Photo Wrap-up For July

Summer has been moving right along and here it is, the end of July. What's really amazing is how the temperatures have dropped since last weekend. Very unsummerlike for us! And very welcome! To finish up the month, here's everything I didn't have time to blog about.

Since Dan finished his tractor wagon he's been busy with firewood ...

A good start on this winter's supply safely tucked away in the carport.

... and making woodchips.

There's plenty to chip! The tractor and chipper are in the background.

If you read my blog much then you're probably aware that we've had a lot of downed treed in our wood lot over the years. They're mostly old pines and they've sure left a mess. Some of them Dan has milled into lumber. The rest we'll put to good use as chips.

Hauling chips up out of the woods.

A good day's work.

Last week I showed you the garden and how it's doing. Also growing...

New ginger plants.

I lost my original ginger plants the winter before last. Usually they overwinter on our enclosed back porch, but ginger is a tropical plant and the temps that year were just too cold.

July is also the month we start fruit harvest. Blueberries ripen first and that means...

fresh blueberry pie and

pancakes with fresh blueberries.

I've been experimenting with different kinds of flour we can potentially produce ourselves and that's been fun. For the pancakes in the above photo I used oat flour and almond meal, about half and half. Makes for a very tasty combination.

I harvested the crabapples. I made a small batch of jelly with some and pectin with the rest (that link will show you how.)

Crabapples

We've begun to harvest the first of the pears.

Pears, figs, and apples will keep me busy next month.

July is also a good time of year for...

Homemade ice cream! Chocolate!

Of course every photo wrap-up should have a cat photo.

Sam trying to find some shade.

Also one of some goats.

Violet and Nova hoping for treats.

I reckon that about wraps up July. Anybody ready for August?

Photo Wrap-up For July © July 2019 by Leigh

at http://www.5acresandadream.com

What's Growing, What's Not

Daylilies have just begun blooming.

May has been a month of harvesting the last of the winter garden and planting for summer. The fall and winter garden have pretty much wound down.

Garlic has been harvested

Multiplier onions are next

Sugar beets and kale are still growing.

The kale is Lacinato, an heirloom variety and new for me. A keeper!

It's mild, tender, and tasty. Here's some sauteed with carrots and onions.

I don't remember what lettuce this is. but I
want seed from it because it never got bitter.

For the summer garden I've been busy getting growing things in the ground.

I had about three dozen tomato starts.

They've all been planted and most are doing very well. 

I transplanted pepper starts too.

Do you remember the survivor strawberries Dan found last January and I transplanted in the hoop house?

My one little bed has done very well.

We didn't get many, but it was enough for a
couple of batches of strawberry pancakes.

Some of my potted potatoes.

Potatoes plants grown from grocery store organic potatoes.

I planted cowpeas in the potato bed.

My rice is doing well, though I admit I pamper it. I worry that our current hot, dry spell may be unhappy for it.

Loto rice, a short variety.

Cho Seun Zo Saeng grows taller.

Other things that are doing well:

Crabapples

Starks Moonglow Pears. They are sweet and spicy.

Hops. I say it's doing well but I lost 2 out of 3
plants. Here's hoping this one is a female!

One of our hay patches with sorghum-sudangrass. 

Some things haven't done very well.

Only a couple of cucumber plants came up so I replanted.

I had to replant my corn too.

Still to plant:

Sweet potato slips. They'll go in soon. The potted flower
was a mother's day gift from my oldest granddaughter.

This one was from my youngest granddaughter.

I don't know what they are but it's perfect to grace my barn bench.

So there's what's growing (or trying to grow) around our homestead. How about you?

What's Growing, What's Not © May 2019

by Leigh at http://www.5acresandadream.com

Poised For Planting

With our official last frost date still several weeks away, we're finishing up the winter garden and getting ready for spring planting.

Violets are blooming everywhere

We're still getting a little more lettuce and claytonia for salads, but the carrots were starting to get those little white growth roots so I pulled the last of them.

Last of the fall planted carrots

One oddball!

The garlic is just beginning to die back.

Winter wheat is doing well. It will be ready to harvest in June. We planted it with clover so it looks really happy.

Wheat with my crabapple blooming in the background.

But we didn't plant a lot this year, so I'm doubting it will be a full year's supply. Still, something is better than nothing.

Here's a closeup of that crabapple.

Crabapple blossoms

I have planted a couple of things. One was seed potatoes in pots. I've heard of this, but Mike at Living Prepared posted a really nice tutorial which got me motivated to give it a try.

Eight seed potatoes at Walmart for $3. Mike used supermarket potatoes, thoroughly washed, and his are growing just fine. I may try some of those too.

Potatoes haven't done well for me for several years, so I'm hopeful about this!

Peas are just breaking through too!

Hopefully it won't get too hot too quickly (a real possibility here). That's usually what puts an early end to my early garden. It would be nice to enjoy fresh peas in salads for awhile. Still, the chill is keeping me from jumping the gun on things that might get frostbit. Instead I've put my planting energy to spot-seeding the pastures.

I let the goats graze the paddock down first. Then I seed the areas of bare
soil and cover them with barn cleanings. This method has worked very well.

So that's it so far for planting. It's a hard time to be patient, but getting caught by a late frost wouldn't be good. So while I wait, tell me what's happening in your garden.

Poised For Planting © April 2019 by

Leigh at http://www.5acresandadream.com/

Autumn Harvest

Crabapples. Not terribly pretty but they're my first ever!

Scuppernongs (green muscadines.). I haven't
gotten any of these since our 1st year here!

Field corn. I love making our own corn meal.

I'm very thankful for these once a year fruits of the earth!

Autumn Harvest © September 2017 by

Leigh at http://www.5acresandadream.com/