Homestead Happenings

 

Greetings!

I hope your year is off to a great start!

In the past week, we've had over four inches of rain

over 2 days, so the garden is quite content.

So is this gardener.

It gave me time to work on 

another hobby, jigsaw puzzles.

They are a marvelous way to pass the time

during severe weather,

and it's one of the few things that I enjoy

which requires sitting down.

A check on the brassica beds found them doing fine.

The broccoli and cauliflower seem cozy enough.

The added straw and row cover 

no doubt keep them well insulated.

We have had quite a few overnight freezing temps,

but the days have been sunny and mild, for the most part.

In fact, I see something yummy in my future!

So grateful to be able to grow broccoli here in the winter.

Some of the lettuce that I had transplanted a couple of weeks ago

seems to be holding its own.

The kale (seen at the bottom of this shot), has been 

so slow to grow, and I'm not sure I'll get any harvest at all.

Time will tell.

The weather was so sweet this week,

that I even transplanted the rest of the lettuce

I had started using the winter sowing method.

Row cover was added after planting and a good helping

of shredded leaves was settled on top.

Upon strolling around the property,

I couldn't help but notice that there are 

a handful of plants growing right through the winter

with absolutely no regard for the temperatures.

This pansy display in our washtub

keeps blooming with no supplemental care.

It's fantastic to have this pop of color!

Although the candy tuft is not in bloom,

it is still green and healthy looking.

This plant has been in our pollinator box

for two years, and I need to remember

to add a lot more.

Another brilliant burst of color

comes from this sedum,

planted in a terra cotta planter and residing on the front porch.

Sedums have really become one of my favorite plants,

as they require very little from me.

Another new-to-me plant this past year

is the lamb's ear,

which forms a border on our front porch bed.

The texture is like velvet, which in itself 

is a great reason to grow it,

but just look at the soft, sapphire foliage.

The yarrow doesn't miss a beat

and has even blessed us with blooms!

It is one of the flowers in my winter arrangements,

when there is very little else blooming.

What a treat!

You're looking at part of my New Year's meal.

I usually make a few appetizer-type things

to nosh on throughout the day.

This year's menu included salmon patties

and this vegan nacho dish.

We had some tortilla chips in the house,

and I simply added cooked lentils, vegan cheese

and some homemade tomato sauce.

SO.  GOOD.

These gluten-free rolls I made for the holidays

turned out well.

My boy and I are both gluten-free now,

and it was just a little extra special having homemade rolls.

They are fashioned after the French brioche.

Gotta get the family history in there when you can!

They were readily devoured.

How's your year going so far?

"A" Frame Trellis

A few weeks back, I got the idea to find some space 

for some runner beans and cucumbers.

With no more space in the raised beds,

I decided to go UP.

A neighbor had given me some bamboo,

so I fashioned an "A" frame for the beans and cukes to climb.

With just a few materials, I was ready to go.

This was a one-woman project,

although it would be easier with two willing hands.

A sawzall, tape measure, scissors, hammer, baling twine or jute,

and some conduit are all that are needed, along with the bamboo poles.

I first decided where I wanted the frame.

The garden has full sun most of the day,

so I just tucked it in next to one of the raised beds.

After measuring out the distance between the end supports,

I hammered in some pieces of conduit,

which were cut in half to 2 1/2 feet.

The length of the frame will be determined by the length 

of your longest bamboo pole.

The bamboo was slipped over the conduit and tilted toward the center,

so that it could be attached together.

Some of the bamboo was plugged up at the end,

so I just hammered the material out.

Here are the two pieces of conduit in the foreground.

I laid the longest piece of bamboo across the ground

so that I would know where to install the conduit on the other end.

The piece that spans the top should overlap on the sides.

The two end poles are crossed (like an "A") and the baling twine is used

to bind them together.

The longest bamboo pole is then laid across the top between the crossed poles.

Baling twine was again used, this time

tied from the horizontal pole,

to offer a place for the beans and cukes to climb.

Soil was added at the bottom, and the seeds were sown.

I love how much growing space this gives me,

without taking up much room.

I can see another one of these in our future.

Now, let's get growing!

 

Master Gardener Workdays

 

 

 

 

It's been a busy few weeks for the Master Gardeners in town,

and we've been taking advantage of the glorious weather.

