Carrots!

 

We've got carrots!  Four different kinds of carrots!  I am so pleased.

 

 

 

 

 

If you've been following my blog at all, you know that DH made, what we call, "the trough" last year for me to plant in this year.  The depth is perfect for carrots and it would keep them above the ground so I wouldn't have to worry about carrot root fly getting them.  Plus, since the trough is on our deck, I don't have to worry about the garden rabbit getting them either.

 

 

 

 

These carrots are from the second thinning that I have done.  They are small still.  Most of them just one to three inches long.  But very nice shape and the colors are great.  I just wish my picture taking skills were better!

 

The white ones are the most fun.  People don't realize that carrots come in colors, let alone that they can look so lovely.  But the taste!  You have never tasted a carrot until you've grown them yourself.

How baby seals sleep while in the water

 

While on vacation this year, we spent a lot of time at The Head of the Meadow National Park beach.

 

One of the things we love about this beach is how close the seals are and go cruising past all during the day.

 

On our last day there, we saw this nose pop out, grabbed the binoculars and could tell is was a young seal.

 

Well, we kept watching......

 

And watching..........

And watching, until it had floated like this past us.  I got this horrible feeling in the pit of my stomach that the seal was not alive.

I went down to the life guard stand to ask them to please look and see if the seal was okay with their binoculars.  It was the end of their day, and there weren't many people on the beach.  One did look, while another told me that this is how young seals sleep.

I was not sure if I wanted to believe her, thinking she was telling me this to appease me.

She also said if I were to go down to High Head, I would see plenty of young seals sleeping exactly as this one is.  It was high tide and they tire from fishing so hard when the tide is going out that they often see them sleep like this.

I tried really hard to believe her, but as soon as we got back to our hotel room, I had to google it and check.

And, it's TRUE.  It's called bottling.  Only their nose sticks out of the water while they sleep in the water like this.  Also, that only half of their brain is asleep, the other half is awake and on alert for predators.

How far do you want your food to travel?

Spring 2013

This is as far as I would like my food to travel.  As far as my own back yard.

Now I know that I won't be able to raise ALL of my food.  I'm not able to. I don't know I am going to try to make our yard as much of a garden, a food garden, as possible. We live on a small piece of land, that is on a definite slope.  So there are many challenges, but I've thought of some things to do to work around those challenges.

For me, my "food" will be what I can grow, basically vegetables and the beginnings of some fruits.

I've shared with you my journey so far with last years garden and how I am preparing for planting blueberry bushes this year so that in a year or two we will be able to harvest our own blueberries.

I don't want to say "I want to be able to grow 50% of my food" as I am not sure how much I can actually grow, but I do know, that I won't know if I don't try.  And so, I am going to try to grow more in my yard this year, than last.

I am also going to be growing things this year, that I am not sure that we are actually going to like and enjoy, but these are things we've never tried before.  Why?  Well, we are like most people, we tend to do what our mothers did.  So it's going to be about going outside of the "box" we've grown up in.  About going out of our comfort zone.  I look at it this way.  We may find some things that we really enjoy that we've been missing.  Maybe we've been missing them because our mothers never fixed them, OR they fixed them by cooking them to DEATH!

I wish I had decided all this 20 years ago so that I would have even more time to think about what we like and how to grow it.  If you are just beginning to garden, whether you are 10 or 50, try some new things as well as things you like.  Eat them raw, straight from the garden.  Try them steamed, blanched, roasted, or even boiled with no other seasonings.  Then, go from there.  Maybe you won't like them raw, or "plain", maybe they are good for stews or soups, or perhaps even breads or cakes.  Go outside of your "box" and comfort zone.

I'd love to hear any comments on what you are doing different in your garden this year.

My Apology

I have just been made aware that some of you may not have been able to comment to my blog over the past two weeks or so.

I am sorry.  Apparently blogger and IE are having issues and for some reason comments are not allowed to be made.

From what I gather, they are working on the issue and it may mean that I will have to change to a different browser and being that I am not very computer savvy, that may take some time.

I hope that you will continue to read my blog and continue to try to post and that blogger will be able to get this resolved.

Thank you.

I never thought about this

I'm currently reading, "Gardening when it counts - growing food in hard times" by Steve Solomon.

