Not in a classic "death" sense. More like in the teenage overly-dramatic sense that's way more fun, right?
Last year we experimented by adding chrysanthemums to our farm venue. I ordered 800. 755 got planted. We sold every single one within three weeks...
So a smart woman would say "Wow. That worked. Let's do it again, just the same."
But then the smart woman thought "Wow. We missed five weeks of the selling season, so why not try some LATER MUMS because we don't already have enough work to do!!! BRILLIANT!"
So this year, God willing, we'll be raising about 1600 mums and 400 or so asters... The first 663 mums came last week:
This is Logan, he was busily filling pots 3/4 full of planting medium!
Assembly line planting! Brooke, Casey, Elijah and Dianna....
This is Elijah and Casey getting the pots situated on tables and marking with cute individual tags so we'll know what each flower is!
This is Brooke and Dianna... I kind of railroaded them into working because they had no school, they were here, and I bribed them with cold hard cash at the end of the day... The flower pots are set up so that I can hand-water them... (no fancy system here, just me.... but I'll pretend I'm fancy!) And so that when they are mature, there is space between them. They don't like to be squished.
When we were done, 663 happy little mums were safely in their pots... and they've survived several waterings and feedings. Today, 255 more will join them... they were a particular color that we loved called Jacqueline Peach Fusion, and they're just a total crowd pleaser! (I had to come in and change the number because I was wrong on the first one!)
And then MacKenzie, Morgan and I made sorbet... now I'm an ice cream fan but Kenzie isn't and we thought we'd try something more to her liking....
and it was so easy and delicious! I realized that I needed more corn syrup (or more condensed evaporated milk) than I used because it was a little bit tart... but wonderful!
RASPBERRY SORBET
1 pkg. 16 oz. frozen raspberries
1/2 cup Sweetened Condensed milk
Add raspberries to food processor with chopping blade. Chop until fine... then add milk.
Continue to process until smooth, about two minutes....
Serve or freeze!
That's it. But I went to the cupboard and there was no Sweetened Condensed milk so I substituted 1/3 cup corn syrup and 1/3 cup heavy cream.... we blended those together, added to the raspberries and voila!
Amazingly delicious sorbet/sherbet!
And this was KITTY RESCUE MISSION when naughty Honey Bunny White Socks got herself onto the roof... and yowled in my window to get in around 2:00 AM... And then couldn't get down because we moved the ladder...
I had little sympathy, but the girls tried coaxing her into their "SAFETY NET"....
She was not to be coaxed, but a friend took pity on her and climbed up to get her....
But it did teach her a lesson so far, to leave my roof alone! :)
Honey Bunny White Socks?! Bwahahahaha! There's a picture book somewhere in that adventure.
ReplyDeleteLove the idea of being a flower farmer. Why didn't I think of that? That may be my new dream! Love your farm adventures, Ruthy!
And sqquuueaaal on the sorbet recipe! Who knew it would be that easy?! I'm going to give this a try.
You're right about the picture book, Kav! I'm sticking this in my file of ideas. :)
DeleteKav, I stole the idea from the Internet.... and then adjusted because I think my single can of sweetened condensed milk was so OLD that it got tossed the last time we re-organized the pantry cupboard, but the cream + corn syrup worked great... It's a little tart, but amazingly fruity! And you can mix things in once it's done. Tiny dark chocolate chips... Nuts... Fresh fruit.... Perfect consistency, Kav!!!
ReplyDeleteAdventure, hard work, memories and rewards are never far from your farm. If I was closer I would be coming for the Jacqueline Peach Fusion pots. Mums are beautiful and so many ways clever ways to use in fall decorations and as gifts. Blessings on your farm bounty come this fall with the mums, pumpkins, etc.
ReplyDeleteI'm sure you are enjoying the early summer produce now. I'll have some family produce when I see our sisters this weekend. Hugs, Ruthy.
