What did you do with your flock today?

[Nomadicus]

It's going to be cooler here too. Only going up to 99°. Woo Hoo.

 

[TropicalBabies]

Out of commission. My friend has scolded me for going out to do anything for the time being, so I have to resign myself to just saying hello to the chooks.
The pain meds make me quite sleepy, so just to keep up with you all is challenging. Can't hold my phone too well either.
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Oh owie popo!!! But I am so glad you are caring for yourself
I hope it is a quick heal and you find yourself back to perfection before you know it.

 

[TropicalBabies]

We cooled down into the high 90's for a couple days but temps are heading back up again. I'm ready for fall...View attachment 3620722

Oh yuck!

 

[Nomadicus]

I saw a top on one of my supposed to be empty feed cans this morning that was loose. Upon inspection it was empty of feed but had a rooster in the bottom. He must have been the hen's brother that got caught in the bottom of the feed bag in the same can. Is the heat messing with them small brains of theirs? Must be that or all of that lantana they've been eating lately.

 

[kurby22]

I asked my son to explain it. He said, much like hot water can hold and dissolve more sugar before it becomes saturated, so it's the same with hotter air. It can hold more moisture. So the temp and humidity in this case is like a hot, wet blanket. Comparatively, the same percentage at a lower temp is less moisture in the air.

This makes sense and sounds super awful

 

[kurby22]

Out of commission. My friend has scolded me for going out to do anything for the time being, so I have to resign myself to just saying hello to the chooks.
The pain meds make me quite sleepy, so just to keep up with you all is challenging. Can't hold my phone too well either.
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Ahhh take care of it and enjoy that help! Those thumbs are important!

 

[PopoMyers]

It depends on the variety and if you can be bothered to string them or not. I tend to pick most varieties on the small side as they don't need stringing. I'm growing "Black Knight" this year. It's a lovely blackish red pod and I've picked them at over a foot long without having to string any! As an experiment, I'm going to allow some to form seeds to see if they're a good dried bean too. I will definitely be growing these again.

Why are your squash having such a bad year?

I really expected a poor year from ours given our terrible summer weather but they've still done very well. Especially our white patty pan. We're growing "Disko" from the Ukraine and it's been superb.
After a slow start our "Early Yellow Crookneck" has been producing good fruit and our zucchini has been producing abundantly since late. June. They're the only 3 types we've grown this year.
Not many people over here grow crooknecks but I tried them for the first time last year and fell in love. They (and the patty pan) have a much better flavour than zucchini, I find.
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The flat green beans are also runner beans called"Pantheon". They have a really buttery taste but I only had 3 germinate out of 10 seeds so I might not bother again.

I've never heard of Sweet Mama squash, what are they like?

Perhaps the bees were late to the flower party, or we have less of them. We didn't warm up as soon as in good years. Usually, when the lavender begins to bloom, it is covered in bees. Sweet Mama is a kabocha type, so very sweet, dense flesh, with thinner, edible skin. I believe it's a hybrid, so seeds will not produce true. I love patty pans, hubby loves crookneck, as it is a southern staple. Any summer squash, really. This year I planted an Italian dual purpose squash. https://www.rareseeds.com/squash-summer-zucchino-rampicante The ones we've eaten are nuttier and less watery than zucchini. Not many have been pollinated. Seems when a male flower is needed, all there is are female, and vice versa. I had been hand pollinating the butternut, so have several for storage. They're beginning to ripen.
Green beans haven't fared well. Even friends who normally have fantastic gardens have been lamenting. Brown marmorated stink bugs have all but ruined my peach crop. A new ag menace for the US. Being studied to find controls.

 

[PopoMyers]

Made a sort of discovery. I have epazote (worm seed, skunk weed) which recently germinated and now is growing well in the garden. I'd gotten a start back in 2008, and it has faithfully reseeded. According to this article, https://gardenerspath.com/plants/herbs/grow-epazote/
it contains ascaridole, a worm repelling chemical. Maybe I'll feed some to the chooks when the plants get more leaves, and see if it's effective. It's also known to reduce flatulence, and is also used in bean dishes in Southern Mexico and Central/ South America. If I save some seeds, would anyone want some to try? It will take over, do plant in a pot, or a wild area which you can let be wild.

 

[PopoMyers]

I saw a top on one of my supposed to be empty feed cans this morning that was loose. Upon inspection it was empty of feed but had a rooster in the bottom. He must have been the hen's brother that got caught in the bottom of the feed bag in the same can. Is the heat messing with them small brains of theirs? Must be that or all of that lantana they've been eating lately.

You can remarket those cans as chicken traps and make 3x what you paid for it.

 

[Nomadicus]

One would think that this triple digit heat would slow down the hormones that are in overdrive in all of my young roos but it seems to have just made it worse.