Serving Proudly As The Voice Of Valley County Since 1913
Serving Proudly As The Voice Of Valley County Since 1913
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I do believe all my complaining about winter arriving early and Montana not understanding how a calendar works has actually paid off. The snow has melted away, thanks to the wind, rain, and warmer (above freezing!) temperatures. Don’t ruin my joy at this by telling me snow is still in the forecast. The unraked (I’ll be honest, the unmowed and therefore not sucked up) leaves were actually dried enough to be blowing about the yard last Sunday. The riding mower may come out of storage this week to take care of most of those leaves. I hope to not...
The calendars are all wrong. It looks like we’re skipping fall this year and are jumping straight into winter. It’s going to be a long one. Dennis pointed out, as I complained, that we did get some Indian summer (are we allowed to use that phrase?) right after those first couple frosts. That nice bit of weather did allow me to dig the carrots and otherwise finish clearing out the garden. But I want more of that nice weather! I hate going immediately from flip flops to snow boots. That’s just not right. This will be my winter of disco...
I think Mother Nature has it in for us in Montana. She's trying to start winter while according to the calendar, it's still fall. I recently remarked that Montana just doesn't understand the calendar. Fall is supposed to ease us into winter, letting us gradually get used to cooler weather. It isn't supposed to jump straight to cold, dumping snow and icy road conditions on us. A former Montana friend, who now resides in Florida, remarked on my Facebook photos of the snow, "It's pretty." Which it...
This is the time of year I'm thoroughly tired of gardening. I'm ready for it to be finished. The wheat crop is all in the bins, the trees are turning color and dropping leaves like crazy, and I'm over it. Fall doesn't fill me with hope and enthusiasm like spring does. The dahlias and gladiola bulbs have all been dug. They've been drying in the garage for a few days. Soon I'll cut the tops of them and layer them atop and between old burlap potato sacks in the Styrofoam cooler I've used for them...
I had a a few weeks off from writing, which has really helped me without my having to ask for it. I’ve been spending a lot of time in the John Deere Trac, running the grain cart while Dennis runs the combine. The houseplants had already been gathered together on the front deck, in the shade of the Virginia creeper that has grown up on the south side. I’d done that over a few mornings before heading out to the fields in order to make watering them easier. I didn’t have to drag the hose all over the yard in my limited time before becoming the ...
Editor's Note: This column was submitted to us on Aug. 31. The making of another frosting used up the remainder of my fresh raspberries. The following recipe was finally tested and is definitely a keeper. I’m using it for graham cracker “sandwich cookies”, as well as on a dark chocolate cake. The cupcake recipe I recently shared also makes a fine 9x13” cake. Chocolate and raspberries really do go well together. Cream cheese makes a frosting so much richer, too, don’t you think? Fresh Raspberry Frosting 1 C raspberries (fresh OR frozen) 2...
First off, I'm offering a confession: my gardening skills are not up to par this year. I'm feeling rather disappointed in my efforts this year. I don't know if it is because it's 2020 (the whole Covid-19 thing, killer insects running amok, the politics, etc) or if it is just my age slowing me down. I'm just not getting as much satisfaction out of growing flowers and vegetables as I normally would. I never got around to sprinkling granular fertilizer over the ground before planting. I haven't add...
This week's column will be almost all recipes. I'm using up my remaining raspberries without just freezing them 'as is'. Save these winners for next summer. They'll be worth it, I promise! I'm in between Whole Life Challenge sessions (the next one starts the day after Dennis' birthday, yay), so I'm back to using regular flour and real sugar for the next six weeks. No need to look for almond flour or fake sugars. First up, I made these bars, but I'll warn you right away, where it says "ungreased...
While I’m still harvesting a few raspberries, they are definitely at the tail end of their capacity to produce appreciable numbers for this summer. A few of the canes may flower again and attempt a second crop, but those berries will succumb to the first frosts if the usual pattern holds. And I’m thinking about possible frosts since our temperature dipped below 40° this Monday morning. Sunday morning was also quite chilly up here just south of the border. I don’t want to contemplate the coming of winter, but it is what it is. Naturally, my gre...
I'm still spending all the hours of every morning picking raspberries. They just keep on ripening and requiring picking. I'll go around the outer edges of the long rows one day, and then through the center between the two thick rows the next. Then repeat. Sundays are skipped. I believe I have enough berries frozen to last through the long winter months, so others are now benefiting from my largesse. The local cafe should soon have jam. Several of my church families had containers of berries to...
I could get used to only writing a column every other week. The Courier hasn't had room for my drivel a couple of times lately, so I've enjoyed those "free" Mondays. The problem is remembering which Monday is the one I need to sit down and put pen to paper. (The polishing occurs when I rewrite this using my iPad - if you can call my finished work polished.) The heat has arrived, along with less rain. This means I have been putting the drip system to work, watering half the garden at a time....
“Mary, Mary, quite contrary. How does your garden grow?” “Like an out-of-control jungle, that’s how!” (I’ve resisted working this little jingle into my column for years, and aren’t you sorry I finally succumbed?) In place of silver bells and cockleshells, I have sunflowers, moon flowers, baby’s breath, bachelor buttons, and zinnias planted. They’re supposed to draw in bees, and I have seen bumblebees stumbling along the ground. The flowers are being slow to produce blooms. I hope these hot, sunny days give them a huge boost in growth. All th...
