Song Time/ Falling Leaves Time 2022

An interesting fungus

The moon is full and we say, "farewell" to Song Time/Falling Leaves Time. It's been a busy month here.

Our weather became abruptly autumnal right on Labor Day. Quite cool (to very cool) and rainy. 

At Sapsucker Woods in Ithaca

Before the weather changed we attended the Migration Celebration hosted at Sapsucker Woods by the Cornell Ornithology Lab. It was a lovely day. We went on a two hour guided bird walk and then got to see some birds of prey up close and personal: a golden eagle, a peregrine falcon, a great horned owl, a broad winged hawk and a red tailed hawk.

Peregrine Falcon

After eating a picnic lunch we walked another two hours on our own. We didn't see many birds, but did see many interesting fungi. It was a very nice break from our work.

Last of the summer produce

Because of the quick shift in the weather, I've gotten a good bit of garden clean up done. All of the tender crops are out. Only the cool weather enthusiasts remain: kale, chard, parsley, beets and carrots. I also have two varieties of dry beans still standing. I'm hoping more of the pods will mature soon. All of the other beans have been harvested and their trellises stripped.

Last month a reader asked me about tomato leathers. I thought perhaps others would be interested, too. Tomato leathers are similar to those "fruit roll ups" that you find in the grocery store, except they are made out of tomato. I use them to add to soup, make spaghetti sauce or by adding just a little water, tomato paste. Here's the process:

Opalka Tomatoes

I use a good paste type of tomato (less juice, more pulp). Mine are an heirloom variety from Poland.

Blending the tomatoes

I remove the skins (this is optional, but I have texture issues and prefer no skins). Then I puree the pulp in my blender.

Blended puree

I pour about 1 1/2c of puree onto a special sheet that comes with my dehydrator. This tray is then put into my dehydrator (my machine will hold nine trays all together) and dried until no longer tacky to the touch.

Dried leathers

Once dry, the trays are removed and leathers allowed to cool. After this I roll the leathers and store them in an airtight jar. In this state they will keep for a very long time.

My dehydrator

My dehydrator is a good quality one with a fan and thermostatic control. It has nine trays and when full will accommodate 12.25 square feet of produce. That's like 25# of vegetables. It can hold a lot! I've been using mine several times a year for 17 years now. It's been a worthwhile investment for me.

We observed the Autumnal Equinox this month. The weather was unpleasant so we stayed indoors: had a nice meal, played a game and read together. For our meal I made a kale and apple sauté and a wild rice and wild mushroom pilaf topped with fresh parsley, craisins and roasted almonds. For dessert we had black and blue pie.

Our Equinox meal

The wild mushrooms that I used in the meal were from our neighbors. They had several puffballs growing in their lawn and offered them to us. We enjoyed a few meals and the remainder were sautéed and frozen for use this winter. It was a greatly appreciated gift.

One of our puffballs

 

We are very pleased to announce that the east porch is now finished!

The new and improved porch

Bob finished just yesterday. We're both very pleased with the results. We plan to build the third, and final porch on the west side next summer. Then we'll dismantle the existing deck behind the house.

A man proud of his work

The outside of the house is beginning to look as good as the inside.

That's about all of the news from here for now. We're both looking forward to winding up the garden chores and settling in for a nice rest. 

Enjoy your autumn.

Till next time,

Kathleen and Bob

First fire of the season

 

Harvest/Ingathering 2022

 

A harvest sample

Another full moon, another month gone. This is my favorite moon - the Harvest Moon.

We've had rainy spells lately. It feels as though the fall weather patterns are commencing. We have to act quickly to get outside work done before the next series of rainy days begins.

It's the busiest time of year for the garden: harvesting and preserving produce and cleaning out spent plants.

Garlic and shallots ready to store

The garlic and shallots have been cured, cleaned and hung in the cellar.

White sweet corn

Sweet corn has been harvested and frozen.

Red potatoes

The red potatoes have been dug and are in the cellar.

Sweet potato vines before harvest

Bob digs his share of the sweet potatoes

Harvested sweet potatoes

Bob and I dug the sweet potatoes which are now curing in the attic.

I've also filled my freezer quota for tomatoes (48 pts) and green beans (30 pts).

The freezers are now full! We have two high efficiency chest freezers, each with a 7.5 cu ft capacity.

Freezer #1 full: fruits, tomatoes and herbs

Freezer #2 full: vegetables

Now I'm in the process of dehydrating extra green beans (so good in soups) and tomato leathers (great for using as tomato paste).

I have picked my dry Aduki beans and have begun picking some of the other varieties as the pods dry.

There have been many busy days for me!

The new porch work is progressing.

Working on step supports

Bob's ready to begin installing the decking; then the hand rails.

Painting wood trim

Just yesterday I finished painting the wood portions of the existing porch. I'm glad that we're installing maintenance free rails and decking. I'm also glad to be off that ladder! It makes my legs ache!

That's what we've been up to here. We just keep grinding along. 

We hope you've all enjoyed your summer and are looking forward to an autumn that will stimulate your senses.

Till next time,

Kathleen and Bob

A solar halo we spotted August 18th

Abundance - Ripening Time 2022

 

Some of my garden flowers

Here we are, nearly in the middle of August! Abundance - Ripening Time is technically over tonight, but the abundance hasn't really come in yet.

