keljonma
Epicurean Goddess
.
keljonma's Front Porch - Settling in and adjusting
- Thread starter keljonma
- Start date
- Thread starter
- #2,850
keljonma
Epicurean Goddess
TR started his new job of Animal Control in June. He loves it and does not miss his old job with the school district. The hours are better for us, as we now work basically identical hours. We have been a one-car family since we moved here, so the new hours are a blessing.
This has been a strange spring/summer. Lots of rain and when it's not raining, the temperatures have been in the triple digits. The herbs are all loving it, and the lavender it about 2 feet high and putting out blossoms again. The thyme, marjoram, and hyssop are growing like weeds! Last year we harvested onions and garlic, and are still using those. I guess we will plant more this autumn. So far this year, we have harvested dill, tomatoes, blueberries, crookneck squash, green beans, potatoes, apples, figs, and tons of herbs. I have been drying the herbs and making some extracts. I even made our own liquid stevia this year.
We finally harvested some honey last week-end; about 40 pounds. (Last year we harvested on Father's Day.) There is more capped honey in the hive, but with temps at 100, and going higher last Sunday, we didn't want to be all geared up any longer than necessary. We left an empty super so the bees would have expansion room, but will have to go back and harvest again soon. We sold our extractor when we moved, so we are doing crush and strain for the honey. It is definitely a slower method, but every cost effective. The honeycomb is still dripping almost a week later. I was hoping to harvest more honey this week-end. Naturally, since I don't work this week-end, we have rain, so no honey harvesting today. TR made a solar wax melter this year, which we are hoping to use soon. We put last year's wax in the freezer, so we have two years' worth of wax to melt, to use mostly for candles, I think.
I have the slow cooker filled with tomatoes today, and figs to make into preserves. The cosmos are about 4 1/2 feet tall now, and just starting to flower. The golden giant amaranth is about 7 feet tall and just getting grain heads. The white wonder watermelons and the peanuts have about a month to go before harvest. We haven't tried the white wonder before, so this will be a new experience for us. We have them growing up a trellis, also a first for watermelon growing for us. Here is a picture I took a couple weeks ago . These grow to about 8 pounds, so we've given them support hose to help hold them up!
The bee balm was doing really well until a hard storm hit a few weeks ago, although the hummers don't seem to mind the frazzled look of the flowers. I caught this little lady visiting the bee balm last week.
Life is good. God is great!
This has been a strange spring/summer. Lots of rain and when it's not raining, the temperatures have been in the triple digits. The herbs are all loving it, and the lavender it about 2 feet high and putting out blossoms again. The thyme, marjoram, and hyssop are growing like weeds! Last year we harvested onions and garlic, and are still using those. I guess we will plant more this autumn. So far this year, we have harvested dill, tomatoes, blueberries, crookneck squash, green beans, potatoes, apples, figs, and tons of herbs. I have been drying the herbs and making some extracts. I even made our own liquid stevia this year.
We finally harvested some honey last week-end; about 40 pounds. (Last year we harvested on Father's Day.) There is more capped honey in the hive, but with temps at 100, and going higher last Sunday, we didn't want to be all geared up any longer than necessary. We left an empty super so the bees would have expansion room, but will have to go back and harvest again soon. We sold our extractor when we moved, so we are doing crush and strain for the honey. It is definitely a slower method, but every cost effective. The honeycomb is still dripping almost a week later. I was hoping to harvest more honey this week-end. Naturally, since I don't work this week-end, we have rain, so no honey harvesting today. TR made a solar wax melter this year, which we are hoping to use soon. We put last year's wax in the freezer, so we have two years' worth of wax to melt, to use mostly for candles, I think.
I have the slow cooker filled with tomatoes today, and figs to make into preserves. The cosmos are about 4 1/2 feet tall now, and just starting to flower. The golden giant amaranth is about 7 feet tall and just getting grain heads. The white wonder watermelons and the peanuts have about a month to go before harvest. We haven't tried the white wonder before, so this will be a new experience for us. We have them growing up a trellis, also a first for watermelon growing for us. Here is a picture I took a couple weeks ago . These grow to about 8 pounds, so we've given them support hose to help hold them up!
