Last night Five the baby chick helped me plant the last of my fall garden seeds outdoors. I say outdoors because I have every intention of starting Swiss Chard and Kale seeds indoors every two weeks from now until December so I can reach my goal of growing 2,000 pounds of fruits and vegetables this year.
We ended up planting 4 packets of beet seeds. Hopefully I’m not planting them too late. I did soak the beet seeds in water overnight hoping to give them a jump-start. We’ll see if it works.
If all goes well, these will be our Thanksgiving beets. Roasted vegetables rule, and it would be pretty awesome if we could go without having to buy any carrots, potatoes, or beets this winter.
How about you?
Are you finished planting all your seeds for the year?
Are you ready for the gardening season to be over?
~Mavis
Elizabeth F says
No more planting here. Gardening is over, just need to get as much out as possible. Half our trees are changing colors already. It may still look warm and sunny but the feel is different.
I’m doing pickle relish today, which I started yesterday and corn relish and pickled beets. I got my beets at farmer’s market today. Have never had luck growing beets. Despite the dry weather the sweet corn was excellent this year. I love making pickle relish as is a good thing to do with those cukes that got too big. My husband is out driving around on his weekend off doing his stuff…has canoe on top of our (collectors) VW bus. He has been instructed to stop at all farmer’s markets as I need 12 pounds of red cabbage if he wants his pickled red cabbage this winter.
He will also return with 1-2 100 pound bags of russet potatoes, the unwashed ones. They last longer. Normally he would be bringing me 20 pounds of pitted frozen unsweetened tart cherries also, but the state cherry crop was like 1/10 of what it should have been. So we are coveting that once last bag of cherries from last year still in the freezer …probably will be a pie at Thanksgiving. This was a bad year for apples due to a freeze right after our trees budded so I need lots of apples.
I am always very happy when garden comes to end. time to rest.
Kind of looks like your chick is going around and eating your newly planted seeds. We had chickens one year and when allowed to run in the yard, they loved to peck at the grass seed. Funny we had chickens as I know I have mentioned we don’t eat meat. But they were a class project when my son was in 5th (hatching eggs) and we ended up with 3 of them. We only had them for the summer as we didn’t have a good enough house for them for cold weather. Our garden was their favorite spot to be …was surrounded by a rabbit proof fence so they could not get out. In fall we gave them to a family from school who had a farm. Chicken Little, Elmo and Fatso…don’t pets have fun names?
Maha says
Hi Mavis,
Everytime your post appears my mind goes in to a Fiesta music party !! LOL !! I love alll that you do but I have not been following you this entire season. Can you post a timeline of ALL the things you planted and which week in which month they were planted as well as harvested?? I would love to duplicate your success. I live in New Jersey and I may just container garden (I can get few barrels to improvise)…
Thank you very much,
Maha Raman
Kat D says
No more planting here. Leaves are starting to turn and we have a week of 70* temps headed our way. Still warm enough for plenty of the tomatoes to ripen and with any luck we still have a couple of months until snow. If I want a fall harvest, I have to get seeds in the ground late July/very early August for anything to be ready before the ground freezes. I did just haul in many, many bushels of peppers, tomatoes, tomatillos, summer squash, cucumbers, broccoli, and a nice 1st round of dried beans.
cindy says
I planted a small fall garden. Hopefully it will do better than the big summer garden did. It was so hot here in Tennessee this summer that most everything burned up.
I have little chicks that help me in the garden sometimes too. 🙂
Kelly says
Love your blog! Yes! I am have planted my seeds today as well. I have 2 raised beds with hoops over them. I also have a cold frame. My 1st Maine winter cold frame test. Wish me luck!
Mavis says
WOW! Gardening in Maine in the winter? I wish you all the luck possible. Take some pictures and send them to me this winter. I would love to see your raised beds with hoops over them. 🙂
Madam Chow says
Mavis, check out: The Winter Harvest Handbook: Year Round Vegetable Production Using Deep Organic Techniques and Unheated Greenhouses by Eliot Coleman
Mavis says
Thanks Madam Chow, I own it… Now all I need to do is find time to read it. 🙂
Desi says
So Miss Mavis, when you reach your 2000 lb goal are you going to run around outside in your footy pj’s with your blanket yelling “I made it”,” I made it”. Then proceed to rip out any extra kale you don’t won’t because you’re sick of it. 🙂
Mavis says
LOl You are the first person to suggest a victory dance… So YES, that is what I will do if I reach my goal. 😉
Desi says
OHHH, your neighbors will love it! LOL 🙂
Krista says
Aww, Five is SO cute!
Ellen says
Mavis, can you share any tips on how you store/organize canning supplies such as lids and rings? My house is being overtaken by these.
Thanks
Elizabeth F says
Well lids just stay in their box til you need them. I have one of those carry things left over from one of my girlses dorm days….I fill it with the rings, have another basket for the jar lifter, funnels, lid magnet thingie. In the off season all is stored in basement. My husband built louvered cupboards on 2 sides for storage. The extra jars and the empty jars go back in their boxes. I liked the old boxes better, the full box. Now they all seem to come in just a shrink wrapped cardboard tray.
I don’t do stairs due to disability, so in summer all my canning stuff is carried up and lined up along the dining room wall. It stays there and handy until I say it goes back to basement. Once jars are filled and labeled husband takes them back to basement and lines them up in pantry. He knows to rotate stock, should there still be a jar or 2 left from last season. I have a smaller pint canner that I use in the off season to make jams, that kind of thing. Then I just have someone run down and get the canner and the 6-7 jars I need.
I always store my empty jars upside down in the boxes. Keeps the spiders and other dust and stuff out. I store any pectin, spice mixes if I use them, cheesecloth, cotton twine, lids in a basket in my upstairs pantry so I can keep an eye on those for replenishment. I know I never have to buy more jars so they can store in basement.
I like to put fruits, vegetables on trays so that they can be moved if needed, out of the way if not doing them immediately. I don’t like fruit flies so I keep cider vinegar/detergent traps in several places in kitchen.
Not really sure if this helps you. I don’t think you should worry about canning stuff sitting around as you are doing something great for you. your family and you should be
proud of it.
Ellen says
Elizabeth, that was helpful. Thank you!
nancypantsgirl says
Seriously need to get out there and PLANT!! Our baby chicks come in one week! I am so excited!
David says
How do you take the pictures with you in them? Tripod and timer or is there a person behind them? Just curious, I’ve been debating the best way to do it myself.
Mavis says
The Girl takes a lot of my pictures for me.
The Prudent Homemaker says
It’s 107º here. I’m waiting for it to cool down enough to plant again.
I’m going to work tomorrow at ripping out my tomatoes and pruning my grape vines. I thought the tomatoes would start to set again once it got cooler, but I found them all eaten this morning, AND grape vine skeltetonizers on the grape vines. Tomorrow’s a rip out. I would go do it right this minute if I didn’t have to make dinner and have a child’s birthday.
At least it will be clean for fall planting at the end of the month. Our first frost isn’t until mid November.