The SB and I embarked on a couple of projects this afternoon. He was re-pointing some bricks on the basement exterior wall and I got to pull staples and scrape the paint off the old screen door. It made me nostalgic for the days when we were renovating the house and I was either freezing cold or broiling hot and had the dust of paint/sheet rock/dirt of ages rubbed into my skin.
This time, I got off pretty easy. The paint chips were flying, but I didn't get any in my eyes (thanks to the safety glasses) nor in my underwear. The brassier was a different story, but manageable given all the other near misses.
Sunday, July 11, 2010
Tuesday, July 6, 2010
Winging it
So we (i.e. the SB) decided that it actually is too hot to work in the yard. Even at 8:30 in the evening. The benefits of 100 degree heat. I knew there had to be some. So I caught up on a little blog reading and decided to do another post. Two in the same week. You can thank me later, cuz I know this stuff is R.I.V.E.T.I.N.G.
As you may know, I love to grow some potatoes. As you also may know, seed potatoes are absurdly expensive. So for the past few years, I have been saving my own. Yay me. Last year, in addition to the spuds I had saved for seed, a bunch of our La Ratte spuds sprouted in storage. For the record, they don't really store for crap in less than ideal circumstances. So we had LOTS for planting. So many, that I had leftovers even after giving away a bunch to SHG (for her excellent housemate) and Tay of Tuesday fame. Rilly, I mean a LOT. The long and the short of it was that we didn't get a chance to plant them all. The leftovers have more or less been sitting around in the way since, oh, maybe April. I was going to throw them out, but the SB insisted we try to plant them. So we hastily dug a "bed" where one of the future garden beds will be, added a little compost and fertilizer and some very dehydrated, very unrecognizable potatoes. Today (though we did the digging yesterday. When it was just about as hot.) In case you aren't a gardener, this is totally non standard practice. Potatoes are planted on St. Patrick's Day. Or as close to there as possible. We are not very close to St. Patrick's Day. But if we get anything at all, perhaps we will be that much ahead since we had to dig that bit anyway. We shall see. The moral of the story is don't hoard your potatoes. Eat them early while they are still firm and delicious.
We are eating tons of them. Cold boiled potatoes with smoked salmon. Tonight maybe with some tuna/white bean salad and green beans and boiled duck eggs. A sort of modified salad nicoise.
Edited to add:
OK, dinner was delicious.
On the unorthodox subject, I also played fast and loose with the bees. I checked on them a couple weekends ago and they had totally filled their honey super (woot!) and so I decided to put another on. Of course, because I was in a rush, I didn't put new starters in 4 of the frames. I left the edges where I had cut out the comb over a year ago, which had been totally cleaned, and then alternated the starter and non starter frames in hopes that the bees would do some mind reading and fill in the frames instead of building comb willy nilly all over the place. I'll keep you posted on that. I am pretty much the laziest beekeeper ever. Whatever happens, I can deal, even if it means just yanking it all out and melting it down. I suspect what is going to happen is that with this dry hot weather, honey production is going to come to a screeching halt so there likely won't be any issue at all. I do need to pop out there and check though and see what is going on. To be honest, I don't really like this hive. I think that my last hive spoiled me with their docile personality. These are a little more, well, impatient. Not so much what you need as a beginning keeper.
I have become a fan of the asparagus bean. These babies take a while to get rolling (75 days as opposed to 50-60), and you definitely need something for them to grow up, but I am right now getting about a half a pound of beans a day. No sign of slowing down, despite the heat. We trellised them up a bamboo grid we put against the duck yard in hopes of providing shade for the ducks during the hottest part of the day. It doesn't provide as much shade as I was hoping for, but it is definitely giving it a go. It being right outside the door, the ducks have paid a little attention to the beans, but luckily after they got established, so no harm done with a few lost leaves. We lost much more to the munching rabbit than the nibbling ducks.
