[Garden] What Next?

[thefourthvine]

The status of the garden in three conversations:

1.

Me: Hi, guys.
Tomatoes: HI!
Me: Look, um. It's, you know, the middle of September.
Tomatoes: Fascinating!
Me: So. Well. What that means is, fall is coming.
Tomatoes: Yay!
Me: Yay?
Tomatoes: Spring was great. Summer was EVEN BETTER. Obviously, fall will be the best yet.
Me: Um. Gosh, this is awkward. See - you're supposed to die in the fall.
Tomatoes: No way! Get out!
Me: Yeah. I'm sorry, but it's true. So, I was thinking - maybe you should dedicate a little more energy to finishing off the tomatoes you've already got going, and maybe a little less energy to making new branches and flowers?
Tomatoes: No.
Me: No?
Tomatoes: No. Good chat, though.

2.

Me: It's the middle of October now.
Tomatoes: Isn't it wonderful?
Me: I notice you're still doing the branch and flower thing.
Tomatoes: We're not just making tomatoes, we're making tomato infrastructure! We're planning for the long haul! We're going to synergistically leverage our incentives as soon as we figure out how!
Me: You know, I was going to plant a winter salad garden where you are. But I can't, because you won't stop growing. Even though you're clearly supposed to.
Tomatoes: According to who?
Me: A lot of books. I'd be willing to read the relevant bits out loud.
Tomatoes: Hah. Books.
Me: Tomato plants cannot live forever.
Tomatoes: We plan to try.
Me: So that's a no on the graceful decline thing?
Tomatoes: Sure is!

3.

Me: GUYS. IT'S NOVEMBER.
Tomatoes: I believe I can fly! I believe I can touch the sky!


So, yes. It's November, and my tomato plants are, in total defiance of everything my gardening books say, producing not only tomatoes but also flowers and new shoots and everything. Still, I'm prepared to call this the end of the season, and trust that sooner or later the tomatoes will also figure that out.

The question becomes: what next? I actually started gardening because of an urban homesteading book I read. I figured that if I can do it, we don't need to worry about the end of oil or the zombie attacks or the apocalypse or whatever, because anyone can do it. I'm the Most Hapless Homesteader. But obviously my homesteading journey has only just begun.

So I made a list of potential homesteading tasks I could learn to do next (or relearn to do, in the case of the one I've already done), and I'm going to ask you guys to vote on them. You should get some say, since I will almost certainly post about the inevitable disaster here. (Also, if it goes anything like gardening, the results could actually trigger the apocalypse, and in that case, I would like some company in the blame department.)

Poll #5001 Homesteading

Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 415

View Respondents

Which scary homesteading task should I probably fail to learn next?

View Answers

Baking bread
292 (70.4%)

Composting
167 (40.2%)

Keeping livestock
33 (8.0%)

Making cheese
85 (20.5%)

Making preserves/preserving food
169 (40.7%)

Making soap or detergent or whatever
37 (8.9%)

Making wine or beer
62 (14.9%)

Making yogurt, sour cream, or butter
96 (23.1%)

Sewing, patching, darning
117 (28.2%)

Woodworking
38 (9.2%)

Please stop now, while you still have your limbs and we still have a planet
38 (9.2%)

Comments

[bedlamsbard]

Baking bread is really easy! I do it the Artisan Bread in Five Minutes A Day way, although it's really more like four hours a day, although most of that is waiting -- I live in an on-campus apartment, so the low pressure of doing it the easier way is fine for me.

My mother makes yogurt, but I haven't gotten around to doing it at school yet, even though we do it the really really easy way. (Mix whole milk with yogurt/starter. Cover with tea towel and let sit for twenty-four hours. Put lid on and stick in fridge. Eat at will.)

[indeliblesasha]

I'm just spamming all over TFV's comments today, I would feel bad about it, but I'm all about the bread baking. :D

King Arthur Flour has taken ABFMAD recipes and modified them just a bit to make them even less effort. I had a major bread-making break through with one of them so I've been sharing my glee with EVERYBODY.

http://theawesomemommy.blogspot.com/2010/10/proper-use-of-yeast-post.html It's got links to their blog posts. :D

[thefourthvine]

I hear good things about the Artisan Bread, which - wow. Last time I made bread, we had nowhere near as many bread options. At least that I knew about.

And I am planning to make crockpot yogurt! Eventually! When I can get over my fear of, you know, accidentally killing us all.