Garden update

Posted on September 9, 2015 by Julia at Home on 129 Acres

It’s been a little while since I’ve shown what’s in the garden–and it’s awesome.

Our tomatoes have done super well. They just keep growing and turning red. Our cherry tomatoes in particular have grown super tall. Taller than Matt.

Next to the tomatoes, Matt’s onions are getting ready to take their first steps.

Our beets and zucchini are producing like crazy. I have to pick every day to stay on top of the zucchini. I finally tried out the grater attachment on my food processor for the first time and grated up 34 cups of zucchini. They’re tucked into the freezer. It appears that I’m going to be making zucchini something all winter long–and pretty much every day between now and then.

Despite having only four plants, we’ve had a decent crop of beans. Although Matt did make fun of me one night when I steamed just 10 beans for us both. I thought they were pretty much done, especially given that I broke the main stem on our biggest plant, but new blossoms are appearing on the other plants, so I think more beans are on their way.

I’m probably most excited about our raspberries. I have a full row of reds that have all successfully transplanted from my parents. The blacks haven’t done so well, save for this one plant, which has lots of green shoots. I’m going to try to transplant a few more blacks to see if they’ll establish themselves before winter sets in.

The biggest challenge is to protect the raspberries from the squash.

Matt and I are both a little bit afraid of the squash. Seriously. They have ambitions to take over not just the garden, but also the farm… and perhaps the world. Keep an eye out. They’re coming for you.

We have acorn, butternut and pie pumpkins. And we’re going to have tonnes of them. I’ve already notified Matt’s and my families to not buy any squash at any point in the future.

Anyone know how to tell when squash are ready to harvest? Some of these are looking pretty close, and some of the leaves on the vines are starting to die.

The east front of the squash advance is headed by the pumpkins. They’ve broken through the fence and are heading for the soybeans. Matt mows them every so often, but a few fruit have climbed the fence to get out of range. These green globes are my test case to see if the stalks are strong enough to hold the pumpkins while they mature. I’m adding squash trellis options to my Pinterest board as I plan for next year’s growing season.

The northern advance of the squash has already consumed the rutabags and potatoes. My only hope is that both of these crops grow underground, so they might survive the surface invasion.

Just to the edge of the advancing squash are our poor peppers. They’re actually looking a bit better finally. They’re growing bigger and they’re blooming again. I’m hoping that the blooms finally set into actual peppers.

We have one lone pepper in the first bunch of plants that we planted at the opposite end of the garden. He’s a little bit warped, so maybe this is a symptom of the other problems we’ve had this year with the peppers?

The lettuce have officially bolted. We’re leaving them alone as Matt wants to see how tall they’ll grow–apparently he has a thing about height.

A nice touch that I’m also enjoying is the stone bench that we’ve added to the garden. This sits at one end of the raspberry rows–the cross axis of the garden. The curve of the bench fits in well with the curved edge of the garden. I’m looking forward to sitting here and seeing the view across the garden and out over the fields.

For now, the other half of the garden is still under wraps with a tarp and some old carpet. (The rope marks the centre axis, so I can keep the raspberry rows lined up). This photo is definitely about keepin’ it real for all of you fellow non-Pinterest-perfect gardeners.

I’m patient enough to wait for next year to farm this other half. I’m definitely satisfied with what we’ve accomplished this year. And we’re more than satisfied with the harvest we’ve had.

What fresh food are you enjoying this season? Have you grown anything this year? Any thoughts around what might be wrong with our peppers? Have you had any sightings of our squash yet invading your neighbourhood?

Snapshot

Posted on August 24, 2015 by Julia at Home on 129 Acres

The field across the road has been in grain this year for the first time since we moved to the farm. Saturday, a combine was hard at work harvesting the crop.

Over-thinking

Posted on August 12, 2015 by Julia at Home on 129 Acres

My thought process went something like this:

“Now that we have the garden, we could really use a composter. I should put it near the kitchen so it’s convenient.”

“While I’m out here, I might as well clear the weeds from the patio.” (I did not ask Baxter to pose. Dude was in a photogenic mood.)

My technique is to take a sharp spade and shove it sharply against the joints between the slabs. If you feel like you might break your wrist, you’re doing it right.

“Now that I’ve cleared the weeds, I might as well see if I can uncover the steps.” (We’ve never seen the steps, and you probably can’t either).

“Holy heck. What was I thinking trying to clear the steps? This ivy is ridiculous!”

“Wow, these steps are much bigger than I thought. And they look amazing.”

“Now where to put the composter? I’ll just clear a little more of this ivy.”

Clunk.

“What was that? Are there more stones under this ivy? Why?”

“Oh hello, husband. You have great timing. Milkshake? Yes, please.”

—Break for Matt’s amazing chocolate peanut butter milkshake—

“Alright, that gave me the fuel I needed. Let’s do what I came out here to do in the first place.”

“Finally done.” (And yes, the dog abandoned me after the milkshake break).

“All this work for a composter? I think I need a shower.”

“But hmmm… what about the patio on the other side of the house?”

