rain

In the past two days, we have had more than eight inches of rainfall. There have been interludes of drizzle, mizzle, and mist, but for the most part it's been hours of relentless rain, all day and all night.

Beech. There isn't a moment when I don't find it beautiful.

A large materials delivery was scheduled to arrive this morning, so I found my raincoat and went out to move my vehicle to clear the way. Just in that few minutes, I got soaked to the skin.

While the driver was making trips back and forth from his big truck to the top of my driveway in a nifty three-wheeled forklift, I held an umbrella over my camera and took a few snaps.

It was in weather like this - waiting for the rain to stop and rushing out to do a bit of gardening whenever possible - that I planted the saved candy roaster squash seeds in the Very Raised Bed. They had a late start - I think it was early July! But the plants did their best, and have been providing late-season food for bees and perfuming the October air with blossoms. I think the 2016 plants cross-pollinated, as these seeds have produced interesting and varied results!

I must harvest soon.

VRB, winding down.

And, when the rain stops and the muddy ground dries,

work can continue on Very Raised Bed II.

It won't be as high as the first,

and my goal is to have this bed ready for Autumn planting.

My Occasional Helper is ready to pitch in.

I am hopeful it can happen.

Weather permitting!

VRB2. A good start.

Tomorrow - Friday - the forecast is Not Raining. The builders will be back, and it's going to be a very busy day. I believe my job will be staying out of their way.

The Saturday forecast is also clear, and I'm hoping to take Piper for a long ramble by the pond that day, before the rain returns on Sunday and Monday.

And that will be my week, over in the blink of an eye!

How about you?

~~~~~

ginger beer for supper

Tsuga enjoying a black birch sapling, delivered fresh to the paddock.

Thursday and Friday were perfect days for outdoor work. And it's great to have a builder who is happy to add little bits and pieces to his work plan as time permits. Thursday, for example, when my Occasional Helper was here removing fenceposts for relocation, Builder Matt didn't mind taking a few minutes to use his front end loader to lift out a couple of posts that wouldn't budge.

Yesterday, when the tractor was going to be idle for a while, I asked if Matt would park it by a pile of wood and stone that has been a thorn in my side for a few years. It's one of the most frustrating kinds of mess: the ones created and left by previous hired workers. Part of this one was my fault, because I had covered some firewood with what I thought was a tarp but which turned out to be a "pool cover" that disintegrated, shedding fragments of plastic which rendered the wood unburnable. But while I was figuring out what to do with that pile, a barn-builder with a skidder pushed thousands of pounds of old foundation stones into it.

What. A. Jumbled. Mess.

Since the new fenceline will run right through the center of that mess, yesterday I took a deep cleansing breath and began dismantling it. I pulled out individual pieces of wood, tried to brush off every bit of plastic into a rubbish container (on the left in the picture below), then added the wood to the tractor bucket (on the right, below). Whenever I came to a rock buried in the pile, I pulled it loose, picked it up and carried it to a corner of the fence.

Then, when Matt had a free moment, he drove his tractor  about 30 feet to unload the wood. I had outlined a space with sections of a white birch that had been too decayed for stovewood when the tree was taken down two years ago. It was a big tree, and even decayed sections were heavy. But it was worth the effort, because just like that (imagine finger-snapping there) I've got the base of my second Very Raised Bed. VRB2 was very much a backburnered project, due to the intensity of labor required. Having a tractor available to make one part of the process much easier was an opportunity not to be squandered.

I carried quite a few rocks, and filled the bucket with wood twice, but Matt eventually needed his tractor for the main job. I'm probably only halfway through the pile but it's a good start. I have to admit that after a couple of hours, it was really clear to me why I don't attempt this kind of thing anymore. Between the wood and the stones and later wrestling alone with rolled sections of 6-foot fence to temporarily block off a 50-foot opening so the cats can go outside this weekend...

I feel a lot like this squash leaf, but with less color:

It's been a productive week, and lots of good work has been done by the builders, with lots more to come. This is really a three-part project - not counting the little things that come up along the way, or the planned "20 minute" task that took nearly four hours and all hands on deck. I've got more research and decision-making ahead this weekend, but today I made my usual Saturday morning trip to the dump and the library, and that may be IT. I am exhausted, and all I want to do this afternoon is sip cold ginger beer and watch the cats climb through piles of roofing detritus while the autumn sun shines gently through the trees.

I hope your weekend is off to a great start!
Is anyone going to Rhinebeck? Usually right about now I'd be feeling a twinge of wish-I-could-be-there, but right now if I was magically transported to Rhinebeck I would probably be flat out on the ground, moving only enough to eat fried artichokes while watching sheepdog demonstrations.

~~~~~

summer cooking and a giveaway

In this hot, muggy weather, I have to make an effort to have good food on hand, ready to eat in almost no time. Otherwise, I fear my healthy diet could deteriorate into nothing but gatorade and potato stix.

I try to cook two or more things at once - minimizing the amount of heat added to the kitchen, and making enough "ready to eat" food to last for several meals and snacks. This week, for example, I put a layer of bacon in a pyrex baking dish, covered it completely with chicken thighs, and added a layer of bacon on top. Then I took a picture:

Probably my first photograph of bacon.
I rarely buy it. Seemed like kind of an event.

