I hate Deer, Rabbits and Humidity….. and lot’s of new veggie pics!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dave got the fence patched up where the deer were braking in to feast on the watermelons, pumpkins and corn. An ear popped up today as well and I grabbed a picture of a dragonfly on the corn. Did you know that a dragonfly’s life span is just 24 hours? I also snapped a couple shots of the rabbit I must take down in order to save my crop. god, I hate rabbits and deer.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Green Pepper, Thai Hot Pepper, Zucchini and tomatoes

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I found a ton of pumpkins popping up. I was worried that they wouldn’t be pollinated but after my last post I noticed lots of bees, dragonflies, ants and other insects doing the pollination job. Thanks for the help Mother Nature.

I’m trying a new format with this post. Wordepress has made it a pain in the ass to post pics and text and make it look decent. So, please take a moment to click on the thumbnail pic to see it.

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Pumpkin Pollination Time!

Here’s a cool side-by-side picture of when I planted pumpkins on June 16th and a picture I took this morning July 24th. It’s pretty amazing what Mother Nature can do in just 38 Days.

   

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pumpkin Pollination is the key to growing pumpkins. It all starts with the Male Flower which grows above the vines and opens about a week or so before the female flower. You can tell the difference between the Male and Female flower quite easily. Male is on the left below, Female is on the right.
   

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Male is up above the plant and the female grows on the vine underneath the leaves. The giant leaves shade the fruit. Bees, birds and other insects take the pollen from the Male flower from the center stamen and place it on the female flower in the center of the multi segmented stigma. There was a lot of insects doing the pollinating this morning.
   

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Due to the decrease of honey bees in certain areas, you can pollinate pumpkins yourself using a Q-Tip. Simply stick the Q-Tip into the center of the Male flower, and then place the Q-Tip (covered in yellow pollen) into the center of the Female flower.

   

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
More Pumpkin Patch Pics….
   

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
Pretty soon, you’ll have a pumpkin growing.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I found this guy hiding underneath the leaves. The first pumpkin of the season!

 

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Zoey Meets Cory the Horse and Friday Pics

   
Zoey meets Cory. She never saw a horse before. We were visiting my Uncle’s farm in Chardon. Cory licked Z and the little bub had no idea what to do.

   
Just counting down the days till the tomatoes turn ripe and red. It can’t happen soon enough.

   
We’ve been pickin’ peppers but the cabbage has a bit more time to bake in the sun.

The sunset was just gorgeous this evening. Mainly because the temperature dropped 25 degrees to a cool 74 after it rained.

Here’s a fun little video of the alpacas at my Uncle’s farm. Maybe we’ll get a couple for here. They’re really funny creatures. Here’s the link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kz7hnOCSlZ0

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A hot, hot harvest day and a new enemy.

 

   

Hot, hot day on the farm. It was 95 degrees today and tomorrow it’s gonna be 97 but with a heat index that makes it feel like 110°. That makes it no fun to be in the garden. Add about 80% Humidity to that temp and that equals a very difficult harvest. Luckily Mindy spent a half hour collecting the veggies.

The small grape or (cherry) tomatoes are getting ripe but the other types are still pretty green.

The peppers are starting to really pop! You can see a green pepper and a Thai hot pepper in the above picture along with spinach, lettuce, dill, basil, cucumbers, and grape/cherry tomatoes.

There’s a couple of jack rabbits that are just destroying the garden. They’re taking down broccoli, cucumbers, pumpkins and now I gotta take them out. I think I’ll set some traps this week and relocate the little guys to somewhere else. Far, far away from here.

There’s also a video of Jake chasing one rabbit off here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PFnq-U6ppHA

Here’s a couple stills of the varmint.

   

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What’s the Big Dill?

 

Cucumbers are just blowing up. Mindy collected these this afternoon. We collected about a dozen yesterday as well. They love this heat.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I cut some for bread and butter chips and mixed with sugar, apple cider vinegar and spices.

   

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The finished product….

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Then I made some Dill Pickles, Mindy’s favorite. I like the Bread and Butter. The dill pickle recipe is on the recipe tab. I’ll post the B & B recipe as soon as I can.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 
Fresh Dill from the garden and the pickle spears soaking in vinegar and spices.

   

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And finally, I found this spider eating a grasshopper the other day. Any idea what type of spider this is? Click on the pic to see a larger version cause I could swear it has a Mickey Mouse logo on it’s body.

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The veggies are getting bigger each day!

Cherry Tomatoes are turning red the Beefsteaks have a bit longer to ripen.

Supersonic and Romas are popping too

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Basil and Apples growing on the tree

   
Cabbage is balling up and dill is looking tasty.

Sweet Corn is growing really fast.

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Michigan Woman Faces 93 Days in Jail for Planting a Vegetable Garden

Photo Credit: Julie Bass

by Colleen Vanderlinden
from Treehugger.com

It just doesn’t get more ridiculous than this.

