Last year, my son and I put up some permanent deer fencing that's tall enough to keep them out. We've struggled with other solutions over the last 6 years as the deer around here are pretty tenacious and have managed to thwart our previous attempts at keeping them out of the garden with other kind of fencing. That and the elk and the black bears. But, that's another very looong story! But now that it's up, here's what I've got planned...
1. Actually get planting "on time". It's hard to gauge when the snow is finally going to be done around here, but I've got hoops over several of the beds and winter hardy row covers that I'll be using to get the season off right. I amended all the raised beds with seasoned horse manure from the neighbors last year, so it should be even more composted this year.
2. Set up our greenhouse. I bought a greenhouse last year, but between the deer fencing and digging up several beds to plant blueberry and raspberry bushes, I never got around to getting the greenhouse set up. I'll need to dig up a bunch of lawn if I want to plant in there, so this will be my big garden project for 2026. I haven't been successful growing peppers in our climate, so they'll go in there. Tomatoes do alright, but not great so I'm hoping to have a bigger crop this year. If there's space, I'll think about getting sweet potato slips and throw those in there since we eat a lot of sweet potatoes.
3. Use the laundry line. We have one of those old school laundry post and line setups out back with a ton of space for drying, well, pretty much everything. I set up new lines last year, I just need to be better about hauling the laundry in and out from the washing machine. It's amazing how much we save on our electric bill when I'm diligent about it.
4. Set up a few rain barrels. Our roof is metal with no gutters. We get way too much snow for gutters, so it will be a little challenging finding a good place to capture rainwater. There's one spot in the front yard in the driveway that consistently has runoff, but it's not a great place for a rain barrel or for getting it to the garden. I know there are other options out there, so I'll be researching some of those expanding tent-like versions for rainwater capture.
5. More canning and preserving. I was so busy with the bakery farmstand last year, I missed the opportunity to do some canning that I'd like to get under control this year. I'll be starting with Victorian Rhubarb BBQ sauce and pickled asparagus, but first I need to make some jams from the fruit I froze from last summer. Everything just went into the freezer because I didn't have time to do it at the peak of the season (or it was just too hot to can inside). I also want to dry more herbs this year.
6. Possibly getting chickens or rabbits? I go through this every year. Perhaps 2026 is the year we go this route. I did raise quail from eggs a few years ago (more on that in a future post).
7. Partner with other homesteaders. I have a friend that has a large homestead with goats, chickens and horses. We've been talking for years about doing another project together. She's my egg supplier for the bakery farmstand, but maybe there's goat cheese in our future!
8. Make more, instead of buying pre-made. This applies not only to the food we are eating, but to the other products we use (like dishwasher detergent and laundry soap). I'd like to reduce the amount of pre-packaged food coming into the house, but that requires turning "ingredients" into something my kids will consume. I'm the primary cook/baker in the house (which I like), but I need to be more on top of this.
9. Go in on a pig or beef share. Since I've co-opted my bakery fridge into a freezer, I have space to store more meat. And, because Ellensburg (a few miles east of us) has quite a number of ranches, I should take advantage of getting locally raised meat.
10. Add another raised bed. (And clean up some other plots.) I've dug up the sod for a raised bed, but I just need to build another 8'x4' frame for it and fill it. That part always seems daunting, so I keep putting it off!
Looking back at my Homesteading Goals for 2012, it's funny how not much has changed! (I even borrowed the photo I took from back then when I did our last pig share.) The location has changed from Seattle to Central WA, so the challenges are different. But the goals remain the same!