State of the Homestead, Spring 2026

It's Spring, so there's no rest for the gardener/homesteader.

Ta Da!
We finally erected the shade cloth structure. It's pretty awesome if I do say so myself. I could've bought a premade structure made out of aluminum, but Greg was adamant that flimsy aluminum legs would eventually buckle with our winds.

He made ours out of solid steel, welding the whole structure himself. The engineering involved for something as mundane as a shade cloth pavilion was far more involved than I imagined. Greg explained his plans to me every step of the way, but to be honest I didn't understand what he was doing half the time. As he completed each step, it became clearer to me, but it was far more complex than I expected.

Typical for Greg. Nothing he builds is ever simple. I know he must be descended from the ancient Romans because his structures are made to last.  

Each step required additional engineering so we could do it on our own, rather than ask for help. Between braces, counter weights, and a tractor, he probably used more math than I've done in a lifetime. I was just there to hold up the other end of the steel.

Not bad for a couple of old people.

The Garden
Meanwhile, all but two raised beds have been planted. The roster for this year: Tomatoes, cucumbers, okra, watermelon, two types of beans, snow peas, tomatillos, two types of eggplants, corn, potatoes, summer squash, spaghetti squash, soybeans, garlic, sweet peppers, and new this year, peanuts. I didn't plant many. I just wanted to experiment to see what happens.

I have lots of other plants in pots, mostly herbs, scallions, and leeks. Because I've had trouble with squash bugs in the past, I'm holding back some of the squash in pots to see if they fair better. 

All my fruit trees have leafed out, but my apple trees are still struggling. I'm not sure why. I hope I don't have to replant them somewhere else. 

My asparagus bed is also a disappointment. I bought fresh asparagus crowns from a seller on Etsy. I will not be doing that again. Very few of those crowns sprouted, but my few remaining crowns from an old bed all came back. I have no idea why the new crowns did so poorly. I contacted the seller because she had a replacement guarantee. What wasn't stated in the ad was that I would be charged a delivery fee for replacements. I declined. 

In other news, we finally met the new neighbors for the house across the street from us. They seem very nice.

In better news, Nana, the wonder dog continues to amaze us with her comeback. She still has trouble getting up, but once she's up she wants to trot and run, at least for a few seconds. She's been in excellent spirits. Every so often she has a few bad days, but she bounces back. 

We just let her do what she wants, and what she wants is to never have me more than a few feet away from her. She has been my shadow since she was six weeks old. I'm not going to take that away from her now that she's 13 years old. 

We were expecting to lose her in 2025, so every extra day is a gift. 

Oh, and I had a birthday, last month. Huzzah!

Our weather has been bouncy this year. Usually it settles by the end of March, but we're still fluctuating with a wide spread of temperatures. We're not getting as much rain as I hoped, but when it does rain, it's always on the day I want to hold a garage sale. Ugh!

It might be May before I can hold my garage sale. More time for me to find things to rehome to someone else. 

What's new with you guys?  

 

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