Got Curcurbits?

Doesn't that sound like some kind of bizarre disease? Actually it is the family which cucumbers, squash, melons and the dreaded zucchini fall into.

Last year the squash borers killed all my cucumbers, yellow squash and zucchini before I got a handful of vegetables from them. No relish or pickles in the pantry for us.

My sister said all her plants had all died as well. According to her father-in-law it was because she didn't plant radishes in her garden last year. According to him the radishes discourage the borers. Since no one eats them we both skipped planting them.

This year I sprinkled a few radish seeds down the row and now I've got more curcurbits than I can possibly use. I've canned dill pickles, bread and butter pickles, zucchini relish, yellow squash relish, and dill relish and they're still coming on strong. Since everyone loves bread and butter pickles I'll do another batch of them and another batch of yellow squash relish. And I think I'll try drying some zucchini chips and see how they taste.

Anyone need curcubits? Right now everyone sees me coming with a bag and runs the other direction.

House Renovations Already

All the canning that has been keeping me busy for the past couple months has caused an immediate renovation project (to a new house). Closet Maid shelving is easy to install and easy to keep clean and is fairly durable in most circumstances. Holding many jars of food is not one of them.

Besides the fact that I'm out of space (a couple dozen jars are on the kitchen counter still) these shelves are sagging to the point that I just know I'll wake up one night to a huge crash.

Over the weekend I gave my daughter the choice to put in new wooden shelves or to slice and peel apples for apple pie filling. She chose shelving. She found the studs, measured everything, predrilled holes, screwed the braces into the studs, leveled everything both directions, cut the shelves and reorganized the jars.

This afternoon she is using the last of the shelving to add one more shelf and eventually all the Closet Maid shelves will be replaced. Since the new shelves are closer together there will be more room to store food.

Just for the record she is 17 and yes, I am just a little proud of her.

The star of the garden this year has been sweet potatoes. These two potatoes alone weigh 5 pounds and there were a couple dozen between 1 and 2 pounds, not to mention the dozens of smaller potatoes. Even though they are huge they are still tender and delicious.

Perfect Corn Revisited

I tried the cabbage/hot pepper mixture on the corn this year and it worked pretty well. It stunk to high heaven, but I had only a couple ears with ear worms. I had more that was damaged by the worms that bore in through the sides, so next year I'll try spraying the entire ear rather than just the silks.

The biggest problem was pollination because we planted only 2 rows and ran out of seed. It needed at least 3 rows.

Perfect Corn with no Pesticides

My neighbor gave us a bag of corn from his garden this weekend and it was the prettiest ears of corn I think I've ever seen. They were perfect ears with no signs of bugs at all. We took it home and put it straight on the stove for corn on the cob. Delicious!

When I asked him how he kept the worms off, he gave me his recipe. He fermented cabbage and hot peppers in water, strained off the solids and sprayed the silks with the liquid. Since my corn is getting close, I started a batch Sunday. Hopefully it will be ready to use soon.

Simple Pleasures

The mimosa tree by the road has been in full bloom for about a month now, but about a week ago I noticed that it was full of hummingbirds. They move so fast it's impossible to count, but there must have been close to 10 of them flitting from bloom to bloom and then darting off in pairs to find another source of nectar. After many tries I actually got a picture of one. I know it's not good, but I should have a new camera in a couple days. GE decided that the problem was with the camera and they've sent a replacement.

While I was picking peaches over the weekend I didn't see many hummingbirds, but the tree was covered with butterflies. This red-spotted purple was on the compost pile.

I was able to freeze 3 quarts of peaches and make 8 pints of peach jam, so I was pleased. Every other year the bugs eat way more than we do. One thing I noticed was that the peaches that weren't quite ripe had no bug damage, but by the time they get ripe the worms have gotten to them. So next year the tree needs pruned more, concentrating on removing some of the small branches and the peaches need to be picked just before they get ripe and allowed to ripen inside away from the bugs.

Now if only my kids would eat what is coming out of the garden. You would think I was trying to poison them by feeding them 'raw tomatoes, fried banana peppers, beet greens and zucchini.' Heaven forbid!

Gardening - Tools, Rocks and Weeds

One of the best things about my garden is that it is where piles of cow manure from a small dairy were left to compost for years. Now the soil has tons of organic matter and and clumps break up easily. It is easy to till and easy to pull weeds.

That's a good thing. Because one of the bad things about my garden is that while it was composting it spent five or more years growing weeds and spreading enough seed to grow weeds into the next millennium. My mantra this year has been 'if it doesn't seed there won't be as many weeds next year.' The new tiller is helping, but by the time I got it, the weeds were already too big for it. Which leads me to tools.

I have always heard to buy the best tools you can buy because they are well worth the money. My dad has said it, Donny always says it, every man I know says it, but it always seems like when I go to buy tools I never have the money to buy good ones. So, the rake I bought early last summer isn't usable this summer and the hoe I bought at good, old Walmart broke the first week.

New mantra. 'Buy good tools.'

