Wow! What Happened in 2 1/2 Weeks

Tortuga Thursday

In 2012, on the plains of Northern Arizona, two families joined forces and began the trials and tribulations of building a small family farm with nothing in the bank but love.

Checking for cucumbers

There are twenty pictures I'd like to share with you, but loading that many would take more patience than I possess. The crops have shot up both inside and outside the greenhouse. Frank and I were gone two and a half weeks on our maiden RV voyage, and the rows of veggies filled out in our absence.

There are two phenomenons of farming that will probably never cease to amaze me. When the seed goes into the ground and pushes up to display the plant to come is amazing. But more amazing to me is a whole field of tiny little things that seem to blossom and bear fruit overnight. I'm not sure why it hits me that way - I obviously watch them grow. Now the work cannot be stalled. No more vacations from the farm until harvesting is over. We can't put the cucumbers on hold.

Dill before we left

Dill two and half weeks later

After complaining about no rain, we've had so much I can't get in the field to weed. It's making harvesting very messy. We skipped a day, but it rained again, so Lance and a friend slugged through the mud to get the cucumbers before they were too big to pickle. 

Me, weeding potatoes before RVing

Two more purchases - another canning pot and a bag freezer. We're doing so many pickles this year, one pot is not going to cut it. We also learned that no matter how careful we were, grocery freezer bags do not prevent freezer burn. My tip for the day: spend the money on a proper bag freezer. It will save you on your food bill.

Organic farming is not only hard work (as all farming is) but it also requires the farmer to be on his toes and one step ahead of - if possible - of Mother Nature. Lance bought and released bugs that eat bugs in the greenhouse. I have to think they're doing their job by the looks of the plants. His vigilance this year before the plants began bearing in the fields has been successful. Last year, we lost plants due to nasty pests or had small veggies in some cases because of pest problems. He

Cucumbers and tomatoes flourish

sprayed early on with a natural spray of neem oil.

Just a note: Our trip was great fun and we discovered all kinds of things about RVing. I posted some pictures on Facebook if you'd like to check them out. Thanks to our lifestyle, multiple generations living under one roof who share the workload, we are able to do what we've always wanted - on a smaller scale but rich with fun.

Chamomile ready to dry

West Indian Gherkin plants

Ready to harvest at 1 1/2 inch