'Listen to the Quiet:' Part 8

Correction: The last installment of Listen to the Quiet featured competing and/or incorrect spellings of the names “Kientz” (this being the correct version) and “Anne Poland Dippy” (also corrected).

Certainly, no people lived closer to God and nature than the early-day farmers who tilled the land and ranchers who tended the livestock. The Kientz family did their part with constant toil and sweat of the brow – Mother Nature did what remained to be done, for better or worse.

This partnership of man and nature resulted in large prolific gardens on this homestead – the Kientz family were always alert to opportunities and this one was ideal. The gumbo surrounding the little home on the cobblestone hill was rich soil. It was an excellent sight for the raising of vegetables which provided a variety for the family larder. The Saco food stores benefited by these lush gardens besides the many individual customers who were delighted to find such a handy supply of cabbage for sauerkraut and other good vegetables – beets, tomatoes, cucumbers, carrots, rutabagas, onions, peas and beans - all in abundance when the weather cooperated. Mention was made of the time that rutabagas were rolled into the family cellar on a sloping board and this storage place was filled to full that it was impossible to enter. Ground cherries or husk tomatoes as they are sometimes referred to, were a very popular item. Leona said her mother spent many hours picking these off the low-growing bushes. The ground cherries were not only tasty eaten raw, but made mouth-watering pies – these were made much in the manner of apple pie. This unusual fruit was sold fresh and also canned. Peanuts were grown as a novelty one year and after they were dug and toasted, “they didn’t taste too bad at all,” remarked Leona. Whenever a local store ran low on vegetables, a card was sent by mail to Otto, mentioning what was needed and the quantity. So the Model T Ford was loaded to the brim with the vegetables and delivered to C. P. Martin, the local grocer, or whoever wished to purchase the vegetables. Mr. Martin remarked one time to Otto, “Well, I might just as well turn the store over to you, you own half of it anyway!”

(The family had accumulated a total of $20 from produce, including butter and eggs, which they sold in the store.) It was always an easy task to sell these items – the vegetables usually sold for five to six cents per pound.

Pictures in the Kientz family album attest to the bountiful gardens which were Lizzie’s pride and joy. She dearly loved to work among the vegetable plants. Pea picking and haying always came at the same time – when Lizzie was done stacking hay, she would start on the peas, which were placed on screens to dry in the sunlight. Peas were picked by the dishpan full, so the combination of these two jobs meant long days even for a woman as full of vitality as Lizzie Kientz. Pressure canning had not come into its own, so beans were kept by pouring hot vinegar over them in the jars which were tightly sealed.

Windbreaks were a must for these people residing on the open prairies where the winds had no mercy. A.J. Erickson grew a variety of bushes and trees so seeds were available when Otto was ready to start the rows of trees, which would be planted on the edge of the garden site. Maple seeds had been planted to no avail, as the harsh Montana climate was not suited for this Minnesota tree. It was discovered that caraganas did quite well under local conditions, so these seeds were planted. The green borders added a welcome touch of green to the bleak landscape. The trees grew so well and took so much moisture that a different garden site had to be selected.

Helen DePuydt is a regular contributor to the Courier and a member of a homesteading family in the Saco area. All of her stories are true.