As you may know, I love to grow some potatoes. As you also may know, seed potatoes are absurdly expensive. So for the past few years, I have been saving my own. Yay me. Last year, in addition to the spuds I had saved for seed, a bunch of our La Ratte spuds sprouted in storage. For the record, they don't really store for crap in less than ideal circumstances. So we had LOTS for planting. So many, that I had leftovers even after giving away a bunch to SHG (for her excellent housemate) and Tay of Tuesday fame. Rilly, I mean a LOT. The long and the short of it was that we didn't get a chance to plant them all. The leftovers have more or less been sitting around in the way since, oh, maybe April. I was going to throw them out, but the SB insisted we try to plant them. So we hastily dug a "bed" where one of the future garden beds will be, added a little compost and fertilizer and some very dehydrated, very unrecognizable potatoes. Today (though we did the digging yesterday. When it was just about as hot.) In case you aren't a gardener, this is totally non standard practice. Potatoes are planted on St. Patrick's Day. Or as close to there as possible. We are not very close to St. Patrick's Day. But if we get anything at all, perhaps we will be that much ahead since we had to dig that bit anyway. We shall see. The moral of the story is don't hoard your potatoes. Eat them early while they are still firm and delicious.
We are eating tons of them. Cold boiled potatoes with smoked salmon. Tonight maybe with some tuna/white bean salad and green beans and boiled duck eggs. A sort of modified salad nicoise.
Edited to add:
OK, dinner was delicious.
On the unorthodox subject, I also played fast and loose with the bees. I checked on them a couple weekends ago and they had totally filled their honey super (woot!) and so I decided to put another on. Of course, because I was in a rush, I didn't put new starters in 4 of the frames. I left the edges where I had cut out the comb over a year ago, which had been totally cleaned, and then alternated the starter and non starter frames in hopes that the bees would do some mind reading and fill in the frames instead of building comb willy nilly all over the place. I'll keep you posted on that. I am pretty much the laziest beekeeper ever. Whatever happens, I can deal, even if it means just yanking it all out and melting it down. I suspect what is going to happen is that with this dry hot weather, honey production is going to come to a screeching halt so there likely won't be any issue at all. I do need to pop out there and check though and see what is going on. To be honest, I don't really like this hive. I think that my last hive spoiled me with their docile personality. These are a little more, well, impatient. Not so much what you need as a beginning keeper.
I have become a fan of the asparagus bean. These babies take a while to get rolling (75 days as opposed to 50-60), and you definitely need something for them to grow up, but I am right now getting about a half a pound of beans a day. No sign of slowing down, despite the heat. We trellised them up a bamboo grid we put against the duck yard in hopes of providing shade for the ducks during the hottest part of the day. It doesn't provide as much shade as I was hoping for, but it is definitely giving it a go. It being right outside the door, the ducks have paid a little attention to the beans, but luckily after they got established, so no harm done with a few lost leaves. We lost much more to the munching rabbit than the nibbling ducks.
Monday, July 5, 2010
Sweltering
We are in the midst of a(nother) sweltering week. We had a delightful 3 day respite a few days ago where I actually had a chance to wear a long sleeved shirt (woot!) one evening. Now it is predicted to be in the upper nineties for another 5 days or so. Which would be fine, except that there is no rain predicted to go along with the heat, so it means we will be racing around watering things to try to keep them going until someone does something about the weather. Just sayin'. The SB is taking matters into his own hands and is making a watering grid for the garden. At some point, we will have a grid for each of our beds and we will be able to just turn the water on, grab a beer and not have to mess with hoses, etc. That will be very close to heaven.
Have I mentioned that my fall garden was SO. MUCH. BETTER. than my summer one? I did get the first teeny tomato. Hal a freakin luja. Only one cuke so far, and there is NO excuse for that. No zucchini....WTF? Lots of yard long beans. A bunny has been eating the beans in the Three Sisters quadrant of the garden. Cute, but so bad. I pulled the rest of the teeny beets and made borscht. I just yanked the mustard as it wasn't going anywhere good. Dug some more potatoes, but only what we need over the next week or so. Yes, you can pat me on the head for not doing them all. Cuz then where would I put them? That was the problem last year. Don't say you can't teach an old dog new tricks.
