The year is almost over and we are now looking back to see how we did in 2019. What did we do right and what missed the mark. There is a lot to talk over. We made quite a few changes and additions to Tiny House Farm, but there were more than a few things that got left behind.

My calendula was ignored this year and we paid the price. It started with the huge mistake we made by sowing our seeds and then covering them with straw for protection.

This was what we had in fall 2018, more straw than calendula. It was a sad and sorry site. But I really did not have time to fret about it, or even worse, time to weed the rows. The shiitakes had to come first. And of course, Ron and I spent a good deal of time working on our micro greens. They are a very “hands on” crop to grow.

This is June 2019 and you can barely make out our garlic growing next to my bed of weeds. The bright yellow blossoms of the calendula cannot be seen at all.

In August I forced myself to find time to harvest what I could of the flowers. I had actually started gathering the seeds and ended up with a good supply of those. The flowers beckoned me and this is what I collected. I thought I would have time to get more over the next few days, but I did not advise Ron of my future plans.

He, knowing we needed to knock the weeds down before winter hit, mowed everything down. Now that he is retired, he has more time to spend on the farm. We are definitely going to work on our communication. I cannot have him slaughtering my flowers again next year.

Our elderberries were also ignored for the most part this year.

I hope the birds and deer on Tiny House Farm enjoyed the bounty this year. Next year, shiitakes be damned, I will get my share first. I managed to harvest about 10 pounds. A sad amount compared to last year when I was struggling to find space in my freezer to stash bags and bags of berries. I think I will have to set a reminder in my calendar so I don’t let the time get away from me. Though we do not yet have a plan to make and sell yummy elderberry jelly; letting the birds get all the berries is not a good thing. I can foresee a netting system in the near future. It will be a good trial run for our future rows of juneberries.

I was particularly annoyed at the deer as I noticed more and more of the brackens missing. I was thinking that Ron’s cousins needed to get busy getting rid of them. Then it dawned on me. Those apparently chewed off branches; I had been harvesting our elderberries.

Our lavender also was forgotten for most of the season. The three of us had worked hard getting it pruned in early spring and filling in new plants were the older ones had died. Then one Saturday we noticed some missing plants. And I found

a dozen plants pulled out of the ground. I set them into a plastic lid and poured in water. Getting them back in the ground would have to wait a bit. The shiitakes again were most important. But we did want to know just what had pulled them out. We set up a game camera on the edge of the field. The lousy weather prevented us from getting a good shot, but we got the proof needed. We have a foggy video of the actual crime. The blasted crows just walked around and yanked the lavender plants out. I don’t know why, but maybe they were hoping for fresh bugs from our digging? We replanted and this time put one of our marking flags with each plant. Hoping that it would keep the crows away. It seemed to have done the trick as no more plants were yanked out.

In mid-August I went out and harvested some of the lavender. I know, I know. I should be doing this earlier in the year. By the time I got out there most of the flowers had opened and you are supposed to get them before that happens. We hate to cut them too soon though. The bees really love the flowers and we enjoy watching them move through our field. Ron especially likes seeing the bumblebees. This even after he discovered that these bees do actually sting.

I laid it all on a drying rack and waited for Mother Nature to do it her thing. We bought this rack system a few years ago just for this purpose. It was very easy to set up and didn’t take up too much room. It is longer than I thought it would be so we will have to hang it up on a higher beam next year. We just slapped it up this time and the bottom rack was just inches off the floor. It did the trick though. I ended up with a quart jar full of dried lavender. And a small bowl of dried calendula. I took this with me to the MV Garlic Fest so folks could see, touch and smell it. Most people enjoy having the chance to actually see or hold the special ingredients in your products.

Obviously things have to change if we are going to see any benefit from our “other than shiitakes” products. This might include my gathering a few friends for a weeding (great fun) party and then later for harvesting events. If I promise there will be no rock picking, I am sure I can count on at least one friend. And she knows who she is.