Strawberries...quickest season ever...

Well that was fast!

hot dry May + hot wet June = Crappy Strawberry season 2015

We are fortunate that my husband gets the first two weeks of July off.

If we didn't have that opportunity...we wouldn't have gotten any strawberries this year.

Husband and son went to Fruition Berry Farm on hwy 15, north of Kingston.

They came home with a bunch of baskets.

(They even came home with new baskets!

Our old plastic white ones have lasted almost 10 years!)

They even came home with 5 pints of pre-picked raspberries.

The same equation up above applies to raspberries with one exception.

hot dry May + hot wet June = no picking after noon in July

The boys just missed it.

Thank goodness for pre-picked berries!!!

(and the staff that go in the hot field to pick them!)

We froze 4 large freezer bags of whole, cleaned strawberries

and one large freezer bag of whole, cleaned raspberries.

Perfect for smoothies!

We also jarred 8 jars of strawberry jam,

4 jars of raspberry jam and

1 jar of rasp-strawberry jam!

Perfect for the classic...PB & J.

Which is one of Owen's favorite breakfasts...

Since he can't eat them at school.

I heard mixed reviews about picking from other folks at other patches in our area.

Some had it good....others, not so much.

Did you get to go berry picking?

Where and how was it?

Mystery Bed...

I hope you can follow this logic...

This year, we made a few garden beds....but they won't be ready until next year.

Yeah...no one I told got it either.

Let me go back...

We decided to make some dedicated space for berry bushes.

We dream of raspberries, blueberries and Chester blackberries.

Seriously...there is a type of blackberry that is called a Chester.

Of course we have to plant it!

Out of the way...in the sunlight...near evergreen trees...

This new planting area had to have all of these things.

Ches had cleared out sumacs from the west side of our property last year.

The area seemed perfect!

We moved railway ties.

We layered the beds with straw-like grasses, manure from a friend,

50 % composted compost...basically anything we could find to fill the beds.

I considered the fact that new plants are sensitive to the high nitrogen in fresh food waste.

Our compost isn't composted enough!

Let's wait a season, I said.

Give the area a chance to decompose and settle.  

We still had a buncha beds that were empty this year.

What to do?

Ches thought it would be a good spot to plant several packets of sunflowers we had laying around.

Not a bad idea!

I'm not a huge one for flowers.

I don't have the energy to deal with things that aren't going to feed me back.

I am branching out though...

and perhaps giant dried up sunflower heads might be a nice treat in the winter for our chickens?

We bought a selection of different sunflowers from a fundraising neighbour.

There was a wide variety of colours and sizes.

From shortest to tallest:

Teddy bear (bright orange)

Autumn Beauty (bright yellow and red)

Velvet Queen (dark crimson)

Early Russian (traditional yellow)

Giganteus (bright yellow and HUGE)

I hadn't given a lot of though to where we would plant them.

A temporary fix for an empty garden!

I figured they would do alright in these fresh beds...and even if they didn't...

we already had long term plans for these beds anyway!

What I didn't realize was that I was in for a big surprise!

The compost grew mystery plants!

We have no idea what the above vine is...kinda looks like a pumpkin plant.

We discovered 3 kinds of tomato plants growing!

Some sort of regular red tomato, romas and some type of cherry tomato!

Our sunflowers ended up doing fantastically well!

One of the plants is over 14' tall!!!

We waited patiently to see which kinds of sunflowers actually took.

We didn't cover them with mulch or anything.

We feared the chipmunks took the seeds away.

One of the railway ties we used actually had a wild black raspberry cane in it when it was moved.

It actually came back!

Do you see the strong new green cane vs the dark red dried up version?

Our patience paid off and we are now rewarded with beautiful sunflowers!

Striking...

Breath-taking...

Bold sunflowers...

These things might have been an afterthought...but they make my soul soar when I look at them.

Sometimes it is better to be surprised than plan your whole entire life...

Year 3!!! Jumping in with both feet

Its been a few years now...

Since we moved into our forever home in the country.

We had lived in our first family home for 4 years and, 

as all of you long term readers know,

we had a pretty well established garden.

We had wild raspberry canes and asparagus flourishing.

We had an ever expanding garden plot.

We had healthy food and fun for the whole family.

Then we moved...

We decided to move into a bigger home and a bigger lot.

As sad as we were to leave, 

it was one of the best decisions we have ever made.

We continue to recover the overgrown lot.

Changing it into something amazing, while maintaining its natural state.

