All the “I should have’s,” “why didn’t I’s,” and “I meant to’s” were as thick this spring as the yellow tufts on our lawns, except I wasn’t digging these ones. The warmth of spring seems to thaw out my brain as much as it does the soil. Birds and blossom return and gradually, I recall all the things that flew and faded away since the previous spring when I had remembered them.
The growth of summer, bounty of harvest, and comfort of winter shade out, smother, and bury in turn these tiny wisdoms until they slowly emerge again with the apple blossom and swoop upon me with the swallow. Blushing at my own forgetful foolishness, I relearn the same spring proverbs year after year, determining again and again to wrap them tightly as a winter scarf about my neck.
This year, I have decided to do more than merely admonish myself (yet again) with a shaking of my head and instead put that head onto paper. (The faintest ink and all that.) This way, when winter comes again and my brain inevitably grows hazy over my hibernation horde, I can read my little list to myself and remember that spring and summer are not the only seasons for prepping and storing up.
So, here’s a silly little winter reminder list I jotted down for myself:
~HIBERNATION PROVERBS~
Dear Self. You’re welcome. (PS. The bad poetry is free.)
When the days turn cold and gray,
Put all the garden things away.
Don’t dump them muddy until May!
When the frost is on the pumpkin,
Get pureeing on those melons!
Don’t sentence them as pantry felons.
Speaking of pantries and closets galore,
When the snow falls deep, deep-clean the horror!
In fact . . .
In the bleak midwinter, far from the gnome,
Tackle all indoor projects in your home!
When you’re feasting out of freezer ware,
Take the freezer-dinner dare;
Restock with spring and summer fare.
‘Cause gardening season is a bear!
When you need double blankets on the bed,
Double up for heart and head!
Read and write in winter’s stead,
‘Cause April weeds will stop you dead.
When spring fever comes to call,
Get in the kitchen and have a Ball!
Not just canned goods though, I say.
Whip up salves, scrubs, and spray!
When the taters and onions aren’t lookin’ so hot,
Get them roasting in the pot!
(Freeze up spring stew for when one’s got you!)
When ice lays heavy on the trim,
It’s time for heavy lifting in the gym!
Don’t let that hoe scream “SPRING” at you… again.
Everything We Did Our Fifth Spring on the Homestead!
* If reading this in your email window, click the link to see the entire post and slide shows!
Completed Project Chicken Run! And filled it with 32 popcorn chickens. 😆
We’ve had one main focus since our homestead journey began: feed ourselves… in mind, body, and soul. Our first physical triumphs in this endeavor are documented in our previous post: CHECKING OUT; First 14 Grocery Items We’ve Cut from Our List! We have successfully grown a large portion of our own produce these past several seasons, and this year we have taken the huge goal to consume only meat that we personally raise, hunt, or fish. This past year, we did not purchase beef and ate hunted venison and elk instead, but we are excited for some fish and chicken to join their red friends in the freezer.
Rode the spring waves of wild weather!
We saw the eighties and we saw the thirties this spring; once or twice in the same week. Montana always dishes up wild weather, but this spring might have been the wackiest we’ve seen yet. One day, we were digging out the shorts and considering turning on the air conditioning, and the next we were chopping more firewood and digging back out the snow gloves. The hummingbirds arrived the last day of April and then we got slammed a week later with a May snowstorm. We thought we were going to lose all our fruit tree blossoms, but we were amazed to find that the blossoms stood firm even after a hailstorm and a freeze!
Welcomed our first homegrown batch of kittens!
When we decided to homestead half a dozen years ago, I had one thing on my mind: plants. I saw all the buds, blooms, borders, and branches in my mind’s eye. I completely underestimated the animals’ role in both the jobs and joy of homestead life. Our homestead animals bring so much life to this property. There is barking and tweeting and mewing and chirping and clucking and humming and chirring and buzzing all around us. Everywhere we turn there is something soft and miraculous to watch or pet. This spring might have been our cutest yet with the addition of our first five baby kittens.
Posts about our pets:
- New PUP, new PAD, and learning to SNOWPLOW!
- All about YETI
- First Year (and then some) with YETI
- Meet Otis, our newest addition to the homestead!
- Our first batch of kittens, homegrown on the homestead!
Went WILD for mulch!
Sometimes we can be really daft. Like driving fifteen miles to the store to buy a truck load of ready-made mulch shrink-wrapped in plastic bags for four years straight before realizing that we are literally surrounded by the freshest, fluffiest mulch on the planet. Under every big tree in the forest, come of find out, is a foot deep of perfect forest mulch. But isn’t harvesting it a pain, you ask? No. In fact, it’s a joy. It takes mere minutes to rake up a few buckets of forest mulch. Plus, it is a nice, cool break from working in the sun-baked garden and the task smells so positively divine that the entire experience is more therapy than chore.
If you have any woods on your property or access to some, join us is going wild for mulch!
Started selling omelettes!
Ok, so we aren’t making the omelettes. But we have finally started selling our Bloomin’ Eggs locally! Our big goal? To cover the cost of our organic (and expensive) chicken feed and eat our family’s portion of eggs for free. That’s good enough for us. Oh, and to bring smiles to people’s faces when they open these cartons and find a veritable bouquet of eggs.
Amended the beds with our “Yummy Soil” formula!
We love the traditional “Mel’s Mix” for raised beds of one part coconut coir or peat moss, one part perlite, and one part compost. It’s the perfect consistency for young seedlings, holds the right amount of moisture, and makes weeding an absolute breeze. But we’ve given it a little twist to make it just that much better by swapping in our own worm compost which packs a fertilizer boost of worm castings! Each spring, this top-dressing of “Yummy Soil” sets us up for a successful growing season.
Check out our full vermicomposting tutorial here: Make a WORM COMPOST BIN!
Celebrated planting independence!
This spring was a triumph for planting as we had to plant less than half the amount we have had to these past four years! We are reaping the rich rewards of having planted perennials as well as enjoying the miraculous process of self-seeding. If you are in your first years of gardening or homesteading, take heart! It DOES get easier.
Herbs we DIDN’T have to plant this spring (perennials and self-seeding):
- mint
- chamomile
- lavender
- sage
- thyme
- oregano
- chives
- bee balm
- borage
- yarrow
- echinacea
Flowers we DIDN’T have to plant this spring (perennials and self-seeding):
- lupine
- daffodils
- narcissus
- hollyhocks
- salvia
- sunflowers
- marigolds
- milkweed
- snapdragons
- pansies
- zinnia
- poppies
Fruits and Veggies we DIDN’T have to plant this spring (perennials and self-seeding):
- red spinach (mountain orach)
- rhubarb
- asparagus
- fruit trees
- strawberries
- gooseberries
- currants
There was one more surprise on the homestead this spring…
“All winter Wilbur watched over Charlotte’s egg sac as though he were guarding his own children. For Wilbur, nothing in life was so important as this small round object -nothing else mattered. Patiently he awaited the end of winter and the coming of the little spiders. Life is always a rich and steady time when you are waiting for something to happen or to hatch.” ~E.B. White, Charlotte’s Web
Thanks for hopping by the homestead!
Love, Candace Arden
Check out all our seasonal highlights posts here:
Here’s everything we did our…
