Dandelionlady
It’s been forever since I posted last on this challenge. I have been working on stuff however, I just never got around to posting it! So, to get back on this horse, here’s a mega post of the last few weeks.
1. plant something– I’ve planted some mystery brassicas and they’re getting attacked by the slugs pretty badly. I’ve put eggshells around them, but it seem like some of the little devourers are still getting through. The plants are either kale or kohlrabi, we’ll find out once they put on some bigger leaves. I just ripped out the sad mildewy remnants of my cucumbers and zucchinis and I’m planning on planting spinach and mache this week there. It looks like my winter garden is going to be pretty small this year, but at least I can still prep for spring.
2. Harvest something– I’ve been harvesting basil, peppers, radishes, turnips, leeks, tomatoes, dill, cilantro, and flowers for quite a bit of the summer. The tomatoes were weeks late ripening, due to the cool summer, but the cukes had their best year, until they succumbed to the wilt. I’ve been finding that because of my CSA share I’ve been neglecting the garden produce. I think next year I’m going to spend the CSA money on my garden instead.
3. Preserve something– We went U-picking for blueberries, last month and made jam that we’ve all been enjoying. Our favorite is with almond butter on rice cakes. I’ve been freezing basil, but really the preserving has been way down this year. What with the tiny tomato harvest, we’re really not going to be doing salsa this year, and I haven’t had time to go u-pick at the CSA. Again, I’m thinking that growing it myself is the better option, since when the veg is out your backdoor you can take care of it anytime.
4. Reduce waste– We are working on our rainbarrel system, it’s rough right now, but hopefully by next spring we should have a couple of barrels linked in tandem. I’ve been saving old clothes for winter quilting, and have been focusing on fixing and mending. This last is hard. I used to loathe mending. It seems to bother me less now. I think I’m getting used to it.
5. Build Community Food Systems– A friend of mine and I made worm bins, which was totally great! Once the worms have grown up a little and made some worm babies, we intend to share and get worm bins set up for some other people too.
6. Prep and Storage– We’re working on fixing the gutters on the house, which means that more rain barrels can go in. I’ve been saving the home improvement projects until the weather cooled off, so really I need to dive in and get some insulating and tuck and pointing done!
7. Eat the Food– Yup. We eat lots of local organic veg, since each week I go pick up my box from the CSA. It’s like little Christmas opening up the box and finding out what’s inside for dinner that week. It’s all been very high quality and I’m really happy with it, other than the fact that I feel like I’m wasting food in the yard.
So that’s the summer in a nutshell, and I’m sure I’m forgetting a bunch of stuff. Still we’ve had a pretty good run, and I’m looking forward to fall.
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