tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-61514748269754158412012-02-16T04:06:37.485-05:00A Self-sufficiency Blog Gone MommyMollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.comBlogger851100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-29522754953103495232011-07-07T06:36:00.001-04:002011-07-07T06:37:42.977-04:00

Until I have enough time to actually garden. Until I have enough time to keep the swirls of postpartum hair from getting from the floor to my child's mouth. Until I have enough time to properly care for the soil. Until I have enough time to take a picture of anything more than a baby in a Jumperoo. Until I have enough time to vary my diet from handfuls of raw pecans and chocolate chips on the way

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-27839967027808735792011-06-10T08:56:00.000-04:002011-06-10T08:56:30.727-04:00

The new little gardener arrived March 1st. I assumed I would be ready to get lots of gardening done by the beginning of May. Ha! Turns out new motherhood is a bit more complicated, painful, and time-consuming than I was aware.  And the little sugar pea is much more interested in: the Jumperoo... sleeping...   and toys she can chew on. I've managed to plant a couple of squash plants, zucchini

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-82605601292076540162010-12-14T12:08:00.000-05:002010-12-14T12:08:46.567-05:00

I'm only going to say this one last time: Ooops. I've never failed so hard at gardening. I was a little distracted by the hormone haze of nausea. I also had a big fat case of the Maybe Laters. Imagine someone on muscle relaxers. (Actually... pregnancy does involve natural muscle relaxers. I hadn't thought of that.) Here's my Didn't Do List: 1) Rake and pile up leaves in my compost. Snow fell

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-34924129981221508572010-10-07T08:54:00.002-04:002010-10-07T08:56:49.867-04:00

There are two reasons that I've been neglecting and avoiding this space. One, my garden sucked eggs this year. Two, we have a baby on the way, so I was pregnant and sick for most of the summer. I still had a garden this season. I did have some successful harvests. However, I had the worst gardening season I've ever had in my 8 or so years of gardening. To begin, I had the toughest time getting

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-24431579326891890122010-08-16T15:58:00.000-04:002010-08-16T15:58:39.977-04:00

Winter squash is probably my favorite garden food. I love it baked, roasted, or whipped into a spicy soup. I actually harvested two butternut squash today. One looks perfectly tan and ripe and basically fell off of the wilting vine. The other one still has faint green stripes and I kind of yanked it off of the vine by accident. So, I have an experiment on my hands. I've never grown butternuts

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-27740918987241405022010-07-02T10:40:00.000-04:002010-07-02T10:40:42.345-04:00

Dear Reader, I hope these words find you well and enjoying the long days of summer. It's early in the morning as I write and already warm and humid. After two days of haltingly chilly breezes, the hot soup of summer air is promising to collect and linger. The tomatoes, squash, and celery will thrive. I've pulled up the last of the peas to make room for tomatoes and more rows of carrots. Always

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-17615077026488163742010-06-21T18:40:00.000-04:002010-06-21T18:40:10.978-04:00

After getting really cranky with some annoying marketing awhile ago I thought I'd share a very exciting purchase I've made recently. I'm happy to say that the consumer experience this time was lovely, probably because I knew what I wanted but also because the bike shop is pretty laid back. I was running a lot of errands on my bike, and I was wearing a small backpack to carry water and

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-87023757255158791912010-06-10T18:50:00.000-04:002010-06-10T18:50:30.042-04:00

This seedling kind of reminds me of a sick little E.T. all ghost-white and pitiful. But what you see there is diatomaceous earth. It's not a chemical; it's actually the crushed cell walls of unicellular algae. Diatoms live in water and when they die they sink to the bottom and form a crust of diatomaceous earth.  The powder is actually made up of lots of jagged edges from the perspective of a

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-16292340568092803722010-06-09T21:54:00.001-04:002010-06-10T14:52:21.252-04:00

It seems like this has been my mantra for several months. Not that this is a new idea to me. It's that lately the sentiment comes with an exclamation point. I'm sure this is in large part due to my move to the suburbs. Uhgh. I understand that busy, important people need to get where they're going fast. I just wish they'd consider the beating heart and smooshy, tender brains inside the person on

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-42549067625578511992010-06-08T18:22:00.000-04:002010-06-08T18:22:40.036-04:00

Aside from the handful of crisp, perfectly purple gumball-sized radishes I harvested on May 4, my radish harvest was a bust this year (due to root maggots, ew), until...I discovered that the spicy roots aren't the only parts of a radish plant you can eat. First, I tried sautéing the greens. You might be thinking, "Wait a minute! Don't radish greens have tiny little scratchy hairs on them? Ew."  

