Getting organized!

So, my New Year's resolution was to "Get Organized!"  So far, very little has happened to make this a reality (the freezer was only done out of necessity!)  Kelley, my cousin's wife and very good friend, had the same resolution.  So, last Friday we determined to help each other stay on task and get things done.  Our goal for the weekend was to come up with a list to start on this week.  Trust me, my list is LONG!  I kind of started with the things that were the easiest and most interesting, saving the really bad stuff for last (like sorting paperwork).  Hey, I've got to ease myself into this, right?!

First on the "to do" list was to organize my seeds.  I was really good and got all my seeds ordered by the first week in January and they have been arriving ever since.  I order from several companies so now that they are all here I need to sort them into types of vegetables so I will know exactly what I've got.  Here are all my seeds scattered about the dining room table.  It looks like a big mess but I've actually got them in piles according to type of vegetable.

I decided that while I'm at it, I need to update my vegetable seed spreadsheet that I created in 2008 and haven't updated since!  So I went through each seed packet and listed important info like variety name, seed quantity, which company I ordered it from, and price.  This will be very helpful when I go to order seeds again next year.

For some things I use these wooden stakes to mark the different varieties out in the field.  I thought I would be ahead of the game to get some of these labeled now. 

I have a slight obsession with growing lots of varieties of things.  Most farmers pick a couple of varieties and stick with them.  It is certainly more cost effective to do this and less confusing when planting.  I, however, tend to make things harder than necessary!  Just kidding, I really just love seeing all the different kinds of flowers and vegetables.  For example, after inventorying my seed, I discovered that I bought 22 kinds of Zinnia seed for a total of $138.39!  Most people plant one kind. :-)  I'm okay with that though; I know that I will more than break even on them and even if I didn't I love zinnias so much that I don't care.  Some women spend more than that on a pair of shoes.  Whatever makes us happy, right?!  In some cases, it works to my advantage though, I think.  For example, I have 26 varieties of cherry tomatoes.  Every color and shape you can imagine.  When I pick these I mix them all together in a "rainbow" basket.  People love these and come back to my booth every week at Farmers' Market just to get them.  They are definitely one of my best sellers!  Here's a picture of the first zinnia bouquets and cherry tomatoes from last summer.  I can tell it's early in the season--look at all those zucchini!! (I only grow two kinds of zucchini--that's enough for anyone!)

 

This is the finished product.  Much more orderly and everything has a lable.  Unfortunately, I don't have a great place to store my seeds.  A lot of big farmers have special rooms for their seeds that are dry and have the perfect temperature, etc.  Some keep them in the freezer--you've seen my freezer, we don't have room for that.  So, for now I'm going to keep them on the bench in the hallway.  It's 50 degrees in there and that's not too bad. 

 

The next organizational task is to get the cellar in order.  I have stuff piled everywhere!  The beef and jelly I did last week are still sitting on the kitchen counter because I have no where to put them.

Who can get to the canned goods under all the boxes and bags?

A pile of squash--I KNOW there are rotten ones in there that need to be pitched.

Jars everywhere!  I have good canning jars mixed up with jars that I use for flower arrangements in the summer, plus canners and other pots, scattered all over the floor.

I don't think I'm going to run out of egg cartons anytime soon!  I need to get them stored better; they get very dirty in our basement then they are no good.

Well, wish me luck.  I hope to report back soon with pictures of a lovely, well organized cellar!!