What Happens When Life Runs Away With You?

This.  This is what happens when it is heavy planting season and the recital is coming up and the house falls into a spiral of disorder and...  This is what happens when you find your kids saying "salad [or sandwiches or eggs] for dinner again?

But that's all over now.  We're into garden maintenance mode.  The costumes have been gathered or made and danced in. 

I've got some po-ta-toes to salvage!

(Hey, no one can say I can't grow anything!)

Our Harvest Storage System for Colder Storage

Since we finally got around to storing our potatoes and apples, I thought I would take this opportunity to show you all our cold storage system.  We keep our potatoes and apples out in the garage.  Our garage is unheated, so we've located our storage bin in a corner that has 2 inside walls.  For the other 2 walls of the bin, we stacked a few straw bales for good insulation.

Here's what it looks like:

Inside, we put in a little piece of plywood as a divider to separate our stacks of crates.  Not completely necessary, but since we are storing apples with potatoes, we thought every little bit of separation would be helpful.  (Since apples give off a gas that helps other veggies to ripen faster - something you definitely do NOT want in a winter storage system...)

As for our bins, we took some old grape crates and fitted them up to make them rodent proof.  Well, Nick fitted them up.  I just said 'thank you thank you thank you!'

First, he wrapped the whole crate in 1/4" hardware cloth (not really cloth at all, but a metal mesh) and stapled it in place.  Then he attached some scrap wood to the top and and front flap of the bin.  This allows an air gap between the crates when the are stacked on on top of the other.

To the edges of the piece of wood on the front flap, he added some hooks that will clip into eyes that he screwed into the front of the crate.

It looks like this from the back:

And, behold!!  A rodent proof storage bin that will hold about 1/2 bushel.

Stacked.

And put into the garage bin.

Apples in the back, potatoes and garden seeds in the front.

And topped off with some found insulated cardboard, foam board, and cardboard pieces.

Sack of Potatoes

Boy, giggling, told me that he brought in the sack of potatoes from the porch.  [giggle giggle]  It can't wait because the potatoes are getting rotten...  Can't I just go look at them now?

Oh!  How strong to carry all those potatoes into the house.  [Sack of potatoes starts to giggle and wriggle.]  I'd better go put them away!  [Giggle giggle squirm]

What's this!?!?!?!?!

A wee face!  [Outright laughter now!]

Mama!  My whole body is in here!  [More laughter.]

My very own potato head!

Whoa!!

I thought I'd make some potato salad for this weekend.   

But the potatoes had ideas of their own, and started climbing out of the sink.

One by one...

Yikes!