Naming of the Rooster

We've finally settled on a name for our new rooster ... a good southern name of French origin ... Beauregard.  The name translates to "easy on the eye."

While the meaning of the name fits - he is a handsome chicken, after all - I'm thinking of it from a silly chicken-yard perspective.  His full name shall be "Bodacious Rooster, Guardian of Hens".

a.k.a.  Bo-Roo-Guard ... or Bo, for short!

New Rooster Arrived Today

Our girls are in need of a leader.  Ever since Rex's demise they act as if they don't know what to do.  They prefer to take refuge in the hen house rather than scratch around the chicken yard.  With the addition of the new red hens, everything is truly topsy turvy.  Quick!  Introduce some structure back into the flock!

After we lost Rex, my friend and fellow yogini, Catherine, let me know that she had an extra Ameraucana rooster.  Extra roosters are undesirable.  They're not conducive to peace in the chicken yard. The birds at the bottom of the pecking order suffer relentless abuse compliments of the Big Bird, while the hens are accosted at every turn by each and every rooster that can get away with it.

So we have a win-win situation.  Catherine's extra rooster joins my flock.  Catherine's chicken yard calms down.  My chickens acquire a new master to watch over them.

The new boy arrived today and is getting acclimated.  He's currently separated from the rest of the flock, but in full view of the hens.  And let me tell you, there has been a lot of interest shown on both sides of the dividing fence!

Fava Bean Sprouts

The broad beans have sprouted and are ready to take off!

Six Red Sex-Linked Hens Join the Flock

Today our flock grew by six!  Our friend, Andy, had arranged to purchase a dozen-and-a-half birds from a local farm.  He didn't need that many, so we agreed to take some.  We lost two hens last spring to hawk attack, and several of the hens are getting old.  The egg production has decreased.  We could use a few more good layers.

These are 18-week-old Red Sex-Links, known to be prolific layers of brown eggs.  By prolific, I mean 300 eggs per year!

The new chickens settled in to the coop nicely, but haven't ventured out into the chicken yard.  The older hens are keeping them at bay. Those old girls are in the midst of reestablishing pecking order after the death of their beloved boss, Rex.  These young pullets add another level of complexity.  They're sure to be at the bottom for awhile.

One interesting characteristic of these birds ... they arrived with trimmed beaks.  Beak trimming is often performed on egg-laying breeds for the purpose of preventing damage caused by injurious pecking ... cannibalism, feather pecking, and vent pecking.  I have never trimmed my girls' beaks, and have never had an issue with pecking.

RIP Rex

I'm sorry to report that Rex the Rooster's life has been cut short. I found him dead in the chicken yard this morning, amid a flutter of feathers, his head missing.  Apparently, he never made it to the roost last night.  We didn't notice because of life circumstances.

Daylight Savings Time ended this past weekend.  Yesterday, everyone - including our son and yard-man, Andrew - was working at the office until early evening.  We arrived home after dark.

Andrew was out at the barn, unloading the lawn maintenance equipment.  I shouted out a request for him to close up the chicken yard.  Of course, the chickens had gone to roost for the night as they always do.  Nobody looked in on them.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

There was a little foreshadowing of disaster this morning.  As Rouse the Spouse left for work he announced, "I don't know what this means, but there's a big red-tailed hawk sitting in a tree above the chicken yard."

I went out to dump the yuck bucket and throw out scratch.  The chickens didn't come running in anticipation as they usually do in the morning.  In fact, several of them were peeking their heads out of their little access door between the coop and the safe zone.  I had the distinct feeling they didn't know what to do.  Then I realized how quiet it was ... no rooster crowing and clucking and cooing to his girls.  Uh, oh.  I opened up the coop.  No rooster.  Big time uh, oh.  I searched the chicken yard and found him in the corner of the chicken yard behind the coop.  It was not a pretty sight.

What killed my chicken?  I referred to to this handy chart that lists clues and probable culprits:
Chicken Predators

The hawk, spotted by Rouse, is the number one suspect.  I like to believe Rex was killed while trying to protect his flock from the big, bad hawk which probably entered the chicken yard Monday afternoon.  The hens fled to the safety of the coop.  Rex was murdered.  The predator returned the next morning to continue his feast.  I buried Rex in the woods out back.  RIP Rex.

