Yellow jackets can be a problem in this area. They are ground dwellers, and if you aren't careful, they will nest right where you walk.
That, however isn't my problem. This batch 'o bugs decided to nest in one of my raised beds. I realized that whenever I would go by the raised beds with the hay bales, I would see lots of yellow jackets. Now, I was seeing lots of bees, and other insects, too, but lots of yellow jackets.
They don't, as far as I know, pollinate any flowers. Hmm. I looked, and finally sat on my new brick patio, (Thank you, Husband!), and just watched that bed. Zip, out comes a 'jacket. And again. Zing, a 'jacket whizzes right past the pumpkin vine into the hay.
Urk.
I mentioned this to Husband, and said I would get rid of the things. He trots out with some cleaner.
What are you doing?
I am going to get rid of the bugs for you...
NO,YOU ARE NOT. That is in my garden, I do NOT want poisons in there!
After a bit of back and forth, we decided to use water to flush them out. We have put the hose, running full blast, for long enough that the water is seeping between the boards of the raised bed, and forming a puddle by the patio.
And yet. And yet, they still are there. Not as many, but I still see 'jackets when I go by. This worries me, because they are docile now. When it gets late fall, they get mean, and guess when I need to cut apart the bales? But, there is only one bale I 'have' to cut, and they don't seem to be there. So I shall continue to see if I can encourage them to go elsewhere, and keep an eye on if I will have neighbors with a bad attitude, come fall.
Wish me luck!
Showing posts with label garden. Show all posts
Showing posts with label garden. Show all posts
Saturday, August 24, 2019
Saturday, August 03, 2019
The Hulk of veggies. Among other things...
I am finally feeling that MOST of my vegetables will do okay. The beans, meh. The corn, maybe, they are growing, some, and trying to tassle. The tomatoes, they are starting to produce, and looking pretty good, if a bit more leaf than flower.
The crookneck and Zukes, they are doing well, except for one plant, that I think might have been planted in a bad spot or something. It wilts... Almost every day.
I water, and it perks up... To wilt again soon after.
Huh. I haven't worked out what's wrong, but it seems to be struggling along...
The watermelons are starting to produce, I have one the size of, oh, a golf ball, or a bit bigger, with a few more coming on... The potatoes seem to be full and lush, so we shall see what goes on under, later.
Then there is the pumpkin...
I ordered a ghost pumpkin seed packet. These come out white on the outside, so I could put a ghost up on the fence, or what have you. Just a 'for fun' type thing. I planted it in one of the hay bales.
I now have these leaves from that pumpkin, that are the size of elephant ears! The silly thing isn't even that big yet, and the vine is taking over the area! I keep it away from the rest, but it's humongous! And I see some starts of pumpkins... I keep wondering if they made a boo boo, and sent one of the Dill's Atlantic Giant, or Big Max, or some such, instead? But they won't have time to be a monster size, they only have a few months left to gain momentum...
But, then, I don't think Audrey, from Little Shop of Horrors was all that large, either, to begin with...
:)
The crookneck and Zukes, they are doing well, except for one plant, that I think might have been planted in a bad spot or something. It wilts... Almost every day.
I water, and it perks up... To wilt again soon after.
Huh. I haven't worked out what's wrong, but it seems to be struggling along...
The watermelons are starting to produce, I have one the size of, oh, a golf ball, or a bit bigger, with a few more coming on... The potatoes seem to be full and lush, so we shall see what goes on under, later.
Then there is the pumpkin...
I ordered a ghost pumpkin seed packet. These come out white on the outside, so I could put a ghost up on the fence, or what have you. Just a 'for fun' type thing. I planted it in one of the hay bales.
I now have these leaves from that pumpkin, that are the size of elephant ears! The silly thing isn't even that big yet, and the vine is taking over the area! I keep it away from the rest, but it's humongous! And I see some starts of pumpkins... I keep wondering if they made a boo boo, and sent one of the Dill's Atlantic Giant, or Big Max, or some such, instead? But they won't have time to be a monster size, they only have a few months left to gain momentum...
But, then, I don't think Audrey, from Little Shop of Horrors was all that large, either, to begin with...
:)
Saturday, July 13, 2019
Gardening update, and watering saga.
All is growing that I planted. Except the carrots. (Sorry, Dad.) I just found out that the Kohlrabi seems to be attracting slugs, I put down some Sluggo, and I am going to put down some more seed, just in case. It's early enough, I think it should do fine. The hay bales are working out well. All the plants, except for one pumpkin, seem to be thriving, but I found out, the bales are at a slight slant, making the ones at the lower point get more moisture. They are bigger. Oops. I think it's also why the one pumpkin is so puny. But, the experiment works, with a few tweaks for next year.
Beans are doing well, if not growing outrageously fast. There is some volunteer potatoes by them, too! Have to see what kind. I planted three in that area before.
Tomatoes are small, but they are putting on blossoms, and one or two tomatoes. I am also seeing crooknecks starting.
The corn... Well, I am seeing some starts. I don't hold my breath, but after 4, yes 4 tries, some came up. For anyone keeping score, that was 5 different types of corn, to find ONE that worked. (I won't mention how many different kinds I used on the carrots. Sorry again, Dad...)
The flowers seem to be doing well, and some are going to seed, I hope to gather the seed to use in an area that we are going to make for bees and pollinators. :) Also, where it is, for the visual enjoyment of passers-by.
On to watering. I water the chickens with a rain barrel, until it empties, which is much later this year, as it has been much cooler than usual, and raining somewhat more regularly. Weeeelllll, the tank would not pour for some reason. I fiddled and futzed with it, but no go on the water. I needed to leave, so I used the hose nearby. NOT the best idea. The nozzle leaks, and I ended up getting a not appreciated freezing cold shower at 6 in the morning. With my clothes on. And my glasses...
Bless him, Husband figured out there was a stick blocking the water flow, so I will be able to use the barrel again, but I think it's time to switch nozzles on that hose. I will have to search in the greenhouse, but I have one that I can swap out, fortunately.
One blood-curdling scream to scare the neighbor's horses is enough...
Beans are doing well, if not growing outrageously fast. There is some volunteer potatoes by them, too! Have to see what kind. I planted three in that area before.
Tomatoes are small, but they are putting on blossoms, and one or two tomatoes. I am also seeing crooknecks starting.
The corn... Well, I am seeing some starts. I don't hold my breath, but after 4, yes 4 tries, some came up. For anyone keeping score, that was 5 different types of corn, to find ONE that worked. (I won't mention how many different kinds I used on the carrots. Sorry again, Dad...)
The flowers seem to be doing well, and some are going to seed, I hope to gather the seed to use in an area that we are going to make for bees and pollinators. :) Also, where it is, for the visual enjoyment of passers-by.
On to watering. I water the chickens with a rain barrel, until it empties, which is much later this year, as it has been much cooler than usual, and raining somewhat more regularly. Weeeelllll, the tank would not pour for some reason. I fiddled and futzed with it, but no go on the water. I needed to leave, so I used the hose nearby. NOT the best idea. The nozzle leaks, and I ended up getting a not appreciated freezing cold shower at 6 in the morning. With my clothes on. And my glasses...
Bless him, Husband figured out there was a stick blocking the water flow, so I will be able to use the barrel again, but I think it's time to switch nozzles on that hose. I will have to search in the greenhouse, but I have one that I can swap out, fortunately.
One blood-curdling scream to scare the neighbor's horses is enough...
Saturday, June 15, 2019
Garden saga continues...
The potatoes in the hay bales, they are doing extraordinarily well!
Can I stop there? No... Ok...
I planted some summer squash seed, in the hay bales, along with some pumpkin seed. They all came up, great and strong, and looking terrific! The next morning... Stumps. A slug fest, a slug FEAST, and my poor plants were the victims. I have put ONE MORE batch of seed in, and totally covered the hay bales with diatomacious earth, until I can get some Sluggo, or something that will keep the little slimy monsters from ruining my new plants. I don't have any copper, or I would make a barrier with THAT, too. (Supposedly, slugs don't like copper, it gives them a bit of a zap, and they don't go past the stuff.)
I put in Kohlrabi, just a few days ago, so hoping for the best, as it was requested by a couple friends.
I planted 4 different kinds of corn, and nothing seems to be coming up. However, no birds have eaten it, so the netting is doing its job. But I really want the various corn types to do SOMETHING...
Planted beans. Both green beans, and dry beans. The dry beans are mostly because I like them, they are Wolverine's Orca dry beans. Cool looking, some of the money goes to a good cause, and we'll have beans for eating. Win, win, win!!!
I have some crookneck, zucchini, and my tomatoes, all doing okay, at this point. The tomatoes seem a bit small, but I will give them a bit of time and attention, that should help.
The watermelon in the hay bale... It's okay. Not dying, not thriving. It's... Meh. The one in the soil, is doing better, but I had to have Husband help me by digging out a dock weed. Nasty long roots on those things! Well, he didn't realize the watermelon plant was there, and dropped a big clod of dirt on it... It's doing alright, but it did munch it a bit. I have now put flags by all the items that need to be noticed, so hopefully that won't happen again... Eeep.
