It ain't May anymore. Most of my garden is finally in. The new garden is being prepared for next year. The Farmers are finally getting the corn in the ground and if not all, then a lot more things are right in the world. The weather is great for flying kites!!!
We came from here:
http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/1177524/#new
The Junebugs are Junin' on the June homestead
Thanks, Nik!
Hah, I have no breeze here, so no kite flying weather here. I don't recall it being this dismally hot and still last year, but then I was working night shifts and rarely went outside in daylight either, so maybe it was and as usual I forget the bad and remember the good :)
Corn is up past knee high in the neighboring farms - I only wish I knew when they were spraying in advance so I could cover my little veggie gardens! I'll be harvesting probably the last of the broccoli tonight for a stir fry for the neighbors. I've been cooking for them 4-5 nights a week, in exchange for lawn mower repairs and future home and barn repairs from the tornado and straight line winds damage. They'll probably return to board here later in the month - very nice people. It's so rewarding to see my neighbor get her house framed up finally! They have 200 acres but have been living in a 5th wheel trailer for over five years waiting to build. Amazing tenacity we humans have in the face of adversity eh?
Darius, I'm sorry to hear about your cheese loss :( I hope you get your cave built this year and are able to chuckle about that later!
Cajun, I'm sorry to hear of the loss of your friends. It's nearly two years since my husband died and some days I still cannot bear to even look at a person, much less talk to anyone. I do make up for it in the 'up' times though and surely talk my friends ears plumb off when I do get ready to talk (thanks to those of you who frequent these boards who have let me bend an ear more than a time or two or three!!)
There simply are no jobs here that will support my existing expenses, so I'm working on a business plan to open my own business in the arena that I am experienced in. If you're the praying type, I'd appreciate them :) I never was very good at sales, and selling myself I am even less adept at.
Enjoy the rising of the fireflies at night, the burst of activity in your gardens, the rains when they come, and never take any day for granted!
Here's my little piece of joy to contribute - saved this Luna while mowing. It flew off into the woods after a little shooing by me :)
Speaking of June bugs..... does anyone have a nifty trap for them because. I refuse to pay $8 in the stores for one. They're in EVERYTHING!
How about a goose? They consider June bugs a delicacy. A friend has to remind his goose to go to bed at night. It wants to sit under the yard light and dine. 8 )
Hineni ~ I wish you only the best with your new endeavor. I would say you are determined enough to succeed at whatever you set your mind to...
Thanks for the new thread NikB ~ No breezes here. No fun for the kite afficianados.
No rain, no cool either. We are currently in EXTREME drought conditions here. All it would take would be a well aimed hurricane I guess.
Have been eating the first of my tomatoes. Great taste but mealy texture. Perhaps too dry or I waited too long or?
Man, it's Hotter 'n Blue Blazes outside, and it hasn't even reached the heat of the afternoon yet. I was outside for maybe 30 minutes, doing nothing much that was very strenuous, and I'm soaking wet... not just armpits and such, but soaking wet all over!
Neener, per your suggestion I managed to lay and stake 5 large black trash bags on some of the grass I want removed before I gave in to the heat. Still need to put down twice that many more, for the first go-'round. Most of the grass I covered hasn't been mowed nor attacked by the weed-eater so I don't know how effective it will be on that area.
This morning I was moving stuff around in the root cellar and found 1/2+ bushel of Pippins (apples, but I forget which variety of Pippins) I had forgotten about. They were part of the 2-1/2 bushels of various kinds of apples I stored in there last October, all individually wrapped in tissue paper. Nearly 2 dozen were still perfectly crisp, about 1/4 were gonners, and for the rest I cut out the bad spots, peeled, cored and sliced for the dehydrator.
I heard back from the family that raises a few mini Jerseys up near the WVa line, and have an invitation to visit. The mini Jerseys are going to be out of our price range (assuming my nearby neighbor Julie even wants to help buy a cow) but I'm just curious about them, milk production, care, temperament, etc. I hope we can go this month; school teachers will be through for the summer this Friday.
Good luck with cow! That sounds like fun for sure. Your bags may work OK even if it wasn't mowed down. As the grass dies back a little you might try just flattening the bags down closer to the ground. If you can kill the roots of the grass under there then all you have to do is scrape off the dead grass and it should be better.
Hotter then heck here too. I managed to get some more mulch, but it is in the back of my truck until the morning.
Been meaning to ask what kind of dehydrator you have.
Excalibur, 9 tray. Timer shut-off doesn't work so I keep an eye on it.
Excellent.. I was just looking at those because I had heard they were the best. I loved dried bananas, but all the store bought ones have yucky stuff on them that we don't eat. Now I know what to ask for for my anniversary next week. :)
I'm really pleased with mine, despite the defunct automatic off switch on the timer. It was a common complaint 3-4 years ago, maybe they have a better switch. I check the temp with a good thermometer before doing something heat-sensitive like making yogurt.
