Something Fruity

Man, when I get to work, I get to work!  But not alone.  No, the work of this homestead is nothing if not a family effort.

So that big birthday has come and gone, as has mopey-Jen (we all hope), and now we are fast approaching Thanksgiving.  And the end of the growing season.  But we have been so industrious here in the last few weeks.  Here are the highlights.

I received a Meyer lemon tree from my lovely mother-in-law as a birthday present.  Since we live on the east coast, it is happily growing indoors, under a grow light.  And I am dreaming happy, lemon-scented dreams.

My mother and step-father visited this weekend and gave us some housewarming gifts - namely, fruit trees.  Even better (and that was pretty darn awesome), they helped plant them!  Pops and the 7-year-old dug holes and mixed soil, and generally bonded.  All I had to do was choose the spots and place the trees the way I wanted.  So our homestead now has two Japanese plums:

 

a Ruby Queen 

and a Santa Rosa, 

and a peach tree:

a Gloria.  

Those are in addition to the two apple and two pears that were already growing when we moved here.  The new trees are old enough that they should fruit some next year, which makes it even more exciting.

The orchard is becoming a reality!

Mom also planted 155 flower bulbs in about an hour (a new world record, I would think), so the homestead will be productive, and pretty!  Meanwhile, I planted some bulbs of my own.  Garlic bulbs!  I am trying both a softneck and a hardneck variety to see which we like best, and which grows best in our soil.  I also planted four generic cloves from the grocery store, since I had a little more space.  All in all, we have 28 cloves of garlic slumbering in their bed.  Berty, if you are keeping track of the elephants, is all tucked in for the winter.

My aunt also sent some plants down from her farm in Northern Virginia, so those finally went in the ground yesterday and today.  In addition to some forsythia, lilac, daisies, and phlox, we also now have

strawberry plugs!  

So the elephant Flirty has given over her non-productive bed of kale to strawberries.  May we have better luck in the spring.

All in all, I am feeling that old warhorse Hope rise up again.  I guess it really does spring eternal.  But of course, hope is essential when you commit to a new project or way of life.  Without the hope, there is no point.

I am still waiting for some new plants to arrive from The Arbor Day Foundation.  Updates on that when I get those in the ground.

I just love spending time outside in the fall.  It makes me feel, well, hopeful.

The Beginning

Hello and welcome to my brand-spanking-new blog about life on our little slice of Virginia.

But first, some background. We recently made the big move from Indiana back to the East Coast so my husband could take up a new position. And since we are so scarred from the move that we have vowed never to do it again, my husband and I are embracing this new, rural life and making long-term plans. We are throwing down roots, baby.

Jobs for librarians are scarce in these parts, so I am also taking on a new role as stay-at-home mom to our two children. But this won't be a blog about the children! This is the place where I will be explaining, exploring, pondering, and discussing my transition from librarian to small-scale farmer.

Here you will also find book reviews on the various topics I research to make this new homestead a success. Authoritative ones, at that. You can trust me; I'm a librarian!

So, welcome. And wish me luck!