Here on our mini-homestead there are always a dozen projects going on. I have my garden of greens, my herbs drying in the shade, lots of food prep, and building project underway. As I prepared to leave me home for a few weeks I wanted to finish up a few of my chores so as not to leave a huge mess for my man to deal with.
The first order of business was to collect lots of sticks and kindling for fireplace. As you can see the rain clouds were rolling over the mountains. A storm was on the horizon and I rushed to gather a wheel barrow of kindling to keep the house warm in the weeks ahead.
And speaking of rain, it was also the right moment to get all the herbs out of the herb dryer. These hawthorn berries have been drying for over a month and being out in the rain will do them no good. As I took them out of the dryer racks I checked that all the berries were humidity-free and stashed them in a clean glass jar.
I wanted to eat lots of health meals before my trip and so I made herbal pesto and steamed lots of mustard or radish greens with every meal. My garden is much smaller than I would like these days but, I can say there are always a handful of greens to harvest.
Then, the pesto. These pumpkin seeds were bought in bulk and the walnuts were collected around the farm. I soaked them both to make creamy pestos in the days before my trip. Walnuts are well known in folklore for supporting brain health and pumpkin seeds (pepitas) are great for supporting the digestive system. They work as a natural anti-parasite for humans and pets alike. Just remember to soak & toast any seeds before consuming.
And now I am off on my way to my homelands of California. I will share about my trip over the next few weeks. California sun, here I come!!
