Category Archives: Garden Stories

Neglect

Posted on August 1, 2016 | 6 comments

We have sorely neglected our kitchen garden.

We’ve let volunteers and weeds go wild. Borage, tomatoes and lamb’s quarters threaten to choke out peppers, carrots, broccoli and brussels sprouts.

The kids go out almost daily and cut away at the infiltrators and I try to pull thistles out by the root when I think of it. But, like fighting the Japanese beetles, it feels a bit futile.

Just like every year, I start to feel forlorn about failing to get all the projects we wanted and planned to do done.

We didn’t plan well enough to avoid the Japanese beetle takeover.
We didn’t pull and/or transplant enough volunteers to prevent the kitchen garden from turning into a jungle.
We didn’t take the time to learn more about pruning trees.

And then, just like every year, I look back at the projects we did manage to finish.

We planted 65+ trees.

We added posts and wires to the vineyard so the kiwi and grapes could continue their upward climb.

We built a new, bigger run for the 16 chickens we added to our homestead.

We transplanted sea berries and blackberries from the fedge to the vineyard.

We built a squash arch.

We built an herb spiral.

We discovered we had a rooster.

We fought Japanese beetles…and lost.

But, at least we tried and got a few…thousands.

After thinking of all the projects we did complete and all the goals we did meet, I feel kind of like a superhero, a rockstar…a successful homesteader.

Feeling blue and sad
All the failed plans we had
Until I stop and review
All the things we did do

6 Comments

Posted in Chickens!, Education, Garden Stories, Life, Permaculture, Poetry, Preparedness, Writing

Mourning

Posted on July 27, 2016 | Leave a comment

Pale and gray and weak
Its comb, its feet its beak
Tired, sad and blue
Eyes of yellow hue

It laid around for days
Drifting in a haze
In and out of slumber
We knew her days were numbered

Fresh water every day
New grass to munch and play
I do not know what’s wrong
Or why she is not strong

Today, when I went out
I heard the others shout
She slept and did not wake
I got her with a rake

I researched and I read
And every hen site said
Nutrition is the key
To save one such as she

But now it is too late
No reason to berate
We’ll just begin again
Good food to every hen

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Posted in Garden Stories

Next Year

Posted on July 20, 2016 | Leave a comment

Next year in the garden
Everything will grow
All the plants I’ve started
Every seed I sow

The carrots will be plenty
The tomatoes will not blight
The borage won’t take over
The dill won’t win the fight

I’ll fight off every thistle
I’ll pick off every pest
No cabbage will be ravaged
The beans will be the best

Next year on the homestead
I’ll regroup and I’ll seek
To learn from all these lessons
To fertilize each week

But this year I’m so thankful
For everything that’s grown
From lettuce, herbs and berries
To sweet smiles from my own

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Posted in Education, For the Kids, Garden Stories, Life, Permaculture, Poetry, Preparedness, Writing

Peeping Toms

Posted on July 18, 2016 | 2 comments

We came back after a weekend away to find a few red tomatoes peeping from under the green vines.

The cherry tomatoes are sweet and delicious and so fun for the kiddos to pick.

My pepper plants, though still small for their age, are starting to show some buds and a few peppers are even growing.

This purple pepper flower is gorgeous.

There is one black Hungarian ripening too.

Another nice surprise was finding the winter squash growing. I’ve pulled a few of the plants to give some growing room to the healthier vines. I hope to see the vines growing over the arch soon. Maybe I wasn’t too late after all.

The Japanese beetles were not too destructive while we were gone this weekend. The vines looked a bit worse for wear, but many leaves remain. The boys helped Ray pick off the few that were still hanging around.

The new young ladies were busy while we were away. There are at least 7 that are laying now and the eggs are starting to get bigger.

The blackberries, all pink and bitter before we left, have ripened. Joe and I just picked and picked and picked. They are juicy and oh-so-sweet…a great treat after a long drive.

Peeping little ‘maters
Tasty berries too
Peppers growing bigger
Squash is vining too

Beauty in the garden
The growth will never stop
Weeds are overtaking
I pull and chop and drop

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Posted in Chickens!, For the Kids, Garden Stories, Life, Poetry, Writing

Hedgerows and Vines

Posted on July 13, 2016 | Leave a comment

The hedge and the vineyard are both green and lush with fruits ripening or budding on almost every plant.

There is no sign of fruit on the kiwi and, unfortunately for us, there should be full size fruit on the vines now and ripe fruit by the end of August.

There’s always next year.

