Pioneer Woman at Heart

One Flourishing, Frugal and Fun Family!

One family learning to live off the land, cut back on expenses, and to live a simpler and a more self-sufficient lifestyle.

Adopted Motto

"Eat it up,
Wear it out,
Make it do,
Or go without."
~A Pioneer Sampler, by Barbara Greenwood~

Monday, May 5, 2014

Gettin' Dirty ~ Hubby's Birthday


Sunday was a race against the weather.  Sporadic rain was expected, so we worked fast.  The garden looks small in the photo, but in the way, way back you can see Hubby is tilling up more space for more garden.  It's big.  We will be putting up another fence for the pinto beans and cucumbers this year.  Hubby's co-worker tried a fence for his cucumbers, and said it saves a ton of garden space to plant more of other garden goodies.



~unloaded wood, stacked wood
~tilled all of the garden
~ replanted 7 strawberry plants we had left in the garden, and moved them to raised beds
-planted 362 yellow onions in the strawberry beds (onions fight against diseases and bugs for the strawberries)
~planted 86 red onions
-planted about 6 lbs. of red potatoes  (store was out of starter potatoes, had to get more the other day and wait for eyes on them yet)
~fixed rain barrel
~picked up another truckload of wood and unloaded


Once we have all our potatoes planted, we have estimated a yield of 5 pounds per plant, making our possible total 415 pounds of homegrown potatoes. 

I had planned to keep track of all our expenses, and compare it to our harvest, but forgot.  I do however, remember the cost of the red onions - $.83 total.

That's about a penny per onion.  You can't beat that, along with no pesticides or chemicals.

. . .next, I was back inside to start cleaning for a "send off" party for my 20 year-old daughter who is soon "shipping out" for basic training for the National Guard.  I didn't get much done, but got rugs washed and porch chair cushions washed.  Thankfully, my 17 year-old daughter did some much needed cleaning in the kitchen for me.  My youngest actually helped in the garden.  I should have taken a photo, ha ha!

Today is Hubby's birthday.  He loves peanut butter and chocolate, so I'm baking him a homemade peanut butter cake with homemade peanut butter icing.  He requested taco night for his dinner.  

Here's where my posts may become less and less...gotta get off here and tend to the animals and water the garden.  No rain now for two days.  Two rain barrels are empty, but I have two, which are on the front of the house that are full.  I am thankful for that.

Ah.....gardening....the thing that keeps me in shape......


4 comments:

Sandra said...

That's a lot of potatoes!!
Good luck with your garden plots this year. We are expanding ours.
The pinto beans sound interesting, never thought to grow those!

Kim said...

I grow all my cucumbers up as well, it really does save a lot of space.

EMMA said...

Yes gardening is great exercise isn't it! thanks for sharing the onions in the strawberry patch tip - will try that. And the cucumbers on the fence trick!
Happy Birthday to your husband - have a great evening - cake sounds delicious.

Willow said...

You are energetic ~ that's a lot of spuds ! lol
Happy Birthday to your husband .