Poison Ivy remedy
Made from 3 plants that thrive in summer:
Fresh Plantain - several fresh leaves
Fresh Jewelweed (touch-me-nots) - several fresh leaves
Aloevera - cut open a leaf, then scrape the inside clear gel
Mix the above ingredients smashing in a mortar or in the blender
Apply directly to the poison ivy rash on your skin
Wednesday, June 26, 2013
Tuesday, June 25, 2013
Guinea Fowl
June 2013 - Here we are acquiring some Guinea Fowl to enjoy their company and to reduce the amount of grasshoppers, ticks, possibly Japanese Beetles and other insects.
Sometime in March or April we asked Scott Atkins, Joe Bullard and Amy and Terry Sterling to let us know if anyone had guinea chicks available.
Sunday June 2 Terry and Amy called to say a friend of theirs had lots of chicks (born May 30); they were kind enough to bring to our house 3 baby chicks that afternoon. Cost $2 dollars each. Terry suggested feeding them corn grits and for the next few days Alden also gave them red wiggler worms from the compost which they didn't eat. We kept them upstairs in the massage room inside a large box with a 3 watt light bulb. Wednesday morning one chick was dead. I transferred them to a smaller box without shredded paper and changed to a 15 watt light bulb. When I asked if we could get turkey feed starter for protein Alden suggested I add crumbled cat food to the grits.
Following guidelines from the internet on Saturday 6/15 when the day temperature was above 80°F I put them outdoors inside a small cage that I borrowed from Ana; the tips of their wings were changing although the chicks were still round and very small. Since the temperatures went down to 65° or 68° I brought them in at night and kept them under the lamp. One afternoon I heard them chirping really loud, I went to see what was happening and one of the chicks was out under the forsythia bush. I called Alden and between the two of us we got her back. After this I surrounded the cage with a cardboard box leaving 2 inches of space around just in case they did it again.
Wednesday 6/19 right after yoga and before running off to Book Club another chick put its head down and died.
I called Amy and she was kind enough to sell me another chick, on 6/21 we met at the gas station located on 79 and 278 Friday afternoon. I was amazed, her chick was 3 times the size of ours with all its feathers instead of fuss. They fed them game feed starter with 21% protein. Immediately I entered the corner store and purchased that food, but I didn't realize it was for adult birds instead of baby chicks. When I got home and Alden saw the difference in sizes he agreed to get the right type of food at Tractor Supply the next day.
The two birds got along really well, although the new bird did chirp for a whole day, I guess she missed her flock. They spend the night outside (Terry's birds were put outdoors in a pen under an oak tree after their first week and were kept there 24/7).
The new guinea escaped through a crack into the chicken's pen and roamed around happily without being attacked. At night she came back into her pen and slept on top of the smaller chick to keep her warm. Guineas are very sweet. Sunday mid-morning the smaller chick died. I know for a fact that being undernourished makes the birds weak, underdeveloped and susceptible to dying.
I called Amy again and she did some calling around, at night she said Sharon Bullard had 15 guineas and was willing to sell some. Monday evening June 24 (after massage day in Guntersville) we went to their home on 79 and 26 to get the chicks. These are a bit larger then Amy's, they were born sometime between May 17 and 24, 10 days or so before Amy's.
Sharon kept all the guineas (since they were born until the day we came) in a large cage 8x4x4 feet with a large light bulb and inside a garage with doors open and good air flow. She fed them turkey starter with 21% protein. The guineas look healthy and are good tempered. We purchased 4 guineas at $2 each. Once at the pen in our house they haven't chirped constantly, there are 4 chicks plus the smaller one, they have food and water, a large space and are been taken care off.
Ringo the dog, likes to sit outside the cage and stare, occasionally he licks his chomps. When Bosco visits he does that too.
After 8 weeks on 8/12 we opened the door to their pen so they could come out. After 20-30 minutes they did. The first nights they go back in the pen to sleep, after that they fly to the top of the chicken coop and sleep outdoors - pooping on the chickens that are roosting at a lower level!
Early September we notice they pair and push the 5th one to the side, she is no longer allowed in the pen and has to stay at a distance from the other guineas.
2014
There have been some very cold nights in December and January 2014, several nights down to 8, 10 and 15 F yet the guineas continue to sleep outdoors. Last night it got down to 24 before dark and they chose to sleep in their coop, allowing the 5th one to join.
After 27 days below freezing in January and 10 of those days in the single digits, all the guineas survived!
Sometime in March the leader guinea ate a couple of frogs, she would run around with a frog dangling on her beak until she was able to "chop" and eat it. Well a few days later she got sick and 3-4 days later died. THe loner got a partner!
In April the guineas started laying eggs, they made a nest near the pond under a tree root, but soon decided to change location and left 11 eggs there. I gave those eggs to Sanjay and his family with Sara's incubator and 6 hatched in approximately 28 days.
By April 28th they had laid 26+ eggs on the south-east side under some bushes and the loner and her mate sat on them. I left for Ciudad Juarez with Ana and when I came back they continued to sit diligently. By May 28 I thought something was wrong because no keets were hatching, so I took some of the eggs and the incubator to Javier and on Friday May 30 one guinea hatched, her name is Finley. The rest of the eggs did not hatch.
On Friday June 13 I went to get another 5 guineas from Chris Tyson. Finley is 2 weeks old, 2 are 2 1/2 weeks old and 3 are 3 weeks old. They are in a cage outdoors all day, but continue to sleep indoors because at night it cools down to 65F. Actually by June 16th the nights are getting warmer - around 70 F. They are all so cute!
The saga continues, some forest critter ate two adult guineas. And finally the last couple of the original 5 guineas sat on their nest underneath the A/C protected by the house and 6 baby guineas hatched on August 13, 2014. On the first night a critter came by and took 3. Alden found the other 3 and put them and the mom in the coop. Mom did not like being caged up, but she managed for 5 weeks. If we let her out she would shriek and run around the coop. At four weeks we did let them out and one got taken, so back in for another week.