Better Cultural Practices Needed in Berries

2012 was not a happy year in the wineberry patch.  The weather turned cold and rainy at the time pollination needed to take place. Consequently, fruit was incompletely formed.  On top of that, the bed had become too crowded, resulting in poor circulation.  Cool, damp, crowded ... these conditions can (and did) lead to leaf spot, a fungal problem.

The guilty fungus overwinters in dead plant debris and on infected canes.  Splashing or wind-driven rain releases spores in high numbers and carries them to young susceptible leaves and canes. While I have no control over the weather, I can adopt better cultural practices for a healthy garden.  In this case, it's going to require drastic steps ... cutting back ALL canes, decreasing the number of plants in the bed, and removing dead plant debris.  Basically, I'm starting over in the wineberry patch.

This is the time of year to do the job.  The thorns are sharp, but the canes are bare, and the old ones are dead.  I cut back every cane, revealing each plant.  I removed all but 10 healthy plants, distributing them evenly throughout the bed.  Unfortunately, there'll be no berries this year, as fruit grows on year-old canes.  But I have set myself up for a healthier crop in the not-too-distant future.

Tent City

Tropical Storm / Hurricane Sandy collided with arctic air from the north and an early winter storm from the west, morphing into a monstrous Super Storm and proving to be an epic billion dollar disaster.

Very little rain fell on my garden as a result of Sandy, but local conditions produced winds gusting at 40 - 45 miles per hour with low temperatures in the mid-30's.  Andrew and I worked on getting row covers in place on Sunday.  We used pvc piping to assemble a simple hoop system over each raised bed.  The structure supports lightweight fabric which will remain in place throughout the winter months, protecting cold tolerant crops from frost and boosting the effects of the sun.  The landscape staples we used to secure the fabric to the ground were seriously challenged by the strong winds.  I had to bring in heavy rocks as reinforcement!

The tender seedlings are safely under cover now.  Delicious greens will be on the menu this winter. Today, I piled my lunchtime sandwich high with fresh-cut arugula.

What the heck is a peck?

If Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers, how many pickled peppers did Peter Piper pick?

I challenge you to say that five times in a row, as fast as you can. It will surely leave your tongue twisted and tangled in your mouth!  But, what is a peck, anyway?

A peck is 1/4 of a bushel. So, what is a bushel?  That all depends on what you're measuring!

A bushel measures produce by volume, not by weight.  A bushel of grain will weigh more than a bushel of apples which will out weigh a bushel of beans which will beat out a bushel of turnip greens and so on and so on.  Professional farmers may understand and know these relative weights, but if you are a gardener, a home canner, or even a consumer who frequents farmers' markets it would be helpful to be familiar with these terms.

Here's an interesting article that explains in simple language all those odd gardening weight and measurement terms.  In it, the author says that a peck of peppers would weigh in at 10 - 14 pounds.
http://voices.yahoo.com/how-much-bushel-peck-1899378.html?cat=32

Here's a listing of US commercial bushel sizes for various crops.  I have to admit, I'm disappointed that these charts do not include peppers!
http://www.unc.edu/~rowlett/units/scales/bushels.html


Here's a picture of the peck of peppers I picked today:

And when you need just the right word to describe your feelings for that special someone...

I love you ...
A bushel and a peck, a bushel and a peck and a hug around the neck;
A hug around the neck, and a barrel and a heap;
A barrel and a heap and I'm talkin' in my sleep about you!

Tomatillos ...

... the key ingredient in fresh and cooked green sauces. I harvested all of mine today.

Outdoor Work Day

Still waiting for rain as Tropical Storm Sandy does her thing.  With the high temperature right at 70 degrees, it's been a pleasant, albeit gray, day.  A balmy breeze has been blowing ... feels like spring ... not at all the blustery autumn wind one might expect this time of year. The leaves are falling steadily.  Rouse mowed and blowed and raked those leaves.  I helped him a little bit, managing one end of a big drop cloth piled high with leaves as we dragged it to the now-almost-full leaf bin.  The leaves in that bin will be used this winter to heavily mulch my potato beds.

