 Spring
1. Thrift (Armeria maritima): Bright pink clusters of flowers make this a welcome addition to any garden. It does particularly well in dry, sandy soil. 2. Chives (Allium shoenoprasum): Easy to grow, great in salads, chives produce purple flowers in spring that will bring bees flocking to your vegetable patch. 3. Bugloss (Brunnera): This early perennial produces bright blue flowers in April that continue for several weeks. Give it a shady spot and keep it watered in summer. Summer 4. Rose (Rosa): Who doesn't love a rose? Keeping your garden rosy is a sure-fire way to please the bees. 5. Foxglove (Digitalis purpurea): A good choice for those shadier spots in your garden, the foxglove's bells provide a welcoming space for bees in the summertime. 6. Black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia fulgida): A great pop of colour that lasts throughout August and September, this summer perennial produces s bright clump of blooms, highly-addictive to bees. Fall 7. Helen's Flower (Helenium autumnale): Make sure you water this tall plant plentifully and it will reward you with beautiful daises case in yellow, gold and rusty reds. 8. Autumn Joy (Sedum var): This compact perennial will give you the most bloom for your buck, beginning in mid-July and continuing until the first frost lands. 9. Bluebeard (Caryopteris x clandonensis): A real bee favourite, this low growing shrub likes dry, sunny spot. Winter 10. Christmas Rose (Helleborus orientalis): Blooming from January to April, this evergreen perennial performs well in shady sites. 11. Oregon Grape (Mahonia): Growing six to eight feet tall, this evergreen shrub blooms as early as January through March, giving your winter garden an attractive splash of colour — and the bees a warm winter welcome. source: CBC  October 29, 2019. It appears to be snowing all around our townhouse in the city and at the homestead but no snow in town. I love snow! Everything hibernates giving me pause to think and plan for the future. I'm still unable to do "regular" work. My health is far too inconsistant for that, but I'm working on it. After spending almost 2 weeks at the homestead last month, I lost 25 lbs as a result of working on the property. That's an excellent step in the right direction. It does get frustrating to have plans and not knowing if the day will be a "good" health day, a "bad" health day, or an "in bed all day in pain" day. I do the best I can. Working on the homestead is a labour of love. It's good that I can work for 20 minutes, take a break, then return to work. Things go slow and can be unpredicable, but I love it there.
When I have a good day, I am able to spend time on my laptop writing knitting and crochet patterns, planning vermicomposting, apiary, and garden ideas. Emily's last cardiac appointment was a little scary. Her cardiologist is proceeding with the heart transplant meetings. The plan is to list Emily around February. Once she is listed, she could be called any time for a new heart. We are fortunate to live rather close to the hospital (other than the disgraceful Toronto traffic). We will live life as "normal" as possible. Emily will continue to go to school, Gary will continue to work, and I will continue to build our nest at the homestead. If everything goes well, Emily will get a new heart, spend a few weeks in hospital, and then recover at home. I receive a couple of emails from Wwoofers who want to help on the homestead and Airbnb, I can't guarantee them work because of Emily's heart health. (click HERE for Wwoofer info) My worm farm (vermiculture) is growing. It's in my townhouse basment because it's too cold for them at the homestead during the winter. I am learning everything I can about beekeeping. Hopefully I'll have beehives in May at the homestead. I will be starting an indoor greenhouse in the townhouse this winter. I planted raspberry plants at the homestead and so far, no bears. The wild blueberries should do well when the bees arrive. Herb gardens and micro-greens are all ready for next season. Thanks for reading my blog. It's like my "Dear Diary" time. XOXO Sandra  October 17, 2018. Now that our Airbnb tiny cabin is empty of art supplies I can focus on decorating. I'm taking a minimalist approach to every aspect of the cabin. The living room walls are light green and the bedroom walls are soft blue. As you can see in the photo below, the living room seating is blue and green. I like the existing colours so I'll stay with the soft green and blue pallet. As a minimalist anything I add to the cabin will be well thought of and likely handmade. I'll be sewing a few duvet covers starting with this camping fabric. The bedding I make will be unique to the cabin. The duvet cover themes will be taylored to the guest. Before I order this camping theme textile I would like your opinion of the back of the duvet. Which do you like best? A, B, or, C? Thanks! Sandra   October 16, 2019. Earlier this month I got serious about moving things forward at the homestead. Being a part-time homesteader with health issues makes everything move at a snails pace. With Emily's heart transplant appointments coming up, I decided that I would devote a couple of weeks at the homestead (alone most of the time). I made a TO-DO list, listed supplies (free or inexpensive) I needed, and drove the 2.5 hours northeast. Gary and Evan came up on weekend.
Monday: Airbnb Prep. Our tiny cabin behind our house had been my art studio for years. Now that I have to spend more time in Toronto it made sense to move all my art supplies to one location. I emptied the tiny cabin and took more photos for the Airbnb description. This is an exciting project for us! Tuesday: Haliburton, Ontario. With the Airbnb tiny cabin being off the grid I need to find ways to provide comforts, like coffee, tea, cooking, etc.,. So I spent Tuesday looking for an off te grid coffee maker for guests. I found two! Wednesday: I had planned to spend today fixing the outdoor stone oven but I didn't realize how high the chimney was and didn't think it was wise to work alone on a ladder. So I'll wait for Gary to come and help. Thursday, Friday, Saturday: LOTS of tree trimming for the meditation platform near the pond. I can't wait to stock fish in the pond for guests to feed and enjoy. Weekend: Gary and Evan came up so we all worked together fixing the stone oven and enjoying the Autumn colours on the trees. I have to take a lot of breaks to rest my bones, but eventually I got many of the projects completed. A wonderful side effect of working at the homestead was losing 20 lbs. and feeling more fit! Stay tuned for more updates. |
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