By the end of August we had 9 guineas, then Finley died she was getting too heavy for her legs to hold her.
Sometime in November when the nights got cold and Ringo slept in the basement we lost 5 more - we think it was a raccoon. Now they sleep inside the coop.
December 2014 we have 4 cute, funny, diligent guineas; 1 rooster and 6 hens. They are all free range during the day and sleep in the coop at night.
I must say the garden had no bugs, no grasshoppers, the guineas did a great job!
Sometime in March or April we asked Scott Atkins, Joe Bullard and Amy and Terry Sterling to let us know if anyone had guinea chicks available.
Sunday June 2 Terry and Amy called to say a friend of theirs had lots of chicks (born May 30); they were kind enough to bring to our house 3 baby chicks that afternoon. Cost $2 dollars each. Terry suggested feeding them corn grits and for the next few days Alden also gave them red wiggler worms from the compost which they didn't eat. We kept them upstairs in the massage room inside a large box with a 3 watt light bulb. Wednesday morning one chick was dead. I transferred them to a smaller box without shredded paper and changed to a 15 watt light bulb. When I asked if we could get turkey feed starter for protein Alden suggested I add crumbled cat food to the grits.
Following guidelines from the internet on Saturday 6/15 when the day temperature was above 80°F I put them outdoors inside a small cage that I borrowed from Ana; the tips of their wings were changing although the chicks were still round and very small. Since the temperatures went down to 65° or 68° I brought them in at night and kept them under the lamp. One afternoon I heard them chirping really loud, I went to see what was happening and one of the chicks was out under the forsythia bush. I called Alden and between the two of us we got her back. After this I surrounded the cage with a cardboard box leaving 2 inches of space around just in case they did it again.
Wednesday 6/19 right after yoga and before running off to Book Club another chick put its head down and died.
I called Amy and she was kind enough to sell me another chick, on 6/21 we met at the gas station located on 79 and 278 Friday afternoon. I was amazed, her chick was 3 times the size of ours with all its feathers instead of fuss. They fed them game feed starter with 21% protein. Immediately I entered the corner store and purchased that food, but I didn't realize it was for adult birds instead of baby chicks. When I got home and Alden saw the difference in sizes he agreed to get the right type of food at Tractor Supply the next day.
The two birds got along really well, although the new bird did chirp for a whole day, I guess she missed her flock. They spend the night outside (Terry's birds were put outdoors in a pen under an oak tree after their first week and were kept there 24/7).
The new guinea escaped through a crack into the chicken's pen and roamed around happily without being attacked. At night she came back into her pen and slept on top of the smaller chick to keep her warm. Guineas are very sweet. Sunday mid-morning the smaller chick died. I know for a fact that being undernourished makes the birds weak, underdeveloped and susceptible to dying.
I called Amy again and she did some calling around, at night she said Sharon Bullard had 15 guineas and was willing to sell some. Monday evening June 24 (after massage day in Guntersville) we went to their home on 79 and 26 to get the chicks. These are a bit larger then Amy's, they were born sometime between May 17 and 24, 10 days or so before Amy's.
Sharon kept all the guineas (since they were born until the day we came) in a large cage 8x4x4 feet with a large light bulb and inside a garage with doors open and good air flow. She fed them turkey starter with 21% protein. The guineas look healthy and are good tempered. We purchased 4 guineas at $2 each. Once at the pen in our house they haven't chirped constantly, there are 4 chicks plus the smaller one, they have food and water, a large space and are been taken care off.
Ringo the dog, likes to sit outside the cage and stare, occasionally he licks his chomps. When Bosco visits he does that too.
After 8 weeks on 8/12 we opened the door to their pen so they could come out. After 20-30 minutes they did. The first nights they go back in the pen to sleep, after that they fly to the top of the chicken coop and sleep outdoors - pooping on the chickens that are roosting at a lower level!
Early September we notice they pair and push the 5th one to the side, she is no longer allowed in the pen and has to stay at a distance from the other guineas.
2014
There have been some very cold nights in December and January 2014, several nights down to 8, 10 and 15 F yet the guineas continue to sleep outdoors. Last night it got down to 24 before dark and they chose to sleep in their coop, allowing the 5th one to join.
After 27 days below freezing in January and 10 of those days in the single digits, all the guineas survived!
Sometime in March the leader guinea ate a couple of frogs, she would run around with a frog dangling on her beak until she was able to "chop" and eat it. Well a few days later she got sick and 3-4 days later died. THe loner got a partner!
In April the guineas started laying eggs, they made a nest near the pond under a tree root, but soon decided to change location and left 11 eggs there. I gave those eggs to Sanjay and his family with Sara's incubator and 6 hatched in approximately 28 days.
By April 28th they had laid 26+ eggs on the south-east side under some bushes and the loner and her mate sat on them. I left for Ciudad Juarez with Ana and when I came back they continued to sit diligently. By May 28 I thought something was wrong because no keets were hatching, so I took some of the eggs and the incubator to Javier and on Friday May 30 one guinea hatched, her name is Finley. The rest of the eggs did not hatch.
On Friday June 13 I went to get another 5 guineas from Chris Tyson. Finley is 2 weeks old, 2 are 2 1/2 weeks old and 3 are 3 weeks old. They are in a cage outdoors all day, but continue to sleep indoors because at night it cools down to 65F. Actually by June 16th the nights are getting warmer - around 70 F. They are all so cute!
The saga continues, some forest critter ate two adult guineas. And finally the last couple of the original 5 guineas sat on their nest underneath the A/C protected by the house and 6 baby guineas hatched on August 13, 2014. On the first night a critter came by and took 3. Alden found the other 3 and put them and the mom in the coop. Mom did not like being caged up, but she managed for 5 weeks. If we let her out she would shriek and run around the coop. At four weeks we did let them out and one got taken, so back in for another week.