It was an outdoor work day.  Tackling the chicken chores, getting up leaves, replacing summer plants in outdoor pots with cold-weather-hardy kale and pansies, cleaning up the garden and the garden shed, picking up trash, weeding, tidying up in general.  There's a simple joy to getting lost in the task at hand, going with the flow of things, following your nose, breathing in the fresh air ... and very rewarding to see the neat and tidy space that evolves.

Fava Beans in the Ground

Tropical Storm Sandy is heading up the east coast.  She ought to be far off the coast of North Carolina but we're expecting to get some rain as she passes.  I spent a little time in the garden today, filling two beds with fava beans, hoping to take advantage of Mother Nature's soaking.

Fava beans may be used as a food crop for bean production or as a cover crop for soil improvement.  That's a real win-win situation!  These beans prefer cool weather and tolerate frost.  In central North Carolina they will grow and bloom all winter, then set fruit in early spring, producing extra-long pods containing giant beans.  Shelled and cooked green, the beans are tasty!  Very similar to edamame (green soy beans).

I purchased my bean seeds from Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds.  http://rareseeds.com/  I like the fact that they offered several varieties of favas. 

I filled one bed with the standard Broad Windsor fava bean.  This old English favorite produces high yields of high-protein beans.  I'm counting on these to do well.

I planted half the second bed with Aquadulce fava, a 19th century Spanish heirloom that produces large white beans extra early in the season, but is known for lower yields.

The other half of that bed contains Extra Precoce A Grano Violetto fava bean, another extra early variety - this one from Italy - that produces deep purple, sweet tasting beans.

We have a fall garden ... Thanks to Andrew!

October 2nd is my birthday.  The kids were asking me what I wanted for my birthday.  With all the wedding activity late in the summer and early fall, plus a week away in early October for my annual music study, I did not have time to start the fall garden.  One day it hit me.  I told son, Andrew, that what I really wanted for my birthday was for somebody to plant my fall garden.  He did it!

He perused the catalogs, ordered seeds for all kinds of delicious greens and roots, cleaned up and prepared the beds, sowed the seeds, and has been tending to them since.

It may be a little late, but in our part of the world there's plenty of time to enjoy these crops. With the help of some lightweight row covers, they'll be producing all winter.  Here's what the fall garden looks like today ...

 

The marigolds continue to brighten the space. The pepper plants are still producing.  The bed containing the big bushy lima bean plants is in line to be cleared next.  The new seedlings are getting a foothold.  The bright green spot in the foreground is arugula ... just now getting big enough to enjoy.

Mother - Daughter Bonding in the Kitchen

Abi and I spent some quality time in the kitchen tonight.  I made two batches of jam ... one each of red jalapeno and fig.  Abi cooked up the golden delicious apples leftover from wedding time to make a big pot of spicy apple butter.  Jars of summer's sweet goodness are now safely put up on the shelf.

While I was away last week the last of the okra pods were not picked.  They grew to monstrous proportions!  I sure am going to miss fresh okra, but I have to admit that the season is over.  Son, Andrew, and visiting nephew, Forrest, worked together to clear the okra bed.

While they were at it, I had them remove the spent pole beans and associated string trellis.  Pole beans are a good "cross over" crop.  They produce from summer into fall.  We've been eating so many green beans lately ... if they weren't so delicious we'd definitely be at risk for being sick and tired of them!

A green anole watched the proceedings.  He's not very green today!

Sue is STILL not in the Garden ...

She's been away for a week, studying the hammered dulcimer with a bunch of like-minded folks, at Sandbridge Beach, Virginia.

Sue has not been in the garden much ...

... she's been the mother-of-the-bride!

 

Here I am with Abi, right before she and her groom left the wedding reception.

Making lists and checking them thrice ... there hasn't been much time for gardening or for keeping up with this garden journal. While we've been eating plenty of delicious home-grown produce, the garden upkeep has been neglected while more important tasks have been accomplished.

Today, Abigail and Andrew were married in a downpour.  Such a lucky wedding day!  The skies opened up and poured blessings upon us.

Let your love be like the misty rains, coming softly, but flooding the river.  ~ Malagasy Proverb

Canteloupe

Success at growing canteloupe!  Plenty of fruits.  They smell delicious and are juicy, but the flavor is not as sweet as I like.  I'll try a different variety next year.

