I didn’t spend the weekend in a hammock like my earlier picture on Facebook might have led you to believe—tempting though it was. There were so many fun places to be: in the garden, in the kitchen, in the orchard, on the horses, and on the porch. I took photos in all those locations while I was at the farm this weekend with family and friends. Here’s a photo wrap up.
In the Garden
I planted more basil and another variety of mint. (While on my hands and knees, I got stuck. I thought they’d have to turn me into a garden gnome.)
Hands (not mine) expertly arrange garden flowers for the the outdoor table.
Flowers on the deck, a gift of friends.
I love these daisies that grow along my flagstone walkway.
We removed a greatly overgrown juniper with the help of friends, a tractor, and a chain large enough to tow a boat from harbor.
In the Orchard
It’s a stretch to call our few plantings an orchard. But I’m an optimist. I have six trees now: 2 apples, a peach, a cherry, and 2 pears. (One is very old and in another pasture). The old cherry tree didn’t produce last year, but this year it did. The trick is to pick the cherries before the birds do. My three youngest granddaughters were eager climbers and pickers. We pulled the reddest of the cherries and pitted and froze the fruit for a pie the next time we’re at the farm.
Fruit from the old, sour cherry tree makes wonderful pies.
Robin, the happy cherry picker
My granddaughter has an eye on the ripest fruit higher in the tree.
A little handful of cherries
In the Kitchen
Work makes for healthy appetites and lots of cooking. It being Memorial Day, I used several familiar and favorite recipes, but included a few new ones as well.
I don’t have a cherry pitter, but a straw poked throw the stem end of the fruit easily pushes the seed out the other end of the cherry.
My granddaughter is quite serious about carrot scraping. (Hmm. . . I notice she has her gown on backwards and inside out. It must be a family trait; I do the same thing sometime.)
New potatoes, new peas, snow peas and fresh mint are perfect this time of year.
One of my guests expertly carved a watermelon basket within minutes. I was very impressed.
Farm buffet vegetables clockwise from lower left: New Potatoes and Peas with Mint; Watermelon Basket; Tomato Caprese, Tossed Salad with Roasted Butternut Squash and Basil Vinaigrette; Homemade Nut Bread, and Zucchini Gratin.
On the Horses
Watching my granddaughters ride reminds me of riding my favorite horse as a kid. When I was 4-years old my parents took me to a park each weekend to ride Dixie, a Shetland pony. For a nickle, I got to make three circles around a dirt path with someone holding a lead rope.
My 9-year-old granddaughter rode one of the horses by herself for the first time. Up until now, she’s always ridden with Robin in the saddle.
“Who wants to ride next?” Robin’s words of advice to the novice rider start with: “First, you have to know what direction you’re going and then you tell the horse.” Knowing where you’re going before you start is pretty good advice to learn early.
Not quite ready to ride alone yet.
On the Porch
Ahhh! The joy. . . .
Why does swinging in a hammock make you laugh?
There’s always a cool breeze on the north porch.
I take a break from reading to build a tower.
Memorial Day is a time for memories. Here at the farm is a place where memories are still being made.
