chickens. day one

got 17 pullets today.. black Australorps..lay brown eggs:

More Paint and The Garlic>

Day two of painting the siding..

left side is pretty much done. all seven windows ..

House Painting, Tomatillos and Other Stuff..

painted (cut and trim) everything low enough to do from the ground..

water holding capacity UP!

here is our new water container. went and picked it up this morning. holds 275 gal.

more projects completed and seedlings

speckled roman tomatoes as of a few days ago:

here they are today with the walla-walla onions:

check a few off the list

put up a new screen door for summertime. used all the old hardware from the old door

small projects in between snows

new section
cattle fence addition

needs a couple support posts and those boards in the ground to prevent runoff from the gravel driveway..coming soon !!

new garden plots are getting cleared.

new garden plot (three sisters) photo below:

this will include all corn (maize) blue, yellow, purple, strawberry popcorn, pink, small tri-color, etc.
in the winter squash family we will have cushaw, amber cup, acorn, pie pumpkins as well as some native pumpkin

and we are thinking about only growing the Anasazi beans and not pintos..we'll see




also blue lake green beans

back on track

had a productive day off work and put in this shelf for succulents and hop cuttings.

Just a few of the now happier cacti on the window shelf. Plus this will give us more room for starting tomatoes, chiles and onions next month.

chainsaw is back in action!

frozen romas

aluminum racks with small wooden pallets attached to the sides. stacks the wood well.

Election day off from work

kefir operation:


11/1
kefir "grains"

pickle blog #3. ...plus FINALLY a new ceiling fan!

****************************************************************************************

SAT: dill pickles; about nine quarts altogether ..two or three with some of our sliced jalapenos.

((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((((())))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))))
SUN: fan and moving around all the drying herbs...including basil, dill, and the squash slices. Salted they should be a good snack, like a chip but healthier.

needing to be harvested and dried: sage, oregano , more basil, chives (although most of these are in containers.)

tomorrow: hop harvest, drying somewhere, nae anywhere.

coming soon...summer squash bread for the freezer! also roasted chiles and probably more corn, jalapenos, tomatillos and possibly a watermelon or two. complete with hollow sound and yellow spot. just a few more harvests to try 'n' keep up with. this tuesday off to the farmers market to get toes and backs/ necks from tom.

axe repair and some exciting purchases

<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<<< >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>





after speaking with a few quasi-experts about hops, i've decided to harvest some soon..(next day or so) and the rest as they come. Pick, dry for a few days, then package in vacuum sealed bags and frozen. this new freezer couldn't have come at a better time, just as we;re harvesting enough food to preserve. now I may need a lesson in home-brew before using these awesome chinook hops. also I will need various home brewing supplies. maybe i should check out the local home brew supply shop. then i'll probably end up at the hardware store seeing how i can make the same thing for less cost. defiantly back burner material with the hops being froze and all.








general garden views ,some pics becke took and weird beetles on a cholla cactus.

a perpetual work in progress

Today was a pretty good day. Rained for a minute, but still pretty damn hot. Plants all look like they are loving all the intense sun and heat, lots of new budding growth. Pinched off most of it to promote larger growth instead of early fruiting. Mulching the top-soil will be necessary later on.

Hops new growth, lookin strong and green, wrapping itself around the twine for a strong bond.

getting established

This photo below was taken before we got the fence up, which you can see behind the truck in rolls. It was some thick gauge chain-link I got for free when they enclosed an outdoor area at work. It was ten feet tall with the longest section being about thirty-three feet long. We divided it into a six foot and a four foot section. We have never worked with chain-link before and will probably never again. We cut and mended over one-hundred feet of the thick, blister-forming metal. Many people told me this would be difficult without a come-along, but between the two of us, we got it pretty tight. The six foot sections went to give the dogs a bigger run, and also enclosed three older trees (which will be good for shade now that it's warmer out)