Unpacking

Some of the fires are still burning, but not near us. We escaped this time. But the disruption and devastation were unbelievable. Still are unbelievable. Freeways- our arteries- were closed for days at a time. The smoke was so thick you couldn't see the car in front of you at a standstill, let alone at 70mph. And if you can't drive 70mph why go at all. Most of the businesses were closed for a full week. Hospitals were on emergency only basis to have bed room for smoke inhalation injury and burn injury patients.Grocery delivery was cut off to the large stores. Gas stations ran out of gas.
My friends arrived from Oregon while the freeway was still open. Eduard's cousin arrived from Colorado while we could still pick her up from the airport. Then, the fire near us started moving north and we were out of danger. Wednesday was a good day. I started unpacking.
There are things we don't admit to people very often, but I must admit that I am not the best housekeeper anymore. When I grabbed some of my framed artwork, I realized it was filthy dusty. When it was time to put it back, it all got a really good cleaning. It took me just a few minutes to toss all the stuff into the car, but it took hours to unpack it all. Thursday was a long dirty day. And almost all the stores were still closed.
So for fun, my Oregon friends and I washed and spun wool. We knitted and showed off our latest creations. We tried to keep quiet and not exercise in the foul air. We played in our way while the soot drifted slowly down. On Friday we had a very heavy dew which congealed the soot into sludgy mud all over the ground- but no longer in the air.And on Saturday we had a light drizzly rain. Now the air was breathable and the ground was toxic.
I have washed off the cars and as much foliage as I can reach with the hose. I have tried to clean up the walkways to the house. And next, when this has all come to a stop, I will clean the inside of the house. It smells like an ashtray. There is soot in every windowsill. The carpet has a black path. And every surface has some gritty stuff left on it even after I wipe it down.
I will be done by Thanksgiving. But for now I am happy to have dirty carpet and dusty windows. Some people don't have anything left. My prayers reach out to them. My thoughts and hopes are with them. My garage sale will be soon because I need to share with them. Sometimes when you start cleaning you realize how much stuff you don't want anymore.

Environmental Catastrophe

Last summer, my friends in England were under water. Severe flooding cut off their water supply and power for many. Fortunately, my friends didn't lose their homes, but did get a splash of inconvenience. They were collecting rain water so they could flush their toilets. They were gathering drinking water from community water tubs. And for bathing, well let us just say that it was rare.
Now it is my turn to have disaster at the door. San Diego and parts of Los Angeles are burning up. Once again we are at the critical fire season and watching our friends and neighbors evacuate. But this time, we are on evacuation watch also. This may seem hard to understand as we are only 2 miles from the beach. Where are we to go? Into the surf? To the south of us, it is burning. To the north of us it is burning. To the east of us it is burning. And to the west of us we have a coast line and beautiful waves. We also have guests arriving tomorrow and Wednesday. And how can I possibly save all my produce! And my chickens!! and my trees!!!
Well, we have actually started packing the most important things and unfortunately the trees and produce will not get to go. BUT I am taking the chickens!
Most of what there is in the world is replaceable, except our lives. So I will take my loving husband and myself, enough necessities and semi-precious things, and my living buddies (with their food and water). Many people got the call at 5 am yesterday. We have been on notice all afternoon, but it is not mandatory yet. We are very close to the safe zone so we want to wait until the last minute to evacuate. But if the call comes, we will have to go and wait until the danger has passed.
For those of you who got the care package, you might have to send one back.

Planning Ahead

When we moved to this house, it already had a few fruit trees. That was part of the attraction even though they were not all something we would have planted. So far we have removed four trees that were in distress or completely inappropriate for our climate. And we have added fifteen (two of which failed) which leaves us with nine more than when we started. Sometimes it is hard to know for certain what will grow in your soil and climate. Our soil is sandy, hard packed sand, and ancient eroded beach cliff. There is a high salt content remaining and a scarcity of nutrients. It is a struggle every year to mulch, compost, fertilize, mineralize, and water adequately. But some trees are very happy here if I try hard enough.
I was looking at my Fruit calendar and realized that I have almost a fruit tree or shrub for every month of the year. In January, I get citrus- Lemon and Lime, and could probably have a navel orange. February still has lemons and limes. In March, we get Loquats. In April, there are Loquats and Strawberries (which are not a tree, I know). And in May we get Blackberries and the start of Blueberries (which are a tree or shrub). In June, we have Apples and Avocados. July is Peaches, Plums, Oranges, and Apricots. August is Asian Pears, Oranges and Grapes. September is Figs, Pineapple Guava. October is Pomegranate. And November is more apples. And December, well that month is reserved for chocolate which doesn't grow here. All this fruit, coupled with all that I save from the harvests, keeps us fruity all year long.
You might think that I have enough. But I am always on the look out for another fruit tree. Our Plum tree is dying and will need to be replaced with something that is not a Stone Fruit type tree. Maybe that Naval Orange I was thinking about. And one of the Asian Pear trees just doesn't get enough cold time, so it is going to a friend in a colder climate zone. I could move a grape that doesn't get enough heat. Maybe something exotic and tropical?
Well, if I find a fruit tree to fill in that February spot or one that can compete with chocolate in December, I will keep you posted.

