Im Seeing Red

Mostly in our garden we grow weeds.  I am an incredibly good weed grower.  It just comes naturally.  There happen to be some plants that are coexisting with the weeds- we have tomatoes, peppers, squash, cucumbers to name a few.  In one garden bed last year we added in a bunch of rabbit poop to compost. This year we planted a tomato plant and pumpkin plant in it.  We lovingly refer to the tomato plant as our tomato on crack.  I am not sure if this plant just got lucky, or if the poop really helped but this sucker is huge!  For the longest time we had huge green tomatoes and now they are ripening to red.  I am freezing what we dont eat fresh to be used in sauce later when I have enough. 

 This one tomato weight 1 pound 1 ounce!

One day's garden haul.  Eggs, Goat milk, tomatoes and peppers.

Using What You Got- In the Yard

Hubby and I have really been working on sprucing up our property.  We realize that our house needs some major curb appeal, and I mean major!  Our mailbox was pretty shabby looking, the lawn was way too long (since our mower quit), the "plants" err weeds were taking over the flower beds and the place wasn't looking too hot in general.  We are trying to fix it up while spending as little as possible.  I have been taking a mental inventory of what we have laying around that we could actually put to use.  One item that really stood out was this garden gate.  This gate has been well loved.  I originally bought it on craigslist from a lady who was redoing their fencing.  We used it as a planter backdrop, a decoration and even a headboard.  Today thanks to Hubby, it is proudly serving once again as a functioning garden gate!  We still have to add fencing on the other side, but now it divides the parking area and the steps leading to the backyard.  We only had to buy a new gate latch (which we haven't put on yet) but otherwise we didn't have to spend any money on it.  We have a couple more gates we plan on putting to use in the garden and goat pen. 

Flowers from the Farm

Two years ago we planted a bunch of peonies around the driveway.  With the heat we have been having this past week, they have been blooming like crazy!  I clipped a few blooms as well as some roses from our bush in the back yard to bring in the house.  I love having fresh cut flowers from our yard.
 

We bought a knockout rose bush and some lavender to plant by the mailbox on Sat.  I can't wait to check the mail and smell them.  Oh the simple joys!

Use What Ya Got

During nap time while nannying, I have been browsing Pinterest. Pinterest is an extremely dangerous place for me. Typically I would see a project, go buy the materials and proceed to make said project. However, as we are on a limited budget, and my Pinterest projects always turn out way more expensive than I plan, I can't do what I would typically do. I have now been trying to get inspired by Pinterest, and then figure out a way I can make do with what I have. I have been moving things around, painting, and purging. We have an old gate in the garden, which I set up behind a galvanized laundry tub to be used as a planter. I planted peas and geraniums. Hopefully the peas will climb up the fence. My only cost was the peas, which we had bought already. I have been trying to spruce up our back deck without spending too much money. Let me tell you that spray paint is now my best friend! We had these boring black chairs that were starting to chip and look kind of ugly. Instead of buying new patio furniture (which definitely is not high on our budget priority list) I just painted what we have and they look completely new. Check out the difference between the black and green. Love it! To me the green screams spring and looks so happy!

Garden Love

I believe that gardens can almost have personalities.  They are picky like children.  One year they like one veggie, and they might hate it the next.  Our first year gardening we were giving away squash and zucchini.  Last year we had a surplus of peppers.  This year is too early to tell, but so far our garden loves lettuce (and weeds).  We have been harvesting lettuce for salads, along with spinach.  I made a pizza using spinach, basil and asparagus from our garden.  The asparagus is so fun because one day its not there, and the next day its a foot tall.
  I am always amazed at things we can produce ourselves.  With some dirt, some seeds and a whole lotta love, we can produce food to eat.  Just knowing that the food on the table is because of me gives me so much pleasure.  I always tend to over order seeds, and someday I hope to have a system down for ordering and planting.  But I would rather order too many seeds for my garden than none.  This week we planted pumpkin, zucchini, gourds, squash, cucumbers, peas, tomatoes and probably more I forgot about.  Our garden is not just in garden beds, but in containers on the deck, and anywhere I can squeeze them in.  I planted chamomile to hopefully make tea later, and rosemary for my favorite rosemary chicken.  I planted the requisite basil and parsley. We have oregano, rhubarb, lemon balm and asparagus returning from previous years.  I love my garden!  Someday I hope to produce all the veggies we need for an entire year, but for now I am still figuring out what exactly my garden likes.  How about you?

