We've harvested about 10-15 pounds of carola yellow and some other kind of blue potatoes. We've spread them out to dry. We have one hill (one that Badger dug!) of potatoes that has vibrant green vines that are now flowering. I'm going to keep waiting on those.
We also harvested potato berries, which are interested in terms of plant breeding. This is so interesting, and yet I have to recognize that I do not have the time I would need to devote to something like that. At least not yet. I found this awesome explanatory blog: http://daughterofthesoil.blogspot.com/2007/02/woohoo-my-potatoes-germinated.html
which recommended this Amateur Potato Breeder's Manual:
http://www.sharebooks.ca/ebooks_by_author2.php?author=Robinson%2C+Raoul+A.
The craziness about potatoes is that they have four sets of chromosomes instead of two, which leads to a lot of genetic variation. Luther Burbank developed his new varieties using potato seeds. Well, yeah, lots to geek out about.
I got six square feet of carrots planted, about 50 seeds, if they end up sprouting. We've harvested three tomatoes, which we've eaten in tomato sandwiches daily. Tonight's mater sandwich featured nasturtium and lambs quarter greens with cheese. I tore out many of our volunteer squash plants to become compost, as the end was obviously near. There are still a few healthy specimens left, but with the vast numbers of squash bugs, I will not hold much hope for them. I have some sage drying as well. We saw a praying mantis in the garden, along with tons of worms, wolf spiders and others, roly polies, centipedes, etc.
Hakim got a $5 box of peach seconds at the farmers market, which made 5 gallons of wine. Not pricy at all, and we will still get many pints of peach butter from it. And the wine is perking away, due to this warmness. We're under a heat advisory, and this afternoon it supposedly felt like 110. It's hot! Actually, I feel hotter now than I did then, because I'm sucking down strawberry wine & sitting in front of the computer. It's supposed to be blazing hot again tomorrow. We may go to the library for a while tomorrow, followed by a free talk on local foods wholesaling, both air conditioned places. Actually, I'm not too tuckered out by the heat right now, but I imagine tomorrow I will be!
Hakim & I have been trading off working, two days a week each (half days for me, but I still have to get up early!) at SIU for their senior exams. This is the last week of alarm clocks. K has been in charge of the alarm (she demands the clock), and she is pretty reliable for an almost 8-year-old.
My 35th birthday passed, and it was a very nice day. I didn't do anything special, but I had a relaxing day. Today I was remarked upon as being "weird" by a kid at the Y's art camp, for whom I was giving pottery lessons (reviving my rusty old pottery skills). I told my kid that, and she screwed up her face and said, "You? Weird? Why would anyone say that?" Yeah, really! Geeks are weird, and there's nothing wrong with that. When you live in a geek family, weird is normal.
Hakim & K are still working on the solar cooking. We ate morel mushrooms with our friend Patrick. He brought over bleu cheese and duck confit, which was quite tasty.
K has been making bingo games. We made one with multiplication tables & one with pictures. She's been reading like crazy still. I started reading Future Primitive, edited by one of my favorite authors, Kim Stanley Robinson. I've only read one story, but it rocks so far. Science fiction definitely has a place in our future.
The US dollar has decreased 40% in value since 2001.
Food prices have increased 83% worldwide in the last 3 years.
The statistics never stop coming.
All is well in Zomba. Thanks to my faithful readers & delightful companions. Your words of encouragement keep us going.
love, love,
carey
p.s. I made a...video on urban homesteading, and somehow managed to upload it to YouTube. It's here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eFAMQRKhXfE
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