Articles written by Mary Honrud
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Feeling Behind
First off, let me apologize for taking a week off from writing about gardening. We had a family gathering to celebrate a 90th birthday. It took a week to properly fete the birthday girl. There wasn't...
Spring Bounty
Editor’s Note: This column was submitted to us on June 7. Due to space in the past few issues of the Courier, this column was held. I’m still enjoying fresh rhubarb and asparagus, but not together of course! I still haven’t made a rhubarb pie,...
Busy-ness, Seeds and Eats
Another busy week has been competed, with a lot accomplished. First off, almost all my houseplants have been moved outside. The hoya vine and the mother spiderplant don’t go out. I’m loathe to disturb them and possibly lose them. Don’t tell my...
Spring Brings Work
It's very easy to lose track of time now, isn't it? In farming, one day is much like another, so holidays tend to sneak up on us. I let this Memorial Day ambush me, especially since there wasn't a...
Seeding, Farming Cooking
We’re almost finished seeding the wheat crop. I hope that’s finished by the time we get our mailed copy of the Courier. We’ve been watching the forecast, and so we decided to work on Sunday (a rarity for us). That’s thrown me off schedule,...
Planting And Cooking
Some planting has been done up north, both in the garden and out in the wheat fields. Dennis finished pre-working the many, many acres that will be seeded (and fertilized) this summer. He's now...
Back To The Garden
We've finally had several nice days up here in the way-beyond middle-of-nowhereland. That has allowed lots of outside work to be completed. The garden space has been worked, despite a slight mishap...
Tidying Up
For years I have ignored Dennis' many farming magazines and newsletters. I have separated the pages of the newsprint ones to use the sheets to line the garbage cans and for washing windows. Newsprint...
Sunshine, Spring Sprouts and Soup
While the calendar says it’s spring, there’s still the occasional snowflake swirling down, at least up north. I wish Mother Nature would update her calendar to match ours. The sky is blue and the sun is shining as I write this Monday morning,...
A Lack Of Alliteration Or Resting Brain Syndrome
My alliteration skills are lacking this week. I have not been able to come up with a catchy headline for my drivel this week. I think my brain wants to remain in pajamas this morning. I suspect there...
Snow, Seeds, Supper
I’m sad to report we’ve been getting more snow, off and on. It melts a little, a little gets added, then melts a little more. The melting is winning; I can see a bit of lawn next to the garden, as well as mud at the bottom, where my asparagus...
Chirping, Chipping And Cooking
The spring bird migrations are finally occurring. We have had flocks of geese flying overhead. Last week a flock of crows had briefly graced our yard. There are lots of sparrows, juncos, and at least...
Snow, Seeds And Social Distancing
Living well beyond the Middle of Nowhere has some advantages over living in town, especially these days. Keeping your distance socially is much easier when your nearest neighbor is almost a mile...
Nature Gone Nuts
The time interval between snows and storms up here seems to be getting shorter. Last week our Monday snow arrived on Sunday; this week it arrived on Saturday. Mother Nature has taken this jumping ahead on the time to an insane level. She’s out of...
Changing Times?
Can we all agree we hate the biannual time changes? “Losing” that hour each spring seems harder than “gaining” it back in the fall. In reality, all we are accomplishing is messing up everyone’s time schedules. It’s an arbitrary insult to...
Weathery Wind And Wordy Wind
Depending upon how you view reading my musings, you’re either in luck, or doomed. There was no major snowstorm on this Monday morning, March 2, just wind. And that wind was more of a breeze than the major gale we experienced Sunday. It had been...
Starting To Hate Mother Nature
It seems as though on Monday mornings (the time I take to write this column since it is due by noon, after all) Mother Nature decides to frown on us and deliver another helping of unwanted snow. It’s almost enough to make me want to discontinue...
Disrupted Plans
We had planned to head to the Outpost Cafe in Opheim on Valentine’s Day for their steak and shrimp special. Mother Nature intervened, disrupting our plans with a short but intense snowstorm. Our home is only about 50 yards from the highway, but in...
Creating Pleasing Combinations In The Kitchen
I’d copied a recipe from a magazine quite some time ago. It was held by a magnet on the exhaust fan cover above my stove top, where I saw it daily for months. I’d put it there so I’d be sure to try it. But there were ingredients I knew Dennis...
Meatballs and Alternative Slaw
I feel as though I don’t have much to talk about this week, but, being a woman, talk I will. We aren’t still in Florida, so there aren’t comparisons to be made between Montana and Florida flora. It’s a long time until spring returns, no...
Snowbirds? Us?
While shopping for fresh fruits and veggies last Thursday, I was greeted by a friend in the grocers. He accused me of being the cause of coming bad weather. (We did get snow flurries, a bit of rain, more heavy snow, and strong winds Saturday,...
Beaches, Landscapes and Palms
We are winding down our Florida sojourn. I am not looking forward to returning from this green semi-tropical paradise to our frozen white tundra. The grandsons had a weekend off from hockey, so we too...
O-Pine-Inated Report On Trees
We're still vacationing in Florida, and watching lots of hockey. We did throw in a real circus last weekend. The contrast of the heat under the big top to the chill of ice arenas was similar to walkin...
Parasitic vs Epiphytic Plants
We are in sunny Florida, visiting our middle daughter and her family. Don't be jealous. While it's sunny (for the most part - we did see lots of rain Saturday) and green, we're still experiencing...
Frost, Feasts and Power Failures As Well As Reflections of 2019
Mother Nature gets a huge F for how it's treated us the past two holidays. I think we're all hoping the frost issues and power outages are over for good. I know the linemen (our heroes) hope the...
