Thursday, May 14, 2009

Homesteader's First Fruits

Ahhh...the fruits of my labor are starting to come in.






Here is a handful of sugar snaps that I picked today. Up north they are called English peas. People pick them when they are a little bigger and shell them.


Here in the south, we pick them when they are young and tender. We eat pod and all. Y-U-M! See the spots on a couple of them? That, unfortunately, is a result of too much rain.














This is the apron-full of green beans I picked today. I'm having some of these for dinner. These are Blue Lake Green Beans. A popular brand. I'll clean and freeze the ones I don't eat tonight. I'll save them up until I get enough to can. It's raining again. I hope the rain doesn't spoil them like it seems to be doing with the sugar snaps.









Here is the "Second field of corn. This used to be the pasture where we kept the goats. This year a neighbor plowed and disked it for me. I planted Golden Queen corn. It seems to be doing okay. At least this half of the field is. the other half was washed out by the flood.















Look at the baby tomatoes! My tomatoes are having a good year. They like a lot of rain, though. So maybe they will make up for the loss of the sugar snaps.


















These are the Blue Lake Green Beans. They look "happy."




















My "girls" are having fun during their free range day. At right, proud rooster Chaunticleer is with 2 of the Rhode Island Red hens.













A Rhode Island Red hen is making sure that the feather-footed banty cochins don't get anything she doesn't get.














A Celebrity variety tomato plant in bloom.











The corn in the primary garden is doing well. The potatoes, in front, are doing very well.














A better view of the corn in the primary garden.










The result? A nice chicken dinner. No! Not one of my chickens! I just can't do that. But green beans from my own garden and my onions from last year. I could have used my own potatoes but I had 2 left in the pantry that I needed to use.








There is a great feeling of pride in making a meal with the things you grew by the sweat of your own brow. I highly recommend it.






I work in the garden while Trudy, my "watch cat" hides in the tall grass waiting to pounce on anything that passes her way....mostly the dog.











More later......