today we had a cow get out. That was eventful. I noticed it pretty quickly, so herded it back in and then called in reinforcements to help me go over the fence. Thank goodness for helpful neighbors (Thanks Dad!).
Our fall garden has been very eventful. About the time that the hot days ended I was pulling out a gallon bucket of tomatoes every day. Now I'm pulling them out just as they start to look pink at the rate of about a gallon every few days, depending on the weather. They ripen on my cupboard, the flavor is the same - and in my mind at least - this makes the remaining tomatoes ripen faster. It was rainy today, so imagine my surprise when I harvested another gallon after only a day. These were mostly ones that I had missed. I just looked at the plant from a different angle, and wowza! A few more would appear.
I also grabbed a few peppers, a butternut squash, and noticed that we might have a few more watermelon squeeze through before the first frost. We just have to figure out when that is. For the most part the weather has been fairly mild.
I grabbed a few sunflower heads that had a few seeds ripe. The poor plant had been pulled over and never did really well, but it did flower and it looks like there are some seeds. however, I have to admit I've never harvested sunflower seeds and am a little scared that they might kill me. I will diligently research before consuming.
Tuesday, October 21, 2014
Sunday, September 28, 2014
Tomatoes
We have been getting a 1 gallon bucket of tomatoes out of the garden every day. Its been crazy. But nice. I think I have about 5 gallon bags of frozen tomatoes in the freezer right now!
The cows are growing. The black one who licked my hand has been a little to tame lately, so I am going to leave it alone and let it get standoffish again.
I didn't collect the eggs on Thursday, so when I went to collect them on Friday there were 34 eggs. Yowzer. I have a lot of eggs, want to buy some chickens?
I'm back. I just put a post up on Facebook to see if anyone wants to buy some chickens :). Would be nice to not have so many eggs. Of course, the cold weather is coming...
We harvested a 22 pound watermelon last week from our garden. There is another one out there that should be ready in the next day or so.
Milton made a yummy beef stew yesterday using our beef and carrots and potatoes from the garden.
The carrots were white, yellow, red, and orange. They were a packet of seeds that looked cool, so I had to try them. Strange, but a white carrot tastes the same as an orange one. Oh well, they were fun to look forward to!
We have gotten so many cantelope from the garden this year. And they are so good! Thanks YouTube for helping me know when to harvest them!
Our lettuce has sprouted again. We let it go to seed after the spring harvest. We have been eating it when we can. I love leafy lettuce so much more than ice burg!
We pitched the corn stalks to the cows last month when they kept pushing on the fence next to the garden to get to them. That was easier than trying to shore up the fence enough.
The cows are growing. The black one who licked my hand has been a little to tame lately, so I am going to leave it alone and let it get standoffish again.
I didn't collect the eggs on Thursday, so when I went to collect them on Friday there were 34 eggs. Yowzer. I have a lot of eggs, want to buy some chickens?
I'm back. I just put a post up on Facebook to see if anyone wants to buy some chickens :). Would be nice to not have so many eggs. Of course, the cold weather is coming...
We harvested a 22 pound watermelon last week from our garden. There is another one out there that should be ready in the next day or so.
Milton made a yummy beef stew yesterday using our beef and carrots and potatoes from the garden.
The carrots were white, yellow, red, and orange. They were a packet of seeds that looked cool, so I had to try them. Strange, but a white carrot tastes the same as an orange one. Oh well, they were fun to look forward to!
We have gotten so many cantelope from the garden this year. And they are so good! Thanks YouTube for helping me know when to harvest them!
Our lettuce has sprouted again. We let it go to seed after the spring harvest. We have been eating it when we can. I love leafy lettuce so much more than ice burg!
We pitched the corn stalks to the cows last month when they kept pushing on the fence next to the garden to get to them. That was easier than trying to shore up the fence enough.
Monday, September 8, 2014
Oy y vey
I wonder if that is how you are supposed to spell it? I don't know and frankly, I'm to lazy to go look it up right now. So there it is.
The garden. Its doing well. We are picking lots of cherry tomatoes right now. The bigger tomatoes are coming slowly but surely.
The peppers are doing well, we just have one problem. Toddlers. Toddlers who imitate. Toddlers who imitate their parents when they harvest the garden. you get the idea. Its a problem. I do my best to find the picked produce and try and salvage it. Sadly, our poblano peppers will never get large. And that will have to be ok. Their lives ended to early.
