Some pictures

My pride and joy, a grape vine! We moved here over the winter of 2006 and saw this random vine growing from under the house. Naturally, we cut it as far back as we could - we would have removed it completely if we'd have been able to. Imagine my surprise when it started leafing out in spring and I realized we had a grape vine! It was cut back too severely to produce anything last year, but it's now covered with flower buds. Can't wait for fresh grapes. (Forgive the riding lawnmower - we have no where else to store it).

Not much to look at but these two pictures show the future garlic beds. The soil in this spot seems really nutrient deficient, though the roses do very well. I plan on adding some compost to get it ready.

Future strawberry patch! Last year this bed was full to the brim with begonias but many of them did not make it through the winter. This seems like the perfect spot for them - right by the front door, lots of sunlight, easy to observe. I decided to grow Alpine strawberries because they come true from seed but what I've read recently makes them seem rather difficult to grow. If nothing else, I can buy some strawberry plants from Wal-Mart, though I hope I won't have to.

As you can see, this bed houses five miniature roses. This is most likely where I will plant the chives that my hubby bought. This spot was full of small river rocks when we moved in. I removed most of them but the soil still doesn't seem very nutrient rich. This spot will also benefit from some compost. The bricks are going to go towards another project.

The hubby has agreed to help me make a composter. I know it seems ridiculous but I'm pretty excited. Buying dirt just seems so ridiculous somehow. Until mine gets going though, that's just what I'm going to have to do. These are the plans we're going to use: http://http//www.wikihow.com/Build-a-Tumbling-Composter

I hope it's going to be as easy as it looks! There is a fella on Craigslist selling drums, so that will be our first move.

I haven't talked about animals. The eventual goal will be to have some laying hens, dairy goats, meat rabbits, a few pigs, and perhaps a Jersey cow. Every spring we'll order some chicks for meat and perhaps buy a calf or two to put on the cow, as well as breeding her back. We'll probably drink the goat milk and use the leftover cow's milk (if there is any) for cheese, butter, cream. This is all a long ways off - when we finally get to buy our land. I tried to talk the base into letting me have a few laying hens but they were having none of it. As for the rabbits, I could probably get away with it if I had somewhere outside to put them. Luckily, I have a friend who raises rabbits for show. The ones that don't make the cut get sold to a processor so I'm talking to her about buying them myself. I figure it will save her a trip, I just hope she doesn't think I'm too weird.

The hubby is getting into the self-reliance groove a bit too - we bought a bow and he's going to learn to hunt. He's so excited. We're also going to buy him a shot gun for bird hunting - if you've ever had dove, you know that they are worth the time and effort. We're also looking forward to trying some quail - they seem to be everywhere here. He's going to take a safety course over the summer in order to get his license. He's acting like a kid at Christmas.

That's all for now, kids gotta get to school!