We had our first fresh salad out of the greenhouse tonight, and it was delicious! Venison steaks, sauteed onions, french fries, and fresh salad!
Not too bad, as the lettuce & spinach was planted on 10/29/2012. That's less than a month for the first salad from the greenhouse.
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Monday, November 26, 2012
Sunday, November 25, 2012
11/25/2012
We have green in the greenhouse!
He sure has been having fun with all of it. You can see lettuce planted in the blocks at the end of the row of snow peas too. He has lettuce & spinach planted in those, plus kohlrabi, carrots, and radishes in the big raised bed.
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| Bedding plants. |
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| Outside looking in. |
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| Pole beans in a bucket |
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| Sugar snap snow peas |
He sure has been having fun with all of it. You can see lettuce planted in the blocks at the end of the row of snow peas too. He has lettuce & spinach planted in those, plus kohlrabi, carrots, and radishes in the big raised bed.
Thursday, November 8, 2012
11/8/2012
We went to Baker Creek seed store today. Their Mansfield store (the original store) isn't very far from us. We spent almost $25 on seeds there, but we got some Chadwick cherry tomatoes for hanging baskets, also some Kentucky wonder pole beans that he is going to plant in buckets. Got some Brunswick cabbage seeds & some pink beauty radishes. He has already planted some of the Pink Beauty radishes in between the rows of carrots (companion planting). The cucumbers we got are Fin De Meaux cucumber seeds that are supposed to be excellent for hanging baskets with little cucumbers about 2 inches long, perfect for making small pickles or using in salads. We're both looking forward to eating salads out of the greenhouse this winter.
We did get some seeds for the regular garden for next spring, including some white country gentleman sweet corn, mortgage lifter tomatoes, beefsteak tomatoes, some Marconi sweet peppers, and some snowball cauliflower. Then they gave us a free package of some kind of melon that looks sort of like a cantaloupe but isn't. I'll have to look them up, I guess. We took Eve & Hoot with us, as they hadn't been there yet. They both loved the seed store and picked up some new flower seeds for themselves. They had a greenhouse in Texas, and I think they miss it.
Yesterday, we had a long trip. Drove up to the Lake, and then on up to see our son, Bud, and his family. It was a nice 250-mile road trip, but got the doc's office out of the way for another 3 months, unless I have to go back in 2 weeks. Also got to see Bud, Jeanette, Brighton, and Alyssa, which was also great. The hugs were nice too.
Actually got to lay my eyes on this particular son and know in my heart that he will be okay. He had an accident involving a rope swing out over the water in July, and has had six surgeries on his right leg since then. His leg will never be 100% again, but he will still be okay. He was looking much better and in good spirits, so that was good. Lee got a new kitchen faucet installed for them while we were there, and the visiting was great. We stopped in Lebanon & ate at The Great Wall on the way home. Good Food. All in all, a most excellent day!
We did get some seeds for the regular garden for next spring, including some white country gentleman sweet corn, mortgage lifter tomatoes, beefsteak tomatoes, some Marconi sweet peppers, and some snowball cauliflower. Then they gave us a free package of some kind of melon that looks sort of like a cantaloupe but isn't. I'll have to look them up, I guess. We took Eve & Hoot with us, as they hadn't been there yet. They both loved the seed store and picked up some new flower seeds for themselves. They had a greenhouse in Texas, and I think they miss it.
Yesterday, we had a long trip. Drove up to the Lake, and then on up to see our son, Bud, and his family. It was a nice 250-mile road trip, but got the doc's office out of the way for another 3 months, unless I have to go back in 2 weeks. Also got to see Bud, Jeanette, Brighton, and Alyssa, which was also great. The hugs were nice too.
Actually got to lay my eyes on this particular son and know in my heart that he will be okay. He had an accident involving a rope swing out over the water in July, and has had six surgeries on his right leg since then. His leg will never be 100% again, but he will still be okay. He was looking much better and in good spirits, so that was good. Lee got a new kitchen faucet installed for them while we were there, and the visiting was great. We stopped in Lebanon & ate at The Great Wall on the way home. Good Food. All in all, a most excellent day!