I am a cantaloupe stalker. I check them every day to see if their are done. Cuz I know how to do that. (after watching a youtube video) :)
The watermelon is not done. Yet it is huge. but according to youtube, it is not done. I sure hope it doesn't rot on the vine.
The corn is done. has been for a while. The cows are now enjoying the stalks and pushing on the fence and breaking the electric wire in order to get to it. Yeah, rethinking the corn location. And the voltage on the fence.
The chickens are giving us about 16 eggs a day. In my book that means that 6 chickens are shirking their duties every day. I'd like to find those chickens and give them a talking to. But none of the other chickens will rat them out.
The chickens have been free ranging every afternoon. I started this when we had a problem with egg eating. We had been getting 18-19 eggs per day and then it went down to like 8-10. And there was evidence of broken eggs. So I started letting them out and it seems to have stopped. Either that or they have become clever and figured out how to hide the evidence. Sadly that is a real possibility. But I don't have the time to track it down right now. Maybe this winter if it becomes a problem again.
Both the chickens and the cows have been enjoying some peach trees that hang over the pasture. They love to go and have a snack under that tree. The peaches are not buggy and are just about ripe. So I may harvest some to add to the peaches currently rotting on my cupboard.
The cows are getting nice and big.
The lettuce seeds are sprouting again and we will probably have some more lettuce very soon. The herbs are growing like crazy and also the volunteer tomato plants are giving us roma, cherry, and regular tomatoes. What a treat!
The garden. Its doing well. We are picking lots of cherry tomatoes right now. The bigger tomatoes are coming slowly but surely.
The peppers are doing well, we just have one problem. Toddlers. Toddlers who imitate. Toddlers who imitate their parents when they harvest the garden. you get the idea. Its a problem. I do my best to find the picked produce and try and salvage it. Sadly, our poblano peppers will never get large. And that will have to be ok. Their lives ended to early.
I am a cantaloupe stalker. I check them every day to see if their are done. Cuz I know how to do that. (after watching a youtube video) :)
The watermelon is not done. Yet it is huge. but according to youtube, it is not done. I sure hope it doesn't rot on the vine.
The corn is done. has been for a while. The cows are now enjoying the stalks and pushing on the fence and breaking the electric wire in order to get to it. Yeah, rethinking the corn location. And the voltage on the fence.
The chickens are giving us about 16 eggs a day. In my book that means that 6 chickens are shirking their duties every day. I'd like to find those chickens and give them a talking to. But none of the other chickens will rat them out.
The chickens have been free ranging every afternoon. I started this when we had a problem with egg eating. We had been getting 18-19 eggs per day and then it went down to like 8-10. And there was evidence of broken eggs. So I started letting them out and it seems to have stopped. Either that or they have become clever and figured out how to hide the evidence. Sadly that is a real possibility. But I don't have the time to track it down right now. Maybe this winter if it becomes a problem again.
Both the chickens and the cows have been enjoying some peach trees that hang over the pasture. They love to go and have a snack under that tree. The peaches are not buggy and are just about ripe. So I may harvest some to add to the peaches currently rotting on my cupboard.
The cows are getting nice and big.
The lettuce seeds are sprouting again and we will probably have some more lettuce very soon. The herbs are growing like crazy and also the volunteer tomato plants are giving us roma, cherry, and regular tomatoes. What a treat!
Friday, July 11, 2014
The corn is as high as an elephant's eye!
Or at least it seems like it to me!
The tomatoes are looking great and we have a few ripe cherry tomatoes! The only problem is the boys removing several green roma tomatoes before they could turn red. We are working on that. If only the garden wasn't such a little boy magnet. All that dirt and mud (we have a leak in the irrigation system. who knew the thick concrete could have a hole?). And of course the golden raspberries lure them in for a snack every day.
We have been enjoying zuchini, yellow summer squash and crookneck squash. Picked young while it is still tender.
The garden is doing very well.
We have 6 chickens a day laying for us. I'm hoping the other 16 will kick it into gear soon. And I also wish they would lay in the nest and not in all corners of the coop. But we will continue to work on that. We need some fake eggs....
The cows are doing well. Eating their heads off.
The new grape vines look good. Of course we will not have fruit this year, but they are looking alive and healthy.
