We are now at our frost free planting date. I don't have a very big garden this year - mostly it is what I've taken over from the flower beds. It's a start.
1. Plant Something Tomatoes, green beans (pole and bush), leeks, broccoli, cauliflower (first try ever for these), butternut squash, lettuces, peppers (too chilly for them), cucumbers, onion sets, raspberry bushes (2), rhubarb, grapes... that's all that coming to me. We still have to dig our main garden but there is only so much we can do at once.
2. Harvest Something Nothing yet - just hand-milked dairy and a few herb.
3. Preserve something I've got another 4 buckets of wheat put up. I am learning some important things about bugs and storage on the food storage site and will be taking some extra precautions there.
Caught a good dessert rain in two rain barrels which I'm using for hand watering of new transplants.
4. Prep Something The chicken coop is completed! Yea Mr. Greenjeans!
Went to COSTCO and picked up sugar (25#), canola oil, chicken stock, aspirin, dog food, TP, Tuna, sandwich bread for the freezer, and brick cheese. Also got little one a new pair of pants and a shirt.
I am declaring Friday as bread baking day. I'm banking on making an out loud commitment here to make two loaves of bread a week. This started last week.
The soap making and the grain mill have arrived but I haven't gotten to them...yet. Today may be the day.
The girls are out of school so they cleaned house for me, did dog detail, mowed and have cooked twice. This sure leaves me more time.
Put up clothes line in addition to the folding racks and have all the family on board for hanging laundry.
Began buying local eggs until my girls lay next spring. The milk strainer came. The goat sized ones are perfect for hand milkers because it's nothing to slowly pour a quart through then milk again.
5. Cook something (New) We've been cooking every meal but I can't think of anything new.
6. Manage Reserves I think I get this mixed up with prep something. Oldest daughter began cutting up reserved clothes for a quilt.
7. Work on Local Food Systems I went to a meeting of the newly forming farmers market. This has never been done before in this town - in the city at least. They are still in search of producers. I realized I had something to contribute because I've been talking to people and asking what's available on my own.
The folks I've been helping along have talke a contractor to drove on their land into putting in a 5' deep ditch for water and power out to a little shed/barn in prep for my possibly putting in an animal. They are planting some vegies for the first time in years.(5' is the minimum safe level for freezing here and only flexible pipe will do just in case 5' doesn't cover it).
Next door we dug up the buried grape pieces and looked at the buds. They planted them on our common fence and I reburied mine for a couple of days and they are giving away others.
8. Learn Something Lots and lots of learning. I learn from the food storage group, from my neighbors, and from my mistakes.
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4 comments:
WOw! You've been busy! Good job on your wheat! Your little grinder is pretty cool btw! Your homemade bread sounds really yummy right now. I think I'm hungry!
Did you get your rainbarrels locally? I'd love to find somewhere nearby to get mine from.
I like the idea of baking two loaves of bread each week. I tend to save up and have a bread baking "blitz" every now and then. The weekly thing sounds more manageable. I'm anxious to hear how that goes!
It's funny to read posts from all of you in cooler climates. Where I live, it's so hot now that it's too late to plant much of anything new (until fall). What we've got in the ground now is what we're stuck with through August.
Great job! I got my Lehman's Best Grain Mill but haven't gotten to it yet, either. Glad I'm not the only one. I can't believe we haven't even tried it out yet! After so looking forward to it. Oh well, its time will come. I'd love to declare a bread-baking day, too, and just might designate Fridays now since it's one of my days off. Good idea.
Lisa in MN
Becca, I didn't get them locally though they had free shipping. I've been by the likely sources - distribution companies but havn't found any.
Tara, the two loaves from last week lasted the week but just now, an hour out of the oven I had 1/2 a loaf. I gave one loaf to a neighbor who keeps giving us things like bedding plants and the family desimated half a loaf while still hot.
I'm washing and putting up flannel PJ's today that I'd worn just this week in hopes that it is warm enough. It is still cool in a t-shirt in the morning and evening unless you are working a good pace.
Lisa, that will be fun to see what each are baking! I'm just doing a basic whole wheat from King Arthur flour. It makes a consistantly good loaf.
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