I read this from the book and thought I would share it, as I had never thought about this before, even before my gardening journey began.

Winter's freezing halts the soil's biological process. When the thaw comes, the soil ecology starts up again, but from near zero.  From this cold start, useful soil microorganisms and small soil animals have as good a chance to dominate as do the unwanted ones.  The good guys can be helped out with crop rotation and a bit of compost.

He was talking about how if you live in a place where the ground does not freeze solid to 18 inches or more for a few months, that it may not be possible to grow a garden successfully after the first few years.  That you could still grow a garden there.  He wasn't saying that a garden wouldn't actually grow.  He meant that without crop rotation and the addition of compost that the productivity of the garden would go down.

This is something that I had never thought about.

I know that in the winter it is good to have snow, as it melts slowly into the earth soil it adds needed moisture and nitrogen (I believe, I'll have to look that one up.)

I also know, that in winter, when it's cold, usually germs are killed off by the cold.  At least that is what we've always been lead to believe. 

So this thought about the freezing ground makes sense to me.  It helps to "kill off" the "bad" microorganisms and it gives the "good" ones a starting chance to make the soil good.

It's strange, isn't it?  I don't know about you, but now, as I drive around doing my errands or helping someone with theirs, I look at all the yards.  All the yards around where I live that are so manicured and well taken care of.  Not that there is anything wrong with that.  For the people who live there.  But I've begun to look at all those homes and say within my head, "wouldn't some apple trees look lovely there?" or "That yard gets so much southern exposure, a vegetable garden would get fabulous light there."  And even, "What a nice level yard.  I wish I had that one for my garden."

But, as the title of my blog says, "growing where I am planted", the yard I have is the yard I have and I need to make the best of it, sloping ground and all.

So, I continue to read.  I continue to learn and listen to what other gardeners thoughts are about growing things, especially soil, as ours was neglected for so long.

It is a journey I am on now and I'd love to have you share it with me.  I always love to hear your comments and I hope that you enjoy some tidbit that I care to share.

Some more before and after

 

Here are some more, just for fun.

 

 

During

 

After

During

After

 

 

After

 

After

Just say NO

Just say NO to using Round Up. 

Don't use it at your home, talk about not using it with your friends, co workers, relatives, neighbors.  Anyone who will listen to you.  It's just bad stuff.

I've been doing a lot of reading, books and on the internet and I just can't believe how we've all been blinded by the fact that it will "kill" all of our weeds and our yards and gardens will look great!

At what expense?  Our health and the health of the world we live in.

I'm sorry if this seems like such an "off" post for me.  I'm usually not so dramatic or passionate to others about the things I believe.  But the more I read about Round Up and what it has done to our world, it's upsetting.

Please take the time to enjoy your yard and garden.  Get out there and weed by hand.  It's not so bad, and the exercise is GOOD for you.  Encourage other's to weed with you, spend time in the garden enjoying what you are doing and who you are with.  It creates the things that become the memories in years to come.  Plus, it fosters a sense of connectedness with the soil and the earth and growing the food you are eating.

Besides, the weeds were here first, and I have a feeling, they'll be here long after we are gone.

One Hundred Mile Diet

What?

Locavore: (According to Wikipedia)

A locavore is a person interested in eating food that is locally produced, not moved long distances to market. The desired maximum distance for local produce is between 50-100 miles. The locavore movement in the United States and elsewhere was spawned as interest in sustainability and eco-consciousness became more prevalent.

I read about being a locavore for the first time in Barbara Kingsolvers book, Animal, Vegetable, Miracle, last year.  I never gave a lot of thought to where my food came from, just that when I wanted to eat something, I would go to the grocery store and buy it.  I didn't really think about the miles it traveled, or where it actually came from, I was just glad that I could go to the grocery store in the cold of January and buy a fresh orange.

Now, when I go into the store and buy a "fresh" orange, I wonder..... how "fresh" is it?  where did it come from? and, how many miles away is that?

We decided to start our garden so that we knew "where" our food came from and also to save some money.

 

 

We also decided, that for 2014, we would join our local CSA to give that a try.  We joined it together with another family because my friend had been talking about joining and was afraid she wouldn't be able to use everything she got in a box, as she has two small children and wasn't sure she would have the time to take care of all the food.