“I need to stop thinking so hard.”

Who else has ever over-complicated a simple project? Do you have a composter at your house? Do you have a weedy patio? Any tips on how to do battle with ivy?

Rough ride

Posted on August 5, 2015 by Julia at Home on 129 Acres

The car was up on the hoist. Matt was underneath. The mechanic turned to him and said, “What are your intentions with this car?”

Never a good question when you’re standing under a 12 year old vehicle.

There had been signs that not everything was right: warning lights, new noises, a dozen years on the road, the 262,000+km on the odometer.

Driving home, the car broke down three times on the side of the road. Jumper cables were required.

I was at work and unaware all of this was happening, so my question when I got home of “How did the appointment with the mechanic go?” was met with an answer I didn’t entirely expect.

“Ummm… I hope you don’t mind, but I bought a car today.”

To roll out the red carpet for Matt’s new car, we pushed the old car out of the way of the front door (the dealership sent someone to pick it up… with a tow truck), and we patched the potholes in the driveway.

We can’t have new suspension and steering put to the test by the obstacle course that is the usual access path for the farm.

What state is your driveway in? How old is your car? Have you ever had to buy a car urgently? Who else thinks I should have got to drive the tractor while Matt handled the rake?

Uncovering a favourite perch

Posted on July 29, 2015 by Julia at Home on 129 Acres

So you have a spot like this in your yard, right? Somewhere that you just let things go a little bit?

My pledge this year is to not worry about the yard and focus only on the vegetable garden. But this clump of overgrowth at the edge of the south lawn finally got to me. My inner Edward Scissorhands came out (along with a pair of clippers, since I don’t actually have blades on my hands).

Who knew there was a dead curlicue bush, a mostly dead catalpa, a huge flowerpot and two stone benches hidden in there? (Well, we did, since we’ve seen them before… and put some of them there during our previous yard clean-up episodes).

The bush and the tree froze to death last winter. The big flowerpot is a gift from previous owners that I haven’t bothered to get rid of yet. The benches? Well, the benches belong to Ralph.

While she didn’t express gratitude (are cats capable of gratitude?), I think she appreciated our work.

The benches allow her to ascend to the perfect height for convenient scratching.

But most importantly, the benches allow her to assume a superior height over her brother.

So our landscaping meets with the cat’s approval, if not the dog’s. Now to convince Matt to get out his chainsaw and deal with those dead trees…

Do you have an overgrown spot at your house? Does anyone else’s animals “help” with the yard work? What furniture belongs to furry friends? Who’s the boss, your cat or your dog? (I think I know the answer to the last one… in my experience that relationship only goes one way).

Learning to like lilies

Posted on July 27, 2015 by Julia at Home on 129 Acres

Last year, when Matt and I transplanted a lilac from beside the driveshed, I dug up a few other plants that looked like they might be something (as opposed to just being weeds). I was wishing for hollyhocks because I had found a plastic tag near them that said hollyhock. (Plus I love hollyhocks).

This year when they started to grow, I realized they were probably not hollyhocks. As they started to bud, I thought lilies, but maybe (wishfully) calla lilies? Surely they wouldn’t be ubiquitous day lilies, would they? (Not my favourite flower, honestly).

Well, they are day lilies, but they’re a bit special. They’re two-toned, which is kind of cool.

A bunch of lilies still in their nursery pots were among the plants we inherited from the previous owners. I stuck them in the ground last year, and they’ve done super well.

There’s the orange sherbert (again, I’m not the hugest fan of this version).

The lemon sherbert is a bit more palatable.

Then we of course have what I classify as regular orange day lilies.

The late bloomers that have come on in just the last week are these dark red ones. I actually like these quite a lot.

But the star of the show is one special lily. Yes, this an Easter lily. I stuck it in the ground last year. And this year, after doing nothing (except having a close call with Wiley), it’s blooming. In fact, it’s bloomed so big that the second blossom has split open.

The success of our lilies makes me think I may not have such a black thumb after all. Or else lilies thrive when neglected.

As the lilies are growing in the garden, they’re also starting to grow on me. I think I actually like them. I know for sure that there is one type of lily that I’d really like to add to our garden.

Growing up, we had two clumps of tiger lilies in our backyard (basically day lilies with spots). My Mom had transplanted them from her family’s farm where she spent childhood summers. The tiger lilies eventually got squeezed out of the garden, but I’m hoping I might be able to find some for our farm. For now, I get my tiger lily fix from a plate painted by my great grandmother that lives in my Mom’s china cabinet.

I’m hoping I can find some tiger lilies to add to our farm. Sentimentality always wins out for me.

Do you have lilies growing at your house? Are you a fan? Any suggestions for a source for tiger lilies?

Bounty of berries

Posted on July 22, 2015 by Julia at Home on 129 Acres

This year is an incredible year for raspberries. We have canes growing all around the farm, and they’re all loaded with tiny berries.

I’ve never picked this many berries any of our previous summers.

It took me awhile to pick them–not just because there were so many. I had to do it all one handed because this was happening on my other side. Oh Ralph, so helpful.