And, I have most of the weeding in all the beds finally down to a manageable level. I do need to work on two of the beds, one is covered in... Dandelion starts? I think? The other is just wild grasses. I hope to get them finished this next week sometime, or sooner, but this week seems to be filled up already...
Time. Let's see, there are 96 hours in a day, right???
Can I stop there? No... Ok...
I planted some summer squash seed, in the hay bales, along with some pumpkin seed. They all came up, great and strong, and looking terrific! The next morning... Stumps. A slug fest, a slug FEAST, and my poor plants were the victims. I have put ONE MORE batch of seed in, and totally covered the hay bales with diatomacious earth, until I can get some Sluggo, or something that will keep the little slimy monsters from ruining my new plants. I don't have any copper, or I would make a barrier with THAT, too. (Supposedly, slugs don't like copper, it gives them a bit of a zap, and they don't go past the stuff.)
I put in Kohlrabi, just a few days ago, so hoping for the best, as it was requested by a couple friends.
I planted 4 different kinds of corn, and nothing seems to be coming up. However, no birds have eaten it, so the netting is doing its job. But I really want the various corn types to do SOMETHING...
Planted beans. Both green beans, and dry beans. The dry beans are mostly because I like them, they are Wolverine's Orca dry beans. Cool looking, some of the money goes to a good cause, and we'll have beans for eating. Win, win, win!!!
I have some crookneck, zucchini, and my tomatoes, all doing okay, at this point. The tomatoes seem a bit small, but I will give them a bit of time and attention, that should help.
The watermelon in the hay bale... It's okay. Not dying, not thriving. It's... Meh. The one in the soil, is doing better, but I had to have Husband help me by digging out a dock weed. Nasty long roots on those things! Well, he didn't realize the watermelon plant was there, and dropped a big clod of dirt on it... It's doing alright, but it did munch it a bit. I have now put flags by all the items that need to be noticed, so hopefully that won't happen again... Eeep.
And, I have most of the weeding in all the beds finally down to a manageable level. I do need to work on two of the beds, one is covered in... Dandelion starts? I think? The other is just wild grasses. I hope to get them finished this next week sometime, or sooner, but this week seems to be filled up already...
Time. Let's see, there are 96 hours in a day, right???
Thursday, June 13, 2019
Hummers, and other birds.
I have 2 hummingbird feeders in the garden. One is hung on a shepherd's crook, the other I sat on a wooden box in the garden proper.
I found out the one on the box, is needing to be hung on something, too, we have a multi-lane freeway of sugar ants that get into it... Bleah. So I moved it to a different spot temporarily.
The next morning, when I was watering, I heard the familiar buzz of one of the hummers coming in for breakfast. Zzzzzzzip, then a sudden stop in midair. The poor thing looked back and forth, totally confused, his sippy cup was missing! I stood still, and soon enough, he saw where I'd put it. But, if a very small bird can look dumbfounded, I saw it!
Hummingbirds in this area are mostly this kind, a red-throated hummer, and I have been watching this lovely one that goes to the hanging feeder. It always gives me a quick once over when I am there, then goes to the feeder and drinks. I don't know why it gives me a quick eyeball, but I am glad it does. It has the most dazzling DARK PINK feathers on it's throat. I don't know that I have seen that shade on a hummingbird before. So we get to look each other over really well!
When I walk out to the garden, I have been hearing a tapping and scratching. Took me a bit to figure out what it is... A bird, a Lazuli Bunting specifically, has found a mortal enemy...
His reflection in one of our milk house windows. I have seen him swat, nip, fly at, attack and peck at the image he sees. I worry the little guy is going to hurt himself. I keep wondering if I could find some stick on cat images, or something, to dissuade the stinker from doing that. I am not worried about the window that much, but as angry as the little Romeo is, I keep wondering if he will do himself some damage. But, still, every morning, scratch, peck, scratch, scratch, scratch!
I am hoping to get a seed type bird feeder set up somewhere near the garden, we have goldfinches around, and I think they are so pretty. The various varieties of bird we have around are neat to listen to, but they tend to be variations on grey, black and white. Not this shining ball of yellow! Maybe it's because I am usually not moving fast in the garden, but I have more than once seen a goldfinch sit somewhere about 3-5 feet from me, and just watch. Occasionally chirping, I don't know if it's comment or criticism, but they have a long and varied 'chirp', so I find it a nice thing...
There are several other birds in the area, crows, ravens, chickadees, robins, the occasional vulture, egrets, geese, and probably more that I haven't thought of... But if you like bird watching, my garden seems to be as good a place as any!
I found out the one on the box, is needing to be hung on something, too, we have a multi-lane freeway of sugar ants that get into it... Bleah. So I moved it to a different spot temporarily.
The next morning, when I was watering, I heard the familiar buzz of one of the hummers coming in for breakfast. Zzzzzzzip, then a sudden stop in midair. The poor thing looked back and forth, totally confused, his sippy cup was missing! I stood still, and soon enough, he saw where I'd put it. But, if a very small bird can look dumbfounded, I saw it!
Hummingbirds in this area are mostly this kind, a red-throated hummer, and I have been watching this lovely one that goes to the hanging feeder. It always gives me a quick once over when I am there, then goes to the feeder and drinks. I don't know why it gives me a quick eyeball, but I am glad it does. It has the most dazzling DARK PINK feathers on it's throat. I don't know that I have seen that shade on a hummingbird before. So we get to look each other over really well!
When I walk out to the garden, I have been hearing a tapping and scratching. Took me a bit to figure out what it is... A bird, a Lazuli Bunting specifically, has found a mortal enemy...
His reflection in one of our milk house windows. I have seen him swat, nip, fly at, attack and peck at the image he sees. I worry the little guy is going to hurt himself. I keep wondering if I could find some stick on cat images, or something, to dissuade the stinker from doing that. I am not worried about the window that much, but as angry as the little Romeo is, I keep wondering if he will do himself some damage. But, still, every morning, scratch, peck, scratch, scratch, scratch!
I am hoping to get a seed type bird feeder set up somewhere near the garden, we have goldfinches around, and I think they are so pretty. The various varieties of bird we have around are neat to listen to, but they tend to be variations on grey, black and white. Not this shining ball of yellow! Maybe it's because I am usually not moving fast in the garden, but I have more than once seen a goldfinch sit somewhere about 3-5 feet from me, and just watch. Occasionally chirping, I don't know if it's comment or criticism, but they have a long and varied 'chirp', so I find it a nice thing...
There are several other birds in the area, crows, ravens, chickadees, robins, the occasional vulture, egrets, geese, and probably more that I haven't thought of... But if you like bird watching, my garden seems to be as good a place as any!
Tuesday, June 04, 2019
A wee bit of hooky for me...
I went on a trip last week to the coast. Husband and I worked out how to give Mom a belated Mother's Day present. A friend of ours has a place on the coast, and Husband was offered use of it. After some back and forth, Husband and friend were able to get organized, that Mom and I could go and spend a couple nights. I, with permission, skipped work the day before we went. Figured I would do my blog from my phone.
I forgot two items when I went over. Binoculars, and my password to get into my blog.
AHEM.
Soooo, I will now get back to bloggy stuff...
It was a nice trip, we went to Newport, and had a nice place to stay. The first night was just stay in and rest. Mom loves the chicken soup I make, so I brought a container, and I had made a loaf of Stupid Bread* to go with it. It's a bit of a drive, so I was sort of glad we didn't go out and make an evening of it.
I just enjoy most of the activities on the coast, so I told Mom this was stuff she wanted to do. We ended up going to Yaquina Head Lighthouse, as she'd not seen it before. I meant to take her to Cobble Beach nearby, but forgot. It's a bit of a walk to get to, but it sounds like applause when you listen to the waves on the rocks! We also went to the interpretive center, I enjoy looking at all the "educational and historical" stuff. Obviously, there was someone who didn't. I didn't see the girl, but Mom said that there was a teenager that was walking behind the family, nose glued to her phone. I told Mom, that might be for the good, at least she wasn't ruining the rest of the family's time... 😞
I pointed out to Mom one of the "Easter Eggs" they have. From the first lighthouse keeper to the early sixties, there was a book exchange. They would have X number of books, and then the next time they were supplied, the books would be put in a big box, there would be new ones given, and then the old books would go to the next lighthouse. Well, they had samples of the books in a crate. Victor Hugo, Dickens, Bronte... Star Wars... (I noticed it right off, the docent told me it's to have the kids notice so they will pay more attention, they have sort of a scavenger hunt thing... She also said I was one of the few adults that that noticed. SIGH...)
We also went to a majorly talked about restaurant. I won't eat the clam chowder there, as it made me sick! But I found out they have many, many other things to eat, so I told her, if she wanted to go, I would have something else. I ended up having a cod burger. Mom had a cup of chowder, and... Something with shrimp? Anyway, we finished up, and she was okay with it, but said the hype, was hype, it was okay. Not great... My cod burger, on the other hand, was perfect, and HUMONGOUS. I was VERY full.
The next day, we went to Depoe Bay, and went to the Whale watching center. I guess there was a small whale that had spouted, but I was borrowing the one of many sets of binoculars, to watch boats, and missed it! Mom saw it, I think. The ranger was quite sure. The people that were all glued to the windows, not so much... Oh, well, it was still an interesting stop.
