Another Snow Update

Nothing much to report at this time, just another snow fall update.

Wednesday, December 7 - 3/4"

3-5" were predicted, unfortunately we got much less.  Bummer.

Coming soon, update for garden planning for next year:  seed lists, garden bed preparations.

Blogger/Google not cooperating, so I'll keep it quick

Another 3" of snow fell last night, so that brings the snow fall tally up to 29" for the year.  Winter hasn't started yet, so I guess this doesn't really count.  Sort of.



I'm going to write more about projects this fall & winter.  I'm hoping that making a list on here will result in my actually following through on a few things. For once.

2011-2012 Snow Tally

It's the first of November and we've already had 26" of snowfall. Predictions for this year claim that its going to low snow year. That's more than a third of Buckland's "average" snowfall for a year (68 inches).

October 27, 2011 - 4"

October 29, 2011 - 22"
-------------------------
October Total:  26"

November 22, 2011 - 3"

December 07, 2011 - 3/4"
December 27, 2011 - 1/2"
-----------------------------
December Totals:  3/4"

2011 Totals:  29 3/4"

January 05, 2012 - 1/4"
January 11, 2012 - 6"
January 13, 2012 - 4"
January 15, 2012 - 2"
January 19, 2012 - 3"

So far the temperature has stayed low enough that the snow hasn't melted significantly. Normally I'd be all for having snow cover, but we haven't gotten our garlic in the ground yet and I've got two plus cords of wood down across the yard that needs to be split and stacked before winter really hits. The next few days are supposed to be warmer, so hopefully the snow will melt enough for us to get some garlic in the ground.

Hopefully I'll get some pictures/video of Drina playing in the snow. She's been bounding around in it like a puppy for the last few days. Her favorite game is for me to throw a snowball into the drifts for her to hunt.

Spring time finally approaches

There are several signs that Springtime is finally approaching:

• Spotted my first robin in the yard
• Drina has switched from snow to grass for rolling (well more mud and debris, than grass).
• We can see/use all of the back steps and the picnic table is accessible again.
• The beard is gone.

Unfortunately, the one sign I'm looking forward to most is not yet to be: The garden is not accessible. One bed is still under a foot plus of snow and two others have a generous layer (including the garlic bed). The strawberry bed is finally exposed, though thankfully nicely tucked in under a good layer of straw mulch. Just spots of snow remain in the two large beds.

Plans for this year are starting to pick up, while tasks and chores from last year and the winter are still pestering me.

• There's at least two cords of wood on the ground that needs to be cut, stacked and split.
• Yard clean up last year was barely done.
• Clean up the random piles of crap the previous owner left lying around.
• Break down and clean up the five fire pits the previous owner built.
• Clean up the scraps from the wood delivery.
• Thin out the saplings, shrubs and weeds from the edges of the yard.
  
• Interior projects from last year left undone: including re-assembling the spare bedroom; putting shelves in the upstairs closet; finishing the ceiling in the master bed; putting up the new fan in the master bed; organize the basement.
  

Projects for this year:

• Clear space for the hoop house - including taking down at least five sizable trees; two probably requiring a professional.
  
• Cut, split and stack wood for next year. Goal: six cords.
  
• Repair deck from winter damage. Paint exposed parts of the deck with leftover paint
  
• Build at least four new garden beds, probably more along the lines of six.
• Build low tunnels for two of the new beds plus removable tunnels for the two big beds.
• Re-build the diamond shaped bed to be square or rectangular.
  
• Move the Arborvitae (well, we think that's what it is).
• Clean up and re-mulch the flower beds.
  
• Remove the lean-to.
• Clean out the two remaining sheds.
• Build a proper, safe fire pit.

I feel like this entry is becoming just another list.

All these things I want to do leave me with the questions: when am I going to find time and how am I going to pay for this stuff?

Not to needlessly pile on stuff, but I also need to put together a final sugaring post. That'll go on 'things to do tomorrow' list.

• Empty sap buckets
• Pull taps
• Split wood for final boil
• Clean boiling pans
• Write final 2011 sugaring post
  

Jenn will like this post, its full of lists.

Horribly long winded post about sugaring.

Saturday, February 26th, the day after my 35th birthday I boiled my first batch of sap down into maple syrup. Well, mostly maple syrup. I sat, tended the fire, dug snow, stirred and skimmed for several hours. With only Drina and an occasional visit by Liz, I should have been bored. Instead, most of my non-syrup occupied brain was wondering why it had taken me 25 years to finally get around to this.

25 years I've lived in places lousy with maples, many of them sugar maples. They went unnoticed, or perhaps ignored through my pre-teen and teen years. Sometime in my twenties I realized that sugaring was something people all around me were doing, I just had not interest or patience for it.

A few years ago, I began to worry that it wouldn't be long before sugaring would be unknown, even here in New England, where it's more than just a tradition, it's an institution. Successive bad years (mild and/or short winters) combined with the continued suburbanization of Western Mass made me wonder if we wouldn't be importing all of our maple products from Canada in a few years.

