Officially Summer

So I missed the Summer Solstice.
So, happy Summer!
Life has been busy.
Okay, so when isn’t it?
Turkeys have hatched.
10 from the replacement incubator, with 14 chicks.
Today we’re taking out the ones who hatched in the big incubator.
I’m looking forward to seeing what’s in there.
There were 41 eggs, and there’s a whole lot of jim jamming and singing in there…
Then, Saturday we fire up for the last hatch of the year.
(I may have said that already…days blend when it’s all animal chores and weeding 😂😂😂)

I’ll be hitting y’all with a whole bunch of Instagram posts for images, just because it’s easier today to link to them than to upload into WordPress…aka I’m lazy.
😂😂😂

Garden is doing pretty good.
If you ignore the fact that on the Solstice night we had frost that took out my tomatoes. And most of my peppers.
Fuck.
Ah well.
Greens and beans and carrots and onions are growing well.
I’ll just watch for the local mega mart putting cases of roma tomatoes on sale again…I’ll get food in jars yet. 😉

So y’all know I’ve been going on and on and on and on about a greenhouse.
Y’all are probably sick to damn death of hearing about it, but not seeing any action.
Well shit comes up, ‘kay?
But…this weekend the build begins!!
We’ve been collecting old windows, and buying new lumber as we can, and then last week…

In this local gardening group, a woman posts how she has these plastic rolls she wants to get rid of, probably good for a greenhouse, if someone wants them, come get them for free.
I expressed interest, explained what we do here and how a greenhouse is a massive asset to our operation.
She says to me “all yours!”
So I send Hubby to her place in the Big City to pick it up…
(and ain’t he handsome? my giant bearded bastard… ❤ )

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Remember, you can click the arrows on the side of the image to scroll…you do not have to go to Instagram to see the images. 🙂

Uh yeah, so that’s 1 roll of 32ft x 150ft greenhouse poly.
Like, for reals, proper af, last 4-5 years, UV treated, poly.
The 2nd roll is a plastic tube that we’ll cut open and use for smaller hoop houses.
What an amazing gift!

So this weekend, once the final brooder has the top hinged on, and the last of the turkey poults in it, we start the greenhouse.
Holy. Fuck.
Next year I might actually have tomatoes!
😂😂😂

As for the garden itself…

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Some of it, I’m on top of the weeds and mulching.
Other parts are a hot mess that still need weeding and mulching.
But it’s always a work in progress.
It’s doing awesome this year though, and even with the loss of the tenders, I’m not going to complain.
🙂
Besides, I’ve been picking massive amounts of lamb’s quarters…

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Yup, they’re weeds.
But, they’re edible weeds.
And I love me some free foods.
I love me all the free foods!
Tastes like spinach, excellent in salads and on pizza.
And free.
Did I mention that part?

And finally, an offer of free trees fell into my lap and I happily scooped up 25 free trees.
10 willows and 15 poplars.
So now I’ve added tree planting to the list of things to do this weekend…along with weeding, mulching, building, and cutting hay.
Because YAY the first bales of hay go up tonight and the next round is cut down and drying.
Tomorrow morning I cut the next area, and then onto the access road on the side of our property and they the edge of our big field.
Rains have been good to us, so this year’s hay crop oughta be decent.
I oughta be able to put up enough to sustain a ewe or two for winter…

😉

Sharing with Brian’s Home for Thankful Thursday
Even with the challenges, I am incredibly thankful for the life we’re building here.
❤