I have been busy but until this afternoon I had not realized so much time had passed since my last post. I apologize for my negligence.
The past couple of months I have spent a lot of time working outside, but mostly in the early morning. I had barely turned the calendar to May when summer hit and hit hard, reaching temps in the 100’s on a daily basis. You might have heard that Texas is in a terrible drought, which is part of the reason this year has been so hot. Without moisture in the ground there is nothing to keep the temperature down. Last summer, which followed a very wet spring, I do not remember the thermometer ever hitting 100. This summer we are all praying for rain and relief from the heat.
Finding ways to conserve water is a must. The well here is pretty deep so hopefully it will never go dry but there are ranchers out here whose wells have dried up and so they must pay to have water hauled to their property for their livestock. Conserving water is a neighborly thing to do.
All air conditioners produce condensation and must be drained away from the unit. My AC drains into a 9 gallon galvanized tub. I use a lot of that water to water the 2 baby olive trees, but I always try to leave some for the wild life who are suffering from this drought too. Food and water is very scarce right now and I have seen critters at night coming for a drink of water. Even the bees hang around that tub drinking.
Other ways I try to conserve is by only running the washer when I have a full load. I leave buckets where dew dripping off the roof can fall into them. I also have invested money into rain barrels and gutters so when it does rain that water can be saved to water the garden when it doesn’t rain. I also am saving most of the dish water. I purchased a dish pan to wash dishes in and then dump the used water into a five gallon bucket, which I carry to some plant(s) to water. Occasionally the water is just too dirty or oily to be thrown on a plant but that is rare. It is amazing how much water is used just washing dishes. Today alone I dumped about 5 gallons on a native bush I want to save. Without the dish water I could not justify watering this bush. I have a future goal of replumbing the house so water going down the drain, also known as grey water, goes straight to water trees, instead of to the septic system.
About three weeks ago my foot came in contact with a chair and though I never got it x-rayed, the evidence pointed to a hairline fracture. It must have been a small fracture because I have healed very quickly, which is a big praise. At first I had a tough time watering my garden. I could put some weight on my foot but this land is very rocky and every step that was not flat footed hurt a lot. I had no choice but to use a cane or something to keep me from falling, such as a hoe. One of my neighbors came to my rescue and on several occasions came over and thoroughly watered everything for me. I am most appreciative.
Like every Saturday, I got up early, fed myself and then as soon as the sun had risen I was out the door to feed my cats. Once that job was done, it was off to the garden where I dumped the kitchen waste onto the compost pile. I then watered everything. There is a faucet by the gate door, with a splitter on it. When I turn on the faucet, half the water goes to a soaker hose which waters the main raised garden bed. The other half of the water goes into a hose which I take around the garden to water individual pots and the corn field (about 8 feet by 8 feet). With this set up it does not take that long to water the entire garden.
After I was done watering, I grabbed the necessary tools and cut down 3 small cedar trees and located a rock of the right shape to use as a border I am building in one corner of the garden for a raised strawberry garden bed. Hopefully by next weekend that garden bed will be completed, including transplanting the strawberry plants. Hopefully next year I will have my first strawberry harvest.
This afternoon I have been busy in the kitchen. First I made corn relish. I first came across corn relish while on a two week camping trip with my mother during a summer break from college. We traveled through the Four Corners area visiting many Federal Parks. At Mesa Verde National Park we ate many of our meals at the Far View Lodge where corn relish was always on the table. I really loved the relish and upon returning home my mother encouraged me to write the chef and see if he would give me the recipe. I was thrilled when I received a reply but taken aback when I read the recipe-which fed 100 people. Obviously I was going to have to do so
me math and see if I could reduce the quantities to something more reasonable. Here is what I came up with:
Far View Lodge Corn Relish
3 cans of corn (about 5 cups)
½ cup diced green onion
½ cup diced green bell pepper
½ cup diced red bell peppers
1/3 cup white vinegar
¼ cup sugar
Salt and pepper to taste
1 ½ teaspoons celery salt
¾ teaspoons dry mustard
Combine all ingredients and refrigerate. Allow ingredients to marinate a few hours for best flavors.
I also made zucchini bread wh
ich I baked in the solar oven. The solar oven produces really moist baked goods. I love it. Baking does take longer than it would in a conventional oven, but it is sure nice baking foods without heating up the house. The only problem I have had is it can get very windy here and wind can tip the oven over. So I can only use it on days when the wind is 7mph or less.
