to move to Bowling Green, but God led us to Madison County instead. Four months after we moved here we closed on our very first home. It had everything that we needed, and a lot of things we wanted too. We love it here. I miss the ocean and our family and friends, but I wouldn't trade it for the world. Stay tuned for more farm adventures! Pictured here is a chicken coop that we built ourselves!