We then went to lunch, at a place we've eaten at for years. They have changed the menu, and had breakfast until 11:30. Erk. We were there at 11:10. We asked if they were serving lunch yet. No, the only thing they have ready is clam chowder. We both laughed, that's exactly what we'd come in for! So, we had clam chowder. Quite good, too. The only oddball thing, I kept getting a whiff of maple syrup. Turns out, the gent behind me had a stack of pancakes, and was drenching them accordingly. Fortune would have it, it didn't bother me, just was odd to smell maple, and eat clam...
We then drove home. WHOA BOY, do people seem to want to drive fast. I set the cruise to 55, the speed limit on the road home, and I was needing to pull over quite often, as there were lots of peoplelate for pole position at Indy wanting to go considerably faster. I don't fight it, I just figure, if there's a safe spot, or I can get to the passing lane, let the stinkers by. I was just sooooo happy we didn't go on a weekend. We were going HOME on a Friday. The road going in was bumper to bumper to bumper to bumper...
If I can later, I will see if I can get a picture up. Being immodest here, but I think I took a very good picture of the ocean... I hope to maybe make it into a poster or some such.
But for now, back to the home stuff!
* I called it Stupid Bread because it was so incredibly dense. I was making it, and the bread machine tried to commit suicide by leaping off the counter onto the floor. After cleaning up the dough, (i.e. cutting off the stuff that had managed to actually HIT the floor, eeeewwwww... ) The dough that was still intact was set to bake. I thought.
Husband reset it, and it went through the whole process of raise, beat down, raise, beat down, all over again. It tasted fine, but soft and fluffy it weren't!
I forgot two items when I went over. Binoculars, and my password to get into my blog.
AHEM.
Soooo, I will now get back to bloggy stuff...
It was a nice trip, we went to Newport, and had a nice place to stay. The first night was just stay in and rest. Mom loves the chicken soup I make, so I brought a container, and I had made a loaf of Stupid Bread* to go with it. It's a bit of a drive, so I was sort of glad we didn't go out and make an evening of it.
I just enjoy most of the activities on the coast, so I told Mom this was stuff she wanted to do. We ended up going to Yaquina Head Lighthouse, as she'd not seen it before. I meant to take her to Cobble Beach nearby, but forgot. It's a bit of a walk to get to, but it sounds like applause when you listen to the waves on the rocks! We also went to the interpretive center, I enjoy looking at all the "educational and historical" stuff. Obviously, there was someone who didn't. I didn't see the girl, but Mom said that there was a teenager that was walking behind the family, nose glued to her phone. I told Mom, that might be for the good, at least she wasn't ruining the rest of the family's time... 😞
I pointed out to Mom one of the "Easter Eggs" they have. From the first lighthouse keeper to the early sixties, there was a book exchange. They would have X number of books, and then the next time they were supplied, the books would be put in a big box, there would be new ones given, and then the old books would go to the next lighthouse. Well, they had samples of the books in a crate. Victor Hugo, Dickens, Bronte... Star Wars... (I noticed it right off, the docent told me it's to have the kids notice so they will pay more attention, they have sort of a scavenger hunt thing... She also said I was one of the few adults that that noticed. SIGH...)
We also went to a majorly talked about restaurant. I won't eat the clam chowder there, as it made me sick! But I found out they have many, many other things to eat, so I told her, if she wanted to go, I would have something else. I ended up having a cod burger. Mom had a cup of chowder, and... Something with shrimp? Anyway, we finished up, and she was okay with it, but said the hype, was hype, it was okay. Not great... My cod burger, on the other hand, was perfect, and HUMONGOUS. I was VERY full.
The next day, we went to Depoe Bay, and went to the Whale watching center. I guess there was a small whale that had spouted, but I was borrowing the one of many sets of binoculars, to watch boats, and missed it! Mom saw it, I think. The ranger was quite sure. The people that were all glued to the windows, not so much... Oh, well, it was still an interesting stop.
We then went to lunch, at a place we've eaten at for years. They have changed the menu, and had breakfast until 11:30. Erk. We were there at 11:10. We asked if they were serving lunch yet. No, the only thing they have ready is clam chowder. We both laughed, that's exactly what we'd come in for! So, we had clam chowder. Quite good, too. The only oddball thing, I kept getting a whiff of maple syrup. Turns out, the gent behind me had a stack of pancakes, and was drenching them accordingly. Fortune would have it, it didn't bother me, just was odd to smell maple, and eat clam...
We then drove home. WHOA BOY, do people seem to want to drive fast. I set the cruise to 55, the speed limit on the road home, and I was needing to pull over quite often, as there were lots of people
If I can later, I will see if I can get a picture up. Being immodest here, but I think I took a very good picture of the ocean... I hope to maybe make it into a poster or some such.
But for now, back to the home stuff!
* I called it Stupid Bread because it was so incredibly dense. I was making it, and the bread machine tried to commit suicide by leaping off the counter onto the floor. After cleaning up the dough, (i.e. cutting off the stuff that had managed to actually HIT the floor, eeeewwwww... ) The dough that was still intact was set to bake. I thought.
Husband reset it, and it went through the whole process of raise, beat down, raise, beat down, all over again. It tasted fine, but soft and fluffy it weren't!
Tuesday, May 14, 2019
New Garden Store.
Our community has a new garden store. My Mom and I went to the grand opening, and wow, oh, boy were there a lot of folks! I think that when you mention free food, there is a huge turnout. Especially since it was a nice, warm day, and they had free ice cream, churned by tractor. No joke, the guy churns the stuff from the PTO on the back of the tractor in a large ice cream maker. He makes ice cream at one of the local farmer's markets, and it is very good. However, he was going through so much of it, it was a bit more "soft serve" than usual!
I suppose that I am a garden geek, (among other geekdoms), but I have been looking for 2 different fertilizers. Yep, specialized poo, so to speak. I have found one at a local store, but the other thus far was more than an hour drive away, and I just didn't see the value in that... BUT, this store has the second type I wanted. So, I have been trying it with the new plants I have, (some watermelon, acorn squash, and tomatoes, along with columbine, and a couple wave petunias), and it is working quite well...
However, the one I used has an... unintended side effect. It's a fish fertilizer. I put a dab in the ground, and went to get the hose to dilute it. I come back, and Buzz is twitterpated, making sure she is front and center of stinky fish smell. I almost had to spray her with the hose to get her to leave it alone! But everything that is planted so far is doing well, except the potatoes. I am going to start over with those. The carrots aren't really taking off yet, but I did notice a nice side effect of bird netting. The evil, nasty, no good, rotten slugs haven't gotten in yet. I don't hold out hope that they will stay out, but at the moment, the slug trails remain on the OUTSIDE of the netting.
And for any keeping score, I honestly only bought 4 tomatoes. I want to buy/grow some red and yellow pear tomatoes for myself, but I am trying to keep it under 10 this year. I have had as many as 16, and harvest tends to get a bit overwrought. So, just enough for family, and a couple friends that would want any, and the others for me, for soup.
I will be getting some other seed in the ground soon. Farmer Cat and her garden strike again!
I suppose that I am a garden geek, (among other geekdoms), but I have been looking for 2 different fertilizers. Yep, specialized poo, so to speak. I have found one at a local store, but the other thus far was more than an hour drive away, and I just didn't see the value in that... BUT, this store has the second type I wanted. So, I have been trying it with the new plants I have, (some watermelon, acorn squash, and tomatoes, along with columbine, and a couple wave petunias), and it is working quite well...
However, the one I used has an... unintended side effect. It's a fish fertilizer. I put a dab in the ground, and went to get the hose to dilute it. I come back, and Buzz is twitterpated, making sure she is front and center of stinky fish smell. I almost had to spray her with the hose to get her to leave it alone! But everything that is planted so far is doing well, except the potatoes. I am going to start over with those. The carrots aren't really taking off yet, but I did notice a nice side effect of bird netting. The evil, nasty, no good, rotten slugs haven't gotten in yet. I don't hold out hope that they will stay out, but at the moment, the slug trails remain on the OUTSIDE of the netting.
And for any keeping score, I honestly only bought 4 tomatoes. I want to buy/grow some red and yellow pear tomatoes for myself, but I am trying to keep it under 10 this year. I have had as many as 16, and harvest tends to get a bit overwrought. So, just enough for family, and a couple friends that would want any, and the others for me, for soup.
I will be getting some other seed in the ground soon. Farmer Cat and her garden strike again!
Saturday, May 11, 2019
Midnight in the garden of...
Potatoes.
So remember recently when I said the bugs and slugs had decimated my potato starts? Well, maybe not so much.
Husband and I had both seen this black kitty, and it would just sneak over for a snack, and then leave. I decided it was Midnight. (Was going to name it Toothless, but it has yellow, not green, eyes. Yes, I am weird. And a nerd. And picky, too.)
I was watering the garden, and looked up, to see Midnight staring at me. Which stunned me slightly, as I was using a water hose. Most cats do not like them. He didn't seem to mind, but just kept quietly watching me. (Yeah, he. I can tell, because he keeps letting everyone know with a nose know that he was there, by relieving himself on the canister we feed cat food from... And the wall by the door. YEEESH, even.)