Some early produce

We've gotten a few squash and cucumbers, but certainly not been over run by them yet. We've also had a couple of bell peppers and one Asian eggplant.

Picking green beans

Wax and green beans are coming along and I've gotten a few into the freezer.

First tomato!

Today we had our first ripe tomato. It was delicious!

Chopped cabbage for the freezer

The large cabbages have all been harvested and either eaten or frozen. I get smaller (tennis ball to softball) sized second crop heads after the main crop. I do this by cutting the main head off and leaving the stem in the ground. I then cut an "X" into the top of the stem. Soon new cabbage buds will grow around the "X". So, each stem will grow another 4-6 mini cabbage heads. They're just right for a single meal. We're just starting to use these now.

Preparing celery and parsley

I'm still putting celery and parsley leaves into the freezer.

Half of my blue potatoes

I've dug my blue potatoes. The reds mature a little later so they're still out there.

The garden is looking good right now. We just wish we were getting a little bit more out of it at the moment. Here's a sampling of garden shots from last week.

Corn and beans

Beans and potatoes

Sweet potatoes and beans

Beans, tomatoes and cucumbers

The flower section

Remember, I grow nine different kinds of beans. That's why they're in almost every shot!

The weather here has been hot and dry. Our area is under a drought warning again this year. If this weather continues, at least the drying beans should mature well.

Deck work continues

Bob's been working on the side porch deck. It's coming along well. I need to get the two posts on the connecting porch scraped and painted soon. Bob wants them done before he puts down the decking and installs the hand rails. I hope to start on that tomorrow.

Buttermilk Falls State Park

On Lammas Eve (July 31) we went for a walk at Buttermilk Falls State Park in Ithaca. It's been so dry that the falls weren't much to look at, but the walk through the gorge was cool and nice.

Woodrow Chuck

We had to give the boot to an unwanted guest this month. For years we have had wood chucks living under our sheds. We peacefully coexisted (with the aid of an Airedale and an electric fence wire). This year, one determined stinker decided it would rather live on our side of the fence. It barged through the wire, apparently ignoring the "zing" and began digging a new den next to our house foundation. One entire day it spent its "off digging" time sitting on our deck and basking in the sunshine on "Lunette's slope" overlooking our garden. I tried to chase it out, but it "dug in its heals" and wouldn't move. Even when I threw things at it! That was it! This critter had to go.

A licensed DEC animal relocator came and set two live traps for it. 

Wrong place at the wrong time

 

The first and second night we got a racoon each time. Finally on the second afternoon we got the real culprit. All three were relocated. I presume to the nearby National Forest.

Yesterday I saw another wood chuck grazing outside of the fence. Hopefully this one will have better manners or will heed the shocks from the fence wire.

Well, that's most of the fun we've been having here this month. We hope that you're enjoying yourselves and are safe from fires and floods. (We know some of you are in those areas.)

Oh, just a reminder, if you want to see any of our back issues, just pick them up from the website menu list. 

Till the next full moon,

Kathleen and Bob

Our wild blackberries

Long Days Time/Fire Fly Time 2022

 

Purple Flowering Raspberries - native

It's hard to believe that Long Days/Fire Fly Time has passed. We've been busy here with garden chores.

Bob mulching bean bed

Bob's been kept busy mulching beds, watering new grass and clover seeds covering our excavation site, and repairing/replacing garden edging. All of that work is finally done.

I've been busy picking and processing garden produce.

A variety of lettuces

We're just finishing up our lettuce for the season. It was very good.

Fresh peas

The peas have all been harvested and most of them are in the freezer.

Garlic harvest

The garlic has been pulled and is curing in the attic.

Black currants

Last week I picked and froze both the black and red currants.

Red currants and cabbages

I'm currently in the process of harvesting cabbages. I usually parcel out a quarter of a head to eat fresh. The remaining portion is frozen.

Shiitake logs at work

Our shiitake logs have been giving us some nice mushrooms. Some of these we have eaten fresh, most we have sauted and frozen for future use.

New red and blue potatoes

I couldn't resist harvesting just a few new potatoes to enjoy!

Kale, chard, parsley and celery have also steadily been going into the freezer. This will continue until the killing frost in the autumn.

Both freezers have now been turned on. This is one of our season's annual milestones.

Of course, there's still much more to come: cucumbers, squash, green beans, dried beans, corn, beets, carrots, potatoes, peppers and eggplants. Not to mention tomatoes!

Three tomatoes hiding here

The beans are reaching and surpassing the tops of their 4' and 6' trellises.

Green beans a'climbing

Mid July garden

This picture was taken yesterday. You can see the garden is coming along nicely!

Beebe Pond - Ithaca, NY

We did take time away from chores to mark the Solstice. We went for a walk at Beebe Pond in Ithaca. It was a very nice day.

On the canal boat

Another weekend we went on a short cruise on the Seneca River and Cayuga-Seneca Canal. This was a free cruise which is being offered on Saturdays and Sundays through the month of August. We enjoyed lovely weather and saw many waterlilies in bloom and many Great Blue Herons fishing for dinner. After the cruise, we took a picnic lunch and ate by Seneca Lake. It was a relaxing day.

That's what we've been up to this month. Next month will be much the same, only the vegetables will be different.

We hope you're all enjoying your summer.

Till next time,

Kathleen and Bob

At Beebe Pond on the Solstice

Bob enjoying our picnic

Sunflowers mean summer