Questions answered

My favorite local organic farmers harvested a bumper crop of salad for their local restaurant and natural food store deliveries and I scored a pound of their “extra” that was delivered to my door for the same price I would pay if I went to the farmer’s market for it.  Two of my hen gems are boiling, a few chunks of cheese are cut, some leftover cooked asparagus and I am about to have a late lunch fit for a tired queen of the castle.

While he was here, I asked about the mystery weed

that was threatening to overtake the garden.  It is Smart Weed and it does have pretty little flowers a bit later in the spring.  It does spread, but is relatively easy to pull.

This morning I went out to finish mulching the garden with the spoiled hay.  There is now a good thick layer in the paths, around the grapes and around the berries.  Hopefully this will keep the lambs quarters, smart weed, henbit, deadnettle, horse nettle and oxalis at least reduced.  For now it looks neat and tidy and I am still picking splinters out of my hands.  Yes, I know that I could wear gloves, but I never garden in them.

A few days ago, when I was away from the house and Jim had been off on his motorcycle.  He had left the garage door open as it is difficult to close headed up the gravel driveway on his bike.  When he came back, he passed two adolescent males walking up our driveway and we wondered why they had been down here.  The house is secure with the two big beasts that live inside and I saw nothing amiss in the garage or the chicken pens.  Today, I think I discovered what mischief they wrought.  The end of the big round bale of spoiled hay that was going on the garden and had been used in the chicken coop until it molded is charred on the end away from the house.  Fortunately it didn’t catch, I guess they left it smoldering and it went out, thank goodness.  It does make me a bit concerned as we don’t know who they are or where on the mountain they live.  None of our close by neighbors have kids or at least kids that age.

Life is an adventure on our mountain farm.