Posts and Gates

 Hmmmm.....a garden without a fence could be problematic.    Maybe even disastrous.  Especially when the area surrounding the garden is loaded with bunnies (cute, but they munch on veggies), groundhogs (we've already discussed how much they can eat!) and deer (our neighbor claims we have 10 that bed down in the field behind the garden).   And those are just the critters we know about.   Ahhhh, life on the farm.

My knowledgeable husband hatched a plan to thwart at least some of the critters and to try and give us a fighting chance at a decent harvest as a payoff for all our hard work in the garden this year.   First, grab your strong son and put him to work while you instruct him.  

 Second, teach him about tamping down around the poles and how much concrete to use to help them set up correctly.   And about "plumb", not to be confused with "plum".....you know, how to use a level to make the poles nice and straight.   Ok, now let's let them set up for a couple days.  

 Meanwhile, the tomato plants were starting to droop because they had nothing holding them up.   Whew!   On to the next project.   Let's install some trellis to support the vining and climbing plants.   Um, yea.   That took a little more effort than we first thought it would, too.   But with Jeremy's help we managed to get 6- 32' sections installed in one evening.    The next day I crawled around and tied up 35 tomato plants and countless vines.  

 Ok, the garden is looking pretty good at this point but it's still missing a few key components....like the gates and the fence.   So a few nights ago Joel and I went outside and screwed the bracing to the corner posts to help prevent any sagging once the gates and fence are installed.   At least that part wasn't so bad.

 And then this morning Joel and I installed the two gates.   One is 8' long so we can easily get equipment into the garden once the fence is up.   The other sits at the opposite end of the garden by the chicken coop and is for walking thru only.   Or for the chickens to get into the garden later this fall after harvest time is over......they will do an excellent job eating the bugs and pooping on the garden, getting it ready for next spring.   Ah, the cycle of life on the farm.   Gotta love it.

 It took a little straining to get the bolts into the 4x4's but the gates are now up and functional.    Not so sure when we're going to get to the fencing.   That's a huge project since there is over 300' of it to install.   Yup.   We don't do anything small here, no-sirree!   Go big or go home.   Or something like that. 

But I am really liking how the gates look.   The grass inside the fence will easily get mowed with my little tractor and will allow us room if we decide to expand the garden.   (Ha!)   I don't think that's going to be happening anytime soon.  

It's kinda crazy how many projects we have been knocking out since the weather warmed up.   One of the good things about most of them, though, is that they are one-time projects.   Not something that has to be repeated every year.   Thank.   Goodness.    It's just that many of them needed to be completed our first year here on the farm.   Sitting around this winter is going to be a piece of cake after the work we've done this summer.   Just sayin'...

One tired Farm Chick,
Debbie
P.S.
I still need to blanche all that broccoli and get it frozen. 

Time to Harvest Already?

Wow!   All of a sudden everything in the garden is growing exponentially.   I went out there this morning with my basket and knife, ready to cut some more broccoli, and I'm pretty sure it all grew another inch overnight.  

 Can you believe how big the broccoli is?    And I found our first zucchini this morning, too.   Yippee!   Let the harvesting begin in earnest.   You know that once the zucchini start up pretty soon there will be a ridiculous amount of veggies coming into the kitchen.

 I love this basket.....when Joyce and Dick were here we popped in at a local craft show.   There was a man there that creates beautiful handmade baskets and I spotted one that I thought would be useful as well as pretty.   It just spoke to me and of course it had to come home with us!   So far I've been putting it to work bringing back the broccoli and herbs from the gardens.

 Ok, I just had to put this giant on my cake plate to show you just how big it is.   It measures 7"x9" across.   Looks like I'm going to be blanching and freezing broccoli again this morning.  

 And the herbs have gone crazy, too.   Here are two different kinds of basil, ruby and common basil.

The chives are nice and plump, ready for the dehydrator....and my baked potato!

 Sage, anyone?    This variety is pineapple sage.

 The thyme in the foreground just keeps spreading out and soon the dirt surrounding it will be covered in thyme.   I use a lot of thyme in my cooking so I hope it keeps growing and growing.   The parsley, both curly leaf and flat leaf are going crazy, too.   Even the marigolds will get dehydrated and used in teas this winter.