I am now enjoying the fruits of today’s labor.
The past couple of months I have spent a lot of time working outside, but mostly in the early morning. I had barely turned the calendar to May when summer hit and hit hard, reaching temps in the 100’s on a daily basis. You might have heard that Texas is in a terrible drought, which is part of the reason this year has been so hot. Without moisture in the ground there is nothing to keep the temperature down. Last summer, which followed a very wet spring, I do not remember the thermometer ever hitting 100. This summer we are all praying for rain and relief from the heat.
Finding ways to conserve water is a must. The well here is pretty deep so hopefully it will never go dry but there are ranchers out here whose wells have dried up and so they must pay to have water hauled to their property for their livestock. Conserving water is a neighborly thing to do.
All air conditioners produce condensation and must be drained away from the unit. My AC drains into a 9 gallon galvanized tub. I use a lot of that water to water the 2 baby olive trees, but I always try to leave some for the wild life who are suffering from this drought too. Food and water is very scarce right now and I have seen critters at night coming for a drink of water. Even the bees hang around that tub drinking.
Other ways I try to conserve is by only running the washer when I have a full load. I leave buckets where dew dripping off the roof can fall into them. I also have invested money into rain barrels and gutters so when it does rain that water can be saved to water the garden when it doesn’t rain. I also am saving most of the dish water. I purchased a dish pan to wash dishes in and then dump the used water into a five gallon bucket, which I carry to some plant(s) to water. Occasionally the water is just too dirty or oily to be thrown on a plant but that is rare. It is amazing how much water is used just washing dishes. Today alone I dumped about 5 gallons on a native bush I want to save. Without the dish water I could not justify watering this bush. I have a future goal of replumbing the house so water going down the drain, also known as grey water, goes straight to water trees, instead of to the septic system.
About three weeks ago my foot came in contact with a chair and though I never got it x-rayed, the evidence pointed to a hairline fracture. It must have been a small fracture because I have healed very quickly, which is a big praise. At first I had a tough time watering my garden. I could put some weight on my foot but this land is very rocky and every step that was not flat footed hurt a lot. I had no choice but to use a cane or something to keep me from falling, such as a hoe. One of my neighbors came to my rescue and on several occasions came over and thoroughly watered everything for me. I am most appreciative.
Like every Saturday, I got up early, fed myself and then as soon as the sun had risen I was out the door to feed my cats. Once that job was done, it was off to the garden where I dumped the kitchen waste onto the compost pile. I then watered everything. There is a faucet by the gate door, with a splitter on it. When I turn on the faucet, half the water goes to a soaker hose which waters the main raised garden bed. The other half of the water goes into a hose which I take around the garden to water individual pots and the corn field (about 8 feet by 8 feet). With this set up it does not take that long to water the entire garden.
After I was done watering, I grabbed the necessary tools and cut down 3 small cedar trees and located a rock of the right shape to use as a border I am building in one corner of the garden for a raised strawberry garden bed. Hopefully by next weekend that garden bed will be completed, including transplanting the strawberry plants. Hopefully next year I will have my first strawberry harvest.
This afternoon I have been busy in the kitchen. First I made corn relish. I first came across corn relish while on a two week camping trip with my mother during a summer break from college. We traveled through the Four Corners area visiting many Federal Parks. At Mesa Verde National Park we ate many of our meals at the Far View Lodge where corn relish was always on the table. I really loved the relish and upon returning home my mother encouraged me to write the chef and see if he would give me the recipe. I was thrilled when I received a reply but taken aback when I read the recipe-which fed 100 people. Obviously I was going to have to do so
me math and see if I could reduce the quantities to something more reasonable. Here is what I came up with:Far View Lodge Corn Relish
3 cans of corn (about 5 cups)
½ cup diced green onion
½ cup diced green bell pepper
½ cup diced red bell peppers
1/3 cup white vinegar
¼ cup sugar
Salt and pepper to taste
1 ½ teaspoons celery salt
¾ teaspoons dry mustard
Combine all ingredients and refrigerate. Allow ingredients to marinate a few hours for best flavors.
I also made zucchini bread wh
ich I baked in the solar oven. The solar oven produces really moist baked goods. I love it. Baking does take longer than it would in a conventional oven, but it is sure nice baking foods without heating up the house. The only problem I have had is it can get very windy here and wind can tip the oven over. So I can only use it on days when the wind is 7mph or less.I am now enjoying the fruits of today’s labor.