By the end of August we had 9 guineas, then Finley died she was getting too heavy for her legs to hold her.
Sometime in November when the nights got cold and Ringo slept in the basement we lost 5 more - we think it was a raccoon. Now they sleep inside the coop.
December 2014 we have 4 cute, funny, diligent guineas; 1 rooster and 6 hens. They are all free range during the day and sleep in the coop at night.
I must say the garden had no bugs, no grasshoppers, the guineas did a great job!
Wednesday, May 29, 2013
Art photos
Talia, and Pepe have asked to see pictures of my drawings which I so very much enjoy doing.
Here they are:
Here they are:
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| What is wrong with this drawing? |
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| How did I get the depth in this drawing? |
Saturday, May 11, 2013
Culinary herbs in our garden
Scot asked what herbs I dry, and this got me to write this post
Basil grows in the summer and is delicious fresh with tomatoes. I also make pesto and freeze some jars for the winter. On some years it will re-seed itself. By 2014 we grow four varieties: Holy, Genovese, Purple and Thai or Lime.
Cilantro, dill and parsley re-seed themselves and are available fall, winter and spring. Parsley will make it through summer under the shade of another plant, but eventually the butterflies find it to lay their eggs and the precious Eastern Black Swallowtail Butterfly caterpillars eat the leaves. I collect and spread cilantro, dill and parsley seeds all over the garden, this spring we have a beautiful cilantro patch in the west area under the deck.
Celery - I started seeds in Wallace 3 years ago, and it re-seeds itself, I always find bunches here and there in the garden. It doesn't grow thick like the ones at the store (too warm in Alabama), it behaves like a parsley plant.
Fennel - I got a plant from Charlene at Wallace in 2011, the leaves look like dill and taste like licorice. It seems to thrive year round.
Lemon Balm and Mint also grow year round with only morning sun and by keeping them moist in the summer. They thrive in spring and fall.
Oregano grows year round but Alden and I prefer it dry.
Stevia goes dormant after the first frost and comes back early in spring; I use it fresh in spring, summer and fall and dry leaves in the winter mainly to sweeten teas. I grow it with a cage to let the stalks grow 4 feet long, it is easier to dry this way.
Horseradish - Scot gave us a plant on 5/10/13 we shall see what it does! planted too late, after the first frost I pulled out the roots and they were few and small, so I replanted them. In 2014 it is thriving!
Hibiscus although not strictly an herb I grew it in 2012 to use the flower petals that we dry to make Jamaica tea year round. I loved growing it and it was beautiful, the flowers were loved by hummingbirds and it was easy to dry and save seeds. Continue to start from seed in the spring, 2013, 2014.
Turmeric Sara just gave some roots in May 2013, it made quite a few by the first frost, I filled a pint jar to lacto-ferment.
Ginger also a root, during the winter and spring I grow it in a ceramic pot indoors; in summer I plant some outdoors and harvest by the first frost.
In summary we only dry oregano and stevia; the rest of the herbs are available when their taste is at its best!
This year 2013 I may try drying turmeric to make powder... we shall see! I didn't instead I lacto-fermented the turmeric.
Basil grows in the summer and is delicious fresh with tomatoes. I also make pesto and freeze some jars for the winter. On some years it will re-seed itself. By 2014 we grow four varieties: Holy, Genovese, Purple and Thai or Lime.
Cilantro, dill and parsley re-seed themselves and are available fall, winter and spring. Parsley will make it through summer under the shade of another plant, but eventually the butterflies find it to lay their eggs and the precious Eastern Black Swallowtail Butterfly caterpillars eat the leaves. I collect and spread cilantro, dill and parsley seeds all over the garden, this spring we have a beautiful cilantro patch in the west area under the deck.
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| cilantro in full bloom, too bad you don't get the smell just watching the photo! Japanese persimmon in back |
Celery - I started seeds in Wallace 3 years ago, and it re-seeds itself, I always find bunches here and there in the garden. It doesn't grow thick like the ones at the store (too warm in Alabama), it behaves like a parsley plant.
Fennel - I got a plant from Charlene at Wallace in 2011, the leaves look like dill and taste like licorice. It seems to thrive year round.
Lemon Balm and Mint also grow year round with only morning sun and by keeping them moist in the summer. They thrive in spring and fall.
Oregano grows year round but Alden and I prefer it dry.
Stevia goes dormant after the first frost and comes back early in spring; I use it fresh in spring, summer and fall and dry leaves in the winter mainly to sweeten teas. I grow it with a cage to let the stalks grow 4 feet long, it is easier to dry this way.
Horseradish - Scot gave us a plant on 5/10/13 we shall see what it does! planted too late, after the first frost I pulled out the roots and they were few and small, so I replanted them. In 2014 it is thriving!
Hibiscus although not strictly an herb I grew it in 2012 to use the flower petals that we dry to make Jamaica tea year round. I loved growing it and it was beautiful, the flowers were loved by hummingbirds and it was easy to dry and save seeds. Continue to start from seed in the spring, 2013, 2014.
Turmeric Sara just gave some roots in May 2013, it made quite a few by the first frost, I filled a pint jar to lacto-ferment.
Ginger also a root, during the winter and spring I grow it in a ceramic pot indoors; in summer I plant some outdoors and harvest by the first frost.
In summary we only dry oregano and stevia; the rest of the herbs are available when their taste is at its best!
This year 2013 I may try drying turmeric to make powder... we shall see! I didn't instead I lacto-fermented the turmeric.
Wednesday, May 8, 2013
Pond
On February 20, 2013 Gregg Jones came to dig the pond.
It is located north of the house and future barn.
Alden estimates the pond holds about 40,000 gallons of water. It measures approximately 35 feet long by 25 feet wide plus the discharge tail.
By late April the frogs found the pond, we hear the neatest croaking in the evenings; I'd like to see what they look like.
Sunday April 28 it rained 3 inches and the pond filled up. The following weekend after 2" of rain it began to overflow.
