Autumn....my favorite season! A perfect time to begin this blog on homesteading. This is my first attempt at a blog and hopefully as time goes by we will all see vast and wonderful improvements in my techniques.

   In celebration of the season we will focus on that beautiful, versatile fruit...the pumpkin! Yes, a pumpkin is technically a fruit as it has seeds inside and grows from a flower. But, whether you call it a fruit, vegetable, squash, or gourd, it is one divine creation! This was my first year of serious pumpkin growing. Previously I have planted the mini pumpkins, and the little ghostly white ones. This year I decided to plant pie pumpkins in the space outside of my kitchen window. Aside from a spearmint patch, it looked rather barren and needed something else growing there. In an area measuring a mere 6' x 12' I planted a total of 12 pumpkin seeds. Thinking that all of them might not germinate, I was hoping for at least a couple of plants. I was not disappointed, they all germinated and started to grow at a rapid rate...all of them.

   They grew like vines in a fairy tale! At one point the made a decidedly right turn and began to creep into the house via the back door. It wasn't long before the blossoms were replaced by beautiful pumpkins!

  As the summer progressed I kept a vigilant eye out for every new pumpkin, keeping count and tracking progress. When the final count was tallied up I was amazed. 50 pumpkins, yes that's right, 50 pumpkins in a space only measuring 6' x 12'! Wow....incredible! My plan was to roast the pumpkins, mash them, drain the excess water, and freeze the pumpkin in 4 cup increments which would make 2 pies, 2 - 4 loaves of either pumpkin-nut bread or pumpkin corn bread, a pot of pumpkin soup, or a few batches of cookies....as I said earlier, the pumpkin is very versatile. Everybody here loves pumpkin pie, so that was at the top of the list.

It may sound a tad conceited, but I make one helluva pie! Mine is not the pale, anemic, watery pie that you purchase at the grocery store.....oh no, this is a hearty pie, smelling of cinnamon, ginger, cloves, and molasses surrounded by a flaky, tender crust embellished with pie crust autumn leaves.....a dessert to be enjoyed with all of your senses. Around here we are big fans of 'breakfast pie'... but what could be healthier than pumpkin?

   Of course, I had to plant the Jack-be-Little's, they're cute and the kids love them (I do too). I planted 4 seeds in a different area and ended up with 27 of the cute little fellas! 
   I have to give kudos to the beautiful tomatoes we harvested from the garden this season. Heirloom Brandywine's are my absolute favorite tomato. One slice literally covers a slice of bread.....no lie!

   Aside from my endless bragging, the other purpose of this blog is to show that anybody, just about anywhere can homestead. You don't need a lot of land, people have started gardens in empty lots and rooftops in the middle of the city. It doesn't cost much for a packet of seeds and soil and water are free. Many of us do not want to be at the mercy of Monsanto and their GMO laced products, we want to know what we are eating, plus have the satisfaction of creating healthy food....real food, the way it used to be. The added bonus is the knowledge that YOU can take care of yourself. Homesteading is more than just growing food; it's reusing, recycling, repurposing, using your imagination and being inventive, raising chickens, hogs, goats, beef, rabbits; it's sewing, quilting, weaving, macramé, cooking, reading, writing; it's music and art; it's cutting down on your trips to Wal-Mart by 95% because you really don't need them.  It's happy kids that play outside in the sun and the dirt and learn where their food comes from....it's a good life.