Jewels from the Garden - beans and corn drying for the year

 Esme helping sort the corn and break out dry pods of beans onto a plate.  She was so bouncey, and wiggly, and overexcited - she wanted to wash everything and dance and jump and splash water everywhere... finally calmed down some.  I told her a joke because she was scowling at me - and said I had tricked her into looking happy... well.. after that she continued to smile, because she actually was having a little bit of fun.

 Breaking out the whipporwill cowpea pods - which are very long, narrow and crispy. 

A lot of the corn seen here was 'volunteer.'  It came up without my knowing what was there or how... we had ornamental corn there last year but grew all of our other corn elsewhere in the garden this year.  I planted a few seeds of Smoke Signals and Peaches and Cream corn in between each of the volunteers to make a full row that we would not step on - as they were naturally scattered a bit here and there and not quite in a straight line.

Upon examining the outcome - I think it was a cob of Hopi Pink and one of Glass Gems that got mixed in, or some cache of seeds some animal had buried from last year we hit with the tiller.    I have them drying out to shell into containers and label for the year.  The pictures don't do any justice to the blues and greens that are present in real life.. .a whole range of color - which is where I say they are our jewels from the garden.

 

And this is the bean crop so far.

The large buff colored beans are Ireland Creek Annie - which did very well.  I started with nine of those seeds and have 30+ and have more to break out in the coming weeks.  The Black Shackamaxon has a showing already and there are gallons of that coming later.  The red and white speckled ones are Taylor Dwarf Horticultural - something I didn't have room for last year.  

The Ireland Creek Annie and the Taylor are both my first 'major' expeditions into full rows of "reserved to dry" bush beans - as most of my harvests have come from pole beans up until now.  There are also some tiny white climber beans, whipporwill cowpeas and black eyed peas.  I planted some unlabelled Pinto beans (which I thought the white climbers were when I gathered them...odd...always have some odd ones out, right?)   Kenearly Yellow Eye (a semi-climber that says it is a bush), black seeded wax (one of those seeds is one, but I've lost it in the mix!), Bosnian and Provider seeds all drying out in the cabinet.

I've also got a decent collection of Mammoth Striped and Lemon Sunflower seeds this year... partly for the chickens, partly for next year.

Full Sunday

 We took on a lot today - and conquered ;) hehe.  I took Esme out for school shopping early in the morning, with a brief (and I do mean brief) runby the park on the way back home.  Mark was canning tomatoes while we were out, and we returned home just in time to watch him setting up the last run of about three gallons worth.  We tackled the old aquarium, emptying out the old water and cleaning it up.  We gave it to a friend who had helped us out last January with the truck, for their snake that had outgrown their old one.  We brought the partially washed gravel to Esme in her kiddie pool to pick out the 'terasure' of jewels, marbles and large agates into another container.  She enjoyed panning for treasure like a pirate :)

 Garden harvest.  That is volunteer Glass Gem corn, which I will try to dry out.

 Mark with his canned tomato sauce!  We will be using this all year.

Esme's pink truck in Minecraft.  It has a bed for having picnics in and a cab with glass and a strange 'vertical' hood thing going on.  Over to the side of it she has a recreation of the beach we went to on the Fourth of July - with stairs down and sand.

Little bits:  The other morning Esme woke up and asked why we were downstairs by her room being so noisy.  We told her we were checking up on the alligator Daddy had found and put in the bathtub.  She went and looked tentatively..worried... There's no Alligator, Daddy!  'Oh - really?  Did it get away?  Where did it go?'  She got even more worried and went back into her room to hide for a bit.  We laughed!  She came back out as I was washing my hair and poked her head in... convinced herself it was all a joke, and then brought me her Kindergarten start book with a picture of an alligator and said she had finally found it and everything would be okay. as a way of telling me she knew we were pretending.

I saw her on the porch hugging the goat by the neck the other day.  It was very sweet - they both seemed to be commiserating about being lonely.  I think they both miss Tink, the kitten who died.  I think they also miss having the puppies running around the yard.  I miss them, too... it is strange to walk over the ground between the garden and the house and not have my heels chewed on.  We think the older dogs have mostly forgiven us now for giving them all away... but they were pretty upset we took their entire pack of hard work and training and 'lost' them in the town that day.

