Uncharted Heritage: Backyard Exploration

Showing posts with label Backyard Exploration. Show all posts

20180220

Planning and Journaling

Angel Buff February 20, 2018 0 Comments

It is almost Spring and we are excited to be planning our garden.

I put together a gardening/homesteading journal - nothing fancy - just an old, unused notebook with pockets, folders, notebook paper [for notes] and blank pages [to draw out plans] - something easy to keep up with and something that doesn't matter if it gets a little dirty when used outside. It will be nice to have something to carry around and make notes with.

I believe the journal will be a great tool to keep track of what works well, as well as to make notes of our failures. Hopefully we can learn from our mistakes each year, make adjustments, and improve. I really wish this is something that we started a lot sooner.

Do you keep a gardening and/or homesteading journal/log?

Something that we are planning to change up this year is the location of our vegetable garden. Our previous location seemed ideal. We enjoyed the proximity of the garden to the house and the shed. It also was on a hill, but leveled. The garden, well, it just looked good there. So what is wrong with this location? Morning Glories! and Bindweeds! Pesky weeds that are disguised as innocent flowers. But these weeds grow quickly, are nearly impossible to get rid of, and they choke out the vegetables.

We spent a little time the other day examining the property for a new location to try this year. We have a few ideas, though nothing has been determined yet. Before we make a decision we are going to do a little research about what we are wanting to try growing this year - we are currently working on our list.

20170629

EGGS!!

Angel Buff June 29, 2017 0 Comments

It was drizzling a little rain out. Sera and I went out to check on the chickens and peek in the coop, hoping for an egg. We have anticipated this day. To our excitement, we found that a couple of our hens started laying! We got our first eggs today!! TWO eggs!!

20140128

Snow Day

Angel Buff January 28, 2014 0 Comments

This is our daughter's first snow. {We don't get much snow in this part of Tennessee.} She was so excited, and of course we were excited for her. Memories being made. Lots of playing! We also made a treat for the birds, using pine cones, peanut butter and popcorn. And we got a treat too...snow cream. Yummy! Nice to have an opportunity to slow down and just enjoy being together. A fun day for us all!

20131019

Time to check your flatware...

Angel Buff October 19, 2013 0 Comments

The cold weather arrived quickly this year. Rather, it snuck up on us! And really it feels almost as if we are skipping directly from summer, right on into winter.

Where did autumn go?

As we were playing in the yard today, we noticed how quickly the trees are becoming bare again. Almost all of the leaves were missing from the persimmon tree, now with what is left of the fruit clearly visible.

Got us thinking about the legend of the persimmon seed.

Thought we would take a look again this year...

Looks like we have another spoon this year.

Have you tried this? What piece of flatware showed up in your persimmon seeds?

Should we begin preparation for a snowy winter?

20121003

Wild/Woodland Strawberry

Angel Buff October 03, 2012 0 Comments

While working out in the yard today, my daughter and I found a little treat - some wild strawberries.

Wild strawberries typically have a much stronger and sweeter flavor than the domesticated versions and are highly nutritious containing iron, potassium, calcium, sodium and high contents of vitamin C. And not only are the berries edible, but also the stems and the stalks. You could also make a tea out of the leaves by placing about two handfuls of the fresh green leaves into about a quart of boiling water; allow to steep for about five minutes and then serve with some fresh lemon juice or some sweetener.

Fun Fact: Wild Strawberries are a part of the Rose (Rosaceae) Family.

20121001

My New Little Friend

Angel Buff October 01, 2012 0 Comments

Yes, I am referring to a spider. And I will start by saying, I don’t like spiders in my home, but this little guy and me have an agreement – as long as it stays outside, we can be friends.

On our hiking trips, John and I noticed some spider webs that were weaved into funnel shapes, beautiful works of art, absolute masterpieces. I had never really seen anything like them before. Then the other morning when I came outside I noticed a new, rather large web stretched between a window and chair, and behind the window’s shutter was the familiar funnel. I finally got to see the spider up close…and we had a little scare, the two of us. This species of spider is extremely fast! I believe I startled it just as much as it startled me, but it was so much fun seeing this spider up close.

From my research, I have found that the spider is appropriately called a “Funnel Web Grass Spider.” These spiders typically are non-aggressive and generally do not bite unless they feel threatened without option of escape. Just maybe, while ‘my friend’ is staying with us, it will take care of a few other insect pests.

20120924

Legend of the Persimmon Seed

Angel Buff September 24, 2012 2 Comments

Fall is definitely in the air, and off to a very cool start no less. We have already had several very chilly mornings that have required some long sleeves. This cold weather creeping in has already got me thinking about wintertime. Last winter was fairly mild here. It never really seemed to get that cold and we didn’t really get any snow. I have to admit, since our little girl is running around this year, I wouldn’t mind getting some snow – I really look forward to watching her see it for the first time and play in it.

