Marlene lived alone. She was a spinster. It’s not that she had anything against having a family; it’s just that the right person hadn’t come along at the right moment. She was now in her late seventies, and she lived a very ordered life.
Marlene had a small garden. A little portion was reserved for growing flowers. She grew only those flowers that could be cut and put in a vase. The rest of her garden was devoted to vegetables.
Of course, she needed to grow only a few vegetables. For example she grew two cucumbers, one squash, two celery plants, two tomato plants, and so on. It meant that her packets of seeds were good for several years, provided she kept them in a dry place.
This year Marlene sowed two cucumber seeds. Neither came up. She tried a couple more. Nothing germinated. She tried half a dozen more. Nothing happened.
“I’ll give it one more chance,” said Marlene. “Maybe these old seeds are passed their use-by date.” She sowed all twenty-two remaining seeds. “Maybe,” thought Marlene, “there might be one or two seeds that are still good.”
Nothing grew. There was nothing for it but to buy a new packet of cucumber seeds. Marlene sowed four seeds from the new packet. Within a week the seeds sprouted. And so did all the other thirty-four cucumber seeds.
Sound like Marline needs some recipes. Been there.
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Last year I tried pickling cucumbers (Bread and Butter) and also gherkins (I’m not sure if you call these things by different names). Anyway – it was a disaster.
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I have used all those names. We pickle some every year, and use a lot in a variety of salads or just to snack on. We usually give a lot away, too. We always grow more cucumbers than we quite know what to do with. Not like Marline, but it doesn’t really take many plants to get overwhelmed.
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Today’s story is based on what happened to me this year. I kept popping in seeds because nothing was germinating. I will have to find a better pickling recipe, e.g. one that works and tastes like pickled cucumber!
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Those do seem like good requirements for pickling recipes. My hubs does all the pickling and canning at our house. I think he just reads several recipes online and then kind of makes it up. It always seems to turn out okay.
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I think I was too fussy and added too much extra nonsense (in the pickling).
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I add nonsense to everything. 🙂
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Time to go through the neighborhood giving away bags of cucumbers. And who knows who she might meet?
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The cucurbit family seems to have the knack of bringing people together.
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Sounds like Marlene is in a pickle!
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It’s bread and butter to her!
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Finally, she is going to have a full fledged cucumber society! That was a nice twist.
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Let’s hope she stays as cool as a cucumber.
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Aarrghhh
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Thank you for the Aarrghhh!
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My grandmother used to make Bread and Butter pickles with her cucumbers – have never had any as good since!
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My mother’s pickles were better than your grandmother’s!
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Darn, we can’t have a pickle-off!
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Ha! Ha! Actually my mother never made Bread and Butter! She made a mustard pickle which, despite my having the recipe, I can’t seem to emulate!
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I’ve never had a pickled cucumber, must be some strange foreign thing…
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I’m not sure if you’re pulling my leg or not?! I have never had A pickled cucumber either, but I have had pickled cucumber!
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I’ve had neither! They’re not really big over here as far as I know – pickled beetroot, pickled onion, even pickled egg, but not cucumber (or gherkins as we call them), but maybe I’ve just led a sheltered life.
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Yes – we call them gherkins too – and then the sliced pickled cucumber is called “Bread and Butter”
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