Category Archive: Garden
Hoop house tour
First, before I forget, I got a question about the granola, so if you read the comments from yesterday, you will find how I make it.
The raspberries – though not in the hoop house are off to a running start. We had to put the little fence around them as the sheep LOVE raspberry leaves and will totally strip them.
As one enters the house, on the left are various types of lettuce, Swiss chard, Chinese cabbage and other greens. Down near the other end are cauliflower and broccoli.
This is the left center row. In front are zucchini (marigolds to go outside in middle there), a few wayward potatoes, cucumbers and space for melons on the other end which still needs weeding.
This is on the right of the doorway, and is technically my tomato spot. In the front here, I am trying to grow some sweet potatoes. This is a new experiment for me, so we will see if they do well.
This is farther down the tomato row. Though we covered this row for the winter so we wouldn’t have to weed, the volunteer tomatoes are coming up. Some I left as they were because they were in the row though not straight and many others, I moved over to the rows. I planted and left 52 volunteers and on my way out, I saw I missed another 10 or 12. So Sunday, they will get moved. It will be a surprise what is where. Last year I planted 12 or more various types of tomatoes.
This is looking from the other end of the tomato row. I have started planting beefsteaks that I grew from seed this year. The seedlings didn’t do very well, and it looks like I am keeping them too wet. Maybe they will do better in the ground.
This row has beets, kale, more that I don’t remember. I still want to put carrots and cantaloupe in the ground. Maybe Sunday that will happen.
And across the back are some potatoes which need hilling. I think I will cut them back before I hill them.
Sheep and weeds
This is on the other side of the driveway from their pasture and it’s either let them out on days we’re home or we have to mow and weed eat. That’s not a very difficult decision and they are so happy to be weed eaters. It is so interesting to watch them eat. A taste of this, then a taste of that.
And here is what happens when I walk toward them. They think I must be coming to give them grain. They were wrong tonight, but managed to push the gate open and were waiting for me to grain them.
Can you see all the yellowish “weeds”. Really they are tiny maple trees that all have to come out this year. By next year their roots will have buried so deep that they will be very difficult to pull. They are all through the blueberries and grape patch, so I have hired someone to come and pull them.
I tried to do some heirloom sewing today and just cannot see well enough to do the kind of job I like to do. It will be another month before they will check my eyes and write a prescription and then another week until I get the glasses. Right now, if I had it to do over again, I would pass. I’m just a bit discouraged by all this. Maybe I just need some chocolate. Most likely, I need to trust that God knows what is best.
Socks, etc.
This is the last you will see of these socks this week. I’m getting tired of them, though I’m about half way to the toe, so they will find a back burner for awhile.
These are the peppers that will be going out to the hoop house tomorrow. I forgot to green peppers, so I’ll have to purchase some plants. These seeds are from peppers we ate.
And just so you will get an idea of how relaxing this environment is for some, enjoy this.
You probably knew – but a reminder
Being a manager is hard work.
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With cataract surgery, one is not supposed to bend down, lift more than 10#, or get water in the eye – forget about rubbing it – for a month.
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The garden is waiting for the plants.
So I hired 4 people today to come help – now the 4 people is because if you hire 4, you might get one or you might not. 2 fellows actually showed up for 5 hours and really worked. It was good there were two of them to get the rototiller down the stairs as there was a section that needed tilling. Those fellows worked hard and the one will be back for about that long tomorrow and we should have all but the warm weather crops in. Both of these fellows work hard, when you can get them here. One has a full time job during the week, the other doesn’t drive. So after tomorrow, it will mostly be a matter of us keeping it fertilized, watered, and weeded. The most difficult part – that of getting the large 2 year old weeds is done.
The person who was hired to work in the hoop house showed up late, but did come. However, that may have been an absolute waste as even after I gave instructions, plants were not put where they should have been nor were they given much care in the transplanting. Plants are tough, so we’ll see. I had to be gone for a bit, so when asked why the beets had 12″ between them and the cauliflower had only 4″, I was told, she didn’t want to get up and look at what I had told her. So that was fixed – we will know in 2 weeks how much took and where we have to start over. At least the tomatoes, squash, beans etc can wait a month. But managing is HARD work – really HARD work.