By the end of June we have had frequent rain and the pond has stayed pretty full. Alden walked in the pond mid June, we estimate it is 4 1/2 feet deep at the lowest point; he noticed it is filled with tadpoles. At night we hear many frogs croak, its is beautiful.
It is located north of the house and future barn.
Alden estimates the pond holds about 40,000 gallons of water. It measures approximately 35 feet long by 25 feet wide plus the discharge tail.
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| Gregg Jones is inside the cabin |
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| Pipeline from green tanks to pond |
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| Helping compress the soil |
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| Alden compressing soil around pipe |
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| Pipe to the green tanks, took a picture before it gets covered by water |
Sunday April 28 it rained 3 inches and the pond filled up. The following weekend after 2" of rain it began to overflow.
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| Full pond by May 4 after 2" rain |
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| Overflow |
By the end of June we have had frequent rain and the pond has stayed pretty full. Alden walked in the pond mid June, we estimate it is 4 1/2 feet deep at the lowest point; he noticed it is filled with tadpoles. At night we hear many frogs croak, its is beautiful.
Saturday, May 4, 2013
House: deep cleaning in Spring and Fall
It deserves a post!
Twice a year we blow our house. Its the house Vipassana, the opportunity to remove deep pockets of dust from under the furniture, the washing machine, behind book cases or books... where spiders like to knit their webs to catch insects; we also blow away, from high window sills, hundreds of lady bug corpses and other occasional bugs that fly inside during the winter - lady bugs seemed to multiply, I tried to catch as many as possible in a bag and free them in the garden as soon as the weather warms up.
Today 4/21/13 on a sunny day, at 75 F, with lots of solar power, and after the pine pollen has mellowed down, we went for it... Alden, usually in charge of the blower from the vacuum cleaner, was really moving. I went ahead or behind moving furniture, sweeping, dusting the furniture and shelves and mopping at the end. I must confess we only mop all the wood floors a few times a year, after spring and fall deep cleanings and when Talia or Daniel come to visit. From now on also when Cassandra comes to visit since she is living in Phoenix; with Ryan and Melissa its different I vacuum after they leave because both their cats really leave fur behind.
After an hour and a half the house feels light, spacious, silent and clean!
Cleaning the house in this manner is fun and unusual. In Guadalajara a lady used to come to clean and mop our house once a week. I must say Alden designed and built an easy to clean house. We do dust and sweep on a weekly basis, our house is always spotless. Its easy to keep up! This compensates for the time we spend on maintenance and garden.
Twice a year we blow our house. Its the house Vipassana, the opportunity to remove deep pockets of dust from under the furniture, the washing machine, behind book cases or books... where spiders like to knit their webs to catch insects; we also blow away, from high window sills, hundreds of lady bug corpses and other occasional bugs that fly inside during the winter - lady bugs seemed to multiply, I tried to catch as many as possible in a bag and free them in the garden as soon as the weather warms up.
Today 4/21/13 on a sunny day, at 75 F, with lots of solar power, and after the pine pollen has mellowed down, we went for it... Alden, usually in charge of the blower from the vacuum cleaner, was really moving. I went ahead or behind moving furniture, sweeping, dusting the furniture and shelves and mopping at the end. I must confess we only mop all the wood floors a few times a year, after spring and fall deep cleanings and when Talia or Daniel come to visit. From now on also when Cassandra comes to visit since she is living in Phoenix; with Ryan and Melissa its different I vacuum after they leave because both their cats really leave fur behind.
After an hour and a half the house feels light, spacious, silent and clean!
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| Alden blowing, notice dust spots! |
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| Picture from above the closet, the mattress is leaning on closet door |
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| Maricarmen... mopping away |
Friday, April 5, 2013
Monthly guideline to gardening
Vegetable garden-zones 7&8 planting schedule
December
- Use seed inoculant to dust seeds before planting. Or a mix of bone meal, Epson salts and seed inoculant to dust roots. Or kelp meal.
Vegetables
- sow English peas by a trellis (tomato cages will do)
- draw up a garden plan
- order summer seeds and seed inoculant.
- start seeds indoors before the 15th: broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, Chinese cabbage, celery, lettuce, parsley, Swiss chard and onions
- dig the soil looking for grubs, feed them to the chickens; only where it is mulched not under cover crops.
Fruit and Nuts
- Wrap the trunks with frost cover to prevent sun scald.
- Remove grasses and weeds to discourage rodents and improve air circulation.
- Mulch figs heavily to protect them from hard freezes.
Woods
Remove privet
January/February
Vegetables
- harden off winter vegetable seedlings and transplant to garden; cover with frost cloth; some veggies will get a stronger start if cloched under the row cover.
Fruit and Nuts
- look for a nice sunny day without rain or freeze on the forecast for at least 2 days, to trim grapes, kiwis, blueberries, blackberries, pomegranates, raspberries, and when needed apple, figs, pear, mulberry, Japanese persimmons, and Pawpaw trees.
- remove and burn wood that is diseased or infested with insects.
- apply dormant oil to fruit trees and bushes
- propagate bramble fruits as soon as buds begin to swell.
Ornamentals
- Prune crape myrtle severely to encourage development of new flowering wood.
- Prune lantana, and hibiscus branches
Woods and gardens
- Remove privet
- Remove vinca, and creeping vines
- Remove weeds such as shiny cudweed
March
This month is excellent for weeding and getting ahead of honey suckles and all creeping vines.
Vegetables
- by the first plant potatoes and onions
- direct seed beets, carrots, radishes, rutabaga, spinach
- indoors start seeds for eggplants, peppers and tomatoes
- weed the garden
Ornamentals
- severely prune rose bushes before March 15
Fruit and Nuts
- last days of the month remove the frost cloth protecting trunks.
April
This is the month to weed and transplant ornamental plants from Linda's garden and other friends gardens.
- first days: Get horse or goat manure apply to all fruit trees, bushes, ornamentals, garden beds.
