Chapter Six
For Sally, the hardwork started Monday.She’d drawn up a diagram of which seeds she wanted to plant where for the first crops of the season.She was excited but surprisingly a little nervous.She knew people were counting on her.Thankfully, she and her mother had spent a great deal of time gardening together and tending the garden, and she felt knowledgeable enough to make it happen.
As soon as she’d finished the breakfast dishes, she found the precious seeds she’d brought with her.Maggie had made it clear that she didn’t need to grow berries or Eskimo potatoes because they were easy enough to forage.Even onions weren’t difficult to forage, but she would plant a few as she’d brought the seeds for them with her.
She walked outside, looking at the field and then at her diagram.Grabbing her hoe, she set to work, digging a row then planting the seeds.She put the root vegetables into the first few rows, planning to leave some of the field fallow until it was time for her summer crop to go in.
Around noon, she looked up to see her friends headed toward her.Maggie was carrying a pot, while Belle carried the baby in her basket.Sally thought—not for the first time—that Belle should have a baby buggy, but she knew the terrain was too rough for one.She knew when her turn came, she’d be carrying the baby as well.
“How is the planting going?”Maggie asked.“It looks like you’ve done a lot of work since we saw you yesterday.”
Sally nodded, rubbing the back of her neck.The snow had barely melted in Alaska, and the weather was still cold, but the work she was doing made her hot.“I’ve got two rows done.I’ll try to do two more this afternoon.So far, I’ve just done turnips and half the radishes.Tom is digging fence posts tonight to keep the animals out.”
“What about the pigs?”Maggie asked.“What did you decide?”
“Oh, I was supposed to go and order the piglets this morning!”Sally said, answering the question.“We want to have four sows and one boar.Those will start our little pig farm, and we’ll keep those five for as long as they reproduce.Then we’ll slaughter their offspring.”
“Sounds like you know what you’re talking about,” Belle said.“We brought you lunch, figuring you wouldn’t stop to eat if we didn’t.”
Sally laughed softly.“You’re right.I would have kept working until it was time to put supper on the stove.”
Maggie smiled at that.“Let’s go in then.I made Belle’s duck and dumplings.It’s like chicken and dumplings, but we use mallard ducks.You’ve never tasted anything so delicious.”
“Ma and I used to eat chicken and dumplings often.I’m sure it will bring back many memories.”Sally carried her hoe and her seeds to the house, leaning the hoe up against it and carrying the seeds inside.“Let me wash up, and I’ll set the table for us.”
Maggie shook her head.“You wash up while I set the table.You shouldn’t have to be worried about anything but sowing your seeds.”
Sally hurriedly washed her hands while the other ladies set the table and served each of them a bowl full.“I really appreciate you ladies coming to force me to eat.”
“It’s no problem,” Belle said.“We’ll get the dishes done and put away, and even take turns helping you with your planting if you’d like.”
“Oh, I can take care of it...”
Maggie rolled her eyes.“Dishes will be done.The only choice you have is whether you want help planting.”She glanced at the paper on the corner of the table.“I forgot how organized you are.You know exactly where you want everything to go.”
“I do.That’s the best part of gardening, planning how you want to do things.”
“Do you think the planting will be done by Thursday?”Belle asked.“I want to plan out the week if we can.”
“I should be,” Sally said.“Are you going to leave me with the baby Thursday and Friday?”
Belle nodded.“That’s what we’re thinking.I hate to see gaps in our cold house because I’m afraid we won’t have enough meat for winter.Of course, now that we’re adding pigs, that will take some of the pressure off me.Will any be ready for winter?”
“Not this year.It takes six months for them to be ready for slaughter, but we’ll start with piglets who will need to produce more babies who will need to grow before we slaughter them.I’d say a year from now, we’ll have some bacon.”
Maggie sighed.“I do love bacon.If I didn’t work as hard as I do, we wouldn’t be able to have bacon.Thankfully, I get bacon in trade and don’t have to pay for it.”
“Everything is so much more expensive here!”Sally said, still astonished at how high the prices were at the store.
“That’s because everything has to be shipped from somewhere else.We’ve started giving the men a coupon for a penny off a full jar of jam if they return the jar.It saves us money as well as them,” Belle said.“Half of what we pay is in shipping!”
“I think using the jars over and over is a good way to mitigate some of the cost,” Sally said.“I’m glad that’s in place before I start doing anything.”
“Any extra produce from your garden can be sold or even canned and sold.You’d be surprised at what the men are willing to spend money on, so they will have more convenience in their lives,” Maggie said.
“It’s good that you are willing to do what it takes to join us,” Belle said.“I can’t tell you how excited we are to have you here.”
Sally smiled.“I don’t think you could be half as excited as I am.I missed you ladies.The hotel isn’t the best place to work.”