In exciting farm news.... we had a black snake in the duck house Saturday. Hopefully the removal of the snake from the duck house was scary enough for the snake to deter him from trying that again. It sure didn't do much for the SB. I feel lucky that I noticed him in there cuz if I hadn't, I might have locked everyone in together by accident. It would have been a looooong night.
I thought one of the ducks was getting broody. She was hanging out on a nest and making nesting motions (pulling straw up around her, etc.) But as soon as it got hot she abandoned the task and went swimming. Youth. Maybe next year she will have more of an attention span. It would be nice to have a duck to raise ducklings. Kind of a pain to DIY that project.
Remarkably, it is time to start the fall crops. Hard to think about in this heat, but time none the less. I think I am going to wait for this weekend to put the stuff directly in the ground (carrots, beets, etc) and hopefully this week sometime get the inside stuff started, broccoli, fennel, brussels sprouts, leeks, etc. With luck the dry spell will break and we can get started on this fall thing.
Things I miss about winter.
1. turning on the oven.
2. wearing long sleeves
3. not getting sun stroke
4. no bugs
5. sleeping under blankets
6. you get the idea.
The benefit of summer
1. Tomatoes
2. Peaches
3. cold beer on the porch after hot work
4. The Market
5. A whole host of other things I will remember when it gets cold.
Have I mentioned that my fall garden was SO. MUCH. BETTER. than my summer one? I did get the first teeny tomato. Hal a freakin luja. Only one cuke so far, and there is NO excuse for that. No zucchini....WTF? Lots of yard long beans. A bunny has been eating the beans in the Three Sisters quadrant of the garden. Cute, but so bad. I pulled the rest of the teeny beets and made borscht. I just yanked the mustard as it wasn't going anywhere good. Dug some more potatoes, but only what we need over the next week or so. Yes, you can pat me on the head for not doing them all. Cuz then where would I put them? That was the problem last year. Don't say you can't teach an old dog new tricks.
In exciting farm news.... we had a black snake in the duck house Saturday. Hopefully the removal of the snake from the duck house was scary enough for the snake to deter him from trying that again. It sure didn't do much for the SB. I feel lucky that I noticed him in there cuz if I hadn't, I might have locked everyone in together by accident. It would have been a looooong night.
I thought one of the ducks was getting broody. She was hanging out on a nest and making nesting motions (pulling straw up around her, etc.) But as soon as it got hot she abandoned the task and went swimming. Youth. Maybe next year she will have more of an attention span. It would be nice to have a duck to raise ducklings. Kind of a pain to DIY that project.
Remarkably, it is time to start the fall crops. Hard to think about in this heat, but time none the less. I think I am going to wait for this weekend to put the stuff directly in the ground (carrots, beets, etc) and hopefully this week sometime get the inside stuff started, broccoli, fennel, brussels sprouts, leeks, etc. With luck the dry spell will break and we can get started on this fall thing.
Things I miss about winter.
1. turning on the oven.
2. wearing long sleeves
3. not getting sun stroke
4. no bugs
5. sleeping under blankets
6. you get the idea.
The benefit of summer
1. Tomatoes
2. Peaches
3. cold beer on the porch after hot work
4. The Market
5. A whole host of other things I will remember when it gets cold.
Sunday, June 27, 2010
Kitchen time
The SB headed out to do some work this afternoon, so I spent the alone time cleaning out the fridge and making one hell of a mess in the kitchen. There was much that needed catching up on. But now, we have a nice clean fridge and LOTs of yummies for the coming week.
Cold corn soup. Refreshing and super simple.
Coleslaw, no real recipe, just the quarter head of cabbage, a little grated onion, a grated carrot and some sour cream, a splash of vinegar, salt and pepper. Mmm.
Chicken salad (actually made this AM before the SB headed out).
Beets, from the garden and simmered until done.
Fruit salad with all the bits of stuff that needed using up. Cantaloupe, watermelon and mango.
Yogurt.
Tomatillo salsa. Tomatillos, pickled pepper, a little onion, garlic and cilantro, salt and pepper. Whirred in the cuisinart. It is gonna be hot. Those pickled peppers from last summer are pretty fire-y.
