We had a hard freeze this morning, dropped to 30, so our gardens are done. But, all we had left were a few pumpkins. I picked what was left of the tomatoes Thu night.
Earliest freeze we’ve had since we moved here 8 years ago. Local folks have seen all black wooly worms and spoons in persimmon seeds, so it’s official, we’re in for a unusually cold winter.
Yes, it has gotten cold earlier here as well. I recognized that things were going to be different when our Bartlett pears ripened about 3 weeks early and our sugar maple tree leaves started changing early as well.
With gas prices going back up, I’m glad that we rely mainly on wood to heat our house. Our back up system is fuel oil, but we still have 1/2 a tank from last year. Even so, I’m thinking that we should probably top off the tank, just to, this week before prices get too high.
We live in a rural area, but I really like this concept for people who, for whatever reason, are still living in the city:
Edited to give a disclaimer: I don’t agree with all concepts in this video, but I do agree that people should have the choice to live like this if they want to (not be forced to though).
Based on the lunar calendar (not the Gregorian or Roman calendar), this is the earliest we’ve EVER had frost here in my lifetime…13 days before last night’s full moon. Right about the first of the 7th month.
What’s your take on what that could mean for us weather wise?
Don’t know. It probably doesn’t have to be a precursor to a bad winter, or an early winter.
Have to see if the jet stream dips into Texas or Mississippi this winter or stays in the northern states and Canada. Certainly if the pattern of the past 3 weeks happened in January…it would probably translate to -20 in Kentucky with no snow cover.
But, I don’t know, it might be trees break dormancy in January and get frozen in April.
There is Someone who knows, but I don’t.
Sure hope that doesn’t happen, but if it does, there’s not a whole lot that we can do about it. I’m glad that Someone knows what’s going on, even if we don’t though.
Steve,
I looked through the logs for the last month and couldn’t find any of your posts which were removed. Maybe I missed it? I noticed one of your posts was flagged by a forum member, but the flag was ignored by a moderator and your post was left unaffected.
sorry. meant flagged.
Sounds definitely political to me…rooting for cancellation of constitutional freedoms…much more than some of my posts that have been ‘cancelled’.
Steve, dairy prices … butter has more than doubled. The other items inching up.
Bread up 50% or more, crackers 100%. Anything that has shipping has gone up.
(And what doesn’t?)
Those living paycheck to paycheck and/or living on little pension definitely feeling a squeeze. (Unless they have givermint plastic to use.)
I’d say lay in next year’s seeds, graft over some Bradford pears to fruit, and consider planting grains + fruits and veggies. Anything that can double or tripple the value, such as a shade tree that also bears fruit or a hedge that has edible berries or flowers that are edible.
I make artisan bread once or twice a week. The same bread is sold at Costco for $8. My husband used to get Canyon Creek Gluten free bread, it’s ridiculously priced now, something close to $8. He doesn’t need to be gluten free, so why bother.
The local bakery sells a sourdough loaf (good size loaf) for $4.00 that is excellent. I would say if there is a downside is that you get about 2 days to use it.
I’m growing a bunch of potatoes next year.
fusion_power shared a potato thats fireblight immune called sapro mira. think it was bred in Serbia. wood prairie family farm, 60 mi. from me carries it. its got good reviews. going to grow it next summer. grew some Adirondack blues and red norlands this year. made some solid blue french fries for my brothers family. got some weird looks . lol! going to do blue mashed for Thanksgiving. 
May want to buy your turkey now instead of wait for the deals later on.
Also stock up on Eggs while they are still available… Bird Flu
glad i have my own hens. demand has gone though the roof for my eggs. a lady the other day offered me $40 for 2 of my hens. not for sale.
I hope you have a plan for feed if it becomes unavailable or too expensive to buy.
i have seed to grow amaranth, millet, sorghum, oats, corn, quinoa, soybeans and barely. also have Siberian pea shrubs coming into their own by next year. in the meantime they get lots of scraps from us.
Sorry I’m just getting back to this blog. I ended up going on a rescue mission in May with my 90 y.o. mom to help a niece in a dire situation. MAY! so that put a cramp on my gardening, stressed my poor seedlings, put me behind on chores. And when I got back in June, my second day home I slipped while weeding and broke my wrist.
How did your cowpeas turn out? What variety to did you buy?
@steveb4 I terrified my godchildren with purple mash some years back at Friendsgathering…especially when it turned bright blue in the fridge! I grew purple adirondacks and red the last few years, moderate yield in a container this year. last year I tried straw – probably better for a dryer climate. Big Ol Slug trap.
@BlueBerry I made monkey bread (butter variety) twice this week – once for our Holy Day dinner, the next day because we ate it all. These prices motivate me to make breads. I am not one to can, with such a small garden, but I made pink blueberry/lime/lime basil jam (just a smidge from what was left frozen, then one jar of tomato/Nadapeño/shallot jam from some tangy green cherry tomatoes (ripe) and both are wonderful on the bread. I have about 1.5 cups of parching corn from 2 seasons ago I’m thinking bout simply grinding for some lavender cornmeal.
As for food stocks, I’ve got a ton of cowpeas to shell and I’ve let some pop out so that’s next year’s crop planted 
. I got a decent 2 cups of tongue of fire beans, so creamy and good. I tuck them everywhere in the yard to get as many as i can. Basil is hanging in there so still some to try. And I’ll make another bottle of lavender stevia syrup to make my own diabetes friendly sodas. Got about 30 cloves of garlic in the ground last weekend and My collards are growing crazy and the little tiny sprouting broccoli plants give me enough to dress up pasta and stir fries. Kale is trying to overcome being eaten down, so that will be good for the winter and I still have beets. Blue and red moon radishes may go dormant and looks like the lemon grass (up against the house) will overwinter again. Ginger is ready to pot up and bring in and chard doing well and still have tomatoes all over the place (still on the vine, on the counter, in the fridge, frozen for sauces). With B’more going back up to the 70s on and off over the next 10 days, I’m leaving everything and crossing my fingers when I go to New Orleans next week. My small garden doesn’t yield much, but it’s good practice for more sustainable living.
But I came by here because I finally have enough energy and am turning my attention to fruit – I couldn’t get up the courage to propagate blueberries between the heat and wrist recovery this summer and my general pain (healed now, but with the other broken back in 2019 both are disinterested in added work). So I’m getting some tiny pink blueberries I can pot up for winter and I’m saving my hands for trimming and thinning strawberries and moving some alpines onto our makeshift hugelkultur as it seems I’ll have another 3 weeks or 4 to put the garden to bed. And I’m dreaming of putting 2-4 dwarf fruit trees into containers to see if i can conjure them into liking it. So that’s my report. Not totally sustainable, but a full winter of supplemental eating despite goofing many of my summer stocks between travel and this wrist that just got the all clear in September.
I’ve missed hanging round here.
I have some carrots and greens in the first row of my flat garden… past that is where i grew okra and tomatoes this year.
Got that space worked up and raked and planted it all in mixed greens this evening… a cover crop that we will sure eat a bunch of if successful.
Yes it is a little late for starting greens but my 8 day forecast is mid 70s mid 50s… should germinate just fine. We will see…