After harvesting the berries, I decided to harvest some canes. The plan is to have two rows of raspberries in the vegetable garden: one red and one black. I had already started the red row with canes from my parent’s garden,and they’re doing well. A few days after transplanting, though, the black canes aren’t looking so hot.

I’m hoping I can convince them that they’ll be happy in the garden. I also have hopes that with a little domestication, hydration, fertilization and cultivation, I’ll not only have healthy canes but big and juicy berries.

Do you grow raspberries? Are they black or red? Who else has a four-legged helper for picking? Any tips for domesticating “wild” berries?

The growth of a garden

Posted on July 20, 2015 by Julia at Home on 129 Acres

As I was putting together Friday’s post, I started looking through old photos of the turnaround garden. It was amazing to me to see how far it’s come–even though I’ve been here for all of it. I had to share it with all of you.

The turnaround started out as mountain goat territory. Rocks, mounds of dirt and weeds made a very unattractive scene right outside our front door.

Allow me to illustrate the scale of our “mountains.” (And the pile of crap at the old firepit in the background. Ugh.)

We did nothing to it the whole first year we lived here. Finally, in spring 2013, our farmer came by with his big tractor and flattened things out for us. Hello, Easter.

I enriched the soil with lots and lots of manure.

And my parents helped with mixing it into the soil and picking out rocks.

Wiley, Matt, Easter and I dug out a path across the turnaround.

Then I laid a herringbone brick path.

And Baxter joined the family in time to be part of the project, helping to fill the joints with sand.

Then things got a little weedy (a lot weedy). The turnaround is huge–the size of a suburban backyard. I just couldn’t keep up with it.

At the beginning of spring 2014, I had given up on half the turnaround. Matt mowed the weeds. The other half was still weedy at the beginning of May, but I went to work.

By the end of May, the turnaround was planted (half of it, at least).

And this year, it looks like an actual garden. (And I’m already starting to think about the other half).

I am amazed how much the plants have filled out in just one year. Everything in the garden, including the bench, the birdbath and the brick path, came from the farm or from family (except for the plants you saw on Friday). Transplanting and splitting–and a lot of hard work–have made this huge garden come together nearly for free.

The most important element of gardening in my opinion though is patience. Gardens take time to grow. But the payoff is huge. I’m so glad that I’m able to take a look back and realize how far we’ve come.

Do you keep track of your garden’s progress through the years? Who else has a garden that’s taken awhile to come together?

When you are ready for planting

Posted on July 17, 2015 by Julia at Home on 129 Acres

When my aunt came to the farm for the first time (three years ago), she brought with her as a housewarming present a gift card to a local nursery.

It may have taken three years, but we’re finally ready for planting.

Well, we’ve actually been planting, using plants we found around the farm. We’ve been transplanting and splitting and spreading everything around, trying to fill in the gardens. And they’re looking pretty good. (Just ignore the weedy path).

There were a few gaps I was looking to fill in.

I wanted some different colour foliage to break up all of the green we have happening right now.
I wanted a shrub for the well garden.
I wanted some lavender.
I wanted a white hosta.

A visit to the busy nursery gave me what I was looking for.

It also gave me a reminder of why I don’t buy plants. Even with my aunt’s gift card, I shelled out a fair chunk of cash–and I only bought five plants.

Most of the plants will spread, though, so I should be able to get some good mileage out of them.

Here’s how some of them look in the garden.

Purple sandcherry in the well garden. Definitely pops against the green.

This flower wasn’t labelled at the nursery. Is it fox glove?

I heard that lavender is a mosquito repellent–so, so needed this year.

And when it comes to propogating, I’m already rooting a sprig that broke off the sedum. I love this dark purple tone. (And ignore the weedy path again).

Auntie Anne is a loyal reader of the blog, and she’s always enthused about what Matt and I are doing here at the farm. Her gift card has definitely given the gardens a boost. Thanks so much, Auntie Anne. We appreciate your encouragement.

What would you like to add to your garden? How do you find new plants for cheap (or even free)? What plant should I consider adding to our gardens? Do you have an Auntie Anne cheering you on?

#plant15

Posted on July 8, 2015 by Julia at Home on 129 Acres

Over the winter, I connected with a few writers who specialize in the agricultural sector. Most of them have a background in farming. From them, I learned that when people ask me what kind of farm we have, the correct answer (so that I don’t sound like a complete city slicker) is “cash crop.”

This year’s cash crop is soybeans.

However, I should be clear that this is not our cash, nor our crop. We’re still too citified to farm our own fields. I’d have no idea where to even start. And we definitely don’t have the equipment.

Everything that’s gone into the fields and all of the plants that are currently in the fields belong to our farmer.

The soybeans are now knee high to a puppy dog.

There are still a few tiny blossoms here and there. We should be seeing bean pods soon.

I’m too much of a city slicker to know whether things are looking good. From afar, they’re looking very green.

Farmers with much more knowledge than me are sharing their crops at #plant15. I encourage you to check it out to see the ups (and downs) of the growing season so far.