We let Esme play a bit in the small wading pool at her friend's house when we brought the aquarium.  I told her she could wade, as we hadn't brought other clothes for her and didn't intend to stay long.  A few minutes later she was entirely soaked and still had not done more than 'wade'.  She jumped and sat down - stood up and yelled 'Sorry Mom!' across the yard.  Her friend's parents asked 'What was that for?'..  I told her she couldn't swim, just wade.  Oh, at least she said sorry, about it *giggle*... I told her it was okay, she could swim a bit now.. and they immediately started cannonballing each other and spraying the hose over each other.  After about ten to fifteen minutes we said it was time to go .. she did get ready to go reluctantly.  At home we filled up her pool again and she brought a little plastic doll out there to be her 'friend' until it was time for supper.

harvest and dragon

 Sweet peas from today.. two different varieties

I tried to save about ten big ones for seed and a pod from the other variety

 Cucumbers (one that was hiding really well), pepper, zucchini, basil, beans and sweet peas  Esme said it had lots of spikes on it like a cactus.

A purple squishy dragon from the zoo gift shop.

Her name is 'Violent' the dragon.

Yellow pants, red zinnia, purple beans

Cosmos are finally blooming prettily.

Almost purple Minion cat (and baby) 

The kitten looks so much like her she is hard to see!

A harvest from the garden today. I haven't been out there in over a week 

but the rain really helped everything perk back up.  There was twice this 

amount of nearly everything when I got done...

A proud hopper that was sitting on a bean plant.

Pretty red zinnia. 

Esme clowning around on the tires. 

She looks so tall and leggy...

The Tennessee Greasy Bean, planted back in May? It is finally coming into it's own and producing like mad. These are huge green and purple variegated beans that turn green when cooked. 

These are the yellow 'stardust' pants she picked the fabric for. They are 26.5 inches long from waistband to bottom cuff and a size 5 sewing pattern.  They take a yard and a half to make - which costs about 4 to 6 dollars and an hours worth of time to sew.  Pretty good budgetwise... just have to kick myself over there to the machine to make them once I've bought the fabric, as such a 'quick and easy' project doesn't always have the allure that a dress pattern would, even though replacements are so necessary when she runs through the woods, plays chase with the dogs or sits in mud for three hours and the stains don't come out!

Another shot.. she was being 'rockstar' and also 'careful not to step plants in the tires'. That is one of the few storebought T-shirts she has and it is already too small (a size 4) and showing her belly when she puts her arms up.  The long sleeved shirt is a gift from her grandparents for last birthday and is a size 5 - still fits and she likes it.

We have the parent teacher conference today...

Green harvest and Esme room diagram

Small harvest
okra, pimento peppers, banana peppers, yellow tomatoes, basil, black eyed peas, lima beans

This drought has been so hard on everything - some of my new seedlings are still burning up with morning and night waterings... I am still getting some harvest but once in a while it feels like it will all just dry up and the garden will be done.. and then I tell myself that no - there are a lot of things still doing little bits, and to be happy with the little bits. Also, something is eating my corn. Something with tiny teeth. *Sigh* well I was taking a chance planting a second round... oh well.


A little burr grass that was in the garden

I am laying out the design for Esme's room - taking it a bit seriously Mark thinks ;) He joked asking if he needed to get out of the way before I ran him over with the construction equipment *ha*. I took measurements and the 'new' room is actually about 11x14 - much larger than I had originally thought. And the measurements of her main items bed, dresser, shelving unit, table will take up much smaller of the floor space. But - that will add more space to spread out toys and add a few more shelving units and a larger chair for her to sit in. I'm looking at a 'video rocker' style because she has liked these at the local library.


diagram before I knew the room was bigger


Esme had Grandma call Daddy today after she took some jar lids up and tell him that she 'forgot to go to work today' and he needed to know that. We still don't know what that was about...it might have to do with the time - as she usually calls Grandma to go visit at about the same time she asked to call Daddy instead to tell him that she was already there?

Garden today

part of the harvest today


Lemon Boy tomato


The garden with water.. and weeds


Another shot of the garden greened up


Florida Speckled Lima Beans


The four on the right were one 'ear' of corn that had split and never developed kernels because of it. The one on the left just had no kernels in it. This was the end of what was out in the popcorn field (although I had harvested good ears a while back)



The Kitty goat doesn't mind malformed corn, and eats the small unformed ears


Grasshopper that made himself known..
what kind is he?


Dixie Speckled Butter pea lima beans



You can't see me. No, I said you couldn't see me! Don't take my picture!