 

The arrangement will work well for both our families, as no matter what we get and share, we are both concerned about where our food comes from.



 

 

I also like that we will be supporting a local farmer.

While I am not one to make new years resolutions, I would like to think that by thinking more about where my food comes from and eating in season, I am making a healthy lifestyle change that is good for me, and good for the environment as well as supporting a local, small business.

Have you looked lately to see "where" your food is coming from?

My trip to the library

I haven't been in our town library in quite a few years.  The internet usually provides me with plenty of information.

But, as I've mentioned before, I am a book person, and I don't want to buy all the books that I want to read, so I have to start to use my library again.

Anyway, we have a very small library, but, there were a number of books on gardening that I would like to read, so this time I checked out 4 books.  I plan to share all of them with you over time, and some of the thoughts that I got out of them.

I also wanted to begin using my library again to support them and to save my family some money.  Plus, I'm hoping that perhaps, they may have information on any garden groups or things going on in my county to help with simplifying our lives.

I would like to encourage you to pay a visit to your local library today.

Garden Wisdom

When I decided that I really wanted to make a good effort at growing a garden, I decided that I needed to know as much as I could to grow the best I could.

Now, I love the Internet, and I probably spend more time than I should on it, but to me, it's like having a library in my home and I LOVE that.  Sad to say though, I haven't been to my library in years, but that's another story.

Anyway, I found a few books, that I actually did purchase and this is one of them.

"Garden Wisdom and Know How: Everything You Need to Know to Plant, Grow and Harvest"

It is from the Editors of Rodale Gardening Books, of which I get the Organic Gardening magazine.  Made here in the United States.

The only thing that I don't like about the book is the print size.  As you can see, the book is rather large, it contains a lot, but the print is small.

There are 10 chapters in the book and I have found a number of items in the book that have been helpful with my garden this year and I have not completed reading it.

The first chapter, Getting Started, is 74 pages long and it talks mostly about learning the zone you live in and composting.  Growing your soil.
I have learned a lot from just one chapter of this book and I am reading into the next chapter now, which is "Gardening Techniques and Tricks".

Do you have a favorite, go to, gardening book?

Sustainable? Frugal? Cheapskate?

Okay, I guess it all depends on how you look at things.  I'm talking about how you look at what you are doing to simplify your life.

It means different things to different people, but it's all really the same thing, isn't it?

I have tried to be frugal all of our married life.  I'm the saver.  I'm the one who looks for the sales, the deals, the yard sales or shops at the thrift store.  Dear Darling, only recently has begun to see the  value of reusing and recycling things we have or things we are lucky enough to find, and that it isn't so bad after all.

But now, we are empty nesters, and we've had some major life changes and health issues, so now, instead of just being frugal, we are beginning to look for sustainable as well.

I like to garden, and so my Dear Darling is willing to help me transform our yard into more of a garden than we've ever had.  We enjoy knowing where our food comes from and knowing who our farmer is.  Not just me, but "the egg man" and for next year the CSA we have joined.

We want healthy food in our lives, we want to make more of the things we enjoy, such as the bread, the butter, yogurt, home cooked meals.  It not only saves us money, but it adds to the worth of our dollar.

Part of the reason for this post is I recently saw a show that is on TV here in the US called "Extreme Cheapskates".  And, while some of the things they show people doing make sense and are sustainable things, some of them are just not right.  I don't feel taking things, such as sugar packets or ketchup packets that are not to be used right then for or with your purchase, is not right or ethical.  To me, that's stealing.  That business owner is trying to make a living and provide a service, for a reasonable cost and when people walk off with handfuls of packets of sugar, that is stealing.  Not being a cheapskate.  Not being frugal. (But, I guess, after looking at the definition, this is being a cheapskate, but in my book, it's stealing.)

Frugal:

: careful about spending money or using things when you do not need to : using money or supplies in a very careful way 

To me being frugal is using ALL of everything.  So is it extreme to open up the tube of toothpaste to get the last little bit out?  Some people may think so, but if you don't have to open or buy another toothpaste for a week, and you are using it all, you are being a good steward of your purchase and your money.

Do you add water to your shampoo, body soap or laundry soap bottle to shake the last little bits out?  Do you add water to your jar of sauce to get the last bits of it out?  I don't see that as being a cheapskate, I see it as being frugal.

