Late Blooms & Harvests

Hello, friends.  J finished harvesting the sweet potatoes, and I gathered enough sweet potato leaves for a few smoothies.  Something had been chewing on the sweet potatoes on the far end of the bed.  With a fire ant mound not far away, we wonder if it was them.  There were half a dozen mounds that were entirely eaten off, and some hollowed out on other vines, but we still got quite a few.  We had a better harvest than last year, and are grateful.  Red colored marigolds were gathered for dyeing, and others for seed.  I pounded a rebar barrier around the lemon verbena mid-summer, as it had been mowed.  It's since produced a small sprig of leaves, which was harvested.  At the same time, I pounded another barrier around a young serviceberry, as it had been mowed and weed-eaten multiple times.  That's my latest protection strategy, and it seems to be working.  The contractor flags and tape just weren't cutting it.  

After an appointment, I went by the thrift store, and found a cast iron doormat for $8.  I saw a less ornate one on amazon for $90.  There's already one at the side door we use daily.  Some consideration was given to putting it at the front door of the rental house, but I'd be sad if it left with one of our tenants, so we'll use it here.  The great thing is I should never have to buy outside doormats again.  I stopped by the feed store, and picked up cabbage and collard plants.  I would have loved some more lettuce, but what they had was already bolting.  J worked up the soil of our hoop house, which hasn't been used for several years, due to increasing shade.  He cut down a cedar that was blocking sun, and seeded a patch of winter salad mix.  I added biochar to the holes, and got the plants in the ground.  He surrounded the hoop house with deer netting.  Once it gets colder, we'll put plastic up, for more protection.  This is the first winter I haven't had kale, but my seedlings never did much, and I haven't found plants.  There's always next spring.  

I picked up a few things at Harris Teeter, getting the senior discount.  Before he put the pressure washer away, after using it at the rental house, J washed his car with it, then washed mine, which made me happy.  I didn't know you could do that, but it's fine on a low setting if you use the correct nozzle.  I guess it's not much different than a car wash, now that I think of it.  I harvested basil leaves of good size, but left the plants standing, for the bees, who were happily working it and a large aster.  We evidently did a pretty bad job of harvesting potatoes and onions in the pond garden this year, as there were lots of volunteer plants.  We dug them up on Friday, and have enough potatoes for a few meals, and plenty of onions, though they're quite small.  I'm happy to use them, nonetheless. 

the larger potatoes are not shown

With the woodstove going,  the first soap fats of the season were melted for free.  A local friend recently asked if I'd like some canning jars.  Of course, I said yes.  I brought a bar of my Pumpkin Chai soap as a thank you.  While there, a fully ripe Korean zucchini, called aehobak, was offered to me, which I gladly accepted.  I'll save the seeds, and look forward to trying it.  I also sampled a few of their persimmons.  They don't eat them, and I was offered to take some, which I may do after the first frost.  Another local friend expressed interest in the zaater, so I stopped and brought her some to try.  I spend lots of time in solitude, which I love, but it's also very nice to get out, and have conversations with good people.  When I got back home, I helped J split a nice load of firewood.  Tis the season.  We stacked it on Sunday.  After I cracked at least half of the pecans, and they were all bad, J suggested I just use them as biochar fuel, which is exactly what I did.  At least they were of some use.  Stay cozy.  

Creepy Crawly Critters

Hello, friends.  Pears are still being harvested, and another pear  pie was made.  While throwing a load of clothes in the washing machine one morning, I was surprised by a large fishing spider.  I was able to catch and release it with a critter catcher, which M had gifted us some time back.  I'd separated all the laundry on the floor earlier, and I'm not sure if it was in the hamper, or crawled in while they were on the floor.  Life in the woods!  I guess everybody's looking for a spot to spend the winter.  In preparation for bringing all the houseplants indoors, I washed all the windows.  J assisted, by removing, washing and replacing the screens, which is a huge help. 

