Ever since we have returned from down south, we have been busy catching up around the home front. Activities that were big on the list were grass cutting, garden weeding, animal pen cleaning, Mim's two day intensive 10 hour day basketball camp and Tuki and Ve's on-going tennis lessons, and the girls' daily summer school lessons.
I had to replant my lettuce in containers since the cottontails have consumed every last leaf. I was so disappointed since garden lettuce is one of my greatest joys in the summer. It tastes so incredibly different than store lettuce and when I saw none growing in my garden I almost started crying. But I quickly recovered and planted 4 containers of it. I will also have to replant 1/2 of the beans since the rabbits seem to have found them as well.
Even though our garden has been behind, I see a few cucumbers on the vine as well as summer squash. The other plants are growing well, have flowers and now we wait for some produce!! I naturally planted many more gourd species. I currently have 17 different plants of gourds doing well, but I didn't label what type of gourds they were when I placed them in the garden, so I think I will be a little surprised come fall.
Today we went strawberry picking, so we cleaned, froze a ton, made strawberry sauce, made strawberry tapioca dessert and canned 6 pints of rhubarb-strawberry jam and 5 pints of strawberry jam.
My egg business is hopping. I sell anywhere from 6 - 10 dozen each week for 2 dollars a dozen. I actually bought more pullets, Easter Eggers specifically because they lay blue and green eggs, and even though all free-range fresh eggs taste the same, which are great by the way (store eggs are a totally different story) people get so excited to see a rainbow of colors in the egg carton. I even have a few breeds that lay chocolate brown eggs.
I have also been able to get a work-out or two in each day.
So that is what is happening in our neck of the woods. Next week we have a camping trip planned, and Tuki's surgery, which I will explain more about later.
my container lettuce, a few days old
a new addition, Marcia, a Pendensenca, who will lay deep chocolate eggs
Jasmine (named after Mim's sister in Haiti), a true Americana and also a blue egg layer
the dark one is the back is Marta (named after you guessed it, our friend Marta in Georgia), she is a New Hampshire Red. She is still very young so we won't see eggs from her for a few months.
A photo of some of the original gals, Louise, Katherine, Helen, Charlotte and Edith
This is Idle. His name was originally Idalia thinking he was a hen, but since he turned Roo on us, I switched his name to Idle since all my Silkies (he is a Silkie cross) are named with "I" names. I happen to think he is one of the ugliest chickens I have ever seen, but he is also a character.
Technically we are still not to have roosters, but what can I say, my neighbors love them!! It makes them feel like they are in the country even though they live in town. I guess the Roos give the neighbors country charm.
shot of my flowers
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