Bit of Soil

Lovely

2011-04-07T07:30:00.000-07:00

It's really a lovely day here so this post, yet overdue, will be short - hopefully.

    We have been tons busy around here - like always. I have peas, carrots, garlic, and lettuce planted. I have 250 tomato and pepper plants seeded in the greenhouse, still have more varieties to seed. We also have over 100 marigolds and other flowers that I love but find it extremely hard to buy full grown from a nursery. Our cabbage plants are growing and hope to get them in the ground when the moon allows. Our seed potatoes are ready for the moon also. All the fruit trees are getting leaves and blooming.So right now I think I am on track. NOT.

   I have SO much more to do. My list seems to be getting longer as we get projects done. we did get one strawberry bed re-vamped and still have another to do. the pond needs cleaned out and relined. The chicken run needs to be bigger. Not to mention all the other seeds that need seeded in the greenhouse. I still have more tomatoes ( as mentioned above), rosemary, chives, and flowers to get started. Also the onions need planted.
    So right now when someone asks about how the gardening is going I have to chuckle and say " It's Lovely" although its tiring and alot of work its "just Lovely"

Giveaway

2011-04-06T04:11:00.000-07:00

Our friends over at Homestead Revival have a great giveaway. If you are preparing your family for a disaster and worried about a water source. They are giving away a barrel and a pump!!! http://homesteadrevival.blogspot.com/2011/04/give-away-water-barrel-and-pump.html

Have great fun reading other posts as well! Have a blessed day and good luck!

Creamy Homemade Butter

2011-03-29T06:18:00.000-07:00

It took many days for me to finally try to make homemade butter. I always thought , I won't be able to mix it long enough, or what if I get tired of shaking it. Well on a rainy non- productive day I finally put all my fears aside and just jumped in head first, so to speak. Boy am I happy I did.

Although, during the shaking, I thought I would be stuck with 6 cups of whipped cream but at last it started turning into butter. It's so creamy and yummy. If you never have made homemade butter before please try it you will be glad you did. All you need is a jar with lid, heavy cream, and two strong arms as you will be shaking it for a little while. After the butter forms drain off the buttermilk and I rinsed the butter under cool water to make sure the buttermilk was out, if you dont the milk can sour and ruin the taste of the fresh butter.
Have fun and have a Blessed day!!

butter (left) buttermilk (right)

Balancing act

2011-03-23T07:50:00.000-07:00

   When going into homesteading, having a family,a home, animals, and a garden, how do you keeps things running smoothly?
   If you are just starting homesteading or working your way to self-sustain your family one must have a idea of what needs to be done and when. Without a idea you could feel overwhelmed and more likely to throw in the towel. The plan will take a while to really get control of but when the schedule is consistent you will find more time and you will also be a little bit more relaxed. Remember to make one for each season as the chores change from season to season. I also leave at least 30 minutes a day as free time, this can be taken for yourself or have it to get another chore done that needs tending to. We also have family time everyday which usually starts around the dinner table and overflows in to evening hours.
   As for me my schedule not only changes season to season but from day to day. Most of it stays the same but on days its raining and after all the feeding is done I will spend most of the day in the house getting caught up on inside chores doing some extra cleaning, menu planning or baking. When it's nice outside I tend to be out all day long.
   If you are feeling run down try a timeline schedule. This will help you stay on track and hopefully you will stay strong on your way to becoming more self- sustainable.

   Have a blessed day!!

Chicken venture

2011-03-20T17:33:00.000-07:00

I can't believe I how busy we have been here. Sorry for not posting this week but busy is really not the word. This week we were hard at work building a rabbit hutch, getting the new chickens settled in, getting the greenhouse done and Spring cleaning.
We are gathering 4-5 eggs per day now. This morning we awoke to the chickens wondering around the yard. mind you , I would rather have our chickens free range at all times but our neighbors have dogs that don't really care to stay in their own yard. So for the safety for our chickens, they must stay in the coop and run or the tractor. But sometime yesterday our daughter had the coop open and somehow bumped her head and in all the commotion forgot to latch the door. Oh well - chickens were happy as could be in the new garden area - thankful nothing planted yet.

Weekend Refresh

2011-03-14T08:48:00.000-07:00

We have had a busy weekend. We celebrated our 12 wedding anniversary this weekend with some time alone visiting the big city near our home. We found some great stores which has helped us decide that adding on to our home is the right thing to do for us.

If you have a HFH( Habitat for Humanity) Restore store near you, I urge you to go and take a look if you haven't already. At the one near us they had everything from kitchen cupboards, furniture, appliances, doors, windows, tile,and sinks. They are used but still in good condition items that are donated to the store and then sold for HFH. With our plans to add on to our home in the near future we were excited and pleased to have found things we could use and are Eco - friendly by not letting them go into a landfill.

3 day old chicks (bantam)

This weekend we also acquired a few more animals that we were planning on getting. We now have 2 more rabbits and 8 more chickens. The rabbits are a month old and the kids were grateful to have them. Five of the chickens ( 6 weeks) are bought for eating and 3 other chicks are 3 days old for a birthday gift.

Bottle fed lambs we fostered

The lambs are no longer here, they were reunited with their other brothers and sisters and moms. They were a real great pleasure to have fostered ( even though we lost 2 due to pnuemonia - the temps here went crazy on us) during their bottle feeding days and hope to have the opportunity to foster again next year.

Today our cat ( Fuzzy) is at the vet having surgery. I did cry when I had to leave him but plan to go pick him up later this evening. I will post an update later this evening.

Have a Blessed day!!!

Sunday breakfast

2011-03-08T06:06:00.000-08:00

Awwww homemade donuts - yummy

Forever and a day

2011-03-08T05:59:00.001-08:00

Yup that's how long it feels like I have waited for this. Although its more like 3 years but at last we finally have it. We worked hard on finishing it last night, placing panels and windows. Now that its up my potting bench and some shelves will be placed inside. We got this from Harbor Freight, originally priced $799 went on sale for $699 and with a 20% off coupon we paid $530. Gotta love saving money.
Have a blessed day!

Winter winnings

2011-03-07T19:03:00.000-08:00

This winter has been long and truly tiring. We had a lot of snow that fell throughout the state and really cold temperatures. We had many long nights and more long days when outside the temps were too low to got out. So what is the family to do? Well the kids loved playing games and well just being kids, with a lot of snow days from school. I taught my self how to crochet. To date I have made each of the kids scarfs that have come in handy this winter,my mom a scarf, my niece a scarf for next Christmas, and I have started on a blanket that will be given at Christmas also. So I have managed to beat the winter blues by working with some vibrant colors and get a bit of Christmas gifts made. Its a win win in my book. Winter is almost over and we have a bit more snow in the forecast for Friday but Spring is coming.... I hope.

Just a little update

2011-03-04T12:45:00.000-08:00

As of 2 days ago we have been putting up the new greenhouse. But I wanted to let you all know that I have tons of pictures and tons of posts to upload. Its supposed to rain this weekend so hopefully I can get caught up with my blog - THANKS to all those following me now we are up to 8. Have a blessed day!

Ready for Spring?

2011-02-23T09:29:00.000-08:00

I am. With this winter coming to an end my anxiety tends to get up. I love Spring but with so much to get done I get nervous about what gets done and when.

The garden plots have been plowed for the season when the weather was in the 60's this past week. Now the temps are back in the 40's. Our cabbage, broccolli, and brussle sprout plants are about 2 inches tall. We have vegetable plants every where in our house. Which brings me to our next step. This weekend we will go pick up our greenhouse. I have been waiting for them to go on sale before we use our 20% off coupon to save more money. They are on sale now so Im really excited to be getting it. Can't wait to get the rest of our plants growing.

Our chickens or shall I say one of our chickens seem to be laying an egg a day. They are just about 6 months old. The chicken tractor is done and they have been enjoying sunny days in the yard.

What are you doing to prepare for Spring?

Our first on this homestead

2011-02-16T13:10:00.001-08:00

This year we have been having alot of firsts and its only the second month. Lambs are a first for out bit of soil - as is our first egg - Yup, we were surprised that on the first nice 60 degree day we were blessed with the most beautiful egg ever seen. The best part is that our daughter, that had been checking on them for days, is the one that found it. We all have been checking on the nesting box for weeks knowing it was getting close. We are pleased to beable to put eggs on the harvest tally now!!

Learning new things

2011-02-10T11:56:00.000-08:00

Through this very difficult winter I have managed to be snowed in just enough to teach myself how to crochet.Something I have struggled with. I guess you can say I have crocheted my way through winter. Scarfs are the crocheting project of choice right now and it seems something I have mastered. All my kids have one, my mom, and I have been working on another for my niece. Hopefully by next winter I will manage a afghan.
Have you learned any new things this winter?

