a time to sow

Yesterday I planted a fig tree and three blueberry bushes. We'll see if I can keep the birds and deer away from them.

Last weekend the girls and I planted the garden. My most ambitious planting to date: 

fennel, scallions, beets, two kinds of broccoli, two kinds of okra, tomatillos, black beans, summer squash, two kinds of eggplant, cucumber, oregano, mint, basil, sage, cilantro, and jalapeño. Plus the garlic I planted in the fall and the tomatoes we'll buy as plants in a few weeks. Big dreams considering how badly my garden did last year.

more endangered species

endangered species

jerky

I got a dehydrator for Christmas. Last night I broke it in by making a batch of beef jerky. The process is simple enough. I'm not crazy about the flavoring that came with the unit; next time I'll mix my own. I made about 12oz of jerky for the price of a pound of ground beef, which is about a third the cost of Jack Links or the like. This thing will really come in handy when backpacking season rolls back around.