First and foremost, to all the Momma’s out there, happy Mother’s Day! I hope you are honored and cherished every day of the year, but were treated extra special today.
Today is the first day of the 100 Days of Growing Food Challenge. (Woo hoo!) I hope you had good weather and were able to spend some time outdoors with your plants or animals! We had a relatively quiet day, with extremely high winds, rain, and temperatures dropping down to the low 30’s today.
I had hoped to walk through and take photos of what’s growing in the garden for today’s blog but one thing I can’t tolerate is a cold wind! However, with today being the “big day” I had to find some way to get my hands in the dirt! The greenhouse was an extra blessing today, as I was able to enjoy some quiet time with the plants even in the unfavorable weather.
What’s growing in the garden so far?
If you’re new to our blog, welcome! Please don’t be intimidated by the variety we have growing. Just plant. It doesn’t matter if you have a large space or a small area for pots. You are taking steps towards your own food security. Know that every thing that happens is a chance to learn and grow. And even if your planting fails, it is an opportunity to do better next time.
“Plant the good seeds of righteousness, and you will harvest a crop of love. Plow up the hard ground of your hearts, for now is the time to seek the Lord, that he may come and rain righteousness upon you.”
Hosea 10:12
Perennials
The pears, peaches, and strawberries have all started flowering. Our apples, persimmons, goji, elderberry, Japanese haskaps, currants, blackberries, raspberries, mulberries, and hazelnuts, butternuts, and chestnuts have started budding with tiny leaves. I’m not sure if the paw paw tree survived the winter.
Herbs
I have several herbs that come up every year either as perennials or from self-seeding, but in our area there are many herbs that would be perennials in a warmer setting.
- Chives
- Mints (Strawberry, chocolate, sweet, peppermint, orange, spearmint, and apple mint)
- Comfrey
- Lemon balm
- Catnip
- Cilantro
- Lavender
- Rosemary
- Sage
- Thyme
- Oregano
- Mullein
- Violets
- Stinging Nettles
Vegetables
- Spinach
- Lettuce
- Kale
- Pak Choy
- Swiss Chard
- Asparagus
- Radish
- Turnips
- Sugar Snap Peas
- Rhubarb
“She looks over a field and buys it, then, with money she’s put aside, plants a garden.”
Proverbs 31:6
Animals
I was able to collect 5 eggs today! (Which is abnormally low) But springtime brings broody hens (hens that commit to hatching eggs and sit on their nest for 21 days until chicks hatch; however, they don’t always have to be sitting on eggs. Our Silkie hen, Penelope, has been known to sit on rocks… or abnormally large, hardened chunks of poop…yeah) 9 eggs hatched today from our incubator, 3 of which will be staying here.
The goat mommas are doing wonderful jobs with their babies, who are adorable little balls of energy. We have decided to keep Edda‘s two babies. Their temperament is easy-going, like their momma’s. The little dueling is Fiadh (Fee-ah).
The buckling is currently named Cowboy, but I’m not sure he will stay with that name. Stirling has been quite taken with this overly friendly and curious goat. We don’t have a use for him as a buck, but he will make a good companion for Stirling as well as a whether (a no longer intact buck) for a buck in the future with different genetics from the rest of the herd.
Oona’s twin does are equally as adorable, but we have not yet fully decided on their future.
The hogs have almost doubled in size since we brought them home. I’m quite fond of them, which is surprising as they equally inspire fear. I’ve always had this idea in my head of pigs as smelly, dirty, and unfriendly creatures that make bacon. But the reality is vastly different, except for the bacon part. There is a spark of recognition in their eyes as they see us coming and their desire for a good belly rub or scratch behind the ears only slightly falls behind wanting to eat any treats we bring them. They chase each other, dance in the rain, and take an absurd amount of naps.
What did we eat from our land today?
Sadly, nothing!
The SHAME!
We cleaned out the deep freezer last week, and had a large turkey and ham leftover from Christmas time that we need to use up. Once the weather starts getting consistently warm and our garden really takes off, more days will be filled with food from our land.