We continue to cultivate our land to maximize our haul, all on less than 2 acres.

The above picture shows the transformation the yard

has taken in the first two years.

This year will produce some of the most drastic changes

since we first took over!

We're adding new beds for berries.

This new addition will provide raspberries,

blueberries, blackberries and gooseberries...

Ches is obsessed with getting a blackberry strain called "Chester".

Not only will these bushes come back and flourish every year

but they will also provide some divide and privacy between our yard 

and the dog run next door.

We are also getting chickens!!!

A family friend is giving us 4 hens approx 1 yr old.

We were able to get our hands on a free shed that

another friend was throwing away!

A few adjustments to the shed will have it ready for the girls

that are arriving in less than a month.

I gotta say...we are pretty frickin excited!!!!

(Another friend of ours says he is going to buy us 4 MORE chickens

so he can get free eggs....)

Stay tuned for the "creating of the coop" post!

(and many subsequent chicken stories)

Our indoor seedlings are getting bigger by the day!

45 Roma tomato plants...

several Broccoli plants...

All growing indoors...because this year we don't have a cat.

What are you most excited about this growing season?

Just about missed the strawberries!

We are so fortunate to have a choice of pick-yer-own farms in our area.

Both are great for different reasons.  Both are run by members of the same family.

We decided to go to Paulridge this year, because of necessity.  My mother in law called ahead to see which farm actually still had strawberries left!  We had waited too long in the season to have the luxury of choice.

So off to Napanee we went back at the beginning of July!

(Ideal timing in our area seems to be the middle to end of june for strawberries...but raspberries are later on)

Paulridge Farms is a family run operation that has been going on for years.

They really do have it down to a fine art.  They provide everything one might need for the experience.

http://www.paulridgeberryfarm.com/

Quaint placards display current pricing, wagons to haul your load to the car.  The parking lot is a short hike from the fields...kind of a nice treat to see the exhaust is kept a safe distance back from the food.

Owen shows me he is ready to go with all the tools he needs.

(Lucky for him Mum brings the other essentials like sunscreen, a cushion for your knees or bum and lots of water.)

The driver takes us on a flat bed trailer to the spot that is currently being picked.

Owen moves down the rows searching for the ultimate berry!

Lucky for us it was a hot day with no scorching sun.

Owen still needed a rest in between the rows.  Whew!

We were able to haul out 3 baskets of berries between Owen and I.

Nana picked 3 baskets herself.

We do eat some while we work...but after a while you just want to get out of the uncomfortable hunched over position.  So you pick faster...and snack less.  On the ride back to the main buildings, we snack a bit in sheer exhaustion and bliss.  Behind Owen are the baskets picked by the employees.  Those berries are sold at a premium, as "pre picked berries" at the main buildings.  The flavour of home grown, fresh picked berries but without the back pain.

Paulridge Farm has a play area at the main buildings. 

Its a nice little spot to rest up before heading back home.

We had to wait a little bit as Ches and Noah went their own route.

We decided to divide and conquer, splitting our efforts between strawberries and raspberries!

Ches and Noah picked 2 baskets of raspberries, which is saying a lot!

We have found that filling a full basket of raspberries takes twice as long because they are smaller and the bushes hide those ripe suckers!

In the end the boys were happy with the haul.

Total haul:  6 baskets of strawberries, 2 baskets of raspberries, 4 pints of fresh peas and 1 pint each of green and yellow beans.

It took approximately 2 and a half hours from the start of our trip door to door.

We made a huge batch of strawberry jam along with a couple of raspberry jams.

We rinsed and froze some of each kind of berry in large freezer bags.

Some of those frozen berries will turn into smoothies or be inserted into pies or crisps.  The newest thing for us is thawing a few for a batch of home made raspberry vinaigrette. 

All the tops we cut off the berries when we prepared them will go great in our composter too!

We ate the beans and peas almost immediately.

Eating fresh peas from the pods remind me of my childhood driving from Oshawa to a farm in Bowmanville.

My Mom and I would shell and eat them all the way home.

My paternal Grandma Bell was also big on picking your own when they were in season.

Perhaps that is a peak into her farming childhood or a reminder of the hikes in Selwyn Park in the Kawarthas where her and her husband built a cottage on Chemong Lake.

I just hope that my sons take their children picking berries and the tradition will continue.

Memories are made along the journey...not when you get to the destination!

Get Lost...

Ok, so this post is actually about NOT getting lost.

