I haven’t been updating a lot on my challenging adventures here on the blog, but I do regularly update on my Garden page. I’m participating in the Independence Days Challenge and the Growing Challenge: Seed to Seed this year.
Here’s what I’ve done this spring (March-May):
Plant:
- 6 apple trees- macoun, empire, jonathan, northern spy, snow apple, orange pippin
- berry patch- heritage red raspberries, anne (white) raspberries, jewel black raspberries, royalty purple raspberries, chester blackberries, saskatoons, boysenberry, huckleberry
- veggie garden- (see garden pagefor specific varieties, they’re too long to list here) lettuce, carrots, scallions, leeks, peas, spinach, cabbage, dill, chives, parsley, basil, lavender, borage, thyme, sage, pansies, zinnias, marigolds, sunflowers, potatoes, tomatoes (canning, slicing, grape), peppers, cucumbers
Harvest:
- lettuce, scallions, dill, parsley, chives, spinach
Preserve:
- nothing so far
Reduce Waste:
- continue to carry water bottle, reusable bags, reusable containers, cloth napkins, etc.
- compost
Preparation and Storage:
- continue to stock pantry with dry goods
- made plans with sister-in-law to share equipment and work together to can tomatoes
Build Community Food Systems:
- local food movement unit in my Botany class
- visit local farmers’ markets
- of course, visit my family’s farm market for anything I can (strawberries!!!)
- Ed continues to help at his brother’s aquaculture business
Eat the Food:
- continue to cook from the freezer, using our pork, beef, fish and shellfish
- cooking form the pantry’s supply of jams
- used up frozen fruits and almost all of frozen veggies
- continue to cook from scratch with the best possible ingredients I can get
I also joined Jena on the Git ‘Er Done challenge, but I haven’t done all that much around the house. We finished our pantry and then moved outside. I’ve been working on my flower gardens and getting them back in shape for the season, and I also worked on seeding some wildflowers along the edge of the woods. I should keep track of all the handy-man things Ed does around the house and then I’d have more to write! I think I’m going to add my crafty projects under this category, since I seem to need some help actually getting them done.
So what challenges are you participating in? How are you doing with them?
Hmmm . . . I need to look into this Git “er Done challenge because I have to say, it would be a good concrete way for me to honor and recognize all the work my hubby has been doing in preparation for our baby (and to satisfy my nesting nature at the present time).
Boy, you’ve been busy in your garden! I bet Ed is a well fed, and healthy guy, huh?
Well-fed, yes. Healthy? Hmm… my love of turning those healthy fruits into pies could be a problem…
Hi – you left a message for me on Jena’s blog about my handmade hoe. Thanks.
I’m glad to find you!
I’m going to have to look at those challenges, but I am planting seeds this afternoon – a squash patch our church is planting. The winter squash will go to our food distribution to the needy in the fall. This is part of the local Plant a Row project.
That’s a neat project. I had a major problem with squash beetles last year, so with the exception of one hill of pickle cukes, I’m taking a year off the cucurbits.