- weeding daily all areas.
Vegetables
- transplant broccoli, Swiss chard, lettuce seedlings
Fruit and Nuts
- Apply especial formula organic fertilizer to citrus and pecans
- check fruit trees and blackberries for rust blackberry rust
Ornamentals
- transplant coleus, Cuban oregano, Mexican petunias and angel trumpets and as many as you want/need ornamental plants from friend's gardens.
October
Vegetables- sow ground covers, such as crimson clover, winter rye, etc
Thin the strawberry patch
Transplant crab apple near apple tree and the two melon trees to the west area (they are not blooming at the same time); transplant pomegranate between fig and grape its too tight; plant apple tree. Remove bartlet pear and make space for chicago hardy fig.
December
- Use seed inoculant to dust seeds before planting. Or a mix of bone meal, Epson salts and seed inoculant to dust roots. Or kelp meal.
Vegetables
- sow English peas by a trellis (tomato cages will do)
- draw up a garden plan
- order summer seeds and seed inoculant.
- start seeds indoors before the 15th: broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, Chinese cabbage, celery, lettuce, parsley, Swiss chard and onions
- dig the soil looking for grubs, feed them to the chickens; only where it is mulched not under cover crops.
Fruit and Nuts
- Wrap the trunks with frost cover to prevent sun scald.
- Remove grasses and weeds to discourage rodents and improve air circulation.
- Mulch figs heavily to protect them from hard freezes.
Woods
Remove privet
January/February
Vegetables
- harden off winter vegetable seedlings and transplant to garden; cover with frost cloth; some veggies will get a stronger start if cloched under the row cover.
Fruit and Nuts
- look for a nice sunny day without rain or freeze on the forecast for at least 2 days, to trim grapes, kiwis, blueberries, blackberries, pomegranates, raspberries, and when needed apple, figs, pear, mulberry, Japanese persimmons, and Pawpaw trees.
- remove and burn wood that is diseased or infested with insects.
- apply dormant oil to fruit trees and bushes
- propagate bramble fruits as soon as buds begin to swell.
Ornamentals
- Prune crape myrtle severely to encourage development of new flowering wood.
- Prune lantana, and hibiscus branches
Woods and gardens
- Remove privet
- Remove vinca, and creeping vines
- Remove weeds such as shiny cudweed
March
This month is excellent for weeding and getting ahead of honey suckles and all creeping vines.
Vegetables
- by the first plant potatoes and onions
- direct seed beets, carrots, radishes, rutabaga, spinach
- indoors start seeds for eggplants, peppers and tomatoes
- weed the garden
Ornamentals
- severely prune rose bushes before March 15
Fruit and Nuts
- last days of the month remove the frost cloth protecting trunks.
April
This is the month to weed and transplant ornamental plants from Linda's garden and other friends gardens.
- first days: Get horse or goat manure apply to all fruit trees, bushes, ornamentals, garden beds.
- weeding daily all areas.
Vegetables
- transplant broccoli, Swiss chard, lettuce seedlings
Fruit and Nuts
- Apply especial formula organic fertilizer to citrus and pecans
- check fruit trees and blackberries for rust blackberry rust
Ornamentals
- transplant coleus, Cuban oregano, Mexican petunias and angel trumpets and as many as you want/need ornamental plants from friend's gardens.
October
Vegetables- sow ground covers, such as crimson clover, winter rye, etc
Thin the strawberry patch
Transplant crab apple near apple tree and the two melon trees to the west area (they are not blooming at the same time); transplant pomegranate between fig and grape its too tight; plant apple tree. Remove bartlet pear and make space for chicago hardy fig.
Thursday, March 28, 2013
Book Club in March 20, 2013
Book: Major Pettigrew's Last Stand by Helen Simonson
The Royal Book Club's March meeting was especial, besides talking about a book we celebrated Keitha's birthday.
14 ladies gathered tonight: Nancy, Lisa, Pat, Emily, Susan, Martha, Sara, Debra, Sharon, Linda E, Keitha, Leigh Lynn, Jan and Maricarmen
I ordered tamales from Ana, made with shiitake mushrooms, canned tomatoes and peppers from our garden, extra virgin olive oil, and masa. Served with salsa, sour cream, cheese & shredded cabbage.
I also made black bean soup cooked with rosemary and spiced with cumin and smoked paprika... oh my that was delicious!
For desert - a three layer colorful pudding made by Sharon and 2 containers of yogurt ice cream courtesy of Leigh Lynn - flavors: dark chocolate and coffee; as I was getting a very small serving I realized I would have insomnia that night... and of course I did, a wonderful opportunity to recall the party and the witty story of Major Pettigrew; it is great to laugh at 7 pm and then again at 4 am.
Book: Major Pettigrew's Last Stand by Helen Simonson
In the small village of Edgecombe St. Mary in the English countryside lives Major Pettigrew (retired), the unlikely hero of Helen Simonson's wondrous debut. Wry, courtly, opinionated, and completely endearing, the Major leads a quiet life valuing the proper things that Englishmen have lived by for generations: honor, duty, decorum, and a properly brewed cup of tea. But then his brother's death sparks an unexpected friendship with Mrs. Jasmina Ali, the Pakistani shopkeeper from the village. Drawn together by their shared love of literature and the loss of their spouses, the Major and Mrs Ali soon find their friendship blossoming into something more. But village society insists on embracing him as the quintessential local and regarding her as the permanent foreigner. Can their relationship survive the risks one takes when pursuing happiness in the face of culture and tradition?
As I started reading this book I thought "interesting that a female author in her forties choose a male character in his seventies, I wonder how she will do with that? and she did great she was able to get into his habits, mind patterns, and love's impetus to shake him up!
The Royal Book Club's March meeting was especial, besides talking about a book we celebrated Keitha's birthday.
