Tuesday, July 31, 2012

Hen of the Month

Ginger
          Miss August is our one year old red star, Ginger.  She is very affectionate and loves to be handled. Every time we go into the coop, she follows us in. She jumps on to the perch and waits to be petted. She lays a nice deep brown egg.

Sunday, July 29, 2012

First Tomatoes of the Season

Juicy sweet ruby red tomatoes
ripened to perfection
     We just started picking our first tomatoes of the season.  So far the tomato plants have been doing well.  We have used them in salads and sandwiches.  As the season progresses I will make tarts, bruschetta and panzanella.  Nothing is better than eating a tomato warmed from the sun and right off the vine.

Saturday, July 21, 2012

Pickling Time

                                 These are the pickling cucumbers we grew from seeds.
We quartered them lengthwise.

                                       We made 4 quarts of dill spears and 2 quarts of bread and
                               butter chips. In the next several weeks we'll continue to pickle
                               our cucumbers.  I'm thinking about canning a zesty dill pickle by
                               adding some red hot chiles to the mix.

Thursday, July 19, 2012

Fall Planting

                                              The garden is prepared for fall planting.
                                              Coming soon: cabbage, radish, lettuce, spinach
                                                                     and beets.

Onion Harvest

                                                   We harvested our first onions.
                                                    Ciopollini and Red Torpedo

Hen of the Month

   
Our Girl Ike
                     Miss July's pick of the chick is our plymouth bard rock, Ike.
                    She is our lead hen. First to the treats, first to the food & water, and first to
                    the best roosting spot at night.  She is the protector of the flock. And at four
                    years old she is still one of our best egg layers.