With all that cooking I had to turn the AC on for a while. It is pretty stinkin' hot out there. The cat, came in panting and laid in front of the fan. I feel fortunate that the ducks don't know about that option.
Then I cleaned everything up. Then I had a nap.
Unfortunately the SB took the camera with him. No photos. I know you are surprised.
Cold corn soup. Refreshing and super simple.
Coleslaw, no real recipe, just the quarter head of cabbage, a little grated onion, a grated carrot and some sour cream, a splash of vinegar, salt and pepper. Mmm.
Chicken salad (actually made this AM before the SB headed out).
Beets, from the garden and simmered until done.
Fruit salad with all the bits of stuff that needed using up. Cantaloupe, watermelon and mango.
Yogurt.
Tomatillo salsa. Tomatillos, pickled pepper, a little onion, garlic and cilantro, salt and pepper. Whirred in the cuisinart. It is gonna be hot. Those pickled peppers from last summer are pretty fire-y.
With all that cooking I had to turn the AC on for a while. It is pretty stinkin' hot out there. The cat, came in panting and laid in front of the fan. I feel fortunate that the ducks don't know about that option.
Then I cleaned everything up. Then I had a nap.
Unfortunately the SB took the camera with him. No photos. I know you are surprised.
Friday, June 25, 2010
Wow
It has been a wild couple of weeks here... Mostly work related. My schedule ebbs and flows with the coming and going of the new physicians. The first half of June is most definitely a flow. No complaints, it is all good stuff, just lots all at once. The welcoming of new friends and sending off of old ones coincide and make things a teeny bit easier.
I have a bunch of posts that have been swirling around in my brain, but I can conjure none of them at the moment. So we will have a list.
1. Flea beetles totally suck.
2. I am excited about the tomatoes.
3. The ducks have cut back to 6 eggs a day. No complaints, nine is a lot.
4. We got our garden sink installed. Woot! Pictures WILL follow, but the SB has the camera.
5. Our asparagus beans are finally starting to bloom.
6. I really need to do something with the bees.
7. We are growing corn beans and squash. Can't wait to see if it works.
8. We put in a new bed on one side of the house. All the orphan tomatoes ended up there. Don't know if they will do anything or not, but at least they aren't suffering in their tiny six packs anymore.
9. We have tons of Thai basil.
10. I made my first batch of rural salad, cheating only a little with some of the tomatoes
11. Peaches. Need I say more?
12. BIG ASS STORM yesterday.
13. BAS (#12) resulted in me being out of work most of the day b/c the hospital didn't have all its power back. Surprise long-ish weekend. Yay me!
14. Delightful gathering at the Urban Farm last night sans power (due to BAS) but with friends and lots of good food. Love me some dark nights. Without power (i.e. fan) I was able to enjoy many many hours of the darkness since I was up all night sweating.
15. I made potato salad from the fingerling potatoes and used boiled duck eggs .... Thanks to the Diner for telling me that the info about boiled duck eggs being rubbery doesn't hold up... Pretty delicious.
16. I had to restrain myself from digging all the potatoes. You know I love to dig me some potatoes.
17. The cukes can just go ahead and start producing any time now. Ditto peppers.
18. Very close to starting some of the fall crops. They will go in where the garlic came out. Garlic harvest was somewhat disappointing, but can't complain too much. It was a very rough and very wet winter for them.
OK, hopefully I will be able to post something other than a list soon. Maybe even pictures.
I have a bunch of posts that have been swirling around in my brain, but I can conjure none of them at the moment. So we will have a list.
1. Flea beetles totally suck.
2. I am excited about the tomatoes.
3. The ducks have cut back to 6 eggs a day. No complaints, nine is a lot.
4. We got our garden sink installed. Woot! Pictures WILL follow, but the SB has the camera.
5. Our asparagus beans are finally starting to bloom.
6. I really need to do something with the bees.
7. We are growing corn beans and squash. Can't wait to see if it works.
8. We put in a new bed on one side of the house. All the orphan tomatoes ended up there. Don't know if they will do anything or not, but at least they aren't suffering in their tiny six packs anymore.