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| Keitha's birthday - she is so happy! three layer pudding for dessert made by Sharon |
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| Susan, Pat, Keitha and Linda E |
14 ladies gathered tonight: Nancy, Lisa, Pat, Emily, Susan, Martha, Sara, Debra, Sharon, Linda E, Keitha, Leigh Lynn, Jan and Maricarmen
I ordered tamales from Ana, made with shiitake mushrooms, canned tomatoes and peppers from our garden, extra virgin olive oil, and masa. Served with salsa, sour cream, cheese & shredded cabbage.
I also made black bean soup cooked with rosemary and spiced with cumin and smoked paprika... oh my that was delicious!
For desert - a three layer colorful pudding made by Sharon and 2 containers of yogurt ice cream courtesy of Leigh Lynn - flavors: dark chocolate and coffee; as I was getting a very small serving I realized I would have insomnia that night... and of course I did, a wonderful opportunity to recall the party and the witty story of Major Pettigrew; it is great to laugh at 7 pm and then again at 4 am.
Book: Major Pettigrew's Last Stand by Helen Simonson
In the small village of Edgecombe St. Mary in the English countryside lives Major Pettigrew (retired), the unlikely hero of Helen Simonson's wondrous debut. Wry, courtly, opinionated, and completely endearing, the Major leads a quiet life valuing the proper things that Englishmen have lived by for generations: honor, duty, decorum, and a properly brewed cup of tea. But then his brother's death sparks an unexpected friendship with Mrs. Jasmina Ali, the Pakistani shopkeeper from the village. Drawn together by their shared love of literature and the loss of their spouses, the Major and Mrs Ali soon find their friendship blossoming into something more. But village society insists on embracing him as the quintessential local and regarding her as the permanent foreigner. Can their relationship survive the risks one takes when pursuing happiness in the face of culture and tradition?
As I started reading this book I thought "interesting that a female author in her forties choose a male character in his seventies, I wonder how she will do with that? and she did great she was able to get into his habits, mind patterns, and love's impetus to shake him up!
Saturday, March 16, 2013
The Barn
We haven't got a name yet - shack, shed, hut, hovel, hangar, barn or garage; but by definition it will be a double roofed structure used as a storage space or workshop. Pictures say more than words, they bring things alive! as you read you can decide what to call it.
The barn will measure 40 feet north/south and 24 east/west that's 960 square feet plus the space under the eaves! Roof slope is 3 and 12 (meaning that for every horizontal foot it goes up 3 inches).
We have been preparing for the shed for the last 7 years, ever since Mr Douglas Earl drove his huge bulldozer and dug a hole on the East side; I was so impressed he could transform a hillside in two days. We ended up having the trampoline there for about 5 years plus a compost for branches on the opposite side; last Spring 2012 we began piling tree trunks to create a garden in a Hugel Kulture style; as I write this Gregg Jones was here and after digging the pond he added top soil to the HK; a few days later Alden and I transplanted 5 citrus trees.
Last year we really talked about the barn and finally agreed to build it in the area north of the house where we have the 2 green tanks to store rain water; it made sense to cover the tanks and keep the water temperature stable; to have a storage for wood close to the house; a walkway for the wheel barrel and a pathway for a wheel chair. To have it close to the pond; easy access to park the cars, tractor, trailer, etc; to store garden tools; plus sleeping quarters for the pets, Ringo and Flame. And maybe a couple of ducks in the near future.
Alden began preparing trees last summer - he has several long beams - oak, poppler, etc; Saturday 3/9 Alden and Federico began by gluing together two pressure treated 4x4 to make ten big heavy posts 8x4. All day Sunday they dug and placed the 6 posts on the west side. Placing each post is a project in itself, you have to take into consideration depth, height, and with a laser beam the alignment to each other, alignment to the ones on the east side, to the roof, etc.
Monday it rained all day. Tuesday Alden and his helper Mari, got one post ready on the East side. Wednesday two more. Thursday morning the last one is in; for now only 4 posts on the East side. Friday afternoon Javier and his mom Maria, came to help. Between Alden, Javier, the tractor, scaffolding and 2 saw horses they managed to drag, move and raise to over 8 feet high a huge and very heavy 26 foot long beam -then Alden cut it to length with a chain saw and nailed it in a 24 foot spam between two posts. The ladies helped too. I am utterly amazed at how Alden thinks and engineers to do such challenging tasks with minimum resources.
Saturday 3/16 after Alden returned from school here we go again. Scott and Kyle Atkins came to help for a couple of hours - to screw posts, cut plywood. After taking more measures Alden and Federico started putting together the first of six trusses; then they set the scaffolding to see if they can raise the trusses up tomorrow. During the night Alden was thinking on how to maneuver those extremely heavy, long trusses.
Sunday - Federico, Javier and Maria came over... what a day, we managed to raise 4 trusses with the tractor and the 5 of us, what a project!!! Maria had made tamales at her home and we had a delicious lunch! At the end of the day we moved all tools to the front porch, and covered the wood... storm in the forecast.
Monday - I went to Guntersville to give massages; Alden and Federico worked during the morning raising up the last two trusses. Around 3 pm a hurricane like storm hit the area; Alden and Federico had to remove 3 trees that fell over the driveway. More than 10 trees fell in the woods; after all the cleaning up we had done to fill in the area for the HK. Oh well, such is life in the woods.
Tuesday - Scott, Ernie, Ken and Lisa came to help. Alden, Scott and Lisa got 8 joists on the rafters while Ken and Ernie cut lots of boards to size. I prepared a delicious lunch. Keitha came by to use the WiFi there is no electric power in the area due to yesterday's storm damage. In the evening Alden and I counted the wood, and worked a bit more on the rafters. Such a pleasant day. The songs of the birds, the crisp sixty degree weather, friends "playing" to build a shack.
Wednesday - Scott and Alden continued to place joists; this process is slower than what Alden had thought. Always the mind moving faster than reality. Ken and I squared and cut eighteen 12 foot long heavy boards.
