I can’t believe almost a month has passed since my last post, which by the way, was only a picture! Lame, I know! What can I say, life has taken a turn and unfortunately it isn’t in the direction of my garden. When I take something on I throw everything I have at it. In the past it was sewing, then food growing, and now my career. I also happen to be someone who refuses to fail; when I’m told I can’t do something I will stop at nothing to prove you wrong. Well, I finally hit a wall. I’ve been struggling for months, refusing to admit what everyone else has been telling me. I. can’t. do. it. all.
I can’t work 14 hour days, take on custom orders for PixyPatch, blog, and maintain close to 2000 square feet of growing space. There I said it. –>Insert HUGE sign of relief (and defeat).<– Something has got to give and unfortunately it’s the garden. Fear not friends, I’ll still be around, I’m just scaling back. Way back.
Over the past month I’ve done a bit of canning, dehydrating, and cooking. As to when those posts will actually make it onto OGT has yet to be determined. I whipped up a delicious vanilla-ginger rhubarb jam several weeks ago and I’d love to share it while rhubarb is still in-season, but I make no promises! 
I am however going to share a quick recipe for fruit-infused vinegar. It is the perfect addition to all those fresh-from-the-garden salads!
Strawberry-Infused Vinegar
2 cups fresh fruit: I used strawberries but plan on trying cherries, blueberries, and peaches!
2 cups distilled white vinegar
Place fruit and a bit of vinegar in a food processor and purée until smooth. Combine liquid fruit and remaining vinegar in a sterilized quart jar, add lid and shake. Allow mixture to sit in a cool dark place for 10 days; shake daily to blend flavors.
Strain vinegar through several layers of cheesecloth or coffee filters and discard solids. Vinegar will keep at room-temperature for up to a year.
Images and content copyright © 2009-2012 Danielle R Limoge. Recipe courtesy of Put ‘em Up.
The post I’ve been working on rings to a very similar but slightly different tune. I don’t know how those other bloggers do it (unless, of course, they’ve figured out a way around the whole issue of getting $$ to do what they do). I, too, have had to admit to myself (and soon anyone who reads my blog) that my life priorities need reorganizing, and that the online documentation/publishing aspect of my endeavors will not be as robust as I would like.
This girl needs to LIVE and not simply do, document, and publish! I hope you can enjoy these harvest months amidst your shifting priorities. Your blog still rocks.
Thanks for the blog kudos, girl! Devoting much of my week to work during the winter was fine; however, now that the garden “should” be in full-on production mode and it isn’t is spirit-crushing. Last year at this time I had ripe tomatoes, this year they are still in the flowering stage! Thank goodness one of my best friends is a farmer and I can just raid his fields!
For the past 5 years the majority of my diet has consisted of homegrown food, produced by me. This shift has not come easy for me, but I have accepted it. Self imposed guilt is a b*tch!
This growing season will be the last at this location, and while I’m still not sure where I’m going, I definitely see a CSA share in my future! Gone are the days of spending 20 hours a week tending my plants, because like you, I need to LIVE as well! My company encourages community involvement, which I fully support, so I definitely see some urban growing and food education in my near future!
Yes, having farmer friends is always a plus! This is only my second year having a CSA share and I absolutely love it. The one I get is perfect for one veggie-centric person (though, with the exception of a cabbage here and there, not enough for preserving). A month ago I started my GROW plot (again) with summer crops but I never get my ass over there (and yes, it’s only several hundred yards away from the garden I tend for the farm. SUPER lame). I’m hoping with all the heat and now rain we’re getting, my semi-sad transplants are looking bushier. If things go as I would like them to and I continue to get work in small scale food production, I think I’ll convert my GROW plot into an herb/flower garden next year and keep the staple crops in a larger space.
With a new 2500 square-foot garden (currently fenced in weeds about as high as my waist) in my command, I just don’t have the time or energy to write the posts I want to write. Now is a time to do and learn… reflections will have to wait for the temps to drop. I need a f*cking iPhone already!