9. We have tons of Thai basil.
10. I made my first batch of rural salad, cheating only a little with some of the tomatoes
11. Peaches. Need I say more?
12. BIG ASS STORM yesterday.
13. BAS (#12) resulted in me being out of work most of the day b/c the hospital didn't have all its power back. Surprise long-ish weekend. Yay me!
14. Delightful gathering at the Urban Farm last night sans power (due to BAS) but with friends and lots of good food. Love me some dark nights. Without power (i.e. fan) I was able to enjoy many many hours of the darkness since I was up all night sweating.
15. I made potato salad from the fingerling potatoes and used boiled duck eggs .... Thanks to the Diner for telling me that the info about boiled duck eggs being rubbery doesn't hold up... Pretty delicious.
16. I had to restrain myself from digging all the potatoes. You know I love to dig me some potatoes.
17. The cukes can just go ahead and start producing any time now. Ditto peppers.
18. Very close to starting some of the fall crops. They will go in where the garlic came out. Garlic harvest was somewhat disappointing, but can't complain too much. It was a very rough and very wet winter for them.
OK, hopefully I will be able to post something other than a list soon. Maybe even pictures.
Friday, June 4, 2010
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
Where to start?
I had a few days off before the holiday weekend. I planned to do all kinds of house and garden work and multiple blog posts. As usual, the list was longer than the vacation...
Where should I start....
The two frogs, courtesy of The Bad Cat on the doorstep? Only one entirely dead. No, let us not start there.
The 3.5 inches of rain Friday night (in two hours) causing basement flooding? No, that really isn't a good place either.
The three nights of babysitting? While. On. Vacation. No. Not there.
I did have a very nice wedding luncheon to attend for some of my coworkers who were just married. They are Indian, so we met at Royal Indian. Yes. That is the place to start though it was in the middle of the vacation.... I really MUST recommend the eggplant. Spicy and delicious.
I washed a ton of sweaters. The Switching of the Clothes is one of the most dreaded of tasks. At least the winter to summer side.... I hate the washing and hanging of sweaters and I procrastinate. So even things unworn need to be frozen (48 hours kills moth larvae) before storage.
I hung out my laundry on the porch. (I *heart* Starr Hill Girl who always hangs her laundry). Because I have a drying rack and not a line, I compromise by hanging the bigger stuff (towels and shirts and pants) and drying the smaller stuff (underwear and socks). It works for me - hanging small stuff seems more trouble than it is worth. Of 5 loads of laundry I dry only one. Yay me.
We continued to work on the corn, beans, and squash planting. We ordered a "kit" from SSE. We are planting about 20 hills of 4 corn plants and 4 bean plants and then interspersing this with hills of squash (actually pumpkins, but who can tell the difference, I mean, really?) We will improvise on some of it as we will run out of bean seeds and it would be nice to have a variety of squashes. This is the planting that is occupying the new ground in the garden. It is a good compromise, as we only have to dig mounds and not the whole thing.
My garlic is looking AWFUL. Too wet this year. Hopefully I will get some good storage worthy bulbs. Right now, things are moldy, though if you peel the outer layer, the insides are fine. I am trying not to panic.
We have some potato wilt. The La Ratte potatoes seem to be the first to succumb. We have eaten some tiny ones already, but they are dropping like flies. Luckily, the smaller beds look very healthy and happy. No solanaceae for the infected beds for a veeeeeeery long time. Dammit.
I have fallen head over heels in love with my tomatoes. I know. They will probably succumb to wilt like the do every year. But for now, I could spend many contented hours staring at them and smelling the green tomato smell. Green Grape, Principe Bourgese, Winter Keeper, Yellow Pear, Pink German, Black Plum, San Marzano, Celebrity. Bring 'em on. A dozen plants aren't too many for two people, right? Remind me how much I love them if we are fortunate enough to be buried in tomatoes this summer.
The garden is pretty much in a holding pattern. The greens have been harvested and frozen, the potatoes, tomatillos, peppers, eggplant and garlic aren't ready. The squash and cukes and beans are really just getting their footing. The herbs are the only thing producing. And remarkably, despite the heat, I still have some lettuce.