A friend

2011-02-02T07:38:00.000-08:00

is doing an awesome give-away. The prize is a personlized Ramsign Enamel Sign, just follow the link -> to Homestead Revival and enter for a chance to win!
http://homesteadrevival.blogspot.com/2011/02/give-away-ramsign-classic-enamel-signs.html">

Self - Sufficient part 1

2011-02-01T11:08:00.000-08:00

For us here self sufficiency is a big priority of ours. Of course being self sufficient is a lot of hard work. From day light to dark there is something to do, from feeding, checking on animals, digging in the dirt, or playing with seeds. So where does one start on the road to self sufficiency? Well let me start by saying the road is long - don't try to get it all done in one year, it takes time. Its a learning experience. you learn by trial and a bunch of errors.
Our first 6 years here we concentrated our energy on the garden and building the soil. we experienced some great harvests, and some not so great. From there we introduced fruit trees onto our property. Now we have 5 apple trees, 3 peach trees and 2 cherry trees all well established and thriving. we also learned how to make laundry detergent and dishwasher detergent.
This year (Year 9) we are concentrating on animals and the greenhouse and maybe some alternative heating source. Getting animals is a given- everyone is on board and ready to learn and help. the green house should get done within the next month - just in time. The heating source we are doing some research on and trying to figure out which would be best for our needs. On one hand the outdoor wood stove will heat the home and our water but wondering if wood, to use in the stove, will be readily available. On the other hand we have been also looking at solar panels but will the sun be enough here in the winter months to keep our home warm. This will be an exciting venture to see how it turns out, stay tuned.

2011 Homesteading To-Dos

2011-01-31T06:08:00.000-08:00

Our homesteading To-Dos are what we have on our list of , need to be done, in the 2011 year.
Our list is as of follows:
1. finish greenhouse
2. get wood stove for greenhouse
3. plow another garden space (as the kids are growing)
4. raise veggie plants for family members as well as for us.
5. get calf and 2 dairy goats
6. reduce grocery store dependency by 5%

Changes

2011-01-28T16:13:00.000-08:00

When things change around here they really change. The lambs are really growing and pouncing all around. They are fun to watch as they play. We received another one tonight - its a GIRL!! As of now we have 3 boys and a girl. They have also started trying hay.

Our chickens still have not laid any eggs but hopefully Spring is right around the corner and we will receive some then. This morning while feeding the lambs we heard what sounded like a wounded dog. With further investigating we discovered one of our hens is a rooster and he was trying to find his crow! Its still weak but in due time I am certain he will find it. I stood out on the back porch this morning listening to him, it was entertaining to say the least. Seems to me one of the kids must have picked out of the wrong box when choosing their chicken last Fall. All is good though we are happy to have a Charlie in the group. I think the hens are happy also.

Planting seeds starts soon and we are gearing up for that. We have a lot to do in a short amount of time. Lots of prays are being prayed for the hopes that the seedlings do well and the garden thrives this summer.

Well hope all is good on your piece of land, Have a great day!

Chicken coop

2011-01-26T08:21:00.000-08:00

Like I promised here is a picture of the coop. The ladies love it. They have a run in the back but tend to stay in the fenced in area just under the coop. I still have a few finishing touches to do on it but for now its live able. The weather changed quick so spring it will be finished painting and letters.. Enjoy

And then there were 3

2011-01-26T07:44:00.000-08:00

We have been very busy here on our bit. Raising lambs that have been orphaned due to either the ewes having too many( 2 are from triplets the other is from quads) or the weather getting bitterly cold. We have been having fun taking care of these boys' every needs. The one in the front left is named Biscuit, the black one is named Ace, the one in back well we named him Gravy. The boys in front will be 2 weeks old this weekend while Gravy will be a week old this weekend. They are fun to watch as they now are strong and run and play. The cat has no where to hide when the lambs are on the lose.
The weather plays its toll on these babies. With us having temps in the 40s for the last 2 days we are now having temps in the low 30s and snowing like crazy, Its hard to keep them warm. We are using a heat lamp light over their pen. Now we wait for others to be brought to us. We pray all the ewes will be able to take care of their young and keep them all warm but if they can't we will be here.. waiting.... with open arms to take care of these little bundles of joy.
Have a great day!

Winter Blast - again

2011-01-22T05:43:00.000-08:00

At eight o'clock this morning it was -1.5 degrees outside. That's cold! No wait that's frigid. We have another 3-4 inches of snow on the ground and more expected for Monday evening. This has been a winter to remember. Now with 60% of the winter still to come we have had more snow then we get all year. I do hope this makes for a good growing season.

It always amazes me that no matter what the weather the chickens always act like its a perfect day. Cold - nah - just right all the time for them.

I do hope wherever my friends are they are warm. Have a Happy winter.

Let me introduce you to

2011-01-19T11:06:00.000-08:00

BISCUIT!! He is 4 days old today. He is 1 of 4 lambs born to the same mother. She was unable to take care of all of them so our neighbors asked us to take care of him. Hes a very sweet addition to our family and we have really enjoying this opportunity. Here on our Bit of soil its really hard to determine what we will get into around here. I think that's what keeps us going in these lazy snowy winters. The kids are also enjoying the lessons being learned by helping us take care of him. Its alot of work, just like caring for a newborn. But work that I enjoy and I have raised many animals on bottles. Horses, kitten and goats to name a few. can't wait ot show you more pictures as he grows.

Do you have any bummer babies ( bottle babies)?

New beginnings

2010-09-07T06:36:00.001-07:00

OUR NEW FLOCK!!! These are our 6 little babies!! We are excited to have Janie may, peep peep, Sally, Happy, Caren, and Baby Face. We have raised chickens before when the boys where little but this time we have alot less chickens. The kids are excited and we can't wait to watch them grow and provide our family with eggs. In return we will provide them with love and a very nice home. These are our new pets. ( pictures soon of the $25 coop)

Getting back

2010-09-07T05:38:00.001-07:00

to the blog. Sometimes I find it hard to get on here and report on what we have done or share things we use differently but I will try to do better.
Seems this summer got away from us. two days after the kids got out for summer vacation our daughter fell and broke her arm which required surgery. So we spent the summer trying to keep her cool and comfortable. With gaining full range of motion 12 days before school started she then started horseback riding lessons.
Our homesteads garden was not very useful this year and we are very disappointed. But with 1 year as a flop in the 9 years we have lived here it doesn't seem so bad.
We have braced the fence to get a calf and a few goats. We have raised them before and loved every moment of it.

Hope this entry finds you well and busy. Our homestead is still growing and we have exciting news in the next post. See you back here in a bit!

Impact - Pay it forward

2010-05-05T05:21:00.000-07:00

The last few days here have been turned upside down. With nearly 8 inches of rain in 2 days we found ourselves being prepared. Comforting yes. With roads closed everywhere and buildings under water we were thanking GOD that we did not have to run out and get anything. GOD gave us the ability to have everything we needed at this time. We are thankful.

The pictures above are our back yard. We never have seen water like this since we have moved here over 8 years ago. We needed the rain, last month we were 5 inches below our normal rainfall. Now we are ahead. With a recent post from a friend ( thanks Andie) got me thinking of my spiritual gifts. I wasn't sure what they were but now I think this rainfall I feel better about what they might be. My mom and I were talking and she has a friend that lost everything. I have a great deal of things that were for a yard sale in my moms garage. Well as soon as my mom mentioned that this family needed things I said without skipping a beat " if they need it give it to them" I am also going through things in my home. I am not doing this for the "thank yous". I do this because I am a giving and caring person. I care about others and hope they find comfort in others willing to help. I pray someone sees others helping out and follow. So if someone has every helped you, help someone else. Thanks for reading and GOD bless.

Looking back

2010-04-22T09:22:00.000-07:00

last year I took the Footprint calculator quiz and http://bitofsoil.blogspot.com/2009/04/how-big-is-your-footprint.html was surprised to learn how much I was using. So I took the quiz again this year after changing more of how we live. Our results are as followed

Last year - we needed 3.8 earths to live like we did- NOW - 2010 we need 3.5

Last year - we needed 16.9 global acres to sustain us - NOW 2010 we need 15.8

Of course we are not perfect. But just a little bit of change and being aware of what we buy makes a big difference.

Where I'm at

2010-04-13T12:10:00.000-07:00

is a place I love. I live in a place where even the paved roads are mostly dirt come Spring. The tractors from the fields going too and froe. I live in a place where having a garden is a natural thing we do. I live in a place where 24 hours is never enough time in a day.
Those are the things I love about where I live. But I also live in a place where planting 51 cabbage plants means only 1 will survive to the next day. I live in a place where the frost will hit the peach trees right after the blooms come out. I live in a place where the rain is not plentyful.
So what does a person do that depends on these things for the winter months of feeding a family of 5. Well I plant more plants, spray the trees with homemade orgainic fruit tree spray, and pray. Pray that we will get through this and get rain. But in the mean time we will collect as much water we can and plant more veggies that the birds will leave alone.

What do you love about where you live?

Good to know

2010-02-10T13:21:00.000-08:00

with the uncertains of the weather it is good to know that our pantry is plentiful. We are snowed in and the schools are closed. The snow is coming down and the wind is blowing but we are warm and comfortable. Its hard to believe that some carrots are still in the ground but good to have plenty food.
They say it could get down to -13 windchill tonight but with a handy kerosine heater the electric could go out and we can still be warm.
With all the snow coming down its hard to think we are garden planning today. We are making lists and preparing the greenhouse with a few last touchs. Our garden will be expanded by 12-15 feet this year also plans for another 6 raised beds going in, in the back this winter also. And again we will be tearing up some of the front yard for other edibles, herbs, trees. So excited.... So what are you preparing for the growing months?

Best food ever

2010-01-20T11:37:00.000-08:00

voted number one from the family. Spaghetti sauce, homemade of course. Its wonderful on cold days. The sauce recipe comes from the Blue ball book. And its a winner!!!

