2026, My year of Garden Narcissism

[ducks4you]

Part of my healing is to jump in the deep gardening pool end. We are in the grip of cold and snow that has lingered here for weeks, which doesn't always happen on my property. DD took these photos of property and hoar frost as she drove home yesterday. I gave my DD my garage spot and garage opener until further notice. I didn't want to have her fairly new KIA fail. She said her car is happy to be spoiled. I ran my 2012 Toyota Avalon for a full 1/2 hour before parking behind the trucks--that's the white car that you see.
I finally kicked the ponies outside after a 2nd stint of a full week stuck in their stalls. We had moderate weather, then a sudden jump to -20 wind chills.
My horses willingly went inside, then probably thought the next day, "HOW did she KNOW?!?!?"

 

[ducks4you]

Garlic
Two years in a row I didn't get it planted in the beds. DH got his cancer diagnosis early November and I lost my window to plant. I started my 2025 garlic harvest in two sets of starter cells with plastic gardening cells on the porch. I realized that they didn't have enough room for roots or enough cold, that I opted for transplanting them in winter sowing jugs that I had saved from distilled water, great bc I didn't have to clean them. They are all in my cement window wells that I have never really utilized, about 12 in a plastic painter's bucket with a bottom crack--everybody with livestock uses them for water bc they are lightweight--I covered it with a garbage bag. I also had 50 saffron bulbs that I had bought in September. They had all sprouted. I put most of them in a plastic window box with 2 garbage bags taped together.
DD told me in December that she had never put Most of the tulip bulbs I had bought her in the ground by her house. We had a week of very moderate temperatures in December, so I picked a Thursday evening on the warmest evening, when DD's were there to babysit DH, and found the bulbs a 2 1/2 x 4 ft spot to dig up and plant 50 purple tulips, about 27 red and yellow tulips of various sized and about 60 Siberian Iris. Transplanting to a more favorable spot will be for next summer.
I am SURE that the tulips will have enough cold treatment. The garlic, too will have same--we'll see how they fare, and I will report back in a couple of months.
Meanwhile, DD has been buying me plastic bottles of Dr. Pepper. I'm not a big soda fan, but I am treating myself now. Eldest DD (Chef) has been drinking Coke, in bottles, so I am collecting the bottles for winter sowing Alaska snow peas. I use a knife to cut 4 holes on the "feet" at the bottom, use a long teaspoon to fill enough soil to the "waist", drop in 2 peas, fill with water and drain in the downstairs sink, then put in the window wells with the winter sowed garlic. I will also start sugar snap peas.
My experience with direct sowing in the Spring is that I am feeding them to the wildlife. I think they will do better transplanted at about 6 inches tall from the bottles.
I grew sugar snap peas and snow peas last year, and didn't have enough to really serve for dinner, BUT, enough to harvest seeds. I harvested, dried and stored about 90 Alaska snow peas, and probably 120ish sugar snap peas. I also hope to winter sow a handful of Scarlett Runner Beans, just bc they are pretty.
Plastic water jugs protect them from garden predators who are looking for food in the Spring that tastes better than whatever they have been eating.
I plan to use up the old PREEN stored here, and buy the newer one, which kills anything under 3 inches tall for up to 6 months.
I can order this online locally, then pick up, so no wasted trips to town, which is about a 45 minute drive to most box stores.

Pardon Our Interruption

 

[ducks4you]

Food for thought...

 

[ducks4you]

Winter is time to assess our beef supply. I suppose you might think that this 15 minute job should have been done sooner. Caretaking doesn't give you much extra time. I had free time yesterday. Guess I need a primer in math...

 

[ducks4you]

Winter is a great time to read. I, as you already guessed, prefer non-fiction. DD's and I have started a diet which includes "digesting" books. Youngest DD is lending me a book about the Norman Invasion of England.
I'm sure that it tastes good.
The diet suggests a full gallon of water/daily. I will have to work at that. I love wine and vodka, but I cannot drink large of amounts of ANY liquid, and they complain that it takes a whole evening for me to down a bottle of beer. Still, forcing water can't hurt.
I also read online. Here is an online gardening article for your edification:

How does winter help the garden?