The new apple trees look good as well. The older one (by one year) might have fruit last year. Oh the joys of honeycrisp apple trees.
We are going to have a small crop of peaches and nectarines. Yay!
The apricots at Mom and Dad's will be ripe next week and Dad is going to make apricot jam! Sounds delish. We have also been enjoying the occasional invite to pick the strawberries over there. The boys love that!
The tomatoes are looking great and we have a few ripe cherry tomatoes! The only problem is the boys removing several green roma tomatoes before they could turn red. We are working on that. If only the garden wasn't such a little boy magnet. All that dirt and mud (we have a leak in the irrigation system. who knew the thick concrete could have a hole?). And of course the golden raspberries lure them in for a snack every day.
We have been enjoying zuchini, yellow summer squash and crookneck squash. Picked young while it is still tender.
The garden is doing very well.
We have 6 chickens a day laying for us. I'm hoping the other 16 will kick it into gear soon. And I also wish they would lay in the nest and not in all corners of the coop. But we will continue to work on that. We need some fake eggs....
The cows are doing well. Eating their heads off.
The new grape vines look good. Of course we will not have fruit this year, but they are looking alive and healthy.
The new apple trees look good as well. The older one (by one year) might have fruit last year. Oh the joys of honeycrisp apple trees.
We are going to have a small crop of peaches and nectarines. Yay!
The apricots at Mom and Dad's will be ripe next week and Dad is going to make apricot jam! Sounds delish. We have also been enjoying the occasional invite to pick the strawberries over there. The boys love that!
Sunday, June 29, 2014
The chickens
The chickens are laying! We found 2 eggs in the nesting box yesterday! Boy was I surprised. I knew it was coming soon. But the fact that it finally happened and that they even layed in the nest were both huge surprises.
We bought and stacked about 2 1/2 tons of alfalfa this past week and also purchased most of the wood we will need for the next few years winters. We bought 3 cords of lodgepole and 4 cords of juniper.
We've found that burning a combination of hard and softer woods makes our fires just right.
We still will need to rent a log splitter since the lodgepole is still in rounds.
Most of this work was done by Milton with some help from the girls.
The golden raspberries are on right now. I picked 3 quarts on Thursday. The boys have been wolfing them down. They love to be next to me while I'm picking because I let them eat as many as they want. If I was making jam it would be another story. But right now I'm just trying to keep up with the berries.
I'm starting to rethink my canterbury bells. They are just to tall and need support and don't look very nice in the front flower bed I put them in. While the Malva behind them look gorgeous and are standing up tall and nice.
I'm thinking about pulling them out. And that makes me sad since they are biennials and I started the seeds last year. So this is the second year I've had these plants and i'm sad I don't love them. I think they would look better in a pot. With more support.
Did I mention I have more in the garden for next year? Not sure what I'm going to do with them now.....
We bought and stacked about 2 1/2 tons of alfalfa this past week and also purchased most of the wood we will need for the next few years winters. We bought 3 cords of lodgepole and 4 cords of juniper.
We've found that burning a combination of hard and softer woods makes our fires just right.
We still will need to rent a log splitter since the lodgepole is still in rounds.
Most of this work was done by Milton with some help from the girls.
The golden raspberries are on right now. I picked 3 quarts on Thursday. The boys have been wolfing them down. They love to be next to me while I'm picking because I let them eat as many as they want. If I was making jam it would be another story. But right now I'm just trying to keep up with the berries.
I'm starting to rethink my canterbury bells. They are just to tall and need support and don't look very nice in the front flower bed I put them in. While the Malva behind them look gorgeous and are standing up tall and nice.
I'm thinking about pulling them out. And that makes me sad since they are biennials and I started the seeds last year. So this is the second year I've had these plants and i'm sad I don't love them. I think they would look better in a pot. With more support.
Did I mention I have more in the garden for next year? Not sure what I'm going to do with them now.....
Friday, June 27, 2014
Overwhelmed by Peas!
We have been eating peas for the past 2 weeks. Every day. So many that a few days ago I was at the grocery store and the very thought of peas made me feel sick. So I'm taking a break now. LOL.
The lettuce is finishing up. It has been a great season and it could still keep growing as long as it doesn't get to to hot. Usually what happens is that it stops growing and then in the fall we have some come up again from when the lettuce went to seed. Although I think only the spinach went to seed this year. I guess we'll see.
