Cloverleaf Farm

Archive for December 31st, 2007

Nothing beats fresh pumpkin pie at dinner in January. How about a fresh baked acorn squash in February?
Storing winter squash is easy. Most store well right into March. However, the process begins in the fall. Read the rest of this entry »

It’s Just Another New Year’s Eve

Laundry done and hung to dry,
I’m tired now, I don’t know why.

Lunch is through, dinner is coming,
Today has been kind of numbing.

Looking past throughout the year,
See what’s ahead it is so near.

Another New Year’s Eve is close,
We’ll have some cider for a toast.

It’s just another day you see,
A farmers life it is for me.

Another year has come and went,
How were your days mostly spent?

Ours was filled with work and fun,
Farming in the golden sun.

Fixing this and fixing that,
Racing time just like a rat.

Next year is now tomorrow,
Let’s hope for little sorrow

You too can have fresh carrots all winter if you do a little planning in the fal. If you store them correctly in the ground they should last all winter.

As the first frost is upon you, mulch dirt and leaves up and around the carrots. You should use at least 12 inches. As the tops die off, the carrots will stay fresh under the layers of mulch. When picked, these carrots will be sweet and delicous.

Now, in order to pick them, you have to have a thaw…or a good pick ax. They freeze in there pretty hard. Much to our dismay we found this out the hard way when we went to dig some up in mid-December. We did however have a thaw right before Christmas, so we had fresh carrots on the table that year.

You can if you wish store them in a root cellar. If you are storing them your root cellar be sure to layer them between sand. A bucket works well, and keeps any lurking critters out. Mice and moles love to nibble.
Be sure to check on them periodically for mold or decay.
Stored properly, you should have carrots throughout the winter months.

It is snowing outside again. We have gotten about 8 inches in this storm so far. If I calculate the snowfall correctly, we have gotten over 40 inches. That is half of what we usually get all winter in one month.
Figuring that we will be inside hunkering down today, I think I should do some laundry. I prefer to do it on a sunny day so I can hang them out, but I am not sure we are going to see much sun for the next few days. The last time I waited for a sunny day, the laundry got a bit backed up and we were surrounded by clothes racks. Read the rest of this entry »