So, I try talking softly, and not moving to him. I do sit down. He opens his eyes, just a bit, then relaxes again. I watch, as he stretches out, and rolls.
On my potato bed. The ones that are the biggest. That were trying to come back some. He then pushed at a potato start with his nose, and pushed it around, like a kid playing toy cars. Yay.
I watched, and between the flopping on of, wiggling around on, and pushing to and fro, the potatoes were looking heavily bedraggled. Then Buzz showed up, just as I'd gotten within 6 or so feet of Midnight.
Turns out, Buzz doesn't care for Midnight. Oddly, Midnight is a little spooky guy with her. She growled, and he decided that it was time to leave. I had to distract her, or she looked like she was going to do the cat version of punching his lights out. Her place, her rules, HE GOES!
Huh. Okay.
So, the bugs and slugs aren't helping, but they might just be a side effect of being mangled by a cat.
I have planted carrots on two of the bales now. I have them covered with bird netting.
Cat netting?
We shall see what transpires in the near future...
So remember recently when I said the bugs and slugs had decimated my potato starts? Well, maybe not so much.
Husband and I had both seen this black kitty, and it would just sneak over for a snack, and then leave. I decided it was Midnight. (Was going to name it Toothless, but it has yellow, not green, eyes. Yes, I am weird. And a nerd. And picky, too.)
I was watering the garden, and looked up, to see Midnight staring at me. Which stunned me slightly, as I was using a water hose. Most cats do not like them. He didn't seem to mind, but just kept quietly watching me. (Yeah, he. I can tell, because he keeps letting everyone know with a nose know that he was there, by relieving himself on the canister we feed cat food from... And the wall by the door. YEEESH, even.)
So, I try talking softly, and not moving to him. I do sit down. He opens his eyes, just a bit, then relaxes again. I watch, as he stretches out, and rolls.
On my potato bed. The ones that are the biggest. That were trying to come back some. He then pushed at a potato start with his nose, and pushed it around, like a kid playing toy cars. Yay.
I watched, and between the flopping on of, wiggling around on, and pushing to and fro, the potatoes were looking heavily bedraggled. Then Buzz showed up, just as I'd gotten within 6 or so feet of Midnight.
Turns out, Buzz doesn't care for Midnight. Oddly, Midnight is a little spooky guy with her. She growled, and he decided that it was time to leave. I had to distract her, or she looked like she was going to do the cat version of punching his lights out. Her place, her rules, HE GOES!
Huh. Okay.
So, the bugs and slugs aren't helping, but they might just be a side effect of being mangled by a cat.
I have planted carrots on two of the bales now. I have them covered with bird netting.
Cat netting?
We shall see what transpires in the near future...
Saturday, May 04, 2019
Weeds, oh, brother, do I have weeds...
The weather was to be terrific, so said the forecast. I had planned for it, and I was ready to clean out the garden... Then it froze. Huh. Not so great for my wanting to do anything outside. I cleaned house instead.
The next day, it was so much warmer. After the light frost in the morning, it was pleasant. So, I forged forward with grand plans of attacking the- Oh, Holy Crap! That's a lot of weeds! I stared at the raised bed, that I could not see the overwintered plants in, because of the weeds and grasses... EEEK!
Ok, one thing at a time. Get wheelbarrow. Check. Gloves? Check. Weed popper? Check. Knife? Check. Off to the races!
I proceed to pull weeds. And pull weeds, and PULL WEEDS! Filled the wheelbarrow twice with one raised bed. The chickens were waiting with bated breath for me, I dump the load, and it's tossed like a salad, for the seeds they want.
Grasses, probably could have had a fair hay bale, from all the crud I had in there. BUT, pull, pull, pull, got it down to the soil again, except for some tiny greenery, that shall be hoed and raked away later. I was able to get rid of everything but the curly dock weed...
That monster was not leaving without a fight. It had all winter to get nice and huge. I dug, picked, pulled, and was even trying my menacing glare, when Husband walked up. I mentioned that the dock weed was going to be a bear to remove.
He shrugged, just a second, I have the shovel back here.
I watched as he scooped out the weed like it was a hand in a glove, toss it in my wheelbarrow, and then repeat with 2 others he saw.
I was grateful, I would have been there for, well, a LONG time, trying to remove the crud. And even with the shovel, I doubt I could have removed it as thoroughly as he did. But, can I say honestly that I really wish I wasn't envious of him being able to DO that? I would probably jump up and down several times before the shovel would move. No leg strength... Sigh.
But now I have the big stuff cleaned out, and I can start adding compost and new soil, and get things ready for planting, soon.
Oh. And the potatoes I planted? Remember I mentioned there was a freeze? Well, I had waited to where I remembered the last frost being, and Mother Nature LAUGHED! Anyway, it burned the tops of the tall ones. They all had been attacked by some little round bug, and slugs. Loose translation, I have to replant them. Ah, the joys of gardening.
Snarl...
The next day, it was so much warmer. After the light frost in the morning, it was pleasant. So, I forged forward with grand plans of attacking the- Oh, Holy Crap! That's a lot of weeds! I stared at the raised bed, that I could not see the overwintered plants in, because of the weeds and grasses... EEEK!
Ok, one thing at a time. Get wheelbarrow. Check. Gloves? Check. Weed popper? Check. Knife? Check. Off to the races!
I proceed to pull weeds. And pull weeds, and PULL WEEDS! Filled the wheelbarrow twice with one raised bed. The chickens were waiting with bated breath for me, I dump the load, and it's tossed like a salad, for the seeds they want.
Grasses, probably could have had a fair hay bale, from all the crud I had in there. BUT, pull, pull, pull, got it down to the soil again, except for some tiny greenery, that shall be hoed and raked away later. I was able to get rid of everything but the curly dock weed...
That monster was not leaving without a fight. It had all winter to get nice and huge. I dug, picked, pulled, and was even trying my menacing glare, when Husband walked up. I mentioned that the dock weed was going to be a bear to remove.
He shrugged, just a second, I have the shovel back here.
I watched as he scooped out the weed like it was a hand in a glove, toss it in my wheelbarrow, and then repeat with 2 others he saw.
I was grateful, I would have been there for, well, a LONG time, trying to remove the crud. And even with the shovel, I doubt I could have removed it as thoroughly as he did. But, can I say honestly that I really wish I wasn't envious of him being able to DO that? I would probably jump up and down several times before the shovel would move. No leg strength... Sigh.
But now I have the big stuff cleaned out, and I can start adding compost and new soil, and get things ready for planting, soon.
Oh. And the potatoes I planted? Remember I mentioned there was a freeze? Well, I had waited to where I remembered the last frost being, and Mother Nature LAUGHED! Anyway, it burned the tops of the tall ones. They all had been attacked by some little round bug, and slugs. Loose translation, I have to replant them. Ah, the joys of gardening.
Snarl...
Friday, November 30, 2018
The grand plan for blogging again... Really! Honest!!
So, I have a great plan on getting back into blogging. Let’s see if it works…
I figured I needed something to give me the impetus to try for doing daily blogs again, and I was drawing a blank. Then, after Thanksgiving dinner, we were chatting a little bit about Christmas. Hmm.
Christmas.
Need to get out my Christmas ‘stuff’. Have to have Husband help me get down all my cups. My collection of them. How many do I have, anyway? Well, as he was getting them down, I have either 27 or 28… So!
I will use that as a jumping off point. I love Christmas cups, because they are fun, and useful. So I will work on putting up a photo a day of each cup. I had one cup I sort of counted as a Christmas cup, I called it “Starbucks' Red”, because I picked up a plain red cup, during that whole controversy on how Christmas-y the cups were, or weren’t, that year. BUT, the darn thing got a bad chip in it, and so will not count this year for the collection. Maybe I can pick up a plain red one again sometime in the future. But the ones I will be showing you are from mildly Christmas-y, to Ugly Sweater, what-was-Santa-smoking Christmas-y, and all in between.
I will blog on the normal doings and nonsense in my life, too, so it won’t just be a picture, but that will at least make me think to do it! Right? I hope?? Heh…
The garden is put to bed, all the raised beds that don’t have over wintering items are covered with cloth and leaves, or shred paper. The llamas are enjoying hay, when they don’t managed to sad eye beg me into giving them chicken feed.
The chickens are doing pretty well, I lost 4 of the new hatch to a hawk, but it seems to have found someone else to tick off… Marshmallow had a chick, I called it Jet Puff, it is getting adult feathers, but it is TINY! I don’t know why, but it is only about a third of the size of the others, and it should be getting some growth. I don’t know that I care, it seems healthy, and it is feisty as all get out. I have picked it up to check it, and have yet to get away without being bitten or scratched. As tiny as it is, that isn’t a horrible fate, but it still gets my attention, if I am not careful.
The cats are fine and fuzzy, family is doing fairly well, and as I think of more things, I will post in the next blog.
But for now… Good night!
I figured I needed something to give me the impetus to try for doing daily blogs again, and I was drawing a blank. Then, after Thanksgiving dinner, we were chatting a little bit about Christmas. Hmm.
