Catching Up!

Tomatoes have taken over our house!

The summer has gotten away from us! We have only had time to post photos and a few highlights here and there on our Facebook page lately and are sincerely apologetic for not posting more on our blog! We have been inundated with tomatoes up until we had a lot of rain about a week ago. Now we are suffering some blight and losing some of our plants. Feast or famine!

Our booth at the Burlington Downtown Farmer's Market

We have been at the Burlington Downtown Farmer's Market since early May. It has been great to meet people interested in eating fresh produce and learning about other local farms in the area.

Josh continues to grow.  He is almost the same size as Sophie and still has more growing to go!

Concrete pad for the basement and foundation walls going up! 

One of the more time-consuming projects we have been endeavoring has been the construction of our future home. It will be very exciting to share the development of this project with you in the future!

It's tomato time!

The tomatoes are really beginning to come in now which is one benefit to the hot weather we've been having.  Seeing small okra on the plants is another.  I've already dehydrated some Principe Borghese tomatoes and now I have pot of mixed heirlooms cooking down to be processed through the food mill for juice or tomato puree.  A pot of tomatoes is a pretty sight!  We'll enjoy them all winter long!

Moving the Hen-a-bago II

Hen-a-bago II attached to the tractor

You might have read about our newest Hen-a-bago II being built and then moved out to pasture. We relocate  Hen-a-bago II once or twice per week to a new section of pasture.  Changing pastures often improves the health of our chickens by giving them new grasses in which to forage for insects as well as "salad" greens.  Rotation also is a form of parasite control as it disrupts the life cycle of many naturally occurring yet undesirable organisms seeking to find a host site in the guts of our chickens.

Chickens riding in Hen-a-bago II

Suckers!

Cleaned up suckered base of the tomato plants, keeping fruit up and leaves off of the ground

We are firm believers in suckering tomato plants. Some people are not so prone to the practice. In observing plants that have been suckered and those that have not been suckered we have come to find that suckering keeps limbs from touching the soil, which keeps the leaves from contracting soil bacteria and other things that harm the tomato plants. It also keeps our tomatoes from forming low on the plant where it has the likelihood of resting on the ground as it develops, which could lead to rot, or allow a ground insect to devour it.

This is what suckering gets rid of, yellowed leaves and contact  with the ground

Tying up the tomato plants keeps them from falling over and turning into gangly out of control messes. Here's to hoping for a good crop of tomatoes!

A Little Luck

We have a friend who visits us from time to time.  He's a dear soul and one of those people who has the good fortune to find four-leaf clovers.  During a recent visit he even found a 5-leaf clover!  We are blessed not only by his friendship and his help during visits but also by the luck he finds growing freely on our land.

Bitty Figs and Bitty Grapes

Small figs growing on the tree

Our monstrous fig tree has begun to produce little bitty figs! They are very sweet looking and we are sure they will produce sweet little fruits this summer!

Small figs growing on the tree

The grapevines have also begun to produce small bitty bunches of grapes. It is always amazing to watch plants develop and create fruit and vegetables.

Small grapes

This time of year I become very hungry for home-grown fruit so these figs and grapes beginning to grow are very exciting developments!

Irises

"Here's looking at you!" Spider in the iris

The warm weather this spring has given us some early blooming, beautiful irises in our flowerbeds. The previous owner of our farm planted beautiful flowers all around the property.

We have many varieties and colors of irises. With some cooler mornings and a few days of rain here and there, the petals have been really beautiful to capture beads of water in the morning!

Here are some more photos of our irises:

The irises have finished for the season and the gardenia are now blooming.  About time I published this blog post!  Memories of cooler days and a season that will come again.