We've been putting a lot of our time this year into growing.
Growing children? Yes, of course.
Growing cattle? Yup, uh huh.
But also growing food.
Naturally.
What's a homestead without a big garden? Well, not as legit of a homestead, maybe? We've done gardens in the past, sort of, but this has been our best so far. I ordered non-GMO, non-hybrid, heirloom seeds in Janurary or February from
Victory Seeds, and started like 50 or more tomato plants, peppers, and a bunch of other stuff. I only had success with the tomatoes. I planted 24 of them, and then we had to leave for Texas, and the other plants that were in the starter things next to the planted tomatoes somehow didn't get water. They were shriveled up and dead by the time we got home.
The garden the week of July 8th:
The corn is popping up behind me in the picture, as are the melons, pumpkins, squash, beans. (Now - a month and a half later - they are all over the place.)
We added a little sand box to the left of the hen house.
The kids play out there forever, which works great for when I want to be in the garden.
Ezra was yelling that he had to go to the bathroom in the photo above. He busted himself out right after I took the picture.
Oh, and the weeding opportunities that a garden provides. Everyone is supposed to weed their age times 10. We did like 2 days that anything over that was a penny a weed. Kate was earning some good money. And she and Ezra even helped Jiles weed 50 extra so that he could earn 50 cents.
The Garden Fence.
I really wanted a nautral fence, and so, after pinning a few on
Pinterest, Weston had an idea of what I had in mind. And we started to work on it.
But Weston had a hard time working on it. Not because he couldn't do it, but because it was a lot of work to make, and not so sturdy. He's a rancher. Fences are a big part of his job. And to spend time on one to not have it last... That didn't go over so well.
So, after having one and a half sections completed, and then it staying like that for like 3 months, and then seeing one of our best friends' garden fence, we tore out the unsturdy natural fence (sniff, sniff - i loved the look) and Weston got to work on a nice sturdy, tall picket fence.
Remember: I am the dreamer, he is the realist.
Section one (with an old door that I wanted to use as a gate):
I love it!
And Weston does, too. And it goes up fairly quickly (once the posts are in).
The west side with the pumpkins 2 weeks ago:
I cannot wait to plant wildflowers - sun flowers to be specific - along the fence. Flowers on the outside and herbs on the inside.
The chicken door will be on the outside of the fence with a little yard, but we'll let them into the garden once everything is harvested (probably).
I need to move that white door that's leaning up against the hen house that's been in every picture.
Of course, it is not done yet. There is still the north side (front side) to put in with the front double gates that will open wide enough for the tractor, that section right there by the coop, and the rest of the east side. Weston's been busy haying, and we took a trip to Nevada for a family reunion, so it was pushed to the back burner.
I have {sweetly} reminded Weston that 1 cow 1 time could ruin it all.
Like this lady:
"Excuse me, could you please ruminate somewhere else?"
She was kind enough to oblige, without stepping hoof into the garden.
And now...
The Garden Fence Gate:
It's a door from the old ranch house that used to stand in our house's place. We lived in the old farmhouse for the first year that we were on the ranch. It was a sweet little place, but moldy. Very, very moldy in the basement. Think mold flowers on the wall. Spencer's asthma really started when we moved into it. That's why it was torn down.
The door was a closet door for either Kate's room or the boys' room. The middle panels feel off just this last winter because they were left on the ground all winter.
I put it on my operating table:
And got to work.
(How cute is Oliver? He pushes chairs all over the place.)
I cleaned it and painted it with some paint that I already had, and then sealed it with polyurethane. Weston helped me put on the chicken wire, then we reenforced it a bit, and hung it in the back corner of the garden.
Well, ain't we handy.
We all love it.
Some Pickings:
We've been getting little maters for a few weeks now.
And now everything else is really coming on.
Yesterday morning the kids and I went out together to see what we could pick. It was a really cool morning, which was fun and Fall-like.
Basil
Dill
Dill is pretty.
All of it is, really.
Even those cracked tomatoes that got too much water (chicken food).
Lots of squash.
Anyone have a favorite recipe. We sauteed some up tonight and it was yummy. (And I put some in my burrito, but I couldn't really taste it because I was paying attention to kids and didn't pay attention to the taste of my dinner.)
Squash Patch Kids:
A great place to grow 'em.
And you thought I gave birth to them.
Ha! Sure fooled you!
And then Ollie got the boot from the wagon to make room for the bounty.
Busyness in the garden.
Real food is beautiful!
P.S. I finished journaling the trek post if ye care ta take a looksee.