Mainly all this warm spring weather has inspired me to do a post about getting out into nature.  Go for a hike alone or with friends.  Experience nature in a first person sense.  Not just through posters, photographs, artwork or watching the Discovery channel.

It's about the sights and smells of the woods. 

About following a trail...just to see what's around the next bend.

It's the feel of the wind through a field.

It's about the thrill of finding a big patch of something edible! 

A raspberry bramble.  A bright green bush of garlic mustard or lamb's quarter.  A crab apple tree.

Is that mutant glasswort?!?

It's about seeing nature as art.  Structural.  A tall rock formation.

It's about stopping to smell the fragrant mosses.

It's about sneaking up on something!

Like finding the evidence of animals in action...

It's about things that make you do a double take!

Or just plain creeps you out...

I recently picked up the 2012 edition of the Frontenac Provincial Park info guide.

Inside it mentioned what you should take in your backpack when you go on a hike, which I thought was particularily useful!  I'll mention the details below:

-Map

-Compass (even if you're carrying a GPS)

-water

-extra food & high energy snacks

-extra clothes

-first aid kit

-pocket knife

-headlamp or flashlight

-whistle (3 blasts is a standard distress call)

-cord

-large orange plastic bag (good visable colour for attracting attention and can keep items warm and dry)

-waterproof matches or a lighter

-fire starter (aka small sticks, bark, pine cones, newspaper)

-emergency blanket

-insect repellant

-sunscreen

-rain gear

Although this may seem like an excessive list for an afternoon's hike or walk, these items may just come in handy in the event of an unplanned detour or delay.

I remember years ago, we were invited to hike in to someone's campsite in Frontenac Park.  My wee son Owen not quite 2 yrs old at the time and I had no idea if he could sustain the energy for a hike of more than 1 hr.  As a family we had gone on many walks since Owen was born, but he was usually in a stroller for most of it.  I knew Owen had lots of energy...so I was willing to give it a shot.

I decided to test out if we could do it on a prior weekend.  Noah came along too.  He was probably only 8 yrs old at the time and had been playfully dragged along on many a hike through the Park.  When Noah was younger we started off with the shortest trail first and then worked our way up to the 2 hrs trails.

I figured since this was Owen's first hike through the park, we'd better take the short one.  Seeing as how Noah had already done the short trail a couple of times, we'd make it interesting...by doing the trail in reverse!  I brought my trusty backpack, which held all sorts of important things, like water bottles and snacks, along with a toilet paper roll, plastic bags, park map and insect spray.  We all had sturdy boots and hats on.

We first started strolling out on our trek, heading towards the "end" of the trail.

I quickly remembered why hikes were frustrating with children of a certain age...

My pockets were all full of every rock and pinecone Owen could reach.  Noah had to be perpetually reminded that it would be in his best interest to stay on the trail.

We didn't make it very far and all three of us were ready for a snack break.  That's when I knew this trip was doomed.  I had grabbed the backpack without checking it.  It had been seriously depleted from taking it along on the last fishing trip.  Normally I was a lot better at checking on these things, but it was a momentary lapse.  To make matters worse, it became apparent we had taken the wrong trail completely and I didn't know where we were.  We ended up at a parking lot I'd never seen in the park.  Sigh...I decided that the smartest thing to do was to follow the tar & gravel road that led away from the parking lot and hope that a vehicle of some description passed us by and took pity on us.  What finally worked on Owen was to get him to chase his big brother Noah ahead on the road.  It wasn't long before that plan backfired and Owen was too tired to walk anymore at all.  I had to carry Owen for the last hour and a half.  

After 3 hours, we were tired and exhausted but at least we had made it back to the main parking lot.  It was a bad experience, but I was completely to blame.  You have to pick your battles.  Frontenac Park is so wonderful for hiking, but even on the shortest trail you can't manage a stroller.  If you can't wear your child, then wait until they can manage rocky terrain on their own.  Many trails in Frontenac Park look like the trail below...

And ALWAYS make sure you have enough snacks and water in case of an emergency.  I trusted that I had been to the Park enough times to know where I was going and clearly shouldn't have been in charge of the map.

All of that being said, hiking and walking in the woods is one of my most favorite activities.  It's just so important to be prepared for the unexpected.  (And if you hike with children, make sure you bring another adult with you to share in the carrying.)

I try to get a hike in whenever the weather and time permits.

P.S.  Owen (now almost 5 yrs old) loves hikes, as long as he has a hiking stick with him.

