PLANTING PEAS

I DECIDED TO POST SOME OLD PICTURES I HAD TAKEN BEFORE THE GRANDCHILDREN WENT BACK TO COLORADO THIS SPRING. HERE IS EMMA WHO DROVE THE 'JOHN DEERE' OUT TO MY GARDEN TO PLANT PEAS JUST BEFORE THEY LEFT TO GO HOME. SHE LEARNED FAST--SHE'S PRESSING THE SOIL DOWN AFTER PLACING THE SEED!

 

ME WITH THE PACKET OF SEED, EMMA BUSILY HOEING!

 

THE HORIZON (WEST) FROM THE BACK OF MY GARDEN. THIS TIME OF YEAR THIS SAME PICTURE WOULD BE BLOCKED BY CORNSTALKS AND MORNING GLORY VINES (SEE PREVIOUS POST). BUT I LOVE THIS PICTURE. EMMA HAS A REAL LOVE FOR PLANTING, IT SEEMS. LAST YEAR SOPHIE HELPED TOO, BUT I THINK SHE WAS TAKING A NAP WHEN THE PEA-PLANTING PICTURED ABOVE OCCURRED!

DOESN'T EMMA LOOK HAPPY? ACTUALLY THE PEAS PODS WERE THE BEST THING IN THE GARDEN SO FAR THIS YEAR, WITH THE POSSIBLE EXCEPTION OF THE POTATOES. I HAVE A HARD TIME GROWING THINGS IN ABUNDANCE. I GUESS IT'S OUR SOIL. BUT IT SEEMS THAT WHATEVER EMMA PLANTS COMES UP BEAUTIFULLY! WISH SHE WAS ALWAYS HERE AT PLANTING TIME! WISH THEY WERE ALL ALWAYS HERE!

BLESSINGS, LORI

IDYLLIC COUNTRY SCENES

I couldn't resist taking this picture of my vegetable garden the other morning when I went to let the chickens out. This birdhouse sits atop a post between the corn patch and the rest of the vegetables. I love the morning glory climbing its way up the fence and post. The next day, yesterday, I harvested the first of our corn. This was a big moment as we worked so hard at planting and caring for the first corn patch we've planted in years. It seems to be our best ever, so far. After work I froze 8 quarts. It was a lengthy job, but very nice corn. I probably could have waited a few more days for it to mature, but it was very tender right now and so I went ahead with the process. There will be more coming in the next week or two.

Today I canned 12 quarts of peaches--alone. I usually have help and would have preferred it for such a job, but no one was available. Here are the tools of the process. Aren't the peaches a beautiful color? My McDonald's cup is a "must" as well--filled with iced tea. Behind my cup is my big bin of sugar--also a must for the way we like our peaches! I have gotten only about half the peaches done. I will start again tomorrow and hopefully will have help this time! Today I borrowed Mom's kitchen, pictured here. I ended up in my kitchen before the whole process was over, using both stoves and both our sinks. Always looking for more efficient ways to can fruits and vegetables!

Here the cooker is being loaded with the filled jars. I can fit seven in this cooker. I have another cooker that holds more, but it takes much longer to heat up, so I stick to smaller batches. These will taste so good in the winter! See the smaller jar? It is a "pint-and-a-half" size. I love these. Purchased them long ago at a garage sale and the size is perfect for our little family. We can finish a whole jar of this size for a meal. With the quarts, we have leftovers. I wish I had more of these! I hope you are enjoying this harvest season! Blessings, Lori

OUR TRI-STATE DAYCATION

Saturday we took a "daycation" to points within about an hour of our house. It is amazing how many interesting sites there were--places I'd never been though I've lived my whole life around here. 

The big rock is, as it indicates, is about 130 feet north of the spot where all three states, Michigan, Indiana, and Ohio, meet. Both are located beside a very remote dirt road that my daughter discovered as she drove around looking for places to take pictures after church one Sunday.

This is the smaller marker rock on the tri-state point, 130 feet south.

This huge field of what I think are native prairie flowers is very close to the marker rocks. It's absolutely gorgeous!

Here I am standing on the other side of the field near the marker rock point. We saw a lot of wild apple trees thriving along the country roads. See how remote the area is at the tri-state point? I am standing at the edge of the dirt road.