January

2010-01-20T11:25:00.000-08:00

and still stocked. This winter we have bought $34.23 of groceries. Thats it! But we didn't really have to buy that much but the kids were begging for a hotdog. They haven't had one for sometime at home.
We have our frezzer still half full and the pantry shelves from 6 shelves to 3. We have not gone hungry and we eat well. This is all off the pounds we grew and or were gifted to us. I love winter....and spring.......fall..........and summer...

Shed/ greenhouse

2010-01-14T07:18:00.000-08:00

With the temps here in the low teens and planting time quickly upon us here we decided to make the shed into a make shift greenhouse. With little time to spare we cleaned it out and are in the process of putting up more shelves. We also was gifted a little Coleman heater that runs for 20 hours on one fill up of Coleman fuel. Surprisingly its perfect for the little shed to stay warm and toasty. And that's even on low. I started the heater on a below zero night and within 1 hour the 9x9 shed was above freezing and around 45 degrees. Should be perfect for the little plants not to freeze on cold nights. Also the lights give off heat so its worth a shot.

Another year over

2009-12-31T09:40:00.000-08:00

and yes, as the song goes, a new one just begun. So here's a run down of what we have done this year. We have come along way in one short year. We have about 90% of our food consumption growing on our land. We now have 3 peach trees, 5 apples, a cherry, and strawberry plants, and a means to get all the pears we need in the fall.
We have the herb garden done. Working on a few more raised beds for the spring. going to bring in a calf for some meat. We are still eating on the pantry goodies we froze, canned, or dehydrated this summer. Carrots are still in the ground and we pick them as we need them.

Planning - greenhouse will have heat from a gas Coleman heater which we recycled.Its brand new and was thrown in the garbage. Jan. is a busy time for me around here with getting everything ready to plant. I also have tons of things to mail, orders to make and compost to gather.
we also are looking into buying an outdoor wood burner for our house to cut the cost of the electric we use.
everyone have a great New Year!!!

September - mid- October update

2009-10-19T10:59:00.000-07:00

Well with over a month hiatus I am back. We here on our bit of soil have been going through a great deal of variety of things from sickness to just every day life.

I am happy to report that i am feeling better with some 'ME" time taken. the garden is almost done. Still have carrots in the ground, Still drying walnuts and peanuts. Now we are in the middle of hunting seasons which provides our family with 95% of our yearly meat consumption.
I went to a court days recently ( which is a really big yard sale) and found a juicer like my moms that I borrowed for $5, yes just $5. My mom paid over $50 for hers. I am one happy girl.
With the upcoming holidays arriving rather quickly I am also trying to find ideas for presents. If you all have any please let me know.

How much is enough?

2009-09-10T08:50:00.000-07:00

When buying things for my pantry I always wonder if we have enough food in storage in case of an emergency. After looking for a list to tell me round about figures of what we would need I came across this calculator that helps you figure out how much food you should store right down to the water. This will give you an idea of what you should need for your family.
http://lds.about.com/library/bl/faq/blcalculator.htm

A great find

2009-09-10T04:41:00.000-07:00

Well yesterday I headed out for a trip, well not really just a bit o f a ride. I went to the new Amish store we have close the our home. I went to see what they had and if was any more reasonable to shop at it or go on to the grocery store. Well the results are in and its a go. We will definitely be going back on a regular basis. they had a great deal of things on my pantry list ranging from powdered cheese to flour. From sugar to lunch meat. Although we buy our flour and sugar from the bulk store this is great store to grab if we can't make it to the bulk store right then.
I found all the things I needed (eggs, cheeses, butter, baking supplies) and things I really didn't need( like chocolate) for a really reasonable price. And just for the icing on the cake is that the ladies that were working there were so nice and helpful, that is worth alot. The amount of canning supplies is awesome also. We have plans to go again next week and get more things.
I hope you find a great store that meets all your needs and is not too far from home. saving money while saving gas.

Around the bit in September- letting things grow

2009-09-08T10:16:00.000-07:00

Well the rain once again has brought me inside. Inside to catch up my blogging, housework, and laundry ( which I would rather do when the rain is over so I can hang them up outside). I was working out in the raised beds clearing the summer vegetable plants for some fall planting - better late then never - for some radishes and peas before winter sets in.

OUTSIDE - The main garden has been cleared and prepped for a winter cover crop, which will give the soil some much needed nutrients it may have lost through the summer plants. With the cover crop along with a layer of compost that was made throughout last year next years garden will have an extra bit of help. Also on the agenda this fall is to cover a area for a new bed which will be used to grow something edible in the front yard next year. this new bed is part of my five year plan ( more on that later). Tomatoes in the raised beds are still providing enough tomatoes to keep them piling up and keeping me trying to find new ways to preserve them. Drying them has been the best way for me since I have what I need canned in the pantry. Peanuts are the last long crop I have in the ground which they will not be harvested until the first fall frost. We still have plenty of fresh carrots in the ground and with any luck will keep us through the winter with a cover over them.

INSIDE - We have been busy trying to organize the master bedroom and going through things that we no longer need. With any luck we can get rid of some things that others can benefit from. We are trying to keep our flour, sugar, and other baking supplies full for the pending holiday baking that we do here.

PREPARING - We are also taking time to get things for our emergency bags that we may or may not need. But just having them around I feel better knowing the family will be okay if something should ever happen because of natural or man made disasters. We still need a few things just to be sure. One thing we recently scratched off our list is another kerosene heater. We received it for $50 which is a great value and of course it is used. Used but in great shape and only used one year for a few days. Also today I am making my way to the new Amish store close to here to see what they have for our pantry. I will update you when I get back.

So with everything going on our lists of things to do and our lists of already done are still both growing. But hubby says as long as the "done" list is growing its okay that the "to do" list continues to grow. So with that I will end this post to letting all things grow, weither is be the garden, the garden plots, the pantry, or the lists.
Have a great homesteading day!

Tastes like dirt

2009-09-04T08:20:00.000-07:00

the other night while sitting down at the dinner table my youngest son filled his plate with a bunch of food that came from our garden this year. As he started eating he looked at me and said " Mom, you know the potatoes at school, they taste like dirt."
Well with my amazed face I looked at him and said " well that's weird" I mean what else do I say. So from there I said " what does these potatoes taste like?" Pointing at the potatoes I fixed for supper out of one of our organic gardens. And without skipping a beat he said " like potatoes".

Now this is not the first time this year that I have heard someone say something tastes like dirt, whether it be potatoes, tomatoes, peppers. Which got me to thinking about how others are growing there gardens and with what sprays or fertilizers they use. I then offer them to try our tomatoes and they say they taste wonderful. Like a warm juicy tomato should taste like.

So with this it can only mean one thing, we will never use un-natural fertilizers on our garden. If un-natural sprays are covering up the great taste of a vegetable, what else is it doing?

August update

2009-09-01T09:46:00.000-07:00

With everything going on on our bit of soil we are taking time and praying for all those that are in SoCal that are in danger of losing their homes due to the fires that are still burning.
The gardens are starting to wind down and we were blessed with a lot of veggies for our pantry. The pantry is full and the pears are just now ripening. We have had some rather cool weather here, feeling more like October then Sept.
Now for August our garden totals are awesome, 424 pounds and 12 oz for the month!!! With 311 pounds just in tomatoes. Of course they are not all done yet but We have surpassed our goal of 600 pounds for the year.
The above poundage came from watermelon, cantaloupe, petris squash, pumpkins, tomatoes, sunflower seeds, peppers, acorn squash, sweet dumpling squash, app;es, and tomatillos.
So far our grand total is 794 pounds.

Our tomatoes per pound selling at the farmers market for 99 cents per pound has saved us $307.89
Our watermelons have saved us $5.99.
our peppers have saved us $4. 78

Saving our family well over $300 dollars just this month. Of course the whole year is not done and I am working on totals for the year to see how much has been saved. But with everything I have ever grown it was always worth the effort instead of buying it. It's always better for you and tastes 100 times better then processed foods.

Picture post

2009-08-27T09:42:00.000-07:00

Above - Peanuts

Pumpkins that ripened too soon

Horse shed that was made out of recycled materials.

A bit of pantry

2009-08-21T17:02:00.000-07:00

So as much work as I have been doing I have alot of pictures that I need to get onto this blog. I figured I would start with the pantry that seems to be filling so very fast I am having a hard time finding shelves for all the goodies that are getting canned up. I also have the freezers full. ANd the top of the freezer with canned goods. The dehydrater has been running non stop with tomaotes, onions, pumpkin, and potatoes. We are really pleased with the vegetable pantry and now on to the fruit.

Homestead happenings - August

2009-08-16T09:30:00.000-07:00

With everything growing like crazy my family has really seen how much a mom can juggle at one given time. It gets really hectic and confusing at times but its really amazing how much you can get done in a 24 hour period.
Keeping- Tomato soup ( thanks A for the recipe), hot juice, and tomato juice are the things being processed at this time. With the occasional bushel of green beans thrown in just for good measure. But really With 50+ pounds of tomatoes coming out of the garden in a day the juicer has been working over time! The pantry is full with an added 4 shelves put up which are all full also. The freezer also full. Its a good feeling when you know how well your family will be fed this winter.
Outside - We built a shed for the horses and also a much larger pasture for them to room and eat. It feeds them plus we now have about 40 minutes of mowing gone!! And as if cutting out the grass wasn't a big enough plus we also have no money out of our pocket for all the materials used. The shed was recycled from a bigger shed we took down for someone. We also got a kids playhouse which was recycled. the posts we had from when we first moved here and never got around to building the fence. The fence was given to us by a neighbor, he took it down to put up new, the fence is in great shape. He said it was going to the landfill - NOooooo. Okay he brought it to us. Yippee!!
Inside - still going through things to have a yard sale. this will take some time with the garden flourishing like it is. Our electric company sent us a letter about a program to help the environment and save energy. So we are signing up for that.
Well that's about all for now. I am trying to get the fall planting in the ground and the raised beds ready for the winter months with new horse manure on them for next years planting. You know you are a homesteader when you are thinking and planning for 6 months from the month you are actually in. HAve a great weekend!