The first of many projects took place at the Jonas Library in downtown Lincolnton.

This used to be a rose garden, 

but because of the many mature trees on this site,

it is being converted to a shade garden.

Over a series of several weeks,

we hope to create a relaxing place of respite.

 

The beautiful brick pathway is lined with liriope on the left,

and will soon be planted with ferns and a butterfly house on the right.

 

Shade loving plants were added along the walkway,

and will soon fill out this bed.

 

With many hands sharing the work,

we made good progress in just a few hours.

Several azaleas were added to the site

and other shade lovers were planted beneath trees.

 

This gorgeous rose bush will remain

as a focal point in the garden.

 

This quiet seating area gives library patrons a place to read or simply sit and reflect.

 We also worked on getting some additional color

in a few of the downtown boxes that are on the shadier side of Main Street.

It's so rewarding to have time to give back,

and sharing it with others who have the same intention

is the best part of all.

What volunteer opportunities does your town offer?

Master Gardener Workday

 

 

Last year, in downtown Lincolnton,

the local Master Gardeners installed several flower boxes on either side of the street

where the bridge spans the Rail Trail.

It's a little bit of greenery to soften the concrete all around.

We take time every few months

to maintain them as needed.

 

In the fall, hearty plants were installed to

 add some color to the dreary winter days.

These ornamental cabbages were a wonderful addition.

They were in need of replacing

and a few of us got together to do some work on the boxes.

 

It felt good to get out there and work on a team project again.

Due to Covid, we have not been able to get together

for workdays and meetings.

I've missed spending time with other folks

who love gardening as much as I do.

A fellow MG and I stopped by our local ACE hardware last week

and selected some new planting material.

It's always so exciting to see what is offered with the onset of spring!

 

We planted out the boxes, leaving space for future spread,

and I can't wait to check them out in the next few weeks

as they fill in.

There will be a new burst of color for downtown shoppers to enjoy.

 

The second project of the day was to work on the library garden.

This used to be a rose garden,

but because the mature trees are casting so much shade here,

the roses were not doing well.

It was decided to transform it into a shade garden.

We began by removing some of the border plants,

replacing some of the soil,

and tilling the area to be planted.

 

One of the replacement plants was this "lemon ball sedum",

which will spread quickly and fill in the area

next to the walkway.

The vibrant neon green will surely be noticed by passersby.

 It's a start. 

We will continue to add materials to this garden

as the season continues.

It feels so good to help adorn our town

with beautiful plant life.

Do you participate in any volunteer community projects?

Homemade Pot Twist

 

 

 

 

 

A while back,

cardboard tubes found a new use as seedling pots.

They have been collected over the last few months

with that intended purpose,

just in time for spring planting.

The desire to get away from using plastic was the motivation.

 

 

 I have been making them this way for years,

cutting and tucking the bottoms in to keep from losing the soil.

It worked just fine this way,

but it did take a bit of time.

 

 I recently learned about using just water to soak the pots in,

so that the bottoms turn out flatter,

thus sitting in soaking trays a bit easier

with less chance of toppling over.

 

 

 

 Easy enough to do,

the bottom of the tubes were slit about 2 inches or so,

then the flaps were laid over each other

and placed in a bin of water,

then transferred to another container to dry out.

It took a good two days for them to dry completely,

but for the most part, they stayed tucked in.

 

They do sit better in the trays,

or on cookie sheets, as shown here and below.

The lipped sheets are favored, as it allows 

watering from the bottom, which is the best way to water seedlings.
 

The only space I have to place starter plants

is in our funky lil' room off the master bath.

It gets good natural light, but not directly over the pots,

which would probably make them grow better.

After tweaking my system a little more,

I think the set up will work for starting the seeds.

As you can see, germination has begun.

The conditions currently available to me are not ideal,

but it seems that Mother Nature doesn't really care about that.

She just wants things to grow.

 

Friday Fotos

 

 

Our family gnome is about to get some company.

This week, there was a deal on a local sell/trade site

and I couldn't resist.

Two more magical gnomes will be joining the homestead.

Unfortunately, I haven't yet gotten them to pose for a picture,

(they can be very elusive),

but I'll get one taken real soon.

One will watch over the front porch,

while this guy and another will patrol the garden.

