There’s a jarful of vinegar and pine needles, sitting in my kitchen, soaking. It sits among the Mayhaw jellies, pear butters, and two jars of raw honey.
Supposedly, after three weeks of soaking I should have a natural, cheaper, and healthier pine cleaner. I’m not running short on pine trees around here, so I’m going for it. I could’ve added citrus rinds, but didn’t have any on hand. If it works well, I’ll let y’all know!
So obviously, I have dived head first into these home remedies, desperately trying to cleanse, repair or soothe my abundance of ailments. One thing’s for sure; they can’t hurt. And it’s been kind of fun, collecting unique jars and containers for all of my ‘concoctions’.
I’ve found some very interesting ones at James’ Junk Flea Market, one of our town’s newest businesses in Franklinton, on Greenlaw Avenue. There’s been a bit of confusion about this, so let me clarify it here: No, this new flea market isn’t owned by MY James. James Schilling is the proprietor of this fine establishment. I rent a little booth there, so whenever I go to stock my shelves I scope out the newly arrived inventory.
Anyway, after those pine needles soak for three weeks, I’ll drain them, and transfer the liquid to a spray bottle. Y’all, I keep expecting my husband to ‘accidentally’ find my homemade house cleaner. He loves the jellies and jams, and I’m gonna laugh too hard, if he opens up that jar of pine needles, hoping for a snack.
It wouldn’t be the first time that something like that happened. I’ve always stored my hummingbird nectar in the refrigerator, of course. He poured himself a glass of ‘koolaide’, took a big swig of it, and was highly disappointed... to say the least. I had to hear about it for two straight weeks.
But I’m here to tell y’all, if that man eats or drinks pine needles... or the juice that they’re soaking in... he’s on his own. I can’t help him. Nor anybody else, for that matter.
But yes, I am very interested in any and all home remedies/green ideas. And I’ll share with y’all those which I try with success. If y’all have any ideas for stomach issues, please let me know! I’ve heard about ginger root, and I’m definitely about to try that... if I can locate it. It can’t taste worse than poor James’ hummingbird nectar. Or vinegar soaked pine needles.
Y’all have a blessed week!
Liz King, P.O. Box 22, Mt. Hermon, LA 70450
