Thursday, June 5, 2014

Storms Brewing

 OK I give up.  It seems every time I've sat down to write this week I go off on a raging rant.  Every stinking time. I've decided that at this point in the game if you don't know what's going on, there isn't much I can do about it. 

See I almost started again!!  I just had to delete half a page of rant!  Ok... deep breath....

Let's see.  The garden is growing like gangbusters.  Apparently it doesn't need my help either since every time it dries out enough to get in it... here comes the rain. I really thought yesterday's high winds  would dry out everything so I could get out there and do battle with the weeds.  Only a 30% chance of rain in the forecast when I went to bed last night.  I woke up to dark clouds and the promise of more rain.  And rain it did.  Of course it was just enough to get everything wet again. 

 
 We have all sorts of volunteer plants popping up.  Last year I had about 6 potted moss roses sitting up on the porch.  They dropped seed down in my tiny herb bed and pretty much took over.  I'm finding other places for them so I can take back my herb bed. Notice the lemon basil growing in it.  Yup more volunteers!
 I can still get in "around the edges" though so I'll just do what I can to things.  I still can't get to the yellow squash and the other squash out there.  It looks like I've got one plant that's being destroyed by the squash vine borer. I'll pull it up when it dries some. 

 and I'm sure the #$*^# squash bugs are having a huge party out there.  I had finally dusted the whole garden on Sunday and it rained like crazy Monday night.  Go figure.  

UPDATE:  I was able to get out to some of the
squash and was surprised to find only a handful of those spawns of Satan. It seems the new dust is working pretty well.  I can still see residue from it even after all the rain.

We've used The Three Sisters method of planting out in the lower garden. 


My dad sent some of his sweet corn and it's doing great.  The beans are finally starting to come up and the squash and melons over there look all right.  I tested out the ground when I went to feed the rabbits this morning and I'm planning on trying to get the lower garden weeded this afternoon.  
Notice the plants under the corn?  Those are volunteer lemon basil.  It seems we have several plants that decided to come back up this year. They are everywhere.
 This is a stray moss rose that decided to come up in the beans.  I don't know how it got so far away from the vast majority of the other volunteer moss roses. 

Things are starting to bloom!  
The black-eyed peas have a few flowers on them, some of the tomatoes are starting to flower and we are starting to pick broccoli.  Man, that stuff is soooo good!!  I could eat broccoli every day.  We didn't have much luck with it last year so I'm really excited.  So far there's not enough to put up, and if we keep eating it like we are there won't be either! 

Check out the marigolds all in a straight line under the peas.  You would think by looking at them, they were planted there.  You would be wrong!  That's where they were planted with tomatoes last year.  I'm keeping them!

There are always  things to be done around here. We need to get the tomatoes staked up when it dries out a little. Right now I'm trying to get some beds weeded and waiting for the rain to stop.   Mars has a cool project he's working on.  I'll get some pictures as it progresses. It's a lot of labor but it will make a huge difference in the way things have to be done now.

Heads up out there people... it seems we are living in troubled waters, and all I can say is Wow! What an interesting time in history we are living.

33 comments:

  1. Yep I got one thing accomplished today. I managed to run out between bouts of rain and get the swarm I caught the other day all set up in their hive box. Last night I got two whole things done making some more frames and weeded my two raised beds but the garden is off limits unless I seriously want a mud bath and the weeds are out of control.

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    1. Congrats on the bee swarm. It sure seems like a rough year for them and for you.
      Hey, two whole things done are better than nothing done!
      As for the muddy garden, dude we are both in the same fix! Good luck! lol

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  2. You know, I think we may have been attempting to vent about the same thing today, but I put it off. I go back & forth about blogging about stuff like that because most of my readers are of my same mindset regarding the state of our Country, but at the same time, if my raging venting / bitching reaches someone, ANYone else new and makes them say to themselves, "Well, you know, I never thought of it that way", it makes it worth it. Unfortunately too many people have their heads in the sand (or up their a$$es) and they will sit until they are piled into the busses and sent to those camps.

    Anyways, I LOVE the fact that your marigolds came up again! And free / volunteer plants are great! Love the garden! Speaking of which, I have to go back outside and RE-seed mine, the storm we just had probably sent all the seeds downstream.

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    1. Caroline,
      I truly know that we are seeing the same event's unflod. We both know that things aren't always as they seem to be. There is a bigger picture out there and we both see it. I feel like a traitor when I DON'T blog about what all is ticking me off. Yet I still keep silent these days. It just seems that I have been ranting for years and things fall on deaf ears or those who pretty much see the same things going on. Five years I've been putting out the alarm and these days I'm not sure it even matters. I have to" keep my own house" and I'm seriously worried about what seems to be happening before our eyes and there are only a handful to understand. what is unfolding right in fromt of us.
      Yeah the marigolds have a few buds on them now and they should be blooming soon. I was really kind of shocked to see them line themselves up all in a row. Go figure, huh?
      Good luck with your garden, it's going to be a tough year from what I can tell.

