As the end of summer rolls around, September was still a very hot, and dry month. We saw just one day of a very light sprinkle of rain on the 8th of the month, and the rest of the month was bone dry. There was also a cold front that moved in that day with hurricane force like winds. It hit the Salt Lake and Northern parts of the state extremely hard, (uprooting large old trees and damaging property). We were fortunate that the winds did no damage where we live. After 3 days, the front moved out and the temps were once again back in the 90's. Dave and I still practicing the sheltering at home, and doing our best to stay safe. The Covid 19 virus saw large spikes in the state, as students started back to school, and businesses were opening back up, (as much as over 1000/per day).
I spent most of the month gathering the produce from the garden and getting ready to put the beds away for winter.
The tomatoes did really well. We've been eating from the daily harvest everyday, I've given some away to friends, and I've canned several quart jars to replenish my pantry stock. As of the end of the month, my plants are still loaded with tomatoes, so as long as the frost don't come to early we will be enjoying these beauties for another month.
The winter onions are all harvested, and in storage in the garage, (We got about 10 pounds). I am trying my hand at garlic, so I planted a couple of rows this month for harvesting next year.
It was also a good year for the butternut squash. I have already harvested 13 squash. I gave away 5, (here are 8 sitting on the back porch with 3 of my pumpkins drying and getting ready for winter storage). I still have another 6 in the garden, (they are still not quite ready, but another week or so and I'll be adding them to the box. You will notice, as they dry the outer shell deepens from the light yellow to a more orange. They are such nice size. Dave is so ready for butternut soup. There also one more small pumpkin on the vines just starting to ripen. In the next week, I'll start processing the pumpkin pulp and getting it ready for cookies, pies, and such.
We got about 5 pounds of carrots out of the garden, I'm so glad I cut way down on the planting this year. Hopefully, I won't have to buy too many this winter. I'm thinking of freezing some of the carrots.
Our apple tree was very good to us this year. Dave and I picked a large bushel of apples. We had to pick them just as they were still slightly green, and just starting to turn yellow, (the birds were starting to eat them, and we needed to get them off the trees quickly). I gave 1/2 of the bushel away to family, friends, and neighbors, then I started freezing some for this winter. After spending a day coring, peeling and slicing - I had Dave take me to the local IFA store and I purchased an apple peeler. It made a world of difference. I am able to core, peel, and slice a tray full of apples in the time it used to take me to do a couple of apples. Why didn't I buy one of these years ago?? After putting 6 bags of apples in the freezer, I then started making apple sauce. I also made a delicious apple sauce bread. I'm down to just about 1/4 of a bushel left, and I thinking about canning some apple pie filling. This year the apples are so juicy and sweet. Everytime Autumn comes over she eats a couple of apples down to their core.
When I saw this picture, it reminded me of how I work to get our garden produce ready for winter. I remember spending time at my aunt's and uncle's houses in West Virginia and walking into their root cellars, (dug into the side of the hills). The shelves would be lined with canned goods, the potato bins filled to the brim, and baskets of various other goods all ready and wating to be eaten during the long cold months. As I grew up, I ofter wished I had one just like theirs. But, I look at my storage pantry, and I'm happy. It supplies Dave and I well. During this pandemic we have made very few trips out to purchase food. We've had most of what we need in our pantry and freezer. And we're grateful for our garden.
One little bit of excitement - our neighbor's little rabbits have dug a hole under the fence, and at least once every week, they come over to our yard. The boys have to chase them and try to catch them and get them back home. They try plugging up the hole, and the rabbits re-dig the hole out. The rabbits have discovered that we have a garden, and I've found a tomato with bite marks. They also love our lush green grass. Our cat, Opal, runs from window to window watching them. She is so fascinated by the rabbits.
October is predicted to still be warm and dry. So Dave and I will continue getting things ready for winter around the house. Our lives have really slowed down, and we're OK with this new lifestyle. We're hoping everyone is doing well and staying healthy.
