Take Me to the Woodshed

I spent yesterday cleaning the last section of the building that has been called the chicken house, Grandmas garage, and now the woodshed.

This is a project started long ago but it's often interrupted by more time sensitive tasks like gardening, mowing, or harvesting.  In fact, yesterday I had to can five more quarts of tomatoes before I would allow myself to get back to this project.

As you can see, I now have a nice clean space to set up my wood shop.  As you look at this picture the space is 15 feet across the back, and it comes out 10 feet On the right side where there's a divider from the rest of the building.  On the left side the wall runs 20 feet out to the garage door opening.

I then diagramed where I would put all of my machinery and it should turn into be a nice open space.   Plenty of storage and a nice area at the front where guests can come sit and visit.  

Of course, while cleaning I found some treasures; old milk cans, a scarecrow, and even a small little bench.  

I'm pretty excited to get my stuff moved over there and be able to resume some projects that have been sitting for way too long.

Harvesting and Preserving

So far I've canned 12 quarts of tomatoes.  The Roma's ripened much earlier than the big boys. So now we are getting to enjoy the big boys while we continue to can the Roma's.  there are still a kit if tomatoes ripening so I would bet I can double the amount of tomatoes we have.

We have four pints of pickles and that is probably all we will get.  I've yet to dig into a potato mound to see how many of those we will be putting up.

We may have to go get green beans from a friend this year.  Mine are still growing but I'm not sure how much they will produce.

I did find some bell peppers finally beginning to grow so I think salsa is an option here in a couple of weeks.

It was certainly a different summer in the garden this year, but we still are able to put up quite a bit of food.  I'm pretty happy seeing as we spent a lot more time this summer on other parts of the east half of the southwest quarter.

Harvest Time

On Tuesday I picked these tomatoes.

Sunday I used some in a tomato mozzarella salad and canned the rest.  I started with five quarts, but when I opened the pressure cooker, the bottom of one jar had blown off.  Never seen that before. 

I also made three pints of pickles from Grace's garden.

Even with the low temperatures this summer and a losing battle with the weeds, we are eating off the land.

We still have red potatoes, corn, green beans, and plenty more tomatoes to harvest.  Plus it will soon be puffball mushroom time and then deer season shortly after that.

The seasons change, but there is always work to do and food to be harvested here on the east half of the southwest quarter.

Crabapple Harvest

We have a rather large crab apple tree right up against our house.  I typically trim it back every year, but it is a never ending battle to keep it off the roof.  This year I was instructed to cut two major branches entirely and create more space between the tree and the house.

Taking down those limbs resulted in an early harvest of crab apples, as you can see in this picture.

I am going to save the larger ones as ammunition for a potato gun.  The smaller ones will become crab apple vinegar.  I have promised to do this in the past, but this year I really mean it.  I need it to kill the poison ivy so we no longer have to deal with the itching and scratching associated cleaning up the landscaping around the property.

Wish me luck!

Green Acres

Sometimes I think I am both characters from this old show.  From the time I get up until 5 pm, I am city life selling insurance across central Indiana.  Dress pants, dress shirt, business meetings and phone calls.

But when I get home, I turn to the country life.  Shorts, work boots, a pocket knife and a long to do list.

Rain is headed our way.  Much needed rain, but rain nonetheless.  That means activities best suited to dry weather, or aided by the rain, need to be done.

Tonight I spread some pasture mix in the new horse pasture.  Then I weeded the garden, put up poles for my peas and beans, planted more beans, squash, and corn.  Finally I trimmed the hedges at the farm house and cleaned the debris off the porch.

Not to mention I repaired a hose and took care of a couple honey do items in the front flower beds.  Finally at 9:30 I took a shower and had a salad for dinner.  Yes, it was my lettuce in the salad.

It is enough to make you tired, but really I barely notice until I sit down.  Besides, it is a good tired, and I get a lot of satisfaction from the hard work.

Gracie's Garden

Grace weeded her garden tonight.  She wasn't dressed for it but did have her gloves.

Lucky for us her cucumbers are doing great.  I didn't get any to come up.  I do have a couple tomato plants beginning to bear fruit.

Her lettuce is doing well and is six weeks later than ours so it will be nice to have here when ours runs out.

Cherry Pie

I grew up playing sports.  In basketball anyone not playing defense in order to get an easy basket was called a cherry picker.  I assumed that meant picking cherries was easy.

Sort of like the term can of corn in baseball.  When a fly ball is easy to catch, it reminded early announcers of a grocer who pulled cans of corn off the top shelf with a pole and caught them in their apron.

Yesterday I picked cherries.  Not so easy.  The limbs are small, the cherries high in the air, and there is no good place to lean a ladder.  Yet for all the trouble, I still think it is worth it.

Years ago Grandma Worrell made cherry pie with them.  We have yearned to do that ourselves.   Yet over the last couple years as soon as they got ripe, birds got them.

Yesterday we picked enough for two pies, and many more will ripen in the next couple days.  Hopefully we will get to them before the birds.  If we do, then the Worrell Reunion will be full of cherry pie courtesy of Aunt Linda.