Winter is approaching

What happened to October?  The weeks do seem to fly past us at a greater speed than in past years but I missed a whole month!  We did have a busy October getting the garden ready for winter, so I can blame it on too many chores.  That is my story and I am sticking to it. Guess you have heard that line before.

The carrot crop wasn't as large as I had hoped but I didn't thin seedlings in part of the bed and that resulted in small carrots.  No excuses, I just didn't get it done.  Thinning the tiny seedlings is a job that I dislike because I feel as if I am throwing away carrots that have the potential  of growing into food.  I promise to do better next year because the homegrown carrots are soooo much better than store bought. In part of the bed, next spring, I am going to use a carrot seed tape.  It will be a trial to learn if they work.  There will still be a number of rows done the old fashioned way of sowing seed and thinning seedlings.

In the photo above you can see a portion of our Butternut squash and sweet potato crop. We have thirty-two squash sitting in our basement.  For now I have them spread out on the potting table that has the grow lights above it.  This is where I start our seedlings in the early spring but now it serves as a home for winter vegetables.  The shelf under the table houses more squash in milk crates. Not bad for planting only five seeds!  The sweet potato crop this year pleased us too.  We dug up forty-six pounds of the lovely orange sweets.  We have already begun to eat them and they are proving to be delicious.  The table sits in the center of the basement next to my sewing and scrapbooking area so I can enjoy seeing our produce while working on my projects.