Christmas.
Need to get out my Christmas ‘stuff’. Have to have Husband help me get down all my cups. My collection of them. How many do I have, anyway? Well, as he was getting them down, I have either 27 or 28… So!
I will use that as a jumping off point. I love Christmas cups, because they are fun, and useful. So I will work on putting up a photo a day of each cup. I had one cup I sort of counted as a Christmas cup, I called it “Starbucks' Red”, because I picked up a plain red cup, during that whole controversy on how Christmas-y the cups were, or weren’t, that year. BUT, the darn thing got a bad chip in it, and so will not count this year for the collection. Maybe I can pick up a plain red one again sometime in the future. But the ones I will be showing you are from mildly Christmas-y, to Ugly Sweater, what-was-Santa-smoking Christmas-y, and all in between.
I will blog on the normal doings and nonsense in my life, too, so it won’t just be a picture, but that will at least make me think to do it! Right? I hope?? Heh…
The garden is put to bed, all the raised beds that don’t have over wintering items are covered with cloth and leaves, or shred paper. The llamas are enjoying hay, when they don’t managed to sad eye beg me into giving them chicken feed.
The chickens are doing pretty well, I lost 4 of the new hatch to a hawk, but it seems to have found someone else to tick off… Marshmallow had a chick, I called it Jet Puff, it is getting adult feathers, but it is TINY! I don’t know why, but it is only about a third of the size of the others, and it should be getting some growth. I don’t know that I care, it seems healthy, and it is feisty as all get out. I have picked it up to check it, and have yet to get away without being bitten or scratched. As tiny as it is, that isn’t a horrible fate, but it still gets my attention, if I am not careful.
The cats are fine and fuzzy, family is doing fairly well, and as I think of more things, I will post in the next blog.
But for now… Good night!
Monday, July 02, 2018
My quarterly blog... Sigh. That needs to change...
I guess trying to write my blog hasn't been the smashing success I'd hoped for this year. (Anonymous seems to think so, but I really think he/she is in it for the advertising...)
I have planted a garden, except for carrots. As much as the carrots are important, I want Dad to have a treat, it was just strange this season, and they never were planted. I have been slowly trying to get my act together, cleaning out the disaster areas that are my raised beds. What a mess. Surprisingly, however, most were pretty easy to clean. Husband and I put garden fabric several of them, and covered them with leaves. While there were weeds... The weeds were on the fabric, and the leaves that covered it. One pull, and Yoink! No weed! So I then would turn the dirt, plant, and then wait for something to happen. But I just wasn't able to get the carrot area cleared out, and, as it turned out, I made the soil not too good for carrots, so, there's always next time. Pbbbt.
Tomatoes, not bad. Acorn squash, some good, some not. Beans, good, like always. Crookneck, and Zucchini, meh, I think I could plant them in concrete, and water with an eyedropper filled with vinegar, and those things would grow... :)
Then the watermelon. I found out, after 2, count them, TWO plantings, that I had a rodent of some ilk, that was eating the plants. I had a hole come open in the dirt when I was watering, that I could put both fists in, and led who knows where... The damage led me to suspect someplace warm and sulfur smelling... To that end, I have been watering that area until it floods up. Hee, hee... The last surviving watermelon plant is struggling, but hasn't died yet. I don't hold out much hope for it, but at least it seems to be holding on.
Corn was another feast for something... We haven't decided if it was rodents, or poults that the mother turkeys just hatched. Either way, I had nothing left. It ended up, I redug the bed, and planted the Crookneck, instead. I am very disappointed, as I had three different kinds of corn I was trying. I will try next year. And put up bird screen...
Driving was interesting recently. We had "retired" my little truck, and I was using my wee electric car pretty much exclusively. I was taking family to an appointment when this... person... hit the back of another truck, who was trying frantically to stop, (I saw her quite literally standing on the brakes, screaming, when I looked in my mirror), and that truck was pushed into me.
NO ONE WAS HURT!! That was the good thing. I nearly vomited while I was trying to work out what to do, but all were fine. I called the police, which upset the... person... who hit the other truck who hit us. Meanwhile, I had at least 3 people stop and give me witness statements that he didn't even slow down. The policeman showed up, and we had to exchange info. The... person... first thing, gets out and tells me this is the third time he's been in an accident like this, and he has neck problems, and and and... (!!!!)
I had never been in an accident where I had to exchange info before, and had forgotten to get my driver's license out. The... person... got on my case, and acted like I was the one in the wrong. I was rather flustered, and just told him I had left my purse in the car. It ended up, the back was so mangled, I had to have the policeman, who had long arms, reach my purse, as it was mushed into the back of the car, in the trunk area.
We all exchanged info, and then I drove home, with a very injured, but drivable car. Called our insurance, after a bit of talk, they said (thank you!) the... person... was 100% at fault. So, we put the poor car on a trailer and schlepped it to a body shop. The joys of instant communication, the neighbors called, as we were turning the corner on the main drag from our house, "Hey, why's your car on the trailer, what happened?"
We were told, after the inspection, it would be about a week. Sounds good, I can drive the truck for a week.
And then two weeks. They found more damage. Then another week. More damage. Then, finally, after 4 weeks, my car was returned. The last week, damage? No. The insurance wouldn't pay for a light that was broken in transit. Well, the body shop tossed a guy version of a hissy fit, and took photos of this light, which was basically broken worse than the light DAMAGED IN THE ACCIDENT, and so they finally relented. Meh.
But, I basically had to remember shifting, and having to fill up regularly at a gas station, (car is electric), and having to re-budget for a month, since gas picked that time to go up... Yay. But, knock frantically on wood, things came back looking nice and new, and have worked well since.
And I have still been working the Tuesday volunteer shift, getting the various yearly doctors appointments, went to the retirement of my county's sheriff, (and got a hug!), still knitting socks, and such, and donating blood. So, some same ol', same ol', too.
I have about a week or so of "stuff" to do, then I might have some 'me' time. With any luck, I will be working on the Garden Tardis. (Weather is nice, I think I can paint, and work on the decorations to make sure it will handle being outdoors.) I am also going to make a bricked area, I guess you'd call it a patio? And area for chairs and a table, to sit and enjoy my garden. I have bricks, garden stakes, string, pick axe, bucket, and wheelbarrow. Now I need sand. And time to work on it.
And, maybe camping. Some time to veg out, and eat S'mores, hot dogs, and general food that I don't eat much at home... Which is probably a good thing!
I have planted a garden, except for carrots. As much as the carrots are important, I want Dad to have a treat, it was just strange this season, and they never were planted. I have been slowly trying to get my act together, cleaning out the disaster areas that are my raised beds. What a mess. Surprisingly, however, most were pretty easy to clean. Husband and I put garden fabric several of them, and covered them with leaves. While there were weeds... The weeds were on the fabric, and the leaves that covered it. One pull, and Yoink! No weed! So I then would turn the dirt, plant, and then wait for something to happen. But I just wasn't able to get the carrot area cleared out, and, as it turned out, I made the soil not too good for carrots, so, there's always next time. Pbbbt.
Tomatoes, not bad. Acorn squash, some good, some not. Beans, good, like always. Crookneck, and Zucchini, meh, I think I could plant them in concrete, and water with an eyedropper filled with vinegar, and those things would grow... :)
Then the watermelon. I found out, after 2, count them, TWO plantings, that I had a rodent of some ilk, that was eating the plants. I had a hole come open in the dirt when I was watering, that I could put both fists in, and led who knows where... The damage led me to suspect someplace warm and sulfur smelling... To that end, I have been watering that area until it floods up. Hee, hee... The last surviving watermelon plant is struggling, but hasn't died yet. I don't hold out much hope for it, but at least it seems to be holding on.
Corn was another feast for something... We haven't decided if it was rodents, or poults that the mother turkeys just hatched. Either way, I had nothing left. It ended up, I redug the bed, and planted the Crookneck, instead. I am very disappointed, as I had three different kinds of corn I was trying. I will try next year. And put up bird screen...
Driving was interesting recently. We had "retired" my little truck, and I was using my wee electric car pretty much exclusively. I was taking family to an appointment when this... person... hit the back of another truck, who was trying frantically to stop, (I saw her quite literally standing on the brakes, screaming, when I looked in my mirror), and that truck was pushed into me.
NO ONE WAS HURT!! That was the good thing. I nearly vomited while I was trying to work out what to do, but all were fine. I called the police, which upset the... person... who hit the other truck who hit us. Meanwhile, I had at least 3 people stop and give me witness statements that he didn't even slow down. The policeman showed up, and we had to exchange info. The... person... first thing, gets out and tells me this is the third time he's been in an accident like this, and he has neck problems, and and and... (!!!!)
I had never been in an accident where I had to exchange info before, and had forgotten to get my driver's license out. The... person... got on my case, and acted like I was the one in the wrong. I was rather flustered, and just told him I had left my purse in the car. It ended up, the back was so mangled, I had to have the policeman, who had long arms, reach my purse, as it was mushed into the back of the car, in the trunk area.