The pictures added so much to all the crew you recruited and the job of planting. : )
Marilyn, hi!!! I love that you're getting produce already! We're a couple weeks out except for asparagus... but soon the summer squashes and then beans.... and then a whole array of fun stuff! It is exciting, but I honestly don't know how Dave and Seth do it all. But I do have fun with the kids and the mums! :) That's our project and they love making money, that's for sure. A good work ethic is a wonderful thing.
DeleteRuthy, those are gorgeous mums!! I've never seen that color before. I love it.
ReplyDeleteLooks like a busy time on the farm! But so nice to have all the kids to bribe--er, pay. :)
Hahahahah! Hey, I figure if I have to work, so do they. No sittin' around while the matriarch is out there in the sun! :) They get so excited to get paid and they're a huge help... and it's all stuff they can do without messing things up. The actual planting and placing on the black fabric is for us bigger people, but filling pots, watering pots and placing the flower sticker inside.... that saves me so much work!
DeleteI think you've found the sweet spot with those mums! And those peach fusion ones are so pretty!
ReplyDeleteAre you still doing the pumpkins? You have to be, right? I can imagine them quietly sending out vines and blossoms in the back forty...
And you're making tons of memories with the children. What a delightful childhood you're helping them have!
Jan, we'll have to ask them if it's delightful... after I give them freeze pops!!! :) But I agree, I think it's good for them and a great time to learn to work as a group.
DeleteAnd the customers love the mums... and yes, they've planted thousands and thousands of pumpkins.
Tens of thousands, maybe. I think we're close to 25K this year. I might be exaggerating, but maybe not...
Sweetened condensed milk and raspberries? That's it? Ruthy, you had me at sweetened condensed milk.
ReplyDeleteOh, and I do love those flowers. The color is similar to that iris you showed us a week or two ago. Love the variegated ones.
And assembly lines are great, aren't they? Makes life so much easier. Especially when you have all the able bodies to help you. I'm sure they loved it. Especially the cash part.
EXACTLY!!!! And I didn't exactly ask the first day, but this job is so much easier than weeding and hoeing that I kind of drafted them into it... and now they get excited! Two weeks, the rest come and I have to figure out a watering maneuver to take some of the stress off my lower back. Can't afford a fancy watering system, and it's only for 6 weeks that they need feeding... Then I can just water them with the hose, but for those six weeks, it's a lot of bend-and-stretch.... I pretend I'm doing an extended gym workout.
DeleteMental focus!!!
Oh my, Ruthy! Those mums are positively gorgeous. Do you ship them? :-D You are one busy lady, and I love how you involve the kiddos. They'll have such great memories!
ReplyDeleteAren't they so pretty? We have so many colors... pinks, reds, red-and-yellow, daisy-type, more fusions (the fusions color change as they mature) and gorgeous burgundies, oranges, and purples and pink blends. I think folks will love them.
DeleteThe asters are new for us this year, and they should be ready to sell mid August... so I'm anxious to see what customers think of them? They're really pretty and they only take 4 weeks to grow and they add a different color to the fall gardens.
Winnie, I bet they have similar mums near you, don't they? I wonder!
Probably, but they wouldn't be as special as yours! I'll have to look around and see if anyone has one like that fusion one. Then I'll have to figure out where to put it! I have a perennial flower fetish. It's almost as bad as my book one. :-D
DeleteOh, I LOVE your assembly line for flowers. How perfect. I'm curious, though. What do you do when it rains? That's on my mind today because we had torrential rains this morning. I'm envisioning those Jacqueline Peach Fusion beauties washing away. Boo hoo!
ReplyDeleteCate, they're fine in the rain.... they're just baby plants right now, but that's what they'll look like late August... So the rain is beneficial and it helps "clean" the salts out of the pots, left from the liquid fertilizer I mix and feed them. I was amazed at how well it all worked last year, so I figured why not double it and go for it this year?
DeleteThat's kind of why you'll rarely see me at an ACFW conference or before/after because September is all hands on deck here...
I'd love for you to drive up here in the fall and have some fun. I'll fill your car with pumpkins and flowers for your garden or steps... and we'll greet autumn in NYC!!!