Now for the other bad thing about my garden. When all that cow manure was scraped over to the manure pile, lots of rock went along with it. I don't know if I can ever get all the rock out, but with the help of my trusty wheelbarrow (a good one that Donny gave me when he upgraded to a two wheeler) I've been filling the holes in the driveway. Since my driveway is about 800 feet long, I figure that all the holes will be filled about the time the garden is free of rocks.

Now the best thing about my garden is eating a vine ripened tomato warm from the sun during a break from weeding.

Peaches

Yes! I found the first ripe peach last night. It was small, but tasted wonderful. I guess that means putting up peaches this weekend. Beetles haven't gotten them yet, so I may actually have a small crop. Maybe Ashley will even make a peach pie. She's turning into a pretty decent baker and she even makes the crust from scratch.

I'll probably can them so I can save freezer space for beef.

Blackberries are Ripe

May was really dry, but in June we got just enough rain, and the blackberries have loved it. The berries are large and juicy and abundant. We have made two cobblers, frozen 4 quarts for cobblers later in the year and over the weekend I made 9 pints of jam. Another gallon of berries will do us.

There is something satisfying about seeing jars lined up in the pantry and knowing that your family will eat good over the winter from food that grew just outside your door. Peaches will be next. They aren't large, but there are a lot of them and the beetles haven't found them yet, so we should have plenty and some to spare.

Here's the cobbler recipe my grandma used. I love it because it's so easy.

• Melt one stick of butter in a baking dish. (I cut this back to 1/2 stick and it's still good)
• Mix 1 cup of sugar and 1 cup of self rising flour add one cup of milk to this mix. Pour over the melted butter. Add one quart of fruit and use spoon to make an 'x' through the mixture without stirring.
• Bake at 350 for about 45 minutes or until brown on top.

Of course we won't talk about the poison ivy on both ankles and arms or the chiggers that have eaten me alive.

We also got the first tomato from the garden finally. I made my traditional tomato and Miracle Whip sandwich for lunch Saturday, but the girls were not impressed. Next year I need to pay more attention to maturity dates and pick some early veggies so we don't have to wait until July for that first tomato and corn.

Google Reader pointed me to this local eating website that has some good information on it.

Pictures to come when I get them off my phone. Hopefully I'll have my camera back soon. The new one I got at Christmas decided not to power on.

Knitting Two Socks at One Time

After knitting two pairs of socks, I thought I'd try two at the same time, so I don't have to force myself to knit the second sock.

It took knitting for several inches before I got control of the two strands of yarn and cables and could easily pick things back up when I put down the needles. In fact I had to take out several rows because I started knitting backwards and didn't catch it until it was time to change needles. The heel didn't work exactly right, it was very awkward, but I'm past that now, just need to finish the foot and toe.

I do like the idea of having both socks done at once, but I'm getting bored with them, so I started a lace project too.

This weekend was spent fixing strawberries, working in the yard and knitting lace. We went to Marcum Farms and picked seven gallons of berries. They were great, but I noticed later in the day that another farm less than a quarter mile up the road had berries for $6 a gallon rather than $9, just in case anyone wants to pick strawberries.

Here is a quick picture of the lace stole I'm working on. It's like knitting a cloud. The lace is so light and soft. The yarn is Kid Seta by Madil Yarns from ReBelle Girls in Lexington. It is 70% kid mohair, 30% silk and it is luscious. My new camera is on the blink, so none of these pictures are very good. I apologize for that.

Springtime

There has been so much going on at the farm right now, that I can't seem to keep up with it all. After living in the house for over a year I'm finally trying to get some landscaping done, so every evening I'm planting something or moving dirt.

I started pouring a concrete pathway to the house last summer, but it seemed to take so long and it got complicated when I decided to do a curvy path rather than straight. A few weeks ago I noticed a lot of slate laying on top of the ground where they had recently put in a water line close to home. So every evening I've stopped and picked up slate. One more night will give me enough to do most of the path and it will be much faster than mixing about 30 bags of concrete.

My youngest just turned 13, so it's official, a household full of female teenagers and one menopausal mom. It gets interesting. Somehow she managed to get a four-legged birthday present. That 'S' tattooed on my forehead must be getting bigger.

Once again the peach tree is loaded with tiny peaches, but since they never get very big, I'm trying the advice in one of my gardening books and I'm thinning them. Maybe this year we'll have good peaches and the Japanese beetles won't get them all.

Ashley just started a blog for things that are happening on the farm which finally has a name, Cedar Pond Farm.

Locust Winter

Well, the locust trees are in full bloom, so I guess this cold spell is officially 'Locust Winter' according to the old timers at the local store. I even had to turn on the heat again last night.

A Late Earth Day Post

We’re having a real spring this year and everything seems to be staying in bloom forever, because of the cool weather. So to celebrate Earth Day, here are some signs of spring around our farm.

Kittens anyone? We now have 9. The other litter is grays and blacks, with a bobtail orange.

