Sunday, November 13, 2011

November on Farm

I tried to post this a week ago.

It is November 13 and I just returned from my garden plot with a handful of finger-size carrots. I planted these as part of my late season replant either the end of August of early-September. They haven't had a lot of time to grow and certainly with the cooler, shorter days they won't get much bigger. However, I'll be able to harvest them until the ground freezes, at least another few weeks, perhaps a month. Meanwhile, the carrots I picked this afternoon will become part of this evening's supper.

The carrots fared much better than the beets and turnips which I planted at the same time. The turnips are little bumps and the beets aren't even big enough to harvest the greens. I could possibly fashion some type of shelter for them, but I don't know if I will this year or not. When we replace some of the windows I'll salvage the old windows and storms and create cold frames to extend the harvest season.

I just finished reading "The Good Life" the story of Helen and Scott Nearing and their sixty years of self-sufficient living. They are considered pioneers of the movement and while I do not subscribe to all of their philosophies, the foundation of what they created can serve as a blueprint to all of us who want to live a simpler, more self-sufficient life which is less tied to money and our reliance on fossils fuels and more to the season, what we can provide ourselves and finding a healthy balance.

We walked around the fields this afternoon. It was a beautiful, sunny day. I kept an eye out for fir boughs for a wreath, and we noted several apple trees we'll try to prune the winter, with the idea of improving their bounty. It just to goes to show, while one harvest season winds down, we can start planning and preparing for the next.