Glad to hear your able to get things in the ground, Nik. Was worried that might not happen for a time there.
Hineni, love the picture of the Luna, they are my favorite. I see less and less, since I noticed more horn worms getting attacked by parasitic wasps. All the good cats seem to be getting eaten, while corn ear worms and tomato fruit get away! Good luck with the new endeavor, eager to hear about it!
Podster, are all your tomatoes mealy? I'm having the worst tomato crop, ever! I've thrown out thirty pounds of the san marzano, got another 30 picked but expect their useless as well...all mealy! Not sure if I want to waste anymore water on them.
Darius, how fun. Can't wait to hear about the farm visit! The few minis I've seen in person are so cute, they remind me of elves :0)
Sorry for your loss, Cajun :0(
Our week started with a funeral as well, along with that and the oppressive heat and drought. Total tomato crop failure, I'm running out of gardening steam. Hope to start picking corn soon and maybe that will set my mind straight.
It's been 100 days since planting the mangels, I picked a few today to see how they are...they average about 1 1/2 pounds. lol
I found a recipe on-line for mangel beer. A few of my friend dabble in home brewing, going to see if they are interested in taking some of these.
Aren't those small for a mangel?
LOL I'm sure right now my beets are even smaller! LOL hope you get a good crop. I'm m still impatiently waiting for mine. Someday I'll winter in a warmer zone and have 2 gardens!
Considering the moisture (or lack thereof) I was impressed with the size of those mangels. My Mother used to make beet wine, how about mangel wine?
The tomato crop is indeed mealy this year. I have only sampled two different types ~ Big Beef and a BHN. We ate them anyway, they weren't any worse than those cardboard grocery store tomatoes that can endure a drop from 6 feet to a hard concrete surface and never change color or consistency until they rot.
Aren't we past due for a good tomato crop one of these seasons? I know you tossed yours to the critters probably but why not seasoned & dried, or a salsa to be canned< or???
lol, Outlaw, after 12 years here, I barely have a grip on growing in my zone. Throw me into zone 5 and we would surly starve and or freeze to death!
Mangel wine? Could be, is there anything they can't make wine out of?
I'd be willing try it, once. To say I don't metabolize alcohol well, is an understatement! lol My BIL has some mead brewing at the moment. I'm curious to try it.
I hate to hear that about your tomatoes, Podster, but it makes me feel a little better that I'm not alone. I can't remember the last good tomato season we've had. This year really hurts...such good pollination and fruit set. Then to be hit with mealiness.grrr
These paste are really not good for anything, but critter food. No taste at all, it's weird.
Is the mealy texture due to lack of rain?
Most of my tomatoes have only gone in the ground in the last 2 weeks, and I have a ton of volunteers that I hope are paste tomatoes. Last year the Marmorated stink bugs got them, and the year before it was blight. Can't remember when I have eaten a good tomato!
I hope you get some good ones, Darius. Somebody needs to be eating good! Oddly enough, just to the west of us, they are reporting good crops.
Are you going to try row covers for the stink bugs? I would really like to try them for frost control fall gardening and to keep next years bugs at bay. Will see if fall budget will allow them. Stink bugs... seeing more and more herds of little nymphs despite daily egg picking.
I really want some row covers... light-weight fabric for summer bug protection, and the heaviest weight for late fall... but the coffers are empty! I did buy some Surround™ last year; it won't kill stink bugs but may protect the fruit if you get it on early enough, and re-apply when it washes away. Safer Soap mixed in the water helps it stick better... but I don't have any.
Anyone know of a good substitute for use on edible crops?
Don't get me started on stink bugs. I call them the locusts of this millenium. We have them here in biblical proportions. If I have vacuumed up one I have gotten at least 10 thousand of them and that is no lie. The entire exterior of my house looks like someone spat tobacco juice all over it. And they are still alive and coming out of everywhere! The local congressman here has actually got a bill going in the house to try to find a solution. He is taking a lot of grief over that as most people don't think it is very important. They will when they can't get decent food at a reasonable price.
I've heard the Marmorated Stink Bugs invade housing, much like the orange colored lady bugs... but since they just got here last year, they only invaded my garden. I was doing nymph patrol a couple of times daily (too large now), but that doesn't help when they cover the entire county/state area.
Rvnsbrk, that is frighting! What on earth makes the Marmorated so prolific? Is the country they are native to, overrun with them?
Darius, That Surround looks interesting, never heard of it. I'm having a problem with something that lays eggs in my plum and peach fruits, Still trying to find out what it is tho. Hopefully, something as simple as Surround will work.
