Thursday, October 25, 2018

Cider pressing and fiber messing (aka spinning and knitting)

When we bought our land 16 years ago, we knew we wanted an orchard. So after clearing land, we planted a bunch of little trees: apples, cherries, pears, plums...

You have to be patient with an orchard - it takes a while to establish. But we have been reaping the benefits of our fruit tree labor for a while now. 

Case in point: this year alone, we pressed cider on three different occasions, with hundreds of pounds of apples from our place.

Some of this is getting made into hard cider, lots of it is frozen for juice.



This is a job for a few people at a time: some are picking apples, some are washing them, and some feed the apples into the chute.

Then the cut-up pieces are being transferred into the pressing chamber, and the handle gets cranked.

And then comes the tasting, where people elbow each other out of the way to stick a cup under the steady stream of fragrant cider flowing forth, exclaiming how good it tastes.

Also, enough containers need to be rounded up for fitting all this golden liquid. After filling them all to the brim, there's cleanup.

As it often happens in our wilderness neighborhood on a weekend, people tend to stop by to visit, and of course, they get pulled into the cider making operation, much to the delight of all the little ones.

Come along and see what happens on a day like this!


Picking apples, and getting the ones on the ground before the bear and deer eat them


Washing station


Feeding the apples into the cutting chute


It helps to have willing and enthusiastic helpers

Putting the cut-up apples into the pressing container


Ha! Suckers! You thought you would stop by for a chill visit? Well, so much for leisure and relaxing!


The kids love to eat this foam. Better than ice cream.


Filling the containers
Besides harvesting all the fruit from our orchard, we also got all the food out of the garden. Pumpkins, squashes, gone-to-seed lettuce for the chickens, the rest of the cucumbers... 

Now all that's left is Swiss Chard, Kale, and Collards greens, plus lots of carrots and beets in the ground.

Last week, I put the garden to bed. I really like covering the soil to protect all the lovely soil organisms and micro critters in there, so I either sow green manure or spread straw.  (Not hay, since it has weeds.)









Now that the weather has shifted to almost-frost, rain and storms, the time for hibernation has begun.

Hibernating for me means plenty of knitting and spinning.

I've been on a sock-knitting kick, since it's moderately mindless and relaxing, and oh-so-necessary in a house full of active people who need socks. All. The. Time.

Last week I went to the Northwest Fiber Fusion event and bought a gorgeous batt of wool that made my heart rate speed up when I saw it. I'm spinning it into yarn for a hat and fingerless mittens. I think they will be gorgeous.







Now it's your turn. Leave me a comment in the comment section below and tell me what hibernating looks like for you.


15 comments:

  1. Fun post! Jealous of all of your apples. My trees have a few years yet before I get enough for a pie.

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    Replies
    1. It will happen! It will happen! Once they kick in, they surely produce, but I know it's hard to wait!

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  2. That looks absolutely lovely. I always open your posts before I read anything else from the news feed. This is my morning ritual. Sets me up with a peaceful feeling. What kind of apples? We went to a Civil War re-enactment last weekend and they had people in period costume doing things from that era. One lady was spinning. Another weaving. Another making bobbin lace. The spinning lady revealed she was spinning her DOGS FUR! A standard poodle.

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    Replies
    1. Awww, I'm happy to pop up in your newsfeed and to inspire you in the morning. We have all kinds of apples, but my favorites are the Liberty and Enterprise.

      Delete
  3. What a wonderful time making cider. Lots of work but sure pays off in the long run. Love the fiber that you are spinning. Gorgeous!

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    Replies
    1. Yes, it's lots of work, but how much money we save pressing our own! And working with our kids in the fresh air! Can't replace that.
      I totally love the fiber I'm spinning, too. It's almost all spun up. I can't wait to knit it!

      Delete
  4. That's so much cider! We still have a ways to go before we begin harvesting apples; the trees are still quite young. I love seeing big apple harvests, and cannot wait to be able to do this on our own homestead.

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  5. I seriously envy you for your community.
    We have given up on ours and our homestead.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I am so sorry about that Ron. That is a very isolating situation. We as people are tribal so it is not very healthy for the psyche to be in that situation. I wish it was not so for you. All I can think if is your tribe is farther flung beyond your own neighborhood. Your tribe is out here. We support you!

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    2. Thanks Renée.
      We must sell our place and relocate. Things have been tense and escalated today. It became painfully clear we and our way of life are not wanted here. Community is a word erased from Swedish dictionaries.

      Delete
    3. I am so sorry to hear that. You put so much work into the place. Why are Swedes like this?

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    4. Ron, I'm so sorry to hear that, too. So sorry. How very stressful and disheartening this is. I hope and envision for you that this change will actually catalyze you into something much, much better! Much love!

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    5. @ Renée; they are raised and indoctrinated like that for generations. Family, community... it means nothing anymore. The state has moved in, disassembled and taken over these rolls to fill in as they see fit.
      @ Corina; No, it ain't fun and it is the anticlimax after last summer's events.

      However, we are already looking int other possibilities, like taking over a bakery. Smallscale, woodfed ovens, sourdough bread plus bed & breakfast. Plus double areasize!
      Downside: large loans in today's social and economic developments.

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    6. A bakery would be good! Wood burning oven wonderful! Bed and breakfast why not! And double the area. I hope this comes through for you. Do your due diligence beforehand!

      Delete

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