During our trip we noticed that several small towns were having festivals, farmers's markets, numerous garage sales, and book sales. I got about 10 books free at one "sale." Oh, wow! I can't resist needlework books. As a knitter, tatter, and spinner, I felt like I had obtained a great treasure!

A hay field newly mowed and baled. We saw many beautiful farms all throughout the trip. I love the American farm life. I thoroughly enjoyed the farms I got to see on the daycation and all along our route last week when we drove to Colorado Springs and back to see grandkids (see last post). Hope to post more grandkid pics soon.

This lovely little church building was at a small Ohio crossroads, not far from the tri-state point. I guess it is considered Bridgewater Township, Ohio. But I can't remember the name of the little burg. Sorry about the intrusion of the electric wires, but hey, we do like our conveniences in the modern world, don't we?!

This bell was in front of the church. Not sure if it had originally been in the belfry here or not.

This millstone was at the corner of the church. I think it had been used in a nearby mill in the old days.

We went on to Pioneer, Ohio and took this picture of the interesting water tower. This pleasant little town was in the midst of an annual summer festival and we found busy restaurants, busy sidewalks, an old car show, and another library sale!

On we went up into Michigan and Rhiannon snapped this pretty picture of railroad cars. I love the colors.

I walked around the gorgeous campus of Hillsdale College. I'd love to be able to say I graduated from there! Hillsdale is full of pretty architecture. Wish we had had more time to photograph the buildings at the Hillsdale Fairgrounds--they are similarly beautiful--though constructed of wood unlike this brick college building, they have a wonderful old-fashioned charm. 

This serene picture shows an Amish farm and traditionally "shocked" piles of straw. You don't see this much anymore around here. I have seen this old-fashioned type of hay curing occasionally and specifically when I visited Holmes County further south in Ohio. I love the way it looks and enjoyed seeing scenes like this yesterday.

Couldn't resist begging Rhiannon (who snapped all these lovely pictures) to take this roadside shot of a blue heron. I love water birds and this fellow seemed pleased to stand still for a portrait.

I hope you enjoyed my "daycation" as much as I did, and that you will take time to discover the little-known sights and scenes close to home--those things we often overlook just because they are near or familiar!

Blessings, LORI

THE ANNUAL BLACK RASPBERRY JELLY-MAKING ENDEAVOR

I've been busy picking black raspberries (and later blackberries) from my fencerows during the last month.
Here is a picture of the first step in jelly-making--dripping the cooked berries to obtain clear juice. They are being strained through an old piece of cloth and only the juice will be used, making the difference between jelly and jam. Whole fruit or partial fruit is used for jam or preserves.

This is a picture of the juice in the cooking stage. It must be brought to a full rolling boil. There are several other steps to this process, but I didn't get pictures of each stage and so this post is a sampling of some of what happens during jelly-making.

I heated the clean jars, lids, and rings in a hot water bath before filling the jars with jelly.

Here is a picture of the prepared juice plus a few beans from the garden. It takes a lot of berries to make this much pure juice. We didn't get many green beans. I have a hard time making my garden yield enough of anything. The soil is depleted and quite compact. I've worked with it, but am tiring of the job. I am looking forward someday to gardening on our other farm where the soil is sandier.

Don't know the technical name for this device, but it is invaluable to me for canning. It sits atop the jar and then you pour the product into the jar through its large opening. Saves lots of spills and messes.

Here the jars are heating in the boiling water after being filled. This is a hot water bath designed to help the jars seal and remain preserved for the shelf-life of the product.

A picture of various tools used in the canning process. I wouldn't want to be without the "jar-grabbers" shown here. They save a lot of burnt fingers and slippery handling of wet jars. I use the tongs to retrieve the can lids from the water bath.

This is the finished product! Completely seed and pulp-free jelly! It is delicious if I do say so myself. I've been canning this jelly for over 30 years from the wild berries that grow in the thickets around here.  It is a family favorite that we do not like to be without. This year I also made a batch of jam--probably a first for me. Haven't tasted it yet. These wild berries are quite "seedy" and so I've usually preferred to make them into jelly. I took several jars of this to Colorado Springs this week for my son and his family to enjoy. I hope it will bring a taste of home to them while they are so far away. Blessings, LORI