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-58384662094687430272010-06-06T11:35:00.000-04:002010-06-06T11:35:44.995-04:00

Long ago, I used to feel a teensy bit of shame when I was out in the garden and I'd pull up a carrot, wipe it on my pants, and then eat it even though there were remaining clumps of soil in the little grooves of the root. I felt a bit uncivilized. I've long since abandoned that shame for the not-to-be-duplicated experience of grazing straight from the garden. Turns out there may be some very good

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-49920499347889443452010-06-03T17:28:00.002-04:002010-06-03T17:34:21.210-04:00

The lettuce harvest is in full swing. The weather has been wet and mild and perfect for it. I've harvested 7 bags. Now it's not mesclun, and they're not full heads of lettuce, the product is somewhere in between. So far the harvest has still been from thinning out the plants, so the lettuce comes in small, sweet, juicy tall clusters. (Thinking about it made me crave some, so I just got up to grab

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-63105535555550979282010-05-23T22:21:00.001-04:002010-05-23T22:25:47.484-04:00

I woke up at 6 am this morning to a warbling vireo and a field of fog outside my window. Last night I just wanted to go to sleep fast so I could wake up and get to Sunday. Like a little kid. I was looking forward to a sunny day in the garden and then a bike ride to the arts festival downtown and some live music. And maybe some ice cream. I figured I could get all of my transplants in the ground,

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-82821594294937987042010-05-18T19:57:00.000-04:002010-05-18T19:57:37.670-04:00

From where I'm sitting at my computer I can spot the outrageously fat groundhog that has been climbing over the fence and mowing down my peas. I can't see him or her right now, but I'm waiting. At the moment the HAVAHART trap is set (though I've never actually heard of anyone getting a groundhog to enter one) and I'm trying to confuse the thing to death by covering up the peas with floating row

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-14408070876285824072010-05-14T19:43:00.000-04:002010-05-14T19:43:42.713-04:00

sighting to make you angry.  It ate my peas. 

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-62552179538560685152010-05-12T18:28:00.002-04:002010-05-12T18:33:16.095-04:00

"I used to visit and revisit it a dozen times a day, and stand in deep contemplation over my vegetable progeny with a love that nobody could share or conceive of who had never taken part in the process of creation. It was one of the most bewitching sights in the world to observe a hill of beans thrusting aside the soil, or a rose of early peas just peeping forth sufficiently to trace a line of

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-8390590448647748222010-05-04T19:34:00.004-04:002010-05-12T17:30:41.722-04:00

I just planted a few things... 1. Mokum carrots in between the rows of spinach. They will be ready to harvest in 48 days. 2. On the edge of the spinach I eeked out room for a row of beets. Chioggia beets. (I still have a pile in the fridge and I ate some a week ago. Not bad.)3. I stuck the little broccoli mix transplants in the ground.4. I threw my stunted failure of a try at onions in the

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-21743117559989132212010-04-18T14:57:00.001-04:002010-04-18T14:57:54.110-04:00

I love cilantro. When I worked on a small farm, there was a young kid who was very grateful that I'd been hired. He squirmed whenever you mentioned cilantro and he hated harvesting it. I ended up doing all of the cilantro harvesting. It was all I could do to keep from stopping, dropping and rolling in it. THE CURIOUS COOKCilantro Haters, It’s Not Your FaultBy HAROLD McGEEPublished: April 14,

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-70900971049200959682010-04-12T19:20:00.000-04:002010-04-12T19:20:08.004-04:00

     I have plans to keep track of harvests this season. I saw someone else's harvest report on Kitchen Gardeners International with everything assigned a market price. The guy's garden added up to over $2,000. (The link is currently busted.) I'm interested in what kind of value I'm getting out of this hobby (obsession). Here we go with harvest number one...    So far we have harvested a pound

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-10638245203977828242010-04-02T16:53:00.002-04:002010-04-30T22:53:09.848-04:00

   The temperature is hovering around 80F this afternoon. Yesterday it was the same, but with some really summer-like sun rays. I'm afraid that my overwintered spinach is going to bolt the first week of April. I've hosed it down the last two days so that the breezes would keep the temperatures down. Plus, it is DRY here. I actually *needed* to water the lettuce sprouts so that they didn't

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-52171293230389200892010-03-18T20:28:00.026-04:002010-03-21T15:32:34.598-04:00

I had a list of things to do today, but I went out to the garden instead because first, the chorus frogs lured me outside. Then, I thought I'd just go turn the compost. The next thing I knew I had my fleece off and I was pounding away at grass clumps and tossing cutworms over the fence to the chickens. I've been reading this choose-your-own-adventure garden book before bed lately and I've

