Tuesday 21 June 2016

Grow it, Make it


Look at these juicy berries!  All my strawberry plants are producing well and are happy with onions planted between them.  The flax straw is doing a good job of mulching and in a sudden post rain flush, these mushrooms have all fruited through the front garden!    I wish I had an experienced mushroom forager to look at them for me - I'm scared to eat them because we have many toxic species that look a lot like edibles...  I took a foraging class a few years back and ended up even more more terrified to eat mushrooms we find here.   There is no substitute for having an experienced eye and hand to guide you as I'm not willing to risk our health (or our lives!) in the absence of it!




The garden is giving us tender greens (generously) and as I haven't planted anything other than peas (before selling the house) that's about all we are eating from the garden (aside from perennial herbs and fruit).   The peas will be ripe enough to enjoy soon and we certainly hope we'll be able to gorge on the raspberries which are forming as I type.  It's going to be the BEST raspberry year ever - the canes are positively LOADED with fruit!



My kombucha is thriving and my system of brewing every 3 days works well.  This jar is one that's just been started and in 3 days, the SCOBY will be covering the top and the tea will be bubbling nicely.   Three days is just about right to go through a half gallon jar (stored in the fridge while the next jar is brewing).    It's satisfying to make refreshing drinks instead of buying them.  I find that I crave kombucha when I'm hot and thirsty from working in the garden as it's much more thirst quenching than any other drink.   It's really frugal to make our drinks and while the kids aren't crazy for kombucha, I think they will like the fermented lemonade I'm starting today.

The packing is continuing as is the purging and sorting.  It's quite tiring, but it feels incredible to go through all the bits and bobs to eliminate anything unnecessary.  Just yesterday, I did some niggling tasks - counting change from the change jar and putting it in my purse to spend on groceries this week, sorting through all the keys and labelling for the new owners (plus finding our bike lock keys, padlock keys and spare vehicle keys), sorting through the "hardware bin" which was a mess of tacks, hooks, suction cups, pins, nails and screws, etc).  It's all organized and purged of things we won't need so those are good jobs done.  I really don't want to move anything that needs sorting!   I'm trying to use up as much as possible before we go so am strategically planning meals and snacks around what we have in the pantry.  The freezers are all but empty so I'm not having to worry about that...

I use a lot of baskets in my home and some are lined.   The liners have been set aside to be washed and line dried today to get rid of all the dust.   It will be a good job done so I can get things put away in the new place right away.  

All in all, things are coming together quite early because we don't want to leave much to the last minute.  It's just too stressful to be madly rushing around in those last days.  Moving is stressful enough all on its own.




10 comments:

  1. That is so true of Kombucha it is nearly addictive - my family drink 4 litres in 4 days and have to wait a couple of days between brewing. Thinking of setting up the big 6 litre container with the tap and doing a continuous brew

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    1. Maybe you can transition to continuous brew or do as I do - have the next batch brewing as you consume the finished batch (kept in fridge). As your scoby grows, it will ferment faster. Once you can divide it, then you could have 2 jars going (actively fermenting) to boost supply to meet demand :)

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  2. You sound so on top of it all, reading about your big purge and sort almost makes me want to sell and move, just to declutter! LOL

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    1. LOL! Yes, moving is a huge motivator to get rid of things. Sometimes, I catch myself wrapping and boxing something I wonder if it's really worth all that time and attention. Most often, I donate it if I can't be bothered wrapping and packing something carefully! A litmus test, if you will ;)

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    2. I had that same thought - maybe I should pretend to move, which would make me deal with those tasks I loathe and never seem to get around to (closet decluttering, for example!)
      -Jaime

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  3. Oh yes Kombucha is so delicious and refreshing, I brew it then add pulped fresh ginger for a further week and e d up with a sort of ginger beer which everyone loves, you might like to try that for the kids.
    It is such a shame you have to leave the berry canes just when they are doing so well, is there any way you could carefully pot them up and take them ? Worth the effort with something that takes so long to fruit.
    Good to see you are able to enjoy some harvest before you have to leave.
    Big pat on the back for getting all the fidly,crap, sorting done, rotten job but no one wants to do it.

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    1. Great idea re: the ginger! I'll try that :)

      As to the raspberry canes, I know I'll be able to source runners from someone out there via freeCycle or the permaculture network. They are prolific! I did pot up 2 dozen strawberry plants to take, though :)

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  4. Two years after moving I am still unpacking, things like the DVD player which has never been set up but I have bought a few new DVD,s so must get it unpacked and set up, I enjoyed the little niggly jobs they helped fill the time that I felt i was in limbo.

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