Getting Tucked In

Dear Reader, I need to quit thinkin’ I have until October 15th to get things ready for frost. 

First off, it isn’t like it only takes one afternoon to do everything, second, it’s not like it is always on October 15th.  It’s an average date!  And average means in between early and late! And especially when it is clear like it has been this last month.

And with our summer growing season going clear up to the frost date (and beyond if I get things protected well enough) harvest chores and winterizing chores always smack into one another

Tomato harvest continues, though the chickens are shortening daily the amount needed to harvest, durn birds!  We didn’t get to butchering them today, clearly that is on Sunday’s menu.

I harvested some peppers today and had Dirt smoke them along with the roast that he was doing.  Oh they were so good smoked!  I will be doing more.  Not sure if I should can them that way or freeze them.  Canning always seems like a bother, but then things get used more when they are just in a can and don’t require thaw time.

They were so good and I had forgotten to spread the floating row cover back over them so after we watched one of Bet’s favorite movies, The Day After Tomorrow Dirt and I went out and recovered the peppers.  Now I really want to make sure that I get as many as possible.

We covered what we could, we really need a new roll of floating row cover material.  But the weight I want only comes in 1,000 foot rolls at my supplier, I’d probably make use of all or nearly all of it even this year, but…

Luckily we didn’t have to trudge out to the Market Garden in our Artic gear or get our hands and face froze off when we peeked back out of the tunnel.  (Thanks for the movie Bet! Hollywood propaganda and scare tactics at its best.)

Dirt helped me harvest all the pumpkins and squash yesterday and then today I moved them in to the grow bench in the Hippy Hot Hut where they will hopefully cure. 

Our harvest of squash wasn’t as good this year.  For how amazingly sunny nice it has been the last two months our early summer was the exact opposite. Rainy and cold.  Much of the direct seeded squash didn’t come up and then by the time I got a second batch going and the crummy weather, well let’s just repeat my favorite refrain shall we, “next year will be better”!

The ones we did get however are beautiful and I cannot wait to start enjoying them on my plate and in my soup bowl!

Well it is time for all good farmers to go to bed, even the bad farmers, and so I say Good Night to you Dear Reader, I certainly hope your autumn is going just as well as it possible can.