I covered the dish for baking in a slow oven. And since the oven was going to be on, it was a good time to fetch in a great big gorgeous straightneck squash - the Very First Harvest from the Very Raised Bed! - slice it the long way and clean out the seeds and core, then put it in a second covered pyrex baking dish with a little water to gently cook the squash without drying it out.

I know why I photographed the squash.
It's beautiful.

All week I've been eating moist, flavorful chicken with little shreds of bacon, along with a variety of "sides"...yellow squash, farro, sauted mushrooms, etc. When I see really fresh mushrooms at the grocery store I buy a package, eat some raw and cook the rest all at once, to add to meals for several days.

I love mushrooms.
I really ought to grow them.
Do any readers grow their own mushrooms?
Please advise!

And, oh, did I mention my first yellow crescent beans of the season? Grown from seeds I saved from last years plants! I wish I had taken a "before" picture but these beans were lightly steamed and in this dish with a little bacony chicken less than 15 minutes after being carried in from the garden.

 Yum.

Of course, another way to cook without generating a lot of heat or using a lot of energy - and to cook in multiple-meal quantities if desired - is to use a crockpot or slow cooker. I find them pretty darned useful. And I think slow cookers are popular both within and outside the US - correct me if I'm wrong about that! - so that's why I'm going to do a little cookbook giveaway:

This is Stephanie O'Dea's first cookbook - I think she has written four now! - and you can Left-Click to embiggen her description below, or here's a link to the Amazon page. But since I know it is important to many people, I just want to point out right now that all the recipes in the book are Gluten Free.

Would you like to put your name in the hat for a shiny new copy of this book? Easy peasy! Leave a comment on this blog post telling me one thing you like to make in a slow cooker. (If you haven't used a slow cooker before, please share a tip for cooking multiple things in the oven, or any other food-related way to save energy - we can use more ideas!)

I will do a random drawing at noon on Monday, the 24th, and will post the winner's name on the blog that night. Please check back. The winner will have three days to contact me with mailing information; if I don't hear back by Thursday night, I will draw another name on Friday.

Anyone, anywhere is very welcome to enter.

Feel free to share the giveaway.

Good luck!

~~~~~

a bit more gardening

I'm going to try to plant a little something every day.

It may not be possible,

but I will try.

Yesterday I planted a few things at the town plot:

Root crops!!

 And just look at Piper, checking my pea placement:

She is such a stickler for even spacing.

Today I gardened at home;

expanding the fenced area of the terrace garden,

transplanting four butternut squash seedlings,

and putting in a block of sweet corn:

Can't you just taste that sweet corn?

I was determined to get the corn in before the rain began,

so I worked until I sort of fell over,

and finished just before the first drops fell.

Very satisfying.

Now we are expecting two days of rain.

If it's off and on, I may be able to do more planting.

If not, I'll at least do some prepping for related tasks,

because Wednesday I've got a new helper coming

to work with me on gates and fencing for a couple of hours.

But as soon as weather permits, I will be planting:

more seeds!

I'm done buying seeds for the year now, I think.

(I'm pretty sure.)

And as I say goodbye to the Dog Days of August

which came in May this year,

I'd like to share one bit of quite thrilling garden news.

Ready?

Guess what this is:

Or maybe I should say,

guess where  this is...

because this Red Kuri Squash is

the very first planted seed to sprout in the

Very Raised Bed!

Gardening:

the adventure continues.

~~~~~

wordless wednesday

 

~~~~~

wonderful wednesday

Oh my gosh, am I tired!

For two days in a row, I have had hired help for outdoor chores;

a fellow with a brush-cutter and chainsaw for a few hours yesterday,

and the hard-working 16-year-old for a few hours today.

"About time for a Poultry Palace Clean-Out,
wouldn't you say?"

Each day, I did morning chores an hour early,

then spent 3 solid hours doing prep-work.

When a helper arrived, I worked alongside or nearby.

Final step in the Seasonal Scrubdown:
Palace windows now (briefly) gleaming!

Yesterday, when the chainsaw man had gone,

leaving a wake of downed saplings and branches behind him,

I was very ready to call it a day.

Until I noticed the fresh cherry branches left on the ground in one of the paddocks.

I spent another half hour picking them up, one by one,

and heaving them over a 6' fence to get them out of goat-reach.

(Had to be done.)

He's coming back Friday, and I hope to get 

the other half of two tasks finished.

That should be all the chainsawing/brushcutting needed for a while.

Special Effects: chickens through a screen!
The hens are at the screenporch door,
probably saying "Thank you for our spotless Palace!"
Or...
"Come back! You missed a corner!"

Today, by the time the tireless teenager left,

I could barely creep to my chaise with a huge glass of V8 on ice.

More progress on the VRB!
Hundreds fewer branches to trip me in the paddocks!!

It is so lovely to have this young man helping out here.

No complaints, no shirking, no hesitation to ask questions.

Real, visible progress on tasks that have been

nagging at my mind daily for a very long time.

Today I even asked him to do a couple of chores

that I can do myself, but which are very labor-intensive

(for me, these days; but not for him)

while I got on with other tasks.

And I'll tell you what: between us, we got a heck of a lot done!

I'd go take more pictures to prove it,

but that would mean getting out of this chaise.

Would you like to see some squash leaves instead?

I planted a few varieties of winter squash this year,

and although any possible harvest seems a long way off,

the leaves are simply delightful!

The big leaves are huge!

The size of the steering wheels I remember from childhood;
a narrow rim of coated metal, with a horn in the middle.
I wonder if those steering wheels are still made.
I would like to have one.

Squash and kale: my cup of leaf appreciation runneth over.

Speaking of leaf appreciation,
I dragged some oak tops all the way up the driveway yesterday
and distributed them between the goat paddocks.
Today? Just naked, frayed twigs and barkless branches.

So, in conclusion, here's a goat picture for you:

Left to right: Tsuga, Acer, Campion, Azalea, Lily, Betula

The goats have had a rather unsettled time,

due to all the noise and bustle and shifting around.

So this evening, they shared an entire bale of hay at the fence.

It was a lovely picnic!

Fun for all!

(I had to do something. There weren't enough chaises to go around.)