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  3. You may want to look at this video "Killing Squash Bugs" his method of spraying them with a water and soap solution works well in the video. I'm expecting the bugs any day now in my garden and when I see them I am going give this method a try because nothing else works on them.
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q7v9VvNzmhE

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    1. Thanks for the video Mike. I really like the Texas Prepper. I tried the soap and water method last year and honestly? I can smush them faster than spraying them. It even gives me a good feeling! lol I don't mind bug juice on my fingers! :-)

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  4. There's an old Chinese curse that says "may you live in interesting times, and may you come to the attention of important people."

    It's thundering and raining here right now. I shouldn't even have the computer on, but I do anyway. Too much rain this spring, after a winter of far too much ice and snow, and deep cold.

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  5. No your just mean and like hitting things,

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  6. SCI,

    Even with all the rain your garden is coming along really well. Speaking of rain be careful with the upcoming expected weather.

    Are you getting all those beautiful butterflies you had last spring? I've seen two of the large dark colored butterflies with the vibrant blue here and that's it. Of course, we have the traditional monarchs I was hoping for more of the blue's and blacks ones to come around since we have all the flowers blooming. And once again, no signs of hummingbirds........and I have no idea why. We put out the feeders, and haven't had any luck. Our friends down the street stated they have them out at the farm which is east of us.

    I love to see your marigolds coming back this year on there own. Last year, I pulled mine out after taking all the seeds. The marigolds help with keeping away certain bugs. I planted them again this year in each garden bed.

    Heads up is correct, this is going to get ugly......and I will leave it at that.
    Paul Harvey had it right back in 1965. We used to listen to him on the radio all the time.

    Sending hugs to you and Mars.
    Sandy

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    1. Sandy,
      I'm afraid I just didn't plant flowers like I did last year. With two beds confiscated and now holding garlic in one and lettuce and onions in the other there just wasn't the room for them. So I haven't seen nearly the amount of butterflies we had last year. I don't want to do that again next year. The few flowers we have this year are all volunteers. So be it, I suppose. I should dig around the seed buckets and see what I can come up with that blooms summer to fall. Hmmm.......

      Oh the box with the solar lights finally made it! Thanks again for holding the cool contests you have. Did you get a chance to see where all that dang box traveled? It went from your place to OKC and then somewhere else (I can't remember) to Tulsa. Then it went to Mounds for a few days and then back to OKC. and finally back to Tulsa and then finally landed here.
      Funny you aren't seeing any hummingbirds again. I've seen a couple zoom the area here but with the lack of flowers (marigolds and hibiscus aren't blooming yet) they didn't stay long. Last year we had a few. They loved the hibiscus tree. While the purple rocket flowers were blooming we had a good amount of the Monarchs but nothing at all like last year.

      I don't know how the marigolds do with peas but I guess we're gonna find out. I've planted some with the tomatoes again this year but they are only about half the size of the ones on the first row.

      OH Isn't it wonderful about Gov Fallon signing off against Common Core in Oklahoma" It made my day. It's possible she understands that she'd never get re-elected.
      One thing I will say for this state, It doesn't handle that socialist bs well at all.
      Hugs to you and yours. (and scritches for the beaner dog)
      Sci

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  7. Sometimes, a good rant just helps those knowledgeable stay on the same page.

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    1. I find it very interesting that many who read here didn't even have to hear all the details. Trust me, as angry as I have been the past couple of weeks (months? years?) It was probably a good thing I didn't post any of it.
      As you say though, we all need to try and stay on target, as it were and a good rant is an excellent way for all of us sometimes to vent the absolute disgust for the state of affairs we are living with today.

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    2. Oh Mr Smythe? I read most all of the pages I'd been writhing all week more than once. I just hate trying to pull everything together with facts and links etc, to make my point. There are those who read here who sort of expect me to be a damned journalist. Besides, as long winded as I can be, I can see having to do installments! LOL! I might go back though it all one day and see what I can still use.
      Thanks for stopping by!
      Sci

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  8. Yes its going to get tougher and you're right.Not everyone is listening. A friend of mine is listening now though. He put shelf's in an empty bedroom and is stocking up. I told him 2 years ago to start.
    As for the rain,we had bad storms today.As my grandpa used to say* It tore up billy hell* today.We lost a few big limbs today but other towns close by were hit hard. One man killed, and another was trapped in a building till they could get him out. A lot of homes and factory's damaged. and no electricity.
    It will dry up soon then we will be praying for rain!!