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-2269533986940058042010-03-16T23:03:00.001-04:002010-03-16T23:05:43.228-04:00

In the hot, bright afternoon, I rousted a mourning cloak butterfly from where it was sipping on a pothole in the driveway. I watched red tailed hawks soar circles around a blue sky above the dried-up, rustling fields. I stopped along the roadside to dip my fingers into the soil below the leaning skeletons of asparagus stalks, checking for new growth, taking the pulse of the earth. Bluebirds

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-89620632959991418282010-03-15T20:22:00.000-04:002010-03-15T20:22:54.174-04:00

I was under the eaves of the grocery store where I'd locked my bike last Friday when I heard one of those advertisements that interrupts the store's radio station. You know the canned radio stations that push and pull your emotions to make you forget that you're shopping. One minute you're drifting down the aisle in a cloud generated by pop-song sap, the next minute you're singing along to that

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-82242982345248851122010-03-12T18:28:00.001-05:002010-03-12T18:29:58.684-05:00

WORM VIDEO I was out in the flower beds planting my leftover peas so as to fix some nitrogen when the chickens came waddling over. I'm trying to discourage the co-dependency of my neighbor roostr-boy. He follows me around everywhere because I once spent an afternoon tossing him worms over the garden fence. I ducked inside to discourage the chickens from following me everywhere. I'd love to have

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-63472548174612340682010-03-07T13:18:00.001-05:002010-03-10T13:54:55.434-05:00

  The sun is causing delirium here. It struck yesterday and the entire household (both of us) suddenly rushed to scrounge trays and pots from out in the garden and under the snow. We dug through the piles of seeds stuffed into the corners of the refrigerator. We threw 'bows to score the best spot in the sun to do our pot-filling and seed stuffing. I cut up some of my best "tupperware" to make

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-25720664627209091582010-03-01T16:46:00.000-05:002010-03-01T16:46:31.802-05:00

I thought that this would be a great day to return to blogging. I'm second-guessing that now. I spent the morning at the dentist and I knew I'd feel like sitting still the rest of the day. But right at the moment the Novocaine is wearing off and the ibuprofen isn't quite cutting it and my eyes are watering just a little.  I've had a lucky day today, though, because I caught a friend on the phone

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-85578262400449091932010-02-02T09:13:00.008-05:002010-02-02T09:20:12.355-05:00

Winter Isn't ALL Bad: Christmas birding in Gloucester It's the middle of winter. It's all downhill from here until Spring, no matter what Punxsutawney Phil says. Staten Island Chuck in 2009  The days are getting longer. For the past few years in upstate New York, with the guaranteed snow cover, I always looked forward to February because the sun was making a comeback, which turned the white

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-49565464861763836942010-01-30T16:32:00.000-05:002010-01-30T16:32:01.258-05:00

Actually, I've *never* ordered early enough from Moose Tubers to get what I want.  I guess you order as soon as you get the catalog. I'll try again next year. Potato Update: In April, I'm crossing my fingers that these seed potato varieties will be delivered to my tiny front-room: 1. Dark Red Norland: early variety, high scab resistance, dark red skin, high yield, good new potatoes (Caribes

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-81658822787535429572010-01-29T19:07:00.000-05:002010-01-29T19:07:24.657-05:00

On my lunch break, while subbing in the Montessori middle school, I picked out my 2010 potato varieties: I only want potatoes that are rated "highly resistant" to scab. I had wicked scabs last year. It's probably the llama manure I added in the spring. It's probably the higher pH soils here in the midwest. Caribe:  I chose it for its earliness, its purple skin, and its waxy texture. Purple

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-53253403044231058122010-01-08T09:45:00.000-05:002010-01-08T09:45:48.139-05:00

   Not my sheep, someone else's. I'm heading north for a couple of weeks to care-take. I'll be sheep-whispering and frolicking in the snow with a pack of domesticated dogs. As I pack up, the "south" is shoveling out from 5 inches of snow. All the kids have a snow day. (I'm still shaking off the shock that 4 or 5 inches shuts this place down.)  However, it makes for a beautiful scene. 

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-15075153886254584652010-01-05T13:44:00.000-05:002010-01-05T13:53:38.841-05:00

Michael Pollan on The Daily Show:  "Eat Food" Nothing really new here, just fun.

