People are often surprised when I tell them that I have pepper plants that are a decade old. This is because I've been overwintering pepper plants for several years. Following this overwintering procedure makes the most of your harvest and allows you to get a jump start in subsequent seasons.Why Overwinter Pepper Plants? So what does overwintering pepper plants buy you? I enjoy peppers. When I say "pepper", I'm mostly talking about those insanely hot and flavorful varieties. These a...

People are often surprised when I tell them that I have pepper plants that are a decade old. This is because I've been overwintering pepper plants for several years. Following this overwintering procedure makes the most of your harvest and allows you to get a jump start in subsequent seasons.Why Overwinter Pepper Plants? So what does overwintering pepper plants buy you? I enjoy peppers. When I say "pepper", I'm mostly talking about those insanely hot and flavorful varieties. These a...

In the last issue of Fermenting Solutions, I mentioned that trying to keep my mycology grow room warm was becoming an issue. Each month, the arrival of my electric bills was starting to induce sticker shock. When I decided to have a year round mushroom growing setup it was only natural to put it in the warmest room in my house. My indoor gardening setup was already there. So why not add mushrooms? The increase in costs to maintain the temperature was making it obvious that this wasn't go...

In the last issue of Fermenting Solutions, I mentioned that trying to keep my mycology grow room warm was becoming an issue. Each month, the arrival of my electric bills was starting to induce sticker shock. When I decided to have a year round mushroom growing setup it was only natural to put it in the warmest room in my house. My indoor gardening setup was already there. So why not add mushrooms? The increase in costs to maintain the temperature was making it obvious that this wasn't go...

I can't remember too many summer time outings as a kid where the game of Quoits wasn't nearby. It was such a naturally expected feature of any outdoor event that I found it shocking when no one seemed to even know the game when I moved to the Philadelphia area. I love to play the game and it was one of the first things I setup as soon as I moved into my current house. Having covered quoit boxes and a lighted area to play was always a dream!What is Quoits?Many of my local friends have never pl...

I can't remember too many summer time outings as a kid where the game of Quoits wasn't nearby. It was such a naturally expected feature of any outdoor event that I found it shocking when no one seemed to even know the game when I moved to the Philadelphia area. I love to play the game and it was one of the first things I setup as soon as I moved into my current house. Having covered quoit boxes and a lighted area to play was always a dream!What is Quoits?Many of my local friends have never pl...

Most people who grow oyster mushrooms do so on a straw based substrate. This always seemed odd to me. Oyster mushrooms naturally grow on hard woods. In addition to this, making straw reasonably sterile for growing purposes is really annoying. I was surprised that there weren't more instructionals on using hardwood fuel pellets for growing oyster mushrooms. With the advent of pellet stoves and pellet grills, the availability of a wide variety of hardwoods in this format has grown exponent...

Most people who grow oyster mushrooms do so on a straw based substrate. This always seemed odd to me. Oyster mushrooms naturally grow on hard woods. In addition to this, making straw reasonably sterile for growing purposes is really annoying. I was surprised that there weren't more instructionals on using hardwood fuel pellets for growing oyster mushrooms. With the advent of pellet stoves and pellet grills, the availability of a wide variety of hardwoods in this format has grown exponent...

My 10 year old kids have finally caught the Gloomhaven bug. For anyone who hasn't played this game (or doesn't play with 10 year olds), let's just say keeping things on the level and organized during a scenario and across a campaign can pose a challenge. I started looking around for things I could 3D print to ease this burden. There were a few existing models for player dashboards and box organization that looked promising. I started making some rough prototypes and quickly realized that I ne...

My 10 year old kids have finally caught the Gloomhaven bug. For anyone who hasn't played this game (or doesn't play with 10 year olds), let's just say keeping things on the level and organized during a scenario and across a campaign can pose a challenge. I started looking around for things I could 3D print to ease this burden. There were a few existing models for player dashboards and box organization that looked promising. I started making some rough prototypes and quickly realized that I ne...