First off, let me apologize for taking a week off from writing about gardening. We had a family gathering to celebrate a 90th birthday. It took a week to properly fete the birthday girl. There wasn't much gardening done during that week. Now I feel like I'm running way behind. I do believe every single seed pod that fell from from the Chinese elm tree that overhangs the garden was viable. They've sprouted with abandon between the rows and also with precision alongside every wanted vegetable I'd...
Editor’s Note: This column was submitted to us on June 7. Due to space in the past few issues of the Courier, this column was held. I’m still enjoying fresh rhubarb and asparagus, but not together of course! I still haven’t made a rhubarb pie, but I did make a sugar-free, wheat flour-free rhubarb crisp, so as to be compliant with the Whole Life Challenge nutritional plan. I used almond flour and coconut palm sugar. That sweetener is dark, like brown sugar, so the dessert wasn’t as pretty as other rhubarb crisps, but it was tasty. I’ll try a dif...
Another busy week has been competed, with a lot accomplished. First off, almost all my houseplants have been moved outside. The hoya vine and the mother spiderplant don’t go out. I’m loathe to disturb them and possibly lose them. Don’t tell my other plants, but they’re rather expendable. My aloe veras (two huge pots) have been busy multiplying and need to be split, as does my snake plant. Those are on the agenda. There are a couple of cacti from Arizona I should split. One of those is an agave, but I won’t ever attempt to make tequila w...
It's very easy to lose track of time now, isn't it? In farming, one day is much like another, so holidays tend to sneak up on us. I let this Memorial Day ambush me, especially since there wasn't a program for which I needed to play piano. Sure, I'd seen all the references to applauding our military members, appreciating the sacrifices of our veterans for the rest of us, but I kept thinking I had another week before the actual day of honor for them arrived. So I'm apologizing to the staff of the...
We’re almost finished seeding the wheat crop. I hope that’s finished by the time we get our mailed copy of the Courier. We’ve been watching the forecast, and so we decided to work on Sunday (a rarity for us). That’s thrown me off schedule, because now Monday (deadline day) doesn’t “feel” like Monday. It’s as though I’m still waiting for the weekend and that day of rest. (It should have felt like a Sunday, though. The winds were fierce, as has become usual for Sundays lately.) Speaking of farming, I’d like to remind everyone to please slow down...
Some planting has been done up north, both in the garden and out in the wheat fields. Dennis finished pre-working the many, many acres that will be seeded (and fertilized) this summer. He's now started up the air seeder. There was a slight delay between those two operations due to the .41" of rain last Friday. He says he'll be "self-isolated" in the tractor for the next two weeks. That leaves me with plenty of time to do my thing. Of course, I get interrupted regularly: he'll need my help to...
We've finally had several nice days up here in the way-beyond middle-of-nowhereland. That has allowed lots of outside work to be completed. The garden space has been worked, despite a slight mishap with the garden tiller. Note to self: when turning the little garden tractor sharply, remember the tiller attachment on the back swings farther out in the opposite direction of your turn. AND having the tines rotating at a rapid clip means they will grab the strip of old truck tarp that's suppressing...
For years I have ignored Dennis' many farming magazines and newsletters. I have separated the pages of the newsprint ones to use the sheets to line the garbage cans and for washing windows. Newsprint is wonderful for cleaning glass, leaving a lint- and streak-free finish. Of course, they leave your hands black, but hands are very washable. Just use lots of soap and a soft-bristle nail brush (and/or soak in bleach or lemon water, depending on which smell you want left behind), then use lots of lo...
While the calendar says it’s spring, there’s still the occasional snowflake swirling down, at least up north. I wish Mother Nature would update her calendar to match ours. The sky is blue and the sun is shining as I write this Monday morning, and the temperature is well above freezing. What few snowdrifts remain are slowly melting away. The howling winds are assisting with that. Most of the seeds I started are sprouting, which is encouraging. However, some of the starter pots are showing no signs of activity, which isn’t. Okra was the first...
My alliteration skills are lacking this week. I have not been able to come up with a catchy headline for my drivel this week. I think my brain wants to remain in pajamas this morning. I suspect there might be just a few of us that way as we enter into the fourth week of "sheltering in place," or "social isolation," or "lockdown," or whatever your preferred term may be. So far, whatever we call it, it seems to be working for our county, so please continue! My seeds have mostly arrived by now....
I’m sad to report we’ve been getting more snow, off and on. It melts a little, a little gets added, then melts a little more. The melting is winning; I can see a bit of lawn next to the garden, as well as mud at the bottom, where my asparagus grows. Instead of April showers bring May flowers, we get April snows means more indoors. Of course, that works out okay while we’re self-isolating, doesn’t it? It also helps me not feel guilty for not getting outside to clean the south flowerbeds. Those are mostly cleared of snow, but are buried in the...
The spring bird migrations are finally occurring. We have had flocks of geese flying overhead. Last week a flock of crows had briefly graced our yard. There are lots of sparrows, juncos, and at least one pair of red polls visiting the feeders. They're singing outside the windows. They've drawn in a hawk that's patrolling the trees. Several flocks of robins have used our yard as a way station on their way farther north. It's so nice to see those sparks of bright red against the snowy-white...
Living well beyond the Middle of Nowhere has some advantages over living in town, especially these days. Keeping your distance socially is much easier when your nearest neighbor is almost a mile away! I can go outside without worrying about accidentally getting within six feet of anyone. We're also used to keeping our larder and pantries well stocked. The threat of a winter storm keeping you housebound longer than you'd care to be is a great incentive. (I know it's officially spring by the...