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-51512782475750935542010-01-04T19:49:00.000-05:002010-01-04T19:49:50.440-05:00

Eight in the morning on New Year's Day in the rainy wilderness of Big South Fork National Recreation Area in Tennessee was very quiet. My New Year's resolution is to ring in every new year in the wild. We admired the diverse flora of the southern Appalachians, along with the grand production that erosion puts on here in BSF. one of the "Twin Arches" rhododendron and hemlock dripping

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-37231784223427589142010-01-04T19:24:00.000-05:002010-01-05T13:48:44.319-05:00

Just in time for New Year's resolutions, Michael Pollan has another book out. Click on the image for a small sample from the book. I particularly like #39. I find it holds true for my cookie habit.

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-10004248310072938352010-01-03T13:02:00.000-05:002010-01-03T13:02:27.924-05:00

   Somebody told me to freeze my peppers. "Just freeze 'em. Slice 'em up and freeze 'em." Everything else I've frozen has had to have the enzymes cooked to a halt through blanching first.    Here's what I did: I took my bountiful harvest of red bell peppers and ate as much as I wanted for a couple of weeks. Then, I set aside several for my winter time-travel project back to the heart of summer

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-46910509972213128512009-12-08T13:57:00.000-05:002009-12-08T13:57:52.001-05:00

I took a break from thinking about the greenhouse effect today and marched out to the frozen and depressing garden to dig up the last of the carrots. And just to be dramatic, I'm noting that they're the last carrots I'll be growing this entire decade. The bottom picture is the row I planted back in late August (around the 20th). I almost didn't plant them because it was so late. But they're

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-57995803176878438922009-12-06T21:59:00.000-05:002009-12-06T21:59:57.745-05:00

I've been thinking about global warming a lot lately, what with "Climategate," the Copenhagen Climate Summit starting tomorrow, and of course, my book club book: Cool It  I'm forced to pin down the numbers of carbon emissions, food miles, hidden costs, and on and on. I'm so bad with remembering details. But it's got me thinking about my applesauce. I have been really loving popping open my

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-49031989416466526012009-12-02T13:07:00.001-05:002009-12-03T16:30:36.969-05:00

It's a question that we ask and get asked a lot. Over the holiday, I was asked a version of this question, "So, what have you been doing while you're not working?"  I mumbled a few things about traveling and gardening. I wasn't feeling especially open or reflective. But since then I've been thinking a great deal about just what I have been doing since I've been "out of work." Along with

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-25610602636581850922009-11-01T09:27:00.000-05:002009-11-03T17:09:44.586-05:00

I LOVE apple season. (I just finished eating some apple cobbler a few minutes ago.) In both New York and Michigan, apples have been abundant and apple-picking a source of outdoor fun. Seasonal foods thrill me. You spend an entire year without something, and then for this brilliant, glowing span of a season, the weather, colors, tastes, and smells sing a delicious, novel song. It's kind of like

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-90114074899514222682009-10-28T19:30:00.000-04:002009-10-28T19:30:28.547-04:00

Actually, it's compote de pommes, but I think puree de pommes sounds much better. I can hear the Parisians screaming at me. I have never actually made applesauce before. Until now. I can't wait to pop open a jar in two months, when the last apples in the bottom of the fridge are withered and mushy. I looked for organic U-pick apples around here, but they were over 100 miles away. Just down the

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-3122578849662959782009-10-08T10:03:00.000-04:002009-10-08T12:16:35.101-04:00

I just have one major issue with hunting: it always involves sleep deprivation, and I'm a sleep deprivation wimp. I'm feeling a little bit like a zombie this morning. However, killing a deer with a bow is slowly working its way onto my "bucket list." But it was Chris that killed the doe last night. Between the tracking, gutting, and hanging of the deer, it was a late night. Some of it was simply

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-13153094119917608632009-10-02T13:10:00.000-04:002009-10-02T15:58:51.649-04:00

The last pile of basil ready for drying.The food dehydrator. Mom and Dad got it for me when I was 14. I love this thing!Several pocketfuls of peppers and tomatoes are safe from frost.The habaneros were beautiful right before the freezing temps.Goldfinches and black-capped chickadees spend lots of time playing hide and seek and snacking in the sunflowers.The tomatoes look like my late '80s

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-4078041217027513802009-09-22T19:09:00.000-04:002009-09-22T19:25:27.501-04:00

While we were up North, the garden turned to gold.The tomatoes (Green Zebra , Orange Banana Paste, and Yellow Jubilee) were tumbling off of the withering vines.We've got the late blight, too. (I learned that you can't even cut off the bad parts and dry them... the fungus is still in there and turns the drying tomatoes brown and icky.)