And Noah learned to stay on the trail, after finding out what the rash caused by Poison Ivy looks like. 

Wild Black Raspberries....rubus occidentalis

A few of the places we've lived have been in rural locations.  Sometimes we've been luck enough to spy the telltale red spikey canes of raspberries!  We cultivate these canes and low and behold, they take over.  We allow these tangles to grow and flourish because we know how awesome the black raspberry is.  It may look like we're the sort of neighbours who let our property go wild.  That just may be the case!  What may look like an unruly yard to some, our boys look at it like its a veritable grocery store.  Case in point, the picture below!



Looks wild...but its really yummy.

 Turns out these yummy wild treats are actually called wild black raspberries or rubus occidentalis by their proper name.  I've included some info that I borrowed from Wikipedia:

Rubus occidentalis is a species of Rubus native to eastern North America. Its common name black raspberry is shared with the closely related western American species Rubus leucodermis. Other names occasionally used include wild black raspberry, black caps, black cap raspberry, thimbleberry,^[1][2] and scotch cap.^[3]
Rubus occidentalis is a deciduous shrub growing to 2–3 m tall, with prickly shoots. The leaves are pinnate, with five leaflets on leaves strong-growing stems in their first year, and three leaflets on leaves on flowering branchlets. The flowers are distinct in having long, slender sepals 6–8 mm long, more than twice as long as the petals. The round-shaped fruit is a 12–15 mm diameter aggregation of drupelets; it is edible, and has a high content of anthocyanins and ellagic acid.^[4][5]
Black raspberries are high in anthocyanins. This has led to their being very useful as natural dyes and, since anthocyanins are powerful antioxidants, to a great deal of interest in them for their potential nutraceutical value. Extensive work has been ongoing at Ohio State University to evaluate their benefit for cancer treatment in mammalian test systems,^[6] and the first clinical trials on patients with esophageal cancer.^{[7]
(source:  Wikipedia, Rubus Occidentalis)}

A closer view of the wild black raspberry...the trick is to wait until they turn black, as their name suggests.  The red one are too tough and they don't "fall" off the cane very easily.  You know you have a ripe berry when you touch it and it basically falls into your palm.  Our neighbourly birds do love them too, but thankfully the canes are thorny, so the birds don't get out of control like they do with our poor strawberries.  They neighbourhood animals appreciate our wild yards...even if our neighbours don't.  Tee hee!



I send the boys out with baskets in the mornings and they pick (and eat) until they are full...then we throw them into pancakes or muffins.  They keep their shape better than commercial raspberries or traditional raspberries.  They are smaller, tougher and sweeter, I find.

If you let enough of the canes take hold, you'll have plenty of berries for freezing, eating and cooking with.  I had some this morning with yoghurt, flax seeds, raw almonds and honey.  YUM!  Since we've identified these wild berries, I can't help but see these canes everywhere!  I spotted some in the back of the parking lot in an industrial area of Kingston, I've seen them all over. 

Look for red canes with small thorns.  They almost look like dogwood, but dogwood has a slightly different colour of red and no spikes. 

Perennials...the easy way to garden!

The wonderful thing about owning land is that you can finally get started on those plants that take a long time to establish.  You have time on YOUR side!  I love the idea that you can plant some things, virtually forget about them and they'll keep on giving you wonderful gifts EVERY YEAR!

I thought I would dedicate this post to the plants and things that you can purchase now, plant and enjoy for years to come.  Now since I've already discussed asparagus so far, I will avoid them for right now.  Just note that asparagus also falls into the "easy garden" category. 



My neighbour's apple tree in full bloom!

APPLE TREES:

I have been reading Suzanna Moody's sister's book "The Canadian Settler's Guide" by Catherine Parr-Traill.  There is a whole chapter on how the apple tree or orchard can add so much to the home.  Back in the 1830's they dried their apples and rehydrated them for use all winter long...that was....as long as the mice didn't find them first.  Poor Suzanna's neighbour dried out her apples but when she went to collect them the neighbour only gave her 3 bits of dried apple...saying the mice found them under their bed and ate a feast.  (Under a bed???  Surely the rafters would have been a better place in those days!)  Apples store well over the early months of the winter.  They also freeze well for later use.  I was so intrigued with the dehydrating idea, that we may be looking for a dehydrator come this fall. 