So will we get any snow this winter? The Farmer’s Almanac suggests that we might…because apparently, according to folklore, one of the great predictors of the upcoming winter is the persimmon seed. Legend says that if you cut a persimmon seed in half, you will find an inner shape that resembles flatware. A knife shape indicates a cold, icy winter (wind cuts through you like a knife), a fork shape indicates a mild winter ahead with only possibly a dusting of snow, and if the shape inside the seed resembles a spoon, you should prepare for a snowy winter (shovel to dig out all the snow).

With our persimmons almost ripe, we decided to have a look at their seeds, and this is what we found...a spoon/shovel...every time. So, does this legend hold any true merit? I guess only time will tell.

Have you tried this? What ‘piece of flatware’ did you find?

Linking up with the "Homestead Barn Hop" and the "Morris Tribe's Homesteader Blog Carnival"

20120918

Morning Glories

Angel Buff September 18, 2012 2 Comments

Most morning glory flowers unravel into full bloom in the early morning with vibrant color that fades during the heat of the day. The flowers usually start to fade a few hours before the petals curl/close. Morning glories are generally considered perrennials in warmer/frost-free climates and tend to spread rather quickly. Our flowers are taking over the fencing.

Linking up with:

20120910

Playing in the Dirt

Angel Buff September 10, 2012 2 Comments

Anyone who has ever taken care of a small child will know that most projects take a little extra time, effort, and planning. But it is so worth it, when you see that child growing and learning and excited. We have been working in the yard, planning and preparing [mostly for next season]. However, we have set a small section aside to experiment with this fall (for now just some spinach and lettuce). So while John and I worked to get the ground prepared and the seeds sown, our daughter was given the opportunity to explore, play in the dirt, and even helped out a little (she was given the task of “throwing rocks out of the garden”).

"Play is the highest form of research." ~Albert Einstein

Linking up with: Mommy Teaches Friday Blog Hop at "A Little R&R" and Homemaking Link-Up at "Raising Homemakers" and Homestead Barn Hop at "Homestead Revival"

20120829

Dragonflies

Angel Buff August 29, 2012 0 Comments

This summer we opened the pool. However, we had a series of issues including several bouts of sickness and a lot of rainfall. It just got away from us and it wasn’t worth the added expense to get it back up and going again this season.

A couple of weeks ago I noticed some tadpoles in the pool. Nothing unusual, except that the tadpoles were rapidly disappearing – too quickly for them all to be changing into frogs. And then over the last several days I had noticed some “insect shells.” It was obvious that whatever it was had gone through some type of a metamorphosis and broken out of these old bodies. I suspected dragonflies. I had assumed that their eggs were laid in water, but I never knew exactly what a “baby dragonfly” looked like.

After some more observation and some research I found out that these creatures were indeed dragonflies [nymphs]. This explained the disappearance of the tadpoles, as apparently dragonfly nymphs have quite a taste for them, and these shells that I had found were called exuvia, which is the skin that the nymph had left behind. I watched one of these nymphs making its way out of the water last night, and this morning found this little guy all busted out and preparing for take-off. How exciting!

20120812

Backyard Exploration: Persimmons

Angel Buff August 12, 2012 0 Comments

In our ‘backyard explorations’ we recently discovered that we have a persimmon tree. I will admit, I had heard of this fruit before, but had not seen or tasted it before. So we consulted our parents and did some other research and this is what we have learned: The most popular comment about the persimmon has been, “Do not eat it until it is ripe!” We have been thoroughly warned. Ha, ha! Apparently the fruit is extremely bitter and ‘mouth-puckering’ until it is fully ripe, but also could cause some digestive problems if eaten unripe also. Surprisingly though, it is said that, supposedly, the unripe fruit and inner bark has been used in the past as a treatment for fever, diarrhea, and even hemorrhage. (Insert Disclaimer: We don’t advise self-treatment, if you have any ailments please consult your doctor!) The ripe fruit, however, is supposed to be sweet and can be eaten fresh or used in deserts.

The persimmon tree tends to thrive the best in moist, well-drained soil, but is said to be a very tolerant tree that is capable of growing in hot/dry areas and with fairly poor soil conditions also. The trees also have a deep taproot that makes it a good tree for erosion control, but makes it difficult to transplant. Our persimmon tree seems to be set in an ideal place, on a hill and in a good line of water flow. The fruit currently is greenish-yellow, some with a hint of orange. The fruit will not be ripe until it is an orange-red color, and this is supposed to occur in the fall season.

We will probably need to research and try out some methods of discouraging wildlife from taking all of the fruit before we have a chance to sample it though because apparently the persimmon has a number of predators, including some that have definitely been spotted in our yard (squirrel, fox, skunk, raccoon, opossum, coyotes, and birds).

Uncharted Heritage

Follow Us @soratemplates