Our large organic gardens contain over 100 varieties of fruits and vegetables, most of which are heirlooms. We freeze, water bath can, pressure can, dry, and ferment to preserve food, and use the root cellar, cool storage, cold frames, and green house to extend the harvest without additional energy inputs. Weeds are welcome, too, as long as they don't get too crazy, since I also wildcraft. It's a crazy quilt of life with something to see year round.
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We feel the exactly the same way! :) Thanks for the links looking at them in a sec. |
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Can you believe how many mornings of frost we have had so far? Even today it was out there. |
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Very interesting post.....I will begin saving milk jugs and vinegar jugs (one more thing to start saving).....I feel the same way as you about Burpee. I have a whole list of companies that I have bou... (more) |
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Nice selection of seeds.....Strawberry Popcorn sounds interesting.....I have never grown celery so that should also be interesting to see how it grows. Happy planting! |
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We purchased some strawberry popcorn at a local farm stand and it was very good, so I'm looking forward to growing our own. This is celeriac, which is similar in flavor to celery but harvested for it... (more) |
| Mild winter continues Feb 19, 2012 | |
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Our winter has been milder than normal, with snowfall well below average. Temps are in the upper 30's again today. Local builders say that even without the normal snow cover, the ground isn't frozen at deep as normal. |
| Unusually warm weather Jan 06, 2012 | |
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| Season winding down Nov 10, 2011 | |
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On Monday the boys and I potted for celery plants and one parsley plant and moved them into the greenhouse. I harvested enough parsley to fill the dehydrator, and froze and dehydrated the rest of the celery. We picked the last of the cabbage and will make kraut this week. All that left to harvest is kale, Brussels spouts,... ...see more |
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Your garden wheel is a unique idea! Thanks for the inspiration. Beautiful bounty. |
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Thank you, Mary. |
| Garden visitors Nov 01, 2011 | |
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I especially like the frog... You did GREAT Laurie Jane |
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Thanks, NanaJane. |
| brrrr Oct 30, 2011 | |
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Cold at night now - frost most nights. Only a few root vegetables left to harvest. |
| New media added Oct 25, 2011 | |
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| Digging Potatoes Oct 23, 2011 | ||
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It was a glorious day yesterday - warm and sunny, virtually no wind. We took advantage of the great day to dig potatoes for storage in the root cellar. We had a pretty good harvest this year of Adirondack reds, Shepodys, Yukon golds, Blue Golds and German Butterballs. |
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| Making ground cherry jelly Oct 22, 2011 | ||
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Finishing a batch of ground cherry-lemon jelly today with the last of the season's ground cherries. |
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| Windy and Wet Oct 21, 2011 | ||
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Really nasty out today, very wet and windy. We cleared out the last of the tomatoes earlier this week and brought them inside. The plants looked rough, but there were still salvageable tomatoes. There are still a few regular flowers in bloom, plus the broccoli are flowering beautifully, so in between the wind and rain the... ...see more |
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Hi Laurie... I'm Chicago today. Same story here, miserable basically. I have a few more tomatoes left back home and our Brussels spouts are just now coming in. Since we typically don't freeze, I'm l... (more) |
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Sensation Cosmos. I labeled them as I posted, but I see the labels don't show in this display. I'll add it in the text. My Brussels sprouts were slow this year as the area they were in wa... (more) |
| Pollinators in the Garden Oct 18, 2011 | ||
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I've let the broccoli go to flowers, even though I could have harvested more. As the days get shorter and colder, the brassicas in my garden provide a much needed nectar source my local pollinators. My goal is to always have something in bloom. |
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| Organic in Form and Function – The Garden Wheel Oct 17, 2011 | ||
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We moved out to the country in June 2005, and my first year’s “garden” was a couple dozen transplants from my mom. The next year, I decided I wanted to use permanent beds to create a unique and beautiful focal point for our garden. Does it Matter What Your Garden Looks Like? ... ...see more |
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| Another beautiful day Oct 13, 2011 | |
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It started out overcast and raining today, but turned gorgeous by afternoon. We cleaned up two more rows of tomatoes and their trellises, and cleared the trellis that had the snap peas and yard long beans. |
| More garden cleaning Oct 12, 2011 | |
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Today the boys and I pulled up all the landscape fabric from where the melons had been, brushed it clean and folded it for use next year. I also patched up the mulch in some of the pathways. This morning I picked a couple of zucchini that escaped the frost. |