The grapes, even though they’ve been hit hard by the Japanese Beetles, look great. They are full size and just starting to turn into that beautiful deep purple that heralds ripe fruit.

The boys are itching to pick them so I let them try one resulting in sour faces and “you were right” mommies.

The Rose de Bernes I planted in the vineyard all have small green tomatoes growing. They will be a deep pink when ripe.

There are so many blackberries ready to ripen. We get at least a full bowl of juicy berries every day and still the vines are heavy with them.

Even the vine I cut and stuck in the vineyard has has a few little berries on it.

On a sad note, I feel I’ve neglected the kitchen garden this year.

I waited too long to plant the squash, even though I made a beautiful trellis for it to climb up.

I let the lamb’s quarters, dill and borage get away from me, so each time I go out to check for eggs I cut some of it and feed it to the chickens.

I didn’t pay attention to the peppers so they are still pretty much the same size as seedlings, with tiny buds and one little jalapeno.

We’ll get a few tomatoes, some more carrots and maybe brussels sprouts and squash, but our harvest this year will not be as great as in the past.

But, I’m very happy with perennials.

The cherries, despite the beetles, have ripened.

There are more blackberries in the fedge and grapes in the vineyard than ever before.

The aronia and seaberries are spreading and new plants are popping up all over, propagating themselves with no effort on our part.

The wait is over. Our perennials are finally catching up, which softens the blow of the failed kitchen garden.

The hedge and the vineyard abound
Fruits on vines twine all around
Blackberries and grapes
Vines knot and escape
Some tangle and lay on the ground

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Posted in Garden Stories, Permaculture, Poetry, Writing

The Experiment

Posted on July 7, 2016 | 4 comments

I’ve noticed that when the Japanese Beetle traps are full, the lure is still working and drawing beetles in. Having no place to go they turn to our plants, which then become covered with even more tiny crawling, shiny, black bug bodies than usual.

When we empty them, there are fewer beetles on our plants and more in the traps. So when we are gone all day and don’t empty the traps until evening, the damage done to our trees and vines is much worse. Leaves are laced and fruit is chomped.

I empty the traps at least twice a day, filling two 5 gallon buckets and each time the creepers are crawling at the top and out of them, flying off to find other tasty food.

Hmmm.

What if the traps draw in more beetles than are already present on our land?

What if the placement of each trap draws from outside our property?

What if, in trying to rid them from our homestead, we’re drawing in more from neighbors or the corn fields around us?

This weekend, we are experimenting to test our hypothesis. I’ve taken pictures of some of the plants the beetles attack the most.

The borage, which peppers the kitchen garden, is one of their favorites.

Since they start at the top and work their way down, the vineyard is especially vulnerable…they particularly enjoy the kiwi leaves.

Yet the leafy mint they leave alone.

The rose bushes, which have a similar scent to the lure, are one of their favorites. They munch on leaf and flower and bud.

So…we are conducting an experiment. I’ve already removed the traps and lures and when I went out this morning…there weren’t as many beetles on the plants.

True, it is overcast and rainy which seems to deter them a bit, but I’m hopeful that there will be fewer even on sunny, hot days once I remove the traps.

In researching and in asking Bill Wilson of Midwest Permaculture, I’ve read that super healthy plants create a natural insect repellant because they have all of their nutritional needs met…and that starts with soil.

So…the beetles prey on the weak just like any other predator.

Nutrient rich soil=rockstar plants and trees that fight off pests. It’s survival of the fittest…may the strongest plants win.

We already have healthier soil since we’ve moved in and started planting and fertilizing. We are now going step up our efforts to ensure that we have good, healthy soil so we can have good, healthy plants.

Maybe, we’ll be able to manage them and at least keep them from eating all of the leaves on the trees, vines, shrubs and grapes.

Maybe, it won’t be as bad next year if we bump up the effort to make our soil even healthier than we’ve already made it.

Maybe.

Healthy plants and soil
Defense against all evil
We’ll fight those beetles

4 Comments

Posted in Garden Stories, Haiku, Permaculture, Poetry

Desperate Measures

Posted on June 30, 2016 | Leave a comment

Picking isn’t working
They swarm and multiply
They are always smirking
And most refuse to die

We’ve killed so many gross bugs
But more come take their place
They’re shiny, nasty plant thugs
Reducing leaves to lace

The lures become a death trap
We empty them all day
But beetles fly and they flap
On leaves and fruits they prey

I’m almost at my limit
My patience has run out
But I must grin and bear it
Or I will scream and shout

I’ve heard that powdered eggshell
Will keep them all at bay
Or potions with a bad smell
I’ll make some homemade spray

I won’t let them beat me
I won’t give up this war
One more month and they’ll be
Gone and out the door

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Posted in Garden Stories, Poetry, Writing

Twisting Vines

Posted on June 28, 2016 | Leave a comment

We added a third and fourth tier of wire to the vineyard this weekend. The grapes and kiwi were so heavy that they’d pulled the existing tiers to the ground, so we added t-posts to support some of that weight.