Sunday, November 4, 2012
11/04/2012
Update on the greenhouse and life in general: As of 10/29/2012, he had planted 16 row-feet of carrots, 8 row-feet of kohlrabi, and 4 row-feet of sugar snap snow peas. Using, the holes in the cement blocks for "pots", he planted 19 pots with lettuce and 19 pots with spinach.
As of 11/02/2012, he had sprouts up. As of this morning, 11/04/2012, everything has sprouted except carrots. This afternoon, we had carrots sprouting too. Every packet said 7-14 days on germination, but it sure didn't take that long for most of it. He would like to plant some hanging baskets with Tumbling Tom cherry tomatoes to go along with his other salad fixings.
On other homesteading note, he has been cutting firewood, as always. He has had a chance to relax a little more this year than while he was still working on building the house.
He went down to the pond and caught us a nice catfish dinner a couple of weeks ago. Then went back and caught a few more for Eve & Hoot.
On October 7, he filled his first archery farm tag for the year.
On 10/31, he filled his second archery farm tag for the year:
Yesterday, he butchered our ducks and he'll be experimenting with making duck jerky. He's had the duck breasts marinating for over 24 hours, and he'll put it in the Excalibur before he goes to bed tonight. It also takes those ducks off the feed bill. I don't know what happened, but they haven't laid much for eggs over the last 3 months. They used to be really good egg layers, but it has dwindled down to almost nothing.
We are slowly but surely getting more and more of our things moved over from the trailer.
As of 11/02/2012, he had sprouts up. As of this morning, 11/04/2012, everything has sprouted except carrots. This afternoon, we had carrots sprouting too. Every packet said 7-14 days on germination, but it sure didn't take that long for most of it. He would like to plant some hanging baskets with Tumbling Tom cherry tomatoes to go along with his other salad fixings.
On other homesteading note, he has been cutting firewood, as always. He has had a chance to relax a little more this year than while he was still working on building the house.
He went down to the pond and caught us a nice catfish dinner a couple of weeks ago. Then went back and caught a few more for Eve & Hoot.
On October 7, he filled his first archery farm tag for the year.
On 10/31, he filled his second archery farm tag for the year:
Yesterday, he butchered our ducks and he'll be experimenting with making duck jerky. He's had the duck breasts marinating for over 24 hours, and he'll put it in the Excalibur before he goes to bed tonight. It also takes those ducks off the feed bill. I don't know what happened, but they haven't laid much for eggs over the last 3 months. They used to be really good egg layers, but it has dwindled down to almost nothing.
We are slowly but surely getting more and more of our things moved over from the trailer.
Monday, October 29, 2012
Ready to Plant Seeds!
Yesterday, he Quad sealed the cement blocks together. He sifted one wheelbarrow of dirt and mixed it with three 5-gallon buckets of rabbit manure. He added some bagged potting soil & picked up a few more seeds while he was out. He got the bed filled but the bags of potting soil were pretty wet so he decided to let it dry out and break up the clumps before planting it. He said, "24 cubic foot of dirt later, I am ready."
Today, he's raking it all out and breaking up the clumps -- and he's ready to plant seeds!
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| 10/28/2012 Raised bed in greenhouse. |
Today, he's raking it all out and breaking up the clumps -- and he's ready to plant seeds!
Saturday, October 27, 2012
Progress inside the Greenhouse
He started building his raised bed inside the greenhouse today. It looks great so far. It is 4 ft, 8 inches by 9 ft, 4 inches or a raised bed 40 inches by 96 inches surrounded by 38 four x four inch pots (the holes in the blocks). He figures the holes in the blocks will be perfect for spinach, lettuce, and other types of salad greens. He will put carrots, cabbage, kohlrabi, and radishes in the raised bed part. Then he'll put some tumbling Tom tomatoes in some hanging baskets. Should have salad all winter long.
Thursday, October 25, 2012
10/25/2012 Greenhouse is done!
Well, he figured out a solution for a longer extension ladder. (I swear he scares me half to death sometimes).
This was yesterday, 10/24:
Today, the greenhouse is finished!
You would not catch me up on a ladder like that, but sometimes he just does whatever it takes to "get 'er done".
This was yesterday, 10/24:
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| Ladder strapped to our ATV |
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| He said, "Nice extension, I can get the next piece & pull forward for the last piece." |
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| And he wondered why he got "that look" from me? |
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| 10/25/2012, putting the last screws in. |
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