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-1479073609292707922009-09-22T17:38:00.000-04:002009-09-22T19:03:39.904-04:00

My first year of gardening was "The Year of the Cantaloupe." I learned that when the melons are ripe, they scream "I'm ready!" by setting sail a hypnotizing sweet smell on the prevailing breezes (kind of like the way the local grocery store pipes the rotisserie chicken fumes up to the main entrance right around dinner time, but with a great deal more magic.) Several years later, when I started

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-37826461395715669572009-08-31T22:21:00.001-04:002009-11-11T10:25:44.280-05:00

We're doing some backpacking these next two weeks. I dried some tomatoes for the trip. I'm leaving the beans, that have been so productive this summer, to fizzle out. Also, the tomatoes are showing signs of late blight. (I get an ominous feeling when I go out there lately.) We'll see what's going on when we return in mid-September. Here are some pictures from the trip:

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-60491959637336300042009-08-30T16:17:00.000-04:002009-08-30T16:56:32.071-04:00

Two weeks ago, I sent Chris to the office with a large bag of summer squash as a stealthy attempt to implement my "trickle down squash" theory of gardening. The fact is that I am rich in summer squash. I go out to my garden and gather a pile of this golden fruit and bring it in to the kitchen for immediate use. If we can smuggle this stuff to office kitchen counters around the city, we'll be able

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-4627777733284249672009-08-25T18:54:00.000-04:002009-08-25T19:30:11.788-04:00

First, I found these.Then, I noticed this.I was out in the garden, talking on the phone, when I started to notice little - no, big - poops on the tomato leaves. Distracted by my conversation, I wasn't predicting what I was going to find as I followed the stems upward. Whoa, momma! The first caterpillar I found was staring me right in the face when I finally spotted it. It always works this way,

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-59507239792050159132009-08-24T14:08:00.000-04:002009-08-24T14:24:46.483-04:00

I don't even like pickles. I just ate two. They're crunchy, and if I liked pickles, I'd eat more. Okay, I might eat more. Everything tastes better when you make it!However, I just discovered a more suitable use (for me) of my loads of cucumbers on Urban Veggie Garden Blog here. We had this for dinner last night. Chris said, "This is why you have a garden, isn't it?" Oh yes, oh yes. Feta makes it

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-18122612263222794152009-08-23T12:52:00.000-04:002009-08-23T14:18:16.420-04:00

This is my first pickle adventure. I made 4 quarts using the Betty Crocker recipe I found in my cookbook. These are not fermented, they're "canned." I just boiled up some vinegar, water, and salt, and added it to the sliced cucumbers, garlic, and fresh dill waiting in the jars. I processed them in the boiling water bath for the 10 minutes the recipe said to (and then I plugged them into the wall)

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-63990961318166575742009-08-20T12:43:00.000-04:002009-08-21T07:41:25.367-04:00

Hey, check this out: some "then" and "now" pics, along with some "Where's Waldo?" (Where's Molly? Where's the Llama?) and "Bobbing for Tomatoes" nonsense.Carrots are covered so that the groundhog forgets that they're there. The broccoli stumps are still there just because I find it hard to give up. The lettuce needs to be pulled. Now's the time to plant my last batch of lettuce, spinach and maybe

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-3661901366114985562009-08-20T10:54:00.000-04:002009-08-20T11:08:03.268-04:00

Poona kheera cucumbers:These strange yellow cucumbers don't look that appetizing when you pick them. They have a yellow to brown rind and are usually asymmetrical. But the rind is thin and they have no bitterness, even after being on the vine for a while. These are the best slicing cucumbers I've ever had. They're crisp, juicy and sweet.Yellow Fargo Pears and Yellow Jubilee:This is the first

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-52738146727712943442009-08-18T16:51:00.000-04:002009-08-19T17:48:31.941-04:00

I guess one of the major reasons that I started this blog was to reflect on this question. I had put it aside for awhile during the busiest part of the gardening season. It woke me up the other morning when the radio was chattering about the "DIY Revolution," and the commentators were questioning the cost-effectiveness of doing things yourself. Everyone who makes something knows it's not only

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-73727856461944758832009-08-12T20:55:00.000-04:002009-08-12T21:04:47.409-04:00

This was the first bouquet that I threw together out of sheer enthusiasm for blooming things.I got to plant so many different kinds of sunflowers this year it's really exciting to watch them bloom.