Ways we homestead in the 21st century

2009-08-15T10:36:00.000-07:00

I have been thinking for some time about how our life is different from most others that we know. I have been lucky enough to not have to work but it doesn't mean i sit around the house watching soap operas, waiting for the mail to run , or turning on the Internet to get a taste of whats going on in the world. No way. My life is really really different. When I say I don't work I mean I don't have a job away from our land. And my day is so full some days the TV doesn't get turned on until late in the day or if its raining. Also I have been known ( actually last week) to not have checked the mail for days. I do get on the Internet when the rain is falling outside and I can update the blog or do a bit of research on new homesteading ways.
I tend to our children and gardens everyday and the children have learned so much from our homesteading adventures. Everyone has there own special part of the garden that they wait patiently for. Son 1 loves the corn, Son 2 loves the potatoes, from planting to digging, Darling daughter loves the cucumbers.
But the food and gardens are only a small part of this way of life. We have never owned a credit card and if we don't have the money for it then we don't get it. There has been so many times that it has taken us so long to save money for something we thought we just had to have and when we go to the store to get it we decide together that we don't really need it at all. We buy alot ( about 90%) of items in our home from thrift stores, or yard sales. We never pay full price for much of anything. We save items for later use. We buy the things we can not grow on our land in bulk. Saves money, time and trips.
I take great pride in that we are not dependent on material things. I feel honored that my kids don't know the difference between name brands and whats "in style". Our style is our own. Our style is living within our means and standing beside one another. We have grown into a close family and our idea of a Saturday night out means fishing or finding a free event to attend. Also when we go out to eat it usually means eating outside. We have fun and enjoy each others company and we help our neighbors any way we can.
While making our laundry detergent yesterday I read the quote on the package of soap and it read " If you want to live free, learn to live simply." As I read it to my hubby his first remark was " that's us and I wouldn't have it any other way" Its truly a blessing to be able to live our life the way we do and we wouldn't have it any other way.
What things are you doing to make life simple? Are you living free?

Tomatoes in abundance

2009-08-07T05:26:00.000-07:00

We are pleased that the tomatoes are coming on strong. We are averaging about 10 pounds a day. That's alot of tomatoes. With that many we have been making juice, sauce, and next up some salsa. I borrowed my moms juicer which made my job less and much easier. I love that thing. I would recommend it to anyone. It makes the juice go one way and the seeds and skins in a different direction. Shaving alot of time off the whole process. Also there are other attachments you can get for jams and pumpkin. A great buy if you process alot of tomatoes.

Celebrate

2009-08-07T05:14:00.000-07:00

Yup its time to celebrate here on "our bit of soil" with a few of our family members turning a new age this month we are having a fish fry! And a little cake. We try to have a grand party for everyone. We play games and enjoy each others company.

Just another way a homesteader saves money. Make your own cake. Saves us about $60 a year here. I know $60 dollars is that all. Well yeah but $60 is alot of money to spend on just cakes. So here is our cakes I made yesterday. I blurred out the names for privacy.

The garden cupcakes is the cake I made for my moms birthday 2 years ago.

Its fun to put a little extra time into a celebration! Have a great day!

July was wonderful

2009-08-04T11:25:00.000-07:00

for harvest. Still have yet to find out where the heat went to but the produce is really growing. As in the recent post explaining we harvested 258 pounds of harvest from our gardens. Also I wanted to give you a run down on our harvest for dollars total expense for the year so far.
Growing our own corn has saved us $80.00 on an average of 3.50 per dozen
Blackberries saved us $5.00 on average of 2.50 for and 8 oz package
Potatoes saved us 22.90 on average 2.99 per 5 pounds at the store
green beans saved us $18.00 on average of the store price of 2.00 per pound
carrots saved us 9.03
cabbage saved us 1.45
pickles saved us 30.69 minus the vinegar I had to buy so the total saved was 26.69
onions saved us $5.97
Zucchini saved us $21.78 from an average of $1.00 per pound
Brussel sprouts saved us 1.29

With a total saving of $196.11 for one month
With $196.11 subtracted from our garden start expenses of 175.78 that means we have MADE $20.33. Woohoo we are no longer in the red!!! With more then 3 more months still yet to harvest I can breathe easy!! Gardening is easy, healthier, and profitable even if its just for your own family.

July update

2009-07-29T09:02:00.000-07:00

We have really been busy around here to say the least. I know there is still 2 days left in the month but being it was raining I thought this maybe my only break from the gardening chores that have been keeping me on my toes for the whole month. So with that said our poundage for July is 258. Yes 258 pounds harvested from our gardens for this month!
Also with a rouge estimate saving us $187.38. Still calculating the rest of the produce so I am sure that amount will continue to grow.
Our tomatoes are having a rough go. With the rainy weather they have been introduced to a bout of blossom rot but are coming out of it. They are heavy and we have been having to tie them up over and over again. They are tall and I am pleased with the looks of them already, although I have one problem. I forgot where I planted the ripe green tomatoes. Hope to find them soon.

Freezing, canning, and salting Oh my!

2009-07-20T06:56:00.000-07:00

Although the weather feels like Fall it still is indeed Summer. The harvest season is in full swing. With peppers, cabbage, blackberries, corn, potatoes, and brussel sprouts all needing to be canned, pickled, froze, or dried we are i n the midst of our busiest time of year. Oh and did I mention putting up fence, 7 birthdays, and building a barn for the horses? Yup all that means a whole lotta late nights bonding with my kitchen. (Sigh) The pleasures of homesteading. ya gotta love it.

Our first set of corn has really set out alot of pounds and makings for some savory meals come winter. The potatoes are coming up and we have about 20 pounds in the pantry, where its cool and dark. When the potatoes come up new veggies have been filling the holes in the garden or raised beds. We have a lot of veggies in the pantry, almost nearly full, making me wonder where I will end up putting the rest of our harvest. I'm sure the cupboards could hold a bit more with a little rearranging.

Yesterday we went over the hill to check on posts for the fencing and alas the blackberries were ripe and much more to our surprise the wild animals didn't eat them all. SO we got a container and had a fun time picking them wonderful berries which will be jam sometime today.

A little trip

2009-07-14T15:56:00.000-07:00

puts it all in new light. I sometimes get tired and worn out. I sometimes think what life would be without canning, cooking, gardening, homesteading every day. That's why we thought it would be a great idea to get away for the weekend. Now we do not go many places. We travel very little but sometimes you just need to get away. The above pictures are from our trip.

We ate in restaurant's and really the only thing I wanted to do was come home and cook a home cooked meal. I loved seeing everyone from my childhood but we are happy to be back - home. I am happy we homestead. Happy to have the food on our land and pleased I had plenty of harvest to get canned when we returned home. Yes it was nice to have a little break but I wouldn't change how we live for the world!

Garden in July

2009-07-09T15:00:00.000-07:00

The garden is in full swing. We have had an extremely weird summer with very few days over 90 degrees. More days with rain then without and more cooler autumn like mornings. But none the less no matter how the weather is this summer we must take it and try to do some good with it. The green beans do not like the weather but the cucumbers and tomatoes are loving it.

The first picture is of the potatoes, then cucumbers above the milk jugs, the milk jugs are where the early potatoes were which now is the broccoli, then above that is the peppers, melons, then onions.

Second picture, the one with the blue step stool in it, has beans and corn in it.

The third picture consists of zucchini, tomatoes, and corn in it. As in the previous post the tomatoes are doing wonderful, the corn seems to be stunted a bit ( maybe due to the weather).
None the less we are taking what we can get and if we need more the farmers market is right down the road. Hopefully we won't need it much but its there if we need it. I sure hope they have organic.

How is your garden growing?

Tomatoes - big and small

2009-07-08T11:52:00.000-07:00

With 158 tomato plants I plan to have enough to make sauces, salsa, ketchup, and sun dried tomatoes. As it turns out , ablove pictures, show we will probably have plenty of tomatoes to go around. All the plants look like the above photos, they are loaded. Some as big as a small bowl. We have several different colors of tomatoes growing like, pink, yellow, red, black, white, orange, and of course green. I hope to have enough ripe green tomatoes to make up a batch of green tomato sauce for the kids. They variesties of tomatoes are as follows : Uncle Mark Bagby,Verna Orange, Great White, Black Plum, Grace Lahman, Black Krim, Pinapple, Yellow pear, mama leone, rutgers, dads sunset break O'day, Old Virgina, Thessaloniki, and Aunt Ruby's german green tomato.

Getting over the fear

2009-07-07T07:52:00.000-07:00

, the fear of the pressure canner. With help from other gardeners and harvest keepers I finally gave in and used the pressure canner. I was really shocked how easy it is to use, now I looking for anything and everything to can for the pantry.

Now I am hoping the green beans will start really producing so I can can more then one jar at a time.