I am plotting for the fall garden though.... garlic, leeks and onions to replace the potatoes. Cabbage, broccoli and brussells sprouts, carrots and beets to replace the garlic. Greens to transplant out as the okra and tomatoes and peppers begin to fade.
I also cleaned the bedroom. That took days.
I took some pictures, but the SB stole them. I will see if I can get him to send them to me. They were of our most adorable bean trellis, which will soon be providing shade for the duck yard. Woven bamboo. Sweet. And Free (even better - thanks Cho!)
The bees seem happy and active, and I am wondering if I am missing out by not having a second super on the hive. Must. Find. Out. Soon.
Where should I start....
The two frogs, courtesy of The Bad Cat on the doorstep? Only one entirely dead. No, let us not start there.
The 3.5 inches of rain Friday night (in two hours) causing basement flooding? No, that really isn't a good place either.
The three nights of babysitting? While. On. Vacation. No. Not there.
I did have a very nice wedding luncheon to attend for some of my coworkers who were just married. They are Indian, so we met at Royal Indian. Yes. That is the place to start though it was in the middle of the vacation.... I really MUST recommend the eggplant. Spicy and delicious.
I washed a ton of sweaters. The Switching of the Clothes is one of the most dreaded of tasks. At least the winter to summer side.... I hate the washing and hanging of sweaters and I procrastinate. So even things unworn need to be frozen (48 hours kills moth larvae) before storage.
I hung out my laundry on the porch. (I *heart* Starr Hill Girl who always hangs her laundry). Because I have a drying rack and not a line, I compromise by hanging the bigger stuff (towels and shirts and pants) and drying the smaller stuff (underwear and socks). It works for me - hanging small stuff seems more trouble than it is worth. Of 5 loads of laundry I dry only one. Yay me.
We continued to work on the corn, beans, and squash planting. We ordered a "kit" from SSE. We are planting about 20 hills of 4 corn plants and 4 bean plants and then interspersing this with hills of squash (actually pumpkins, but who can tell the difference, I mean, really?) We will improvise on some of it as we will run out of bean seeds and it would be nice to have a variety of squashes. This is the planting that is occupying the new ground in the garden. It is a good compromise, as we only have to dig mounds and not the whole thing.
My garlic is looking AWFUL. Too wet this year. Hopefully I will get some good storage worthy bulbs. Right now, things are moldy, though if you peel the outer layer, the insides are fine. I am trying not to panic.
We have some potato wilt. The La Ratte potatoes seem to be the first to succumb. We have eaten some tiny ones already, but they are dropping like flies. Luckily, the smaller beds look very healthy and happy. No solanaceae for the infected beds for a veeeeeeery long time. Dammit.
I have fallen head over heels in love with my tomatoes. I know. They will probably succumb to wilt like the do every year. But for now, I could spend many contented hours staring at them and smelling the green tomato smell. Green Grape, Principe Bourgese, Winter Keeper, Yellow Pear, Pink German, Black Plum, San Marzano, Celebrity. Bring 'em on. A dozen plants aren't too many for two people, right? Remind me how much I love them if we are fortunate enough to be buried in tomatoes this summer.
The garden is pretty much in a holding pattern. The greens have been harvested and frozen, the potatoes, tomatillos, peppers, eggplant and garlic aren't ready. The squash and cukes and beans are really just getting their footing. The herbs are the only thing producing. And remarkably, despite the heat, I still have some lettuce.
I am plotting for the fall garden though.... garlic, leeks and onions to replace the potatoes. Cabbage, broccoli and brussells sprouts, carrots and beets to replace the garlic. Greens to transplant out as the okra and tomatoes and peppers begin to fade.
I also cleaned the bedroom. That took days.
I took some pictures, but the SB stole them. I will see if I can get him to send them to me. They were of our most adorable bean trellis, which will soon be providing shade for the duck yard. Woven bamboo. Sweet. And Free (even better - thanks Cho!)
The bees seem happy and active, and I am wondering if I am missing out by not having a second super on the hive. Must. Find. Out. Soon.
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