By Casey Kelly Barton

I can hear sleet hitting the windows as I write and I'm reminded of what I like about winter in Central Texas: It's usually mild and brings some needed rain. My half-acre suburban homestead is more than ready for the change in the weather. Wanda and Neutron, our laying hens, are snuggled in their insulated house. The rabbits, whose duties include eating weeds, producing organic fertilizer and delighting my children, are in for the night. Out in the vegetable garden, the Swiss chard can handle anything Mother Nature throws at it. Lettuce, collards and carrots don't mind a little cold, and while this might be the last hurrah for the cosmos and alyssum interplanted to draw beneficial insects, the pansies and dianthus will no doubt soldier on through the cooler months. 

The girls savor a warm day before the sleet begins.

The only area where I'm caught short is rain barrels. I've had a 90-gallon barrel by the back porch for the past four years and it's invaluable in keeping the grass watered close to the house. Last summer, during a fit of chore-planning, I bought two more barrels with the intention of attaching them to the gutters on my garden shed--just as soon as I actually put gutters on the shed. What with the heat and the lack of any real rain for months, that task slipped ever lower on my to-do list. Now I'm kicking myself, but a dark and sleety night is definitely not the time to climb a ladder with tools in hand.

When I do get around to it, I'll no doubt blog it as I have with so many projects over the past four years, from the installation of our home's solar-electric system to my adventures with recycling sweater yarn, trying to build a decent organic vegetable garden, and profiling artisans who are creating lovely and useful things outside the Big Box. I'm tickled to be sharing my efforts at Central Texas eco-living with you here at Country Lifestyle Magazine and I look forward to hearing your stories and questions in the comments section.

Casey Kelly Barton writes, gardens and wrangles critters in Austin. She blogs and podcasts at Redneck Mother.

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