Making our own sugar ;)

This spring we decided to have a go at making maple syrup, which we hope will in future be our main source of sugar.

Last spring we didn't tap any trees, first because we didn't know which ones were Sugar Maples, and second we didn't have our wood stove yet.  This spring, we decided it was worth a shot after speaking to my 93 year old grandma who recalled that when she was young her father always tapped the tree in front of their house and put the sap over the wood stove in the house.  What a brilliant idea: make syrup, use the sap evaporation process as a humidifier at the same time, and save the energy cost on top of that, because the fire is going anyways to heat the house.  Just brilliant.

We had so much maple water flowing that we drank it just like that

So we decided to tap some trees. Apparently Norway Maples aren't very good at making decent syrup, so we had to learn to differentiate the bark of Norways from potential Sugar Maples (or Silver or Red, which look a lot alike in the winter).  Turns out its really easy to tell them apart, and most of our Maples are Norway Maples, bummer!  But we did find a few old Maples that would fit the bill of a potential Sugar (or Silver or Red), so I tapped them.
Yum!

 Our big production, slowly evaporating on top of the wood stove

Even with only two taps, and probably a few days into the maple season, we managed to make at least two liters of syrup, not bad.

The snow is all gone, and the taps are out now... such a special time of year: the announcement of the beginning of spring. The signal that life is returning to the plant world, that everything is waking up from a long and restful winter sleep.  I am so happy and thankful the result is so sweet :)

Be well.

First frost!

 

Our first frost happened in the night of Oct 12 this year, and the thought of up-coming snow filled my heart when I woke up the next morning (it's really silly, but the seasonal changes never cease to amaze me).  Seeing the miniscule icicles all over the vegetation was a reminder that soon we will be celebrating our first year on the homestead.

I was doubly thrilled because a few weeks back, during fall cleanup, I had moved my cold frames right on top of my garden beds, to lengthen the growing season for the few vegetables we have left, but also to protect them from the up-coming frost. We have been watching the weather on a daily basis, and I was eager to see if the cold frames would do everything that people claim they do.  Result: on October 13, on my daily morning walk around the grounds, I noted that the peppers, eggplants, ground cherries and squashes had succumbed to the cold, but that my carrots, parsley, lettuce and turnips were strong and still growing quite well under there little glass roofs.   The kale, my favorite green, doesn't need a cold frame yet.  There have been two frosts so far, and it is still tall and green :)

our garden taken over by frost, but inside the cold frames...

the warm lettuce and other greens are 7 degrees warmer and loving the fall temperatures :)

Léo, my garden helper

We are both loving his new entertainment center :)

Yesterday was a beautiful, unusually warm day, so I took advantage of the sun.

I don't know if you can tell the difference, but the parsley inside the cold frame is twice as big as the one outside.

My garden helper disguised as grass

Because of other pressing issues (painting before it gets too cold, redoing the mud room, fixing the gutters, etc), Alex has had his hands full and couldn't really work on the greenhouse.  Here are the latest developments: he has dug and put up the foundation posts (with some help from Andrew, a couch surfing visitor) and is nearly finished the network of drainage ditches which will receive the excess rain water from the roof when the rain barrels are full.  Soon, the walls will go up, Exciting!!!

Alex, reaching for many rocks in his 5 foot hand dug holes

The structural posts are up and drainage ditches in

With everything that we have done over the last 10 months, some of you have the impression that it is work work work on the homestead, but it is not so, there are plenty of opportunities to rest as well :)

Hunting mice is exhausting!

