This May Be the Last Tomato This Summer

Yeah, I know it's a week before Christmas. I still hoped it would ripen all the way. Have to ripen on the windowsill, I guess.

But really. That's pretty cool: Fresh tomatoes in December.

Some Winter Spices

Just because the herb garden is down for the winter is no excuse to be done with making spices.

Rosemary is a perennial: it's yummy all year around. It looks like I'm dehydrating fir tree branches, but it makes the greenhouse smell fantastic! And soon it will make dinner smell (and taste) fantastic!

And I can dehydrate onions any time.

These are yellow onions, roasted first, and then dehydrated. I made half of them into onion powder and the other half into dried onion bits.

The flavor is a lot like a very good French onion soup, but dry, of course.

I expect to use them both on fish and chicken and especially Christmas presents.

The Ladies Get In the Christmas Mood

So the weather here has been pretty darned cold: it hasn't gotten above 40º in a couple of weeks that I’ve noticed.

And it’s been cold – real cold – at night. Last night was 12º!

We’ve put an incandescent lamp in the chickens’ coop, and have taken to leaving it on all night, at least during this cold snap.

And milady has been feeding them warm stuff in the mornings (oatmeal, leftover rice and stuff) when she breaks the ice out of their water pot in the morning. I gotta admit that sounds somewhat excessive, but she sees them as people, not farm animals, so who am I to argue?

So as long as we’re treating the chickens like people, I figured we ought help them out with getting in the Christmas spirit! I'm not sure they need it; they're still giving us 4 or so eggs a day!

We have other lights on the back porch, and those are the only Christmas lights we've put up this year.

A year or two back, I calculated - like the nerd I am - what crops can I grow that will give me the best possible ROI: return on my investment. Which plants will have the greatest impact on our household budget. 

It wasn't even close: herbs. I can buy five pounds of potatoes in the store for a buck or two. When I buy Oregano, I spend $50 a pound or so.

I've become pretty excited about herbs.

Here's a start on a reference tool for herbs. I got this from an herb site; I don't even know all of these, but here's to learning something new!

Agrimony | Ajwain | Alfalfa | Allspice | Aloe Vera | Althaea Officinalis (Marsh Mallow) | Amla | Angelica | Angostura | Anise | Arabian Jasmine | Arnica | Arrach | Artemisia | Asafoetida | Bashful Mimosa | Basil | Bay Laurel | Bean | Bears Breech | Betony | Bitter Melon | Black Pepper | Blackberry Bush | Blumea Camphor | Borage | Brooklime | Bryony | Bugle | Burdock | Cacao | Calendula | Canella | Capers | Cardamom | Cascara Sagrada | Catnip | Cat's Whiskers | Cayenne | Celery | Centory | Chamomile | Chervil | Chinese Honeysuckle | Chives | Cilantro | Cinnamon | Clavo Huasca | Clove | Coltsfoot | Comfrey | Cordyceps | Cumin | Dandelion | Deadly Nightshade | Dill | Echinacea | Elder | Epazote | Female Peony | Fennel | Fenugreek | Feverfew | Five Leaved Chaste Tree | Frankincense | Galangal | Garlic | Gentian | Ginger | Gingko Biloba | Ginseng | Goat's Rue | Goji | Golden Seal | Gotu Kola | Green Tea | Guarana | Guava | Hearts Ease | Heavenly Elixir | Hedge Nettle | Henna | Hibiscus | Hollyhocks | Holy Basil | Honeysuckle | Hops | Horny Goat Weed | Horseradish | Horsetail | Hyacinth | Indian Laurel | Jew's Mallow | Juniper | Kava | Ladies Mantle | Lady's Thistle | Lavender | Lead Tree | Lemon Balm | Lemongrass | Licorice | Lily of the Valley | Male Satyrion | Marjoram | Milk Thistle | Moringa | Mountain Apple | Mugwort | Mullein | Neem | Nelumbo Nucifera | Nutmeg | Nymphaea Caerulea | Onion | Oregano | Orris Root | Paprika | Parsley | Passion Flower | Pepper Elder | Plantain | Primrose | Queen's Flower | Red Clover | Reishi | Rhubarb | Ringworm Bush | Rooibos | Rosemary | Rue | Saffron | Sage | Saw Palmetto | Senna | Slippery Elm | Snake Needle Grass | Snakeweed | Soapnuts | Solomon's Seal | Spearmint | Spiny Sapindus | St. John's Wort | St Thomas Bean | Star Anise | Starfruit | Stinging Nettle | Sweetsop | Tamarind | Tarragon | Tea | Thyme | Turmeric | Uva-Ursi | Vanilla | Vervain | Water Hyssop | Wild Oregano | Wild Tea | Witch Hazel | Yerba Mate |

Planning Next Spring's Garden

This will be useful.