whiling away the days

 

There's not much to do in winter when temperatures are below freezing and snow is on the ground,  especially if one is once again physically deterred.  After doing a half pirouette followed by a James Brown-esque split in slushy conditions, I find myself gimping along with what's known as avulsion fractures.  Per the National Health Institute "An avulsion fracture occurs when a ligament or other soft tissue attachment to bone overcomes the stress capacity of the bony attachment and tears off a portion of the bone."...doesn't that sound fun?  Thankfully it seems to be healing quickly, but I don't think snowshoeing or skiing are on the docket this winter.  And what was I doing that was so important that I needed to be slogging through slush and ice?  Ensuring these little beggars had food for their bellies.

To my delight, any of the soaked kibble they don't eat during the daylight hours is hoovered up by a pair of fox and one of the coyotes at night.

To pass the time I've been ordering and starting seeds in anticipation of spring.  I've decided to try potatoes in grow bags this year, and have Red Luna and Kennebec seed potatoes on order.  

For onions I normally grow Walla Walla, which have always produced a bumper crop of large onions. This year I'm trying a new variety of onion, Highlander, that claims a longer storage life and yields decent sized sweet yellow onions.  I left my leeks in the ground over winter and am curious to see if they survive and continue to grow this spring, but I've ordered more just in case.

I'm planning to use the former daylily bed for sweet corn, and am going to grow cucumbers up the hay ring trellis.

In the house, my pastel yarrows are doing well and have survived their first transplant.

 

And I've started some Verbena bonariensis, which I'm germinating in two environments.  Since these seeds need to be stratified before germinating, I had poured them onto a damp paper towel and tucked them in the fridge for a few weeks.  When I was ready to start them, I scraped them off the towel and sprinkled them onto coir pellets, setting them under the grow lights.  The seeds that were still stuck to the paper towel were transported outdoors to my oversized planter, where they were laid, towel and all, on top of the soil and then covered with snow.  If those germinate, it will be interesting to see which plants end up being healthier; the indoors or outdoors sown seed. 

My next seed sowing will be Baptisia (collected by a friend) and allium (collected from my own plants).  After that it should be time to sow some annuals for window boxes and containers.  I'm not sure if I want to start any vegetable seed indoors this year or not, but I have plenty of time to decide.

Since my hot pepper plants didn't fare well in the gardens last year, I decided to try overwintering a half dozen plants.  Unfortunately, four of them were infested with white fly and found themselves disposed of in the compost pile quickly.  The two that were relatively healthy have been under a grow light and are surviving, but I wouldn't say thriving.  If I can keep them going  I'm hoping they will set fruit early and provide me with a decent crop of peppers.  I'm not even sure what variety they are, but I think probably Hungarian Hot Wax.  

pretty sad looking plants!

 

In the pasture, the autumn's bounty is being foraged by deer.  The fall of 2023 was what is known as a mast year for oaks, where they produce an over abundance of acorns.  I don't see the deer, but their presence is unmistakable; you can see where the snow has been tossed and turned around the fence posts and in the back corner of the pasture from their nightly foraging.

I'll wrap this up with a shout out to Mad Barn, a company that offers supplements for equines.  Flea began having trouble getting up and staying on his feet again this winter.  For a week I fed him while he was laying down, and he'd only struggle to his feet to go to the bathroom where he stood, then adjust himself and lie back down for hours.  We've been through this before, and I've always been under the impression it was either his insulin being out of control (cold weather can spike insulin in IR equines) or what's called winter laminitis; a circulatory issue that causes a kind of neuropathy in the feet due to damage from previous laminitic episodes.  I have him on supplements and herbs that promote circulation, blankets for different degrees of cold, and keep him in wool socks, boots, and thick leg warmers in an effort to keep him warm.  When he wasn't responding to these protocols, one of the moderators from the ECIR group asked if his feet and legs were warm when I changed his socks and boots, which they were.  She suggested I wasn't seeing cold induced hoof pain, but there was something going on that the cold was affecting.  Dr. Kellon suggested adding Mad Barn's W-3 oil, which has Vitamin E, Omega 3 from algae, and flax oil.  Within a few doses I saw results in Flea's mobility, and within a week he was able to tolerate low temperatures better.  The results point to arthritis somewhere, and I'm hoping to get x-rays to pinpoint what's going on.  In the meantime, even in temperatures with a real feel in the negative single numbers, he's up and moving.  He's not 100%, but this is just amazing.  I think this will be a game changer for many winters to come.

Now, to go back into hibernation for the day.

And Away We Go!

 Happy 2024!

