Saturday, May 30, 2015

An evening harvest

Memorial Day evening- another harvest with our first green beans and potatoes. 

Mason was excited about this tiny potato. 

Levi continues to work on his garden "irrigation" project. 

Another exciting potato find- a heart potato!

When friends visit our garden, so many are surprised that potatoes grow underground. Harvesting them is a lot of fun. 

I picked enough green beans for a good supper batch. 

And thanks to Ashley parking us in the garden tonight (we went out for supper), Tyler got to enjoy playing in the van. 

Monday, May 25, 2015

Our garden rainbow

Today's picking was a rainbow...raspberries, carrots, squash, zucchini, purple beans (will turn green when cooked) and blackberries. If only the blueberries would hurry up and ripen, we truly would have a rainbow!

Sunday, May 17, 2015

And the harvest begins...

Yesterday the boys and I harvested peas, carrots and kale. What a delicious basket of garden goodies!

I picked a zucchini on Saturday. The yellow squash are almost ready, too. 

Ooo and look close- baby cucumbers are forming! I'm hoping for a better crop this year - last year we didn't get enough to make pickles. 

The peas shelled and ready for steaming (or eating raw- which my boys prefer). 

You can't beat the bounty of a summer garden

Monday, May 11, 2015

The best time of year in South Carolina...

Although we do have four seasons in South Carolina, our fall and spring typically gives way to the less enjoyable temperatures of winter and summer quicker than most of us prefer. This spring has held on longer and we've had several really nice weeks of warm temps, low humidity and clear blue skies. It's been perfect.  Saturday I captured what was probably the last of this glorious weather. Enjoy the May tour of Okra Hill!

Our summer garden is planted and growing.
Ashley attached a few pans in the corn to keep the crows from plucking out the replacements he replanted a few weeks ago. We typically don't put fencing around our corn- this is keep our puppies from tearing through the corn while chasing their best friend, our neighbor's lab. 


The blackberry vines are FULL.

Definitely the raspberry bushes!

Our favorite spring crop continues to be green peas. These didn't come up as well as before but we'll still have plenty to enjoy.

Zucchini is in the mini stage now....

Our flock of 16 hens continues to be great producers, laying 12-15 eggs most days.



Our pig/goat field is covered in waist-high rye grass right now. The pigs really did a number on the ground with their intense rooting. We haven't decided what livestock we will take on this summer- maybe just a single pig (and we'll keep it in the back lot to let this area rest).  

The blueberry bushes are loaded with green berries, waiting to ripen.

Our muscadine grapevines are healthy after a good late-winter pruning.

Here's another view looking across the pig field over to the garden barn. Ashley and I love the look of the grass. So peaceful!

And of course, these guys have been growing along, too. It's hard to believe they're (almost) 3, 5, and (almost)7.

Every day I thank God for blessing us with such a beautiful place to raise these boys. Happy May, y'all!