The barn will measure 40 feet north/south and 24 east/west that's 960 square feet plus the space under the eaves! Roof slope is 3 and 12 (meaning that for every horizontal foot it goes up 3 inches).
We have been preparing for the shed for the last 7 years, ever since Mr Douglas Earl drove his huge bulldozer and dug a hole on the East side; I was so impressed he could transform a hillside in two days. We ended up having the trampoline there for about 5 years plus a compost for branches on the opposite side; last Spring 2012 we began piling tree trunks to create a garden in a Hugel Kulture style; as I write this Gregg Jones was here and after digging the pond he added top soil to the HK; a few days later Alden and I transplanted 5 citrus trees.
Last year we really talked about the barn and finally agreed to build it in the area north of the house where we have the 2 green tanks to store rain water; it made sense to cover the tanks and keep the water temperature stable; to have a storage for wood close to the house; a walkway for the wheel barrel and a pathway for a wheel chair. To have it close to the pond; easy access to park the cars, tractor, trailer, etc; to store garden tools; plus sleeping quarters for the pets, Ringo and Flame. And maybe a couple of ducks in the near future.
Alden began preparing trees last summer - he has several long beams - oak, poppler, etc; Saturday 3/9 Alden and Federico began by gluing together two pressure treated 4x4 to make ten big heavy posts 8x4. All day Sunday they dug and placed the 6 posts on the west side. Placing each post is a project in itself, you have to take into consideration depth, height, and with a laser beam the alignment to each other, alignment to the ones on the east side, to the roof, etc.
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| Installing the sixth post |
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| Sunday - 6 posts are staked |
Monday it rained all day. Tuesday Alden and his helper Mari, got one post ready on the East side. Wednesday two more. Thursday morning the last one is in; for now only 4 posts on the East side. Friday afternoon Javier and his mom Maria, came to help. Between Alden, Javier, the tractor, scaffolding and 2 saw horses they managed to drag, move and raise to over 8 feet high a huge and very heavy 26 foot long beam -then Alden cut it to length with a chain saw and nailed it in a 24 foot spam between two posts. The ladies helped too. I am utterly amazed at how Alden thinks and engineers to do such challenging tasks with minimum resources.
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| Beam is up balancing on saw horse |
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| Mari's turn to hold the beam while it is still balancing on saw horses! |
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| Mari is holding the beam while Alden and Javier are raising the scaffolding |
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| Beam is cut, fit between posts and nailed |
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| Precision fitting... Javier adjusting, Maria passing nails |
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| Federico nailing braces to the beam |
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| Alden, Scott, Kyle and Federico "thinking" on best way to brace a truss. |
Monday - I went to Guntersville to give massages; Alden and Federico worked during the morning raising up the last two trusses. Around 3 pm a hurricane like storm hit the area; Alden and Federico had to remove 3 trees that fell over the driveway. More than 10 trees fell in the woods; after all the cleaning up we had done to fill in the area for the HK. Oh well, such is life in the woods.
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| Maria sanding away |
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| Federico placing braces to hold trusses in place |
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| Raising a very heavy truss; Federico, Javier and Mari balancing & moving to fit it on the edges, Alden aligning the tractor |
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| Keitha always smiling! |
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| Scott measures to start placing joists |
 Lisa using nail gun, Alden supervising |
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| Ernie and Ken cutting boards |
Wednesday - Scott and Alden continued to place joists; this process is slower than what Alden had thought. Always the mind moving faster than reality. Ken and I squared and cut eighteen 12 foot long heavy boards.
The ladies came to yoga and then book club, they were amazed at the size of the shack and the HK. Linda said "I did not imagine that sending you the link to Hugel Kulture last year would totally transform your garden" I am still getting used to it! The shack measures 40 feet north/south and 24 east/west that's 960 square feet plus the space under the eaves!
Thursday - only Scott came today; they placed some boards, then put things away and covered the wood... rain in the forecast. I went to calligraphy class at Ginny's.
Friday - rainy morning, yoga class and massage. Federico came at 1 pm and in 4 hours they had a section covered with tin roof plus the boards installed for the joists. Alden said Federico is very fast, he has lots of experience working in construction. What a playful activity!
Saturday - Federico and Daryl arrived at 2:00 by 6:30 pm all the tin on the west side is on. Hurrah!
Sunday - Again Federico and Daryl were here from 8:30-2:30 when it started to rain; most of the joists on the east side are in place. In the afternoon we went to Marjorie's memorial service. Another cold spell blowing in from the west, temperatures at night are dropping below freezing and very windy.
Friday - rainy morning, yoga class and massage. Federico came at 1 pm and in 4 hours they had a section covered with tin roof plus the boards installed for the joists. Alden said Federico is very fast, he has lots of experience working in construction. What a playful activity!
Saturday - Federico and Daryl arrived at 2:00 by 6:30 pm all the tin on the west side is on. Hurrah!
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| The West side is covered |
Sunday - Again Federico and Daryl were here from 8:30-2:30 when it started to rain; most of the joists on the east side are in place. In the afternoon we went to Marjorie's memorial service. Another cold spell blowing in from the west, temperatures at night are dropping below freezing and very windy.
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| Daryl raising tin, Federico receiving, Alden passing tools |
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| Daryl |
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| Federico nailing the tin |
Monday 3/25 Federico came today; most of the posts are ready; and 2/3 of the east roof are covered. Joe Bullard will get tin screws by tomorrow. We cleaned up piles and consolidated things under the barn... sooo cool! It was nippy today temperature stayed below 40 degrees.
Tuesday 3/26 Alden has been outside regardless of the snow flurries playing in the roof, fixing here, adjusting that, screwing the first part of the ridge that goes on the very top. He is so happy.
Alden noticed the tin was overlapped the wrong way, he is going to have to redo all the screws on the roof. Oops! As I write this he started to change the tins; he didn't finish because we are hosting the Jewish Seder Dinner tonight.