Now the grapes and crazy long kiwi vines are free to continue their upward climb.

The vines and runners were a tangled mess, twining and twisting around each other in knots, making unwinding them a bit of a chore.

We did the best we could.

Even raising up those few vines made a huge difference.

Suddenly, we had a vineyard rather than just a mess of vines on the ground.

The vineyard has changed quite a bit in the last three years. When I look back at the pictures of the grapes and kiwi, I can’t believe they were ever that small.

Grapes 2013

Grapes 2016

Kiwi 2013

Kiwi 2016

Vineyard 2013

Vineyard 2016

If I ever feel like we haven’t accomplished much, all I have to do is look back at these pictures to see how far we’ve come in just 4 years.

I can’t wait to see what happens in the next four.

A repair in height
Grape vines and kiwi raised high
What a gorgeous sight!

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Posted in Garden Stories, Haiku, Life, Poetry, Writing

Alarm! Alarm!

Posted on June 23, 2016 | 2 comments

My bug hunters are on a mission. Find, pick, squish and drown the Japanese Beetles attacking our trees, grapes and kiwi and feed them to the chickens.

Joe came running in the house this morning to report the emergency.

“Alarm! Alarm! Alarm! Alarm! Japanese Beetles in the vineyard.”

Quick to react, we made the poisonous potion and set out on our morning hunt.

Japanese Beetle Poison: Water with dishwashing liquid.

Before the big rain, I saw a few of these evil beetles here and there. I picked them off and fed them to the chickens.

I breathed a sigh of relief; there really weren’t that many.

Maybe this year wouldn’t be as bad as last.

Maybe they’d attack the weeds and grasses in the prairie rather than our fedge, new trees and vineyard.

Maybe we would be able to control and eradicate them easily.

Oh how wrong I was.

They are everywhere. They attack the trees.

They swarm over the aronia in the fedge.

The damage they do in such a short time is devastating. Leaves barely remain, reduced to a wispy skeleton.

So, every morning we walk through all of our gardens picking them off the plants and drowning them in soapy water.

Every afternoon we rally the troops again and head out for a second sweep.

Some soldiers are more helpful than others.

And then every evening we make the rounds one last time.

It’s not hard work. In fact, it is very satisfying to shake these villains into the poison or squish them with a crunch.

The chickens are sick of them. They turn up their beaks and waddle away in a huff.

So…since the chickens aren’t interested anymore, we’ve found a new solution to the disposal problem.

Here froggy, froggy
Come up from the deep
Here fishy, fishy
I’ve brought you a treat

Crunchy, yummy beetles
Come and get them now
Crispy little critters
Sweet and tasty chow

2 Comments

Posted in Education, Garden Stories, Permaculture, Writing

Chores

Posted on June 20, 2016 | 2 comments

Even though I stagger the seeds and starts, getting everything in the garden seems like a rush of activity. My schedule is full of “plant this today, plant that tomorrow, prune the tomatoes, cut back the lettuce” and on and on.

It’s hectic and exhilarating.

Then, once it’s all in the ground, the waiting starts.

In between obsessively checking for green sprouts and flowery buds, we have our daily chores.

First thing we do every morning after breakfast is check on the little chickens. We make sure their food dish is full and they have plenty of water.

Next, we head out to check for eggs and bring fresh water to our old gals. They’ve been a bit subdued since losing two from the flock so I’ve been bringing them treats to try and cheer them.

They loved the frozen bananas and seem to enjoy having iced water.

We walk around checking on the trees, making sure the weeds are pulled back and they have plenty of water.

Then it’s time to go on Japanese Beetle patrol.

We’ve found troops of them attacking the aronia leaves and a few lone soldiers have gone after the grapes.

Armed with bug gun and a dish of soapy water, our resident bug hunter is on the case. He pulls them off the leaves and either squishes them or plops them in the water as treats for the depressed chickens.

We check for eggs one more time before the afternoon is out and then stroll through the garden looking for those green sprouts, yellow buds and first signs of fruit.