Pestos and Pastas

The Fall season is my party time. I mentioned this before, but not in much detail. When I party, it isn't always having lots of people over and doing loud, fun things. Sometimes it just means that I am doing fun things I like and not spending very much time doing things for other people.
Take socks, for instance. Most of the year I am so hot that I can't wear socks or long sleeve shirts. In the Fall it is cool enough to dress in wooly things, at least in the mornings and evenings. So I have started knitting some nice socks with the wool I washed and spun earlier this year. I have taken my sweaters to the cleaners. I am getting ready for some serious cool time.
This time of year is also good for baking bread and pastries. It is good for roasted meats and chicken. There are things I make ahead so that I have them ready as I need them. I make pestos. Right now, I have harvested the basil and completed "Sun Dried Tomato Pesto" and the regular "Green Pesto". This is great for stuffing mushrooms or tossing with Pasta and left over cooked chicken. It can turn a regular boring meal into something quite special.
Recipe time:
Sun Dried Tomato Pesto
1 small can tomato paste
2 oz dried tomatoes
1/2 cup walnuts
2 tablespoons pine nuts
1/2 cup olive oil
1 (up to 2) cups fresh basil
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
5 cloves garlic

I like to cut the dried tomatoes into strips with the scissors. Add all the ingredients into a blender or food processor and process until smooth. Some people like less basil so that the pesto is redder.
For regular "Green Pesto" add 1/4 cup more olive oil and leave out the tomatoes and tomato paste.

After you have made this, you need to store it. You can keep it in the Fridge for about two weeks with olive oil covering the pesto and a lid over the top to keep the air off. You can also freeze it in 1/2 cup portions for about 6 months- thaw in the fridge over night.

And you need to use it. The standard pasta with pesto works as a side dish. I mix 2 tablespoons of it with 1 cup bread crumbs, 1 egg, finely chopped veggies and then stuff large mushrooms- bake for 20 min. 350f. Then there is stuffed chicken breast (slice open breast to make a pocket and fill with tomato pesto and a slice of prosciutto or ham. I also sometimes just melt a bit over the top of a piece of meat or chicken. When I get lazy, this is how I make nice dinners with very little fuss. Try it also as an appetizer. Make a little pie dough tart with a teaspoon of pesto and a teaspoon of cream cheese- bake 350f for 20min. Green and red comes in handy in a couple of months. Put a cooked shrimp in there, too. Really fancy. See, very easy and mostly already done.

So now it is party time. Bye- gotta knit some socks.

Autumn 1, Harvest 2, Party 3

Second Harvest is my special time of the year. I usually have a bit of a spiritual rebirth before setting off on the Holiday Season. So this coming Sunday, my sweeties and I will again hit the beach for some meditation and a beautiful sunset. I will try to make some special treats to eat and bring some candles and incense. Then I will get back to work. There is still so much to do.
I have been winding up the garden. I thought I would have a fall bunch of stuff, but the chickens ate it all. There are only a few cucumbers and some celery left, and the sweet potatoes. But that is enough.
We are getting eggs now, so those vegetables are being invested in Chicken Production.
I have been spending lots of time at the gym, swimming and using the weight machines. This is to improve my body tone and lose weight- so that I can spend more time in the garden. I have also been spinning wool and dying it lovely fall colors. It is amazing how much stuff there is to do all day that is not in the garden. I have even started cleaning the house a bit. Gosh! It has been a long summer and the house really shows it.
Well, it is time to go to the gym. I think the garden will just have to wait a little longer. Maybe next week.

SunChoke

In my garden, I try all kinds of interesting plants. Some of them I try because I have eaten it and liked it. Some are because I can't find it in a store. Others are because store bought types are just too expensive or not very tasty. I finally decided to try Sunchokes (Jerusalem Artichokes). In the market (when you can find them) Jerusalem artichokes are about $4.00 per pound. They look like small, knobby potatoes. They are low in carbohydrates and taste a bit like water chestnuts. I have eaten them raw in salads, cooked like potatoes, and put them in Spinach dip instead of water chestnuts. So I decided to try growing them. The Garden reference book said they will grow anywhere in Northern America. It also said they are invasive and thrive on neglect. Oh, I can do with some neglect!
So this is a picture of the Sunchoke in flower. It is about 8 feet tall. The seeds should be viable, but you can never find Sunchoke seeds anywhere. Apparently if it goes to seed it makes less bulb. But I am OK with that because I want the seed, too. So I will let some of them produce seed.
The Sunchoke is harvested in the winter after just about everything has been eaten. It can tolerate some soil frost and keeps well in the ground. If you cut the stalk off at about 6 inches high you can easily find the spot where the bulbs are.
These seem to be very happy here. The grasshoppers are loving it too, but the plant seems to grow faster than the bugs are eating it. I am hoping for a modest first crop and about an ounce of seed. After I find out if the seed is viable I can share it with my friends. We can replant and enjoy a plant food that has been in our country for thousands of years and no one now knows about.

First Fruits

In the Hebrew Bible, the sacrifice at the altar was usually the first born male lamb or goat or calf. This is because the first one to open the womb was considered the best and purest. But there are also other issues around first fruits. It is the one most anticipated and when it shows up you want it right now. So to offer it is truly a sacrifice because you must show self restraint and wait for number two. First grains, first fruit, first animal birth, first child. All were the best of the offerings.
So today, one of my chickens laid its first egg! I don't know which of the two did it. I wasn't watching. It is a pale brown egg, rather elongated, and about the size of a medium egg (1/2 the size of an extra large).
I am very excited and hope that my chickens continue to produce lovely eggs now for the next two years. Two years is the normal production duration for most chickens. After that they just hang around and eat bugs and make noise.
But today is a good day to celebrate a first fruit, greatly anticipated, lovingly cared for, and offered as only a chicken can. The chickens are eggsactly 4 months old to the day.