What did you do in the garden today?

[esturtz27]

65 this morning AND NOW I HAVE TOMATOES I was happy/ grumpy when I saw them but tomato beggars can't be tomato choosers.
My loofa squash is definitely the happiest thing in my garden. It's just continually winding itself around the hoop and dropping more oblong gourds.

@Ascholten oh my! I hope that shrinks down for you at a good quick pace. My husband got stung on the ear last month and he looked like an mma fighter for a week(he's sensitive to stings) Can you even get baking soda paste on it? Rough spot for a sting. Maybe your cockatoo is sympathizing.

 

[igorsMistress]

I really want to hear about this!

I try to keep to $100/week at the grocery store. But it's everything I buy there: socks, hubby's antacid, charcoal, and a storage tote are some of the non-edibles of recent weeks. I'm also trying to keep my Costco bill to under $660 for the year. That's $50/month (average), plus the $60 membership fee.

We will have lots of canned tomatoes and salsa this year. I may need to buy a half bushel of 'maters to augment my own for canning, but it looks like I'll have more of my own this year than any other year in the past.

Today, we got rain. A nice steady, all day rain. Thank you, thank you, thank you, Mother Nature.

Glad you got some rain Sally!

It's a collaboration on YouTube called #50DollarFebruary2023 there are several other channels participating with all different situations. There is anything from those with large acreage farms, to backyard gardens, small homesteads, and at least one extreme couponer that plans to work most of her budget around her shopping skills but she does have a small garden as well.

There is already a playlist going on YouTube but you'll mostly see the entry/announcement videos (channels saying they're going to participate) and then some of us have also started sharing preservation videos or steps we're taking to get ready for February. I think most of the fun videos will drop in February once we're all hungry and getting creative. LOL!

This should take you to the playlist with all of the channels so far.
https://www.youtube.com/hashtag/50dollarfebruary2023

This is my personal playlist so far, more fun to come! :
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLQUKb4LZlbZjIvRb8gtI0-_Q8AGrq-JQX

Thanks! I’m going to check that out today and get in on some of that.

 

[igorsMistress]

What I did in the garden today? Walked up to it, shrugged, and walked away.

Yup, been there!

 

[My Very First 6 Chickens]

I feel bad for laughing but I've so been there. I wear gloves when I process hot peppers, lol.

Lol, lesson learned! 🌶

 

[My Very First 6 Chickens]

You should try making some. I can the stuff and give most of it as gifts, it's really popular. Really easy to make and just uses water bath canning.

The first winter after we moved in, DP found a big willow branch on the side of the road and brought it home and we stuck it in the ground near the bird feeder and bird bath. The yard was so bare then, she wanted to give the birds someplace to land above the reach of cats. We braced it with a few stakes and assumed it would drop it's leaves and just be a stick. That was 3 years ago and it's now 15' tall, it's called The Lazarus Tree.

I love that story! Thanks for sharing! Lazarus is your forever friend

 

[My Very First 6 Chickens]

Oh my gosh! Sounds like it works as a TJ deterrent too!

Now thats rich!!!! Thats totally something I would do as well, lmao! Hard lesson learned!

 

[igorsMistress]

Need to cut the weeds down around the beehives.
Note to self: Bees get VERY pissy on rainy days, you KNOW THIS AARON !!!

Do not work around bees without a veil, especially if it's a rainy day out !!

Was doing some weeding yesterday between rain showers. Weeds come out a lot easier when it's wet. Didn't want to go thru the hassles of suiting up. (My lazy ass COULD have just put a veil on w/o the suit, but that's another topic)

Naah, im not bothering them, it'll be fine.
Did I mention that bees get pissy in the rain?

Bam, got me in the eye. right on the eyelid. I got inside and put alcohol on it right away, and did not see a stinger in there so was ok. It only hurt for about 20 minutes afterwards, then was just a bit tender.

Fast forward to this morning. Wake up, my vision is blurry and my eyelids feel heavy, like I got sleep gluing it shut or something. That happens sometimes, you know how it goes. Umm no, although it does not hurt, my eye has swollen shut from the sting.
If you have bees, there is no such thing as a safe 'quick peek', or safe 'ill just hop in and hop out'... Veil up, ALWAYS, or risk this happening or even permanent blinding if they get you IN the eyeball

I must warn ya'all right now, I got an ugly mug. My picture should be on the back of poison bottles to help induce yacking incase of accidental drinking. If you ate within the last week and want to keep yer meal, don't look at this mug shot

and remember no matter how bad your day is going, someone can be doing worse.
Bee happy with what ya got ! and safety first ALWAYS !! even while simple gardening !

Aaron

Oh ouch! That looks like it hurts like hell guy. Hope that swelling goes down quickly.

 

[igorsMistress]

Good morning all. Today was going to be more clean up in the garden but I’m super stuffy and certain this would be a headache day under normal circumstances. We’ve had a lot of wind even though we didn’t get rain, think I’ll stick to indoor chores instead today. The floor really needs to be mopped, need to change the sheets on the bed and probably should bathe the dogs. After the dogs shake water all over the bathroom it’ll need a cleaning too. Got a Golden Gate Ficus yesterday, pardon my dishes and the coffee I dripped on the counter. It’s so cute! I’m going to watch some videos about wiring today too so I can start shaping it. Have a great day all!

 

[Swiss]

PSA: This post will have lots of pictures taken on Friday.

Strawberries and asparagus:

Rainbow Heirloom Mix tomatoes, goats horn pepper:

Yellow straight neck squash, bell peppers, pickling and lemon cucumbers:

Ananas insertlongnamehere melon:

Potatoes:

Blue podded and Cascadia peas, 3 different kinds of radish, 2 different kinds of beets, and 2 or 3 different kinds of carrots:

Atlantic Giant Pumpkins:

More potatoes:

Sugar baby watermelon, and yellow fleshed watermelon, and one more potato plant:

Kale, spinach, flowering cilantro, basil, oregano, 2 Cippolini onions, parsley, thyme, chives, sage:

3 different colors of corn, butternut squash, and beans (before and after I pulled them):

Double corn cob?:

Ready to harvest? Maybe?:

Beefsteak tomatoes, yellow cherry tomatoes, and large red cherry tomatoes:

 

[igorsMistress]

We do have dogs but don't feed them people food. Our Husky-Great Pyrenees mix has an issue with resource guarding and will snap/attack our smaller dog to take his food or treats. This is extremely exacerbated when people food is involved so we just don't do it anymore. They only get dog food and dog treats. Even then I have to feed them at least 10-15 ft apart. The smaller dog is actually fed in a crate so she can't get to him.

I’ve had a similar issue, dogs can be so weird like that. We have bull terrier/ pit bull mixes. When they were puppies I had an older dog, a silkie terrier, that would eat her food and then chase the bigger dogs off theirs so she could eat their share too. Me wee girl @ 15 lbs was respected as pack leader by the big boy @ 80 lbs, otherwise there would have been trouble. She had that attitude her whole life after spending her first year with big dogs, then coming to me as nothing more than skin and bones.