Feed Me, Seymour

At FrannieRose Farms we try to use organic products whenever possible and our favorite organic plant food is Fox Farms Big Bloom liquid plant food. It’s full of good stuff that plants love like earthworm castings and bat guano. Yum. 😛

Big Bloom is super easy to use, it just needs to be mixed into the water when you water your plants. A general feeding is 2-4 Tbsp to a gallon of water or you can go as heavy as 1/2 cup per gallon of water. We usually feed on Sunday or Monday each week with a general feeding and about once a month we do a heavy feeding for those plants that need it, like our peppers and tomatoes. 

Tasty poop water 😝🤢💚

We use Big Bloom on all of our plant babies, both those in the garden and our houseplant. It can be used throughout a plant’s life, starting with seedlings. We go through a lot of Big Bloom each season so we’re thankful we can buy by the gallon. 💚

Quick Fridge Pickled Jalapeños

This year we ended up with 10+ jalapeño plants that have all been great producers and have given us MOUNDS of delicious jalapeños.  

Now obviously we wanted to pickle some but I have never canned anything in my life and jalapeños don’t last very long around here anyway because Babe can eat them straight from the jar so I needed another option, a quicker option. After asking around we were reminded of a quick fridge pickle recipe that is super simple and takes no time at all. Simply slice up 8-9 jalapeños (with or without seeds, your choice) and let them soak in the pickling liquid/brine (basic recipe/full directions below 👇🏻) for about 15 mins before putting in an air right jar and storing in the fridge for up to TWO MONTHS. 

We have made 3 batches so far and everyone who has tried them loves them. 💚 

Pickling Liquid/Brine Recipe: 

1 cup water

1cup white vinegar

1tbsp salt

1tbsp sugar 

Directions: Combine ingredients in a saucepan and bring to a full boil. Add sliced jalapeños and remove from heat. Allow slices to soak for 10-15 mins, making sure all slices are submerged. Pack jalapeños in an air tight jar and then fill with pickling liquid/brine. Close tightly and allow to cool to room temp before storing in fridge for up to two months. THIS RECIPE IS NOT SHELF STABLE. 

A Tale of Two Tomatoes

The first two tomatoes of the season! After having such a hard time with tomatoes last year we decided to forgo growing them this season, but our neighbor just happened to have one extra plant and he gave it to us. Since it was a gift we figured we’d give it a try. Neighbor told us it was called Amelia from Bonnie Plants and so naturally we went straight to the Google 😛 What we found is that this determinate variety is known to be very disease and crack resistant which makes it perfect for growing here in the Southeast! Hallelujah! Maybe we’d get fresh from the garden tomatoes this year after all! 

She may have started out as a tiny little thing in April but she didn’t stay that way long. As she grew we only pruned the bottom most leaves to help keep them from touching the soil. Being that the Amelia is a determinate type, heavy pruning can decrease yields and is not recommended. 

When her first blooms appeared we made sure to gently shake her to help pollinate. Unfortunately, due to overuse of pesticides the pollinator population has seen a decline and sometimes we have to give Mother Nature a hand. 

As the tomatoes continued to grow we constantly monitored them for pests but we’ve had a great year so far and haven’t seen anything on this plant. 

Once the tomatoes began to blush, the weather changed and we started going through a cold snap which really halted the ripening process. It took a few days longer than usual but we ended up with two beautiful, bright red tomatoes, ready on June 16th. 

Welcome!

Welcome to Frannie Rose Farms 💚

🌱We are a husband and wife team with a small backyard garden and big farm dreams. 🌱

Based in Goose Creek, SC, our long term goal is to provide fresh produce locally. We know we may be a few years away from our goal but we are having so much fun in the process. Follow along with us for updates on our backyard garden, our progress towards our goal of becoming a backyard farm and a little educational gardening info along the way. 

💚 Joe and Ashleigh, FRF

You can also find us on: 

Instagram www.instagram.com/frannierosefarms

Facebook www.facebook.com/frannierosefarms