The boys during their evening nap

 Since we've been here, we have had many visitors on a constant basis.  In October it was our turn to do the visiting, with Léo's first vacation to Montreal.  Our first stop was of course the coolest co-op in the world www.coopdugrandorme.ca (ok ok... I'm a little biased), and Ste-Anne-de-Bellevue where we received a good dose of love from our friends over there (we miss you guys!).  Then, no Montreal trip would be complete without stopping at the TamTams, and Léo took part in the dancing :)

Beautiful Sunday at the TamTams

Tia Antonella :) and cousin Saja

We knew we were going to love our wood stove, but we are now realizing how much.  There is nothing better then cooking your food on (or in!) a nice hot wood fire.  And so, I am enjoying a nice spaghetti squash and tomato ratatouille, cooked on and in the wood stove, as I write this very late October blog.  Hopefully next time won't be too far away

Til next time, be well

Encounter of the third kind :)

ummmmm... solid foooooood

The pleasures of sleeping outside

 With the beautiful weather (rain or shine) that Maine has been getting, everyone is sleeping outside, our new Chantecler chicks (more on them in another post), the cats, us and even the baby.  Especially during the daytime, when I am working in the gardens, he is often enjoying a snooze in the shade of the orchard, lucky kid! At night we have been enjoying the sounds and sights of nature from our tent.  Fireflies flickering their magical lights, shooting stars, rain falling on our forehead through the open netting, and the occasional big and noisy truck. 

 

The gardens are truly bringing to life our vision of self reliance.  Some vegetables, like the tomatoes, the corn and the basil are growing faster and in greater abundance than others, but I am enjoying the learning curve.  I definitely will always buy good potting soil from now on to start my seedlings. Just like human babies, they need their TLC :) 

The three sisters are taking over!

Plenty of zucchini leaves but no zucchinis...

Basil and parsley galore!

fresh seedlings for fall and winter crops

This week I start planting the fall and winter crops that are not yet in the ground. The root cellar will be a first experiment for us, and I already look forward to eating the fresh carrots, kohlrabies, potatoes and squashes in front of the fire.

Alex has been working hard around the property to get us ready for the cold months.  Now that we have the wood stove: we need wood!  Luckily our desire to harvest wood corresponds well with our need for more sunlit areas for the growing garden space. And although it can be sad to see a living being go (chicken or tree), the trees we are cutting are Norway maples; invasives and not very interesting for sugaring.  So whenever Alex has a little bit of time, he'll either be cutting away, splitting away, chipping away or piling away.  I think we'll have enough wood, what do you think? :)

Sleeping outside is quite a treat, but we have also been doing it for health reasons; taking advantage of the warmer weather to continue the Lead abatement on the house.   During our pregnancy we tested the soil and the house for Lead.  We were happy to know that most of the grounds are not (or barely) contaminated, but the same was not true of the house.  The Lead inspector tested all the surfaces and quite a few of them (mostly trims, floors, windows and doors) were painted with Lead paint, as is true for most old houses, and we now need to remedy this before Leo starts crawling and putting everything in his mouth.  Babies are actually drawn to lead painted surfaces because the lead paint tastes sweet, so frightening when you think of the impact it can have on their development.

So we are slowly (as fast as a new baby will let you!) painting over leaded surfaces, replacing windows, changing the old carpets, and finishing the beautiful barn wood floor that Alex put together to connect the kitchen with the family room.  I love the rough character of the grain and the history it adds to the space. 

Léo is teaching us that old houses are beautiful, but they can also be a hazard.  These touch-ups are certainly a necessity and a pleasure, because we are doing most of the work ourselves, gaining much knowledge and learning many skills along the way. Above is a picture of the new staircase runner (100% natural fibers, almost impossible to find these days...) that Alex laid down after encapsulating the lead painted staircase.

Quest for energy sustainability (part II)

View before the transformation

The almost finished look

Getting closer and closer to Earth Day 2012, we have almost completed the transformation to a more sustainable source of energy for our heating system.  We have officially switched our house from an oil furnace to a wood burning stove and the restructuring of the new opening between the kitchen and the family room is nearly finished.

Boys in action, Barn raising weekend

Nothing better to accomplish this than a good old fashion 'barn raising' weekend with the family.  The locally sourced wood beams that the guys put up, truly give a new look to the space and the opening brings in more sunlight to the kitchen.  Now all we have to do is finish the look of the masonry on the chimney and build a bench ...

We did it, mostly by ourselves and with the help of many friends and family.  Home sweet home, without the oil!

'Til next time, happy Earth Day