Sep 10, 2010

Harvest Time

Apples, squash, horseradish, tomatoes, potatoes, carrots, beets, rutabagas, plums......Don't you love harvest time?  I keep quoting "The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few"  to my children. ;0)  So many jars to fill, so much time spent in the pantry just loving the look.
Today I'm going to put up some pineapple zuchinni.  Just preserving zuchinni in pineapple juice is supposed to make it taste like pineapple when you use it.  I also like to put up a few pints of horseradish sauce.  My dad loves it. (So do I.)  I like to put up V-8 juice for him too.

The birds are starting to get to the apples, so I think that we need to pick today.  That will be a fun job for the kids.



Not a good shot of the appletree outside the frontporch window.  It is loaded with apples this year.

May your day be blessed.

Sep 7, 2010

Beekeeping info needed

Yesterday was a beautiful day.  Cool, breezy, sunny-just perfect.  A great day for harvesting honey.
We have two hives that we've been caring for all summer.  This is only our second year trying bees, and last year our harvest was a bit disappointing because of the "drought".  Digging into the first hive looked promising, but the bees were a bit peeved at me and so I let them rest while I started on the second hive.  Surprise!  Hardly any bees were in the second hive.  I think that they swarmed about two weeks ago.  My son saw a swarm way up in a tree, I checked the bees, they looked fine and  healthy and like they were all there. (Couldn't see a queen.)   Didn't think anything of it until yesterday.  Live and learn?  The second hive had no capped comb on it at all.  All of the brood left in it was just emerging and very sluggish.  No new brood.  No sign of any disease.  So was this caused by a swarm?  I'm thinking the bee "thing" might not be for me.
Any bee keepers out there who could shed some insight?  Advice?
Thanks.

Sep 2, 2010

Happy Birthday Mel!


Next year she'll be leaving for college already.  So old, so fast.  Her birthday dinners have gone from chicken to Greek cuisine, which is what we had last night. 

I wish you would slow down, Mel.  Let me catch up.

Love you so.

I've decided to start another blog.  I won't be closing this one, but I'm just changing some things in my life.  I like this community  and don't want to lose touch with many here, but I needed something new.  I've been here for four years!! (or more)


So join me at www.glory-farm.blogspot.com for the continuing saga of a family renovating, rebuilding and restocking the farm.  (Dramatic music here)

Sep 1, 2010

That Other Season

It's Food Preservation season.  That season between summer and fall.  Very short and busy.
Yesterday I used up the last of the crab apples.  I didn't want anymore apple butter and we have plenty of apple jelly left from last year, so I made up some vinegar.  What I learned?  Crab apples  are drier than regular apples and it takes more of them to make juice.
I also dried a bunch of kale.  What I learned?  Kale dries very fast as compared to other vegetables.  I was able to dry it and package it within three hours.
We have a wonderfully cool morning-50 degrees.  The lawn has grown overnight.  I saw it last night and it looked fine, looked out this morning and it looks like pasture again.
Dear donkey Sadie had something spotted in the field at 5:30 this morning.  She bellers like a truck horn.  I'm sure the new neighbors have already developed a fondness for her. ;)
Dear Sadie
Have a blessed day.

Sep 10, 2010

Harvest Time

Apples, squash, horseradish, tomatoes, potatoes, carrots, beets, rutabagas, plums......Don't you love harvest time?  I keep quoting "The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few"  to my children. ;0)  So many jars to fill, so much time spent in the pantry just loving the look.
Today I'm going to put up some pineapple zuchinni.  Just preserving zuchinni in pineapple juice is supposed to make it taste like pineapple when you use it.  I also like to put up a few pints of horseradish sauce.  My dad loves it. (So do I.)  I like to put up V-8 juice for him too.

The birds are starting to get to the apples, so I think that we need to pick today.  That will be a fun job for the kids.



Not a good shot of the appletree outside the frontporch window.  It is loaded with apples this year.

May your day be blessed.

Sep 7, 2010

Beekeeping info needed

Yesterday was a beautiful day.  Cool, breezy, sunny-just perfect.  A great day for harvesting honey.
We have two hives that we've been caring for all summer.  This is only our second year trying bees, and last year our harvest was a bit disappointing because of the "drought".  Digging into the first hive looked promising, but the bees were a bit peeved at me and so I let them rest while I started on the second hive.  Surprise!  Hardly any bees were in the second hive.  I think that they swarmed about two weeks ago.  My son saw a swarm way up in a tree, I checked the bees, they looked fine and  healthy and like they were all there. (Couldn't see a queen.)   Didn't think anything of it until yesterday.  Live and learn?  The second hive had no capped comb on it at all.  All of the brood left in it was just emerging and very sluggish.  No new brood.  No sign of any disease.  So was this caused by a swarm?  I'm thinking the bee "thing" might not be for me.
Any bee keepers out there who could shed some insight?  Advice?
Thanks.

Sep 2, 2010

Happy Birthday Mel!


Next year she'll be leaving for college already.  So old, so fast.  Her birthday dinners have gone from chicken to Greek cuisine, which is what we had last night. 

I wish you would slow down, Mel.  Let me catch up.

Love you so.

I've decided to start another blog.  I won't be closing this one, but I'm just changing some things in my life.  I like this community  and don't want to lose touch with many here, but I needed something new.  I've been here for four years!! (or more)


So join me at www.glory-farm.blogspot.com for the continuing saga of a family renovating, rebuilding and restocking the farm.  (Dramatic music here)

Sep 1, 2010

That Other Season

It's Food Preservation season.  That season between summer and fall.  Very short and busy.
Yesterday I used up the last of the crab apples.  I didn't want anymore apple butter and we have plenty of apple jelly left from last year, so I made up some vinegar.  What I learned?  Crab apples  are drier than regular apples and it takes more of them to make juice.
I also dried a bunch of kale.  What I learned?  Kale dries very fast as compared to other vegetables.  I was able to dry it and package it within three hours.
We have a wonderfully cool morning-50 degrees.  The lawn has grown overnight.  I saw it last night and it looked fine, looked out this morning and it looks like pasture again.
Dear donkey Sadie had something spotted in the field at 5:30 this morning.  She bellers like a truck horn.  I'm sure the new neighbors have already developed a fondness for her. ;)
Dear Sadie
Have a blessed day.