4 days in

2009-07-04T20:41:00.000-07:00

and already we are having a bumper crop. With the tomatoes still yet to ripen we are experiencing tremendous yields. Vegetables are in my home laying everywhere, the pantry filling quickly and still have yet to pressure can anything. But the water bath canner has been getting quiet a workout. I find myself trying to figure out where I can place more shelves in our walk in pantry.
Oh yeah sorry for rambling but Happy 4Th of July. this July our family is celebrating our freedom of grocery stores. Looks like we will have little or no grocery store time. Thus this is more time spent with the family having fun weather it be just chillin or maybe a free time like fishing.
Okay back to the vegetables, in 4 days we have harvested 38 pounds 11oz these pounds are coming from onions, cabbage, zucchini, cucumbers, potatoes, beans and herbs. This is also done completely organic. Absolutely no pesticides what so ever.
Today we planted some fall broccoli and some more tomatoes bringing the total of tomato plants to 156 give or take one or two. I'm still hoping to can 1500 jars of food for this year. Hoping that will get us through till the next harvest.
Happy 4 Th of July!

Worthy of another year

2009-07-02T07:11:00.000-07:00

So when we were planting the potato seeds earlier this year we were hoping for the best and just praying that we would grow enough potatoes to pay for the seeds that we bought. We purchased 3 different varieties small red ( shown in photo), Yukon gold, and russet Burbank. We spend around $20 dollars for our seeds and got 6 rows planted. Last night we grabbed the produce basket and up the hill we went to gather the red potatoes. The kids were having a blast - one trying to find the biggest potato in there hole and the other trying to find the most potatoes in theirs.
After clearing out the row, I came in to the house to weigh our treasures, 13 pounds of wonderful potatoes. That with the potatoes we have already harvested pays for the seeds and some seeds to save for planting next year. With 5 rows of potatoes still in the ground it looks to be a wonderful potato year.

June harvest total

2009-06-30T08:13:00.000-07:00

With this month approaching an end it is time for me to post our harvest for the month.
This month we produced 87 pounds and 4 oz. of good wholesome food from our own land.
I also have 31 jars of pickles canned, 4 bags of fresh green beans in the freezer and zucchini bread in the freezer.

2009-06-27T05:24:00.000-07:00

As I was canning today my daughter was talking about how one day I will have to go to her house so I can help her can her own garden. It made me smile and I was pleased to hear that she will want to keep her garden bounty for use in the colder months also. We ended up making 18 quarts and 2 pint jars of dill pickles yesterday. About 30 more jars of a pickle variety we should be set till the next harvest. With the way the cucumber plants are producing this year we should have no problem getting those without bartering or trading for more cucumbers.

Todays agenda

2009-06-26T06:28:00.000-07:00

With the heat gearing up the central air will be on for a day of canning. Yeterday between rain showers I was able to get over 20 pounds of produce from the garden most of it from cucumbers. The above picture shows only a few of cucumbers harvested yesterday.So with the cucumbers growing fast the canning MUST start. Thats what I will be doing today. I will let you know how much I get canned. Last year we got only 10 jars of cucumbers becasue the plants died quickly. I hope to have way more then that this year.

What are you canning?

One good turn - deserves another

2009-06-24T10:15:00.000-07:00

This morning while talking to my mom she was telling me about something that was done in a town a few hours away where I was born and spent most of my childhood at. A family friend said she had received plants for her garden. But these were not just any vegetable plants. These were truly amazing plants. Not only were they free but they stood for something. See they gave people these plants on one condition: If you don't use the produce yourself then give it to a soup kitchen or someone that needs the food. Yes Victory and Freedom gardens are popping up every where. It seems everyone is thinking of alternative ways to stay out of the grocery store.

April, May, June Dollars

2009-06-23T07:39:00.000-07:00

In March I posted Jan., Feb., March dollars which showed how much money we have used to start our garden and a bit of that money was also used for supplies like, dirt, fruit trees, tools etc. So then we have spent a Total of - $244
With the produce we have harvested thus far from April until June this is how it reads

At the grocery yesterday, after butter and milk, I seen that "FRESH GREEN BEANS" maybe fresh but might not be organic, were $2.49 a pound that said we have harvested 3 pounds from our garden saving us $7.47

Also cabbage, again probably not organic seeing how no sign advised that of it was $0.49 per pound after cutting just a couple heads we managed to get 5 pounds thus far saving us $2.45

The onions were $1.99 per bag which looked like approx. 5-6 onions in each bag we have harvested 5 pounds so far as my onions have been equalling around 4-5 per pound by my calculations we have saved $7.96

Next come carrots with one pound package carrots at $1.99 and again not organic at the store , we have harvested 2 pounds of carrots thus far saving $3.98

New potatoes at the store for the red ones we have harvested are 3.99 per 4 pound bag. Again our potatoes have saved us $3.99 with many more plants in the garden still.

Leaf lettuce in a one pound BAG at the store are selling for $2.49, on sale!! But I got my organic lettuce in the back yard for free with 5 pounds harvested we have saved $12.45

I have no idea how to calculate the peas seeings how they don't sell them in the store fresh around here. Zukes are not being sold in the store yet either but I have 2 pounds ready to make into bread.

For a grand total these three months of saving are $38.30 bringing our total for supplies out of pocket down from $244 to $205.70

How much are you saving? I would love to know!! Happy gardening

EDIT: Cucumbers were priced for 0.68 cents a pound at a store we were at last night. As we have harvested 44 pounds it comes to a savings of $29.92

Bringing the new total of savings to - $68.22 thus bringing our out of pocket expence to $175.78 and its just July!!

Ones first attempt to pressure canning...

2009-06-23T04:04:00.000-07:00

I first went to my garden shed thus this shed also stores all my empty canning jars. Sorting through hundreds of jars, deciding which size to use, making sure they are not damaged in any way takes time.
Of course then they must be washed. So into the house we go to wash the jars I picked in hot soapy water. While those were soaking I was able to get the dishwasher unloaded and was thinking about storing the clean jars in it until I needed them.
I then went to the pantry to fetch my pressure canner out of the pantry. With eyes gleaming and heart pounding I was thrilled it was finally time to use my wonderful investment I made a few months ago. I sat down to read the instructions once again. I have never used a pressure canner before, shucks I have never seen anyone use one before. So reading the instructions a billion times hopefully will be enough for me to understand how to use it. I then, as illustrated in the book, proceeded to attach the gauge and regulator. Looks good. Last but not least I did the rest of the prep in the book for all first time Pressure canners.
Getting all that done I was excited to be ready to pick the green beans I have been longing to can. Every year we freeze them and this year is exciting for me. To get more freezer space and the green beans on the shelf. Anyways picking the green beans picked plenty for about 5 pint jars. Good enough for the first time , small batch, just in case I do something wrong and something should happen to them.
Get back to the house and then, its time to start supper. Dun dun dunnnnnnn Hmmmmmm. I guess the canning will have to wait, the beans will be with supper, and the rest will go to the freezer. Bad news is I wasn't able to use the pressure canner yet, good news is I have 4 quart bags of green beans in the freezer.

Mid-month harvest update

2009-06-16T10:02:00.000-07:00

With the garden growing fast and I would be completely unable to stay caught up if it wasn't for the rain. Of course the rain is probably the reason the gardens are growing so very well. Anyways with that said I am posting my June harvest thus far - in 15 days we have collected 20 pounds and 3 oz of fruits and veggies from our land.
On the preservation side I have put up carrots, peas, onions and a few potatoes. We are very excited to see how close or maybe even over we will come to our harvest goal.

Slugs and bugs - eeekks

2009-06-16T09:33:00.000-07:00

As i was walking through the garden I discovered that it was time to run in the house and search the web for ways to get rid of potato bugs and cabbage worms.
After weeks of tiring to tempt anyone to pluck the little non beneficial bugs for a penny a piece, i still have had no takers. I'm sure the only reason no one wants the job is because they have watched me sit there for hours plucking the little boogers off the plants. After spending much of my time trying to displace them I am hoping to find a earth friendly- non abrasive- gentle to other beneficial bugs remedy. Thus I found if you sprinkle flour on the cabbage the worms then eat it and POOF. We shall see....
As for the potato bugs it took more then a few minutes to find something that might repel the bugs from eating the leaves off the plants. Which brings me to the hot pepper spray. A few hot peppers in some water. Let cool. Mix more water with the hot pepper juice ( so to speak). Spray the plants when cool. Done... Does it work who knows. Its not supposed to kill them just repel them. I am hoping it works. It would be really nice if it did. Not to mention this is easier on the pocket book.

Perfect start to a gloomy day

2009-06-12T10:52:00.000-07:00

With several rows of potatoes I am pleased to see all my hard work with hilling them, picking off potato bugs, and pulling the weeds from around them is starting to pay off.

I collected 3 pounds of red new potatoes yesterday for our supper. Along with the very big and handsome onions in the picture also. The gardens are doing so very well this year. It must be the compost that I have been piling on the gardens throughout the year.

The harvest total for this month is drasticly rising which is good if we want to reach our goal weight!!

Go Rain Go!!!

2009-06-12T09:44:00.000-07:00

No I am not going to say away. Recently I have heard alot about the rainy weather we have been experiencing but I am for one and alot of others around here tend to enjoy it. As in my way of looking at it, it gives me time to play catch up in the house with the cleaning. It helps the plants and veggies grow like crazy and gives me a slight break in packing water up to the gardens and new trees. It has given us time to redo the building that we traded for, it has kept our water barrels full,it has made the kitchen cool during canning, and our water bill low. Rain is my friend.