There is a great debate over whether or not you must spray for bugs with apple trees.  My mother in law swears by the stickey cup method to attract bugs away from the precious fruit.  Plant an apple tree and let me know how that turns out.  For now we are happy to pick our neighbour's tree (with her permission) and seek out the local U-pick farms.  Its a GREAT family activity.



10 plants turned into THIS...



Strawberries in bloom May 20-2011



 STRAWBERRIES:

Strawberries are wonderful to have at home.  They take a whole season of care for only a few weeks of fruit.  Nothing in the world beats going out to your patch in the morning to grab some fresh berries to add to pancakes or just to sprinkle on cereals or yoghurt.  We planted 10 plants a few years ago and they EXPLODED!  Its been quite a challenge to keep the plants from taking over our parking lot!  (top pic you can see the bumper of my car)  The runners are a naturally produced survival technique.  Each plant may produce an infinite amount of runners per season.  Our first year we let the runners go wild....the second year we picked any runners we saw.  You can never get all of them, but it definitely helps the plants produce more fruit than plant.  All of its energy is spent on fruit production rather than making a bigger, greener plant.  Last year, the berries came way too early and the rains kept us inside most of the time.  The robins were thrilled....they got most of the berries before we had a chance to pick them.  That's nature for you! 

Originally this bed held flowers of all types, but we aren't flower people, so we dug them all up and decided what we were going to put in the bed.  We chose a perennial for the bed, as its very tough to turn that soil in the walled in space in the front yard.  Its also impossible to get a tiller in there.  We picked strawberries for that bed because strawberries like a slightly acidic soil.  We were able to cover the soil with cedar chips without fear the acidity would affect other growing things nearby (its just berries there!) 



Owen poses with the wild black raspberries we trained across our fence

  RASPBERRIES:

When we first moved into our home, we noticed a corner of the parking lot that had wild black raspberry canes peaking out from around the fence.  We decided to let them flourish!  By keeping other plants and vines at bay, the canes are able to take as much sun and rain as it likes.  After the first year, the canes were starting to bow towards our cars!  Thats when we started training them down our fence (using gloves of course....ouch!)  Raspberry canes are quick thorny...so take care.  Luckily you won't have to fuss with the canes much.  They do their own things and by mid june we'll have scads of berries!  We usually freeze some and pick and eat the rest fresh.  They are certainly longer lasting than the strawberry counter-parts.  We can pick raspberries for almost 2 months before the August heat does the poor guys in. 

I absolutely adore it when we send out the boys with a basket each and they pick their own....still in pj's.


Our disappointing blueberries

BLUEBERRIES:

We had another awkward area for planting.  We had tried lettuce and herbs in the area previously...but the big manitoba maple blocks out a substantial amount of sun throughout the day.  I grabbed about 6 blueberry shrubs and only 4 survived.  The are still only twigs after 3 years.  I feel like there is something we are missing when it comes to this patch as well as blueberries in general.  We treated the soil with natural cedar chips as well.  Blueberries love the acidic addition to the soil.  So far they have only produced a few flowers each and the robins nab the berries before we've been able to taste a single one. 

Our experience with blueberries has been disappointing at best, but my husband is still optimistic.  Me?  I'm getting tired of weeding the area without any return.  (I'd love to dig them up and relocae them to someone else's property, personally!)  Our sad experiences with blueberries makes me jealous of those who live in the hwy 7/Kaladar area...they seem to be sitting on a gold mine of blueberries!



Garlic Chives



CHIVES:

It doesn't matter the type of chives you grow...they all rock!  A baked potato is nothing without these green lovelies.  We FOUND them growing in the area that is now our flat bed garden, now tranplanted beside our BBQ right out the door from our kitchen!  Snip as you need them, they grow back bigger and better all season long.  Snip, wash and chop.  Add to a freezer bag and you have chives all winter long.  You can dry them too, but the frozen kind always taste more fresh.  

We have continued to cultivate garlic chives.  They are a broader leaf variety and sound snooty.  Not just chives, but garlic chives.     



Rhubarb is getting bigger!



RHUBARB:

I'll be doing another rhubarb post shortly...ours is getting out of control!  Rhubarb also freezes well, since when you cook with it, it turns to mush anyway.  Freeze them chopped or whole, both are just as easy to cook with.  They are a great source of vitamin C and other anti-oxidants.  Not a fan of the taste?  Add white sugar and try not to love them. 

All of the above-listed plants and trees are a great way to get into gardening.  There is very little expense put into them and they last for many years.  Talk about getting the most bang for your buck!

Have you got perennial plants in your garden plan?