Yesterday was a good bit cooler than Saturday after a cold front moved through. We had some clouds off and on all day which kept the sun at bay. Squirrel showed up nice and early for his seeds before scampering off into the trees.
The summer squash are starting to get big enough and I picked 36 of them and have them in the cooler. So far I have picked over 60 (we have eaten a bunch) with a number of them being a bit funky shaped so those are ours.
The pole beans are getting tall and dense. They are starting to flower and the first few beans are growing. There are tendrils that are now reaching over 7 feet high and are starting to get heavier on the lines. I spent a good bit of time stringing the tendrils up and fishing them around. It will be interesting to see just how many of the beans grow higher on the plants, rather than all around the bases.
After the pole beans I spent a while picking peas from the row in the garden. Along with the picking I also did a good bit of weeding so I could expose the pea plants to pick. Got over 5 pounds of peas, though they are a bit on the larger size since I hadn't been picking constantly.
On the screen door was this damned tree borer beetle. These are very bad beetles to have around as they are part of what is decimating trees around the west.
I gave it a quick trip to squishville in hopes of keeping at least one of them from eating my trees.
The pics aren't the best but you can see the Pixwell gooseberries starting to ripen. We have been able to try a few of the early ripeners but the rest should be ready soon. The Pixwell are the earliest to ripen of the 4 varieties, although I suspect my California native gooseberries should ripen first but they didn't set any berries this year.
Picked our first couple of cucumbers from the big row. We are going to have a solid crop of them this year, unlike prior years where I didn't grow many. I am looking forward to the English cucumbers growing as I like them the best.
The June berries are finally giving us enough to pick this year. It has been at least 5 years since there was a solid harvest of them. It must have been all the moisture this year since most every berry bush is loaded.
We have a couple bushes right near the house and then a number of them on the hillside. The birds are our biggest threat to the berries and we need to get them picked before they devour them all.
The oxeye daisies are growing nicely next to the creek. They are considered a noxious weed in the county but that is mainly because it will take over a pasture and out compete forage. This is not a pasture so I like to leave the stand to get bigger each year. It looks nice to see from the deck and while sitting by the creek.
The stinging nettle is in full flower right now and is spreading pollen with each tap of the stalk.
After dinner we went for a hike up the hill and the cat followed again. This time he stood still long enough for me to get some good shot of him.
The sunset was pretty cool and we got a cool view of the golden glow. These were the last of the clouds moving through for the day.
One of our juvenile bald eagles flew around over us. It flew within 50 feet of us over our heads as it winged around on the breeze. One of my favorite things in life is to watch the eagles fly around over our farm and to hear them screeching and chattering at each other.
As we hiked back to the house I found this nifty bolete along the trail. It was just a solitary fungus with none others nearby.
Today I have to pick a bunch of stuff in the garden and around the farm. Spinach, kale, chard, strawberries, beans, squash, and berries all need to be piled into the cooler.
Fleming Family Farm
FLEMING FAMILY FARM, LLC
Sustainable & Organic Methods | Heirloom Produce
All images are original works of Fleming Family Farm unless otherwise notated and credited.
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Gab
We also have a cat who likes to tag along on walks. He tends to offer commentary along the way, especially if he thinks we are leaving him behind, or we have gone far enough.
Yeah ours is especially loud and vocal too. The worst is when he is all wigged out from nipping and comes in yowling in the middle of the night.
Squirrel looks pretty much full grown now.
I only had a few Juneberries on my shrub and the birds got them all.
There had been just tiny squashes on Friday and when I went out Monday night, I found 6 nearly too big ones!
I have to be careful since I have them go from a bit to small to suddenly WAY too big between daily pickings. My Raven zucchini is notorious for it and sometimes has to be picked twice a day.
Squirrel is doing great and is looking pretty full grown. He has gotten a bit bitey at times but is still pretty mellow for the most part.