Not just an ordinary carrot

Yesterday we dug up the carrots still in the ground.   We wrote off the disappointing germination to not enough water, too hot early in the spring after planting, and unknown elements of gardening.  Digging them actually produced some results.  What standard do we gardeners place on our harvest, that every crop look like the pile of vegetables at the Pike Place Market?  THIS IS NOT A HELPFUL ATTITUDE!
A half of a storebought carrot in the crisper drawer provided contrast for the latest harvested jewels.  NO COMPARISON can be made.  Every single post-frost carrot exploded with sweetness.  I wanted to sing!  To celebrate the noble carrot and all gifts of creation!
Dolly Parton sang a song on Sesame Street once about 14-carrot love.

Placeholder for the carrot picture not taken

14 carrot love!
That is what we got here -
14 carrot love!
It`s better than some flowers
Or candy on a ring...

Ode to the Carrot 
The carrot has an orange hue,
So lovely and so bright.
Seeing it, I take my cue
And gobble every bite.

The Last Pear

"OMG"  I'm about to eat the last wonderfully succulent sweet pear.  It came from a tree that some construction worker building a house next door to us gave us, when he observed our planting trees, among a collection of tiny unidentifiable saplings he had.  Already I can't wait until next summer to see if they come again.  In this post, I will officially give all credit to the bees.

I got this picture from our BeeQueen Kathleen.  It shows the high intelligence of a healthy swarm, waiting for their green light.

Autumn Reigns

Beautiful summery fall days have nearly given way to the snow that's forecast for Tuesday. We drained the water lines for the well today. 
This week I finally planted some arugula, red spinach, and maybe lettuce --although I can't remember--in a grow-box.  Today I noticed they had sprouted.  Also I finally planted the garlic. I tried to choose the nicest heads and planted a nice selection of Chesnok, Oregon Blue, and Susanville, which is what we had last year.  The Chesnok is a hard neck garlic, and has a nice full spicy flavor.    I confess I've only been using the hard neck because I understand it has a shorter shelf life.
The potatoes and sweet potatoes have been dug. Sauerkraut is fermenting. We've had a good crop of onions--can you ever have too many onions? The black beans are finally shelled and in jars.  Pumpkins have been harvested and we cooked the first one tonight because I have a hunger for pumpkin pie.
The earth cries out for moisture, which we hope does come soon. 

Value-Added

On the best kind of recent fall day, I was out picking through the black beans we planted this year.  No wind, bright sun, the red oak tree in front looking as good as she ever does.  Planting things like shell beans-- which come cheap to buy and take awhile to come to fruition, and some work to make usable--are one of my favorite things to plant.  Kind of like our potatoes this year.  B came home from the store the other day and said, "You wouldn't believe how cheap potatoes were at the store!"  I do believe it, but I replied that we were not planting a garden because it saves a lot of money.  It's a value-added kind of thing.
Reasons to plant potatoes (or black beans, or an apple tree):

1. The mailing from the United Farm Workers this week included pictures of worker housing.  Since most produce harvested in the U.S. is harvested by the kind of folks this union represents, it's good to pay attention to their working conditions. The photo that caught my attention more than people sleeping in their vehicle or in old motels, was the one with 6 people in a one-room shack with no utilities.  Each person who lives there pays $180 a month rent.  Knowing where our food comes from helps us know the real price, beyond $0.99 for a 10 pound bag. 
2. I read a book once by the brilliant science-fiction writer Octavia Butler.  She writes into a future where people are surviving drought and the state of California is burning.  Survival is the name of the game; the protagonist making it, in part because she knows something about seeds and growing food.  Older people in our contemporary society often speak of surviving the Depression because they lived on a farm and "we were never hungry".  Not to cross over into the survivalist mentality of those storing up food in Montana, but then again, they may be right about some things...
3. Just take a bite of a peach or an ear of corn that you grew yourself.  Taste how much spicier the arugula is.  How much juicier the pear.  How much better the salsa is when it's made with genuine vine-ripened tomatoes.
4. It's a matter of pride.  Or is it humility, because one never really knows how it works...or doesn't.  All this life and nourishment is merely a miracle.
5. Caring for the earth and co-creating beauty makes the world a better place for the whole.