Spring Happenings

Hello, friends.  We've had what is likely the last fire in the woodstove, until the Fall.  The weather has been lovely.  I harvested asparagus, lambs quarters and parsley.  I pulled out some soapwort, which was overtaking the oregano.  I'd known that it got it's name, due to the saponins which make it soapy, and decided to try a batch.  Soapwort flowers have one of my favorite scents, and I could smell a milder version in the leaves, stems and roots.  Sadly, it did not make it through the simmering process, and ended up unscented.  First, I used the liquid in a dark load of laundry.  I didn't measure it, but poured something between a cup and a cup and a half in.  It was then used to wash J's work clothes, half and half with laundry detergent.  I haven't used it on whites yet, so not sure how it does with stains, but the clothes all smelled clean.  I used some on the bathroom baseboards.  It's nice to know an alternative to bought items.

Nettles and comfrey were harvested, and dried.  I made potato soup on a cool evening, and used lots of fresh parsley as a garnish.  J turned on the outdoor shower for the season.  I intended to bathe the pups over the weekend, but all the weeding drew me in.  I'll get to it this week.  I'm happy the carrot bed is weeded, and work done on several flower beds.  The potatoes are doing well, including the ones in the grow bags.  J planted out pepper and tomato seedlings in the garden, and I fed all the indoor seedlings with fish emulsion.  I did the big chicken coop clean out, and gathered mint growing where it shouldn't, for the nest boxes and floor.  The scent doesn't last long, but it's nice while it does.  On Easter, I prepped asparagus and potatoes for J to grill.  We had a little "pond sit" afterwards.

We had a bit of excitement midafternoon Friday, but not the good kind.  As J was working in his shop, a highway patrolman and fire fighter came walking up, asking if he knew about the car that had wrecked in our woods.  Apparently, a man with an open case of beer careened across a lane and our ditch, went into the woods, knocking down a tree, and got stuck between two others, deploying all the airbags.  When law enforcement arrived, he took off, into our woods.  I mostly stayed inside, but anytime I went out the rest of the day, J was with me.  The HP wandered our land a bit, but didn't find him.  We figure the man called someone to come pick him up, further down the road, at some point. 

The first wild Atamasco lily bloomed the day before Easter.  It's typical to first see them here right around Easter, so they're right on time.  I hope if you celebrate Easter, yours was lovely, with good food, good people, and the beauty of the season.