The first time I saw the apple tree in full bloom it took my breath away, it was so beautiful, but the photo of the whole tree didn’t do it justice.

In our family there is nothing that says spring more than having weather nice enough to play with the horses again. Tori got her very own horse for her birthday and is loving it. He just rolled in the pond so he isn’t his usual pretty gray color, more like mud.

Foodwise, spring is great. Lettuce and spinach are ready to eat. The hens are laying three or four eggs a day, so we have more than we can eat right now. And best of all the asparagus is just popping through the ground. This bed was planted last year, so we shouldn’t eat it till next year, but I did steal a few shoots from this plant for a quiche, since they were a really nice size.

The bees were really buzzing around this redbud tree when I was wandering around taking pictures. Minnie and I were talking about the different winters that Kentucky gets each spring. She said that her grandmother always said there were seven different winters, but she couldn’t remember all of them. The first cold spell we got the pears were blooming, but neither of us had ever heard of Pear Winter. The next cold spell coincided with the redbuds blooming, so that was Redbud Winter. This cold spell we’re having right now the dogwoods are blooming, so Dogwood Winter. The others coming up should be Locust Winter and last of all will be Blackberry Winter. Has anyone heard of any others? Neither of us could come up with seven. But in all the years I’ve watched this it holds true almost every year.

Learning 2.0 Pays Off in Strange Ways

Last summer I went to UK to hear Barbara Kingsolver talk about her year of eating locally and the book Animal, Vegetable, Miracle which documented that year. I admire her ability to make that happen without giving in to the food addictions of her family. For mine family it's macaroni and cheese that they can't live without among other things like Ale8 and Pepsi addictions.

I have been interested in sustainable living for most of my adult life. Resources are not infinite and the throw-away society we live in really bothers me, largely because of the environmental impact this lifestyle.

Last year we grew a garden for the first time in years, but the weeds took over. I just couldn't keep ahead of them. The most fertile spot on the place was also the weediest of course. So I need another strategy. Gardening guru, Dick Raymond, recommends buckwheat tilled in several times to block and kill the weeds organically. Maybe.

In step with the eating locally effort, we bought 50 baby chicks. 25 heavy roosters and 25 straight run Rhode Island Reds (a straight run is hens and roosters) for more roosters and hens for eggs. We built a portable pen that we could move so the chicks could graze and that worked well. The problem came when the chicks got to be 10 weeks old.

Chicks are ready to be harvested between 8 and 12 weeks for fryers. But they just didn't seem to be real heavy. They needed to gain more weight. It didn't take long to figure out that they weren't going to get any heavier. So I decided to start harvesting.

This is where Barbara and I came to a parting of ways. I have never done anything so awful in my life. I can't even squash a bug most of the time. Especially if it is a big juicy one. Why did I think I could do this? I struggled through 15 birds, before I called it quits.

Later, while helping Ike with some web stuff (teaching him to set up a blog and redesigning web pages) I found out that he is an expert at processing chickens. We traded. I think I got the best end of the deal. Thank goodness for web 2.0. Now to get the kids to eat chicken again since we have a freezer full of very expensive chicken.

To read his column on the experience, click here.

Going to Work to Rest

Have you ever felt like you had to go to work on Monday to rest up from the weekend? Of course sleeping in would be better, but I never seem to have that luxury.

Since it wasn't rainy this weekend and was reasonably warm, I worked outside most of the weekend. I've decided that I need one of three things: a smaller place, someone with muscles who likes to do outside work or machinery.

A smaller place wouldn't have helped much this weekend since most of the work I did was within 100 feet of the house. I don't see anyone with muscles in my immediate future, or long term future for that matter, so I guess the alternative is machinery. Machinery with an engine, not the wheelbarrow kind. But machinery doesn't like me and since I am trying to be environmentally conscious, I guess it will be the wheelbarrow for a while.

I just wish rock and dirt wasn't so dog gone heavy. It is amazing how much the backfill around the house has settled. Dozens of wheelbarrow loads moved Saturday and more to go.

But peas, lettuce and spinach are up, and I got 50 strawberry plants in the ground. The compost bin is built and in place and I've almost moved enough dirt to plant some honeysuckle to cascade over the retaining wall by the deck. And the peach tree is pruned, so maybe we'll have peaches this summer.

Ready for Spring

Saturday was such a beautiful day that I planted peas in the raised bed I made last year. I hauled two garbage cans of composted silage from the old silo which accounts for the black soil on top. That's one advantage to living on an old dairy, there is a lot of compost available for gardening.

I used scraps of lumber still piled up and built a cold frame on the south side of the house to plant lettuce and spinach and start broccoli, cauliflower and Brussels sprouts. I'm sure my kids won't eat the Brussels sprouts, but I can hope. I may try to round up another window and build a second one beside this to start more seeds.

Where the concrete and tar are will eventually be creek stone. There are a lot of projects I still haven't finished on the house. The hardest part of laying the stone is actually going out and picking it up and hauling it back home. There aren't any creeks close enough and I don't have a truck.