Farmer Friday

Cantaloupes! Finally!

Well I finally got to pick some cantaloupes. They were on the small side and a bit watery. I think because our rains have started. But they were ripe and still good eating.

more kale seedlings potted up

I potted up some more kale and chard seedlings. They are growing fine, but the grasshoppers and Japanese beetles are trying to eat them up. I really need a screened in place to start seedlings in the summer.

hot compost

I turned the compost piles and started a new one. These piles are mostly chicken litter from the pens at moms house. They are basically sawdust with some straw and shavings along with the manure. I add a little manure/alfalfa mix from my friends sheep and goat pens and whatever green waste I don't give to the birds. Because they are very fine textured they will not need sifting before I use them when they cool off.

semi wild garden

I planted more wild flower, pasture mix and a bee and butterfly flower mix in this area. I tossed seeds right over the wood chip mulch then covered with a thin layer of manure. The live oak trees I planted a couple of years ago are finally beginning to really put on some growth.

Can you find the fig tree?

Can you even find the fig tree in here?  I tromped the grass and wild asters down and put a little chicken litter around it. 

There is is

There it is.  This one is a Mission fig I planted last summer. 

building soil with chicken litter

I spread some more chicken litter around the old chicken yard.  To build up the soil here I'm just cleaning the coop to the outside. (The birds in this coop cannot come outside because there is not enough predator protection).  Eventually this space will be full of trees, herbs and shrubs and when the plants grow up I'll let the chickens out sometimes. 

Would love a tractor with a shovel and bucket!

I hauled sand and rocks from the creek to fill in a berm above the new garden where the rain washed it out. Shovel and bucket are slow going. 

assorted squash

More squash this week. 

Black Beauty and Black from Tula tomatoes

A few big tomatoes. 

bush beans

Green beans soon. 

bean flowers

Bean flowers are pretty

more bush beans sprouting

About a week ago I planted 100 sq ft in green and yellow beans. They are already sprouting. 

volunteer acorn squash is taking over

This is a monster volunteer squash. It seems to be an acorn squash.