living seasonally: july 2018

My parents take our kiddos for a week every summer (MAGIC!), and this year, Grant and I went backpacking down near Asheville and then spent several days in our favorite place just the two of us (DOUBLE MAGIC!). I also had some travel for work, so I’m just getting back in the swing of home life after being gone a lot over the last three weeks. We’re planning a quieter rest of July in hopes of resting up before the craziness of school starts back up again. Here’s what is on the docket for July around here…

Around the house/farm

• Harvesting! July is when the garden really starts popping. We’ll be harvesting all the things: garlic, tomatoes, peppers, summer squash, cucumbers, herbs, kale, Swiss chard, green beans, and more that I’ve certainly forgotten. We spend every evening in the garden in July and August if we can.
• Planting pumpkins. We plant pumpkins around the Fourth of July for October harvesting. We’re planting some crazy varieties this year in hopes of having enough for a small you-pick plot for friends for Halloween.
• Putting up. I try to do smaller batch preserving in July to keep up with stuff, and so that it isn’t so much work at once. We picked lots of black raspberries in June, but I didn’t have time to make jam so we’ll do that this month (we just froze the berries – frozen berries are just as delicious in jam as fresh ones). We’ll also ferment relish and pickles. I’ll put up lots of herbs for a taste of summer all winter long.
• At the end of the month, we’ll plant some stuff for fall harvesting. Here are some helpful tips for Midwest gardeners about what to plant and when. If you live elsewhere, Google “what to plant for fall harvest [your state].”

Eating seasonally

• We’re at that season where we go out to the garden to figure out what’s for dinner, which is a good thing because by this point in the year, I’m out of creativity in the kitchen. Plus, I want to be outside, not in the kitchen anyway. Grilling out and picking what’s coming in the garden is dinner for the foreseeable future.
• I also add in some stops to the farmers’ market to supplement what we have coming in the garden because sometimes the stuff isn’t coming in all at once. July and August are the best times of the year for someone eating seasonally in the Midwest, and we enjoy every minute of it.

Celebrating the season

• Jasper’s birthday is July 25th, so we always have fun celebrating him at the height of summer.
• National Ice Cream Day is July 15th, which we plan on celebrating by making our own seasonal ice cream with fruit from the farm.
• The Fourth is obviously a big celebration (I hope you had a great one!).

Ayurveda
I am fascinated by the wisdom of Ayurveda, a 5000 year-old mind-body health system with its roots in ancient India. It recommends various practices and foods based on the season of the year (you can see why I am fascinated!) and your individual constitution, so it is tailored to meet your body’s specific needs. I will share a bit of what I’m learning and incorporating about this ancient wisdom each month.

• Mid-summer is associated with the pitta dosha. Pitta season means heat and metabolism are high, so be gentle with yourself with whatever you do for movement (yoga, running, weight lifting, etc.). You want to balance out the intensity of Pitta with more gentle movement and refrain from competition, especially with yourself. Try yin, a perfect way to counter the heat of summer, with me if you’re local – every Monday at 7:30pm at Shine.
• Try the sitkari or sitali pranayama, breathing practices that help cool the body.
• Eat seasonally of course. According to Ayurveda, digestion is at its weakest during the summer months, so eat smaller meals and portions.

What are you up to this month?!