I love me some gnomes!

 

 

 These dish rags were first discovered at a friend's house.

I do some dog sitting for her and her husband,

and after having used them in her kitchen, I fell in love!

They do such a great job, they dry quickly and they can be

washed in the washing machine or the dishwasher!

There are a variety of patterns to choose from,

but this bunch just called my name.

 

Some time was spent planning the spring garden.

This will be the first time growing spring veg in our new location.

As it is framed with mature trees,

it will be curious to see how well things grow.

The initial garden had full sun most of the day,

but it had to be moved due to septic issues.

You can read that story here.

 

The garden website where I usually make my plans to print out

is no longer available.

I was able to squeeze in just before the service ended,

but I may need to find something similar. 

 

Flower seeds are kept in old file drawers in a spare room.

Inside each drawer, seeds are alphabetized

(yes, I'm that kind of person),

and left in their original containers when possible.

There are some seeds that need to be  chilled before planting,

(milkweed is one that comes to mind),

so we save a little space in our garage fridge for those.

 

Veg seeds have their own set of file drawers,

and are sorted according to type of crop

and also arranged alphabetically.

Our herb and flower seeds are stashed in a different set of file drawers.

Far from being filled to capacity,

perhaps with a bit more seed saving this spring and summer

they will be bursting with goodies for the next season.

 With the extra eggs we had on hand,

a delicious rice-crusted quiche was made

and finished within two days.

The yellow rice was leftover from a batch I'd made,

and I simply added sauteed onions, potatoes, spinach

and a bit of vegan cheese into the eggs.

Maybe when our girls are laying more steadily,

I can make it on a monthly basis.

Be Blissed this weekend!

 

 

Garden Friday

Welcome to our first August edition of Garden Friday.

Over the next few months,

we hope to work on our goals for the new garden location,

(read why we need to move it here),

and create a separate chicken garden area.

As for the existing garden,

it's pretty much been left to fend for itself.

Between getting the news about the drain field,

and then being away at a dog-sitting job for a week,

it's been on the back burner for a while.

The okra is a testament to how neglected its been.

This Bradford family variety still tastes good,

even at this size,

but unfortunately,

we won't be able to eat anything from the garden this year.

The volunteer cantaloupe I found in the huglekulture bed

is massive.

Although we won't be enjoying it,

it gives me motivation to plant this crop again next season.

Someone is enjoying the cantaloupe out there

(pesky squirrels).

Another success this summer is the watermelons.

These are the biggest watermelons I've ever grown.

Again, we won't be able to savor them this year,

but they will be on my planting list next year.

These were both sown in straw bales and left to sprawl.

Not one to give up on the dream of a fall garden,

I've pulled my seeds out and used these homemade pots

to sow a few things.

There's just nothing like the thrill of planting new seeds,

except maybe for the sight of them germinating!

I'm intending to grow beets, broccoli, carrots, chard,

kale, leek, lettuce, onions, and spinach.

Of course, I have a whole bed reserved for planting our garlic.

The plan is to use containers on top of pallets as a temporary measure.

I'll be working on obtaining free 5-gallon buckets and pallets

wherever I can to move forward.

When the weather cools off, I'll take on the task of

relocating beds in the new spot to be ready for spring planting.

The other major change on the homestead will be

turning this area of our side yard

into a chicken garden!

I have so many ideas for this area,

but of course I'm trying to figure out ways to do it on the cheap.

I want to set up some cattle panel arches

so that the chooks have some protection from the weather.

This will also serve as a place to keep their feed and other necessary items.

The idea is to fashion a garden where they can explore, forage for bugs,

hide if need be, take dust baths, and enjoy their "chickeness".

A talented friend is helping me with plant selection,

so that I can create a place they love to roam.

I'm hoping to build an adjoining compost area out of pallets,

to make it easy to add the chickens' bedding to the pile

so that it can sit a good, long time before adding it to the veggie beds.

So far, they are doing well and seem to feel fairly comfortable in their new home.

We recently got this mobile fencing

that can be moved wherever we want them to forage.

I have to say that I didn't think I would enjoy them as much as I do.

It just feels right.

This was our first dozen eggs from the girls!

We have one rooster and three hens,

but we are picking up two more hens this weekend.

"I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship."