What did you do in the garden today?

[NewBoots]

I hope you all had better days than I did!

Sounds like an ice cream for dinner day.

 

[Sueby]

Ugh @karenerwin, sorry you had such a frustrating day.

Morning all. I got quite a bit done yesterday, got 3 more beds cleaned out, composted & either mulched or cover crop planted & watered. I also got the shallot sets planted. The rutabagas are doing pretty well despite something eating all the leaves - I've really neglected them. Hoping to get a couple more beds done tonight. I've got some tomatoes ripening on the vine still & no sign of a frost yet so I hesitate to tear them out but I need to get the garden to bed.

Have a great day everyone.

 

[igorsMistress]

Today was a stressful day. I checked on my bee hives and 1 of them was empty except for the dead bees on the screen board at the bottom. This was the split hive and I never felt like they got very robust. I'm not sure if there weren't enough of them to keep warm enough when the temps dropped real low for a few days or if they just flat out starved or if the varroa mites were too much for the small number of bees in the hive or if it was a combination of all of these factors.
Then my hubby and I go to get all of my son's belongings ( mostly older tools and such) out of my mom's storage unit since we need to clean it out and stop renting it now that she has passed. Anyway, on the way there, my son messages me ( he's in prison for who knows how long) and tells me not to take it to the friend that says she will store it for him but to instead take it to this other girl's house. So we go ahead and load up the van and drive to this other person's house to find out that she does not want to store his stuff after all. I had already told the original person that I wasn't coming by after all. Now I have a van full of stuff that will probably end up back in my basement ( where I don't want it).
Then to top it off (after I'm already feeling sad and frustrated over my son's drama, which I try to stay away from) my husband doesn't realize that I dead bolted the front door so that no one would let the dogs out because I was giving the chickens some yard time. Anyway, he opens the door and lets all 3 dogs out (including the 2 puppies 6+ months old). The puppies immediately go after the chickens and gang up on one hen. Several other hens fly over the fence. We eventually get the puppies and drag them back in the house. All the chickens that came back home seem to be fine ( but at least 1 lost a few mouthfuls of feathers). At lock up I found 1 of the 2 missing chickens. She was still on the wrong side of the fence but was trying to figure out how to get back to the correct side. I was able to get her back where she belonged. I still haven't found the last chicken. We know they didn't kill or eat any of them because we were outside in a matter of seconds so I am sure that the missing one is one of the hens that flew over the fence to get away from the dogs. Hopefully she will make it safely through the night and will be walking the fence line in the morning trying to get back where she belongs.
I'm so discouraged by this day (plus now I have a sore throat from yelling at the dogs trying to get them away from the chickens. The only dog that listened was our older dog).
I'm actually thinking about getting out of chickens for a while because I don't see these 2 puppies getting the message that these chickens aren't to be messed with. But that may just be me going to extremes because I'm so bummed. I guess we will see how I feel in the morning.
I hope you all had better days than I did!

Karen
you know there’s a great training tool called an e collar. They zap your pooch at varying degrees of intensity and work wonders. It would be a great way to spend time with your pups over the winter when you don’t have so many millions of other things going on in your garden and etc.

As for child drama, well my dad sold everything I left in boxes at home at a yard sale. I was livid but he didn’t want it there and I didn’t have a place for it. Just a thought.

I hope today is a better day lady!

 

[igorsMistress]

Ugh @karenerwin, sorry you had such a frustrating day.

Morning all. I got quite a bit done yesterday, got 3 more beds cleaned out, composted & either mulched or cover crop planted & watered. I also got the shallot sets planted. The rutabagas are doing pretty well despite something eating all the leaves - I've really neglected them. Hoping to get a couple more beds done tonight. I've got some tomatoes ripening on the vine still & no sign of a frost yet so I hesitate to tear them out but I need to get the garden to bed.

Have a great day everyone.

Goodness, I’m feeling like a lazy after reading all that!

