I’ve been flying high – the autumn leaves have been stunning, my solar panels are installed, and I’m really living my homesteading dream. So, naturally, this week was a huge downer with a lot of frustrations.
Growing Food
I had been on the precipice of a big butternut squash harvest. I love to plant butternut squash because it is so easy to grow, simple to store for the winter, and so delicious when pulverized with plant-based butter and sage and served over pasta and roasted vegetables.
Over the course of a single day, a family of groundhogs destroyed every butternut squash and tomato in my garden beds. They ate the herbs and the strawberry plants. They even went into my cold frame and sampled some of the lettuce and arugula.
They started with the fruit, but as the days went on, more and more of the foliage was gone – and now nothing is left. Thankfully, the groundhogs have not gotten into either of the beds that have a temporary fence around them, nor have they bothered my blueberry plants (which also have a fence). However, this is only temporary – groundhogs can and will dig under fences.
This is a terrible blow, not just for my garden this year, but also for my gardens yet to come. Many people around here successfully grow gardens as well as large patches of corn and pumpkins without any sort of fencing around it. I find myself wondering how this is possible. I knew I would have to have a fence around my main garden to protect from rabbits and deer, but I was hoping to have a large pumpkin and squash patch and perhaps a three sisters patch with corn as well. I now can’t envision success with anything that isn’t surrounded with buried fence.
The plan had always been to start with temporary DIY fencing and, after a few years, invest in professional fencing. This way, I could make sure the size and location are suitable for my needs before making a big investment. Now, I wonder if I need to move up that timeframe, or if I should buy the equipment and learn the skills to install fencing on my own. Perhaps having an electric line on the top and bottom of even a temporary fence would keep animals away.
This will add a new element to the garden planning that I intend to do over the winter. In the meantime, I closed the cold frame and shored up the fence around my carrots and peas.
Energy Independence
Weeks ago, I scheduled a chimney sweep to service my chimney and wood stoves. Although it’s been 80 degrees during the day, the nights have been chilly enough that I’ve been eager to have my first evening fire in the wood stove.
The previous owners primarily heated this home with the wood stoves – one in the basement and one in the living room – so I did not for one second consider that there might be problems. To my surprise, the sweep informed me that the living room wood stove is not safe to use. He pointed out a few flaws – a mystery hole, a cracking plastic-like substance in the door where there should have been glass, a missing gasket, and the stove pipe was installed backwards.
I posted my experience on TikTok and, thankfully, was guided in a newfound education of wood stoves – both antique and modern. The stove pipe and gasket are easy fixes, and the hole was nothing more than an air intake. The plastic-like substance is actually mica – a fireproof mineral that is standard in antique wood stoves. So, with a little work, my stove is actually safe to use.
That being said, it is clear to me now that it is not ideal. The drafty nature of an antique stove means it will be inefficient and burn through wood quickly. With no bricks or grate inside, the fire would sit directly on the cast iron, which could lead to issues later on. My clay-lined chimney is great for a wood-burning fireplace, but an insulated stainless steel liner would be better for a wood stove. More importantly, now that I’m aware of all of this, I’m just uneasy about it – and I refuse to constantly worry that I might burn my house down because the previous owners cut corners on the wood stove installation.
I turned my research to modern wood stoves. The benefits are significant: for efficiency alone, I will probably burn half as much wood over the winter – which means a LOT when I’m hauling and splitting it all by hand! They also seem incredibly safe, and generally easy to maintain.
I am a little bit sad that most modern wood stoves don’t have the antique farmhouse look that I would prefer. Vermont Castings is the closest, but over the years their quality has declined and the reviews are not good. I’m leaning towards a Blaze King for their stellar reviews, although the look is a little more “sleek black box” than I would prefer. Jotul and Heartstone are brands that have come up in my search as well, but the sizes aren’t as great for my hearth.
As much as I hadn’t budgeted for this expense, a fire in the wood stove such a big part of my homesteading dream that it will be well worth the cost – and I can also take advantage of a tax credit if I install by the end of the year.
Moving Forward
This week, months of anticipation was ripped from me in mere moments. I’ve been envisioning a fire in my wood stove since last December, when I first toured the house. I’ve been babying my butternuts since July, looking forward to making my butternut squash pasta for Thanksgiving.
Now that some time has passed, I recognize that there is a solution for every problem. I am lucky to have time for many more gardening seasons, even if I have to install some fences to ensure my harvest. I am lucky that I can afford to replace the wood stove, even if spending money piques my anxiety – and I am privileged that I don’t need to replace the wood stove to stay warm this winter.
It is not lost on me that I am also incredibly lucky to have made it through more than three months of homeownership without any significant hurdles or roadblocks. These are the first, and they are pretty tame compared to what could have been.
Since bad things come in threes, I should mention that my dishwasher also broke this week – but a $134 replacement part is on the way and I should be able to fix it myself.
I hope your week is smooth and inexpensive,
KC