We all exchanged info, and then I drove home, with a very injured, but drivable car. Called our insurance, after a bit of talk, they said (thank you!) the... person... was 100% at fault. So, we put the poor car on a trailer and schlepped it to a body shop. The joys of instant communication, the neighbors called, as we were turning the corner on the main drag from our house, "Hey, why's your car on the trailer, what happened?"
We were told, after the inspection, it would be about a week. Sounds good, I can drive the truck for a week.
And then two weeks. They found more damage. Then another week. More damage. Then, finally, after 4 weeks, my car was returned. The last week, damage? No. The insurance wouldn't pay for a light that was broken in transit. Well, the body shop tossed a guy version of a hissy fit, and took photos of this light, which was basically broken worse than the light DAMAGED IN THE ACCIDENT, and so they finally relented. Meh.
But, I basically had to remember shifting, and having to fill up regularly at a gas station, (car is electric), and having to re-budget for a month, since gas picked that time to go up... Yay. But, knock frantically on wood, things came back looking nice and new, and have worked well since.
And I have still been working the Tuesday volunteer shift, getting the various yearly doctors appointments, went to the retirement of my county's sheriff, (and got a hug!), still knitting socks, and such, and donating blood. So, some same ol', same ol', too.
I have about a week or so of "stuff" to do, then I might have some 'me' time. With any luck, I will be working on the Garden Tardis. (Weather is nice, I think I can paint, and work on the decorations to make sure it will handle being outdoors.) I am also going to make a bricked area, I guess you'd call it a patio? And area for chairs and a table, to sit and enjoy my garden. I have bricks, garden stakes, string, pick axe, bucket, and wheelbarrow. Now I need sand. And time to work on it.
And, maybe camping. Some time to veg out, and eat S'mores, hot dogs, and general food that I don't eat much at home... Which is probably a good thing!
Friday, August 26, 2016
On the go, now go slow(er).
I have been on the go of late. I actually did go one time on my own, for a movie I wanted to see, but the rest, either stuff to keep the place going, (read: groceries and animal feed), or ‘stuff’ for the volunteer work. I am getting to the point that the volunteer work is going to be scaled back. Pruned, even… I have already turned in notice to one group. I turned in notice earlier, IN WRITING, to another group, but they still have me as lead. They will learn…
But due to varying personal reasons, and just the fact, hey, I want some “ME” time… I am going to be cutting back. And you know, I am (mostly) not feeling guilty about it. I am still volunteering for the Sheriff's Office, and I will still do a few other things from time to time, but I am really needing to back off, and maybe work on some things closer to home...
I will still be knitting for others, but I have two projects I wanted to knit for me. I have knit one, a vest. I have yet to sew it together and finish it (it has some fluffy edges that needs be done after being put together), and a nightcap from the 1840’s. The juxtaposition is rather astounding, one is quasi-hippie, the other is somewhat highbrow London. I am not eccentric eclectic for nothing!
Deciding to sit down and read casually again was a good thing on my part. I read through… Game of Thrones, Clash of Kings, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, Dance of the Bones (J.A Jance), and decided to try Don Quixote. I saved Swarm of Swords for faire reading. I think it will fit in rather well, actually. Even if Mister Martin doesn’t have a clue about the melting temperature of gold… Sorry, my willing suspension of disbelief sort of fell by the wayside for that chapter. Hopefully I haven’t dropped any spoilers. My reading speed seems to have been fine, but I am most glad I have my "superpower" glasses (bifocals) now, I don't have to put the book against my nose to read print!
This week will be getting costumes and such readied for faire. It will be a bit bittersweet, this will be the first year I am not going to be manning much of anything. I will help a friend with her booth, she is going through some medical issues, and she is scaling back, too. I will help with one or two items, but faire is more or less free for me this year. That said, one of my friends there passed away this morning. It was expected, and we are going to have a memorial for her there. Several of my friends that started faire are gone, and while I still see the fingerprints of them, I miss the people…
My Auntie is coming for a visit next week, not sure what that will bring. She lives in Arizona, so I hope she remembers to bring her down parka and long underwear! (I do think perhaps she won’t be quite that bad, but I do know the temps are supposed to cool here, and she had been dealing with 100+ for a bit. Sweaters will indeed be a good thing, though.)
I have been working on keeping the garden picked. However, keeping up with zucchini is a challenge. If you miss one, you end up with a baseball bat. Husband and I joke, there is a recipe for Zucchini Boats. When they get that big, you have Zucchini Battleships… The chickens don’t seem to mind, so it works out. And it’s been a pretty prolific year for my tomatoes, I hope to put some up, but man, oh man, right now, I need to start figuring out who would like some, because I could make tomato soup for a LARGE group at the moment. Blackberries gave me several pints of jelly, I could probably make more, but I probably have enough jars to last at least a couple seasons.
I also have apples. I had to laugh, I had spent most of the morning picking tomatoes and zukes, Husband commented, wasn’t I going to pick apples? I told him no, I was getting a bit tired. He said, uh, I could pick some, I don’t want the pie crusts you have to go to waste…
So, there is a pie cooling on the stove right now. I will have to see about getting something done with the tomatoes, but you know, there are priorities. If Husband was willing to go pick a mess of apples, well, I was willing to make him a pie!
But due to varying personal reasons, and just the fact, hey, I want some “ME” time… I am going to be cutting back. And you know, I am (mostly) not feeling guilty about it. I am still volunteering for the Sheriff's Office, and I will still do a few other things from time to time, but I am really needing to back off, and maybe work on some things closer to home...
I will still be knitting for others, but I have two projects I wanted to knit for me. I have knit one, a vest. I have yet to sew it together and finish it (it has some fluffy edges that needs be done after being put together), and a nightcap from the 1840’s. The juxtaposition is rather astounding, one is quasi-hippie, the other is somewhat highbrow London. I am not eccentric eclectic for nothing!
Deciding to sit down and read casually again was a good thing on my part. I read through… Game of Thrones, Clash of Kings, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, Dance of the Bones (J.A Jance), and decided to try Don Quixote. I saved Swarm of Swords for faire reading. I think it will fit in rather well, actually. Even if Mister Martin doesn’t have a clue about the melting temperature of gold… Sorry, my willing suspension of disbelief sort of fell by the wayside for that chapter. Hopefully I haven’t dropped any spoilers. My reading speed seems to have been fine, but I am most glad I have my "superpower" glasses (bifocals) now, I don't have to put the book against my nose to read print!
This week will be getting costumes and such readied for faire. It will be a bit bittersweet, this will be the first year I am not going to be manning much of anything. I will help a friend with her booth, she is going through some medical issues, and she is scaling back, too. I will help with one or two items, but faire is more or less free for me this year. That said, one of my friends there passed away this morning. It was expected, and we are going to have a memorial for her there. Several of my friends that started faire are gone, and while I still see the fingerprints of them, I miss the people…
My Auntie is coming for a visit next week, not sure what that will bring. She lives in Arizona, so I hope she remembers to bring her down parka and long underwear! (I do think perhaps she won’t be quite that bad, but I do know the temps are supposed to cool here, and she had been dealing with 100+ for a bit. Sweaters will indeed be a good thing, though.)
I have been working on keeping the garden picked. However, keeping up with zucchini is a challenge. If you miss one, you end up with a baseball bat. Husband and I joke, there is a recipe for Zucchini Boats. When they get that big, you have Zucchini Battleships… The chickens don’t seem to mind, so it works out. And it’s been a pretty prolific year for my tomatoes, I hope to put some up, but man, oh man, right now, I need to start figuring out who would like some, because I could make tomato soup for a LARGE group at the moment. Blackberries gave me several pints of jelly, I could probably make more, but I probably have enough jars to last at least a couple seasons.
I also have apples. I had to laugh, I had spent most of the morning picking tomatoes and zukes, Husband commented, wasn’t I going to pick apples? I told him no, I was getting a bit tired. He said, uh, I could pick some, I don’t want the pie crusts you have to go to waste…
So, there is a pie cooling on the stove right now. I will have to see about getting something done with the tomatoes, but you know, there are priorities. If Husband was willing to go pick a mess of apples, well, I was willing to make him a pie!
Tuesday, May 10, 2016
The garden... and an inspection.
Ah, so what do we have out here? Hmm, a box...
Ah, a BIG box. Solar collection? Litter? Hunting?
The possibilities are endless!
Oh, Hi! What? Don't poop here? Well, of course not,
I will wait until I have some privacy.
Besides, it's nice and warm, I will just relax for now.
Oooh, wazzat? There's a tractor coming in!
Time to go!
And my crop of little orange flags are growing well!
For any that call Irises flags, this is probably a joke photo, but I didn't mean it that way... I have some cold weather crops, peas, spinach, carrots, and then the lone flag is salad greens. LOTS of salad greens.
I like salad.
But Husband has all the raised beds in, we put the wood chips down (freebie from the crews doing tree maintenance on our road, Yay!) and the deer fence up, so I am pretty well good to go!
Thursday, March 27, 2014
Irony.
I have decided not to go to an event in September. I find that it takes up about 2 to 3 weeks, prep, actually going to the event, then cleaning up after. Husband has been an absolute rock about helping me, but several OTHER events occur that same time, and I am either: frantically preparing, gone, or exhausted and don't want to go. So, this year, I decided, you know, I will just skip. I found that they have a good handle on the job I normally do, and lots of new volunteers, so I will maybe be a visitor, but not a participant. Amazing, huh?