It's been another mild start to winter with above normal temperatures and rain instead of snow, but that's changing this week.  We're gearing up for our first big storm of the season - better late than never!  Since I don't have the discipline to follow through with new year resolutions like lose weight, eat better, exercise more, yadda yadda yadda, I'm just going to jot down my landscaping goals for this year.  They may or may not happen.

* Finish the mule track, at least the first section.  I've had terrible luck with equipment this year, but hopefully everything is now straightened out and ready to go for spring chores.  Fingers crossed.

*Create paths in the back yard.  There are a few things that are going to require some assistance from equipment, and this is one of them.  If I can get the paths laid, I can get the cat fence up, and I'll deal with creating gardens after. 

*Install a conifer/alpine bed in the back yard.  Another chore that will require a backhoe to dig out an area for planting, and add in some landscape rocks to create the right mood for alpine plants.  I have a whole stack of big rocks, so this is going to be fun.

I still have my forest garden project to work on, my new cottage garden beds, the new barn hot garden beds, and many other items on my never ending to-do list, but those are the things I hope to finish before the year is out.  I'm also thinking of building a rustic pergola over the lower gravel patio just to see if I can do it.  So long as I don't lose steam before May gets here, I should be ok.

First snow!

 It's been a crazy summer, and I'm only now feeling like adding a post.  Hurrah, first snow!

I didn't manage to get a lot done this year - Reputa was down for the count due to a steering issue, and L'il Red was a learning experience.  I did manage to move quite a bit of manure by loading it into my truck with Red, but she's so short I had to shovel it out by hand.  My back wasn't really into that.  

The garden was a 50/50 success.  Perennials loved the abundant rain at the start of the season, followed by intense heat and humidity.  

The veg didn't fare so well.  The garlic did great, so I've already planted three varieties for next year based on how easy they were to grow.  My onions and shallots were terrible; the cold, wet spring stunted them and some of them never got much past pebble sized.  My tomatoes pretty much rotted in place, hot peppers did nothing at all, bell peppers were small but tasty, and the cukes did well.  My pumpkins yielded about a dozen miniature gourds and the summer squash failed miserably.  Potatoes did well, but they were mostly small.  For my first try I was happy enough, and will probably plant them again next year, but in fabric bags.  I planted carrots far too late in the season but I do have a harvest now.  They're small, but the taste is phenomenal.  

One garden that surprised me was the wildflower meadow.  It was absolutely beautiful once it started to flower!  Wide shots never quite captured the frenzy of colors, but closer shots did somewhat.

The pond did well but developed an algae bloom late in the summer.  The bog garden did exceptionally well thanks to the deluge of rain early on.  And miracle of miracles, I finally found some part-time help for the larger chores, like finally getting the fencing started on the mule track!

Breakdowns in equipment and lack of time stalled the project, but I'm hoping to get it done before too much snow is on the ground.  I'd like to be able to let the mules into this new section next spring, if all goes well.  It's not exactly how I wanted it - I didn't plan to use the corral panels - but the no-climb horse fence has doubled in price over the last few years.  Use what you have, finesse it later!  😉

I did manage to get a large number of perennials moved out of the holding beds in the last few months, too.  Some cat safe plants were moved to the wildflower meadow out back, other plants were moved to the front of the hillside garden fence, where I'm trying to create a cottage-style garden. 

Red, yellow, and orange flowered plants have been moved to the small square of lawn in front of the mule barn, where I've struggled to have a lush green carpet.  I've split this "hot" garden in two with the path.  Most of the plants moved there do well in poor soil, so that's a bonus.

I didn't worry about prepping these areas too much, just planted right into the grass.  I'm not looking for formal garden beds, just something I don't have to mow.

I did create a formal lasagna bed in front of my house, though.  

I finally found some Midwinter's Fire dogwood shrubs, so two are planted in there, along with a white forsythia and some spring bulbs.  I'm really looking forward to seeing these new spaces next year, and I'm very happy to have the extra space to plant some additional vegetables in the hillside garden.  

And now...time to rest.

Until the next nice day to work on a project comes along!

A Mid-Summer's Blog Post

 In the two months since my last post the only constant has been the rain.  Last year at this time, we were rationing water like crazy.  This year it's so wet I haven't watered my gardens at all.  Everything is lush and tropical and completely out of control, or drowned and dead.  I haven't been able to work on any outdoor projects yet, but I do have a few in mind.  Especially since I now have this mini beast!

(the tractor, obviously...I parked her next to Clementine the truck to give a sense of size)

I've used it a few times to try to get the hang of it, but it's been so wet and dismal that mostly it's just sat in the garage.  

