Are you ready for winter?
- Thread starter Marianne
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pinkfox
Super Self-Sufficient
well here in ct...kinda...dad oredered the pellets there due to arrive mid sept for our heat...beyond that we dont do much winter prep, though this year dad wants a genny before the winter hits...
all we realy need to do before winter is clean out the veggie beds, put the cover on the small chicken run and deep clean the coop... lol.
hopefully well have until the end of october before winter realy feels like its comming...
my new house though (assuming all goes well) im not even in it let alone prepared for winter...i am thinking though winter prep in mid-western tn is a little easier than prepping for feet of snow in connecticut LOL
all we realy need to do before winter is clean out the veggie beds, put the cover on the small chicken run and deep clean the coop... lol.
hopefully well have until the end of october before winter realy feels like its comming...
my new house though (assuming all goes well) im not even in it let alone prepared for winter...i am thinking though winter prep in mid-western tn is a little easier than prepping for feet of snow in connecticut LOL
Ditto this, lol! (Except they are never really put away as they lean against the wall just inside the garage for easy access, and we always keep the snow brush and ice scraper and winter kit in the car year-round--we never even switch from winter windshield washer fluid to summer "bug wash" because summer is so short here and we'd never use a full tank.)VickiLynn said:
We always have to be prepared for frost in the garden due to our elevation, so I have hoops in place over all the raised beds ready for blanket coverings and we have two older patio-type umbrellas that we jam into the ground over the tomatoes and peas before we throw a blanket over those because the plants are so much taller than the hoops. Hubs has big plans to put in a new cold frame and also to build a small greenhouse this month so we can keep the tomatoes going through September as the frosts start up, both will be invaluable come spring when we get the garden up and running again and should extend our season quite a bit.
Canning is going well, although I still need to put up more tomato sauce and do pears and applesauce before the season is over. Then I will do cranberry preserves and citrus marmalade once those fruits come into season in November. We are "root cellaring" carrots and potatoes for the first time since moving into this house 3 years ago--storing them in sand-filled buckets kept cool in a cool room in our basement. If we can get it to work in this house as we did in our old house, I'll be very pleased.
We are always prepared for power outages and blizzards, and have spent the last few months amping up our ability to evacuate quickly in case of wildfire (the Slave Lake fire helped to spur us on--wildfires completely decimated a town of 7000 a few hours north of us back in May and we live on the edge of the city near forested and grassland areas). The sunsets have been very red these past couple of weeks due to wildfires in the area and one never knows.
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Marianne
Super Self-Sufficient
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moolie said:
Eeeek! One year when I wasn't mowing our place much, the neighboring farmer told us we might want to at least mow between the house and the field. He said that he's seen fields just suddenly go ablaze on really hot days....and the mowed strip might give us an extra minute to get out of the house. :/ I did some reading after that, got all charged up to put a wide rock drive between house and field, more green stuff. Then maybe we'd have a couple extra minutes if the wind wasn't blowing too hard. Fires scare me. I was on that mower in a flash after he left.Yup, grass fires go like lightning and it only takes a spark (or some idiot throwing a still-lit cigarette out a car window).
We get them regularly around and in the city, although this summer and last it hasn't been as dry where we are so they have been fewer and farther between.
Always a danger though and since moving into this house 3 years ago we are right on the edge of town so closer to that kind of danger.
We get them regularly around and in the city, although this summer and last it hasn't been as dry where we are so they have been fewer and farther between.
Always a danger though and since moving into this house 3 years ago we are right on the edge of town so closer to that kind of danger.
lorihadams
Always doing laundry
Well, we need hunting season to get here to really be stocked up for winter. I have to get both freezers moved into the garage...still. One isn't even plugged up and needs to be pressure washed and bleached before anything can even go in it.
We usuallly try to get 4 deer every year but this year if we get any smaller ones we may need more. I only have 6 bags of ground meat and about 8 packs of tenderloin/roasts. I'm down to about 8-9 packs of chicken and we usually process meat birds at Thanksgiving so that is coming. I'm trying to downsize my flock of ducks to cut feed costs for the winter and I have gotten down to 7 laying hens. I plan on getting some new hens in the spring.
We are trying to figure out the heat issue. We have a heat pump and in the colder months we usually keep it on 68 degrees in the house during the day and 65 at night. Our bill wasn't too bad, this summer has been waaaaaaay worse. Even with the thermostat set at 80 during the day and 74 at night and using the clothesline for drying clothes our bill was still $200 for a 1500 sq ft house.