And, thought I, wow. Harvest for my garden is usually smack dab in the middle of all that. Now I can go hog wild on the garden, and not have to worry about coming home to rotting veggies, or picking things the size of fire extinguishers... Husband's idea of picking, is to call a neighbor and say, 'you want this?' Which is not a problem, except that some take the things I was saving for me, or pick the plant in such a way as to damage it. The first more than the last, fortune would have it, but when you have been waiting all season to try kohlrabi, and when you get home, every last one is gone, it's a bit of a bummer. (Hope springs eternal for THIS year...)
So, while dreaming of my garden this year, Husband and I start chatting about what we might be doing in September. Then he mentions, oh, since I would like to work on the pump house, could you skip the garden? I don't want to be running over the hose, and we could work on putting in the raised beds and such for next year.
After settling my eye twitch down, I asked if I had to not garden at all. Would a planter garden cause any problems? He said, oh, no, that should be fine, I just need to have the back area available.
Whew!
So, I have started my seeds for this season, and will probably get a bit creative, because of the space limitations, (hanging planters, anyone?), but there will be veggies!
Even if it will look like I am trying to start a nursery...
And, thought I, wow. Harvest for my garden is usually smack dab in the middle of all that. Now I can go hog wild on the garden, and not have to worry about coming home to rotting veggies, or picking things the size of fire extinguishers... Husband's idea of picking, is to call a neighbor and say, 'you want this?' Which is not a problem, except that some take the things I was saving for me, or pick the plant in such a way as to damage it. The first more than the last, fortune would have it, but when you have been waiting all season to try kohlrabi, and when you get home, every last one is gone, it's a bit of a bummer. (Hope springs eternal for THIS year...)
So, while dreaming of my garden this year, Husband and I start chatting about what we might be doing in September. Then he mentions, oh, since I would like to work on the pump house, could you skip the garden? I don't want to be running over the hose, and we could work on putting in the raised beds and such for next year.
After settling my eye twitch down, I asked if I had to not garden at all. Would a planter garden cause any problems? He said, oh, no, that should be fine, I just need to have the back area available.
Whew!
So, I have started my seeds for this season, and will probably get a bit creative, because of the space limitations, (hanging planters, anyone?), but there will be veggies!
Even if it will look like I am trying to start a nursery...
Saturday, April 07, 2012
G. Gobblers and garden (eventually).
We thought the neighbors had run off the turkeys (again...), but I had heard them for the last few days. Husband had said he'd seen them, but I hadn't had the chance this season... Until this afternoon...
And the tomatoes I have grown are doing pretty well... If looking lazy. They don't have enough light, I suspect, but they seem healthy, and since these are (for this area) waaaay long season tomatoes, I have to give them all the help I can. The kohlrabi is doing pretty good, too, I suppose, but it always looks spindly to me, even when it has the big bulb thing on it. Guess it's just a new crop for me, and I am still not used to how it looks.
So, I am still holding out hope that we will be able to plant these in soil, and I won't have to learn hydroponics...
Monday, January 30, 2012
Weather. Or not...
I took some pictures yesterday, we were going to get some rain in, and the clouds looked interesting. When I went outside, I found out the sun had risen only on the neighbor's field. We were still getting ready for sunshine, I guess... Thought it looked nice.
I thought this looked a lot like freshly cut fiber from a llama or sheep, but I tend to be thinking about that right now... It looks a bit like an unrolled roving.
Yes, I have fiber on the brain. If not in it...
A larger view, which almost looks like a storm, or some such, but this little bit of clouds, never did do anything...
This is Brassy, our mascot. He is finally getting to have some character, he was incredibly shiny when we first put him up, brilliant copper color. Now he's getting some tarnish, some verdigris, and it's making him look much better, in my opinion.
This is the garden, asleep for the season. Husband had to do a repair on the fence, we don't know exactly what happened, but there were deer tracks leading up to the corner of the fence, and the fence itself was leaning at about a 45 degree angle. (I leave the gate open to let the deer come in and eat the grass...) The deer might have spooked, or just not gauged the jump right. Husband has it fixed now, though.
This is such a great picture of Rudee, I almost hate to tell you how I got it. I was trying to get his attention, and he wasn't interested. Then I cracked a LOUD fart. He snapped to attention, ears up! WHAAAT??? I guess, if it works, it works...
And this last one? This is why you feed the llama BEFORE you take the picture... The camera barely escaped a nose print!
Wednesday, October 19, 2011
Motivation for next month's blogging... 26 days worth, anyway.
I did last year an "A through Z" blog. I think I will try that again for next month. It works out that you basically blog each day except Sunday. I might have to work hard to do this, as next month sounds a little busy, but I need to really commit to writing again.
Blog, book, what have you, I have not... Not good.
Especially now with Baby Hal, it is much easier to do (most) things. I still have some strange moments, like when B. Hal decided to increase the magnification on the screen to G*d knows how big (there was one or two HUGE letters on the screen, from a web page full of writing...), and also locking up the mouse once or twice, but that seems to have stopped for the most part. I found out my rubber bracelet drives Hal nuts occasionally, the mouse reacts to the band much like my finger, for whatever reason, leading me to desperate clicks to find what I have accidentally brought up or removed. Other than removing said band, I haven't quite found a cure for that one.
I have finally pulled all the tomatoes out of the garden. I felt like it wasn't a complete waste, but I felt bad taking the stuff out. It wasn't going to grow much more, and I was afraid that if I left them in, I would lose track of the cages, and we would have a repeat of Husband nearly impaling himself on one when he rototilled.
(Husband was fine. The cage was terminal...)
I am so horribly disappointed with the cages I bought this year. I was sold cages that were supposed to be heavy duty, and galvanized. Well, they were galvanized. That much was true. Heavy duty, my fat fanny! Heavy duty tinfoil, maybe. EVERY ONE fell over, all of them warped and bent, and several lost the prongs on the bottom that drive them into the ground. I am going to give them away to the first person that I can pawn them off on. Next year, I will go back to using T posts... Or hog fencing with ties. Hmph.
In other news, I have a family member not doing so well, she is in one of those elder apartments, and became very ill. Turns out, she has been having problems remembering to take pills, and some other 'stuff' going on, so the family has finally sat her down for a talk that she needs to go to the assisted side of the apartments. She is not really happy about this, but she is getting to the point she needs more help than the occasional look-see by family members. It will work out, but she is in her 90's, and rather... proud of her mental strength, so she is sort of taking this a bit hard. We all are trying to let her know it's not a failing, it's just to keep her healthy and safe. (I think maybe she is starting to agree, but time will tell).
I am going to be taking an online class, this should be interesting. It's a class on chronic pain management. I have been doing okay, in that area, but I still have times when I am not able to do, or cope well, and I hope to maybe get some perspective that I might not have thought of. Besides, then I can tell my gripes and complaints to someone who hasn't heard it several times before! (wink)
And lastly, on a funny note:
I think Rudee understands English better than I give him credit for!
I was walking, and for some odd reason, right after I had gotten a good pace going, and built up a good head of steam, Rudee walks right in front of me. And stops. I walk around him, start up again, then he does it again! The third time, he wanders slowly, blocking me. I was getting rather annoyed by this point, and told him, "Move, or I am going to stick this pole up your a**!"
Next thing I know, he's turned, looked at me with wide eyes, and gets out of my way, walking waaay over to the left, and not daring to walk in front of me.
Smart dog...
Blog, book, what have you, I have not... Not good.
Especially now with Baby Hal, it is much easier to do (most) things. I still have some strange moments, like when B. Hal decided to increase the magnification on the screen to G*d knows how big (there was one or two HUGE letters on the screen, from a web page full of writing...), and also locking up the mouse once or twice, but that seems to have stopped for the most part. I found out my rubber bracelet drives Hal nuts occasionally, the mouse reacts to the band much like my finger, for whatever reason, leading me to desperate clicks to find what I have accidentally brought up or removed. Other than removing said band, I haven't quite found a cure for that one.
I have finally pulled all the tomatoes out of the garden. I felt like it wasn't a complete waste, but I felt bad taking the stuff out. It wasn't going to grow much more, and I was afraid that if I left them in, I would lose track of the cages, and we would have a repeat of Husband nearly impaling himself on one when he rototilled.
(Husband was fine. The cage was terminal...)
I am so horribly disappointed with the cages I bought this year. I was sold cages that were supposed to be heavy duty, and galvanized. Well, they were galvanized. That much was true. Heavy duty, my fat fanny! Heavy duty tinfoil, maybe. EVERY ONE fell over, all of them warped and bent, and several lost the prongs on the bottom that drive them into the ground. I am going to give them away to the first person that I can pawn them off on. Next year, I will go back to using T posts... Or hog fencing with ties. Hmph.
In other news, I have a family member not doing so well, she is in one of those elder apartments, and became very ill. Turns out, she has been having problems remembering to take pills, and some other 'stuff' going on, so the family has finally sat her down for a talk that she needs to go to the assisted side of the apartments. She is not really happy about this, but she is getting to the point she needs more help than the occasional look-see by family members. It will work out, but she is in her 90's, and rather... proud of her mental strength, so she is sort of taking this a bit hard. We all are trying to let her know it's not a failing, it's just to keep her healthy and safe. (I think maybe she is starting to agree, but time will tell).
