I cut down a lot of Giant Ragweed (Ambrosia trifida) today and have a lot more to cut down tomorrow. Not only are they very tall (some over 6') and thick, their pollen is a big human allergen. The tall, leafy stalks are great for surface mulching so I am going to use what seems like a limitless resource to prep for some new beds. #grownostr #permiculture #gardening #homesteading #mulching

I started fermenting cucumbers and hot peppers this afternoon . I made a salt brine with garlic, mustard seed, black peppercorn, dill seed, cardamon, coriander, cloves, bay leaves, and dill I cut from the garden this morning. #gardening #homesteading #fermentation #refrigeratorpickles #pickles #cucumbers #peppers #grownostr #dill

I grabbed some herbs from the garden today. Basil and Parsley to make pasta sauce with our tomatoes and Dill to make pickles from our cucumbers. #gardening #homesteading #harvesting #preserving #herbs #tomatoes #cucumbers

The mint is going to seed in one of my gardens. This particular mint was planted the year before, died off through the winter and grew back this spring. It also just started growing in a nearby pot I had transplanted some blackberries into as well. Mint is an easy plant for beginning gardeners. #gardening #homesteading #herbs #mint #perennial #permaculture

I just did a post on the Asiatic Dayflower (Commelina communis) a few days ago. But after doing more research into using this plant for a fodder for my livestock, I came across another interesting benefit of this plant. Research has shown this plant is excellent at extracting and sequestering heavy metals from the soil. So if you have areas with high concentrations of metal (i.e. copper, zinc and lead, et. al.) this might be a good plant to use for phytoremediation. Fun Fact: another common name is Mouse Ears #gardening #soilhealth #homesteading #grownostr #permiculture #phytoremediation #plantID

It's humbling when nature reminds us that it's not always about us and what we need or want. The gorgeous plant below is a Pokeweed (Phytolacca americana) and is toxic to mammals, wild birds can feed on the ripe flesh of the berries though. #grownostr #nature #homesteading

We're getting a steady and varied supply of sweet and hot peppers: Bell, Sweet Banana, Habanero, Cayenne, Tabasco, Serrano,and Cherry Hot. We've also got this yellow-orange-red hot pepper that was supposed to be Jalapeno. It's not Jalapeno, but it's good. #gardening #homesteading #grownostr #peppers #hotpeppers #sweetpeppers

One goal I have is to ID all the plants and trees on my property so I'm always on the lookout for anything that catches my eye on walks. Today I caught the purple popping in a sea of green. What I found was an Ironweed (Vernonia.) There are 25 different species so I'm not sure of which it is. I'll save that for another day. But along with being a beautiful native flower, the Ironweed is a big producer of nectar therefore, making it a great plant to attract pollinators 🐝, and therefore great for gardens (and butterfly watching.) 🦋 #grownostr #nativeplant #flower #butterfly #pollinators #bees #ironweed #homesteading #gardening #plantID #permaculture

I found these two while walking my forest trail today. A small snail hanging out under a small red mushroom. #grownostr #mushroom #snail #nature #homesteading #permaculture

This flower grows very aggressively. It was started from a cutting from my grandfather many years ago and it continues to grow very aggressively, outcompeting other plants for growing space. After some research I discovered it is called Asiatic Day flower (Commelina communis). It is native to southeast Asia and has been used for food, fodder, medicine and dye. Since it grows so well I am going to supplement it with my life stock feed and maybe pick some flowers to add to a salad. They are a fascinating plant and I recommend further reading on them. #gardening #homesteading #flowers #medicine #fodder #edible #herb #forage #grownostr

These Sunflowers (Helianthus) started growing under a bird feeder from the seeds the birds would drop. Bonus: Cicada shell left behind on one of the Sunflowers. #gardening #nature #sunflowers #grownostr

We had some crazy storms today. A lot of rain and beautiful, awesome clouds. I hope everyone had a great and productive day. #storms #grownostr

I just recently learned that Hackberries are not only edible but delicious. I have a lot of Hackberry trees on my property. Currently I just clip branches for goat treats. But I am looking forward to harvesting enough berries to make a jam this fall. I need to find an efficient way to harvest them. #homesteading #foraging #Hackberry

I've got 99 problems and okra ain't one of 'em. I guess I missed harvesting this one the day before 😳 #gardening #homesteading #okra #lessonlearned

I identified a new plant on my property called a Trumpet Vine (Campsis radicans.) Apparently it also has the common name Cow Itch Vine due to causing redness and itching for some people. I didn't touch it, so I don't know if I am one of those people. #homestead #wildflower #nature #plantID #grownostr #flowerstr

Day 90: #grownostr initiative 90 days ago I listened to @Jack Spirko on #tsp. I accepted the challenge and shared a bit of my life and met some incredible people, doing incredible things. Thank you all for the inspiration and I look forward to continuing this journey.

Day 89: #grownostr initiative Best caption wins 1000 sats! #gardening #homesteading #bestcaption

Day 88: #grownostr initiative Today was canning day. Our counters were full of tomatoes, so we went with a preservation method that seemed pretty straight forward for the first time. We did a couple of jars of salsa and a few each of whole, diced and crushed. We also grouped like tomatoes in a few and mixed up a few for aesthetic. I am looking forward to some of the other suggestions everyone gave throughout the summer. #gardening #homesteading #canning #tomatoes