I plan on buying some canned goods but I am trying to figure out where to store everything cause our garden didn't do squat this year. I also plan on stocking up on frozen veggies when they go on sale as soon as the second freezer is up and running. We'll use the bigger freezer for meat and the smaller freezer for veggies/milk. I still have a turkey to cook from last years after thanksgiving sale.
We have propane as backup heat and for the grill outside with a side burner so that's good to go and our neighbors have an oil company so i don't worry about getting propane in a pinch
I need to stock up on laundry supplies too and get some more candles.
We usually don't get any weather or extreme cold until Christmas time so I have some time to prepare.
We usuallly try to get 4 deer every year but this year if we get any smaller ones we may need more. I only have 6 bags of ground meat and about 8 packs of tenderloin/roasts. I'm down to about 8-9 packs of chicken and we usually process meat birds at Thanksgiving so that is coming. I'm trying to downsize my flock of ducks to cut feed costs for the winter and I have gotten down to 7 laying hens. I plan on getting some new hens in the spring.
We are trying to figure out the heat issue. We have a heat pump and in the colder months we usually keep it on 68 degrees in the house during the day and 65 at night. Our bill wasn't too bad, this summer has been waaaaaaay worse. Even with the thermostat set at 80 during the day and 74 at night and using the clothesline for drying clothes our bill was still $200 for a 1500 sq ft house.
I plan on buying some canned goods but I am trying to figure out where to store everything cause our garden didn't do squat this year. I also plan on stocking up on frozen veggies when they go on sale as soon as the second freezer is up and running. We'll use the bigger freezer for meat and the smaller freezer for veggies/milk. I still have a turkey to cook from last years after thanksgiving sale.
We have propane as backup heat and for the grill outside with a side burner so that's good to go and our neighbors have an oil company so i don't worry about getting propane in a pinch
I need to stock up on laundry supplies too and get some more candles.
We usually don't get any weather or extreme cold until Christmas time so I have some time to prepare.
SillySoap
Enjoys Recycling
It's still early for me but the things on my list are as follows:
Propane
cut wood (although I don't have to worry too much on this)
Prep cookie tin heater for chicken waters
cover smaller pens with wind blocks.
Mulch grape vine & other new bushes.
I'm sure there is much much more.
I won't do most of the things listed above for a month or so.
Propane
cut wood (although I don't have to worry too much on this)
Prep cookie tin heater for chicken waters
cover smaller pens with wind blocks.
Mulch grape vine & other new bushes.
I'm sure there is much much more.
I won't do most of the things listed above for a month or so.
JRmom
Lovin' The Homestead
Oh yeah, rub it in. My skis were waxed and sharpened 11 years ago... then we moved back to Florida and they haven't been used since. Wanna buy a nice pair of Rossi's?SKR8PN said:We still have at least 3 months to get the ski's waxed and sharpened. THEN we will be ready!!
old fashioned
Almost Self-Reliant
Are we ready for winter???? Kinda sorta, kinda not.
Firewood........we've got plenty from last year, we just need to cut some to size and put it in the shed to keep dry.
Need to enclose chicken coop & start filling with more straw litter (and some extra preps for the chicks)
Clean up the yard trash that accumulates every year & mow the lawn (this is also used in coop for litter)
I've not done ANY canning yet this season
so now that the boys are in school & my next days off.....I'll be canning whatever I can get my hands on. Gotta get them shelves filled up!
Since we had another late summer, our garden has only been producing for a few weeks at best and so far just enough to eat from but not enough to put up.....except for green beans and onions so far. Hopefully we'll get a great Indian summer so other stuff will get ripened up
I need to clean out the freezers, woodstove, etc (basic fall cleaning) of house, sheds & yard...and eventually put the garden to bed for winter.
Too much work to do & not enough time to do it all !!!
Firewood........we've got plenty from last year, we just need to cut some to size and put it in the shed to keep dry.
Need to enclose chicken coop & start filling with more straw litter (and some extra preps for the chicks)
Clean up the yard trash that accumulates every year & mow the lawn (this is also used in coop for litter)
I've not done ANY canning yet this season
so now that the boys are in school & my next days off.....I'll be canning whatever I can get my hands on. Gotta get them shelves filled up!Since we had another late summer, our garden has only been producing for a few weeks at best and so far just enough to eat from but not enough to put up.....except for green beans and onions so far. Hopefully we'll get a great Indian summer so other stuff will get ripened up
I need to clean out the freezers, woodstove, etc (basic fall cleaning) of house, sheds & yard...and eventually put the garden to bed for winter.
Too much work to do & not enough time to do it all !!!