~~~~~

wiped-out wednesday

La-la-la-la-la-la-la....

guess what?

My helper came again today.

I wish I had taken a "before" picture of the Very Raised Bed

(hereafter known as the VRB).

Over the past week, I have carried many, many trugs

of mucky hay from the barn to the VRB,

and spread it into a beautiful, thick layer.

Now covered by a layer of saplings and branches:

It may not look impressive compared to

the heavy layer we built last Wednesday,

but here's what you can't see:

after I pointed out the area to "harvest" from,

my helper picked up and carried every stick

and arranged them for (we hope) maximum stability.

He also carried 500 pounds of oats from my car to the barn.

I like this helper!

Meanwhile, while he was doing all this work,

I waltzed around my gardens like The Queen of the May,

snapping pictures of daylilies:

and singing: La-la-la-la-la-la-la....

~~~

Okay, not really.

Really, I spent the day cleaning the barn and

working on a sturdy divider and gate.

I can't post an "after" picture, because I ran out of hardware

and didn't want to make a special trip.

(Spent a couple of hours in the car yesterday,

and am not in a hurry to do it again.)

But here is what it looked like when I had taken down

the original, temporary divider,

and started building the new, more permanent, one.

That upright post is one edge of the gateway.

Experimental Project Alert!

I made one section of the new dividing wall

into a little hay feeder.

The goats are eating a LOT of hay now,

and that's fine, but they are also wasting a LOT.

Every trough arrangement has been claimed by the kids within minutes,

as a lovely, edible bed.

And THAT would be fine, too,

except goats tend to wake up, stretch, and...pee.

Wherever they happen to be.

Like, in the hay.

So I've made a tall, narrow "hay wall,"

using 4' high, 4"-square, woven wire fencing.

It's only 4 inches deep - the width of the roughcut

framing of the dividing wall and gate -

so the goats won't get into trouble

trying to cram their heads through the fencing

to get to more hay.

I hope.

Here's a view from the top:

And here's the arrival of the Review Committee:

While I was sitting on that bench with my camera,

Dara, LeShodu's son, noticed that I was sitting.

An empty lap means only one thing to Dara:

Full disclosure: when goat breeders talk about behavior issues,

I have always taken the line,

"If it won't be cute when they're 60 pounds,

it isn't something I'll encourage when they're adorable babies."

Erm. Yeah.

Thing is, I've never seen kids as gentle as Azalea and Dara.

(If they weren't also playful and rowdy, I'd be worried!) 

Even when she was tiny, Azalea, Lily's daughter,

instead of jumping on me the way all baby kids do,

would slowly raise herself up on her hind legs and balance

until I picked her up.

Honestly.

Now, when she's too heavy for me to pick up,

Azalea will sometimes come and lean her shoulder against me

and just stand quietly for a minute or so.

It's very unusual behavior.

And Dara!

Most babies, from a couple of days old, will leap up on a person in a chair.

Then they will then jump right down again.

(This is a perfect example of the kind of thing I don't encourage.)

But Dara does not want to jump right down.

Dara wants to lean back, quietly chew his cud, and doze.

Indefinitely.

I have witnesses.

They couldn't believe it either.

I usually end up putting him down

because I cannot sit for long periods of time.

Today, when I was sitting on that bench with my camera, legs bent,

Dara hopped up, observed that my lap was apparently broken,

and gently squirmed his way under my arm and across my legs anyway.

What would you do?

I took a picture.

This goat is 9 weeks old.

Now you are all witnesses.

Because I feel confident this behavior will be self-limiting -

that one day, Dara will suddenly decide,

"gosh, this is no longer a comfortable position,"

and that will be the end of the Amazing Lapgoat -

I am ignoring my own "rule" about discouraging any behavior

that won't be cute in a yearling.

"Don't worry. One day I will be a Grown Up Goat,

and this will all just be a memory

that makes you smile."

~~~

And now, all that waltzing and singing

has really worn me out.

Time for evening chores, then an early night!

~~~~~