Getting Off The Grid - Life Happens As Gardens Flourish

Here we are nearly in the middle of May. The first week of May is always dedicated to full time work, the old getting paid job and not the homestead, which one day I plan to reverse and make the homestead a full time living, as in the money maker. Soon I keep telling myself but its all up to God when things will change around.

Since I last posted, in April, much has changed but lets get caught up. While I try to journal everyday that one week will get lost because of no time but working for the dollar.

The Homestead 

Monday - April 22nd.

After cleaning some inside I got outside and began to cut back more grown up bushes. I worked mainly around the hickory nut tree, so many random trees and old hedge bushes have came up and taken over. I got an entire truck full and hauled them down to the curb. I trimmed the over grown bushes away from the driveway on the way back home, I will load those up another day.

Before ending the day outside I gathered another quart jar of rose petals, once inside I rinsed them off and laid them to dry somewhat on a dish towel, next I packed then into the quart jar, I then added 2 cups of boiling water , stirred them and let them set till cooled. I pit them into the fridge for the night.

All the little things help, each hour shows improvement.

Friday April 26th.

After work I picked a mess of poke salad and more rose petals. I washed both, I stored the poke salad in the fridge over night but the rose petals I made the "rose tea" and left it in the fridge overnight as well.

Saturday April 27th.

I had wanted to skip work on the homestead and get the fish stocked up in the deep freezer but The caregiver job won out so I stayed on the homestead and mowed grass.

Of the two pickings of poke salad I managed to get five pints home canned and put away in the stock.

I also got five pints of rose jelly made.

Mowing! I mowed for a couple hours and I ran out of gas.

Sunday April 28th.

I got out to work on the homestead later in the day, I finished mowing and watered the little garden, I have zucchini up! 

Now Back to the homestead! May

The weatherman runs this place, or it would seem! When I seen that   four days of rain coming I got my butt in gear! 

Monday May 6th. & 8th.

I wanted to wait a few more days before mowing but I could not see one dry day so I got started, I mowed this place but I broke it down into a couple days since I also wanted to get one days mowing in at the old home place. So, with that being said I mowed half on Monday and half on Wednesday, giving my full attention on Tuesday to the old place that I am still working on.

The Garden 

Lets get back to what is happening on the homestead :

What Is Growing? 

I have so much wild and planted that is taking off!

As I mentioned in the last post, or two, I had sowed seeds for a few vegetables and they are doing awesome. I actually planted tomatoes, corn, yellow squash, zucchini and green beans in my ting garden, all of those are growing and doing fine. On Wednesday I set out another type of tomato, six plants, and tossed some cucumber seeds into a trench I dug.

I was trying a new method with straw but was disappointed because poison oak grew right through the middle, so that is out in that area of the homestead.

The sage is coming back strong and full.

The chamomile has began to bloom and I will be picking soon.

Honeysuckle?! Yes! I have been picking and making the tea for the jelly, that I have a case of 1/2 pints so far.

Roses and Rose! I also have eleven 1/2 pints of jelly make with another batch of rose tea waiting.

Poke salad, while some say this is poison its not, You just have to boil it a couple times to reduce how strong it is and its fine to eat, so far I have home canned 11 pints and ate a good mess fried with onions and eggs.

 Click this link to learn how to cook it properly " Poke salad " another way to prepare is after the boiling you can add water, season with bacon and have it like collard or turnip greens. 

The mint is, well mint! it grows and grows and spreads!

I have a parsley plant but I need to move it into the flower bed, the pot is not allowing it to grow as big as it should.

The blackberries are full and still green I expect those to be ripe in a month.

In pots still!

The sweet green bell pepper are still to small to put in my tiny garden so a couple more weeks for those.

Carrots, I have never grown carrots but I am not in huge pots, soon I will thin some into the garden area.

Green onions, I will keep them in the pot so not to mix with crow poison, looks just like green onions!

Tomatoes. I still have a few more mature tomato plants to set out and I will be done with tomatoes.

Egg plants, they are so pretty! I am hoping for a huge crop this year.

I also have a few flowers in pots that I had sowed seed for, lavender. 

The sunflowers did not come up so I will have to replant those.

The Learning :

I have to learn how to do things on a smaller scale, its hard but I am holding back. So, the garden can become more than a home for seasonal vegetables but also for fruit bushes And I need to set out nut trees. 

I also want to learn to grow in beds that can also be used as cold frames.

The Stockpile :

So far being busy with three job and working on the homestead I have only got to making honeysuckle jelly and Rose jelly for the up and coming store but I have managed to go out and pick the wild, poke salad that will be all mine and for the stockpile. 

There, I did manage to make time to sit down and look back on what is happening and what is to come.

How are you doing with your homestead? 

By Andria Perry

Photos by Andria Perry

I am still making progress on this homestead, getting a store built. For now I am just selling online, so check out my online store for homemade lotions, soaps and more. All made as natural as possible. Sunshine`s Homestead Creations.