 I really like this basket, can you tell?   The nice tall sides hold whatever I load into the basket without things falling out.   And it's super sturdy, too.

 Ok, here's a little diversion.   I was online and saw this pottery maker in California.  Well, thru the magic of the computer I was able to check out her website and was amazed by her work.   I ordered a platter for our kitchen and this is how it was packaged when it arrived a couple of days ago.   Nice and secure in a box wrapped in twine with her little logo on the front.   The big box outside was marked in big red stickers "Fragile" on all 6 sides.   This girl wants her product to arrive safely!

 When I opened the box I was not disappointed.   I love the texture of the raised bumps and the glaze is a beautiful shade of tealy-blue.   It's going to look really pretty in our kitchen......when we finally get some cabinets and shelves......that is.

 Ok, back to the harvest.    My trusty bread machine is on the left and our fabulous Excalibur Dehydrator is on the right.   I've had that sucker running for several days now, 24 hours a day as I load and reload all the herbs on the trays.    All of my larger appliances are tucked away in the laundry room/butler's pantry off of the kitchen.   We repurposed some of the old cabinets from the kitchen during the demolition and put them to work in the laundry room.   Now they provide lots more storage and much needed shelf space.

 As soon as one batch of herbs are done I put another in to dry nice and crispy.   That way they will keep for over a year.   And I know that no pesticides have been put on them and they are completely organic.  Then it's off to the kitchen.....

 Well, this is a start but there are many more to go.   I love filling up my Ball jars from our garden.   There's something so satisfying about putting food in our pantry that we've grown ourselves.  I'll be really happy to use these herbs all winter long while the garden is sleeping.

Speaking of food from our pantry....oh.  my.   deliciousness.    I picked up the first Georgia peaches I've seen at the local produce stand.   They are so ripe and juicy that we've been eating them from the fruit bowl on the kitchen table.   But the other night I had an urge to bake so I chopped up some peaches and added them to the blackberries in the refrigerator.  Add a little sugar and a bit of flour and some lemon juice and after this sits for a bit the juices start to flow from the fruit.  

 Instead of making one big cobbler I decided to make individual ones in ramekins.   A quick batter on the left was poured onto each cobbler and topped with large raw sugar for a touch of sweetness.  After that it's bake and eat. 

Yum...Yum...Yum...   These were really good and deserved a small scoop of vanilla ice cream that melted and dripped all over the topping and berries as we gobbled them down.   Yes, harvest time is a good time.

Oh!   And let's not forget the chicks!   I know it's hard to tell from this pic but those little cuties have doubled in size in one week.   Next week it's out to the chicken coop for them.    That'll give them more room to roam.   and pee.   and knock over their food.   and poop in their waterer.   Amen.

Till then,
Debbie

This & That

I thought I'd post some pictures today of things that don't need an entire post by themselves but still represent what is going on here at Whispering Oaks.   So sit back with your iced coffee and enjoy...

Remember the mystery vines that I started to train up the trellis off our rocking chair porch?  I finally figured out that they are two different clematis, one in lavender and one in a deep purple.   And the yellow day lily below it just happens to be blooming at the same time.

We have one lone blueberry bush that the farmer before us had planted out in the front acre of the yard.   When I was mowing past it last week I noticed the beautiful shade of lime green and pink of the unripe berries....so, of course I had to run inside and get my camera so I could capture these beauties on film.

 And speaking of beauties, these orange lillies have popped up all over our scrub brush areas around the bluff.   I'm not sure if someone planted them at one time and they keep multiplying each year but I sure am happy to see them.

 Now down in the main garden I "planted" this see-saw sculpture to help keep the critters away.   It swings up and down when the wind rocks it....plus it's cute, don't you think?

  Joel shot this pic of me kneeling in between the broccoli plants (which are behind me) and the beautiful red cabbage in front of me.   All the green stuff in the far background are the potato rows.   Sure hope they're making potatoes underground for us.

