Frustratedearthmother's Journaling Journey

[frustratedearthmother]

Have I mentioned lately that the pigsters are getting pretty darn big?





And a pig in a pond!



Won't be much longer now...

You can click on the pic to make it bigger and take a closer look at allll that HAM!

 

[Denim Deb]

And I'm thinking BACON!

 

[frustratedearthmother]

Absolutely - bacon is king! I was kinda referring to the angle of the shot, lol!

Tragedy on the farm today and I'm _I$$ED about it! Lucy Goosey is just not meant to have a mate...geeze! I really hope some of these eggs hatch...

First thing I do when I come home is change clothes and go out to start chores. The two terriers always meet me at the back door. Same story today except that their cute little faces were covered with blood. At first I thought they'd fought or gotten cut, but nope. The little murderers killed the gander. He's been pretty nasty to them and has been antagonizing them at the fence. Guess the dummy stuck his head through the chain link and they got him. ARGHHHHHHHHH!!!!!

She's still on the nest, but she was shaking. She's pretty tame without the guy thee to back her up, o she let me sweet talk her and hand feed her some corn. Bless her little heart. Hopefully, she'll be occupied soon enough with taking care of babies. A single mother again..

 

[Wannabefree]

Poor Lucy Sorry fem

 

[Denim Deb]

Sorry about your gander.

 

[frustratedearthmother]

Thanks guys....sometimes it's just so frustrating! GRRRRRRRRRR...

I bought three blueberry plants yesterday. They'll go into one of the raised beds that DH built last weekend. I'm going to try something that I read about online. Blueberries need a very acid soil - which I do not have. Some of the websites on growing blueberries suggest planting in straight peat moss and pine bark mulch. I think I'll give it a shot - even though I doubt the stuff I purchase will be organic. I'll probably throw a tiny bit of poo in there too...or maybe just water with some manure tea. Any experienced blueberry growers out there with advice????

think I'm gonna experiment a little with some strawberries too. Instead of building a strawberry tower, I think I'm gonna hang gutters off the fence and plant in those. I think it'll be cute and hopefully productive! Ideas anyone?

I've had pretty good luck with my blackberries simply planted along the garden fence. Blackberries and dewberries grow wild around here so I think they get the right conditions without any extra work on my part.

Wouldntcha know it - one of my peach trees is almost fully leafed out - and we're expecting a possible light freeze this weekend. Hope that's not a problem. Wonder if I should try to wrap it or cover it in some way?

I know how to take care of critters (except geese obviously ) and even veggies - but I'm not so experienced at trees and berries. Grrrrr! Guess trial and error will be my best teacher.... that's kind of a scary thought cuz these plants/trees/berries aren't cheap!

 

[Wannabefree]

I'd cover the peach tree, toss a sheet over the top of it or support a tarp over the top so the frost can't get to it. It should survive the cold, but the moisture is what kills back the leaves and nips the new growth.

 

[frustratedearthmother]

Sounds like a good idea - thanks WBF!

 

[txcanoegirl]

Is your peach tree well established, or a young tree (less than 3 years old)? I believe peaches are cold hardy, but I don't know to what temperature. We don't have peaches, and I don't know if my husband has them on our master plan for the orchard. Although they have some varieties that do well in the Houston/southeast Texas area, I don't think they are very long-lived in our area. Also high maintenance because they need a lot of pruning. The peaches will only grow on the new growth, so extensive pruning is done to stimulate that new growth.
http://www.urbanharvest.org/advice/fruitgardening/fruitvarieties/peaches.html

The mayhaws are fully loaded with blooms and the pears have some blooms. I don't worry about the freezes for our mature trees, especially if it is just a light freeze. I don't ever recall a problem with the freezes hurting them. Our citrus and many others in our fledgling orchard are too young to withstand the cold temps, though, so we do frost protection on the bananas, dragon fruit, citrus (this is the last year we have to worry about it, I think), avocado, pomegranates, etc.

We don't have blueberries yet, but they do grow well here.
http://www.urbanharvest.org/advice/fruitgardening/fruitvarieties/blueberries.html

Blackberries
http://www.urbanharvest.org/advice/fruitgardening/blackberries.html
I disagree with him on his opinion of dewberries. Ours grow wild along the fence, but we mow up close and don't have a problem with them spreding. Yes they are small...much smaller than blackberries, but they are sweeter and the seeds much smaller.

Strawberries...if you plant your strawberries in the gutter idea, I think they would dry out too much and be difficult to keep watered, but it sure would make them easier to pick! Let us know how it works.

I don't have any connection to Urban Harvest in Houston, but we have gained a lot of knowledge from their website and publications. We have bought most of our fruit trees at their annual fruit tree sale. They also sell a book that we use extensively: Year Round Vegetables, Fruits and Flowers for metro Houston: A natural Organic Approach Using Ecology, by Bob Randall, PhD.

One tip to protect plants from freezes here is to water them well before the anticipated freeze.

Another tip about protecting tender fruit trees from freezes: Mulch the plants well, but pull the mulch AWAY from the ground directly around the trunk to allow the ground warmth to help keep the tree from freezing. We also place 5 gallon buckets full of water next to each tree. That also helps warm the area surrounding the tree. I can't explain the science around it, but that's sort of how it got explained to me. For you folks in other parts of the country, keep in mind that southeast Texas has mild to moderate winters and freezes usually aren't hard and usually don't last long.
Hope this helps?

Jill

 

[frustratedearthmother]

Thanks Jill!

I've been told that peaches are a pain, lol. But, I got these 6ft trees for less than $10 last fall and they are varieties that are supposed to do well here. So, no, they are not well established at my place, but they were in huge 30 gallon pots, not bare root if that matters. I will probably go ahead and toss a sheet over that one, and maybe try the bucket trick too. I'm thinking I'm obsessing because it probably won't even get that cold. In fact, I just checked our local weather and now they're only calling for a low of 35...

I have never grown mayhaws, in fact have never even seen a mayhaw bush/tree that I know of. However, I have had mayhaw jelly and it's divine!

Years ago we had tons of dewberries along our fence line and I could pick for hours. Now I have goats - 'nuff said! Hence, the blackberries I have on the garden fence now. They're bigger and easier to pick, but they simply can't take away my childhood memories of a good dewberry cobbler!

I'm anxious to try the strawberries in the gutters. You're right though about keeping them watered. Maybe put some soaker hose... I specifically want to try it to keep the berries off the ground. We have a big problem with pill bugs and slugs and I really hope that raising them will help. I like to experiment, so I think it's worth a try!

Thanks for the tips and for suggesting the book. I think it may be something I need and would enjoy.