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-61730817011795482432009-08-11T19:04:00.000-04:002009-08-11T20:58:18.719-04:00

Ugly carrots, but tastyLittle symmetrical green rows of hopeCandy roaster winter squash, looking like King of the GardenAll of the sweet pepper plants are loaded with fruits. I've picked four or five green ones to lighten the load on each plant. These sweet babies should turn red and make us all very, very happy.This is a green zebra tomato, getting its stripes!The bad news is that the groundhog

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-9592101887175253902009-08-02T18:48:00.000-04:002009-08-02T18:58:25.771-04:00

The smell of nasturtium flowers floating up from a salad bowl and the color from a garden bouquet.

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-10557316813796535882009-07-16T15:45:00.000-04:002009-07-16T16:58:37.257-04:00

Potatoes! Red and blue. I always dig for the first batch right around the 4th of July.Eggplants are so eggs-citing. (Sorry. I couldn't stop myself.)Beans are beginning to get beany.Spring-planted garlic gets cut like green onions for a light, garlicky flavor.Papaya pear squash. Ate just one early one. Waiting for the motherlode. And because it's a squash, I have no doubt it will arrive.Anuenue

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-90995283679617389192009-07-14T12:56:00.000-04:002009-07-16T15:43:52.392-04:00

It's black raspberry season here! I love all berries, but black raspberries have always been my favorite flavor. The land around our house is full of them, and I've picked two and a half gallons so far. Let me tell you my secret: find the densest poison ivy, swarming with the hungriest mosquitoes, put on long-sleeves, fingerless gloves, and a bug net. Otherwise, you'll be paying a painful price

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-19448896456677947792009-06-29T15:11:00.000-04:002009-06-29T16:51:49.419-04:00

Serrano pepper flowerLobularia maritima (Sweet Alyssum) This is the first flower blooming in the "butterfly garden" mix I planted. It's not native.Ants crawling all over the red bell pepper flowers.Habanero flower!Cherry tomato flower, with little green fruits in the background.Eggplant flowerPapaya pear summer squash budsEeew, scary! Colorado potato beetle eggs

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-38671789168293099712009-06-24T18:39:00.000-04:002009-07-16T17:22:57.992-04:00

Celosia! It's kind of a bonus. I had the seed from a couple of years ago. It took a long time to germinate, and I'd given up on it. But there it is! I'm excited about my cut flower garden. I usually run out of space for flowers, but in this garden I found four pressure treated timbers buried in a section of the garden, so I had to put inedibles there.Cilantro! First harvest this week. We put it

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-92049779556823889842009-06-22T17:21:00.001-04:002009-06-22T18:39:18.239-04:00

to let down your guard, this scene plays outon a hot and humid June afternoon:Gardener takes Cherry Garcia out of freezerand gets spoon, butspies groundhog at work in the lettuce patch,throws down ice cream,struggles to put on boots,curses the rodent,runs out to garden.Groundhog tries to hide behind a patch of mowed-down lettuce,thinks it can hide under the table,decides it's time to make a run

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-37870443267442999972009-06-22T11:40:00.001-04:002009-06-22T13:16:31.032-04:00

The ominous-looking white powder on the plants above is diatomaceous earth. I've been using it for the last three or four years to keep pests at bay. Last year was the most serious I've been about it. My potato plants were full of flea beetles and Colorado potato beetles, so I regularly sprinkled this stuff on top and underneath the leaves. It doesn't work once it gets wet, so the most effective

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-41208868189126231402009-06-22T10:54:00.000-04:002009-06-22T11:39:59.891-04:00

I looked at the garden the other day and thought, "Well, here it is." Those early days of April, with the cool weather and the bare soil, can make you wonder if it's all really going to happen or not. These pictures were taken June 16th.

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-16945736842055930222009-06-03T09:06:00.001-04:002009-06-12T19:26:34.046-04:00

It's actually a good thing I put this  hoop house up for a week. It was a late start on my part, but it turned out to be perfect timing. For one week we had perfect hoop house weather: 55 degree highs and 36 degree lows. It reminds me of my first tent I had for backpacking. A little bigger. The tomatoes are under there, along with serrano, habanero, and sweet peppers. I open this guy up during

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-13980479724064453702009-06-01T13:07:00.000-04:002009-06-01T13:09:38.858-04:00

Turns out:1) Moles are insectivores. 2) Some bean sprouts have popped up in my garden.3) Germinating seeds inside can damage seeds.4) Beans do not like to be transplanted.5) In colder soil (60-70F) beans may take two weeks to germinate.So, the lesson continues.

