April Campfire

The weather was so good last Wednesday that we decided to invite the neighbors down to have some fun around a fire. It was great until a small shower pasted by . So we just built up the flames an put up our hoods for a while and it passed. We had a great sunset and cooked some marsh mellows and had wine and cheese and crackers for snacks.
Macy got tired fast and fell asleep in Ginny's arms. I had to carry her home on the four wheeler and tuck her in...enjoying every minute.

This is my asparagus patch . Yes it looks a smokey the bear ad but this is what I do each spring just before the spears start coming up. I leave all of the dead plant material dry and then burn it off to kill as much of the weeds as i can. I don't want to use any sprays and this works pretty well. It also makes it a lot easier to find them and the dark ground warms faster. All I need is a torch and a little wind to fan the flames. Instant weeding.

Things to do,things to do.

My wood pile is still waiting for someone to split it up....I keep hoping that it will self split and I am watching for that to happen.

I planted four pear trees ,two last spring and two this year. I feel that I should always be building for the future,improving,making things better. And besides it's fun.

I got a whole trailer full of horse manure and have been spreading it everywhere...like here on the rubarb.

In with the currants and gooseberries.

This is the stage the raised beds were in a week ago. I have been keeping them uncovered to help the greens. They do better in the cold weather.

Oh and I did add another two beds. Now I have four beds ..all 4 foot by 20 . I just can't stop,I like them so.

As long as I'm catching up .....I burned my brush pile . It made quite a blaze that lasted till the next day. And that is what been going on.

Sticky Buns to Die For

I made my favorite sticky buns again because I couldn't find any that even come close to these in the store. They are full of cinnamon and cardamon in the dough and the outsides are covered in almond slivers and walnuts. Look how they rose!

It just doesn't get any better.

Ben's Evening at Our House

Tonight we had a great meal and time with Our 5 month old grandson(okay our only grandson) Ben. Everything was wonderful and the kids had a good time while Ben enjoyed the lights and looking out the window at the birds and the blooming crab tree. A nice night. Yesterday Matt and I went fishing in the Detroit river and it was one of the best fishing that I have had in years. We got into a huge school of bass and started catching fish on every three or four casts! This went on for a couple of hours. I think my arm got tired before they slowed down. I have never seen that many bass in one spot before and may not again. Right place at the right time. Thanks Matt.

Planting potatoes

This week we planted potatoes and sugar snap peas out back in our early garden. The sand there is good for spuds and can be worked early.
I had to get a brand new engine for the tiller this week too. OUCH that cost me a little cash that I didn't see coming. ($400+). I found out that all of the small engines under say 13hp or so no longer come with a horse power rating! They now state how much torque is generated. I think that the industry got sued because they were overstating HP all along.
We used string for guides to keep the rows straight which makes it much easier to weed later on. We have four rows about 75 feet long. Kennebec's all of them. They have a great creamy taste.
We stared letting the cats out and this one must have been hungry so she is waiting at the bird feeder for a little snack. She didn't do to well . I think she thinks she's invisible and wonders why those bird aren't coming around. House cats,go figure.

Cold Storage and the Raised Beds Update

We are using up the cabbages and turnips the I put in the ground last fall and am surprised at how well they came thru the winter. The cabbages had some bad leaves on the outside but we just peeled that off and they are great! They even seem to taste sweeter with age. I found that I didn't bury the trash can deep enough and some of the stuff on top froze and rotted but the ones deeper were fine. I think that just burying them in the ground with straw would work better maybe. Only thing with that is digging them up in the winter...the ground would be too hard.
Here are four heads after we took off some of the outer leaves. Nice firm heads. Now why don't you hear about this method of storage more often? Have we strayed so far and are so dependent on the food industry to supply us ,that we don't bother to raise and store our own food? I know where my food comes from and how it was grown and what chemicals were used in it's production. I like that feeling.
Here is an update on the raised beds. It has been one month since I planted and things are coming along well. As you can see the lettuce is coming and red oak leaf behind that and then some kale .

This is the mustard spinach that I liked so well last year and it is growing fast. It likes this cold weather . Some days I have to uncover the beds to cool them off.

I have built two more beds next to these and I had the dirt delivered today so I'll show them soon.

Easter at our house

We had a great meal thanks to Ginny and the girls ,and enjoyed
having both of our kids together.
We tried taking this photo outside but Macy couldn't take the sun in her eyes. She wouldn't look up even for a second so this is what we got.
Ginny's mom,who is now 95 and Macy who is almost 5. I think that they have the same smile. Mom enjoys her very much and Macy thinks that she is special too.

Our little kitchen gets quite the workout as the girls do the dishes and get to talk....and talk. A good day.

Pirate Days at the Grandparents House

I don't think these pictures need any explanation. What better thing to do on a spring day with your grandpa?

Success!

I planted on the 11Th and didn't really think that anything would sprout for at least two weeks but yesterday I saw some good germination . Today they shot up to be a fine green line in the dirt. I am amazed. Any day that has some sun,the temp shoots up so much that I have to open the ends to keep it below 90! Yesterday it got up to 107 before I got the ends open. At night the temperature goes down to outside temp but I think that the ground is still warmer than the air ,with a little flywheel effect from the daytime heating. Next week it is going to be a lot colder again and I don't know how the new sprouts will fare. This photo shows how nice of a setup this is. Now I need to be smart enough to plant it wisely. Also shown is my temp. sending unit so I can see the temperature from the house. This one is good for 200 feet.

Bad photo but the sprouts are up.

I started cleaning up the other raised bed today because it was such a great day. The soil in the bed was workable and just perfect,while the rest of the garden is muddy. It will be weeks before it will be tilled.

Here is the side by side shot. My little tiller/cultivator I got last year works well for this . It is lite and does a good job.

I have been thinking of adding two more raised beds this year but my truck is in the shop and it may be expensive so I have to wait and see.

Sugar n Spice and Everything Nice

I just added all of those things up and this is what I got! I guess that old rhyme is true.
Macy thought that this was pretty cool too so I gave her "ride".

And the tipping part worked out too. I have shown this to a dozen people and they all have the same reaction....WOW ,THIS IS GREAT ...WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO WITH IT? So far I don't have a good answer. But I will someday,maybe.