Harvest time

Tomatoes are finally coming in

I think this is the first weekend that we got more from the planted tomatoes than the volunteers!  Still not going to be a record breaking year - but at least we are getting something.

Pumpkins

Some of these may be mixed with spaghetti squash

Pumpkins - they were supposed to be buttercup...  oh well.

Potatoes

I used the front-loader to dig the remaining potatoes.  Looks like about 2 lbs?  Maybe 3.  Oh well.  Seed potatoes for next year!

Total potato take the PA patch.  I have some more from the city house.  About half this many.

Miscellaneous harvests

Green beans and eggplants

Broccoli is hanging in there!

This is just a neat butterfly - I didn't harvest him!

Oh - and the last elderberries!

Grape arbor work

First off. milling some more 2x4's for the top pieces.

I finally got some time to work on the new grape arbors.  I milled a couple more of the old logs that I thought were crap; I hoped that I could get some 2x4's for the grape arbor tops from them.  I figured if worst came to worst that I could just chip the strips of wood I cut.  Well, I got some nice 2x4's   - surprised me!  However, while milling one of the logs I accidently ran the blade into a back log support.  The blade dulled, of course, and the next cut caused a severe "drift" and when using this blade for edging it bound and kinked.  I will take that blade in for sharpening, but I think kinked blades are just trashed.   I can plane down the drifted 2x4's, so no big loss on wood.  Especially considering that these 2x4s came from what aI thought would just end up as firewood!

Topping off the arbor posts and placing the 2x4's

It's a bit subjective as to how I wanted to place the tops and how high I wanted the tops to be from the ground.  I kind of winged it.  I put a level up on the 2x4's and just eye-balled the position.  I didn't make them level, but gave them a slight angle so that water wouldn't stand on them.  I used 1.75x5 inch truss plates the the previous owner had left in the shop.  I got 8 2x4s up before I ran out of trusses.  I will need to buy some more.  Also, I have been making the cuts with the chainsaw and am now out of pre-mixed fuel.  I will stop by Home Depot in Silver Spring to pick up these items.

Freezer Scare

After I turned the power off to the well and the outdoor circuits when I was getting ready to leave the farm I went to check the deep freeze, just to be sure it was on and ok.  Well, good thing I did!  It was off!  I thought it had died, but in-fact I checked the panel and found that the breaker had popped!  It was the same breaker that had one of the sump-pumps on it.  It's scary because obviously the sump shouldn't have been on lately so WHY did the circuit pop?   All I can think of is that water from the dehumidifier built up in the sump and te pump and the freezer came on at the same time.  Initial compressor and pump startup would possibly cause the breaker to pop.  I reset the breaker just before we left.  The food inside the freezer was still frozen - but beginning to show signs of thawing out.  I hope that its still running!  I don't want to loose all of our frozen food - especially the elderberry crop!!