The bee balm was doing really well until a hard storm hit a few weeks ago, although the hummers don't seem to mind the frazzled look of the flowers. I caught this little lady visiting the bee balm last week.
Life is good. God is great!
Last edited:
- Thread starter
- #2,845
keljonma
Epicurean Goddess
Hard to believe that we have been in Texas for just about 2 1/2 years now. The bees (Buckfast) are doing really well, as are the gardens.
We harvested over 60 pounds of honey last year and left the bees with 60 pounds of honey for winter. We have already had to move supers around and added a super. I got a new hive this year from QueenRight Colonies in Lorain County, Ohio....paraffin-diffed with four 8-frame mediums; another garden hive. My first thought is to use it as replacement woodenware for original hive, which is showing its age. The new hive is a beauty and I just need some good weather to get it set up and frames moved into it.
We are surrounded by farms that offer eggs from foraging chickens, raw milk and grass-fed meats. The best part of our part of Texas is that animals are pretty much on grass year-round. The worst part is that a square bale of straw (IF you can find any) runs about $7 to $8 a bale! One fellow who has has hay locally said he hasn't seen straw for sale in decades here.
We will have this place paid for in August, and then will tackle some large projects like fencing and a front porch. You can bet that chickens are in the future after that fencing project is done.
The church we attend now is very small compared to the past - only 40 people attend regularly. There are some ideas floating around for ways to get involved and we are looking forward to it.
TeddyRoosevelt is currently working for a local school district, and I at a public library about 40 minutes from home. The library is .... how do I say this? ......it is a tough job, but somebody's got to do it. Very busy but fun. TR joined the local Citizens On Patrol chapter last year, when the city we work in decided to start this program. As usual, he is also busy with other volunteer opportunities in the area.
I do have one picture I will share. TR entered a walk to raise money for the women's crisis center. The event is called Walk A Mile In Her Shoes. Participants get sponsors for the walk. TR won best overall outfit (he picked a Duck Dynasty theme this year) and came in 2nd for individual fundraising. He also ran in the 100-yard Stiletto dash, but came in near the middle of the pack. (In case you can't tell from the picture, those are 3-inch high size-17-wide pink patent leather heels he is wearing!
Family updates: Our son and his wife had a baby boy in November, and daughter is due with a boy in June; this will bring the total to 5 grands: 16 years, 12 years, 6 years, 5 1/2 months, and due in June. LOL
I haven't figured out how to change the title of my journal....and I haven't been here much lately, except to read up on some of my old friends.
We harvested over 60 pounds of honey last year and left the bees with 60 pounds of honey for winter. We have already had to move supers around and added a super. I got a new hive this year from QueenRight Colonies in Lorain County, Ohio....paraffin-diffed with four 8-frame mediums; another garden hive. My first thought is to use it as replacement woodenware for original hive, which is showing its age. The new hive is a beauty and I just need some good weather to get it set up and frames moved into it.
We are surrounded by farms that offer eggs from foraging chickens, raw milk and grass-fed meats. The best part of our part of Texas is that animals are pretty much on grass year-round. The worst part is that a square bale of straw (IF you can find any) runs about $7 to $8 a bale! One fellow who has has hay locally said he hasn't seen straw for sale in decades here.
We will have this place paid for in August, and then will tackle some large projects like fencing and a front porch.
You can bet that chickens are in the future after that fencing project is done. The church we attend now is very small compared to the past - only 40 people attend regularly. There are some ideas floating around for ways to get involved and we are looking forward to it.
TeddyRoosevelt is currently working for a local school district, and I at a public library about 40 minutes from home. The library is .... how do I say this? ......it is a tough job, but somebody's got to do it.
