Sometimes It's Free

Our wood pile looks pretty much the same as it did a couple weeks ago

with the exception that the odds and ends are now stacked.

(There were a couple more rounds that were given to a friend.)

Every so often, I like to check Craigslist for this or that.

If I do, I try to remember to look under the "free" category.

It's most often old mattresses, broken furniture, or a year and a half old "puppy" none of which I am interested in.

This time something caught my attention.

Free black walnut.

And it was near Mr. LB's work.

Our forests are closed right now meaning we can't go get wood.

I contacted the fella and hubby and made arrangements.

Mr. LB took the trailer and after work, picked up 

probably 2/3-3/4 of a cord of wood.

He wanted a couple pieces for a project, and 

the rest will make excellent firewood.

It's still not enough but adds to the stack, and we didn't have to fall it, buck it up, or roll it to the rig however far away.

There were some pieces that needed to be cut smaller, but then only had to be loaded in the back of the trailer that was right there.

We will still need more and would like to get some for my folks too,

but I might continue to watch the list and see what kind of trees 

people are falling in their yards.
I told Mr. LB, one could go around taking up all these "free" trees
and here in a couple months sell it.
No paying for wood permits or dealing with the hassles of USFS.

We're still burning the candle at both ends of the day
so this is a shorter post just letting you know what we're up to.
More soon~

A Seed Carrot !

The joke in our garden is

I plant. . .God laughs.

Last year we had so many things come up from seed,

it was difficult to tell what we had actually planted.

If a spud pops through somewhere, so be it.

I leave it to grow

We do rotate what is planted in each plot each year; however,

last year we had a bumper crop of parsley - in the potatoes,

some fabulous spinach - in the onions,

of course borage - everywhere!

cherry tomatoes in the carrots and beets and so on.

It is actually almost comical that I put markers in the ground.

Yes, I still need to weed around it:)

This year, as I was wondering around out in the plots

looking and visually planning, I noticed something.

It was there amongst the weeds.

I was absolutely delighted.

A seed carrot!

In case you didn't realize, let me explain a little.

If you put an heirloom (not hybrid) seed in the ground to grow a carrot,

a carrot grows during that growing season.

Come late fall, the tops die back.

It does not "go to seed" (like our spinach, borage, and tomatoes.)

Depending upon the climate where you live,

it will either rot or keep until the next year.

This carrot actually survived our winter and is growing back.

This year at the end of the growing season,

it should bare seeds.

I put the tomato cage around it and

told Mr. LB (probably a little too often) to watch out for the carrot.

I have wanted to try to over-winter a few carrots for seeds

every year we've planted them.

Buuuttt, they are so delicious and never seem to be in a good spot.

This one is definitely not in a great spot,

but since the good Lord let it grow, I ain't a'stoppin' it!

I will have to let you know come fall, if it bares seed.