Yes, this really is what my purse looks like.   Joel bought me this awesome pink purse for my birthday a couple of years ago and it's one of my favorites.....and I especially like to use it in the summertime.   Well, now when we go to town I dump my leather work gloves inside and make sure I have my cell phone.  Yup, the phone has a pink "camo" cover.   If we go to the feed store, co-op or Lowe's we are likely to pick up fencing or other scratchy sharp objects, so I've learned to keep gloves on me so I can help Joel load up the trailer.   Now isn't that a picture of city girl meets country girl?

And how are the dogs doing, you ask?    Just fine......this particular day we took them down to meet their cousins....Princess Pork Chop and Princess Bacon.    There was a lot of tail wagging going on and Molly wanted to get inside the pen with the pigs.  Princess Bacon just "oink-ed" and walked away.

Speaking of Molly.....she feels it is her honor bound duty to babysit the chicks.  The first day we had the chicks on the front porch Molly cried and carried on by the front door.   We finally opened the main door and kept the storm door shut and she plopped right down and kept watch over the brood.  Whew!   No more crying.   Glad we figured that one out.   I guess her mothering instincts have kicked in.

I like this pic of the guys walking the dogs back to the house.   It shows that sometimes we really do slow down and take the time to simply enjoy being stewards of this land that we are blessed to call home.  We've all been working really hard to get the gardens up and running and to build and prepare housing for the pigs and chicks.   Not to mention organizing Joel's workshop and keeping everything watered. 

We try to regularly get outside....not to work, but to express the gratitude we feel to God for all we have here.   Worship comes really easy when you are surrounded by nature and you don't have to confine your worship to Sunday morning at church.

Amen and Amen,
Debbie

First Harvest

Well, almost the first harvest.....we have been eating lettuce for several weeks now.    But this is broccoli from the main garden we're talking about here!  I've been checking the broccoli every other day or so to see how large the heads would get before it was time to harvest them.   And just a few days ago I was rewarded with 4 large heads and then yesterday I cut 6 more from among the huge leaves.

We have 2 different types of lettuce this year and the furry green stuff on the right is fennel.   Yum!

But let's get back to the broccoli.  Some worms were just starting to eat the giant leaves of the broccoli as we were harvesting.   Whew!   Looks like we cut these heads just in time.  They don't look so big when compared to the giant leaves but each of these heads were 6" across.  Yup, I'm happy with that.

Now what should I do with all this broccoli?   Freeze it!   There's no way we're going to eat all of this at one time.   I like broccoli but not so much that I want to eat it every night.   Besides, the whole idea with our garden is to eat some now and preserve some for later.

 First I rinsed the heads and removed any remaining leaves.   Then I cut up the florets into pieces no larger than 1-1/2" across.   After that, everyone went into a large pot filled with water and 4 teaspoons of salt.    The salt kills any critters that may be lurking in the florets.   The soak only lasts half an hour.   Then drain and rinse the broccoli and fill a large pot 2/3 full with water and bring it to a boil.

Put the broccoli into the boiling water and blanch it for 3 minutes.   I had to do mine in three batches so as not to overcrowd the pot.   After 3 minutes immediately remove the broccoli and plunge it into a bowl filled with ice and water for another 3 minutes to stop the enzymes and to retain that brilliant green color.  Drain the broccoli in a colander.

After draining the broccoli place it on absorbent hand towels for a few minutes to remove as much water as possible.   Isn't it pretty against that red towel?  

Next I put the broccoli on my baking sheets in a single layer and Joel and Jeremy took them off to the big freezer down in the pavilion so they would become more solid before I put them in their vacuum seal containers.  (vacuum sealing is awesome, but without freezing the broccoli first, the process would squash the lovely florets and make them unappealing to eat this winter.)  In a couple of hours the guys retrieved the baking sheets with the frozen broccoli on them and I popped handfuls of frozen broccoli into convenient sized bags in portions enough to serve two people.  (Jeremy doesn't like broccoli.)

After sealing the bags are dated and tucked away in our big freezer.....just waiting for their veggie cousins to join them.   There will be more to come soon enough.  At least we hope so!

Veggie Queen,
Debbie

Make Hay...

....While the sun shines.    Have you ever heard that expression?   I'm sure most of us have.   Around here it's time to cut the hay and farmers all over the plateau are closely watching the weather forecasts to determine when they might have 3-5 days of dry weather.  You don't want to cut hay when it's going to rain, as the hay could develop mold while lying on the ground which renders it almost useless as feed for the farm animals.

