Harvest Tally 2009!

Harvesting our meat birds (chickens) this past weekend was the last thing that needed doing, food preserving-wise. It's been a good year. There are certainly a few things we want to do differently next year. The biggest thing is that we didn't grow nearly enough onions this year. We've actually used almost all of them already. Anyone have too many?? We also want to plant a new row of red raspberries. They grow so well here and except for pruning once a year, there is no maintenance.

Below is our tally for this year. I truly believe that God intended us to eat the plants and animals He gave us for food in their purest form without chemicals and preservatives. We feel so blessed to have space, time and means to grow and store our own food. I know not everyone has this luxury. I also know not everyone would call it a luxury:-).

In no particular order (canned unless otherwise specified)...

21 quarts crushed strawberries, frozen
3 pints strawberry jam, frozen
1 gallon bag frozen spinach
17 quarts frozen peas
12 1/2 quarts chopped rhubarb, frozen
18 pints red raspberries, frozen
50 bulbs garlic, braided and hung
28 quarts green beans, frozen
24 pints pickled beets
14 cups basil pesto, frozen
44 quarts blueberries, frozen
18 pints corn, frozen
32 loaves zucchini pumpkin bread, frozen
17 jelly jars peach jam
27 2-cup bags chopped peaches, frozen
22 quarts peaches
20 almost-quart jars roasted tomatoes, frozen
5 quarts tomato soup
20 1/2 quarts tomato sauce
11 pints stewed tomatoes
9 pints nectarines, almost completely dried, then frozen
1 1/2 gallon bags halved bell peppers (red and green), frozen
11 pints chopped bell peppers (red and green), frozen
1 1/2 quarts parsley, frozen
2 quarts basil, frozen
114 quarts applesauce (44 quarts canned, 70 quarts frozen)
8 quarts dried apples
9 2-cup bags broccoli, frozen
5 gallon bags chopped swiss chard, frozen
12 chickens, frozen
2 1/2 crates sweet potatoes, stored in newspaper in the office
13 butternut squash, stored in a crate in our mudroom's non-heated mudroom
1 1/2 bushel onions, almost gone already:-(
1 bushel potatoes
lots of carrots, stored in the ground

Our shelves aren't crooked. I am. I just wanted to clarify that.

This freezer is mostly applesauce (to the left), chickens (in the middle) and strawberries and chard to the right.

So, that's it. We'll see you again next year when we get ready to plant next year's garden. Just kidding. I'll be back next week. I had to write something at the end of this post:-).