Is being a cheapskate not wanting to spend money?

Cheapskate:

  a miserly or stingy person; especially :  one who tries to avoid paying a fair share of costs or expenses

I don't really think I'm a cheapskate, not that I'm saying there is anything wrong with that.  Everyone lives within their means.  I like to consider myself frugal, meaning that I like to reuse, reduce and recycle.  Make my environment better with my choices.  Speak with how and where I spend our dollars.

I don't try to get out of paying my fair share of costs or expenses, I just want to be sure I'm getting the most value for the money I'm spending.

Sustainable:

[more sustainable; most sustainable] 1 : able to be used without being completely used up or destroyed
▪ sustainable energy resources ▪ a sustainable water supply

2 : involving methods that do not completely use up or destroy natural resources
▪ sustainable agriculture/farming/techniques

3 : able to last or continue for a long time

* all definitions were found online in the Merriman-Webster dictionary.

I guess they are all not really the same.  Being Frugal and a person who chooses to live sustainably is what I would like to be known for.

Seed Catalogs

Have you started to get your catalogs in the mail?

I have and I don't know what to do!!  There are so many lovely things to grow that I want almost everything.

How do you make up your mind what you will plant?

I know they say in the beginning of your garden journey you should plant what you love to eat.  I can agree with that, and it's what I did this year, 2013.

Next year, I have made some sketches, ( if you could call my chicken scratch sketches) of the additions I am making to the yard for new spots to grow things.  I will be able to get quite a few more things in with the trough Dear Darling made for me, and the gutter garden, and the hugel bed.  Plus I have amended two of the planters in the back where I have iris and columbine planted so that I can add more things in with them come the spring.

I am definitely doing Kale, as it did well for me this year.  Plus cherry tomatoes.  I am planning o have Dill and chives, oh and sunflowers.  Blueberries, strawberries, green beans, yellow beans, peas, about 6 different kinds of lettuce.

See where I'm going?

Then add in to that mix, all these catalogs....... sigh.....

Thanksgiving, the forgotten holiday

Isn't it a shame?  Thanksgiving has become the forgotten holiday.

With the economy being what it is, slow, bad, depressing, whichever word you feel fits, the businesses are pushing the Christmas season WAY, WAY too early this year.

Since our family is fragmented by jobs and distance, we don't celebrate Thanksgiving, or any holiday really, in the traditional manner, but we try.  Try being the word.

This year, Dear Boy will be working and cooking a turkey at work for he and his coworkers to enjoy together, not with their families.  I told him I would get his turkey for him.  I asked if there was anything else I could make for their meal, but haven't gotten a "text" back yet.  I have some banana's in the freezer, perhaps a nice banana cake with homemade icing will work.

Dear Boy is a paramedic.  He LOVES his job and I give him a lot of credit to do such work.  We really can't talk much about it, he and I, because he likes to share the details, which for me is TOO MUCH INFORMATION.

This year, when you sit down to your table to give thanks for your many blessings in your life and that of your family, take a moment to think of those who are working that day to help to keep you safe.  The paramedics, the EMT's, the firefighters, the doctors, the nurses, the veterinarians, the ambulance drivers, the police officers, all persons in the military.  I know there are plenty of others that I perhaps have not mentioned.  But think of them and be thankful.  Thankful that they are there.  Thankful that they have the training and that they continue training.  Thankful that they give up their holiday with families to be there when they are needed.

Be thankful this thanksgiving and perhaps, stay out of the stores to send the message that people shouldn't be working on a family holiday just to make someone else money.

Lunch with my mother

 

After my mother passed away, dad and I went through all the things in the kitchen and the attic that needed to be sorted through.  Some items I had never seen before, and he said he hadn't either.  Memories were now lost, forever.

 

 

This is one of the plates that I took.  My father said that these were some of the first plates they used when they got married.  He couldn't remember why or when they had stopped using them, and didn't even remember my mother saving them.

 

You can see that I chose the one with the chip in it.  Life isn't perfect.

Everyday, almost, when I have breakfast or lunch, I take my plate out of the cabinet and say hello to my mother and we have a meal together.

I wish she had shared more about herself with me when we were together.