Hügelkultur in Pennsylvania: Nature's Raised BedYears ago, hurricane Sandy turned my forested property into an open meadow with massive rotting tree stumps everywhere. The trees on my property that used to provide shade and beauty, now produced a steady supply of fallen branches, logs, and leaves. Since I had already been slowly 'rewilding' my lawn area, it seemed only natural to consider a gardening technique that turned this "debris" into a gold mine of fertility: Hügelkultur...

Hügelkultur in Pennsylvania: Nature's Raised BedYears ago, hurricane Sandy turned my forested property into an open meadow with massive rotting tree stumps everywhere. The trees on my property that used to provide shade and beauty, now produced a steady supply of fallen branches, logs, and leaves. Since I had already been slowly 'rewilding' my lawn area, it seemed only natural to consider a gardening technique that turned this "debris" into a gold mine of fertility: Hügelkultur...

In the first 2025 issue of Fermenting Solutions I laid out a goal for creating a "Healthy Dessert". Ultimately, I plan on actually creating several, but the first one that I am trying to perfect are Peanut Butter Cookies. This recipe isn't quite yet perfected, but I consider it good enough to share at this point. I will update this page as I iterate on this healthy dessert.Healthy Peanut Butter Cookies So what makes a healthy peanut butter cookie? For me, it's all about increasing the protein...

In the first 2025 issue of Fermenting Solutions I laid out a goal for creating a "Healthy Dessert". Ultimately, I plan on actually creating several, but the first one that I am trying to perfect are Peanut Butter Cookies. This recipe isn't quite yet perfected, but I consider it good enough to share at this point. I will update this page as I iterate on this healthy dessert.Healthy Peanut Butter Cookies So what makes a healthy peanut butter cookie? For me, it's all about increasing the protein...

It's January! That means it's time to start planning the upcoming garden season. Planning a gardening season is one of the most important factors in helping you guarantee that it's successful. In this article, I'm going to describe the process I use in planning a gardening season. I'm going to assume that you already have a gardening space setup and that you have at least one season under your belt. On to discussing the things that I do in an effort to improve every y...

It's January! That means it's time to start planning the upcoming garden season. Planning a gardening season is one of the most important factors in helping you guarantee that it's successful. In this article, I'm going to describe the process I use in planning a gardening season. I'm going to assume that you already have a gardening space setup and that you have at least one season under your belt. On to discussing the things that I do in an effort to improve every y...

Every home that I've ever lived in has had hard water. There are pros to having hard water, but there are also many cons. The cons have led me to investigate ways of mitigating hard water, but this also has additional drawbacks. I recently purchased and installed a ScaleBlaster. Read on for my ScaleBlaster review.Why Care About Hard Water? Hard water tends to be high in calcium and magnesium. Even though these usually make water taste better, they pose many problems when used in a home w...

Every home that I've ever lived in has had hard water. There are pros to having hard water, but there are also many cons. The cons have led me to investigate ways of mitigating hard water, but this also has additional drawbacks. I recently purchased and installed a ScaleBlaster. Read on for my ScaleBlaster review.Why Care About Hard Water? Hard water tends to be high in calcium and magnesium. Even though these usually make water taste better, they pose many problems when used in a home w...

I've always been a fan of gardening. It probably has something to do with spending all that time out in the sun with my great grandmother digging in the dirt as a kid and enjoying the great things that came from it when it was ultimately time for harvest. I lost touch with this joy for a bit in my 20's. There was nothing like the mind-numbing contrast of the cubicled office to make me want to get back outside and get my hands dirty. After buying my first home with some property, doing some re...

I've always been a fan of gardening. It probably has something to do with spending all that time out in the sun with my great grandmother digging in the dirt as a kid and enjoying the great things that came from it when it was ultimately time for harvest. I lost touch with this joy for a bit in my 20's. There was nothing like the mind-numbing contrast of the cubicled office to make me want to get back outside and get my hands dirty. After buying my first home with some property, doing some re...