Sue is not in the garden ...

She's in Hawaii for two weeks with Rouse the Spouse.

Happy 30th anniversary to us!

 

So glad to miss the 100+ degree extended heat wave!!

Gotta getta lotta stuff done ...

Harvesting and cooking zucchini, edamame, beet greens, etc before we leave for an extended vacation.  Andrew will be here to take care of the chickens and perform "must do" garden chores, but I can't count on him to pick and process lots of produce.

Wild Blackberries

This year's crop of wild blackberries is the best we've ever seen! Rouse and I spent one-and-a-half hours rambling through our favorite roadside brambles. There was an abundance of big, plump, juicy berries. We ended up with 7 pounds of berries ... enough for three batches of jam!

The End of Now and Future Squash

We have a major infestation of SQUASH BUGS. That's it for the squash.  I have to admit, I allowed the garden to become so overcome by squash bugs this year I had to resort to the use of seven dust to eradicate them ... the first time I've used that kind of poison in my garden.  They have even gotten into the gourds, which they have never done before!

The zucchini plants are history, as are the winter squash plants that were growing well but never had a chance to produce.  I'm very disappointed not to have any winter squashes this year. I'm beginning to think an early crop of squash is the only possibility to consider.  Squash planted later in the summer gets overwhelmed by bugs. Maybe I should take a break from growing squash at all for a few years, but I hate to think of life without fresh squash.

Today I roasted twelve zucchinis for the freezer and made two loaves of zucchini bread. The official count for this year's yield: 50 zucchinis

Major thinning of beets

Today's the day to harvest the beets.  I have three rows planted in the same bed as the okra ... rows alternating. Hot weather is coming.  It's time for the young okra to have its day in the sun.

I pulled mature beet plants and sorted through them, separating the roots from the tops.  Then off to the kitchen where I cooked the roots in the pressure cooker - 20 minutes gets the job done - and washed the greens, preparing them for the the cook pot in the near future.

Temps Expected to Hit 100 Degrees Today!

I'm heading to the garden NOW to beat the heat!

Rattlesnake Pole Beans on the Menu Tonight!

The plants have quickly grown up their string trellis.  They're healthy ... not yet riddled with pesty beetle damage or ugly leaf spot.  And the foliage is relatively sparse.  The leaves are not so lush as to hide the gorgeous purple-streaked beans.  This means that the picking is easy!

The beans are coming on in bunches.  Andrew says I could let them mature a bit more, but I'm ready for that first mess of pole beans!

Berries for Breakfast

It's berry season. Git 'em while the gittin' is good!


Blackberries, Blueberries, Wineberries
topping vanilla Greek yogurt
with almonds and whole grain cereal nuggets



First Day of Summer

The prolonged pleasant spring weather is about to turn ... right in line with the calendar!  We're heading toward the mid-90's today.  Heat and humidity, here we come!  I got out into the garden early this morning to complete my chores:

• picked jade bush beans and rattlesnake pole beans
• checked squash, cucumbers, and peppers for ripe fruit; found a couple of each to pick
• secured rapidly growing tomato plants to newly installed supports; trimmed suckers

Items to watch for:

• recently sown sunflower seeds have sprouted
• squash seeds planted in the new raised bed have sprouted and are growing well
• melons, limas, blackeyed peas are blooming
• edamame beans are set and maturing; trying to keep kudzu bugs and caterpillars under control
• sweetheart peppers have set fruit
• basil is starting to take off; needs to be pinched back to encourage branching / growth
• okra is stretching out above the beets; beets must be harvested soon to make way for okra

.6" Rain Yesterday Afternoon / Evening

New roo crows for the first time in his new home

Our young rooster must be feeling pretty comfortable in his new digs.  He got the granddog all riled up this morning with his crowing.

I was getting ready to dash off to yoga class.  Grayson, the granddog, was relaxing in the family room.  All of a sudden, he jumped up.  The hair on his back was standing on end.  He growled.  He went to the back door, itching to get out.  I opened the door.  Then I heard it.  A weird, loud sound ... a short, bleating, bawling sound.  I was afraid it might be a fawn separated from its mother.  I told the dog to "wait" while I put on my shoes.