This sorghum broomcorn was white and yellow a few weeks ago - and now it is ripening to reds and browns


puppies eating softened food
they sing and cry like they are complaining in between each bite
but that is most likely the evidence that they are coonhounds!


blue eyes reflecting


second harvest of the day after little girl ran to Grandma's house

I sorted some summer and fall seeds - dreaming of what could be and what it would take to get there. Ordered some other fall seeds this past week and they are now all finished and paid for - not much, six dollars worth for a few things we wanted to try more of. I think I am set for 'oh way too early' spring seeds - cabbage and peas etc... if we choose to do that next year.

Okra and other harvest

a pod of okra, peppers, black eyed peas shelled out green and yellow tomatoes


A cob from the west field has a strange thing going on... it is not a mold or bug problem? I gave this cob to the goat and will check another one in another week.

Kernel Red Streak is what I think it is. It is caused by a mosaic virus and/or a mite feeding on some area of the corn while it is developing. However, it is only considered a 'cosmetic blemish' changing the colors of the kernels, and can still be dried (shucked, to get rid of any mites that might be there) and used as animal feed.

Harvest

Morning harvest. There are other things becoming ready but they are not quite there yet. The okra is flowering and putting on pods - that is impressive considering all the rest of the row died and this is one plant. The eggplant has flowers and fruit everywhere it looks like it might actually fall over. German queen tomato is still trying to ripen... fighting blight at the same time. Sweet corn planted the other week is coming up, beans too - sorghum in the west field and in the main garden has both germinated. I am wondering where to dig for winter crops - it will probably be where the yellow tomatoes are now, that is where the soil is best for it. Do I want to give them up? I didn't even plant them this year - they came on their own from last year's planting. But as you can see - they are what is still making the grade (and the soup pot) lately...

Esme was very good yesterday. I have work today and she is still asleep. I spent some time yesterday watching 'Frontier House' episodes and between that and other families on YourGardenShow pulling in and preserving huge harvests I feel like my little corner is not 'intense' at all... I'm just dabbling here and there and getting up at 7 in the morning to wander leisurely around picking tomatoes instead of walking for water and milking the cow and cutting hay for winter. However - I was eyeing my sunflower stalks and thinking if that was the case - those would be coming down right now and being stuck in the rafters of the garage for silage for winter!

Garden bits with a meager harvest

morning glory


eggplants growing


gourds taking over a fencepost


cowpeas growing and blooming - I think they are Mississippi but will know in another week or so for sure.


a meager harvest

With the drought that occurred for the end of June and much of July, many things are just now clawing and coughing their way back to producing. That is, what did not die. And some of what I planted for a second round is struggling hard to survive the still hot temps with daily watering. I am hoping the beans are going to make it - and produce lots of good food for the fall here. I was reading articles today and it looks like the drought is going to hit lots of food prices hard next year... we really should have taken to raising pigs and chickens this year! But, I think we are not quite ready for it... still more to learn before we get there.

garden is nearly done...

Live Wires by Yellowjackets. Heard a song from this on NPR and liked it. It is not often anymore I find music that I want to listen to.

It was cold outside today, in the 40s. The garden needed another look, so we had a reoccurrence of 'lawn gnomes'. I need to knit a new hat, though.. could not find last year's hat. (March 2011 lawn gnomes)






A ball that was outside and got lost in the brush, showed up again and Esme has been having fun with it again.


I caught this picture of her being 'run over' by this ball seconds later... but all you see is a ball and a foot..

When we were out in the garden the first thing she said was : 'Mama, your garden, it is all yucky.' All of the plants had finally died off in a frost. The beautiful zinnias and butterflies and green leaves of just last week were all brown and drying up. There were just a few tomatoes to be picked, a few beans that were ready to dry. And - there was sorghum. The red sorghum that was planted in July was hard and shiny - ready to be stripped and brought inside. I had to be careful not to cut my hands like last time, as I was doing it without a knife again.




I think it is gorgeous. However, it is probably going to end up bird seed in the middle of winter, what is not saved for planting again. If we had chickens, they would LOVE it. This variety is not good for syrup, but is supposed to be a good keeper for animal feed and producing very strong stalks for brooms and baskets. Future plans... learn to use it for more than just bird seed.


broom corn sorghum in a bucket

//notes//
Our dog dish was leaking yesterday and I couldn't fix it. I turned it off and wrapped a towel around it. Later, Mark found Esme playing in the water leak in the 65 degree basement kitchen... and she was soaked. He changed her and turned it off again - *sigh* She seemed pretty 'ok' last night, one cough that caught my Mama ears. Then, she kicked her blankets off in the middle of the night and I didn't catch it until 6 this morning. Now she is coughing some more. I am hoping breakfast of chicken noodle soup will help some. I don't want a sick kid :( I should have put her in a sleeper when I saw the temperatures dropping.