12 hours late to the thread.
Spent the day in The Big City, buying feed, and other ranch supplies. Then dinner. Then a double feature at the drive-in.
We left in a thundershower, with light hail. Garden needed it. Radar showed it pop up over Wind Cave, barely 10 miles from us, and move our way. No big deal; we drove out of it as we left Hot Springs. When we just got back, there was TWO AND ONE HALF INCHES in the gauge! I watered good yesterday evening, because it was supposed to be DRY and about 92 today, and headed for 96-100 Saturday & Sunday.
I’ll find out tomorrow morning what, if anything, got flattened by it.
We’re getting salad cucumbers, Napa cabbage, cilantro, radishes, and leaf lettuce. Swiss chard will start to get picked this coming week. Cherries should fully ripen with the weekend heat, if the rain doesn’t cause them to crack.
The grains did need all the moisture they could get, however, as the rye is in the soft dough stage of ripening; and the wheat isn’t far behind. I dug out the ‘grass’ scythe blade (a “grass’, a ‘weed’, and a ‘brush’ blade were all left in the kitchen when we bought) and sharpened it, and got it adjusted to my new snath. There was an old snath in the barn, but it was broken. Youtube makes scything grain and grass look soooo easy and effortless; I can hardly wait...for Mrs. AR to rub me down with liniment afterward.
The adult chickens are too little, too late: 4 eggs from 8 hens day before yesterday; none yesterday; 3 today. Less than a dozen the entire week. Got new Mason lids on sale today, so the chicken canning is that much closer.
Maybe more in a day or three, but I’m done in tonight.
Better late than never.LOL I was beginning to feel a little like the Maytag Repair man.
That sounds kinda like my Saturday. Yesterday Daughter, grand daugter and I left early, swung through the drive thru, and headed to the neighboring “big city” of 8000 people. LOL.
Visited the farmer’s market checking it out. We got honey, muscadin grape jelly, elderberry jelly, eggs, grassfed beef ground burger meat, some herbs in pots, and salted caramel.
Visited a new store in the town organic produce only. Free range chickens(no corn in feed)and grass fed beef. We got some butter, another dozen eggs, chicken, granny smith apples, and honey with the comb. I think daughter will definitely be visiting that store again.
I am interested in the eggs from free range chickens and butter from grass fed beef, because of the vitamin K2 content. The industrialisation of agriculture has led to a decrease in this nutrient in our food supply.
New research has revealed that K2 is needed for the body to regulate, and allow the calcium to be absorbed in the bones, instead of clogging up arteries.
The best source is Dutch style Gouda Cheese. Eggs from free range chickens and butter from grass fed beef are also good sources, but even a little corn in their feed can reduce the value, or so I’ve read.
Then late lunch at Shogun’s, and back to our little town. I had only been home about 30 minutes, when Grand Daugter called and asked if I could baby sit.
So I took a nap, then headed out again. Picked up the 11 year old grand daughter and went to baby sit with the great-grand kids ages: 5,1, and 6 months. What a blast.LOL Just a little worn out today, but have lots of stuff to do.
Hubby proposed harvestin beets for another batch of pickled beets. I told him I already have black berries and cukes, and I also have a long list of to dos that have to get done.
The earliest time I can possibly work in beets is Wednesday night. I do wish he’d learn a little about succession planting so all our produce doesn’t mature at the same time.LOL