I love winter. I love snow. However, I must add two caveats to my initial statements – I love winter and snow as long as I am warm and I can stay at home. It’s

extension.illinois.edu

 

[ducks4you]

Valentine's Day is just around the corner. Here is a fun activity gift for the holiday.

How to make homemade seed cards for Valentine’s Day

There are many different stories as to how we came to celebrate St. Valentine. Some stories say Valentine was a priest that secretly wed young couples.

extension.illinois.edu

 

[ducks4you]

@secuono posted on her thread late last year and reminded me of my manual auger, which I purchased in the Spring of 2020 and will NOT be amongst all of the items I am selling for cash this year. I want to raise $ for projects before I buy the supplies. This cost me about ~$50 at the time.
It's one of my favorite tools and it has it's own storage spot in one of my outbuildings.

Seymour Midwest Auger, 8", Wood Handle 21308GRA | Zoro

Order Seymour Midwest Auger, 8", Wood Handle, 21308GRA at Zoro.com. Great prices & free shipping on orders over $50 when you sign in or sign up for an account.

www.zoro.com

 

[ducks4you]

Winter is also a great time to share movies. Youngest DD, in particular, loves to watch them with me.
I had never seen this family friendly film before, but I highly recommend it:

Captains Courageous, 1937​

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0028691/

We as a family haven't been to the movie theater in the last few years, mostly because the product isn't entertaining enough to justify the cost.
Last year the 4 of us went to see

The Life of Chuck, 2025​

based on a story by Steven King. It is truly a lovely art film, with many surprises. I HIGHLY recommend it!

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt12908150/

 

[ducks4you]

THIS lady is my newonline habit--I love her writing! She is known as "Farmer Girl," and she also has a FB page. Here is a sample of her work:

Farmer Girl​

neopdrSost2ei5141u3hm0av,4fglegNit m2ligm2ocmi13a7b01350m1r ·

I need to come clean about something that may rattle this community, cause a slight tremor in the Cascadia Subduction Zone, and make at least three people whisper, “Is she okay?” (No. But also yes.)

I sometimes eat Cup of Noodles…raw.

Yes. Dry. Crunchy. Straight out of the package like a feral raccoon who just broke into someone’s garage and is now perched on top of the recycling bin making direct eye contact with the homeowner while chewing something aggressively.

And before anyone asks — no, this is not because I’m impatient. I’m a calf raiser in Western Washington. I willingly stand in rain that has no beginning or end. Patience is literally a personality trait here.

I eat them raw because they are like potato chips but somehow better — like if chips, pretzels, and unprocessed emotional trauma all were combined into a crunchy, salty snack. That crispy little noodle brick? It is the snack equivalent of chaotic good.

There is something deeply therapeutic about shaking the cup to disperse the seasoning, opening it, and crunching into it with the energy of a woodland creature that has fought three geese today and won.

Every bite is like:
crunch — “Not today, Brenda.”
crunch — “Western WA drizzle cannot and will not break me.”
crunch — “Yes, James, I do understand electrolytes.”
crunch — “Calves, please stop inventing illnesses at 2 a.m.”
crunch — “I am stronger than whatever that smell in the barn aisle was.”

It’s basically edible stress therapy. Emotional bubble wrap. The world’s crunchiest coping mechanism.

Do I understand this is not considered normal behavior by society?

Yes.

Will I stop?

Absolutely not.

At this point my personality is 40% calves, 40% rain, and 20% rehydration-optional noodles. I will die on this hill, clutching my snack like a noble, spicy raccoon warrior.

And when I go, my tombstone will simply read:
“She lived. She laughed. She had zero culinary skills."

 

[flowerbug]

i've eaten ramen noodles raw too, but only certain kinds, a few i've tried have not been good. like you i find them satisfying when i wanted something crunchy, but that was many years ago. i've not eaten many ramen noodles here at all. we eat pasta a lot more regularly so i never feel like i want to have ramen noodles. i also keep a jar of roasted peanuts on hand for that kind of snacking.