So in the fall of 2009, when it became apparent that I had not a snowball's chance in hell of finding a place in Northampton that I both liked and could afford, I ended up looking at the hill towns for homes. As luck would have it, I ended up buying a place that has a number of maples (sugar maples mostly I think). Over the summer of 2010, I got it in my head to try sugaring.

Originally I started with just 4 trees tapped. I'm up to 10. Total investment so far has been a little on the ridiculous side (about $350). That includes 9 buckets, 11 taps, 10 cinder blocks, a galvanized tub, two 5 gallon storage tanks, two 30 gallon trash cans and a syrup tester thingamajig.

So right off the bat, I know you have questions. I said 10 trees tapped, but I purchased 9 buckets and 11 taps. Well, one tree has a yogurt container on it (it's heavily shaded, so I don't think I'm going to get much out of it). I also managed to break a tap. I'm wondering how to get it out of the tree or if I should just leave it be.

This is definitely the 'figure out what the bleep I'm doing' year in sugaring. I tapped too early, I think. I didn't do a good job storing my sap (let it freeze and then brought it in to thaw too soon, so I had to bury it again in the snow). I've only got a single pan to boil in, so the main work is happening outside, the finishing is done on the stove top.

However, I have to say, I don't think I totally screwed it up. I got a large mason jar of syrup like stuff. I'm not calling it syrup, its too thin to call syrup. However, I'm going to add it into my next batch and boil it down some more, until it is actually syrup.

Next weekend, or perhaps the weekend after that I'm going to boil again, I've learned a few things that should help me out. First, I need to level my boiling rig. The 10 cinder blocks are arranged in a U shape, with the pan sitting directly on top of the fire. This design as so far proven to be fairly efficient (with cost and construction time considered). I went through only a couple of armfuls of wood during three hours of boiling over the weekend. I was working with a very small amount of sap, but still, it seems to be working well.

Second, I need a better way to finish the syrup. While working on the kitchen stove was convenient, the cleanup and electric bill is not. I would prefer to finish on the fire, but my current rig doesn't have the room. Boiling Rig 2012 may include this option. In the mean time, I'm wondering if I can obtain a propane burner (like one used to for frying a turkey or boiling lobsters). I have a burner on my grill, however I may have a propane leak, so I'm a little reluctant to use it right now.

Third, the snow needs to be cleared from all sides of the rig. I started with just one side cleared, but quickly decided that I needed a second side cleared to avoid wind blown smoke. Really, I need to have all four sides cleared to avoid smoke and be able to access all sides of the rig.

Fourth, a thermometer. I was using Liz's cooking thermometer, which worked nicely, but I'd like to get a more constant read on the temperature. So, I'm going to purchase my own and mount it on a 1x3 that I'll lay over my boiling pan. I'll be able to monitor the temperature much more closely and perhaps avoid the minor scorching I ran into on my initial run.

Anyway, I have some pictures up on Flickr from this last weekend. Updates to come next weekend and the weekend after that.

The beginning of sugaring season...

The end of February is fast approaching and my first attempt at sugaring is scheduled for tomorrow. My plan was to boil the first test run on my grill, however I discovered this evening that the grill is no longer an option due to a pretty serious gas leak. Looks like Plan B will have to take over. Plan B is building a cinder block firepit for the initial boiling and finishing the rest in the house.

The amount of sap that I have right now is so pathetic it's almost not even worth it, however I've got to give this a go at some point. And it's probably better to make mistakes with small batch rather than a large one. Additionally, I need to actually build the fire pit, if I don't, I'll end up with a whole lot of sap and no way to cook it down.


So, tomorrow's task's include:

• Digging a big hole in the snow.
• Building a fire pit out of concrete cinder blocks.
• Boiling about 3 gallons of sap.

I know, there isn't much to be excited about so far, but I'm getting there. Pictures and discussion tomorrow.

First Post!

I spent some time trying to think of goals and resolutions for 2011. I really didn't get anywhere with them. I thought about them and discarded them before the New Year was even here. Since I've done a piss poor job of keeping true to those little ideas, I've decided to make myself do something more.

For 2011, I'm focusing on expanding my homestead, building a 'slower' life and hopefully a fuller life. Over the course of this year, I'm going to tackle many projects; some big, some little. I need to learn to do things for myself, how to live without depending entirely on things outside of my control.

Projects for this year:

• Maple Sugar
  
• Expand the garden
  
• Build the hoop house
• Cut, split and stack all the firewood I'll need for next winter (including next year's sugaring)
• Chickens(?)
  
• Bees(?)
• Rain water collection
• Reduce electrical consumption
• Get that damn satellite dish off my roof (ok, this doesn't really fit in, but I want it done)

There's much more bouncing around inside my head, but I am unable to put it to words right now. As it comes, I'll put it here. Hopefully it won't be drivel.