Busy fall days acting like a homesteader

October has been a busy month.  I'm into canning and a lot of other homestead lifestyle activities even though I still live on the small trailer lot in the middle of town. 

But notice the mesh bag hanging on the deck.  That's sheep's wool hanging out to dry. It was tedious work cleaning it, and there are many more bags worth yet to do, but when I am done washing and carding it, I will have enough bats to make a warm quilt.  This is a project I started because I am still hoping to get that piece of land and then we are planning on having sheep.  The wool was given to me and I wanted to get started learning to use it.

My cottage garden around the trailer has to fend for itself a lot these days, but it seems to be doing well in spite of my being so sidetracked.

We have already had a few light frosts, and even though the roses have been hit, it doesn't prevent them from putting on a show.

While some of the less hardy annuals, like impatiens, have succumbed to the cold, there are plenty of perennials and a few brave annuals like alyssum and lobelia to carry on until the snow covers them.

In my front walk garden, the birds planted a sunflower seed, and it adds a needed bit of color to that side of the house.

So while the garden continues on with it's mums, and munk's hood, and roses,

I'll just keep playing acting being a homesteader, and I'll put up some more jars of tomatoes to help see me through the winter.

Time to Bring in the Tomatoes from my Cottage Garden

It's amazing the difference it makes when your tomato plants like their habitat.  My one plant by the house in my cottage garden produced a bigger crop of tomatoes than all seven sister plants that I grew in the little garden plot across the road.  These tomatoes were huge.  I almost hated to bring them in; I wanted to show them off instead.

I planted it along side the bench arbor and it decided it would be a climber instead of flopping like some of my plants did.  It grew till the tip reached the top of the arbor and then became to heavy and slid down, so I gave in and tied it up.

I had thought that it might not do so well there this year since it was the second year in the same spot, but it liked it there so well last year that I decided to give it a try again, and I'm glad I did.

Last year's preparation involved burying bone meal, ashes and vegetable scraps in a deep hole in the thick bed of pure compost.  This year I had no time for babying my plants but I knew that there would still be nutrients in the soil decomposing from last year.

I think one of the keys to that tomato plant's success was location. It seemed to love the warmth of that west wall.



The photo on the right shows the tomato plant on the arbor in my trailer cottage garden after I had picked the tomatoes off.

I gave most of the tomatoes away.  With my husband in the hospital, there were way too many.

My Cottage Garden Survived the Three Weeks Away

I hadn't planned on being away for three weeks, because I didn't think Bruce would be in the hospital in Toronto that long, so I hadn't made provisions for my cottage garden.  But God sent the rain, and the weeds almost couldn't compete with my vigorous annuals and perennials. Other than some dead heading and a bit of weed control, I really am not that far behind on my postage stamp, trailer, cottage garden.

I like a garden bed that will withstand some neglect.  Here is how I start my beds: Flower Beds  and for some ideas check Flower Beds and Borders

If you need help with planning read A guide to Planning Garden Beds