  I've enjoyed watching the locals pitch in and help one another.   The equipment necessary to cut , line up, and bale the hay is very large and very expensive.   We've been behind more tractors on the road lately, each of them hauling the most interesting farm equipment.   They seem to go from farm to farm, working one field and then the next.   It's a perfect example of a community working together to bring in every one's harvest.

 I've seen the farmers working in tandem, one tractor taking the lead as he cuts the 2 foot hay down and the next tractor uses a tool with whirling fingers that "rake" the hay into rows.  After a day or two another tractor comes on the scene and gathers up the hay that was neatly put into rows and forms it into enormous round bales that are bound and ready for storage.   There is something so pastoral and beautiful about rounding the bend of the road and coming upon a field with it's harvest all baled up and ready for storage.

The huge bales drop out of the baling machine and randomly dot the fields with their bulk.

Then the farmer moves them around with fork lift tines attached to the front of his tractor and places them in neat rows, waiting for a flat bed truck to move them to the barn for storage.

And then the whole growing, cutting, baling process begins again.  Around here, haying happens in June and August, and if the weather is just right the farmers can get one more harvest in October.   I never thought much about hay but find I'm more interested now that we are surrounded by cattle and horse farms that depend on hay to feed their critters.   It's just part of the cycle of life on the farm.

Maybe we need a cow, too?
Debbie

Saturday is Chick Day

Yes, the baby chicks hatched and we got "the call" Saturday around lunchtime.  Good thing we had already bought feeders, a warming light and a waterer when we were gathering pig supplies a few days ago.  After putting the huge tub in the back of my car (the chicks temporary home) we took off for the farmer's place.

It was great fun picking out the chicks we wanted and we came home with 4 guinea hens (they are more of a protector breed that squawks to warm the other hens of imminent danger) and 21 Buff Orpingtons.   The Buffs are a great laying hen and are very gentle in nature.    Once they are fully grown, they will be clothed in a full layer of rusty red feathers and cluck-cluck around your feet as you approach them. 

After we brought the tub into the house the guys set it down on the kitchen floor so the dogs could "inspect" the contents.   Winston wasn't very interested, but Molly was just dying to get in the tub and romp around with her new cousins.    Some of the chicks hatched on Thursday and the rest on Friday and Saturday.  It's amazing how much they grow in a single day and it was very easy to tell which ones had hatched first because they were already larger than their sisters(or brothers).

So Joel and Jeremy hauled the chicks out to the enclosed front porch where we could keep an eye on them for the next couple of weeks and keep them safe from predators.   In the meantime we need to predator proof their new coop out by the main garden.   You'll see more on that later this week.   Aaaahhhhhh......that heat lamp feels good.   They all huddled in one large mass under the warmth of the light.

Aren't they cute?    At least I think they are at this stage of the game.   The dark striped ones are the guinea hens.  Some of the chicks would actually fall asleep standing up and their little heads would droop and suddenly they'd pop back up again.   The three of us just sat and watched their antics for almost an hour.  "Cheap" entertainment......ha ha!   Better get used to the goofy jokes now, folks.

At first they pecked at their wood chip filled home.  But then I filled up their waterer and after a short while one chick discovered it, and then two, and then ten and pretty soon they all knew where to get a cool drink and they were tumbling over one another to take a sip.

The same thing happened when I filled up their feeder with chick feed.  Aren't they just the cutest?   They're so nice and soft and fluffy at this stage.   But wait a few weeks.  They get kinda ugly as teenagers until they fill out with all their feathers.

Yum.   Belly up to the buffet.   It didn't take them long to figure out where the food was.   And boy are they ever going thru it fast!    Last night we caught a couple of the chicks trying to hop over the top of the tub and make a dash for freedom.   Yikes!    We'll be picking up some hardware cloth this morning to place over the tub to keep them in place for a while longer.  There's always something new for us to learn.    We should have thought about that sooner.

Well, we're off to the store again.   I guess I'll have to snap some pics each week so you can see how fast these little cuties grow up.

Till then,
Debbie