Backyard Flower Co.

I love the glittery leaves! The silver freckles of this are iridescent. Don’t think I’m too weird, but sometimes when I’m standing at the sink I just pet the leaf a little. It has such a cool texture. It’s loving being right next to a daylight colored lamp in the window in my humid kitchen.

Congrats Jessica on making the cover of Homesteading Monthly magazine! So excited to read what you have to say on “Making Homesteading Attainable Again.”

Bring on the Ice Cream Bananas!

The grapes are on the vine! I am so pleased. This is the first year they have held fruit. There are three varieties. One is supposedly bronze, the other purple. The last vine has the largest fruit and clusters and is called Southern Home. I’ve been anxious to taste that one for nearly 10 years since I learned of it. A hybrid muscadine variety, its fruit are said to be the closest to a table grape but with full muscadine flavor.

I’ve carefully bagged all the fruit to keep birds and squirrels and bugs from stealing them.

I have the best memories of picking sun ripened grapes from my great grandfather’s vines and listening to him tell us about all his different varieties. We ate them fresh, turned them into jelly, and he made wine with them. There is nothing that mimics the taste or rich fragrance of muscadines in the summer.