me "homesteading" and loving every minute of it!

Next year this entire patch will be sunflowers and broom corn! I can't wait!

I Made Birdseed!

ended up with about 24 nice heads of broomcorn seeds! I'll dry them for a couple of weeks and then save them for winter for the birds. I'll just hang them in the tree for the birds to pick at! Come to think of it ...I just made my own birdseed! Cool!

Cabbage White Butterflies

My Russian Sage plant is covered with these white butterflies. I looked them up and they are Cabbage White Butterflies. They are called that because they are pests on cabbages!

Black Swallowtail Butterfly Supper!

I planted parsley to attract Black Swallowtail Butterflies. I was thrilled when I saw I had several caterpillars munching away on the parsley!

Bird House Gourds....Still Growing Wildly

Wow... I wish I would have really paid attention to the instructions before I planted this gourd where I did! It can grow 15 - 20 feet! umm... that's a lot. Note to self: plant bird house gourds way far away from other stuff!

Showing Off My Clematis !!

Wow! My clematis is awsome this year!

Cherry Tomatoes ~ lots and lots of cherry tomatoes!

We are going to have a boat load of cherry tomatoes. We bought 2 plants and then had 3 volunteers come up! Looks like I'll be the cherry tomato fairy this year .... leaving bags of them on door steps! We also take a lot of produce to Second Harvest Food Bank.

Garden Fresh Tomatoes!

Well we were rewarded for putting our tomatoes out early and dealing with the frost. We had juicy sliced tomatoes on our grilled hamburgers last night! Yummy.

Knee High by the 4th of July!

Our corn is tasselling!

Bird House Gourds Update!

Wow... I can't believe how fast these guys took off! We've had a ton of rain (Ohio) and then with temps in the 80's, no wonder ... I have no clue how many gourds I'll end up with!!

Birdhouse Gourds!

Yippeee.... my birdhouse gourds look great! I planted 4 of these and I have no clue how many gourds I'll end up with. I hope a lot... I want to dry them and give them to friends and family to make bird houses!

Romain Lettuce Lookin' Good!

This is our first year growing Romain lettuce from seed. I love salads! I make my own dressing too... believe me, once you make it yourself, the bottle stuff really doesn't compare.. and it's super easy. I have a post for homemade Ranch dressing. The next time I make French, I'll post that too. It's sooo good. Anyway..we thinned the row out and weeded. We'll probably put another row out in a week or two. Can't wait!

Frost Warning! Yikes! Here's a tip for tomatoes...

Just came in from wrapping sheet strips around our tomato cages. Since we plant early every year, we always have to deal with frost... so I made strips from sheets I bought at garage sales (cheap). Wrap them around the cage and then lay the end over the top and secure with clothes pins. Super easy to do and easy to store. We even have a little tomato about the size of a marble already!!

Budding Flowers.... it won't be long!

thought I'd take a quick picture of these buds before they bloom ... here's my last tulip and the first of my lily of the valley (I just love these!)

Hannah Fat Cat!

Poor Hannah really put on the pounds this winter. I shouldn't talk... I haven't tried my shorts on yet!!! ((gulp)) Anyway, she loves being out and following us around the yard and garden. So I'll have to make a few extra trips around to get her some extra excercise ... and of course it won't hurt me either!

I love worms!

While pulling up corn stalks this afternoon ... I noticed we have a ton of worms! That's a great thing for the soil. I hope my husband doesn't chop them up too much while tilling! They really don't become two worms when cut in half. sniff

Reward from three hours in the garden! before & after

Usually my husband and I do all of the garden clean up in the fall... but last year, life and winter came fast and we didn't get around to it. We were out cleaning today for three hours... I'll feel this tomorrow!

Freezing Herbs ~ a great easy way to preserve them for winter!

This is my last batch of oregano. I put some in my scrambled eggs this morning. mmmm...
Freezing herbs is the best way to preserve them. It's easier than drying and they taste better too. Harvest your herbs in the morning, wash and dry well, then put in a plastic bag and freeze. Simply pull out what you need. They don't take up much space either. How easy is that?

Ziploc Vacuum Sealer! You must try this!

I bought one of these Ziploc Vacuum Sealers and it's a God send.It's small and easy to store! No dragging out the big, bulky sealer I've used all these years.(time for a garage sale?) And the great thing is, you can RESEAL just as easily. Here's a picture of the last of this bag of chopped up red bell peppers... (only one bag left after this!...hurry up gardening season) anyway, just take what you want out and pump it to seal it back up. ta! da!
We use tons of red bell peppers: meatloaf, sloppy joes, on pizza, in omelets, stir fry, vegetable soup, chili.... wow. we do use a lot!

Homemade canned green beans! I love them so much I want to marry them!

I only have a few more pints of my canned green beans left. The only thing that gets on my nerves about growing green beans ... you have to pick them when THEY want you to! They don't care if it's Thurs and you're tired from working all week. noooo... they are down there snickering "you better pick and can me now or I'll get all fat and tough"! and it's usually 108 degrees in the shade! But man, they are so worth it when the weather is cold and nasty (this is Ohio remember?) Just add some ham or bacon and go "mmmmm...."