Kester and Kester Farms

09/28/2026

09/23/2026

Jalapeño and Bell peppers all started from seed we saved past season 😎 the jalapeño are extra spicy 🥵🤗

09/23/2026

Might be the last haul 🤓

09/20/2026

Vinegar preserves flavor. A souring crock preserved you.

CABBAGE: twelve months of live culture, one crock
CUCUMBERS: sour brine bred gut bacteria vinegar cannot
GREEN TOMATOES: last frost harvest turned into winter stock
BEETS: ten months, enzymes intact, nutrients alive
TURNIPS: root cellar backup loaded with active cultures
CARROTS: salt brine locked in crunch and vitamins
HOT PEPPERS: near a year of heat, vitamin c held
GARLIC: whole cloves cured slow, never flash-pickled

Every root cellar had a crock working year round because salt brine fermentation was engineered food science before anyone used that phrase. Home economics classes stopped teaching it the same decade vinegar hit grocery shelves.

Vinegar preserves shape and prevents spoilage but it kills the very bacteria that made fermented food good for digestion. You get shelf stability and lose the nutrition that was the entire point.

A jar of vinegar pickles is dead food in a jar. A crock of sour vegetables was alive, and it kept your family that way too.

08/23/2026

08/17/2026

Don’t expect relief from high beef prices anytime soon. America’s cattle herd has fallen to its smallest size in 75 years — and persistent drought is a major driver.

Years of dry conditions across the West and Plains have depleted grasslands, leaving ranchers short on feed and water. As a result, many have had to sell off livestock early, including breeding cows needed for future calves.

Rebuilding the supply will take years, keeping beef tight and grocery bills high.