Start of the Rum Pot

I started the Rum Pot with 4 cups of strawberries. They are rather pithy, so I half or quartered them. I added 1 1/2 cups of sugar and let stand for 1/2 hour. Then I added 2 cups of raspberries and 1/2 cup of sugar. Added brandy to cover, which took 1 1/2 cups of brandy. The recipe says to keep it in a cool, dark room and stir every 2 weeks. I put it into the closet by the patio door. The small rum pot is half full already.
Last year I added quite a lot of brandy and blackberries, plums, blueberries, strawberries, yellow plums. We shall see how it goes this year. The yellow plum crop does not seem to be abundant this year. The purple plums seem to be non existant again. Might be buying some of them again. I like the taste of the purple plums.

I got more weeding and clipping done in the back garden, especially in the pond area. There is a bud on the big lily. So this should be nice to see when it opens. I missed taking care of my garden in the last few years, as we have usually been away for half the summer. Its nice to get things cleaned up, clipped, watered and looking good. My compost bin is heaping full and my twig pile is growing. After the good will truck takes stuff on the 13th, I shall call Tom (if I can find his number) to come and haul the rest away.