Blister Tomato

This morning I went to water my veggies and saw the ground moving under my feet. Legions of red and black stripped blister beetles were everywhere on my tomatoes, peppers, cabbages and anything with a leaf. And if you squish them they burn your skin. In a few hours they had eaten almost every green leaf in my garden. I hit them with chickens (they don't eat them) then every citrus and cedar oil I had.I used soap and DE and vinegar. And I topped off the dirt with cedar shavings. The beetles got the message and left. Leaving me with a decimated garden. I do not know if my tomatoes will bounce back from all this leaf loss. I think the beetles were attracted to the rich alfalfa I put on the tomato plants. Since almost everything else is dry and crispy in the yard.  I have learned to be more vigilant of my insects and note the circumstances of the invasions.  I thought after the June bugs, web worms and grasshoppers left I was in the clear, ha! 

Deer Driveway

It has been very hot in the Ozarks. Every morning I water for an hour all my veggies and the primary flower garden by our driveway and all the farm animals. I do not care about the lawn.We have drought tolerant plants that are struggling in this dry spell. So after fighting a plague of blister beetles on my tomato plants with DE earth, cedar shavings and oil spray I took a break inside. As I look out to find a doe happily nibbling on my newly watered purple phlox. Where is my guard dog and my guard cat? Not on duty, all napping under cars and kennels. This doe ate fallen apples and peaches and sampled a bit of anything she crossed. She was spooked by the curtains and ran off into the woods.

Finally Some Rain

Last night we got almost and inch of rain in the Ozarks. After two months of no rain and over 100 degree temperatures, it was great to have. I missed the lightening and sound of drops hitting the glass. It was the first time I did not have to water my crops. I hope we get more rain for a second cutting of hay. 

And with the extreme heat the copperhead snakes are out a month early. They are very mean during their shedding season and will attack at anything making noise nearby. They have limited vision while they are shedding and that makes them extra aggressive to noise. This time last year my dog was bitten on his face by one. He made a lot of noise barking and was attacked by one. He survived the ordeal. With all these temperatures a month ahead of schedule, lets hope fall comes early too.

Halloween in July

Even though it is 100 degrees in July I need to begin working on Halloween. Our theme this year at the mill is the Old West Ghost Mill. I am planning on zombie, skeleton and ghost cowboys and cowgirls to scare the victims this go 'round. I am scaring up costumes, skulls, hats and boots, cobwebs and a player piano for the mill decorations. We have the cowboys around here just need to make them the un-dead kind. I think this will be a fun blast from the past for the mill as a fundraiser.

Cabbage Head

A view of my pepper garden. I used a ton of straw to keep the veggies wet in this drought.

My first head of green cabbage grown from seed. I gave away three and lost 2 to mildew. I learned that cabbage loves full sun and not the shade of tomatoes. And everything likes to sample cabbage so heavy on the DE every time I water.

Baby Stealth

I found this fledgling swallow struggling on the farm hillside. It was tired and thirsty after 

107 degree day of first flight. Today was a brutal day on the farm for birds. We lost 2 chicks from the heat in the coop even with a fan and lost 1 to chicken violence. 

So I picked this wild one up and brought in to cool off and get some water. I think the flat head is amazing.

 Even this young it is a flying machine. It started to regain its strength so we brought it near the swallow house on the hill. It took off into the sky and up into the woods without anymore problems.

Follow the Pink Toad

While watering my garden this pink toad came for a visit. It jumped at my boots and stayed under the shade of the tomato plants and straw. It is always good to have a few toads around to keep the bugs under control.

Higgity Piggity

Pigs are very different farm animals from chickens, goats and horses. I have been curious about how other farmers raise them. I love bacon and baked ham and thought it might be nice to raise some for food. We went to a farm to view their method of raising pigs. These pigs were feral and afraid of people. But they were on a pad, had mud and water and looked healthy.I liked their spots instead of the standard pink ones. These 3 month olds will triple in size before being processed in the fall. The down side is pigs are smelly and messy and would have to be raised far from the house. We just do not eat enough pork to justify the smell and work that pigs demand. 

Pain Detective

I have become my own pain manager and detective. Pain started last week in my lower jaw a dull throb that would not go away. It moved up my face and under my eye and ear. The pain was bad, then it got a lot worse. It is like a gremlin moved into my face and began a root canal. So thinking it was tooth related, we drove to see the dentist. After several x-rays and exams by the staff I got a big zero for the cause of my face pain. My teeth are fine and nothing could be seen. I was given antibiotics and pain meds and told to report back mid week. So far the pain is still there and nothing has changed. My doctor is out of town for the next 2 weeks so I have to deal until then. My mom is a nurse and thinks I have trigeminal nerve neuralgia serious stuff I don't want. So what set this pain off? I thought it might stem from my broken nose and sinus pain. Or perhaps hitting my head on the side when getting into the car (the seat was too far back). Either way I can't sleep and eating is excruciating painful. It is not fun to be me. I can get some things done then I have to stop and wait out the pain. At least my garden is thriving in this heat and I can enjoy it.

Child Buying

A funny thing happened at a garage sale today. My husband and I stopped at a country garage sale in town on a whim. We saw a herd of small kids and mommies, lots of toys and clothes in the garage for sale. My husband found a nice glass mug for a quarter, I did not see anything I wanted. So I paid for the glass mug and one of the women apologized that most of the items had sold out that morning. We smiled and said no problem that is good news. As we were walking out of the garage a grandmother said "sorry, we only have kids for sale, do you want to buy a kid?" with a straight face. I kept on walking, smiled and said "no thanks". But my husband stopped and looked back at the garage then at me and remarked that he was surprised I did not jump on that child buying offer. I said where would we put the child? The car was packed with charcoal and cat food. And clearly these children were not hand raised and were feral at best. We would have to clothe and feed these feral little kids. But no, I have no need to buy a child even at two for one offer. I do not think the woman was serious but she was bogged down with several offspring. And 10 years ago I might have said yes, how much? But I have enough living things at home, and I do not need to add to the flock nor the herd. And it was a Friday sale, I bet by Saturday the kids will be buy three get three free :)

Buggy Berries

I have been berry picking all week on the farm. I have collected, cleaned and froze over two gallons of blackberries this season. I have been cut, chiggered and tick bitten but it was worth it. On one of my hunts I saw these June bugs eating away at the wild grape leaves that hung over the blackberries. I do not like these wild grapes nor the June bugs. However, the bugs were making short work of these fast growing vines. At least they were not feasting on my veggies for a change.

Turkey Dueling

I walked in on these two fighting in the yard.

I do know know what sex they are yet, but they act like boys.

After the battle they are still pals.

Turkeys are so different from chickens. But my young roosters spar like this before they mature.These two weight about 10 pounds each and can no longer fit through the cattle panel fencing. So we leave the gate open just for these large birds. Soon they will no longer be able to fit in the dog door of the coop and we will have the leave the big door open for them.

My Busy Garden

One of my purple cabbages from my garden.

Some corn grown as spares.

A view of the garden, notice the tall deer and bunny proof fencing.

Very tall tomatoes in the center rows.

Side view of the house and the garden.