Julie Bass of Oak Park, Michigan — a mother of 6, law-abiding citizen, and gardener — is facing 93 days in jail after being charged with a misdemeanor.

Her crime? Planting a vegetable garden in the front yard.

Bass says that she planted the garden after her front yard was torn up for some sewer repairs. Rather than wasting the opportunity to start with a clean slate by planting a lawn, she decided to really put the area to use, and plant a vegetable garden.

Her garden consists of 5 raised beds, where she grows a mix of squashes, corn, tomatoes, flowers, and other veggies. Bass received a warning from the city telling her to remove the vegetable garden, because it doesn’t adhere to city ordinances (more on that later.) When she refused, she was ticketed and charged with a misdemeanor. Her trial, before a jury, is set to begin on July 26th. If she is found guilty, she can be sentenced to up to 93 days in jail.

About the City Ordinance

Supposedly, Bass is in noncompliance with a city ordinance that states that only “suitable” plant material is allowed on the lawn area of residences. When local media asked city planner Kevin Rulkowski what that meant, he said suitable means “common:” lawn, nice shrubs, and flowers. However, the city ordinance does not specifically state that those are the only allowed plant materials.

About Oak Park

This is not some gated community with HOA regulations. This is an ordinary, working class neighborhood in Oakland County, Michigan. Like nearly every other city in my home state right now, Oak Park is facing financial issues. Here at home, people are amazed that a cash-strapped city has the resources to investigate, charge, and prosecute a resident for something as innocuous as planting a vegetable garden.

What’s Being Done

This story is gaining traction all over the web. Gawker covered it this morning. There are Facebook pages devoted to supporting Mrs. Bass and her family during this ordeal. Will social media help change the city’s mind? That’s what many of us are hoping. Local television affiliates for ABC and Fox news have already covered the story, and media attention continues to grow.

How to Help

If you want to help support a gardener’s right to grow food for her family (even if it is — gasp — in the front yard!) there are several things you can do:

1. Email or call officials for the city of Oak Park. Mrs. Bass has listed contact information for the mayor, city manager, and other city officials in the sidebar of her blog.
2. “Like” the Oak Park Hates Veggies Facebook Page.
3. Spread the word via Facebook and Twitter. By gaining attention to this particular issue, with this particular homeowner, the hope is that other cities will reconsider before they harass another homeowner for something like this.

What do you think? Should a front yard vegetable garden be a crime?

http://www.treehugger.com/files/2011/07/michigan_woman_faces_jail_planting_veggie_garden.php

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A Look Back at Fall and Winter Time

It’s been scorching hot on the farm this past week. Upper 80’s Low 90’s with Humidity hovering around 80% or More. I thought now was a good time to look at the farm during autumn and winter. A quiet beautiful time of reflection and preparation for next season. Enjoy the pictures and remember, dry heat is dry heat. 100 degrees in dry heat is still 100 degrees. Ever stood next to a fire? That’s dry heat and it’s still hot. So, don’t buy into the whole “dry heat” load of bull.

   

   

   

   

   

   

   
Love these last couple of shots. Winter time is such a magical season on the farm. You’ve never really heard quiet till you’ve been outside in dead of winter. No leaves rustling, no birds chirping, no nothing. It’s so quiet, it’s almost spooky yet peaceful and serene.

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How to Water Tomatoes and Santa Crow

Tomato Growing Tip: Water your tomatoes regularly before the leaves appear wilted.

• Watering tomatoes is the most important element in growing tomatoes
• Tomatoes are 90 to 95 percent water and need about 1-inch of water per week. More for sandy soil.
• Maintain even soil moisture.
• Don’t let the soil completely dry out.
• Soak the soil when watering down to 6 inches.
• Water the base, not the leaves.
• Never over-water, which can happen if your site has poor drainage.
• The best control for cracking is a constant and regular water supply.

   
Cucumbers need at least eight hours of sun every day and rich soil. They are frost-sensitive and prefer warm, humid weather to produce a good crop. Cucumbers are 90 percent water, so adequate watering throughout the growing season is vital to get a juicy crop.

   
There are four types of cucumbers: slicing, pickling, space-savers and the ever-popular burpless cucumber. These are pickling cucumbers. We like them cause they’re smaller, faster growing, delicious raw and make great pickles.

   
Look out! It’s Santa Crow. I woke up to find this in the rear field. My neighbors put him there to scare away the deer. He’s over 5′ tall and I think he’s doing his job. Jake saw him this morning and was barking like crazy. Aesthetically, it’s a bit of an eye sore but we’ll keep him till we can make something better. Ho! Ho! Ho!
   
Thank You All for over 1,000 visits in a month! Keep spreading the word about our little farm blog. We greatly appreciate it!

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New Poll!

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