 

The next day, all the plants were brought in, with help from J.  It always seems like a jigsaw puzzle, to figure out where they'll all go.  Returning down the path, on a walk with Guinness one evening, we encountered a black racer snake.  Though it was only about 4 feet away, its head was somewhat covered with grass, so I leaned forward to make sure it wasn't a triangular head.  At that, it began shaking its tail, then spun around and raced back towards the creek.  J told me about times, as a kid, when they chased him as he ran from them.  I've always walked away from a snake, but can absolutely see myself running, if it was chasing me.  I'm glad I stood my ground.  I'm not generally scared of snakes, though don't love being surprised by them, and definitely don't want to be chased by them.  Yikes!

They say things come in threes, and the third creepy crawly of the week came the following day, when I encountered a ring-neck snake on our walk.  This was just a tiny guy, though, and I always enjoy seeing them.  I've been meaning to share a story of a critter of another sort, Remarkably Bright Creatures.  It was one of two books I recently enjoyed, and wanted to share, but at the moment, I can't remember the other, ha. We had another work day at the rental house.  We did a few things, but I spent the majority of the day painting, and J spent it pressure-washing.  We're hoping one more day will have us where we want to be, then we can do some things more leisurely.  

A bonus I don't think I've mentioned is a large, old pecan tree, just over the property line, which has many limbs over our property.  Our tenant doesn't gather them, so I picked up any on our side.  As much as we've been there, I've gathered a bowl full this year (the first photo).  The few I've picked up in years past have been good, so I've got high hopes for these.  I saved seed from joe pye weed and golden alexander, which are down at the pond's edge, and from marigolds in the garden.  J dug half of the sweet potatoes.  Though they're a lighter orange than the usual varieties we grow, they're darker than they appear in this pic.  We've had challenges in the past, with various things eating them, but that doesn't appear to be the case this year.  That's a real blessing.  I divided comfrey, and planted divisions under seven trees in our orchard.  Several elephant ears were dug for a neighbor, and I transplanted volunteer solomon's seal from a bad spot behind the chicken pen, to our shade garden.  We've typically had our first frost by now, and are happy to be enjoying the remaining blooms.  I hope you're enjoying these Fall days.

A Change In Plans

Hello, friends.  Last week, I took advantage of a warm day, and bathed Guinness in the outdoor shower, with homemade dog soap.  I'd been waiting for the ground to have a little moisture, and was able to transplant some creeping jenny and thrift onto McNibs and Hickory's resting places.  I wanted something green, other than grass, and hope this will be pretty as it grows.  I went through Swagbucks for two purchases, and used discount codes, receiving 24% & 34% off purchases. Prime sales and coupon codes on Amazon were used for more savings, on things I needed.

The sweet peppers just keep on giving.  I cut up a couple of bags and flash froze them, for future meals.  Celery leaves and small inner stalks were dehydrated.  With cooler weather, and a freezer full of veggies for broth, I began defrosting the bags.  The woodstove is going again, so after bringing the pots up to heat, I transferred them to the woodstove, to finish simmering overnight, then canned the broth.  I gathered pears and persimmons, and sweet potato leaves for smoothies.  In the garden, besides the peppers, I harvested tomatoes. Carrots were dug in the pond garden.  All laundry was dried on the line.  I've been consistently doing the belly fat exercises, mentioned some months back.  Though I initially noticed a change, it was a long way from where I want to be, and wasn't progressing any further.  I changed to her standing version, with weights, which J already had, and can see forward progress again.  I'm sure I won't ever see a perfectly flat belly again, but would love to tone up more.