Wednesday 3/27 Alden and Scott finished overlapping the tin roof so it is placed the right way- the short ridge goes on the top, so no water can seep through the overlap. We all went to get the screws from Joe Bullard, to see his farm and donkeys, such cuties. We had a surprise - Joe purchased the screws for a cheaper price.
Thursday 3/28 Alden finished putting up the ridge pieces and more screws on the tin; then he used the vacuum to blow off the tin scrap. After returning from calligraphy class I helped dig the trench to divert rain water from running into the barn area - got about 12 feet done. We listened to the audio book Happiness by Matthieu Ricard.
Friday 3/29 While I was doing yoga, Alden finished putting screws on the tin roof, using twice the amount they recommend at the roofing sites... Scott arrived and took part in the "roof yoga" session. We both said "if we get a tornado the tin will stay put even if the whole structure blows away". Between the three of us we finished digging the ditch on the east side.
On this day we declare barn construction - phase one complete; we reached the milestone of having the roof and ditch ready. We are very grateful to all our friends who came to help: Scott, Federico, Daryl, Javier, Maria, Ken, Ernie, Lisa and Kyle. Muchas Gracias.
Barn cost $3,650 (1600 tin roof, 1050 lumber, 180 nails, 820 salaries/compensations)
4/1/13 Ditch maintenance after the rain, its looking better.
4/3/13 William Denton, his son Casey and Barry from Hanceville came to do an estimate for the gutters. What cheerful interesting folks; they were impressed by the strawbale, off the grid house, they asked for a tour and lots of information. William was astonished that we don't have to pay monthly power or water bills.
4/8-12 Alden is very focused on getting the water system from the roofs to the pond and green tanks ready.
William Denton, Casey and Barry came over Thursday to install the gutters. Meanwhile Alden built the stand for the blue tank. The weather forecast predicted tornadoes and lots of rain by 3 pm. Fortunately we got 1 1/2" of rain and no high winds. Alden had his first work related accident, while he was using the nail gun, one nail perforated the skin of his pinki finger...ouch!!! he was calm enough to go back to the barn and cut the top so he could push the nail forward. I got the alcohol, band-aids, etc and then closed my eyes to help.
After the rain the pond got quite a bit of water, perhaps filled to more than 1/3.
The rest of the month Alden was working on the water system before finishing the barn.
April 28, 29 and 30 we worked on leveling the floor, making the ditch deeper and getting ready for gravel.
5/7- ? The next project is building supports to store the wood; Alden is meticulous about this, the designs are beautiful!He listens to music or audio books while he works. In the meantime I am doing things in the garden.
Tuesday 3/26 Alden has been outside regardless of the snow flurries playing in the roof, fixing here, adjusting that, screwing the first part of the ridge that goes on the very top. He is so happy.
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| Interesting perspective seeing the roof and Alden from top of ladder at the roof's edge |
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| So happy |
Wednesday 3/27 Alden and Scott finished overlapping the tin roof so it is placed the right way- the short ridge goes on the top, so no water can seep through the overlap. We all went to get the screws from Joe Bullard, to see his farm and donkeys, such cuties. We had a surprise - Joe purchased the screws for a cheaper price.
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| Alden and Scott placing the last long tin |
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| Before yoga, Nancy helped by holding the ladder |
Thursday 3/28 Alden finished putting up the ridge pieces and more screws on the tin; then he used the vacuum to blow off the tin scrap. After returning from calligraphy class I helped dig the trench to divert rain water from running into the barn area - got about 12 feet done. We listened to the audio book Happiness by Matthieu Ricard.
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| Digging the trench while being present |
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| Blowing the tin roof |
Friday 3/29 While I was doing yoga, Alden finished putting screws on the tin roof, using twice the amount they recommend at the roofing sites... Scott arrived and took part in the "roof yoga" session. We both said "if we get a tornado the tin will stay put even if the whole structure blows away". Between the three of us we finished digging the ditch on the east side.
On this day we declare barn construction - phase one complete; we reached the milestone of having the roof and ditch ready. We are very grateful to all our friends who came to help: Scott, Federico, Daryl, Javier, Maria, Ken, Ernie, Lisa and Kyle. Muchas Gracias.
Barn cost $3,650 (1600 tin roof, 1050 lumber, 180 nails, 820 salaries/compensations)
4/1/13 Ditch maintenance after the rain, its looking better.
4/3/13 William Denton, his son Casey and Barry from Hanceville came to do an estimate for the gutters. What cheerful interesting folks; they were impressed by the strawbale, off the grid house, they asked for a tour and lots of information. William was astonished that we don't have to pay monthly power or water bills.
4/8-12 Alden is very focused on getting the water system from the roofs to the pond and green tanks ready.
William Denton, Casey and Barry came over Thursday to install the gutters. Meanwhile Alden built the stand for the blue tank. The weather forecast predicted tornadoes and lots of rain by 3 pm. Fortunately we got 1 1/2" of rain and no high winds. Alden had his first work related accident, while he was using the nail gun, one nail perforated the skin of his pinki finger...ouch!!! he was calm enough to go back to the barn and cut the top so he could push the nail forward. I got the alcohol, band-aids, etc and then closed my eyes to help.
After the rain the pond got quite a bit of water, perhaps filled to more than 1/3.
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| William, Casey and Barry estruding the gutter |
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| The gutter is the length of the roof, no seams |
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| Alden washing roof after pine pollen |
The rest of the month Alden was working on the water system before finishing the barn.
April 28, 29 and 30 we worked on leveling the floor, making the ditch deeper and getting ready for gravel.
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| Gravel truck backing up the driveway |
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| Here it is! |
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| A short rest after spreading the gravel |
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| Keep it up, just a couple more hours to go... |
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| The barn is open for business on May 1, 2013 cars, tractor, trailer and tools are covered |
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| View from the north side |
5/7- ? The next project is building supports to store the wood; Alden is meticulous about this, the designs are beautiful!He listens to music or audio books while he works. In the meantime I am doing things in the garden.
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