A journal from Portugal · Farm and kitchen garden
Roots in the field.
Harvest at home.
I · 20 acresEnter the FarmAnimals, fields and crops kept through winterOpen the farm journal
II · Village kitchen gardenEnter the BackyardQuick crops, preservation and the family ovenOpen the backyard journalRecent entries
Every note belongs to one of the two journals.
The bees have their own plansReading a colony, winter stores, honey and wax—and a frame that went wrong.
The hedge has a harvest tooAutumn fruit along the field edges: prickly pears, late blackberries, medronhos and knowing what belongs in the basket.
First rain is coming, and now? The season is just starting!Hay fields, shelters, bales and the jobs that begin with the first rain.
Early autumn on both plotsWhat to sow, bring in and put right before the first dependable rain.
I have the land, now what?Walk the ground, read its weather and get the basics working before adding more.
Keeping the harvestPrepare a storage room for potatoes, onions, squash and other keeping crops.
Preserving the surplusFreeze, dry, ferment and can the produce that will not keep fresh.
Hello from the farmAn introduction to the animals, crops and unplanned days behind this journal.Behind the journal
I’m AJ, an agronomist in Portugal. The Farm is our 20-acre family farm; The Backyard is my village kitchen garden. Here I write about the crops, animals, food and small discoveries that are worth keeping in a notebook.