Just because

2009-06-08T19:46:00.000-07:00

There are so many pictures I want to just unload but this is my favorite. It just seems everyone even the animals can't get enough of the fresh veggies. Here on of the kittens is in the Brussel sprouts.
Okay well that's all I have for tonight so I think I am going to bed. Good night!

Thunderstorms

2009-06-08T19:38:00.000-07:00

With the weather changing every few seconds, it seems, I could not help myself but I had to take a few shots of the storm that was brewing out our back door the other day. The top on was right after they said our county could see hail. The bottom one was later that evening. I really love this shot becasue I can see aface in the clouds. Can you see it? Enjoy!

Peas and Carrots

2009-06-08T19:10:00.000-07:00

With so much going on here on our "bit of soil" there is little time for computer. With that said this will be the first of a "grape" post. When I say "grape" I mean bunch of posts. With that said here I sit basking in the dark - maybe you was thinking sun? Sorry Like I said there is lots to do mostly in the daylight hours and no time or very little for basking.

But with so much to try to fit into the day we somehow get it all done. After getting out of the pool today the second time, or maybe it was the third, oh well. We then went to the raised bed garden to see if there was anything to munch on. I was happy and hte kids excited when we pulled the best looking carrot out of the ground. They said " look mom its a store carrot" This is the first year we had carrots that didnt take a whole row to make a side dish.

Todays harvest 1 pound of peas, 11 oz of carrots, 2 oz of potato.

This June month of harvest totals will be very exciting to see how heavy we are weighing!!

2, one

2009-06-02T07:07:00.000-07:00

I feel like saying blast off. Okay there you go I said it. So anyways there are 2 more days of school here. I am so excited. Alright I know I am one of those parents that are excited about the kids being out of school? yup I am. I would rather them be home then anywhere else. (sigh)

Also in 2 days we will have kids yelling at each other about who gets in the pool first, or bugging about going to the movies or when we might go camping. Then they might have a few fights amongst each other but want to try to drag me into it by saying "MOM so and so did this" which usually I settle by simply saying " Lets keep our hands to ourselves".But any ways summer vacation is wonderful no matter what. Summer vacation is a staycation.

Our staycation will consist of fishing, camping, hiking, and exploring. We usually take a trip to the local fish hatchery and swim in the lake. We are simple and the family really enjoys anything we do. Only thing is to agree on what to do first and to keep them just busy enough so they don't have time to pick at each other.

That said, if I happen to be not here posting at my regular time then its because I will be busy with the daily chores and the kids home. I will post when I am avalible, probably around 2 am. Have a great gardening day!!!

May happenings - update

2009-06-01T11:31:00.000-07:00

So this month has been both busy and productive. We are very pleased with the new raised beds growing the veggies at an alarming rate.
- Our brussle sprouts are more then my knee height.
-The carrot greens are lush and plenty. Hopefully the roots will be just as wonderful.
-All the radish's are done for the spring but we hope to get more planted before the winter. Yes I said winter.
-We managed to get about 113 tomato plants in the ground this year and still have around 30 in the greenhouse.
-Our pepper plants are having a rough go of it due to the rains flooding the garden and washing out the plants by the handfuls. We were lucky enough to get more planted and with any luck will produce plenty.
-The onions are doing well although we are having a time with them blooming. This is the first year that has ever happened to me.
- As for the potatoes, they are fixing to bloom. I have had to hand pick the potato beetles off the plants almost every day but they seem to be disappearing.
- The melons are all doing well as well as the squash and cucumbers.
- Peas are coming along well and all the kids love peas now. They can't get enough of the sweet green fresh peas.
We have managed to get over 4 pounds of veggies out of the garden already and we are happy to think we won't have a hard time in getting to our goal this year.

Time for desert

2009-05-28T06:41:00.000-07:00

I have posted pictures of the apple and peach trees but not the other fruits we have growing. Enjoy.

We have cherries, peaches ( see the lady bug), and strawberries.

Others include but not photoed are watermelon, cantaloupe, blackberries.

Garden in May

2009-05-28T06:19:00.000-07:00

Our garden is really full. Some would say too full but nah we don't think that. With the recent rains( every day for 4 days) its very hard to get into the garden to pull weeds but I will post the garden pics anyway. So here you go.

In the photo on the top the veggies are 8 zucchini, 83 tomato plants, 10 rows of corn, then the potatoes. The picture to the right of the page is from the other side of the garden. First this way is the dreaded weeds that are growing everywhere in the garden, sunflowers the kids planted (heavy), 2 rows of onions ( 2 different kinds), melons, cucumbers, peppers, then the potatoes.

The potato box in the right is on its 3rd run. It is really growing well. I am excited to see how many spuds are In there. If they do well I am wanting to make an extended box to fit the garden better. A lot of people who have used the potato boxes say they grow a lot of potatoes in them so I am waiting to see how many more the box has then just the ones in the garden.

A true sign of summer

2009-05-25T19:34:00.000-07:00

is picking cherries around our "bit of soil". We planted 2 cherry trees about 3 years ago here, last year we managed to grab around a handful off the trees before the birds got to them. This year we have around 2 cups up there waiting for us to pick them. But while ours are not fully ripe we went to hubbys dads tonight, his tree had wonderful red ripe cherries just waiting for us to gobble them up. My FIL said we could pick them in exchange for a cobbler. I can do that!! We picked 3 pounds 4 oz. tonight. One cobbler is cooling on the table and the other is still in the oven.

I love cherry cobbler as the rest of the family does also. Hopefully soon we will have enough off our trees to get enough for a cobbler or two and can or freeze some for the winter. I truly don't know how we live without the warm wonderfulness of cherry cobbler all year. I start wanting it in winter and some how survive until now.

3 pds 4 oz. cherries bartered for cherry cobbler

We have peas

2009-05-25T14:02:00.000-07:00

This is our first year growing peas. So please excuse me for being very excited to see the pea pods growing every day.

In the beautiful sun

2009-05-25T13:59:00.001-07:00

The other day I got this wonderful photo of the colts laying in the sun. They are growing really fast and are so very smart horses.

a day of rain

2009-05-25T13:54:00.001-07:00

means a day of baking. We had a great deal of rain fall on us today. The water barrels are full again and the gardens are watered. It truly was a beautiful day!!

And so it begins

2009-05-21T05:46:00.000-07:00

the watering with more. More then the precious water coming from the heavens and into the water barrels we strategically placed for holding water to use on the garden, pet baths, rinsing outside things. etc.Yes we had to drag out the hose. Oh the thud in my great watering setup the dreaded hose. For anyone else this would be the greatest gift ever, yes for most. But for me it is much more then that. It's the reason I have water barrels. I have them to prevent me from using the clean, treated, fairly priced, drinking water. I love the fact that I can go right out into the big glorious barrel and dip out some of heavens goodness. Okay okay before you say there is nothing wrong with water from the hose, I agree. there is nothing wrong with it, it's wonderful. But I prefer to use our re purposed water as much as i can for the outside watering. Also I have this really huge over sized yard and takes forever to drag the hose around to every small or large plots I have to water.I do not water our grass and no I am not complaining, yes I will drag that huge hose around rather then going to the store to buy the things that need watering. But today as i was watering I realized we have 2 rather long water hoses threaded together and opps its not enough. I told you I had a big yard. So I have one water spigot on our property I have been asking for another by the garden, shoot I would be happy if it were just in the back yard. One in the front one in the back. Sounds reasonable enough. But I make do with the one in the front and long that one day to have another strategically placed were 2 water hoses will be enough when the water barrels are dry. or maybe around 30 more water barrels. Which ever would be great. But for now I am thankful. Thankful for the water I have.

500 pounds of produce

2009-05-18T18:30:00.000-07:00

That is our goal this year, to grow 500 pounds of produce from our own land. We hope to go over that but 500 pounds would be just fine.
To date we have had
10 oz radish
8 oz of onions
6 oz of lettuce
3 oz of spinach
TOTAL for May so far - 1 pound 11 oz
This is the first year we have grown spinach and much to our surprise everyone loves it. We are pleased that all the kids will at least try everything we grow.

A gander through the raised beds

2009-05-14T10:01:00.001-07:00

As mentioned before the raised
beds are growing great things at alarming rates. In the first picture is the carrot bed. The tops look healthy and green. I hope the roots get big and long.

Next is the potatoes I am trying of a different variety. I placed them in the raised beds rather then the garden area to see which beds grow potatoes better. These seem to be doing well with no potato bugs.

Oh yes these are the peanuts. I planted a few seeds to see how they might do. These seem to be growing good. I hope they grow enough peanuts for seed for next years planting.

Peas, carrots, and onions. Might I say the onions are really good. I couldn't wait any longer and snuck a few last night for our dinner. The peas are blooming and the carrots are growing in between rather rapidly.

Please disregard the windy blow Brussel sprouts. The wind is high today, they are really handsome plants. Green, lush, and rather tall. The kids love them so I hope we have a good size crop for eating.

And for the last of the pictures is the lettuce. And a volunteer of sunflower and tomatoes. This lettuce will be on the dinner table tonight with a few more snatched onions and some radish's I harvested earlier. every time I go to the beds I rip off a leaf of lettuce to eat as I work. Doesn't it look yummy?

