Autumn Harvest

Sadly, the summer gardening season is coming to a close...
quickly!
We are having nights in the 40's now.
Frost is just around the corner.

Our hay is cut and drying.

If only the weather would cooperate.
(It is to rain for the next few days.)
Hopefully by next weekend we will be able to bale our hay and
stow it in the barns for use over the winter.

This has been a bad summer for hay farmers.
The spring and late summer were very wet here in PA.
In other parts of the country, just the opposite....drought.
This will drive hay prices way up this winter,
and availability will be a problem.
For this reason, it is so very important that we get this last cutting safely put away.

The vegetable garden is a bit of a jungle now.
The last of the fall crops will be harvested over the next few weeks.



Cabbage and tomatillos....


Lettuces and cauliflower....


Broccoli and carrots....


Beets.
Sweet potatoes.....


I took a peek at the sweet potato box and found several of these peeking out of the soil...


Using my fingers, I cleaned away the soil,
and found this....


Goodness,
these are the largest sweet potatoes I have ever grown!


After pulling all of that bundle of roots out of the soil,
this is what I had amassed (just from one plant!)


The harvest from just 3 plants filled my entire basket.


I will store these sweets like I did last year...
in a bin of pine shavings,
in our cold cellar
which stays a constant 58 to 60 degrees.
Last year's sweets lasted until this past June.
They are great keepers and so, so yummy!

PS....Little Leo has happily settled into barn life.
His days are filled with a myriad of adventures...
running, jumping, hiding, hunting, tumbling here and there as
he plays with the dogs, cats and chickens.


This kitty is not a bit shy.
In no time he will be King of the Barn...
King Leo the Lionhearted!

Comments

Unknown said…
What a fantastic harvest you will have!! I can't believe how many sweets you are getting off just one plant....great soil! Those look so good.

Can't believe those sunflowers are still standing on their own....they are huge!
Junebug said…
Wow. look at all those sweets. I may have to try them next year. Your fall harvest is looking great! Yes, King Leo sounds like a good name from him. I have my figures crossed for getting hay in dry. Off to work i go, have a great day.
JudiB said…
Isn't it fun having a kitten around again..they enjoy life so much..lol. Our Molly is still kitten like and I have to admit I am going to miss some of her antics when she "grows up"
Weather is the same here..and have had a few very cold nites. You have gotten a bumper crop, from your garden wow!!! Enjoy
JudiB said…
Isn't it fun having a kitten around again..they enjoy life so much..lol. Our Molly is still kitten like and I have to admit I am going to miss some of her antics when she "grows up"
Weather is the same here..and have had a few very cold nites. You have gotten a bumper crop, from your garden wow!!! Enjoy
Farmgirl Heidi said…
I love your garden and especially enjoyed the images of sweet potatoes. Little Leo is adorable, I am glad to see he is fitting in so well. On the hay issue, I am praying for your weather to improve so you can get it put up for winter. We have had strange weather this year, snow almost in June followed by record heat all summer long. It has been a challenging year for so many of us. Your homestead is fabulous and your posts are a blessing to me and others. Have a great week.
Teresa said…
Leo is just too adorable! It has been a mixed hay year here. Our first round was great, but the lack of rain for the last couple of months has made it hard to get a second cutting. Hopefully we'll get it finished this week. Hope you get your hay put up!
Katmom said…
Hey Bev,
Well my red taters didn't do so good this year, our soil took to long to warm up...I am interested in growing sweet taters (yams) next year.... or I could move to your neck of the woods and knock on your door for your left over harvest! lol!
p.s. pepper relish...major yummy on scramble eggs! :>)