 

[Wee Farmer Sarah]

Good morning gardeners. I've been super busy trying to get caught up on stuff. I got the split doors on my rooster coop hung and installed a higher roosting bar for him. My pellet stove is cleaned and working well. Then I had the chimney for the boiler and fireplace cleaned. Yesterday I went into the garden to pick some small jalapenos I had noticed. I checked on the pole beans and ended up picking nearly a pound of green beans. Total surprise. There's also a couple of tomatoes in there, so since it will be another week or two before I can get to the garden cleanup, I'll just let them grow. There's also a couple of small bell peppers in my front yard that are still growing. The okra looks like it is finally finished. I picked the last four "personal size" butternut squash this past weekend. They are not very ripe but the vines were completey dried out so I brought them inside and put them in a sunny window. Saturday I made my first batch of Concord grape jam. OMG is it yummy. I still have enough grapes for a second batch. I really need to get that finished up so I can start on the apples. I think it was @Kiwibird who asked what BES was. I'm sorry it is Black-eyed Susans. And both plants, the one I planted a couple of months ago and the plant I put in a couple of weeks ago are doing very well which is amazing with this drought. How easy was it to grow the rutabagas @Sueby? I haven't had much luck with the purple topped turnips so perhaps the rutabagas would grow better in my climate. It's really hard to find turnips and rutabagas here in the winter and I prefer them over potatoes in soups and stews. That and they aren't loaded with carbohydrates like potatoes so they don't make my A1C skyrocket. Quick note on the impatiens I brought inside for the winter. The large bowl is still blooming like crazy. The smaller plant is doing well but not blooming right now. If it survives the winter I'll be thrilled. I'm so sorry for your absolutely wretched day @karenerwin. I hope today is a better day for you. Have a great day everyone and happy harvesting.

 

[sourland]

Picking tomatoes - still no frost here.

 

[Acre4Me]

@karenerwin - sorry for your awful day! A Monday kind of day. Here’s to a better week!

nothing much here...have some beds to clean out. Maybe get some more cover crop planted!!

anyone know how hardy beets are? The greens will or will not wilt in frost? Not sure if I should harvest all before frost or not! No rush as it stays above freezing for another week or so.

 

[Sueby]

@Acre4Me me no like beets!

@Wee Farmer Sarah the rutabagas seem to be doing really well, but I guess I won't really know till I dig them up. I think they need a frost or 2 to sweeten up I guess. This is my first time growing them. & I, like you, like them in soup & stews instead of potatoes. I say give it a shot, they seem pretty low maintenance. Something ate the tops, but they just grow back. I know you can harvest & eat the greens so I guess something eating them isn't a big deal. & you have been busy!

Goodness, I’m feeling like a lazy after reading all that!

Oh don't do that! It sounds more impressive that it actually was.

Speaking of, I got another bed torn out this am. Hoping to get out there on break/lunch & get it composted & cover crop in. Those pole beans make my arms itch!

One last Dahlia to bloom. It was late one because it was also neglected a bit!

 

[Compost King]

woke up with a headache, kept going back to bed from 6 am until 9am when I got up (chickens need to be let out). Supposed to be emptying out my 3 gallon pots of semi spent soil into the garden bed to expand it today. When the headache goes away and all the animals are fed thats what I am doing today. Yesterday I picked the last of the dry pole beans.

I observed that my Bok Choy is growing ar more compact now that the nights are cooler. It was stretching in the heat and 3 plants bolted. Rabbits got to snack on the bolted plants after I plucked them.

No progress on the winter garden because I am still figuring out what to do with the top 1 foot gap of the north wall. maybe today I will make some progress on that wall. I really should shave some wood on that door because it doesn't shut easily. Need to shave about 1/8 of an inch on one corner and 1/4 inch on another.

 

[igorsMistress]

@Acre4Me me no like beets!

@Wee Farmer Sarah the rutabagas seem to be doing really well, but I guess I won't really know till I dig them up. I think they need a frost or 2 to sweeten up I guess. This is my first time growing them. & I, like you, like them in soup & stews instead of potatoes. I say give it a shot, they seem pretty low maintenance. Something ate the tops, but they just grow back. I know you can harvest & eat the greens so I guess something eating them isn't a big deal. & you have been busy!


Oh don't do that! It sounds more impressive that it actually was.

Speaking of, I got another bed torn out this am. Hoping to get out there on break/lunch & get it composted & cover crop in. Those pole beans make my arms itch!

One last Dahlia to bloom. It was late one because it was also neglected a bit!View attachment 2362176

I’m in love with your dahlias! I’m going to try some in the garden here with some glads.