Random Thoughts

For some reason this time of year makes me somewhat nostalgic. It signifies another trip around the sun. It takes me back to when the kids were smaller and school had started. I felt happy they were going off to school but there was always a little sadness thrown in because they were growing up and changing.

The slight chill in the morning air takes me back to when I was younger and living in W.Va. This is the time the trees would start turning and by October the hills were alive with color. Following on the footsteps of fall would be winter and everyone looked forward to the first snow of the season. The house would be warm, toasty and windows foggy from a pot of soup boiling on the stove. And by the way who hasn't taken their finger and done a little drawing on a window with condensation?

Today I'll start my fall garden with leaf lettuce, broccoli and collards. There is just something about being able to grow your own food. While I may not harvest enough to completely feed my family I am reducing what I buy from the store.

And that is a good thing!

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Straw Bale Gardening Wrap-up

My first straw bale garden season is coming to an end. It has been a great project! If you haven't given any thought to backyard gardening - you should! This year's garden produced enough cucumbers to eat until we got tired of them. My gourd plants have so far produced 5 that are currently drying on the dying vines. Our tomato plants have continued to produce and have slowed dramatically in the last several weeks, although I do have a few green ones left on the vines, the vines themselves look terrible. On a better note though my second season of tomatoes show promise with a few green tomatoes on the vine currently. I haven't had one ripen but I'm hoping soon. The weather will influence this crop immensely... so it is an experiment at this point to see exactly what I will get. Pepper, squash and zucchini did good and would have done better if I had pretreated for the vine borer worm. Next year I will definitely be more diligent to fight that little vine destroying pest. The okra plants are producing now and while I only have 8 plants I am getting ~ 5-6 daily, which I am cutting up and freezing for yummy winter soups! I have 10 half pint ziplocs so far.

So what worked this year? Pretty much everything except the pole beans. I do believe they need to be in a larger space than what I used, which was 1/2 of a 55 gallon plastic barrel. I think they would have done better in one of the raised beds.

This little garden provided plenty of food for us this summer. We did not have to buy any tomatoes, peppers, squash or zucchini. Of course I hope to have a ripe red tomato soon and I may have to buy for a couple of weeks before I start to get some ripe.

I do plan to "hoop house" the raised bed with the tomatoes to extend the growing season before the 1st frost.

This is a must project for anyone who wants to try gardening in their backyard or patio. It is absolute proof that small scale gardening is possible and doable.

The only drawback to this system is watering. You must water 2x daily in the heat of the summer - or at least here in eastern NC. I solved this dilemma by catching rain water in tubs placed near the garden. I then kept 2 one gallon containers that I used to water with. It was a little work carrying the water...but I enjoyed the exercise.

So start planning your space and little garden next year! You will be hooked.

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Straw Bale gardening

I am always amazed by people who say they don't have time to plant a little garden or better yet say they don't have enough space. Last summer I went to get some Collard plants from a man who lives ~ 5 miles from me. While waiting for him to come out I admired his garden. But more specifically his tomato plants. He had 2 plants in a bale of straw that were the biggest and most laden plants I had ever seen. I asked him how he been able to get them that size and he told be about straw bale gardening. I researched the web getting ideas but mostly trying to find sites of people who had actually tried it. In April I planted my own version.

I am absolutely hooked. My tomatoes look great. I am experimenting with pole beans, cukes, gourds, squash and peppers. I have planted okra in the ground beside my bales. So far everything is looking good. The only thing I am concerned about is the size of my pole bean plants- I think they should be bigger- so I'll have to decide on whether they get planted again or to try something else.

I am looking into planting a fall garden with garlic, greens, lettuce. I don't really know what does good in our area--so I'm in the process of researching that. If anyone has any ideas I would be open to any suggestions or tips!

Stay tuned- I plan to list what has worked in the garden in my next blog1

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High Cost of Food

I guess it doesn't take a rocket scientist to see we are all paying more for our food. Last year I really began to notice the price increases in my regular staples I buy every week. I shop at Walmart for my basic things and noticed for one the pasta I buy went from .78 cents to $1.48. And what about Bread!! My god I am thinking of baking my own. For the past 3 years I have kept chickens and they lay quite good. I've been selling my surplus to neighbors and friends for $1.00. Boy did I get a shock to see what they are in the store. I'm glad I have them now. Also last year I had tomatoes and peppers in my garden- tomatoes did so-so but the peppers did great- and we loved them in our pasta salads and green salads. I am already planning another small garden this year. Today as I read the paper I noted an article on how much of an increase we are seeing in food prices--it was right on the mark on what a lot of families are doing and how they are coping. I certainly have become much more in tune and have tightened my belt--funny I am eating better and have kept my spending down. The biggest time saving thing I did was figure how to incorporate more left overs and plan of all my meals to keep that in mind. Not only has it helped my budget but has helped with cooking my nightly meals because I plan ahead and have almost stopped the impulsive eating out at fast food. So try eating more leftovers- it's a little challenging at first but you'll get better at it!!

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Trying Times

It is without a doubt "trying" in these times in which we live. I don't know how people are living right now with car payments , mortgage payments, the cost of food and gas....I make a good living but find myself with less and less disposable income. I've have decided to live quite simply -simply. I now plan my days of "going" into town and do my errands all at once to save gas. I make do and really ponder if I need to buy something or not. I budget. I save. I recycle. I am decluttering my life. I have learned I like living this way. I am learning time is everything. I enjoy the birds and porch sitting. Which by the way is a thing of the past! How many people do you see actually sitting on their porches watching their kids play or watching the cars go by? Our times are too hurried.

Learn to relax and in doing so you may too simplify your life!

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