The very cold weather and hard frosts of January are upon us, completely taking everyone by surprise, as usual. The weather changes very quickly here. New Year’s Eve was almost warm. It wasn’t until we were sitting around a New Year’s fire that night that the first gust of cold wind blew down from far…
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Thrifty Leftover Turkey Pie With Garden Vegetables
Cold weather and busy days. There’s so much I’d like to get done before the new year, but the short days run by so quickly, and I’m left wondering to myself how it’s so easy to stay up so late knitting by the fire when the nights are so long. There are lettuce and collard…
The Longest Night 2017
Today marks exactly a year since we left our house in town to live in the middle of nowhere with our garden and animals. I love the long, dark nights of winter, when you can wake up in the middle of the night and feel the quiet emptiness around you, and the soft breath of…
Misty Mornings
In the summer time I always try to wake up early to finish the chores before the heat of the day sets in. This season the beauty of the early mornings has drawn me outside into the pearly air and dew-drenched grass. Mists have crept out of the forest and settled in the low places…
Pigeon Pea, The Elusive Chicken
A few months ago our neighbor unloaded five defective chickens on us. His old mother had gotten them as a bunch of straight run laying chicks, and they had already unloaded the dozen roosters they had ended up with on us the year before. Now she was going on vacation and the five chickens were getting…
Sam’s Shrimp And Roselle Leaf Curry
Roselle is a large, beautiful hibiscus relative that bears fleshy red calyxes that can be cooked or dried and made into sauces, jellies, desserts, tea, etc. It is also called the Florida Cranberry for it’s cranberry-like flavor. I have almost always grown roselle in my garden. It becomes a large, beautiful plant, over my…
Farm Adventures
Summer versus winter butter. These are busy, busy days with Ethan gone. After 9 months of no income, he has at last found a job, but unfortunately it doesn’t just take him away from the farm, but out-of-state for many weeks. So it is just me and the children and the animals, busy…
In The Garden: The Zucchini Has Escaped
I love the early summer garden, before the pests, heavy rain storms, and incredible heat set in. The garden is easy and productive now, and the weeds and bugs feel under control. However, productivity CAN have some drawbacks! We were gone at the Florida Folk Festival over the weekend, and in only a few…
A Garden Interview With Tim Noyes
I recently met Tim Noyes at a Third Monday Meeting, and discovered he was a kindred gardener who also gardens with the same “above organic” standards that I pursue. I was so impressed with his knowledge of heirloom vegetable varieties, and the amazing tomatoes he brought to share! “I have been gardening for 8 years. …
Banana Cream Pie – And A Paleo Grain-free/Dairy-free version
We had two almost overripe bananas, and lots of creamy milk and eggs on hand – and this was the result. We can confirm from experience that this delicious pie is great for a picnic at the springs! There are two versions – a real pastry and real creamy milk version, and a Paleo…
ÉPINARDS À LA MAÎTRE D’HÔTEL: Spinach, The Butler’s Way (or beet greens)
Confession: I’m terrible at growing spinach. It just doesn’t like my garden, or maybe it just doesn’t like me. I like spinach, but I just can’t seem to grow it. I’ve tried starting it at different times of the season, in different conditions, with either coddling or neglect (some plants do better with one of…
Tired Puppies
We picked up two Great Pyrenees puppies on Saturday. They are still little roly-poly bundles of fluff, but I could tell that they had grown since we had visited them just two weeks ago. Everyone was so excited. Puppies to play with! We have never had a puppy before, having gotten our previous dog Belle…
Toadstools And Fairy Rings 