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    1. zz,
      We are actually a pretty small group of like minded folks but the numbers are growing every day. It's wonderful your friend has finally understood that things are getting real tough and getting ready to get tougher. At least you finally got someone to make a step toward the taking care of himself in hard times.
      Sorry to hear about those storms. I was watching the radar yesterday (yeah I'm a dork like that) They looked pretty wicked. I'm glad you and yours are ok. Things could have been a whole lot worse than a few limbs. It sounds like a horrible storm.
      One of the things I like about living here in Ok. is that at least the summer eventually stops! hehehe In Texas it seems more often than not it's hot from May until November and then sometimes longer than that.
      Take care up there,
      Sci

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  9. We had some awful wind around 5 pm today. The tall hickory nut tree was bent to the ground. The limbs thrashed in a 100 ft arc. Exbf was in the midst of connecting a new antenna, so naturally I could not get the weather on the tv. It lasted about ten minutes and was gone. I was on the verge of being frightened and needed to get up the chickens. I decided two hens were not worth risking my life under the tall trees. Plus, the wind was blowing hard enough to carry heavy things. During the tornado that ripped our town apart three years ago, I found a 14" knife in the driveway. As far as I know, nothing in this part of AL was destroyed even though Huntsville received lots of damage from downed trees.

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    1. Linda,
      That hickory tree whipping around like that must have been a sight to see. I'll not kid you, that would have scared the heck out of me. You are right, two chickens aren't worth loosing a life over. Glad to hear you got through it ok.
      Sci

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  10. Beautiful girl! Reading that, and seeing the pics, was like a breath of fresh air. I love it. <3

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    1. Hey Sweettina,
      Girl it's so good to see you here! Click on some of the older posts and I'm sure you'll find all sorts of things that might interest you.
      Please don't be a stranger,
      Sci

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  11. I like hearing your rants. And I agree with George Smythe who said that it helps us stay on the same page. :)

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    1. Cristy,
      Thanks. Trust me, if I weren't already on a "list" after what all I was ranting about it was sure to land me a top spot!
      Sci

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  12. Beautiful garden! If this is the beginning, I'm delighted to wait and see the end results! In the garden, I mean. As for the other....indeed interesting times. What can't something be done???

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    1. Hi Texasann,
      I love your moniker! Hang out for awhile and I promise I will give you more garden pictures than should be allowed by law. LOL!
      As for the other, with the right leadership I still think things could be saved. Well, except for the economic crash that is coming of course. I'm afraid there is no way to stop that one. We'll just have to see how long it takes and how much we can do in the meantime.
      Just an opinion of course. Heaven knows I have a few of those! heheh
      Thanks for stopping by. Don't be a stranger, let me bore you with pictures this summer!
      Sci

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  13. Squash bugs are after my garden too. I hate those buggers!!!!! Last night I ran outside to put my car in the shop when the Emergency broadcasts were going off. Not a drop of rain :/ I'm sick of the stinky wet rabbit/chicken muck but I'm loving my pond getting filled up and the garden being watered :)))

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    1. Kelly,
      Me and you both! I hate them with a passion and have been fighting them since moving here regularly. I don't mind smushing them either. Matter of fact, I kinda get a bit of enjoyment about smushing their nasty selves!
      I'm glad you all were ok during the storms. We are getting rain as I'm typing this. I may have to don jungle gear once it dries out to get through the garden.
      Funny you mention the chicken and rabbit muck. I had no idea rabbits could stink like they do! lollll poor things, it's not really their fault either. It's all this rain!
      Sci

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  14. SciGurl - we all enjoy a good Sci rant but if it is upsetting you or getting you riled, and/or if you feel like you are preaching to the choir - that's ok, too. but it's your blog to do with what you will. otherwise, your garden is looking amazing! and as far as i am concerned - any volunteer plants that plant themselves in nice, tidy rows - well - that's a good thing right there! keep up the good work and congrats on all the work that you have done so far! much love to you and Mars!

    your friend,
    kymber

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    1. hey lady
      I think that's my problem. Preaching to the choir only gives a person validation of the problems.
      Isn't it amazing how green everything is when it gets rain almost daily? I love how the marigolds decided to lay themselves in a straight row. I'm terrible about not wanting to pull up volunteer plants (even when they get in the way)
      It feels great to see that things are doing fairly well considering all the rain we've had.
      It's always good to see ya stop by
      Hugs to you and Jam and (scritches to the kitties)
      Sci

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  15. I found an excellent cultivar for overcoming the squash vine borer. "Seminole" is very resistant to borers AND squash bugs. They sell it at Baker Creek Seed and Southern Exposure. It is a huge plant, but puts on so many fruits, that you can pick Summer squash all season and then let some ripen and harden for the Winter.

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    1. Thanks! I'll definitely be checking that out!.I love Baker Creek. I haven't heard of Southern Exposure but I'll check them out too. I'm all for anything to help with the squash problems we've been struggling with for years now.

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