My Newfound Love of Herbs

Autumn's first frost has brought the beginning of the end to my gardens. Plants are fading and drooping just a little. My heart feels droopy too when I think of the cold, gray winter ahead. Reflecting on this summer's gardens, my absolute favorite crops were herbs. Don't get me wrong - I love my veggie garden and greatly appreciate all of the food it provides, but my heart is happiest in my potager with its beautiful, fragrant herbs and flowers. Cooking with foods grown and harvested from your own garden is rewarding and fun.  Adding fresh homegrown herbs elevates those foods to an entirely new level.  This year I discovered the magic of rosemary and it has been life changing! Ha!  Ok, maybe not life changing, but palate changing for sure! My family has fallen hard and next year's potager will include lots of rosemary.

Herbs are fantastic little plants with so many more uses than I ever imagined. Clearly, they are wonderful to use fresh in culinary endeavors. They are nice to dry and cook with throughout winter too.  They can also be medical powerhouses when used in teas, tinctures, and infusions. I won't pretend to know all about that since I've only begun learning and experimenting. Lastly, I enjoy the scent of herbs. I love to run my hands over the plants and then smell their fragrance on my fingers. Once in a while I'll open a mason jar and smell the dried herbs I store in them. Another way to enjoy those lovely fragrances is making sachets to place in dresser drawers so clothing and linens smell fresh and lovely too!

Here is a video tutorial where I make them:

How to Make an Herbal Sachet

The direct selling event I mention in the video is on Saturday, November 6 beginning at 10:00 AM:

Ladies Day Out

Black Jack Hills

13450 Chapman Rd

St. George, KS 66535

If you love beautiful scents, also be sure to visit HippieHenHomestead on Etsy!

Until next time...I'm wishing you a beautiful autumn weekend!

Welcome to the Farm

I began homesteading in 2020 after living on a working farm for over 28 years!  My husband, Rick, was the farmer and I worked “in town” helping support the farm and family.  The urge to cultivate fresh food (due in part to going through cancer treatment in 2017) prompted me to investigate this thing called “modern homesteading.”  What began as an experimental garden grew into the renovation of a cattle lot we rarely used.  We removed old fencing, lots of limestone rock, a few trees, and then tilled a proper garden space!  Over the winter we added fencing to deter wildlife from enjoying our veggies.

In the farm shop, my husband and I built a chicken coop reusing materials stashed around the farm. When finished, Rick moved it to a spot near the new garden using his tractor and bale fork.  We then set to work building an impenetrable chicken run where my new chick friends needn’t worry about predators!

 

Water and electric lines were trenched out to my new domain completing the infrastructure. 

And so it began.

The homestead grows as I gain confidence and identify new opportunities.  Skills learned building the chicken coop translated to building a chicken tractor this month and I’m awaiting the delivery of 30 Cornish cross chicks from Murray McMurray Hatchery.  I’ve never butchered a chicken, but I’ll learn and acquire yet another new skill.  

Welcome to my happy place!