Very busy but fun. TR joined the local Citizens On Patrol chapter last year, when the city we work in decided to start this program. As usual, he is also busy with other volunteer opportunities in the area. I do have one picture I will share. TR entered a walk to raise money for the women's crisis center. The event is called Walk A Mile In Her Shoes. Participants get sponsors for the walk. TR won best overall outfit (he picked a Duck Dynasty theme this year) and came in 2nd for individual fundraising. He also ran in the 100-yard Stiletto dash, but came in near the middle of the pack. (In case you can't tell from the picture, those are 3-inch high size-17-wide pink patent leather heels he is wearing!
Family updates: Our son and his wife had a baby boy in November, and daughter is due with a boy in June; this will bring the total to 5 grands: 16 years, 12 years, 6 years, 5 1/2 months, and due in June. LOL
I haven't figured out how to change the title of my journal....and I haven't been here much lately, except to read up on some of my old friends.
- Thread starter
- #2,853
keljonma
Epicurean Goddess
It's 98 degrees here today, but today is my day off this week, so I am canning. Hot work, but I'm happy to have those 12 pints of crockpot marinara and 20 pints of tomatoes in juice in the pantry, though. Our paste tomatoes are just about done for the year, there are about a dozen green ones left on the vines. The slicers are just starting to ripen.
I made a jar of fig/vanilla jam the other day, and harvested 60 more figs today, which are waiting for me to decide what to do with them. Maybe fig bars.
In exchange for some of our comb honey, our neighbor gave us some of his organic peaches the other day. I made peach ice cream with them. Our house isn't climate-controlled, so the churn never got the mix completely frozen. My fault, because it was 113 outside, and probably in the 80s in the house. But it is yummy stuff and I "needed ice cream"!
I have our organic apples in the crockpot now for apple butter, which will have to go into the canner later, or maybe tomorrow after work. I put the peels & cores in the freezer for pectin-making another day.
I am still straining the honey (I use a spaghetti colander), and I've already had two people call to purchase some. I was surprised because we usually gift it to people (mostly family). Local raw honey sells for $9/pound here. Decisions, decisions.
I was hoping to get some beeswax into the solar melter today, but it needs another rinse, and I forgot to take last year's out of the freezer to thaw. If I could just get out of my way, I may actually get something done! LOL
I'm off to make some pickles with the summer squash now... and maybe think of something for dinner when TR get home.
Have fun!
I made a jar of fig/vanilla jam the other day, and harvested 60 more figs today, which are waiting for me to decide what to do with them. Maybe fig bars.
In exchange for some of our comb honey, our neighbor gave us some of his organic peaches the other day. I made peach ice cream with them. Our house isn't climate-controlled, so the churn never got the mix completely frozen. My fault, because it was 113 outside, and probably in the 80s in the house. But it is yummy stuff and I "needed ice cream"!
I have our organic apples in the crockpot now for apple butter, which will have to go into the canner later, or maybe tomorrow after work. I put the peels & cores in the freezer for pectin-making another day.
I am still straining the honey (I use a spaghetti colander), and I've already had two people call to purchase some. I was surprised because we usually gift it to people (mostly family). Local raw honey sells for $9/pound here. Decisions, decisions.
I was hoping to get some beeswax into the solar melter today, but it needs another rinse, and I forgot to take last year's out of the freezer to thaw. If I could just get out of my way, I may actually get something done! LOL
I'm off to make some pickles with the summer squash now... and maybe think of something for dinner when TR get home.
Have fun!
Zenbirder
Frugal Vegetarian Farmer
Wow, what a nice place to live! I have never had wild turkeys, I would love to get the chance to watch them.
Seahound
Power Conserver
Awesome pictures. I love the one of the hummingbird alot
punkin
Don't Quote Me
Very beautiful pics and great idea putting in the map.
PotterWatch
Lovin' The Homestead
Great pictures! Love the farmhouse!
- Thread starter
- #7
keljonma
Epicurean Goddess
.