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-36496603443032652792009-05-29T10:28:00.000-04:002009-05-29T11:09:00.859-04:00

I'm full of bad habits: procrastination, believing the worst, and picking scabs, to name a few. One of my latest bad habits is to dig up seeds in the garden to see if they're germinating. Two factors have contributed to the formation of this habit: 1) having more time on my hands than... ever, and 2) using old seeds.  Turns out that my old seeds seem to be germinating just fine. The cucurbits

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-78041011308539768692009-05-27T07:33:00.001-04:002009-05-27T07:46:56.857-04:00

My potatoes are growing potatoes! (Before growing plants.) Something tells me this is not good. I've never had this happen, but I've also never dug up my potatoes to check on them. I accidently uncovered them while weeding today and I noticed the bright pink color of the new potato (vs. the old potato). So, I dug up two more areas with no potato sprouts coming up... same thing. Shortly after this

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-11126073637475218872009-05-19T19:50:00.000-04:002009-05-27T07:31:16.253-04:00

David Kessler has been working the talk show circuit to promote his new book and I've heard him interviewed by Bill Mahr, Diane Rehm, and Terry Gross. He is the former head of the FDA. I have not read this book, but I have enjoyed hearing his interviews.  The gist of his book is that a lack of will power is not responsible for our overeating. The problem is our addiction to and conditioning by

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-2476885669813671242009-05-19T19:00:00.000-04:002009-05-19T19:51:46.935-04:00

1.  Peas, potatoes, carrots, lettuce, basil, and cilantro are all up.2.  We had two nights of frost. I mulched everything because I couldn't find my floating row covers. Only the potatoes were damaged by the frost.3.  After two nights of frost, I finally located my floating row covers under a mouse's nest, in a box, in the tool shed.4.  The rooster is now my friend. I fed him 15 worms as I dug up

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-80185570095649002272009-05-13T14:49:00.000-04:002009-05-14T07:53:22.191-04:00

Basil sprouts                        mini-greenhouses with thermometer insideGreen Zebra tomato sproutsBlack Seeded Simpson lettuce sproutsExcellent junk found in the gardenWaiting for seeds to sprout brings out the OCD in me. There was added anxiety this time because I'm using all leftover seeds from one, two, even three years ago. So far there doesn't seem to be any noticeable difference in

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-8715199858753353062009-05-12T20:15:00.000-04:002009-05-12T21:35:35.590-04:00

My history with roosters has been, well... violent. First there was "Chip," King of the Coop when we moved into our first house. He had attitude, and the looks to back it up. He had shiny gold, deep blue-green, and red feathers. He had spurs 3 inches long. "Chip" was named by the original owner. When I first met him, she picked him up and cuddled him while she wandered around the yard talking to

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-88893687065180762822009-05-11T16:33:00.000-04:002009-05-12T22:07:29.745-04:00

It's a cruel irony that the most back-breaking work in the garden has to be done at the beginning of the growing season, after you've been sitting around the house all winter reading novels and sipping hot cocoa.I've been working on breaking up the sod and removing the tangles of rhizomes from the soil. Each one of those little white roots could become a new colony of this very stubborn grass if

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-13654187712962127552009-05-04T09:02:00.000-04:002009-05-04T10:03:22.696-04:00

The potatoes are in! I read that May 15th is the average "last frost" in this area, so with this date still in the future, I feel comfortable making potatoes and peas my first priority, rather than other more frost-sensitive things. The potatoes won't be up for a few days, and the peas will survive any freezing temps.I was happy to find that under all of that scary fescue, the soil is pretty good

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-17537837652962558892009-05-01T18:36:00.000-04:002009-05-01T18:53:53.992-04:00

One thing about this new garden is that it's loaded with fowl. Fowl and llamas. This guy in the picture is always busy jumping up on things, displaying, and making peacock noises. Have you ever heard a peacock? Let me explain: there's a low "honk!" followed by an immediate "Yeeoooooooww!" that rises and falls (the sound makes me think of a parabola). Every once in a while he does this 3 times in

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-67404826018804426282009-05-01T18:06:00.000-04:002009-05-01T18:34:10.463-04:00

I just found some old pictures from last year's garden buried on an old camera. I have posted one here. The 1st picture is from the garden in Pulaski. The other picture is one that I just took of the garden that is actually within commuting distance of where I live now (my backyard). Where did I put those red-sequined shoes? "There's no place like home, there's no place like home, there's..."  On

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-15408804618312763412009-01-18T06:12:00.000-05:002009-01-18T07:24:02.705-05:00

I KNOW there are worse things. I realize that in the scheme of things that register on the Richter scale of life experience, this . . . well, doesn't register. But in the clean, flourescent ballad of the lonely grocery-shopper, this was an entire verse. I bought grocery store eggs for the first time in 4 years. It was a jolting moment.I can rationalize up a whole diagram of excuses for why I

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-59437880499640655722009-01-07T08:37:00.000-05:002009-01-07T09:39:12.096-05:00

The Rock Garden Project was named after the many mini-boulders I dug up from the garden over the past 3 years. In the spring, when the vegetation was just a dream, the garden was full of rock sculptures and rock steps. The stones pointed the way to the rows of seeds hiding in the warming soil. Rocks anchored the cold frame plastic. Some rocks still bear faded labels: "cilantro" and "buttercrunch.

