GrassHOPper

I found this 5-legged friend hanging out in our hops vine last month.  I don't guess he was very 'hoppy' given his missing leg, but he sure did make for a lovely subject.  He kind of matches the golden yellow lupulin glands on the hops cone below his head.  Perhaps he was going in for a snack.  Either way, he has good taste in 'hang-out' locations.

Pinless Peepers

During a recent flock integration in our hen house, we decided to employ the use of Pinless Peepers to reduce violence and bloodshed.  We didn't have the necessary space to keep the flocks separated (but adjacent) so that they could get used to each other, and we've experienced past mergers where that didn't work anyway.  We added these Red Star ladies 2 weeks ago and thanks to these 'Peepers', things went swimmingly.

We did place the new ladies into the coop first without the additional eye wear, but of course, we weren't surprised that there was immediate work on the 'pecking order'.  I was a little surprised that the new girls were the aggressors, but when I really thought about it, I realized it made sense.  They came from a large flock and were therefore a little more 'street-wise'.  Our two remaining Dominiques grew up as a trio and without the benefit of older chickens to show them the way.  They were a peaceful, laid back little group.  Where I'm sure there was a 'pecking order', it wasn't ever very apparent. 

So, since the pecking began immediately, my husband and I dug out the Peepers and had them on in just a few minutes.  The Peepers have two prongs on them which insert into their nostrils.  They don't come with instructions on how to insert them, so if this is your first time, I would suggest doing a little web searching for videos that will show you the way.  They look like they are slightly barbaric and uncomfortable, which made me uneasy for a second.  They did fuss a bit when we initially put them in but after a minute or two, they were going about their business digging and scratching.  These things don't stop the violence entirely, but as they block their forward vision, it slows down the aggressors substantially.  After a day or two, we did not notice any aggressive activity which was such a relief.  Now we have relative peace and a fluid flock that rolls together scratching and hunting for bugs.

 
This is the best integration we've ever had and I will always employ this great invention in the future.  Yes, they look a wee bit silly, but they're oh so effective.  We intend to remove them from the new girls in another week or so and see how things go.  I'm thinking things will be fine.

Big Mama

Tomato Compare - Big Mama (L), San Marzano (R)

Behold...the BIG MAMA tomato.  This is a new one for us in the garden this year.  Typically, we've been strict San Marzano growers and have enjoyed them immensely for their ease of skinning/deseeding/canning.  I decided to break out of my comfort zone and try something new this year.  I picked up this hybrid behemoth at Burpee and gave it a whirl.  I am not disappointed.  All plants have been incredibly prolific...even under the less than favorable growing conditions this summer.  The fruits are absolutely GIGANTIC (see photo, which actually does not do it justice).  They are easy to skin and have a ton of meat with very few seeds.  Perfect for canning.  We will not be tomato hungry this winter!!  I can't keep up with the harvests and have had to give these away by the armful!  Will repeat in 2015.

AugustHarvest

I wasn't sure I would be able to post such a photo this summer.  It's been pretty 'pesty' and dry here in the beautiful mountains of Southwest Virginia...a far cry from the cold deluge that was Summer 2013.  The deer pressure, a new thing for our Gap Mountain Garden, has been a bit relentless and the voles (or moles?) are mowing down sweet potatoes and beans and sucking entire plants down into their holes(!!!).  Oh yeah, and the Japanese beetles are devouring anything they can get their grubby little mandibles on and the spider mites are basking in the dryness and taking over the hops.

BUT, as you can see, there is a silver colorful lining.  The corn has been frozen, the tomatoes are being canned and the jalapeno peppers are pickled.  Stuffed sweet peppers will be for dinner tonight...and tomorrow...and the next day and the next day and... 

All is not lost and I am grateful. 

SpringThings

Spring is here!  Now that we're past the dreaded month of April (it's the 'Cruelest Month', you know), things are looking good.  Flowers are blooming, the gardens are mulched, the asparagus bugs are having their way with the new shoots, morels exploded in the yard, the veggies are ready to be planted.  OH MY.  Game On as they say.

Plan "C"

Whew.  It's been a bit of a grueling winter/spring.  Cold, snowy, dark and generally miserable for a 'gardener in waiting'.  I've gone back through my garden diary and notice that we're really behind schedule this year.  Usually I've got cold tolerant veggies in the ground, flower beds edged and perennials divided.  Not so in 2014.  We've had a few lovely days adequate for outside work, but mostly I've just been staring out the window from inside.  Pining. 

Things are starting to look up though, and my to-do list is long.  Thankfully, I can finally check-off one big task.  Plan "C" Chicken Coop.  We've had several chicken setbacks over the past two years.  A dog and a coyote have infiltrated my inadequately secured coops.  Lessons were learned and plans were made.  We decided to go big on this our last try for safely keeping chickens in our little Gap Mountain Garden.

After much reading and planning, we decided to go with the chain link kennel option.  I dismantled the old set-up and carefully salvaged any materials I could...why is hardware cloth so da#n expensive??  We found a good used kennel on Craigslist and some metal roofing 'seconds' from a local roofing company.  We reused our old coop and put it directly into the run/kennel to avoid the need to attach the two safely and securely.

We then wrapped the bottom half of the kennel in leftover hardware cloth and the top half in chicken wire.  We also screwed pressure treated lumber to the door to close up large openings accessible by hungry paws. 

 
We really really hope this will do the trick.  Today is our first day away from the house with the new henettes outside.  Hopefully I won't have any future sob stories for you.  The neighbor dog really likes to eat our chickens and he/she is very motivated and persistent.  Fingers crossed.

The Magical Fruit

As the sun shines, the snow melts and we approach the end of February, I'm in full-on reflection mode of the past growing season and in great anticipation for the one that is yet to come.  These cold days are comforted still by the rewards of the 2013 garden in the form of frozen and canned veggies, sweet potatoes resting in the basement, and dried beans in the pantry.

This was my first attempt with the whole dried bean thing.  I've always grown beans for fresh consumption and for some reason, never even considered these until last year.  Honestly, I've always over-planted green beans.   I could never keep up, we could never eat enough and the da#n foliage irritated my skin, so the fun of picking was lost on the rashes.  Growing beans for dry use ended up being right up my alley.  It allowed me to be lazy during the growing season which was a big plus.  Put the seeds in the ground, let em grow and then let em die.  Simple as that.  Remove the pods, grab your husband and shell away.

 

This is a slightly tedious step, but you get in a groove.  Turn on a movie, or in our case, watch your favorite college football team on a Saturday afternoon.  This year I will need to try some alternative shelling methods (search for the 'pillow case method') to expedite the process as I've gone a bit overboard with the seed ordering.  Black beans, kidney beans, great northern beans, brown beans, garbanzo beans.  Whoops.  Like any good gardener, I've lost my mind.