Some of the vegetables I've planted are loving all the rain and humidity, others are not.  My peppers are all stunted and I'm not hopeful they'll recover.  The tomatoes went in late and aren't hitting their stride yet.  The lettuce, greens, and radish all bolted despite (or due to) the lack of sun and heat.  The peas, however, are loaded with fat pods.  The potatoes, onions, leeks, pumpkins, and garlic seem to be loving it, too.  I planted green beans and cukes late but both are growing happily. My plans to grow the tomatoes and peppers in the little poly tunnel sort of went awry, and they were all planted out into the vegetable garden instead.

The perennials are doing fantastic, too.  Some of them have reached heights that unfortunately get them knocked down in the deluges.

I managed to do a little transplanting, too.  I moved the foxgloves out of a holding bed and to the outside of the garden fence.

I moved the fall blooming asters from a holding bed to the edge of the lower patio area.

And I moved a variety of moisture loving plants to the bog garden near the water feature.

Since I haven't had a chance to move more plants down to the edges of the pond, I let the grass grow wild to ensure the frogs have a place to get up out of the water, but still be protected.  Of course, there was only one little frog in there and it seems to have disappeared.  BUT.  Remember the frog eggs this spring?  

There are now hundreds of little tadpoles thriving in my water feature!  And one very large tadpole...which is a little strange, but I'll take it.

My plan to clear the bank and plant corn and sunflowers didn't work out, but there's still a nice meadowy quality about that area.  

I've discovered that these grasses will not be stopped.  Not even by the dreaded weed block.  

So there's a project for me - redoing the path.  😒

I managed to unbox my canopy and get that up, too.  It's been a nice dry spot for grilling, if nothing else.  I haven't bothered filling the soaking tub since it's been rather damp and raw.

The grill cover stays up because hornets have been trying to build nests in any sheltered places they can find.  One of my cushions fell forward and an enterprising wasp used the sheltered area between the back and seat cushions to start making a nest!

 

My wildflower area isn't really springing to life.  The larger plants are from last year's sowing, cosmos I've grown from seed and transplanted, or rampant weeds.

My impatiens that did survive (I had such a hard time with seed starting this year, I don't know why) are doing very well, and loving their new home in window boxes attached to the header that was meant for my deck.

Hopefully we'll have some decent weather soon, and I'll be able to do some projects I want to get done before winter.  There are stairs to reset, manure to move, paths to be rebuilt, fencing to be put up, and plants to transplant.

Black Flies and Mosquitos and Ticks, Oh My!

 'Tis the season!  We're finally seeing the sun and temperatures are creeping upwards.  The grass is greening at a ridiculous pace, the trees are beginning to leaf out, the perennial flower beds are beginning to explode with life.  This also means the little vampire world of ticks, mosquitos, and black flies are hard at work making lives miserable.  I've already picked a half dozen ticks off of me, and the black flies nearly drove my uncle to the brink of madness when he was helping me set up the tiny tunnel.  I say helping, but in reality he pretty much did it all and I just assisted.  So yes, my tiny tunnel is up, and the seedlings have moved from the house to the tunnel!

We set it up in the driveway so it was near enough to a water source and in the sun.  It should receive 6-8 hours daily, with the house shading it in the worst of the afternoon heat.  Once the seedlings are all ready to be planted out, I'll fill this tunnel with buckets of tomatoes to see if they grow better in here or out in the open garden.  I'm really excited to try this!  If it works well enough, I'll find a permanent spot for it so I don't have to take it down every winter.

I also got my aerator set up in the little water feature.  My mom gave me this sphinx-like downspout a few years ago and it has a hole in the center, so I purchased a little solar powered water pump and voilà!  The water is now moving.

I'm not really digging the extreme upspray, so  I might dial it back just a little.  If I take the little cap off the pump nozzle, it will just bubble over and that might be better.  I'm thinking the spray might actually cause the water to evaporate more quickly, especially on a hot day.  Work in progress!  The frog eggs were hatching just when we had a deluge of rain - some areas received nearly 5" overnight.  My water feature overflowed the banks, and I haven't seen any signs of tadpoles since.  I'm not sure if any survived.

Out in the pasture, the daffodils under the mulberry tree are really starting to take off.

There are a few other flowers under there, but the deer ate every single tulip and hyacinth, so only a few fritillaries, squill, and one lone anemone break up the daffodil overload.  Hopefully they'll take off in the next few years and spread to add a little color to the fray.

In the garden the snap peas are sprouting, there's no sign of the potatoes, and I've planted some leeks and shallots.  I need to vacate a few more beds to be able to plant my onions.

The cool weather greens are coming along up at the house planter, too.

Now is the time when everything gets ahead of you.  Keep up!