While I was having a fantastically productive wedding planning weekend in Connecticut with Anne, Mike managed to fix the failed cucumber trellis, so the vines are once again supported and upright. He also did some serious magic with twine and rope on the tippy tomato bed, and so our plants are mostly all growing skyward again.
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| Fixed cucumber trellis 8-7-2011 |
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| Tomato disaster! Before the fix, 8-7-2011 |
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| Mike adding a new support post for the tomatoes 8-7-2011 |
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Reinforced tomato bed 8-7-2011
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The tomatoes are just beginning to ripen, which is fantastically exciting. Sadly, both of the fruits below, which are the first to turn orange and red, both have blossom end rot, so they aren't likely to be the first tomatoes that we eat. Maybe the chickens will be interested, though, and at least it's promising to see some color on the vines.
The other mystery squash plants, which are growing out of my compost, are looking fantastic. Mike's guess is that they are butternut squash, which would be nice since we didn't grow that variety this year. We had so many different kinds of squash last year, though, that they really could be anything.
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| Mystery compost squash |
The squash plants in the squash field are looking great, for the most part. Nearly all of the plants are covered with flowers, and several varieties have begun to set fruit.
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| Spaghetti squash 8-7-2011 |
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| Sweet dumpling 8-7-2011 |
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| White pumpkin (or, it could be the rouge vif d'etampes pumpkin - I've lost my labels...) 8-7-2011 |
I haven't posted about the barn cats in a while, but can confirm that all three are still around. We've also renamed Oreo and Persephone. Oreo is now Ricky Bobby Barncat, and he seems to spend all of his time outside. Mike saw him the other night scavenging onions from Mike's sandwich bag (that "mysteriously" was in the driveway rather than the trash...). I'd prefer that he eat mice and voles, but at least he's still here. The ladies don't seem to leave the barn. Persephone is now Staci, and she's the least timid of the bunch, having figured out that if she doesn't run away when we show up with the food, she gets first dibs. Pam is still Pam, and lives behind a board up in the barn. Mike put together a makeshift cat house for them in the barn out of a dog igloo that the previous owners of our house left behind, so I'm hoping they'll cuddle there in the winter to stay warm.
In comparison with the barn cats, the chickens are downright sociable. Last night we brought them another cauliflower plant, and had some serious chicken bonding time. I had to teach Mike how to pick up a chicken, and he ended up having a lovely cuddle with one of the Rhode Island Reds. The girls know that when I show up at their gate I usually have something yummy for them, and so they swarmed us in the pen. The aracaunas are definitely the least shy, and one even tried to peck a blade of grass off of my leg (I declined to let her do this).
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| Me and an aracauna 8-7-2011 |
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| Mike cuddling a Rhode Island Red |
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| Rhode Island Reds 8-7-2011 |
The onions from my sandwich were barncat bait to see if Ricky Bobby was still around. They were not a haphazard disposal.
ReplyDeleteonions? I would think a cat named ricky bobby would be more of a fun-yun type. i think dad would be proud that you are cuddling the chickens. apparently they need love too.
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