The end of the harvest has finally arrived. Once again I am relieved but saddened at the same time. I will miss the wonderful sweet taste of a red juicy tomato freshly plucked from the vine. I will also miss  evening walks through rows of  soft dirt freshly hoed between plants and the smell of tomato vines. I harvested enough to make tomato sauce,salsa, ketchup,BBQ sauce plus some soups for the year. 

       I was fortunate enough to get several bookcases many years ago to store the canned goods. They once belonged to a lawyer in Greenwich Village ,NYC that my father's Aunt Hattie worked for as a legal secretary. That was in the early 1900's. They have sliding glass doors that help to protect the jars from cellar moisture and dust and they also look nice.

      I still have to dig up our potatoes but that can wait for another week or two.The soil protects them from deteriorating until the cellar is cold enough in the fall for storage. Once they are harvested the garden clean up begins. Uggghhhhh !  I'm not looking forward to that.
      Each year I try to learn something new or at least perfect something I couldn't get the hang of in the past. Last year I finally found a recipe for ketchup that actually had true ketchup flavor.  This past year I succeeded in making apple cider vinegar and it tastes and smells great.I used Cortland apples which are the only apples that I know of that don't turn brown. The apples remained white and the vinegar a lighter color. Since I can't test the pH I can't use it for canning but I use it for other things.
       This is also a time of year to save seeds. My window sills have been a ripening spot in my kitchen for tomatoes and now have seeds scattered and drying . Soon the sills will have new basil plants growing into the winter and in late February egg cartons will rest upon them as starter beds for tiny new tomato plants. I'll transfer them them to the greenhouse in the spring once the temps rise above freezing.
       So, what will I be doing the remainder of the year and winter ?  Well, I will probably sew. I learned to make puppets for Junior Church Bible story lessons and VBS  last year. I will probably make a few more. It's fun. We live on a farm. There is always PLENTY to do.