New (Used) Mower

I have never been so excited about a old mower before!  We have been attempting to use our push reel mower on our property.  This mower would be ideal if our grass wasnt so tall.  However our grass is way too tall and thick for the poor little mower.  Since our budget is incredibly tight, we thought we wouldn't be able to afford a new mower until a few more paychecks.  The thought of the grass getting even longer and taller was killing me.  So I turned to good old craigslist again and searched for a mower.  I knew we needed a self propelled model (our front yard is a hill).  Eventually we will need to get a riding mower (most likely used on craigslist) but for now a push mower will be fine.  There were only a few within our budget, but I managed to score exactly what we needed for only $80.  The key to craigslist I have found, is to be willing to pick it up right away.  I usually offer less on the condition that I can come right now.  If I want them to hold something for me usually I will pay the asking price.  This mower was on craigslist for $100 and I paid $80.  Never hurts to ask!  So now begins the hard part of actually mowing.  We started around the garden boxes, so that the lawn would not be so inviting to ticks.  We will move on to the front yard as soon as we are satisfied with the back/garden.  My arms, back and legs are aching but I am so excited!

Snakes...ulgh!

Cleaning Up The Place- Free and Naturally

We have been working hard around here to clean everything up.  In the house there is endless work, with the animals there is plenty to do and around the yard there is never ending cleaning needed.  Our property is just under 5 acres.  While the majority of it is woods, the house and yard sit on maybe an acre and a half.  In the yard there are an unusual amount of stumps from where the previous owners took down trees.  These stumps were on our "someday when we have time and money" list.  Meaning that they don't really bother us so they are not a big priority.  We have a farmer for a neighbor who uses our access lane to get to his property.  He generously brought us a burn barrel to take care of our "stump problem".  Not wanting to seem ungrateful, we decided we might as well start working on the stumps while we can.  Nightly we have been burning out our stump (the former tree was huge!) and it is incredibly relaxing to sit in front of a fire after work.  Luckily, our property has an abundance of branches, twigs, leaves and other burnable items.  Not only are we burning the stump, but we are cleaning up the surrounding area as well.  I am always a fan of doing something naturally and free.  We are only burning branches and leaves so we don't need to be concerned about harming the ozone layer. We also don't need to rent a stump grinder to get rid of the stumps.  And if all that wasn't enough, we can throw the ash on the compost pile!  A win all around in my book. 
  Speaking of doing things naturally and free, I thought I would share our lawn mower with you.  We have one of the push reel mowers and man oh man is mowing our lawn a workout!  Before we had a riding mower, which we sold when I moved.  Not having the funds to buy another one, nor wanting to have yet another machine dependent on gas, we bought this used mower.  It works great, except on the hilly portion of our lawn.  Hopefully I will get used to it and mowing wont be so much of a workout.  On the other hand, I can always use a workout...
  Another way we clean naturally and free, is by hanging clothes on our line.  When we bought the house in 2010, we sold our dryer and haven't bought a new one.  We do have a washer but at least we can save on the drying costs.  I love hanging clothes out to dry.  There is something so very simple about hanging wet clothes, and later they are dry.  No electricity used. 
  Not only do we save money by burning yard waste, mowing with a reel mower, and line drying clothes, but we can feel good about our choices environmentally.  So you have time, or if you can make time, I would encourage you to find a way that you too can clean up for free.  These are just three of the ways we personally do.  What do you do to clean?  What could you do to cut out costs in cleaning?  I would love to hear about it!

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