Hey Everyone!
Hope you have all had a wonderful summer! Mine has been busy to the point of exhaustion at times..but It has been wonderful none the less!
Here are some updates!
TOMATO HANGERS
I was not overly impressed with the results of these..Having said THAT..A lot of the problems could very well have stemmed from my lack of proper filling. Having had surgery and being weak..I did not fill them as much as I should have..and I also forgot one very KEY ingredient to the soil/mulch mixture..CALCIUM...Tomatoes LOVE calcium. SO..I will give them another shot next year..and these are the changes I will make.
A) I will rinse and save my egg shells to mix in with the soil/compost mix.
B) I will fill them COMPLETELY with the mixture ( as in not half full)
C) I will not over water..because of the lack of sufficient soil..I had to water more frequently thus causing mold issues.
CABBAGE TENT
On the Whole I was VERY pleased with the results! The tent was too small to allow me to leave it on for the entire grow period..However..it DID allow the cabbages to get to a decent enough head size before they goat attacked but cabbage worms. So although there was SOME damage..There was not enough to deter me from planting them again next year. Here is a video on the results and what I did with the harvest.
BEANS!
On the whole my beans did REALLY well and I would say I got over a bushel from the 3 rows...I have left some larger ones on the plants and pulled them up and hung them to dry..thus saving my seed for next year.
BEES!
Our Hives did well..although we ran into a few problems with one hive.
But so far harvested about 30 pounds of honey..with another super to be harvested yet. We are VERY pleased!
MILK!
Bizzy..Our Nanny Goat that gave us Twin Daughter Back in May..is giving us between 3 and 3.5 litres of milk a day! And I have bought a hand crank cream separator! So as I result I have been making butter and cheese! Still working it all out..but it is an experience I am having a lot of fun with!
All in All It has been an amazing summer..and it is far from over!
We still have things to harvest..and chickens to get into the freezer.
But I would say it is a lifestyle that is fast becoming second nature to us,
and will continue as long as we are able. There is something WONDERFUL..about sitting down to a meal and knowing that everything on your plate..including the glass of milk beside it..came from your own land and hard work! I know not everyone is lucky enough to have a little half acre of heaven...But self sufficiency can be had by even city and apartment dwellers. Find the deals at the farmers market..Shop in Bulk..teach yourself to can. I promise you won't be sorry!
Here is my channel on YouTube..I have spent a lot of time putting together many how to videos for you..and basically sharing our journey up to this point. Thanks all for your patience..I will continue to be busy for a month or so yet...but will do my best to be more attentive to my blog when things slow down!
Blessings!
