Coffee's ready...

[rancher hicks]

Math: I've been doing the same thing. Hopeing the run doesn't crash down this year. I have made it a slanted top. I don't know if I'll get the whole thing covered cuz it's expensive covering. Its 24x8 and I've got another 16x8 to do as well. We need a new furnace and some sceptic system work. Total for both about $5000 or more. Lord have mercy. Installed Quicken starter to try to monitor our spending. Hope it helps figure out where all the $$$ go. I bet we'll be surprised.

Oesdog: What a nice looking bird. Perhaps if you can get a marans hen you can get some olive eggers. Nice name Blue. Seems around here the roos are the only ones with names.

Math: hows the weather, I hear thunder here. DD is in Houston not so good there.

Oesdog you ever get hurricanes over there? Or real bad weather? How was it holding that baby? You know it was funny you and me talking about me knitting and stuff? How's the economy over there. Here we got what their calling a "mansession" going on. They've determined it's easier for a woman to find a job than a man. I think they said there are more women working than men. Not a good thing over here. I have a number of friends who've lost their jobs but the wives are working to keep things going. My DD is the only one working cuz her DH can't find a job. They left NY cuz she can make more than they both were.

Well I think it's time to shut down I see lightning.

 

[math ace]

Quote:
We put a small slant on our roof too so that the rain would run off. We don't have to worry about a snow load like you do !
The weather has been upper 80s and low 90s and no rain for the last week. Those closer to the ocean are seeing some rain drops, but I am too far inland and the rain doesn't make it too me.

We've had almost NO RAIN this year. . . . Worse garden I have had in the last 5 years. The spring was dry and freezing and the summer was dry and hot. I am waiting to see if the fall turns out to be the season I get something worth writing home about !

MAN of MAN I hope my dad comes home in good spirits from the hospital. . . . He was really out of it yesterday .

 

[rancher hicks]

Math after I posted.

Opps morning everyone.

after I posted I forgot to ask whether anyone knows if I should run a ground line from the tin roof for lightning? If so where and how? We had a bit of a storm last night and there was thunder and lightning.
You try my method of watering it could save your garden. It can be used for lets of plantings. Here's a pic.

I use the large cans from vegetables cutting off the bottoms and pushing them down around my plants. The metal warms the soil and the can holds the water near the plant. In the back you can see my mini green houses that allow me to get a head start on planting. These fit right over the cans once they are pushed in. Before that I just staple two shims to the sides of the carton and push them into the ground. Anyhow it's a great way to conserve water. Even without the cans the raised beds allow me to flood the bed and not have water run where it's not needed. Weeding is a breeze cuz the soil is never packed down. Even dandelions pull out easy.

 

[math ace]

Rancher hicks - - Good looking garden. I have a water system hooked up to my, so even though mother nature let me down, my plants still got plenty of water. It was the extreme cold and then extreme hot with nothing in the middle that took my garden out this year. OKRA and EGGPLANT did GREAT this year, BUT those plants have no problems with 60 days of high 90 - low 100 temps.

We still haven't gotten into the 80's yet. We did make it down to 89 a few days, but we are back to 92 for the rest of this week.

 

[rancher hicks]

I like to grow a vaiety of each veggie that way if one squash doesn't do good the other might. I must have five different types of tomatoes, two types of peppers both sweet. Peppers did good.

I like posting pics.

 

[StupidBird]

Gooooood morning! this coffee is so good. I just picked a pint of Peter peppers. (and managed not to rub my eyes this time)
Nice Garden photos! this year I only have good peppers and eggplant. Everything else gave up or got eaten by bugs or disease. I even installed a drip irrigation system. Hopefully fall plantings will do better! Greens, onion, garlic; and let the chickens run in the rest.

thanks for letting me lurk. I'd post a pix of the peppers, but I'd get banned or something.

 

[Sissy]

Good morning all flock tenders
coffee is doing me good need to relax but its De-cafe.

Critter got 1 of my comets and 4 silkies . just a month old.
what a mess.what tears the heads off/

then the furnace went out when it rains it pours
oh and it is today buckets.

Rancher
send that young man here I just had 2 men and they were about 22yrs old
( not 14) to help me clean up since DH cant help. they charged 150.00
ran the weed cuter here and then cut for about an hour and ran off
while I went in the coops to clean up the critters mess but I
did find 1 comet
and 1 silkie

hiding in a corner.
I called the 2 fellows back to finish the job. but no soap...

I think I got took

Lesson learned. dont pay
until the job is finished.
then furnace went out
and new one put in yes... $5,000 but it came with a tax rebate $1500.
furnace has to be over 3 seers for rebate.
I hope you'all have a better week them I did.
Love the veggie garden thats next on my to-do- list need
to grown more.
Carrots with tops on have more taste and nutrition
then those with out, that you get at the supermarket.
Or so I read some where.
Have a good day.

 

[chics in the sun]

Good Morning - not quite noon, so I still get to say Good Morning!

Rancher - what a great set-up. I think I'm giving up gardening in the summer here - all I got were a few tomatoes and one pepper. We'll see how the fall one does. I was so confused when you asked about adopting! Then I re-read my post, and it was about as clear as mud.

NO, not adopting - I'm the person people call for assesments on kids if they are afraid they are in danger of harming themselves or others. So while I was posting the school psychologist called me and wanted me to come talk to a Russian kid, who turned out to be sweet, super smart and not a danger, just really poor communication/ social skills, and been through a lot. No need to send him to the mental hospital, but he did get kicked out of the program he was in here at school. Too bad, but they will let him back in if he behaves himself for a semester.

Got the coop all cleaned out. Math Ace - I think coops are never-ending projects, you just keep wanting to improve this or add that. Some friends gave me some nice big pieces of scrap wood, so of course now I think I will expand it some more in the back and have an area that is more enclosed for winter.

Well, gotta go. Have a great rest of the day.

Sissy - so sorry you have having a tough day, and yes, that is a tough lesson learned - NEVER pay until the work is done.
Did you know, though, that if you leave the tops on the carrots after you pick them, or buy them like that, they go bad faster?

 

[Sissy]

Thanks for the update on the carrots,
I will take the tops off
before I get them in the frig.

 

[rancher hicks]

Sissy: sorry to hear about your woes. I pay by the hour $7.25 and supervise. Most of the work is stuff I can't do which is alot of stuff. Digging and pushing the wheel barrow. I usually pay their lunch time but I know it's not long. Plus you need to be specific as to what you want. Remember what Mark Twain said, one boy is one boy, two boys are half a boy , and three boys are no boys at all. Next time hire one kid and that's it. $7.25 an hour. If he does a good job then you can tip him more. If he does a bad job pay him just what he's owed and hire someone else the next time.

Now someone was telling me that Owls only eat the head. I don't know cuz I haven't seen any Owls here.

Chics: that's good and I was confused. What with all the media bout adoption problems and kid with problems being adopted out over there. I always figure a kid's got to get in some trouble or they aren't normal. Shows they have some original thoughts.

Bird: you need to go to raised beds. I also used some DE on my plants when it's dry out. Slugs come out at night and the DE is still dry enough to dry them up. DE's not toxic and is good for all soft bodied insects and their larve.

Love ya all
Rancher