A few things I didn't take photos of are the spinach, cabbage, tomatoes, squash, cucumbers, and beans. Save those for a day that I won't get caught in the rain.

Where it all starts

2009-05-13T10:33:00.001-07:00

is way more important then it being homemade here on our bit of soil. I cook with the best ingredients when it comes to feeding my family. And the best, to me, means the closest and organic, pesticide free. We do not have chickens yet but we are making plans to raise our own chickens only for eggs on our land. Before we moved here we had around 20 chickens. The boys enjoyed them and were glad to help then. Now that we are more then settled in here we can't wait till the chicken tractors are ready for there new occupants. As for the eggs in the photo we are happy to have neighbors that have plenty and we purchase our eggs from them on a weekly basis. They are wonderful and completely fresh, most of the time they were gathered that morning. So our eggs come to us with really low food miles and that alone makes them wonderful to us.

a time for color and babies

2009-05-12T11:02:00.000-07:00

Yes that is Spring. With Spring in full swing I thought I would share a few pictures of just a few things that are happening around here.

On the left are the kittens that were born under our porch. The photo on the right shows a baby robin bird, just emerging from the nest. Preparing to take its first flight. A robin has eggs in the tree out front every year. We are pleased to be able to watch them emerge every year.

The animals and the garden are not the only thing growing. Our flowers that attract the bees are blooming and keep us in beautiful flowers all Spring and summer long. We plant just enough flowers to keep the bees happy and just enough food to keep us happy around here.

With the rain falling, sometime which felt like buckets, we were also able to capture some in our homemade rain barrels for the garden and raised beds. It seems to rain, fill the barrels, then quit raining long enough for us to use what we saved then rain again. I hope to add around 3 more barrels this summer.

The apples are growing faster then last year. We have a total of 5 apple trees now. Two of which will provide us with wholesome apples this fall and winter. This is the yellow delicious in the picture above. The other one, not pictured, that will grow apples this year is called a Jonathan apple. The peaches are bigger already then in the past, hope to have pictures uploaded soon. We pruned the peaches this year at the end of winter and they are so much happier.
While we still have grass we are taking alot of time to reduce our lawn every year. I hope to have the front yard grass free in the next 2 years. Have a wonderful day!!!

Poop on Mothers Day???

2009-05-11T05:56:00.000-07:00

Oh my what a wonderful Mothers Day we had here on our Bit of soil. The weather was pleasant and calm. I am very blessed to have such wonderful kids and a terrific husband. We visited each of our moms and even was able to shovel up some ready to spread horse manure. Yup that's right, I needed some for the garden and raised beds so while visiting hubby's mom we loaded up a truck load. I am truly blessed that everyone was willing to help with this not so neat chore.
We came home and spreaded the free fertilizer where it needed to be. We went and visited my mom when she got off of work and of course came back home to finish up our weekend chores before bed time. Yes mothers day was wonderful.
The kids and hubby also showered me with much needed gifts. First all the hugs and love I ever need. Hubby also took the kids to the store before Mothers day and built me a couple of small planters. They are special to me because they are made by them. They gave them to me early in the day, also was gifted a new short handled shovel, garden hose sprayer, flowers ( rose bush, marigolds, pansies) The kids all pitched in and helped me plant the bush and flowers. Everything was wonderful.

Hardy Kiwi- May update

2009-05-11T05:50:00.000-07:00

As you can see the kiwi seedlings are growing slowly but steadly. They now have 4 true leaves on them and all 6 are still alive. I had to transplant them into single small pots for themselves own space. In another month or so I will place them into bigger pots. They will need to be inside for this winter to make sure the roots do not freeze. Even with the slow growth the kiwi seedlings are healthy and from what i have read they tend to grow at a slow yet steadly pace.

Friday movie night

2009-05-08T18:03:00.000-07:00

Love Comes Softly - Is the first to a great series of movies that reminds me a bit of the Little House on the Prairie. The movie shows how you can do anything as long as your willing to learn. Also shows how God has control and all we can do is ask that we are strong enough to endure whatever comes our way. Its a great movie..... wait its a great family movie. The kids could not take there eyes off the TV all through this one. I hope you have a chance to view it and when you do please leave a post and let me know what you think. Have a great night.

HAPPY MOTHERS DAY to all Moms - whether you have human kids or furry ones!!!!

How to tell that the last frost has passed?

2009-05-08T08:55:00.000-07:00

You can almost sit down.

Okay so I have said it before, several months ago, that we will have a last frost but not when expected. We have not had a frost here for several weeks. I think all the rain has made the frost not happen. I am happy , that just means more work for me a little sooner then expected but I am pleased. Pleased to have almost everything in the ground. If the rain would just stop for a few days I could get everything planted and let the rain do the rest. But no such luck. I have been going out every morning and planting as much as I could until the rain starts later on in the day. We have about 33 tomato plants in the ground as well as 25 pepper plants. There is still plenty more that needs to be planted. But it too must be done according to the weather.

FIrst harvest of 2009

2009-05-08T08:50:00.001-07:00

Our Radish's!!! Do this day we have had 4 ounces out of the raised beds. They are so yummy. Can't wait for more things to get ready to eat. The kids all actually tried them and they said "mom they are different from last years". Last years were really spicy hot so I tried to tame the nip a bit. Seems like I triumphed over that hurdle.

Is it May already?

2009-05-01T09:18:00.000-07:00

I can remember just a few short weeks ago begging for Spring to come and shine it's loving sunshine down on our yard. Much to my surprise it has come and come with hot weather and much needed rain. Most of our garden and raised beds are planted and all of the veggies are growing beautifully. The peas are starting to climb the trellis I made for them and the cucumbers are peaking through the ground. I know it seems early to have all this out and planted on the first day of May but I believe, as previously mentioned on my garden journal on FGers site, the last frost is gone. But if the threat comes honking down upon us we are well prepared.

Today is raining and expected to rain on the Derby tomorrow as well. It seems it rains every year on the Derby. The rain is more then welcomed in our yard as our 2 rain barrels are depleted through the 80+ degree tempts earlier this week. They both are about half full now.

Much like all my other month to month updates I try to tell you about how well or poorly the things are growing around here. The carrots finally are showing there green tops and the radishes should be able to pluck out of the ground in a couple of weeks. With any luck they will be ready before the really hot and humid weather comes to stay. We now have 7 rows of potatoes planted and they all are showing off there green tops just above ground level. All the beans have sprouted as well as the squash, cukes and zukes. Lettuce and spinach are growing with leaps and bounds every day. Oh I can't wait for the green salad that we grew on our own land. Most excitingly the peanuts have sprouted and the kiwi have 3 true leaves on them. The kiwi are growing slowly but all the research I have done on growing them, they are a slow growing vine. I need to find a better way to grow the celery as they were doing great until the rain beat the little things in the ground a bit more then they should be. They might come back but like I said this is a year of trials. Cabbage and brussel sprouts are doing great as well as the onions.

Also on another side of the "bit" hubby started his new job today. He was a bit nervous this morning but he is a hard worker and I know he will do fine.

The kids planted there pumpkin patch and they have yet to sprout but I know with the kids' caring hearts they will grow and flourish. So I believe it is 27 days of school left which I will be thankful when they get to have a bit of a summer vacation. Although it will be short I am sure we can have some fun during the break.
Not much more has happened in the month of April, other then the day to day events that keep us busy and content at the same time. Have a great month of May!!!

Tomorrow is Derby Day!

2009-05-01T05:17:00.000-07:00

So tomorrow is the 135th Kentucky Derby. As like any other year we will not be attending. My hope for tomorrow that all the horses and jockey's have a safe race and may the.... ummm... fastest horse win. I will not say the best horse because to get that far and actually be in the Derby my opinion is that they are all the best horses. So congrats to them, for having the opportunity to be apart of history!!!

Moneys tight - so glad we garden

2009-04-27T19:01:00.000-07:00

With the veggies growing just as fast as we can get them planted I am thankful for the fruits of our labor. We garden for the nourishment but we also garden to save money. Now I am happy we do. My husband recently got a new job that he starts on Friday. This new job means alot to our family. First it is a pay cut but it has benefits that we don't have now. That means alot less worry for the family. SO with the pay cut and the economy we will not have to cut expenses in our menus because of this change in career choice. I feel we are well equipped for the lack of a pay check for the next month. We always have kept extra things in the house so we are well stocked and some emergency money in the bank, just in case. We picked up our beef a few weeks ago. Its organic raised on grass and is rather good.

Also I found an awesome recipe for dishwasher detergent so that expense is gone with the wind also. I found this recipe on youtube. The recipe is as follows:
1 1/2 cups borax
1 1/2 cups baking soda
1 cup salt

Shake well and add about 1/3 of a cup per load and It washes the dishes wonderfully. I also add vinegar to the rinsing agent dispenser . Our hard water tends to leave a white residue on the dishes but the vinegar rinses them clean with a shine.

The kids are looking forward to this new venture also. They are excited that dad will be home in the middle of the day and have daylight to be able to fish more this summer. And with only 29 more days of school left the new job came at a perfect time!

Free

2009-04-27T11:42:00.000-07:00

Okay yesterday we went to my MILs house to help her with a few things. As we where leaving she points out these ( below) and said do you want those? Yup!! Those will coming in handy. They are in wonderful shape.

