The Little Changes

Around the farm, summer means hanging the laundry out on the line. Until now, it's simply been a great way to cut back on our electricity bill, but now I'm recognizing the many other environmental benefits it holds. Hanging out your laundry may seem to be a minimal difference, but every little bit helps, right? Most of Europe already cuts back on their fossil fuel use by hanging out their laundry, even in colder months. I'll be looking at Lehman's to get an indoor rack to hang the clothes up over the winter. Or if the mild winters continue, I may just keep using the outdoor line.

I'm also enjoying making a difference by using an all natural detergent from Seventh Generation. The Native Americans have a philosophy of thinking of their actions and how they will effect the next seven generations. After learning about this idea from my Global Environmental Issues class, I thought it appropriate to try out this Environmentally friendly company. If you're interested here's their website. So far we're loving the laundry detergent, dish detergent, tissues, and paper towels!

http://www.seventhgeneration.com/

Here's a few of the benefits to line drying over using your dryer.

• Some households can save up to $100 a year from switching to line drying. Most likely that would increase as line drying eliminates the use of dryer sheets. If you have a large family and are going through multiple loads of laundry think of how many dryer sheets that is. Switching to a 1/4 cup of vinegar in the washing machine will help in removing tough odors from the wash and keeps clothes softer after they are hung out. 
• Go green! Some serious energy conservation is happening here. I don't know the numbers, but think of the fossil fuels we would save if your entire neighborbood switched.
• Consider the activity and time an excuse to escape outdoors for a few minutes. I find it's soothing, relazing and gives me a chance to think. 
• If you haven't discovered it yet, the fresh scent of line dried clothing is so relaxing.

If you want a few more, take a look at this website, and get line drying!

http://laundry.about.com/od/ecofriendlylaundry/tp/10reasonstolinedrylaundry.htm

If you aren't convinced, just google, line drying vs electric dryer and make your own decision. 

Fruits of our labors

Nothing compares to the first burst of sweet berry goodness from a farm grown strawberry!

I can't wait for these lovelies to turn a deep blue. They just burst in your mouth!

We're already looking forward to the large amount of pickling we'll be doing later this summer. We've sprayed organic fungicide already to protect the plants this year. The once a week spray prevents several different types of fungus from taking over. If you're dealing with fungicide be sure to get an organic spray, but you have to be incredibly careful not to spray around bees as it can kill them quickly.




 The potatoes are already looking great! We hilled them last week before the rain hit. It will be fun digging them up in the fall. Can't wait for mashed potatoes made from our own garden veggies!










When "going green" means enjoying fresh asparagus, there's little debate involved.

 We'll be saving a few of these beauties this fall and letting the eyes grow over the winter so we can plant them next spring. Sweet potatoes from the garden are the perfect side dish for Thanksgiving! There will be a great deal of preserving this year! If you have sweet potatoes make sure you have LOTS of space. These fun plants send out vines and take over a large area. They can block out the sun from shorter plants so give them their own space to spread and grow. But you can also trim the vines back if you need. They will also sew new shoots which will yield a second crop later in the fall/winter.

Seven rows of corn, properly hilled, and growing like crazy after only a few days! Planted so that the wind that runs up the ravine and back hills will help with the pollination. Last year was the first year we enjoyed a crop of corn, and it was fabulous. So, it was an essential for this years garden. Depending on the crop we may even try to can a few ears to save for the winter. 

 .Sweet peas are one of my favorites in early spring. It took a while to figure out we had sweet peas rather than snow peas this year. They're becoming a regular guest on our dinner table. And we're counting down the days till the beans are ready to be picked.

This is one for even those who are struggling to find the space to start a garden. An old water trough is easy to fill with compost and top with soil, then plant your favorites. This lovely container is right outside our back door. It provides us with lettuce and kale within easy reach. Summer salads have so many fantastic flavors with the variety from this back door garden.  

And I couldn't close this post without a picture of our favorite webbed friends. They're loving the sun.