Well, we had plans of heading to the coast in our skoolie on Friday, to park at a classmate of J's.  He invited us when checking out the skoolie, while J was there for the family reunion.  Early in the week, the forecast began mentioning lots of rain, possible strong winds and heavy flooding.  We determined staying home was a better option for us all. It's been a few weeks since we've gotten any eggs.  Our girls are old, and may be done laying.  "Soup fixings" containers, consisting of bits of leftover this and that, were pulled from the freezer, and incorporated into vegetable soup on a cool day.  We enjoyed zaater on bread with it.  More rain was forecast than what we got last week, but we're grateful to have received 1/2".  We were on the verge of having to switch back to well water.  Though the tanks are far from full, we hope this will keep us going until the next rain.  Wishing you a beautiful week.

Don't Let These Moments Pass

Hello, friends.  On one evening walk, I saw two wild turkeys with five deer, all close together, which I thought was a lovely example of getting along despite differences.  The natural world contains many lessons, if we will take the time to notice.  We didn't get many apples this year, but I turned them into applesauce and canned it, then made a pear pie.  The next day, I canned pear sauce.  Apple and pear peelings were dehydrated, and will be powdered.

On Monday & Friday, I saw a hummingbird at the feeder.  The one on Friday spent some time checking out our fountain.  It moved so fast,  I couldn't tell if it was actually drinking, or just looking.  I'm thinking these were migrating, as I'd only seen one the week before.  I tried a new Fall Harvest cake, made with persimmons and apples, with a few tweaks.  I made it GF, subbed honey for agave, lemon juice for ACV, and pear sauce for apple, as one of the jars didn't seal.  I typed these words as J was eating some, and said it was OK, but wasn't impressed when I tried it.  There wasn't a lot of flavor, and the texture was gummy.  That could very well be because I made it GF, so it may still be worth a try, if you have persimmons.  If I were to make it again, I think I'd toast some walnuts to add in.  

The persimmon seeds were planted along the path, as Guinness and I took a walk, by scuffing up an area, dropping some, and covering with nearby soil and leaves.  Hopefully, some will germinate and grow.  We may never see them fruit, but hopefully they'll be a benefit to others and wildlife.  J got all the winter squash into storage.  I'm a little late getting this post up, because my sister and I headed to Charlotte for a concert yesterday, and spent the night in a tiny house B&B.  The concert was wonderful.  A few of their songs, here, here and here.  In the words of their song, don't let these moments pass.  Be well, friends.

Small Harvests & Putting Food By

Hello, friends.  Last week, I juiced the muscadines in the steam juicer, sweetened it with coconut sugar, and canned it in the steam canner.  I love the steam canner, for the amount of water it saves, and also time (much less water to bring to a boil), which saves propane as well.  It was definitely a worthwhile purchase.  J picked lima beans and green beans, mostly dry for seed, which was our intention.  There were enough fresh lima beans for a meal, which were blanched and frozen.  I just finished a MM raw food cleanse, so couldn't eat the beans last week. 

After delivering soap, I went back to the thrift store that has all $1 clothes.  When I got ready to wash the two flannel shirts I picked up there last time, I noticed one was a cotton/rayon blend.  I guess I just assumed all flannel shirts are cotton.  I really prefer to wear natural fibers, so went by to check for more, and found two thick flannel shirts for J, and a small men's one for myself.  Rayon is created from plant cellulose, but is energy-intensive in it's manufacture and undergoes extensive chemical processing, so is not really what I want to wear.  

I also went by the Dollar Tree, and noticed shrinkflation on cotton swabs.  I thought the package looked smaller, and when I compared it to one I had put back, where the package used to be 300 ct., it's now 225 ct.  After around 6 weeks without any rain, we are finally getting some, a little over 1/2" so far.  Some trees and shrubs appeared to be dying.  I hope they'll be able to recover.  Guinness and I saw this box turtle on a walk one evening.  The next morning, I saw an Eastern black swallowtail caterpillar in the carrot patch.  

