Crustacean 🦞

I’m keeping track of the winter weather in Minnesota this year.

First frost Oct 8, 2025
First snowflakes Nov 8, 2025
First snow Nov 9, 2025 (dusting).

Last of 2025's apples. Brownlees Russet, all scratted up. Trying something new this year: letting it have a little sit with some pectolase before pressing. Hopeful that will maximise the juice extraction. This will be a SV cider, all being well.

That’s awesome! I did some really tannic crabapples this year that came out at 17 brix ish/1.070 sg, so hoping that turns out great, but only got a little under 4 liters.

I’ll say what nobody else in the upper Midwestern US will.. Kwik Trip coffee is weak and flavorless.

First frost this year in Owatonna, MN occurred October 8, 2025. Will also keep track of first snow.

#fall #weather #winteriscoming

One Year After Klamath Dam Removal, 'There's Just Fish Jumping All Over the Place': Scientists Describe Improvements to Water Quality and Wildlife

lostcoastoutpost.com/2025/oct/9/o...

A hand holding a dripping wet, bulging-eyed, flat-faced cat looking sadly at the camera.

“The cat is such a perfect symbol of beauty and superiority that it seems scarcely possible for any true aesthete and civilised cynic to do other than worship it.”

- H.P. Lovecraft

This may be one of the greatest days of my life. I just received word from UNLV Dept of Geoscience saying I may have literally actually discovered a rock formation during my desert explorations that's unknown to science. I could not be more excited! This is my childhood dream! (Even if it gets ID'd)

Gave my cider orchard trees their last free drinks of the season. Should be frosting here soon, even though it doesn’t seem like it yet. I have 3 two-year-old trees on B.118, 2 four-year-olds on G.935, and 1 three-year-old on g.41.

#fruitgrower #orchard #cider #apple #minnesota

Just started a fun cider today. The juice was about 17 brix and full of tannins but somewhat lower on acid, with a deep orange color. Gave bittersweet vibes. Unfortunately, I only had enough for a gallon, so fingers crossed it comes out nice!

#cider #fall #cidermaker #homebrewing #minnesota

Graphic with multiple photos and copy. Photo one: Person holding a large tray of freshly harvested garlic bulbs with green stems in front of a red barn door. Photo two: Close-up of a cafeteria tray filled with colorful sliced watermelon radishes and carrot sticks with black tongs. Photo three: Young child sitting at a school lunch table with a tray containing turkey, stuffing, an apple, grapes, and a milk carton. Copy below reads "Apply now for Farm to School Grants + Local Tots Cost-Share! Deadline in Oct. 23 at 4 p.m."

Minnesota schools & child care providers can now apply for Farm to School & Early Care grants and the Local Tots Cost-Share program to bring more MN-grown food to kids’ plates. #MNAg

📅 Deadline to apply is October 23 at 4 p.m.
🔗 Visit qrco.de/f2s2026 learn more & apply

Third Annual Heritage Apple Day & Community Press – Lopez Island History Museum Saturday, September 27, 1:00-3:00PM, Lopez Museum, 28 Washburn Pl Once known as the Fruit Basket of Washington, the San Juan Islands and Lopez have a long histo

Some of the apples that will be at tomorrow's tasting with the Lopez Island History Museum:
Belmont
Esopus Spitzenburg
Fameuse
Gloria Mundi
Glowing Coal
Golden Ball
Gravenstein (including Olga Red Gravenstein)
King (of Tompkins County)
Greensweet
Northern Spy
Twenty Ounce
Wolf River

Look at the perfectly normal and adequate sized ear of corn I just picked from my garden yesterday.

#harvest #fall #crops #farmer #Minnesota

For anybody who might wonder, those are medium toast American oak spirals in there. It was mostly feral or dessert apples, with about 10% crabapples, so I thought it could use some tannins. OG was like 1.046 (short growing season this far north).

Natural ferment already kicking off when I checked earlier. Just ground and pressed most of this the 18th, but some I ground the 18th but couldn’t press until the 19th. Those were smelling like they were already kicking off, so I think I got a head start.

#cider #fermenting #drinkcider #cidersky

Dadgum threads broke on my cider press ratchet. I wasn’t done pressing yet! Going to have to make a call tomorrow to talk about the warranty.

#cider #hardcider #homebrew #minnesota #irritating

Two years ago today, I hiked Kyrgyzstan’s Tien Shan Mountains & found the Malus sieversii, the wild apples that are the main proginators of today’s domesticated varieties.

Finished up a bottle of last year’s cider. I this one with apples from a cemetery that I harvested a year ago today. No idea on the variety. Spontaneous fermented and bottle carbed dry. Really pleased - first time I’ve considered submitting to GLINTCAP.

#cider #drinkcider #minnesota #fall #orchard

Picture of part of my apple family this cool morning in Minnesota. Don’t mind the grass, it’s a no-mow yard. Closest to furthest: Hewe’s Crab, Major, Roxbury Russet - all on B.118 rootstock.

#apples #minnesota #orchard #nomow #cider

Thank you! Just have to wait for the apples now.. 2 weeks or so and I can finally start getting some.

The cider press and grinder are all set up on their new platforms I made for them this year. Feel pretty solid if I say so myself.

#cider #cidermaking #cidermaker #apples #orchard

Lol, nobody is killing you for $25 worth of commissary in a female low. She’s lying, like usual.

Just ordered a hopper for my apple grinder from Pleasant Hill Grain - will post a picture of my full setup once it finally gets here. Really pulling out all the stops this year and hope the apples I can forage this fall pay off.

#cider #cidermaking #foraging

Cider is 100% the goal! Kronebusch is a newer MN native bittersweet. We’ll have to see if it produces next year or not. The other two are older, but the Kronebusch is on a smaller rootstock.

Trees I think I’ll get apples from next year here in MN (if I’m lucky):

Campfield
Harry Master’s Jersey
Kronebusch (doubtful, but maybe)

#orchard #cider #hardcider #apples

And also, you’re going to pretend the media wasn’t screaming about inflation the whole time? Are you kidding me? The whole Republican Party ran on the price of eggs and Biden’s “terrible” record economy. It’s okay though, Trump undid those 4 years of economic gains in less than a few months 👌

Fluctuations happen normally like you show over long periods of time. Couple thousand points over months. Not -7,000 Dow in 3 days. The last time this happened was realize of the start of a GLOBAL PANDEMIC. Big picture, right. Go back to Twitter. Nobody wants to hear you gargling balls over here.

There’s a really good chance for an agent to do something really funny here.

That didn’t happen in the course of 3 days, and what happened in 2021 leading up to it? The rollout of a vaccine and a comedown from a worldwide pandemic and shifts in labor. Fucking donkey.

Will no one rid me of these turbulent priests?