I am going to be taking an online class, this should be interesting. It's a class on chronic pain management. I have been doing okay, in that area, but I still have times when I am not able to do, or cope well, and I hope to maybe get some perspective that I might not have thought of. Besides, then I can tell my gripes and complaints to someone who hasn't heard it several times before! (wink)
And lastly, on a funny note:
I think Rudee understands English better than I give him credit for!
I was walking, and for some odd reason, right after I had gotten a good pace going, and built up a good head of steam, Rudee walks right in front of me. And stops. I walk around him, start up again, then he does it again! The third time, he wanders slowly, blocking me. I was getting rather annoyed by this point, and told him, "Move, or I am going to stick this pole up your a**!"
Next thing I know, he's turned, looked at me with wide eyes, and gets out of my way, walking waaay over to the left, and not daring to walk in front of me.
Smart dog...
Sunday, October 02, 2011
Returning. In which I compose a blog. Or compost one...
I actually had written "compost" to begin with. Not exactly an auspicious start, I would say.
Eh.
So, what have I been doing? Well, faire, obviously, since that's what the last (long, LOONG, LOOOONG ago) blog was about.
I finally took a make up class for the one day I had missed in the Citizens academy (cough2008coughcough), and then have been an Ambassador for a class. Which means that I make GALLONS of coffee, for a lot of very intense young (mostly male) people. Where I have seen several of the classes, people are chatting, interacting, and generally seem to be enjoying themselves, this group takes copious notes, and looks like there will be a pop quiz that is half their grade at the end. (One detective even commented on it during class. Only the other deputies laughed, and me. The class took more notes. Strange...)
I went to a fiber fest. Husband would probably have been upset had I brought these home... Actually, I think my ride might have too, since we were in a Prius, with a baby in the back... (But, Honey, it's yarn on the hoof!)
Eh.
So, what have I been doing? Well, faire, obviously, since that's what the last (long, LOONG, LOOOONG ago) blog was about.
I finally took a make up class for the one day I had missed in the Citizens academy (cough2008coughcough), and then have been an Ambassador for a class. Which means that I make GALLONS of coffee, for a lot of very intense young (mostly male) people. Where I have seen several of the classes, people are chatting, interacting, and generally seem to be enjoying themselves, this group takes copious notes, and looks like there will be a pop quiz that is half their grade at the end. (One detective even commented on it during class. Only the other deputies laughed, and me. The class took more notes. Strange...)
I went to a fiber fest. Husband would probably have been upset had I brought these home... Actually, I think my ride might have too, since we were in a Prius, with a baby in the back... (But, Honey, it's yarn on the hoof!)
I also saw several llamas. I was surprised, there were some babies, but the only llamas for sale, were adult males. This cutie kept flirting with me, I suspect he thought I had food in my carry bag. Or he has a thing for plump gals making goo goo eyes at him...
My usual shift at the substation. We had the computer melt down, so this month has been re-writing the newsletter from scratch, which includes digging up logos and such. That has been a bit of a challenge. One of the days I was there, I had a woman nearly demand I look up a license plate, because...
She wanted to buy the vehicle in question. (No, the Sheriff's Office, Police Department, etc. do not do this.)
I have picked quite a few vegetables, found out the kohlrabi is a hit with a friend of mine, so much so, that one day when I was gone, Husband offered several of the remaining ones to him. Uh, Husband, THOSE WERE MINE... Sheesh. There is a couple left, so I at least will get a little try of them... However, I do have several cups of vegetable soup from my garden that I have frozen for winter. Quasi-recipe, for any that want it:
Lazy Gardener's Veggie Soup.
5 cups water.
Vegetable Soup Mix (I used Knox)
Tomatoes.
Beans (I used Navy and Pinto)
Onions
Zucchini
Crookneck squash
Carrots
Cook beans until tender. Remove skins from tomatoes and chop. Chop all other veggies from garden. Put in pot, simmer until tender. Add beans, mix. Freeze. Add Garlic powder if Husband doesn't catch you.
Like I said, lazy. There may even have been more stuff than that, but that's what I can remember.
I finished an Edwardian Cape and matching hat for a new baby and her older sister (pictures to come.)
Finally got some blackberries picked and, for lack of a better term, mashed. I now have several cups of juice that Husband loves dearly on ice cream. I now only wish I had picked more...
I also picked apples...
(Tea box for scale.) I have most of this batch made into applesauce, and then I have some more to pick and sauce-ify. Then I can work on my Walnut trees, if I can beat the deer, squirrels, and turkeys.
And the rainy season is starting here, just in time for it to warm up, figuratively speaking, for Halloween. Most costumes match the raincoats, around here... Halloween falls on a Monday this year, I have decided if I get my act together, I might go as a hippie this year. We shall see.
Baby Hal has been (frantically knocking wood), doing quite well. There seems to be some problems behind the keyboard, but it has been improving, and it certainly does much better than our TV. Our news has almost entirely been from the computer of late, which tells you the quality of our reception here...
I also started a Twitter account, but it looks like it will probably be as hit and miss as the regular blog. I guess I have to realize that I have to actually WRITE something for it to show up, since I can't blog or tweet by telekinesis. Pity, that.
I am also knitting... A scarf or two, and a blanket, for my charities. Some socks for myself. A present for Mom. A baby blanket for a different charity. A new sweater for me.
And I am still working off and on on my book. Right now more in my head than on paper, but it's still in the queue, at any rate.
That doesn't take into account the normal I have to get groceries, my spinning days, and just running around when we need something.
Still exercising, too, Rudee is getting arthritis, so I am doing some things to supplement, as we can't walk as much. Well, he can't anyway.
So, I guess, perhaps I should shut up, and check some other blogs... Certainly been away long enough!
SHHEEEESH!
And just 'cuz, more pictures of veggies.
Wednesday, September 07, 2011
Heading out, some pics.
Grumble. I gained 2 pounds. Okay, I need to deal with that this week. Grr.
On to other topics. I am going to my yearly Ren Faire biz, and I wear gloves, because construction is as much of the duties as walking about in funny clothes (so says Husband...). I keep having a problem with people thinking my gloves are theirs, or vice versa, as plain white leather gloves seem very popular there.
So, I decided to jazz mine up a bit. I have the sneaking suspicion they will be easier to track down now. Husband and Mom both suggested paw prints on the back, but I haven't done so yet. But I believe they will still work...
So, hope my blog friends are all ok, I will hopefully be back blogging early next week.
On to other topics. I am going to my yearly Ren Faire biz, and I wear gloves, because construction is as much of the duties as walking about in funny clothes (so says Husband...). I keep having a problem with people thinking my gloves are theirs, or vice versa, as plain white leather gloves seem very popular there.
So, I decided to jazz mine up a bit. I have the sneaking suspicion they will be easier to track down now. Husband and Mom both suggested paw prints on the back, but I haven't done so yet. But I believe they will still work...
I put in a bunch of carrot seed, and I think the name of the one was Carnival. I was thinning, and I think I remember why...
I guess there is also white and purple colored ones, but I have only come up with these. The red is much, much more vibrant than shown. More fire engine than beet.
Wanted to take a picture of Rudee. He looked away just as I snapped the photo. So, set up again... (With his ears like that, I keep thinking... SUUUUPER DOOOG!)
And then he decided that he wanted to see what was in my hand, a treat, perhaps? (You'd think after this many photos, he'd figure out the camera wasn't edible...) Along with bumping my leg, which seemed to unfocus the situation...
But finally, I managed to get him to stay still, and a sharp whistle to get him to look, and ta da! A good pic of the dog. (Do need to edit it a smidge, I really don't think the trash bin does him justice, but oh, well...) I sort of chuckle though, he has an odd expression, like he's expecting the cat to attack him or some such... Maybe it's just me.
So, hope my blog friends are all ok, I will hopefully be back blogging early next week.
Friday, September 02, 2011
Pictures of mutants... And just strangeness.
Ok, this is the pumpkin that I was telling you about, see, just a long ol' pumpkin vine...
This is a pumpkin growing on it, it's the "Big Max" type pumpkin. I won't get any award winners for size, but I didn't try, either...
THIS is where it gets odd. See the big crooknecks? These are the base of the same plant that has the lovely pumpkin. And these are about a size 9 (US) women's shoe, so they are getting a bit large...
And these, well, I just added for fun. I guess that some people don't realize that you can scratch a picture on a pumpkin (these are a different batch than the Big Maxes), and the picture will 'scab over' making it show rather pronouncedly. I decided to play with a few I had for some kids I know, if they want them, if not, heck, I have a front porch...
Mrs. Happyface
Mr. Boo
This one I might keep. Senyour Funnyface
(Yes, I know I spelled that wrong, can't make the n squiggle...)
So, I hope that gives you a laugh today, and you can see the strange doings with my pumpkins. I have one more 'carved' pumpkin, but I have to cut it a bit deeper, it's barely visible... More pics when things "show".
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