The bak choy was a huge failure this year. It seems like the minute we put it in the garden it went to seed. We finally gave up and pulled the plants a few days ago.
We have been enjoying zucchini and summer squash in our salads this past week. Its just starting, but we've found if you pick them when they are about 8 inches long they are still tender and yummy for the dishes we like them in.
We've had several incidences with Ned pulling plants out and putting them in the ditch. Luckily we've rescuing them. but it always puts them in shock when they're in their overnight. Its happened to some tomato plants, pepper plants, butternut squash, and strawberry plants. Not good. It always seems to happen those days I'm transplanting something. Ned has a fascination or something.
The golden raspberries are going crazy. We've had some rainy days that have kept us from going outside a few times this week and those are the days they get overwhelming. the boys love it and would eat and eat and eat out there until they are gone (and they have) but it may be time for jam.
The corn and potatoes are growing like crazy and the weeds in that area are too. Not to bad though. Just really big. They do pull out easily though. Its just taking the time to pull them.
the chickens are pretty independent these days. They have a waterer that has to be refilled once a month, and their feeder just needs a little attention every day. Its a gravity feeder, but for some reason the feed doesn't come down well on its own. So a couple of swipes at the food in the feeder and a check for eggs everyday and my chicken chores are done!
The cows are growing well and are doing fine eating the grass down. they love freshly mown grass from the lawn the best, and will take down the electric fence if I forget to turn it back on after watering day (don't want to get zapped while messing with the gated pipe). Luckily its not a hard fix.
Speaking of the gated pipe, it has its ups and downs. Its not entirely water tight (a headgate issue) so it does get leaky but we've put in a small ditch that is taking care of the swamp we had going on. Overall though, its not a bad set up. The biggest learning curve was that we have to water the potato and corn while its still small until the roots reach far enough down for the ditch water to irrigate it properly. We may have made our ditches to deep. We will try more shallow ditches next year.
The lettuce is finishing up. It has been a great season and it could still keep growing as long as it doesn't get to to hot. Usually what happens is that it stops growing and then in the fall we have some come up again from when the lettuce went to seed. Although I think only the spinach went to seed this year. I guess we'll see.
The bak choy was a huge failure this year. It seems like the minute we put it in the garden it went to seed. We finally gave up and pulled the plants a few days ago.
We have been enjoying zucchini and summer squash in our salads this past week. Its just starting, but we've found if you pick them when they are about 8 inches long they are still tender and yummy for the dishes we like them in.
We've had several incidences with Ned pulling plants out and putting them in the ditch. Luckily we've rescuing them. but it always puts them in shock when they're in their overnight. Its happened to some tomato plants, pepper plants, butternut squash, and strawberry plants. Not good. It always seems to happen those days I'm transplanting something. Ned has a fascination or something.
The golden raspberries are going crazy. We've had some rainy days that have kept us from going outside a few times this week and those are the days they get overwhelming. the boys love it and would eat and eat and eat out there until they are gone (and they have) but it may be time for jam.
The corn and potatoes are growing like crazy and the weeds in that area are too. Not to bad though. Just really big. They do pull out easily though. Its just taking the time to pull them.
the chickens are pretty independent these days. They have a waterer that has to be refilled once a month, and their feeder just needs a little attention every day. Its a gravity feeder, but for some reason the feed doesn't come down well on its own. So a couple of swipes at the food in the feeder and a check for eggs everyday and my chicken chores are done!
The cows are growing well and are doing fine eating the grass down. they love freshly mown grass from the lawn the best, and will take down the electric fence if I forget to turn it back on after watering day (don't want to get zapped while messing with the gated pipe). Luckily its not a hard fix.
Speaking of the gated pipe, it has its ups and downs. Its not entirely water tight (a headgate issue) so it does get leaky but we've put in a small ditch that is taking care of the swamp we had going on. Overall though, its not a bad set up. The biggest learning curve was that we have to water the potato and corn while its still small until the roots reach far enough down for the ditch water to irrigate it properly. We may have made our ditches to deep. We will try more shallow ditches next year.
Thursday, June 5, 2014
A Visual...
Since my wife gave me props for all the projects, I thought I would share a before and after video of one of the major projects. Revamping the garden.
Before:
After
Before:
After
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