Weekend wonders

2009-04-27T10:53:00.000-07:00

The raised beds are growing wonderful veggies. Above are radish and cabbage plants.

Peas onions, and carrots are growing rapidly ( left). On the Right are the brussel sprouts.

So this weekend we got alot done on our bit of soil. We worked on the house and the garden. We are thrilled to have gotten so much done. We were able to get the garden tilled and some corn, beans, zukes, and cukes planted. The potatoes and some onions are growing in the garden also.

More in the raised beds also. This weekend I planted, peanuts, cukes, beans, ( bush and pole), more carrots, and some squash. I transplanted some cukes on which the seeds came from Freedom Seeds and they all sprouted and are doing great. I just love to watch things grow.

The strawberries are also growing fast. We are pleased that they are growing well around the peach trees in the front year. All of our new fruit trees are leaving out. Everything is waking up for the fresh spring air.

Windows in - cold air out

2009-04-27T10:47:00.000-07:00

Right now its 80 + degrees but the cold weather will be here again one day but we will be ready. We changed all of our windows, 6 of them, with our own hands. We also found new homes for the old windows so they are now being reused. So absolutely no waste at all. Our new windows let in so much more light that we don't have to turn any lights on until about 6 or 7 pm. Awww let the sunshine in!!

Friday night movie

2009-04-27T10:40:00.000-07:00

I know its a bit late but for the movie this week we watched the Oprah Earth Day show. Which really opened our eyes to alot. Also it showed a clip of the Dervaes family movie. It was a wonderful show. We learned so very much.
I am also pleased to announce that everyone is helping me out with the recycling. We are only throwing out one bag of garbage every 4 days. Thats a real significant drop. They say everyone throws out 4 1/2 pounds of garbage a day. With a family of 5 we should throw away 22 1/2 pounds PER DAY. We are not. We may be throwing that out every 2 weeks, if that.

Earth Day over?

2009-04-23T07:32:00.000-07:00

Well the designated day is past. You recycled all day!! You ate locally yesterday, remembered your reusable bags without forgetting, maybe you planted a tree or picked up garbage along the road, and changed a light bulb. And you also vowed to do it next year on Earth day also. And today you may be going right back to what you are used to do on a daily basis. STOP!!!!!! Remember everyday is Earth day. You live on it everyday why not protect it everyday also. It doesn't take more time to put that can in the recycling bin rather the trash can. Your reusable bags hold 3 times more if not more then the plastic bags. Once you start using them you will be amazed at how much you like them.
Buy locally - use what you have until its worn out.
SO the answer to the question, Earth Day over? NEVER.

Friday night movie

2009-04-17T18:55:00.000-07:00

I thought I would write a post once a week, hopefully every Friday, about a movie or perhaps a radio conversation that I found to be informative. So for the first one- I watched a documentary called Heart and Soil. If you have not seen it yet its a great 45 minute long movie. They touched basis on several different areas that we here on our bit of soil try to do like GMO free seeds and organic gardening or buying local foods.

But they also talked bits about things I found interesting. Some including waffle gardens, which are kinda like the square foot gardening technique. Also making homemade yogurt out of goats milk.

If you get a chance to watch it, it is worth it. IF you have seen it please feel free to comment on if you enjoyed it or not.

Other movies I want to view are:

Homegrown Revolution

One Man, One Cow, One Planet

Have a great weekend!!! We are going to try the offline days. SO from tonight till Monday morning. Goodnight!

Sun drenched thurst quencher

2009-04-16T07:06:00.000-07:00

Oh how I long to use you. To taste the sweet tea you make with the power of the sun. To place you on the front porch while the sun beats down and the tea is ready by lunch.

Nothing is better then a glass of tea made by the sunshine in the heat of the day. Although we have had cloudy weather for a while now, I am sure it won't be long before your solar tea will touch my lips once more.

Growing up we always had a glass jug brewing tea on the porch. While living in a small town, knowing all our neighbors, it was funny and might I say a game to find our jug of tea disappear from our porch. Only to discover it on our neighbors porch some time later. I remember my mom laughing when she finally seen our tea was now our neighbors. Then she would tell us kids to go get our tea. While now we have moved to a different state, our tea stays on my porch these days. I still laugh every time I put my jug out to brew.

Adding GREEN to our home

2009-04-15T11:41:00.000-07:00

We are busy here. Finishing plans to add on to our home, replacing our mobile home windows with more energy efficient ones, and of course the garden. We have been placing plastic on our windows for years during the winter to keep the cold air out. This winter we vowed that this one would be the last. Our window order came in today and we are very pleased with them. They are double pane, pull out and clean.
We know have one more thing on our list of "things to do" but I believe it is well worth it. This will save some on our energy bills for heating and cooling our home. With any luck we will find that we don't need the heat or air on as early.

I'm sorry, so sorry

2009-04-13T18:03:00.000-07:00

This has been a long week. I am very sorry for not posting for the last ten days. OH where do I began at telling you how much has been going on here?
Okay well number 1 ) all of this Springs fruit trees are in the ground!! Then is froze...duh. Duh on me big time. Still hoping is was not below freezing to do any damage to those wonderful yummy trees.
2) The horses are doing great. Eating like well ... ummm... horses!! LOL Loving there long walks in the yard, eating grass and laying in the sun makes them want to run. They also have become well aware of there feeding times. And don't you dare be even 2 minutes late.
3) Planted potatoes - four rows of 15 feet long. Need more but the rain started and I needed to quit. Also the peas, onions, cabbage, lettuce, spinach, carrots and radishs are all growing well.
4.) We had a great big Easter celebration here on Sunday after church. There were 9 kids hunting for eggs. We had 518 eggs that all the kids had a blast looking for. I love Easter.
5) Building a lot for the horses. This will be handy for them to be in the yard eating grass and being in the sunshine without a lead line ( leash).
So really cleaning, planting, seeding, composting, building, and planning is all that I have been doing around here. Oh yeah and breathing... well if I have time. Man I love Spring but it sure is tiring.

How big is your footprint?

2009-04-03T08:58:00.000-07:00

I finally found this site with an awesome footprint calculator. http://www.footprintnetwork.org/en/index.php/GFN/page/calculators/

I just did our house and I was amazed that it will take 3.8 planet earths if everyone lived like we do. It will also take 16.9 global acres. We only have 3.6. I now understand that there are other things I need to do. I need to recycle more, buy less, drive less, and get the rest of the family interested in some renewable heat source, maybe solar. I also need to eat less meat. As big meat eaters, this will be hard.

Take the quiz. Leave me a comment on what your score is and how maybe you plan to make it better.

FINALLY

2009-04-03T05:47:00.000-07:00

After weeks of being on edge and wondering if I would ever get them, they are finally here!!! When I placed a order for potato seeds on January 12Th of this year I never thought that I wouldn't get them on time. But about a week before the planting time for my area was approaching I started to get nervous. Well the planting date for Ky was or is March 25 Th for early potatoes. I finally received them yesterday!! I am not upset at the company at all. They are tring their hardest to keep up with the heavy demand of seeds for the home gardener this year. I am pleased with my order and it came in all recyclable materials!!!
Was going to plant them today but its raining buckets out there. So I have to wait a few more days.
Also my strawberry plants were delivered yesterday. They went into the crisper drawer until I can get them planted outside in there permanent home.
All the seedlings I started are doing wonderful. We have peas, onions, carrots, radish, and cabbage out in the raised beds which are growing well. I now have 16 different varities of tomatoes growing. I just couldnt decide which ones I really wanted. The kids are excited about the green tomato. they are looking forward to having green salsa and spaghetti sauce!!
I think my favorite of this year is going to be the kiwi still!! Oh yes and the peanuts!!

Red and Oreo

2009-04-03T05:29:00.000-07:00

They are the best little horse colts. I will be posting a few pictures of them outside. They loved seeing everything they could. They were not scared and were interested even in the dogs. They ran, kicked, and layed in the sunshine. Both get daily walks providing its not raining. They are getting more active and I must say they are a little spoiled. We guessed there age at- Red 2 weeks old and Oreo about a week old. We here have been busy with feeding and gardening. I am a bit relaxed today becasue it is raining and I can wait at least today on the gardening. Also gives me time to catch up on posting!

Our new additions

2009-03-30T11:25:00.000-07:00

Red and Oreo are the new additions to our family. Red is bigger and friendlier then Oreo ( we think Red is maybe a week older then Oreo)but we are excited about having them here. The kids love having to feed them milk and "train" them.

They are drinking there milk from a bucket so that helps. No need for a bottle, although I did get one just in case. But they are drinking their milk great from the bucket.

Hope to get some better photos of them tomorrow.

postponing the posts

2009-03-30T11:09:00.000-07:00

Sorry for so much time between posts but things are getting really busy around here. As the following posts will show - just how busy we have become.

First, last Sunday we decided to take the kids fishing. They all had a great time although we didn't catch any fish. We ended up at the creek, skipping rocks and having a blast here are some photos of our day.
The boys enjoyed catching frogs and crawl dads while I enjoyed searching and watching the minnows in the water.

Back at home there are tons of bees on the flowering trees. So nice to see so many of them so soon.

The onions are growing in the raised beds as well as the peas. I seeded the carrot and radish bed the other day and they should be sprouting soon also.

New strawberry beds are awaiting the arrival of the plants. They should be here any day now, as well as the new fruit trees and our potato seeds. The potatoes are going to be very late. Oh well they will get planted when they arrive!!