The sound was coming from the barn area.  We slowly made our way in that direction.  I stopped and listened again.  Strange!  Then one more time ... and I heard the distinctive cadence of a rooster's "cock a doodle doo".  He has declared, "I am the boss!"  

Roo establishing his Harem

Oh, boy!  Now one of the Dominiques has joined New Roo and his girlfriend on the nighttime roost.  If I had to guess, I'd say it's First Lady.  She was the favorite of our last rooster, Barack.  I think she missed his companionship after his untimely death last fall.

This handsome new rooster is proving to be a chick magnet!

Zucchini Still Life

... that's 38 and counting!

My new Nikon Coolpix 14x wide zoom camera has a filter effect called "painting".  The most recent pile of squash made such a lovely photograph ...  I thought I'd like to make it look like a painting.  Voila!

These squash have since been cut into chunks, doused in olive oil, sprinkled with course salt and freshly ground pepper, roasted in the oven, and tucked into the freezer for future use.  They will contribute to a fine ratatouille!

What a glorious morning!

Temps in the mid- to upper- 50's with low humidity.  It's a pleasure to work in the garden under these conditions.  I found plenty to do.

• The sugar snaps have exhausted themselves.  I picked the last few pods and removed the tangled plants from the bed, creating a little elbow room for the adjacent edamame plants.
• I checked the edamame for pests.  There are still a few kudzu bugs to remove each day.  Something besides the kudzu bug is eating the edamame leaves and leaving little black feces.  I suspect a worm, but I couldn't find one.
• Cross-striped cabbage worms have begun to eat holes in the kale.  I harvested the nicest remaining leaves, then pulled the rest up.
• I picked zucchini, jade bush beans, cucumbers, banana peppers.
• There are plenty of good-looking beets, but I didn't harvest any today.
• The first batch of rattlesnake pole beans will be ready in a few days.

New Roo Settling In

Well, that didn't take long!  New Roo has made a new friend. He and the light colored Ameraucana have been hanging out in the chicken yard.  Now they're sleeping together!

New Roo Beds Down with the Chicks

The plan was to house the new kid in separate quarters for a few days to allow acclimation.  But his first day (yesterday) had been a rainy day, and it turned into a rainy night.  I dutifully checked on him throughout the day, trudging out to the barn in my raincoat and galoshes, protective umbrella overhead.  There he was in his separate safe zone, eyeing the hens ... with the apparent desire to be out there with them.  They were calmly hanging out in the chicken yard, seemingly oblivious to the light rain.  I never saw the rooster go into his enclosed roosting box.  He simply took cover under the slight overhang of tarp that covers the roof of that structure. I didn't worry about him since the other chickens were playing out in the rain themselves all day.

That night, Rouse the Spouse and I went out to close up the chicken coop and check on our young roo.  He still had not taken refuge in the dry roosting box.  Chickens are creatures of habit.  We would have to teach this youngster where to sleep.  But he looked so lonely I couldn't bear to stick him in there alone.  Rouse was convinced that he could hold his own if we just put him to roost with the hens and let them all wake up together in the morning.  So, that's what we did.

This morning, they were all waiting for me to open them up to the chicken yard.  New Roo is a bit nervous - and I had to teach him how to get out of the safe zone into the chicken yard - but they all seem to be getting along OK.  The new kid will gradually work his way to the top of the pecking order ... he is a rooster, after all!

New Roo

There's a new rooster in town!  Our son, Noah, and his fiance, Ashley, raised up some biddies this spring. One began to crow last week! Roosters are not allowed in urban chicken coops, so this little boy had to be sent to a new home in the country.  We have a "grandchicken" now.


He arrived "special delivery" in the middle of the night.  Noah packed him up in Asheville and met my sister, Janet, who brought him to us.  Of course, he was belted in for safety... in the front seat, no less! Once in Pittsboro, he spent the rest of the night in his box in the car.  First thing this morning, before the hens were up and moving about, I transferred him to his new home.

He was very calm when I opened his box and allowed me to pick him up with no protest.  He moved about his new space, checking things out and making little chicken noises. Noah and Ashley named him Pippa when "he" was thought to be a "she".  When Rouse saw the box the rooster arrived in he declared we should name him "Rex".  We'll have to get to know him to see if one of these names fit his personality ... or if another one comes to mind!

