Monday, July 6, 2009

Harvest, continued
Yesterday Brian commented on how funny it is that even though we just passed the solstice, already we are feeling the push towards fall. The veggies, fruits and nuts are all getting ripe and ready for picking and preserving.

We dried our cherries in a solar dehydrator that Brian made and they turned out great, except for the fact that our dog got into some of the trays and ate way too many dried cherries! The oats are drying nicely and next we need to thresh, winnow and hull them (get the grain out of the husk). Soon we will harvest our rye and wheat. We also harvested lots of garlic and I am working on garlic braids to sell at the market.

I need to harvest more St. John's Wort, Calendula, Lavender and Comfrey for salves and drying. Our children have been helping with all the picking and preserving as well as helping Mom keep the house together while we are so busy. The goats are making gallons of milk which we are using for soap, cheese and of course, drinking (the boys alone drink about a half gallon daily). The blueberries are ripening and I hope to put up lots of blueberry jam. My goal is to make enough homemade jam to last the whole year. Oh, and Brian has made a delicious batch of homebrewed beer to keep him going while he weeds on these hot days. So we are all very busy, but having a good time.

We are also starting putting in our fall and winter garden this week, so we will have fresh veggies all winter long. If you need more information on what to plant or season extension techniques, email us or ask Brian at the market.

At the Wellspring Market, we had a good response to our homemade salves and lotion bars, despite the heat. This coming market we hope to add to this our salt scrubs and body lotion, as well as our usual goats milk soap, produce and eggs. Hope to see you there!

1 comment:

  1. Wow, I didn't know you are also growing grains!
    Sounds like you are really busy but having fun.

    ReplyDelete