All the winter squash have been washed with a vinegar solution, so they're ready to move from the porch into storage now.  The sumac was processed into zaater.  I knew sumac has significant ascorbic acid, which makes the sour taste, but was surprised to find a huge list of health benefits.  For anyone interested in clinical studies on it, here's some info.  That's it for the week.  I've got some out of town trips coming up, so posting may be a bit spotty.  Keep yourself and your loved ones safe.

Happy Fall

Hello, friends.  I recently noticed some fresh lemon balm growth, harvested some, and started a jar of glycerite.  I also started elderberry glycerite, from berries I'd dried.  Both are handy to have during cold and flu season.  We're still on our very hard well water, so we took a load of lights and linens to the laundromat last week, to keep it all from becoming stained with the water.  We brought it home, and dried it on the line.  The rug in the studio needed cleaning, from regular use, and the last months of McNibs life.  It was too stiff to go in any washer (it's polypropylene), so we clamped it to the forklift, and J pressure washed it.  We left it there over the weekend, to dry.  All the rain missed us, but we have high hopes for this week.

I harvested sumac, and gathered persimmons from the ground.  Many were already partially eaten, and were used to check the seeds for a winter forecast.  Have you heard about this Southern winter tradition?  When you cut open the seed, if it looks like a spoon, snow is likely.  If a knife, cutting cold.  A fork portends a mild winter.  It looked to me like the top two, and one other have fork-like tines, and the others, spoons, with possibly a knife or two.   Ha, that covers it all.  We don't necessarily think it's accurate, but it's fun to check anyway.  A couple were tasted, and were very good.  The pulp went to the chickens.  I'll likely make zaater with the sumac.  I've had the sumac "lemonade", but prefer zaater. 

persimmon seeds

In anticipation of bringing in the winter squash, which have been curing on the porch, I wiped down the storage shelves, first with soapy water, and then with straight vinegar.  The potatoes had to be rearranged a bit, to make room for the squash.   J ordered garlic, which arrived last week.  A batch of Kitchen Thyme soap was made.  The basil and thyme essential oils make the house smell herbal.  I took advantage of a less full than usual fridge, and wiped out crispers and cleaned needed areas.   A batch of suet was made for the birds.  We each saw one hummingbird last week, so it appears most are already migrating from the area.  The seasons are changing.  Happy Autumn equinox and first day of astronomical Fall!

Dry Days

Hello, friends.  After a busy week of rental house work, not much got done at home.  It kicked both our butts, but we got it done, and saved several thousand dollars in the process.  We'll be doing more projects in the coming weeks, but the hardest one is thankfully out of the way.  I signed up for an online weekend class some weeks back, which kept me busy most of Saturday and Sunday.  I'm looking forward to a return to more of my normal schedule this week. We got a nice little harvest of muscadines, less than 3#.  Some bronze and some purple.  I haven't decided if I'll make juice or jelly.

The rabbits ate all but three of the cabbage and collards I mentioned last week.  That's the bad news.  I have two glass cloches, and put those in place, along with cutting the bottom out of a juice jug for the third remaining plant.  The good news is there are actually collards or cabbage, maybe both, resprouting from last year's plants, so I'll also try to protect them as jugs become available.  It's like a game, trying to figure out how to outsmart all the critters.  I expect we'll try to use some row cover, but the plants are pretty far apart.   We do have row cover over the patch with our lettuce and chard, close to the house.

From such a rainy start to the summer, we've gotten very dry.  Last week, we had to switch over to well water, which is extremely hard water.  I'm thankful to have running water, even if less than ideal.  There are a few chances of rain this week, and we're ever hopeful.  I harvested tomatoes, peppers, a few figs, pears, pawpaws and winter squash.  The squirrels knock many of the pears to the ground.  Ones I can grab without getting stung, and which are already starting to rot, get thrown to the chickens.  I froze more pear pieces, and dehydrated the peels.  On Saturday night's walk, I saw two wild turkeys in the back field.  I'm always happy to know they're still around.  Keep shining your light, friends.  It's obvious the world can use more of it.