He's temporarily housed in the
back of the "safe zone" with his own protected roost, personal waterer, and feed dispenser.  We're going to give him and the rest of the chickens a little time to get used to each other before integrating him into the flock.

Silver Laced Wyandotte Rooster
Very handsome, indeed!  Welcome to our happy chicken yard!

Anticipation ...



Little green tomatoes

Baby cucumbers



Okra rising above the beets

Winter Squash

Sugar Dumpling Hybrid Squash
Single-serving, pumpkin-shaped fruits that combine the eating quality of Delicata and the storage quality of Acorns.  Creamy yellow background with dark green stripes.  95 - 110 days.  Harvest when they reach full size, begin turning the appropriate color, or after first frost.  For long-term storage, harvest before frost.

Argonaut Butternut Winter Squash
Enormous butternut-type, with honey-sweet flavor and meaty texture.  Bright gold fruits are 15-27 in. and weigh 30 lbs. or more. Will hold up to 8 months in storage. Vigorous vines are easy to grow. 140 days.  Harvest when the stem is withered and the skin is hard to pierce with your thumbnail.  Cut from the vine, leaving a 2" stem attached to the fruit.

Today I planted two hills each of these winter squash varieties in the newest 5' square raised bed.  Germination should take place in 10 days to 2 weeks.  I planted a volunteer Thai Basil plant at the center of the bed.

Sun Flowers - Helianthus Annuus

We have a wedding coming up!  Our daughter, Abigail, will marry Andrew West late this summer.  The wedding will be held at the church, but the reception will take place under a big tent at her grandparents' home.

Abi has chosen to exclusively use local, seasonal flowers, with lots of red, yellow, and orange.  We have contracted with a local florist / farmer for the bulk of the flowers, but my mother-in-law and I are consciously planting late summer / autumn bloomers in anticipation of creating a celebration of color at the party.  Marigolds and geraniums are boldly showing off now and we are diligently dead-heading to keep them blooming.  I hope we can keep them all healthy and beautiful until wedding time.

Today I went in search of sunny spots to plant sun flowers.  The problem?  I'm not sure when to plant them in order to get blooms at the desired time!  I'll plant some now and more in a couple of weeks and hope for the best.

Rouse created a little bed for me in front of the chicken coop, to the right of the door.  It's a bright spot in our shady landscape and the tall sunflowers will be perfect there.  It didn't take long in the progression of the day, though, for us to realize that an overhanging limb was blocking the sun right in the middle of the day.  So up the ladder he went, off came the limb, in poured the sunshine.  It's amazing how the loss of one limb can totally change the feeling of a space, but it makes me smile just thinking about those happy sunflowers!  Autumn Beauty  5' - 7' tall; Blooms in shades of lemon yellow, subtle bronze, rich wine, and bicolors on multiple flowerheads.

As an experiment, I planted a different sun flower mixture along the fence in the sandy soil of the backyard bed. Summertime Mix 4' - 5' tall; Pollen-free, hybrid mixture of colors and forms, single-stemmed and branched flowers.  In front of them I planted a patch of Burgundy Blanket Flower Gaillardia Aristata; Heat, drought, poor soil tolerant, a strong plant that returns each spring.  I also sowed a few of the gaillardia seeds in between the (bolting) cilantro plants  in the bed near the mulch bins.

I already planted Royal Flush sunflower mix seedlings on May 21 at the back of the bed near the leaf mulch bin. They are beginning to bloom, but are nowhere near their advertized 6' height ... "Dazzling 4- to 6-in. sunflowers soar on 6-ft. stalks. Dynamic color combinations—red with red and yellow, rusty reds and yellow—contrast with dark brown centers. Dramatic as cut flowers. Impressive for borders and backgrounds. Happy even in poor soil." Maybe they will do well in poor soil, but what if the challenge is poor sunshine? I suspect that might have something to do with their stunted growth.

One More (!) New Bed

Well, we had to even them out!

