Where Sokolovics (arrived 2004 CE) co-exist peacefully with stromatolite fossils (deposited ~400e6 BCE)
Springtime is in full swing here in Manlius. We capped off the spring break week with our second annual trip to a local hotel where the boys swam…
… went in the hot tub…
… and watched the tube on the big hotel bed oveflowing with pillows.
But with the springtime fun comes springtime work – mowing, [...]
I picked the last of the summer bounty today – about 1.5 lbs of carrots, which were promptly peeled and frozen for winter stew, and 4 servings of beans:
Also, we have about a yard of some really rich compost (on the upper right of the photo below), and we’ve started the new batch for next [...]
You may recall my earlier post on the tomato blight issues I encountered this year. I have a few updates for you:
Fact one: while traveling through my neighbor’s yard on the way to another neighbor’s yard, I noticed that his tomato plants were doing fine. These plants came from the same plastic egg-carton [...]
You try to raise them right. You do what you can to keep them healthy. You do everything in your power to ensure they grow up in a nurturing environment. You encourage them to be independent, and not follow the crowd.
And then the throw in with their peers and join whatever craze is [...]
A few weeks ago, the beets were a good size – and getting a little crowded – so I decided to do a little canning experiment. I did some research[1] and discovered that if I pickled the beets I wouldn’t need to buy a pressure canner[2] so all I’d need is a big pot [...]
A quick update on the garden as we approach the heart of summer:
Spinach: All the spinach I planted in the spring has finally bolted, so I pulled it. I planted more, but the pole beans are growing slower than expected, so I don’t think the new plantings will have enough shade. Spinach [...]
Spinach and beets were the first seeds planted (May 3), followed by carrots and radishes the next day. A few weeks later (May 23) we put in tomato plants and sowed corn and cucumber seeds. Most recently, Thomas helped me plant beans on June 6; they sprouted in 4 days!
As far as harvesting [...]
We started the day with a nice hearty breakfast of challah bread french toast, and it’s a good thing, too, because we needed the energy. Today was busier than yesterday.
After breakfast, Kath started the process of applying waterproof sealer to the deck while the boys helped me sow our first seeds in the garden. [...]
Excellent progress today on the home improvement front. Since the boys woke up at 5:54am today (yes, you read that correctly), I had a new faucet purchased AND installed well before lunch.[1] Thomas was my helper while Daniel attended his first soccer game of the season with his chauffer/coach/mom.
Here is the new faucet, in [...]
I stopped off at Tracy Lumber Saturday afternoon to pick up the 2×10s, and had time this afternoon to put together the frame for the raised garden bed. Next step: get topsoil delivered.
I snapped a few pics of my helper and our finished product. Click on a thumbmail to see the full-size image [...]
