Mushrooms: Best of 2012

Here comes a long stream of my favorite mushroom photos from this year.  I greatly enjoy hunting for these fascinating organisms through the fall.  This spring, I hope to find the elusive morel; I've been doing a lot of research about their ideal habitat.  Hopefully I'll spy some!

The Beginning of Mushroom Season

Yesterday my mom showed me these beauties that are growing in our front yard on the old roots of a locust tree we cut down a few years ago:

 Turns out they're a reishi medicinal mushroom that only grows on 1 in 5000 trees!  You'll be amazed at the treasures you can find in your own front yard.

Drought

It's so terribly dry in Upstate New York right now.  The lack of rain this season has left us with cracked soil, parched plants and empty river beds. 

 Though its quite difficult for the garden, it has allowed me to explore places I've never been able to.  Today, I meandered down this creek bed, causing hundreds of frogs to scurry to their hiding spots.

Everything is running so early this year... Normally wild grapes aren't ripening until August.

Apparently some other creatures were doing some exploring as well!

Sometimes You Just Need to Take a Walk

Sometimes you need to escape somewhere and appreciate the beauty that exists all around you.

Beauty we usually ignore in pursuit of unimportant things.

Some days you just need to watch sunfish swim in the water and look for sea glass in the sand.

Today was one of those days.

First Harvest

I'm so happy I had the foresight (or plain excitement) to plant radishes early this year.  I came back from vacation and found these beauties ripe for the picking:

This small bounty is just the encouragement I need to get me going on the rest of my planting.

Thanks to God for the simple pleasures in life.

Everything's Coming Up.. Early?

The warm weather in March inspired me to start some seeds... It's so encouraging to see everything coming up early.  Today I sowed cherry belle radishes straight into the ground and buried some shallots.

Shallots ready for planting.

In the greenhouse, there are tomatoes, peppers and a myriad of herbs in trays ready to sprout.
This year, I'm hoping to build an herb box and grow basil, dill, savory, cilantro and sage.

While visiting my boyfriend at his current job a few weeks ago, I spied what looked like cherry seeds that had broken from their pits.  I decided to plant them and here's the result:

A cherry tree in its humble beginnings

I'm very excited to see what kind of cherry it turns out to be.  I love a good surprise.

The strawberries are already blossoming!

My garden to be.

 I am (im)patiently awaiting the time to utilize all of this wonderful space.  This season, I'm hoping to grow:
              -Shallots
              -Radishes
              -Turnips
              -Tomatoes
              -Cucumbers
              -Beets
              -Cayenne Peppers
              -Watermelons
              -Butternut Squash
              -Strawberries
              -Lots of herbs
              -Potatoes
I'd also love to plant some blueberry, gooseberry and currant bushes.
Now all I need is to make time to care for it all!
        

The First Warm Days of The Year

The weather has been so incredibly warm for this time of year.  Everything is so early, it's astonishing.  I heard on the news today that there is a some phenomenon that has led to the mass migration of butterflies into our area.  They really are everywhere!  I couldn't help but marvel at them while at work.  How perfect it was that their presence coincided with the early opening of the cherry blossoms.

The Boil Down

 

Well, it's been a week and we've collected close to 23 gallons of sap.  We tapped only four trees and had to check our buckets twice a day because they were filling up so fast.  What a blessing!

We stored our sap in a simple rubbermaid bin (though I think I'll opt for a thicker-walled cooler next year) and boiled it down in a home-made pan from my father over a barrel.

Our setup.

The cold wind and hasty design made for an extremely long boil down, but finally we ended up with almost a half gallon of syrup.

It has a delightfully smoky flavor and I love the darker color that comes with wood-fired maple syrup.  The fruits of your own labor are always so much sweeter.  I think the work involved in producing food lends more appreciation and less wastefulness.  I can't wait to improve our design, build a sugar shack and make more next year!

Jumping In Head First

Maybe it's cabin fever from being cooped up this strange, snowless winter or maybe I've simply had a change in perspective.  Either way, I've come to discover that sometimes you just need to start something.

I took this to heart with maple sugaring.  I've wanted to try it for some time, but it always seemed like there was so much to prepare for.  I felt like I should have the nostalgic galvanized buckets, old-fashioned spiles and an antique evaporator ready to fire.  This year, the weather discouraged me because it often didn't even freeze all night.  Then, I had a realization.  The people who made maple syrup historically were not using tastefully designed materials or fancy equipment.  They were pioneers and couldn't afford to wait for perfect conditions.  They did the best they could with what they had.  My boyfriend and I decided that now is a better time than never, and we tapped the trees with the equipment we had.

I think there is some merit to "jumping in head first."  The passion and excitement that goes into accomplishing something you've dreamed about is enough motivation to overcome the odds before you.  It is also a reminder that you may not be handed the perfect conditions for easy success, but you have the intellect and resourcefulness to succeed anyway if you choose to.

It may not be the most efficient design,  I may not have a sugar bush full of the right maple trees and I may not have antique galvanized buckets, but it's a start.

And I'm proud of it.