Andrew built a second 5'-square bed to match the old sandbox structure.  We felt that the one bed looked lonely by itself ... just sticking out in the yard.  He filled it with topsoil from B and L Supply.  The soil in the bed on the left is composed of more clay compared to that of the one on the right, which is composed of more sand.  It will be interesting to see how this effects the health and productivity of plants.

The chicken / rabbit exclusion fence will be extended around these two beds. I will place cardboard / newspaper covered with leaf mulch between the beds to kill the grass and discourage weeds.  I've already planted melons and cucumbers in the bed on the right, with several sweet basil plants in the center.  I'll plant winter squash in the bed to the left. 

Available yard and available sun will dictate these to be the "last" raised beds to be added to the garden.

Dead Chicken

One of our older chickens died today.  She had been feeling poorly and had turned "yellow".  That's right ... the color of her comb and face had changed from red to orange.  Her legs and feet were a brighter yellow than usual.  She was eating, drinking, pooping OK, although I'm not sure she was laying anymore.  She stayed with the flock. I never saw another chicken harass her.  But she looked tired, sometimes sitting with her shoulders hunched up.  I knew it was just a matter of time.  Now it's ten hens in the chicken coop.

18 zucchinis and counting ...

... but I'm a little concerned that I'm seeing some yellow, shriveling baby fruits.  They seem to be rotting from the blossom end.  I have read that this problem may be caused by a calcium deficiency in the soil (maybe), a lack of water (doubtful this year ... I would believe too MUCH water), or (most likely) insufficient natural pollination by insects.  Cool, wet weather may have interfered with the activity of the pollinators.  Whatever it is, I don't like it!

Green beans are on the menu!

The beans on the upright plants are easy to see, easy to pick ...










... but don't forget to look under the leaves, especially on plants that have fallen over.  These are the Jade Bush Beans.  They make tender, stringless, delicious beans.  And they are prolific!  I expect them to produce well all summer and into the fall.  This first batch is destined for a fresh green bean salad to be served at Sunday dinner.

Raised Beds ... Old and New

Last week I mulched the tomato / cucumber bed using hard-wood mulch from the bottom of the pile.  This week I have a new crop of grass sprouting throughout that bed.  Curse those unseen seeds!  But I took care of the baby grass today.

First, I put out layers of newspaper, surrounding the desirable plants and covering the entire surface of the soil.  Using the garden hose, I wet the paper.  Then I piled on old leaves from the leaf mulch pile and thoroughly soaked the whole thing.  That should kill the grass, but I have to wonder how many rogue seeds are hiding out in those leaves?

This morning Rouse asked Andrew to take the kids' old sandbox to the dump.  Andrew had a better idea ... Let's turn it into a new raised bed!  Yay!  I NEED another raised bed!  I have melon seedlings and basil plants waiting to be tucked into their own bed.

No sooner said than done. The grass has been chopped.  Giant rocks have been removed.  The 5' x 5' wood-sided structure is in place, filled with a rich mixture of soil, horse manure, and other organic matter.  The garden hose has been employed to give the soil a good soaking.

Now fencing must be placed around this bed to keep the chickens and the rabbits OUT.  Then it will be ready for planting.  Soon, the melons will be putting down roots!  Don't I have some awesome guys?

This year's first sighting of Japanese Beetles ...

... found on the rattlesnake pole beans and the zinnias.

Summer Tanager Enjoys Berries

The summer tanager kept me company in the berry patch as I picked black raspberries this morning.  I saw it noshing on the berries yesterday afternoon as I inspected the garden.  And I heard it's call as I picked today - but I hadn't taken the time to look for it.  Andrew came out to the garden to deliver a message and pointed out that the bird was sitting on a branch just overhead.  What a gorgeous red bird!  I invited it down, and by golly, it flew right into the berry patch, primed for a tasty fruity breakfast.

http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Summer_Tanager/lifehistory

Kudzu Bugs

I found some of these bad boys on my edamame this afternoon.  An exotic invasive from Japan, kudzu bugs feed on (did you guess?) kudzu ... and soybeans.  They are quickly migrating into all areas of North Carolina.  It's a major concern for soybean growers.  It's a bother for me in the garden.  It's not going to effect my livelihood, but it might effect my dinner table.  I'm worried about ALL my beans!  I planted lots of beans this year.  It's one type of crop that has grown successfully in my garden and we love eating beans.  Will yields be diminished because of this stinky stink bug?!  I must closely inspect all beans tomorrow.

