The Celilo Indians hold their Salmon celebration this weekend up on the Columbia.  My salmon fever wracked husband caught the first fish in our household today, not long after he dropped me off at the dock so I could go to work.  Always nice to know we have some in the freezer, especially this time [...]

I posted about soil blocking last year, but it is that time again!  In the name of reducing plastic here are some photos of the process.  The mix is a ratio of potting soil, peat moss, compost, sand, and a dash of lime.  Roughly a ratio (in order mentioned) 5-3-2-1 plus a dash of lime. [...]

So I have been mentally reviewing the backyard bunny project, and here is how we did this year: We mated both does twice in 2011.  Momma bunny (who is a somewhat unwilling breeder and not very fond of Poppa bunny generally, but a good mom) had two litters of kits.  The first litter was 7 [...]

Well, I try not to.  The pears sure are doing so, and sometimes when you step on a rotten pear….. Speaking of pears, the Comice had the best crop of winter pears ever this year, after the coolest rainiest crummiest spring imaginable.  The good weather window must have been open when this tree blossomed.  Winter [...]

Ok, so it has been a pretty tough spring Chinook season.  However, my husband finally landed a fish the other day.  I just happened to find a lost piece of Coho in the back of the freezer the night before that we ate immediately which seems to have lifted the curse! The best part of [...]

Books I like and use Beekeeping for Dummies, by Howland Blackston Well written, great pictures, excellent overview for beginning beekeepers no matter what type of hive you are using. The Barefoot Beekeeper by Phil Chandler Best book I have seen out there on top bar beekeeping, available online.  Phil also runs the Natural Beekeeping Network [...]

The best thing about the holidays?  Well, lots of things, but I think on the top of my list is the food, and for festive comestibles you can’t beat Eggs, Sugar, Cream and Bourbon.  Nothing warms the heart’s cockles quite like a quick snoot of Kentucky’s finest when you are cross country skiing in new [...]

So the holidays quickly approach, and I look forward to them with my usual mix of elation and dread.  For all the wastefulness and stress, I love Christmas trees, and medieval carols, and eggnog.  My favorite holiday dessert is boiled custard, a family tradition at Christmas in my family, where my father’s clan always gathered [...]