We checked off several projects in the garden this past week because we had family here to help! On Saturday Cam’s parents pulled out the last of the corn stalks and we covered that area with silage tarp. We also moved chickens and their coop into the garden area so they could eat all the grasshoppers and other bad bugs.
Monday was my birthday and Cam took me to lunch, then I did a painting of the barn behind our creek in the afternoon. Meanwhile Cam’s parents watched the kids and checked a few projects off our to-do list! It was a lovely birthday gift.
To top it all off, I came home to a hot dinner all ready to eat. It was a fun role reversal for the day. It was nice to relax, talk to family, and do things I don’t normally get to do.
On Tuesday, I checked the progress of the house and found they were installing windows! My builder almost talked me out of getting black windows for both the interior and exterior but I’m glad I was not willing to budge. They look better than I could have imagined.
Wednesday we harvested the rest of the sweet potatoes. I already harvested one batch a month ago and so I had to weigh them all to see how the harvest compared to last year. We ended up with 215 pounds from 38 plants for an average of 5.65lbs per plant. Last year I averaged right at 6lbs per plant so it was pretty close!
Thursday and Friday the well pump guys came out and dug trenches for the well connection to the house and for a few spigots to the garden area. I’m so excited about the prospect of having water near our garden. It feels unreal!
We are still waiting on the electric company to come out and finish putting in poles and setting up wires. Once that is done, we can power our well pump and get water.
I can’t remember if I mentioned this before on my blog but we are hoping to get the well hooked up to solar panels and power eventually. We’ve gone back and forth between getting a whole house generator or doing the solar for a few essentials and right now we are leaning towards the solar.
Solar will eventually pay us back with the savings and yet still be a reliable source of power even when the grid is down.
Today, I spent most of the day harvesting cabbage, daikon radish, chinese chives, and carrots. Then I made some kimchi. I will be sharing the kimchi recipe as a guest blogger in partnership with Roots and Harvest sometime in the next few months.
I make homemade kimchi every year, it’s one of my favorite ferments. Kimchi was the one thing I ate a lot back when I had severe stomach pain. I credit how much better I feel now to this miracle food.
In the kitchen:
- Canned 6 jars of beef broth
- Fermented sweet pepper salsa and kimchi
2 comments
What do you do with Chinese chives?
Hi Chris. I used them in making kimchi this week but you can use them in any dish you would use regular chives. Chinese chives are flatter and in addition to chive flavor they also taste like garlic. It’s delicious! I’ve also used them in green salads, chicken salad, blended into salad dressings, stir fry, fried rice, thai dishes, and more.
I used to have them planted at the base of my fruit trees to repel bad bugs since the scent is strong. I didn’t have a control tree without the chinese chives so I’m not sure if it actually worked but I never had a huge bug problem on any tree.