Take the time today to share with your children or grandchildren something about yourself that you've never shared before.  Give them a memory to have.

Go ahead, ask me.

I dare you.

Go head, ask me.

I double, dog dare you!

Ask me how many pots of water do you need to run through your coffee machine, not pot, to get butter residue out of the machine?



Yes, you heard me right.

I put a stick of butter on top of my coffee machine, while it was brewing, while I was busy, in the kitchen, hoping to defrost it quickly for a recipe.  All of a sudden I hear the coffee maker making this strange sound.  I look up, and sure enough, part of the stick of butter has already melted and I can see it dripping down the lid, underneath into the part where the coffee filter is.

Sigh..... my life on a Friday.

I ran a pot of water through it.  I ran a pot of water with vinegar through it.  I washed out the pot and the basket.  I ran more water through it.  And more water through it.  Then, I even washed out the coffee machine with a soapy rag, while hanging it over the edge of the sink and then used the sprayer hose to spray HOT tap water through it.

Then, I ran more water through it, washed the pot again and the basket. I ran more water through it, this time with a filter in the basket and finally, the water came out clear and with no BUTTER reside floating on the top!!!

This post is just to show, you learn something new every day, and today, I learned more than one! 

Don't put butter on top of the coffee maker while making coffee to defrost.

AND, yes, you can clean out a coffee maker from fatty, buttery residue if you are persistent!

Have a good weekend!

Do you eat left overs?

I was just reading something about this, and have often talked with people about what do they do with their leftovers from meals.

I can not get over how many people say, "Oh, my husband won't eat leftovers".  Or "My children won't eat leftovers".

Have you ever told your husband that by not eating those leftovers it's like throwing $30.00 away from the $100.00 you spent on groceries that week?  Maybe if you put it to him like that, he'd get it.

Also, when I was brought up, we had dinner at the table, together, or as together as the family was going to be that night, and you ate what was there.  The only choice you might have is what to drink, which was usually milk or water, or how many of the vegetable choices you wanted.  If you didn't "like" what was there, you didn't eat.

My father often said, and still does, "take what you're going to eat, and eat what you take."

There was always more than enough food on the table for seconds if you wanted them, but you had best finish what you took.

Now, I'm not saying and I don't want to debate this, I'm not saying we were FORCED to eat every morsel on our plate, no, that never happened.  But, we also knew that we shouldn't take more than we felt we were going to eat at the first serving.

Now, was there always "leftovers" in our house after each meal?  No, not usually.  Somehow, it seemed that my mother had a pretty good gauge on how much to make for our family.   And usually, there was just enough for the dinner or there would be just enough for dad to have a sandwich for lunch the next day at work.

Otherwise, my dad took peanut butter and jelly every day to work, on Wonder bread.  There was no eating off the lunch truck, or going out to lunch, or stopping for coffee.  Dad never spent any money for meals or snacks at work.  A peanut butter sandwich and a piece of fruit were his lunch.

 

Do you have rules at your house for what you fix and what your family will eat?

Our house

Our house, is a very, very fine house.......

The beginnings of new front landscaping.  Only one half is done at this point.

I'm not sure what made me think to write about our house today.  But, it's the topic of the day.

Our house, our home, is located on a hill, as I've mentioned before.  I wouldn't call it the perfect house.  I wouldn't say we want to stay here forever.  It's a nice enough home for this point in time.

The side yard as seen from our deck. At the tip is where the hugel is.

We've already been here longer than we had planned when we moved here.  We had a five year plan then, and the economy tanked and dear darling has lost his job 3 times in the last 5 years.  But, we've managed to hold on.  Bills paid every month, never late.

The housing market in our area is great for home buyers, but not sellers.  So that is why we are waiting, and hoping that the market will recover enough and that the other houses, of which there are 5 in our block, will sell and we can begin to look for a small home that we can live in forever.

The other side of the back yard.

For me, the perfect house would be small.  Two bedrooms, with a basement and if no garage, at least a yard big enough to build one for dear darling to have a nice sized workshop or man cave.  I would love to have a yard big enough for a nice garden to provide the food we need to feed us and also to have some chickens.  I am also not sure that I would want to live in a neighborhood or out in the country.

Do you live in your forever home?