The other thing that was accomplished is my daughter came over and unpacked the furniture for the guest room that another daughter had moved back with from the east coast and then didn’t have room. The movers really packed the furniture well, so there were layers of cardboard and packing paper to remove. Wednesday, she and I plan to buy sheets and rugs – and see what else appeals to us for the room. There is a dresser with mirror above at the foot of the bed and nightstands that don’t show in the photo. We are open to any ideas you might have.
The garden starts
These are the tiny little potatoes I left in the ground. They were the size of a marble. They are nearly ready to be hilled. This year they will produce good potatoes.
This lettuce and Chinese cabbage, I purchased already started and they are doing spectacular.
The romaine and leaf lettuce are finally getting with the program.
I think I may be doing much of the remaining planting while sitting. Did you know that after cataract surgery, you can’t put your head lower than your heart for an entire month??? But that’s alright, I’ll put the started beets and cabbage in while sitting on the ground. It’s dry in the hoop house. The tomatoes, cukes, and melons won’t go in for another month anyway.
Finally, I washed the inside windows – rear and rear sides. They were thoroughly dog slobbered from our last vet visit and this is my farm wagon – a 1991 Honda wagon. It carries what is needed and has a dog gate as well. Now that the sun is out, I need to be able to see again.
Other than that, clothes were washed and we made another trip to the chiropractor. And this time I was the passenger!
As for the eyes, there is both improvement and room for more improvement
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More unsewing than sewing
I started to quilt this flimsy because I thought the machine problem was solved. It is not, the thread refuses to stay between the discs and therefore the horrible mess on the underside.. 15 minutes to put it in and two hours (with interruptions) to take it out. So after removing the stitches, it was on to better things.
The garden items that are in the ground, plus the blueberries, raspberries, grapes and apple trees all received their dose of fertilizer since it is supposed to rain tonight and then not again until next Tuesday a week away. Now that they have been fertilized, the rain can water it all in. I also did the plants in the hoop house and watered that in. My this all takes a lot of time. Oh, yes, I also had to get more peat moss as we are trying to improve the soil on the hill.
I pulled this out today, hoping to get to sew, but such was not the case. It is a very cute Martha Pullen design for the 18″ dolls and will refresh my heirloom skills. I intend to take it methodically (read that as slowly), so I don’t have to unsew any of it. I have the fabric, trims, buttons and elastic and I’m ready to go, when there is some me time.
Circus block #1
This is the first block of 9 monthly installments of Critters at the Circus published by Quilt Magazine. They are really cute blocks which use mostly scraps. I will show them to you each month as I complete the applique stitching on each.
And the applique on the “fish” is completed. It is now hanging in the “to be quilted” closet, which is way too full.
The sun is still shinning and I found someone to dig and clean out the vegetable beds. We now have a few peas and potatoes planted and 100 onion bulbs. The garlic was put in last fall. So I won’t be putting too much more outside until we are past the frosts. By then the beds should be ready to plant.
Northwest sunshine
Another gloriously, beautiful day spent mostly outside. I mean, when one finally gets the sun, how could one stay inside? More potatoes have been planted. These had very long sprouts on them, because it took so long to get enough sun to plant.
And more work planting starts and soaking the peas. This may be what I do for the next two weeks. The sweet potato starts are next to go in the ground. – hopefully Friday. And it’s already time to start squash and pumpkins. How does one keep up and do anything else?
After dark, bit by bit, this is getting appliqued down. I just have the black of the eyes to do and then pull off all the paper from the back.
FOOD
The runs to the feed store are getting more frequent with more mouths to feed.
These were careful attendants, making sure that the food was put away correctly. And the sheep are also watching from the other side of the car – behind the fence.
I did buy a couple herbs as shown here. In these trays, I have several vegetables as well as some flowers. They are ready to be transplanted to larger containers, but not yet the garden
And some 20 cauliflower starts as everywhere I went, the seed had sold out. I must order some though as I will want to plant more. I have a some lettuce, potatoes, and cabbage on this side. Just enough to get buy until the bigger crop comes up.