Garden Report 20.08.31
... and so the next level of war has started: the pears! I refuse to do this any longer and am now more determined more than ever to dispose of every rat I can by what ever manner possible. They have ruined just about every food crop I have had this year. I’m getting to the next level of annoyed -- I’m past annoyed! I can hear my grandfather speaking in my head and it is not very kindly towards the vermin (I had childhood fantasies about mice that he would not tolerate). I gave them (rodents) a chance to leave and I thought I made it harder on them but since I can’t get the neighbors to do their part ...
Having to double back on the grow box repair as that they are all going to need hardtack cloth on the bottoms going forward which means I will also need to raise the sides higher. This can only be accomplished to one repaired as that I have put artichokes, rhubarb and asparagus in the others. The new smaller ones I was going to be nestling in (long and skinny) are just fading away as a dream. I’ll just fit my tree tubs with hard tack lids but that just leaves them vulnerable to the chewing maws along the curved bottoms. Maybe dig them in a little ...
The first cherry tom from the vertical experiment is ripe. Disappointing. Tempted to just bring it all down.
Didn’t bleed out the kiwi -- we had other issues to deal with this weekend that took our eyes else where besides our urban homestead.
I don’t remember if noted but I put up six small jars (1/2 pts/ 500ml) and had a little extra of blackberry - elderberry - bilberry jam. Since I was going for jam, I used very little cane sugar and a small, under ripe apple for pectin that I had chopped small. Did the drop on the plate trick because I kept getting lost in my head and not paying attention to the clock face. It seem to turn out great for all my inattentiveness and then did a small hot water bath for it to seal the deal.
Laying in winter stock for the chickens. I just feel real uneasy going into this Winter. My dining room is turning into a grain room. Its a bit smaller than the ones of my childhood but it is what I have. They are doing great! Got a new water font for them. I got a feed cone for the feeder but when Bronte saw the tall stack (I had to get the huge water because that is all they had for months), I swear her little beady eyes widened in delight. I went in to get the cone and she was already on top! She reluctantly went back to the limb perches I made, clear to the top. Last night she thought she would take a short cut into the coop and forgot that there is screen in the window (I had the shutter open). That made her mad whereas she proceeded to chase her sisters around pecking them for about five minutes. I wonder, do chickens laugh? Did Rossetti and Alcott laugh at her mistake?











