Beginning the Beekeeping Journey

Beekeeping is something that has been tickling my mind for awhile... just like keeping chickens. Perhaps it's been the joy of keeping chickens; perhaps it's the problems we've had (personally and in our area in general) with pollination; or perhaps it's the fact that bees are in so much danger.

Beekeeping- just seems like the right thing to do.

A disclaimer: Since I am a beginner, I may use the wrong terms at times in this and future posts. This is my attempt share my experience from the beginning on my journey of learning. I am by no means an expert, but I will attempt to share all the tidbits of information I collect along the way.

This winter I decided that I would dedicate 2017 to learning about beekeeping. Chickens were easy. It was an easy thing to pick up and learn along the way (still learning, actually). Bees... well, let's just say that chickens aren't an endangered species, I want to know what the heck I'm doing before making the complete dive into the hive. I want to do right by them.

Mind your Morels

I used to not know anything about mushrooms, and I mostly still don't. However, I do know a morel when I see one and somehow I kept finding them in my own backyard this spring!

Adopting Cindy Lou

Yesterday I adopted a chickie in need. Meet Cindy Lou.

A visit from Michael Pollan

This evening I was honored to occupy the same space as the esteemed author Michael Pollan, as he presented at Kennedy Hall at Cornell University. Having read three of his several books, I'm a bit of a fan. This was a huge treat.

Indoor Seed Starting Set Up

It's that time of the year to start some seeds indoors (at least in my neck of the woods). Over the years my indoor seed starting set up has slowly evolved... and hopefully, improved. Here I would like to share my current set up.

Raising Chicks: Starting my first flock

I caught the fever. I now have chickens (for almost a year now). Though I am a bit behind in writing about this, believe me- it was an incredibly busy year last year... between my new endeavor and battling out a summer long drought in the garden. So where to begin...

How to Save Tomato Seeds

Give a friend a tomato and feed them for a salad, but teach them how to save seeds and you feed them for a lifetime.

After talking with a friend who runs their own CSA (Community Supported Agriculture), and realizing that they were not saving their own seeds, I was inspired to write this post. I've been saving my tomato seeds for so many years that I don't even really know when I began. It's fun, actually pretty easy, and is super fulfilling when you sprout new plants from them next spring... and the year after that... and the year after... etc. You gain the power to turn one plant into a thousand plants if you so desired. However, there is a process you must follow- you aren't just scooping out seeds and letting them dry. You actually have to turn it into a wet fermenting science project first, as you will see why.

I hope this information is helpful to you all.

Building Houses for Wrens

Success!

Every spring I enjoy watching the diversity of bird species that visit my yard. For years I've been contemplating building some bird houses. Finally, this year I broke down and tried my hand at building birdhouses for House Wrens.

Making a Garden Gate

Nothing lasts forever- especially this gate to my garden. I started gardening here in 2009, and the gate went up almost as soon as the garden fence. I'm actually surprised it lasted this long, but it's finally time for an update. Time to put up a new one!

Starting seeds indoors

What is a seedling? I think it's one of the cutest words. It merely describes a young plant that was started from seed and according to the Merriam-Webster definition, one that has not been transplanted. Basically baby plants!

Here I will briefly shoot through a few steps that I take when I start seeds indoors- tomatoes in this case.

An April Fools joke from Nature

For the past couple weeks we have been bustling around the backyard getting ready for the growing season. But Nature was planning a 'winter weather advisory' as an April Fools joke for us. 

Buds and Blooms: What will the mild winter mean?

With the equinox officially a matter of days away, it seems appropriate to share an update of the progress of the season. Starting about a week ago I spotted the first robins in the backyard. The sight of robins seems to be a pretty reliable sign of spring (unless they are traveling in a flock in the middle of winter, which they sometimes do). Here are some photos of what is budding and blooming around my yard at least.

A Look into Making Zesty Salsa

Canning season is here. Well, it's been here, I've just been behind with writing about it. Here I will show you some of the tasty ingredients, and just SOME of the work I put into making my Zesty Salsa.

August Harvest

 

Harvest is in full swing. The realization that autumn is just around the corner is finally hitting me. Hopefully the garden has another month or so before frosts start to be an issue. I can already tell that the shorter days are sneaking in. In this post I just wanted to share quickly some of what I've been harvesting this August.

 

Mindful Mowings

A soil worker taking a break.

 

Things seem to get so busy in August. Soon I'll be overwhelmed with tomatoes to preserve and hopefully other bounties. However, it is important to remain mindful of what helps your garden grow and to not neglect your soil. And if there is one thing a gardener wants for their soil- it's compost.

 

Deer Chaos in the Orchard

 

The other day I was training tomatoes in the garden, when I heard a strange sound coming from the orchard...

Late July Garden Tour

 

Welcome to MegaGarden, July 2013. Things have been growing a great deal (vegetables and weeds!) and while I've been extremely busy with non-gardening and gardening alike... I realized that it would be kind of nice to have at least one post this month that showed how things were progressing.

Caterpillar Wars

 

It seems that just when you think you have caught up with your garden work, some other task becomes of utmost importance. With the garden 98% planted and growing along, it seems to be entering a period of time when pests become a big problem. 

Many Mints

 

MINT! I'd like to introduce you to the resident mints growing in the garden.