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Multiple Varieties

February 28th, 2017

Every year I get some of my seeds from Renee’s Garden Seeds, one of my favorite things about her seeds is that you can get multiple varieties in one packet.

Take for example the packs of radish and beet seeds, each packet has five different varieties. This is such a great thing for those of us that want to grow multiple varieties, but don’t want to spend the money to buy five different packs of seeds. I try to use up as many of my seeds as possible each year, buying seeds like this allows me to do just that.

What’s your favorite seed source?

Spring Cleaning

February 27th, 2017

It’s that time of year when I start selling off a few of the birds that hatched out last summer/fall. This year I have a trio of Ancona ducks, 9 Muscovy ducks, and 4-7 turkeys that I’m going to be selling. This will make way for the a few new laying hens this summer.




Although I really like all the birds, it’s much better on my feed bill to get rid of them occasionally. I used to try to sell in the fall, but I find that it’s easier in the spring. Some of the birds are also not easy to sex in the fall (like the turkeys). One of my turkey poults from last year is just showing that he’s going to be a tom, that means I can sell him with two hens as a trio. The muscovies are popular in the spring as well, I actually have a few people who have purchased in the past that are interested in a few more this spring. It’s always nice to send birds along to home where they’ll be happy and loved.

Trying…

February 24th, 2017

I’ve been trying to get photos off of my desktop computer for a few days now, trying to make a blog post. But alas, my computer is old, slow, and is being very cantankerous.

Luckily, I have a live in IT dept, the only problem is that he won’t have time to fix my computer until this weekend. Computers can be great and they can be super frustrating. This is exactly why I have a laptop as well, luckily I can at least get the majority of my work done on it.

Maple Sap Tea

February 22nd, 2017

It’s sugaring season here in Maine, I tapped our large sugar maple on Monday morning and the sap started flowing immediately. This year I’m only tapping this tree, it’s large, thus it accommodates three taps. That will produce over a gallon of syrup though, enough to get us through the year.

One of the delicious side benefits of sugaring season, is that I make my tea throughout the day with hot sap from the kettle on the stove. It imparts the slightest bit of sweetness, just enough to make the tea exceptionally great. I’m looking forward to my maple sap chai later this morning!

Do you live in an area where maple trees are tapped?

Soaking It Up

February 21st, 2017

I spent the last half of last week in Ohio, visiting family. On Saturday it was 74 degrees. Naturally, I spent the afternoon sitting in the sun on front porch reading a book (The Memory of Us, a historical fiction).

I took a short walk around the garden with my parents, my mom was feeling well enough for a bit to make a quick jaunt around the garden seeing the very first early crocus popping up out the soil.

It won’t be long until spring arrives in Ohio, we still have a while here in Maine. That small taste of it gave me the push I needed to get started on a few early chores. This week I plan on starting a flat of spring cassis and lettuces. Perhaps I’ll even start some celery and a few other herbs.

When does spring usually arrive in your garden?

About

This is a daily journal of my efforts to cultivate a more simple life, through local eating, gardening and so many other things. We used to live in a small suburban neighborhood Ohio but moved to 153 acres in Liberty, Maine in 2012.

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