We've Moved to The Farmstead!

Yikes! Do you wonder where we went? We're now at www.olyfarmstead.org where we're living our farming dreams! You can follow our new blog (and still read all these old posts too) at www.olyfarmstead.org/blog We won't be back to TNT Builds so won't you join us over there?

R.I.P. Sweet White Corn

Well crap, I guess that's that. We hit the 90s today (although according to the weather station it only feels like 89, oh coastal breeze how I love you) and lost our corn. To be fair, I'm not sure how much blame I can put on the weather ... APPARENTLY you're supposed to remove the plastic lid as soon as you get sprouts. Oops. Here I've been hot boxing my corn stalks for a good four days thinking that they were having the time of their lives thriving with all that warm moist heat.

So, change of plans. I have brought my lavender tray inside (trying not to stress about the fact that my baby sprout is MIA), taken off the cover and watered again. We don't have air conditioning, as evidenced by the multiple box fans strewn throughout, so it's actually quite warm in the apartment.

Mr. Nick, ever the optimist, is less deflated than me even going so far as to suggest that NOW our soil is extra rich so this next batch of corn will certainly just explode with nutrients. I will trudge ahead but am feeling a little worried that my black thumb is dooming us into a life without home-grown vegetables and fields of lavender ... at least, Sasha doesn't seem to mind.

Apartment garden therapy?

Summer is finally here! We have emerged triumphant on the other side of one of the coldest Junes in record books. Today is beautiful and sunny and dare I say, to hot (Pacific Northwesterners are a fickle bunch aren't we?)

First, as a disclaimer I think it's important to note that the only thing I have ever grown with any sort of moderate success is catnip and jade ... that being said, it appears I may have sprouted my very first lavender plant. Hopefully not my last though as there are 71 of his brothers and sisters germinating as we speak.

Everything I have read says that lavender plants are incredibly hard to grow from seed but, Mr. Nick only agreed to my dream of a lavender field if we could do it on the cheap. So late one night we walked our little butts over to Fred Meyer and picked up all the necessary supplies for an apartment garden. Of course, you should never shop for anything after 10 p.m. because that's when you start to buy more things, like ...

Enough cucumbers and tomato plants to keep us in Greek salads for eternity. And while we were at it we threw in some corn too because, hey, who doesn't like sweet white corn. Granted it was a good ten minute debate to figure out which sweet white corn variety would best serve our refined palates. In the end we went with Lilly Miller's Silver Queen White Corn because the back of the package said that Silver Queen's "outstanding flavor and texture are the standard for white corn." Looking back now that seems like a dumb selling point ... wouldn't I want something that excels above the standard?

The corn is thriving (despite my lack of a green thumb) while the cucumbers and tomatoes are chugging along, but so far just that one teeny tiny semblance of a lavender plant. If the rest don't start following suit I may have to resort to "Plan B" which involves stealing established plants under the cover of darkness from inappropriate places: the hospital where I work, the church down the street, the roundabout by the elementary school ... why is it that only the places I would feel guilty taking from can afford a landscaping budget? I can see the headline now: "Local woman caught with dirt under her nails and plants in her pocket: Husband refusing to post bail."

She thinks his tractor's sexy

Yesterday we made the 3 hour drive down to Hood River, Oregon to purchase our very own Kubota Tractor (Mr. Nick called up and down the coast and Sheppard's Tractors had the cheapest price by far).

We thought about it for a long time, deciding whether or not we needed to purchase one, and finally decided that yes, as owner builders having a tractor will enable us to do many things on our own. (digging the trenching for the electrical, cable, and well; digging the septic system; hauling tree stumps; leveling areas for building; digging our pond; the list goes on).

To rent the tractor for a day is upwards of $250. Kubota is offering a great deal right now: 0% down, 0% interest for 60 months. So our monthly payments are less than the price to rent it once per month--that means all we need to do is use it once a month for the next five years and we'll have come out on top.

As my mother pointed out, living on 5+ acres you will ALWAYS find a use for a tractor/backhoe. Plus, I kind of like the way Mr. Nick looks on it...I guess Kenny Chesney was right, she does think his tractor's sexy!