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-44733396837530028332008-12-07T15:27:00.000-05:002009-01-07T09:55:51.577-05:00

Who would have thought that I'd be doing any gardening on a day like this? We have over a foot and a half of fresh snow on the ground, the winds are gusting to 30 mph, and the lake effect snow just keeps coming. As of right now we've had 62 inches of snow at the house this season. I know we live in one of the snowiest places in the East, but for the past few years, the snowfall before Christmas

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-16281584041082828182008-10-15T07:29:00.000-04:002008-10-26T02:56:02.714-04:00

So I woke up at 2:30 a.m. on Monday morning with way too much on my mind. During my first year of teaching, I instituted a personal sleep hygiene policy for whenever I wake up at 2:30 in the morning with way too much on my mind. The rule has since been that I have two choices: get up and do something about whatever is on my mind, or vow to tackle the problem at the appropriate time (tomorrow!)

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-61818051905898321232008-10-14T12:23:00.000-04:002008-10-14T12:30:28.725-04:00

The injured layer is getting better every day. She's walking with less of a limp each day. I hope to release her in just 1 or 2 more days of rest and recooperation in the cozy, warm pen. When she's well enough to roost with the others, she'll stay warm enough up high in the coop next to her fellow layers. She's walking even better now than she was in this video. In this video she's grazing

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-74590484817402041212008-10-10T17:43:00.000-04:002008-10-14T09:46:15.636-04:00

Last Saturday we were busy doing work around the house, when our neighbors ran into our yard after their "foster dog." It looks as if a stray dog was dumped near our house, and the neighbors have taken it in. It's a cute dog. It's nice. But on Sunday I was painting the window trim in the back yard when I heard two unfamiliar voices. It was our neighbors again. (We've seem them 3 times since we've

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-51052886718359419802008-10-04T19:56:00.000-04:002008-10-14T15:37:45.546-04:00

I went down to the coop to find almost 2 dozen eggs. I couldn't say which day I was down there last to collect eggs. It's been a busy month with packing, getting the house ready to sell, and coaching cross country. The chickens have been on their own lately. I leave the coop open all the time. They go in at night and roost up high so they're safe. They roam the yard all day, grazing for goodies.

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-88440706677552085762008-09-05T21:49:00.000-04:002008-09-05T21:53:24.139-04:00

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-23104030596986328042008-08-27T10:21:00.000-04:002008-08-27T13:20:17.896-04:00

Hans Jenny is credited with the statement that there is often more life below and within the soil than there is above it, including Homo sapiens. Soil is the medium of the art of growing vegetables. As I reflect on the three growing seasons I've spent on my little half-acre, I recall the first swing I took of my pulaski into the rocky soil I would make my garden. It was frightening. I've long

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-31925907521388522332008-08-25T17:07:00.000-04:002008-08-25T18:34:39.408-04:00

Like the late afternoon summer sun. Like the shocking red fire of autumn leaves. Like the daily rhythms of friendships.Each season holds a promise, something to look forward to. But every year at this time, I swear this is my favorite season. What I love about late summer and early fall is the feeling of swimming in a sea of abundance. There are too many vegetables to eat, so much green

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-43814850744016321772008-08-20T20:54:00.000-04:002008-08-20T21:59:38.095-04:00

We're raising 10 chickens for meat this summer. I say "we" because it's truly been a team effort this year, with Chris picking them up at the post office when they were just one day old and caring for them for 2 weeks while I was away finishing a masters degree, and Sarah foster-parenting them any time that Chris and I are away. Last year we raised 5, kind of as a warm-up. The meat and broth we

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6151474826975415841.post-50514104678098102002008-08-15T17:07:00.000-04:002008-08-20T20:54:18.021-04:00

Following are just a few thoughts about how I got to this point. (This point being one in which I am ecstatic when I dig a new potato or eat a sugar snap pea from the garden.) When I worked at Cornell Cooperative Extension for the school and community gardens program, I spent one cool October evening gleaning vegetables from a community garden. It wasn't just me. I was with my co-worker, Vicky,

Mollyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14640872963708373735noreply@blogger.com0