The stink bugs are just on the squash so far, I guess they don't like the paste tomatoes either.lol
I'm going to peel some more today, I keep thinking maybe they'll out grow the mealiness.
I first heard of Surround when I was visiting Edible Landscaping in Central Virginia several years ago. (http://www.ediblelandscaping.com/) Some of their mature fruit trees in the ground were sprayed white, so I inquired.
This is from their website: Peaches, plums, apples, cherries, apricots, pears and nectarines usually need at least two sprays of Surround: after the flower petals fall off the tree and two weeks later. These timely sprays will keep worms and/or larvae such as plum curculio, oriental fruit moths, and codling moths from your fruit. Surround protects with a cover of clay that prevents insects from laying eggs on your fruit.
My organic amendment supplier sells it for about half what Edible Landscaping does. You should be able to find a source locally and avoid shipping. http://www.7springsfarm.com/
Thanks, Everyone needs a hug now and then!
Look at those tomatoes!! I am drooling..Nice harvest even if they are mealy. I seem to be having pollination problems with the few squash plants up here that I am trying to grow. The only bees I've been seeing are on the hydrangeas which are growing right behind the raised bed where the squash are but they aren't traveling the few feet forward to veggies. Not sure what's up with that. It may have something to do with the time of day that the sprinklers run, hmmm that's a thought.
Neener
I noticed the bees like to work them pretty early in the day, your theory might be correct. My yellow squash isn't pollinating well this year. It never seems to have male and female blooms at the same time...not thatI need anymore squash ;0)
I peeled half the tomatoes, then gave up...not a single one was good!
Then had an idea,.. take two boys, a stick and 40 pounds of ripe tomatoes, what do ya get?
Would you visit a squash when you could wallow in hydrangea pollen?
Lucky boys!
Whoooeee, look at that redhead! Mine used to be that color or just a tad lighter. Sigh. Cute boys, great fun!!
This has been such a strange summer so far; Last week it was hotter than all the fires of hell and damnation. Saturday and sunday nights it got down to 52°F and I got up and put a sweat shirt on to do chores. I had a fox went through my henhouse like grease through a goose. It killed 16 out of 20 1/2 grown barred rocks, 3 full growed Buff Orpingtons-including Cogburn, my favourite rooster- and my favourite welsh Harlequin duck. Mr. Remington took care of him this morning. Lucky for me, I have lots of amish friends. I already have 4 dozen barred rock eggs in the incubator, and I have 2 Buff Orp hens setting right now.
The horseradishes I planted year before last have leaves as big around as dinner plates this year, so next year I should be able to harvest a bit. The chokeberry plants I got in the ground this year are all leafing out well, as are the grapes. The mulberry I transplanted last year is LOADED with fruit, and I have located 2 more to dig up and move this fall. Sold the B.U.T., bought a disk for the ferguson, and started building the greenhouse.
The juneberries are finally starting to bud out, and the grapes looked like dead sticks one day and 2 days later were fully leafed out! All the fruit trees I planted this year are just setting there, but after the grapes and juneberries finally did something I am afraid to pull them up.
I have been sparking this woman I met (yes! in sparking circles they call me ELECTROMAN!!hehehehe) who is into the whole farming/gardening/homesteading thing. So that's going well. She is in charge of the incubators and keeping me in coffee and powerade zero as I work.
Still traveling down this (sometimes REALLY bumpy) road we call life. I'll try to get on here more often. I do usually read all the new posts, just don't get much down in print.
Thanks! That's the ginga ninja. We have calico kids, a blond, a redhead, and a brunette :0)
Going to pick corn today! We picked 4 ears yesterday, popped them on the grill..so good. Will need to check each one before picking, they really developed at different rates this year. They seem to all have good pollination, but big difference in the ear size. I'm just happy to have them! I've hand watered all this spring, they have had less then 2" of rainfall since seeding.
Well, Nik sounds like a happy camper...does she have a single brother? :D Actually I'm pretty sure I'm not ready to date yet, but every once in a while it sounds like a wonderful thing and I get wistful for what I had.
Dang, so sad about fox vs chicks :( Glad Mr Remi was able to assist and that you have new ones in place. The rest of the report sounded great!
Cocoa and Podster - I am about to get my first mater this week (Chocolate Cherry) so I will let you know if there is a mealiness problem. I surely hope not.
I got okra, patty pan and yellow squash in the ground, along with two types of beans, some cantaloupe, a butternut squash or two, more chard and two bush cukes. I thought I had some zuke in there, as I am out of my home made zuke relish and needed to make a bunch more this year but I think I made an error. Maybe they will be around in the area at market, or I can bum some extras off of Ms Robin later in the season :) I got my first raspberry off of my new bushes before the birds saw it. Ever bearing strawberries are bearing, but one measly plant at a time and it takes weeks to get them :( I guess I need more of those next year. I keep checking the blackberries and they are thick, but none are ripe yet - at least what I get to see of them. I suspect the deer in my yard are getting most of the ripe ones before I have a chance. While the rabbits live in them, I don't know as they eat them - does anyone know if they do?
