Summer's End

I’m still recovering from jet lag and feeling a little disoriented back on my own in NYC, but never mind. The urban homestead needs me now. The garden welcomed me back with some lovely herbs, tomatoes,raspberries and peppers.

But being away all of August meant peak tomato season here started without me and I’ve got only 2 - 3 weeks to get as many as I need for the coming year canned and dried. Good, local tomatoes are cheap at the Park Slope Food Coop right now, just over $1 a pound. Guess what I’ve been doing today?

So far I’ve canned roasted tomatoes and made yellow tomato preserves. I’ve also frozen roasted corn and canned corn cob stock (I missed most of the corn season weeks, too!), and I’ve got some veggie stock started in the slow cooker.

But the big project of the day is garden clean up. I knew it would be crazily overgrown and neglected looking after my absence, but I didn’t know the clean up would be urgent.

Turns out my neighbors are moving out today. I share the garden with the apartment next to mine, and these have been dream neighbors for the past three years. They’ve enjoyed and used the outdoor space, but basically let me do whatever I wanted with the plants.

Now the landlord will be showing the place within a couple of days, and I feel like if I want any sort of say in what happens with the shared garden it had better be looking more loved than it does right now.

So in between canning projects and writing projects I’ve been on damage control duty in the garden. Send some good thoughts my way that my new neighbors turn out to be lovely people who are keen on sharing my slightly wild urban homesteading style.

Also on the schedule today, foraging with chef friend Jeremy in Prospect Park. Yeah, I know I don’t have time. But he says he spotted an oyster mushroom haul. If you know me, you know a hectic schedule never keeps me away from a potentially awesome foraging harvest. The oysters won’t wait, so I’m going.

Last but not least, here are a few pics from my recent travels just because I’m still under their influence and would like to share:

Ricky helping me pick prickly pear fruits, which I made into sabra jelly

Me helping to build a house made out of mud (and straw and horse poop)

Sunset at Kfar Segol

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