Potato Storage Rack

Here is our new potato rack, sometimes called an orchard rack, put to good use this weekend. Historically racks like these were used to store “keeper” crops such as apples, winter squash, onions and potatoes. The drawers are slatted to ensure good air circulation, and they slide out for easy access. We made room in… Read more »

Fall Lawn Care

The weather has cooled considerably, in fact we had our first frost this morning. The day was lovely for working so I spent the day putting fall fertilizer on the lawn and reseeding bare spots. I also spread seed heavily in areas that have dense clover. While I don’t mind some clover, too much is… Read more »

Frost Here Too Soon

What happened to summer already???? We had our first frost this morning — way to early.

Extending the Harvest #1

Last April I posted about my new mini-greenhouse that we purchased to use as a cold frame to extend the harvest as far into winter as we could. While we planted some lettuce in the greenhouse this past spring, I wouldn’t really consider that pushing the harvest envelope as April is not that early to… Read more »

Oh dear, deer!

We have seen an increase in deer damage along our back gardens over the last few weeks. Deer move most often and for the greatest distances during spring and fall. In late spring, does travel in search of fawning sites, yearlings explore their territory often with less fear than adult deer. Travel increases in fall… Read more »

Growing Pulses aka Soup Beans

Anyone following this blog knows I always have something new on the go. This year we are experimenting with growing pulses or soup beans. Unfortunately, our bean garden has had a tough go of it. A late start this spring (due to an unusually cold and wet spring) followed by stunted growth as a result… Read more »

Wild Turkey Anyone?

The feathered kind, not the drinking kind. Now that our landscape is maturing, we are seeing an increase in the amount and variety of wild life directly in our back yard. While we could often hear Wild Turkey calls, this has been the first year we have seen them wondering our lawn. The turkey is… Read more »

Slight Relief In August

While August was still slightly warmer than normal there was a little relief from the intense heat and dry weather of July. Our average high in August was 26.5C just slightly above normal (25.1C). Rains in late July and early August helped bring back lawns and sustained the gardens. We averaged 77.8mm of rain in… Read more »

How To Grow Longer Beans

It has been a tough year for us green beans wise. We had a very cold and wet spring and our new second garden was not quite ready, delaying our first planting. And, since our new garden was not fenced in like our first garden, the rabbits and deer decided to eat our young sprouts… Read more »