I made wicked beds from stuff cobbled together around here - I hope they do well. I have finally broken through the 'pretty plant' approach to tomatoes and have timidly been breaking off all the non-essential branches. They look so naked like that! I read yet another old-timer saying that they only actually need three leaves (yes leaves, not branches) in order to do photosynthesis, but I have not gone to that extreme yet...lol
Has anyone read "Mini Farming" by Brett Markham? If so, what did you think? I'm going to try to get it from the library, if they have it.
It was 102 here last Friday, but now it's back to cool mid-60's overnight, so that's a little better. We're getting rain regularly this week (sorry Texas!!!) What's good for us though is causing flooding and levee breaking back west on the plains area. Just freaky weather this year.
I checked out the Marmorated dude - Rutgers Uni has a whole section on the little horrors. Another import from Asia - maybe they will eat all the Asian honeysuckle I have invading my blackberry areas and it will be a two-fer good thing. Okay, so I dream a lot :D Here is the link to the full series, including photos of eggs through various instars:
http://njaes.rutgers.edu/stinkbug/faq.asp
I pray they stay away from here...yikes! I haven't seen this particular guy, although his friend the green dude has been on my screen porch, and another type was snarfing up the aphids on my broccoli the other day. They've seen better days and due to the sudden appearance of aphids, going plant by plant, I think I'll skip trying to save one to flower for seed. They did really well here so I thought they'd be a good re-do for the fall. Or maybe I could pot one up and get it out of the beds and still have the seeds...hmmm.
Off to clean a closet!
~H
We are having that cooler weather the last 2 days after scorching temps the last 2 weeks. It is welcome and I am able to get more work done.
Saw my pepper bloom yesterday. Squash are blooming and a couple have small fruits. Same with the cukes. Pulled the mustard all but 6 plants I am letting go to seed. Letting the last of the sugar ann peas go to seed for a fall crop. They did great and are delish. Wish I had a whole bed of them. Beans are getting ripe a few at a time. Strawberries are finished. Drought has nearly done in the raspberry crop that escaped the falling tree. Wine berries are coming on strong. Corn is nearly 2 feet tall. Added composted hay to the tater bags. Need more sevin dust for them. Some kinda dull pink squishy bug is trying to eat all my tater plants. Eggplants are not looking good. Leaves look like lace with all the pinpoint holes in them. Sevin dusted them too. Mangles are growing slow. Weeded them this morning. Mater plants all look good but not a single bloom yet. Herbs are growing slower than Christmas.
Chickens are laying well. Trying to sell a lot of 1st and 2nd year layers because the eggs are not selling and it's costing me too much to feed 40 chickens. I am disappointed that it looks like my half grown Gold Comets are actually Red Sexlinks. If that is the case, I will not be keeping them either. The EEs look good. I am letting my hens go for $5 each. A very good price I think. Chicks are $2.50 then you have to feed them for months before you get an egg. These are laying now. Hope I can sell them.
Goats are both due to kid next month. They are gaining weight in all the right places and making up some very nice udders. Looks like they will both be good milkers.
Breaking Tug now and he is doing better than I had dares to hope. Knock and I are both riding him around the ring now and he is learning fast. Such a pleasure.
Gotta get to the feeding now. Good to hear you are all doing well. Sad about the mealy maters and the chicken deaths. Glad you pegged the fox. And glad you found a woman who is interested in the same things you are. Means a lot.
Got the boys with us so life is good in spite of recent heartaches. God is like that and it's all good.
For all y'all that feed chickens commercial feed... There is a chicken feed made by Alpharma LLC, a subsidary of Pfizer, that contains Roxarsone... which the FDA has just admitted contains inorganic arsenic and is found in chickens at the supermarkets. They have been using it for years, saying it helped fatten chickens and and helps control a common intestinal disease called coccidiosis. They are pulling it off the market next month, giving farmers time to find a substitute.
They used to think chickens excreted it all in the poultry waste, which by the way is used in cattle feed.
http://www.naturalnews.com/027414_chicken_disease_cows.html
I'll post this on the poultry forum too, unless someone already has...
I had read about it on the net. Do you know if there is a source of names of feeds that include it?
Sorry, I don't. I read several articles about it yesterday, and none named anything but the ingredient and the Pfizer subsidiary. I wonder if a google search on Roxarsone might show some?
I'd like to know... because even free-range chickens usually get some commercial feed.