Garden Time

A few years ago the wife and I had visited Sturbridge Village.  It is a recreation of an early 19th century New England village.  I overheard one of the farmers talking to one the the visitors.

"What are you planting?"

"Corn, beans and cabbage."

"What about tomatoes?"

"Oh - you must be one of those city folk.  Since you can buy staples in town, you must have time to grow tomatoes!"

I guess I am one of those city folk also.  I love to grow tomatoes.  But . . .

. . . it is still too cold to put out tomatoes in (or green beans, basil, lettuce, chilis, etc.).

We did put plant some potatoes, carrots and turnip today.  They don't mind the minor frosts we might still get.  The new raised beds should be great for them.

I put up trellises for the green beans.  

I already put up the tomato cages.  I decided to do something different this year.  Instead of pushing the cages into the ground, I put the cages into the beds upside-down before I put the soil in the raised beds.  I folded the long tangs over to strengthen the cages.  They are super sturdy.  I'll let you know how they work.

Rainy Day Chores

We finally got a good rain.  It started sometime after midnight and has been going steady.  I expect we will get over 1 inch.  This is good. It has been dry this month and the plants and rivers could use it.  Our creek was nearly dry (just a few puddles), but it is now flowing again.

Dry Creek

Wet Creek

We picked up our corn yesterday.  We get it from a local farm-stand.  It was picked around 8:00 in the morning, and by 3:00 we had it all shucked, wrapped, and in the freezer.  We put way 160 ears!  This will keep us in corn-on-the-cob for most of the coming year.

Our plum (roma) tomatoes have been coming in.  We peeled and froze 4 1/2 dozen this morning.  We have a few more dozen we picked yesterday, and will certainly pick many dozen more in the coming weeks.  We use frozen tomatoes in our spaghetti sauce, chili, soups, etc.  We put about 8 tomatoes into quart size freezer bags after we peel them.  Each bag is roughly equivalent to a 10 - 12 ounce can (no salt, preservatives, and better flavor).

I'll be making pesto today.  We blend our basil with grated parmesan cheese and olive oil.  We divide it into small portions and also freeze it.  We can take some pesto out any time and whip up some pasta, etc. in a snap.

I spent a few ours in the workshop catching up on a few projects.  I had picked up a few hand drills at auctions that needed some cleaning up.  Most needing some lubrication, while one needed its handle glued.  I also worked on the puffin decoy.  Most of the sanding is now done.  I've glued the bill in, and filled some of the big cracks with wood putty.  The decoy will get one more finish sanding and then I'll paint it.

Summer's Peak

Though we still expect some hot days, summer hass seemed to change course.  The last few nights have been cooler and pleasant.  The cooler nights have seemed to signal the tomatoes to ripen.  We finally picked a few today, and many more are starting to change color.

The robins that are nesting by the windows of the workshop have a brood of 2 or three young birds. This will probably be the last brood of the year (robins can lay up to three clutches of eggs each season).

The farmers are making hay.  The warm, dry days are perfect for the hay.

Our gardens are looking spent, especially the white garden.  Luckily, the Black-Eyed Susans are at their peak.  I can't get enough of them (and they oblige as they seem to take up more space every year).

This is the time of year for the late wildflowers.  The chickory, Queen Anne's Lace, teasel, hawkweed and goldenrod are bursting forth.  I really like these wild stragglers.  I keep a bunch of goldenrod and Black-Eyed Susans growing in the white garden just to keep something flowering.

Soon enough, fall will be here.  I consolidated some of my compost bins.  By October, I'll be down to one bin which I'll be putting into the garden for next summer's tomatoes.  The cycle goes on.

A New Day Unfolds

I have taken the day off from work.  My sister is coming to visit us over the weekend.  We really look forward to her company.  I'm going to get the yard work done so we can psend more time together.  It is expected to be a hot weekend, so getting it done today is also a good idea.  We'll sit back, drink some wine, make a few pizzas, and enjoy the evening.  I might make a fire in the chimenea, and we can watch the day come to a close.  Tomorrow we'll take it easy, and go out to one of our favorite Tapas restaurants.  (Okay, one other reason is that the Tour de France starts tomorrow.  I don't watch many sports on television, but bicycle racing is my favorite sport.  I amazes me to see these superb athletes ride one average 100 miles per days for 3 weeks.  Gotta get the yard work out of the way!)

The list of chores is not too long.  I opened up the barn to let it air out. I have already been out staking the tomatoes.  I need to keep tieing them to their stakes at they get taller.  Our plants have set fruit this week.  In our cooler climate, we won't be picking tomatoes until mid-August (how I sometimes envy our more southern friends for their early tomato crops). I'll mow the grass.  Luckily, we got a replacement battery for our Neuton electric mower.  We use it for trimming around the tight corners and small spaces we can't get the tractor into.  We bought the mower about 7 years ago.  Not practical for a big yard, but they work well for small yards.  No oil or gas to deal with.  They are quiet and lightweight.  I'll do some weeding of the white garden (it always needs it), and fertilize the tomatoes.  I should turn over the compost piles (one of the things I rarely do, but should).  I might knock down some knotweed (they never ending battle).

The grass was covered with dew as I was walking around the yard.  We live in a valley, and most mornings are foggy and cool.  As I was walking out to the creek, I could see the spider webs in the grass.  As the day warms up and the dew evaporates, the webs will become invisible.  I find it fascinating such creations are around us, but we can't see them.  As I mow the grass, the webs will be swept away.  Tomorrow morning, they will be back.  Amazing.

'City' Farmer

Last summer we visited Old Sturbridge Village with my brother, his wife, and their 2 kids (the ones that gave me the name Uncle Tractor).  If you haven't been there, it is a re-creation of an early 19th century New England village.  We listened to the workers (in period clothing) discussing their garden, when one visitor asked "Where are your tomato plants?".  The workers responded "You must be a city dweller.  Only they would grow tomatoes!"

Well, I must be a city farmer.  We don't grow a large garden.  My real job keeps me busy enough.  So, I grow what I like - and I like tomatoes.

We buy our plants from a local nursery. As usual, we grow mainly roma tomatoes, though we always grow a few slicing tomatoes.  This year I'd thought I'd try an heirloom variety - Old German.

I am, a lazy gardener.  I till the garden bed, and then spread weed fabric over the entire bed.  I place old boards on the fabric to hold it down and to give a place to stand when working in the garden.  I then slit X's in the fabric, and plant the tomatoes in the openings.  The black fabric keeps the weeds down, holds in moisture, and absorbs the sun to keep the beds warm.  This year, we put in 10 roma plants and 3 Old Germans.  I also put 3 other Old Germans in pots along with some more roma tomatoes.  This should give us enough tomatoes to have fresh tomatoes during the late summer and store away many quarts to tomatoes to have during the coming year.

I hope the tomato crop is better than last year.  It was cold and wet last year, and the tomato plants just  stayed dormant.  The hotter the better when it comes to tomatoes.

I'm not sure what other plants we will grow.  We always do some herbs (though we grow quite a few indoors already) and beans.  One of these years this 'city' farmer will get serious and expand the garden to include enough corn and beans to freeze.  The wife would also like to grow garlic and a lot of peppers.  Only time will tell...