Article in the News & Observer:  http://​www.newsobserver.com/2012/​05/28/2096118/​kudzu-bugs-are-ncs-latest-i​mported.html#storylink=cpy

NCSU fact sheet for soybean growers:  http://ipm.ncsu.edu/​cotton/insectcorner/PDF/​Kudzu%20Bug%20Handout_Field​%20Crops.Final.pdf

NCSU fact sheet for home owners:  http://www.ces.ncsu.edu/​depts/ent/notes/Urban/​kudzubug.htm

A Bird's-Eye View of Today's Garden

Our son, Andrew, and visiting nephew, Yarri, climbed high into the magnolia tree to take this aerial photograph.  I love the way Andrew framed the shot with magnolia leaves!

Summer Bounty Begins

It was a good morning in the garden.  It looks like a good supper tonight!  The girls are laying well.  Fresh Dill, Kale, Asparagus, Zucchini, Black Raspberries, Sugar Snaps, two varieties of Beets.  Let the summer feast begin!

Ready for Zucchini

Black Raspberries ... Looks like our BEST crop ever!

The pollinators and the rains came at exactly the right time.  The black raspberry patch is full of plump, juicy berries.  Plenty to pick today, with many more to come.

Raspberries are the little jewels of the garden ... so delicious on top of a bowl of cereal or mixed into yogurt in the morning, or baked into a cobbler or  tossed onto a scoop of ice cream for dessert, or straight out of hand anytime. And don't forget the fruity pancakes and muffins and jam etc etc etc.  My mouth is watering already!

The chickens love to browse the brambles. They reach up and pluck the berries off the canes.  We've seen our neighbors, Mr. and Mrs. Brown Thrasher, helping themselves to the good fruit.  And there's plenty of evidence that other birds have been enjoying the berries, as well.  The dogs even like to take a nibble or two.  But no worries.  There's plenty for all!

New Bed for Sun-Loving Flowers

Royal Flush Mix ... sounds like a winner to me!  When I bought the seeds from Gurney's I was thinking of Abi's wedding, although these plants may be bloomed out by that time.  The catalog description:

Dazzling 4- to 6-in. sunflowers soar on 6-ft. stalks. Dynamic color combinations—red with red and yellow, rusty reds and yellow—contrast with dark brown centers. Dramatic as cut flowers! Impressive for borders and backgrounds! Happy even in poor soil! 60 DAYS.

I'm definitely being an optimist when looking forward to the possibility of sun flowers in our shady landscape.  I planted the seeds in starter trays that Andrew had prepared.  Now, here I am with seedlings getting leggier by the day and no place ready to plant them.  But Andrew came to the rescue.  He built me a raised bed on the sunny side of the mulch / leaf containment area.  I planted two rows of Royal Flush at the back of the bed and transplanted a row of volunteer zinnias from the garden.  Then Andrew added a row of cilantro seedlings at the front of the bed.

Thank you, Andrew, for all your help in the garden!

Cherry Jam

The Nanking Bush Pie Cherries produced their first crop this year.  It took several days for all the fruit to ripen.  From the three trees, I collected 2-1/4 pounds of bright red cherries.  The picking was quick.  The pitting was not.  It took nearly two hours (with breaks!) to remove the pits.

For my efforts, I had 3 cups of fruit and juice ... enough for one recipe of something delicious.  What would it be?  Cobbler?  Pie?  Turn-overs?

I considered the options, then decided to make jam.  It seemed the very best way to prolong the enjoyment of the cherries. The only problem ... the cherry jam recipe calls for 4 cups of prepared fruit.  Luckily, my father-in-law has some of these very same cherry bushes.  Andrew offered to pick another 3/4 pounds of cherries while he was doing yard work over there in the afternoon.  He did indeed bring me more cherries, and I spent another 30 - 45 minutes after supper removing pits.  Then I collected my jam making equipment, put the water on to boil, and began the process of cooking jam.  

Cherry Jam
4 cups prepared fruit
4-3/4 cups sugar
1 package commercial pectin
Yield:  6 half-pint jars of jam