[Augie]

That little shed is over 100 years old. It was used as a smokehouse on my Grandparents' farm. I hired a guy to move it to my place a few months ago.

We had a family reunion yesterday, so I had to cram a whole weekend worth of work into Saturday. I'm not fully acclimated to the heat yet this summer and wound up over doing it a bit I think.

I got the tractor out and flipped the hay bale pile. With all of the rain we've had they are rotting down much faster than they would in a normal year.

I dug all of the garlic and one row of potatoes. This is the worst crop of fall-planted garlic I've ever had. Too much water, not enough sunshine. The heads are half the size or less compared to last year and the husks that normally cover the heads are rotted away completely. Aside from some damage the moles did this row of spuds was decent.

[greeneyes]

I haven’t tried to dig spuds yet, because they are all intertwined with the tomatoes and melons that came up volunteer. I was skeptical that they would do anything, since the didn’t store very well last winter, and were kinda shriveled and I had to trim the roots.

[Pete from Shawnee Mission]

You have a lot of nice organic material there. Good for the garden! No, the garlic looks not so good...Potatoes are ok. I have heard that some people grow them in containers above ground. That might keep them from getting too wet.

You may already know this. If you use your cold frame to start seedlings and have access to fresh manure, here is something you can do to heat it in early spring. (Something my father used to do!) Dig out the topsoil in the frame down to about 1 foot, fill it with manure, cover it with the topsoil you took out. The rotting manure will provide heat for several weeks, then fertilize any plant growing in the soil in the cold frame. If you use trays it should keep it warm from underneath until you are ready to transplant the seedlings.

[Diana in Wisconsin]

Shame about the hay! Was that for animal feed? We’re raising another Steer this season. This one is named, ‘Supper.’ Last years was, ‘Dinner.’ LOL! I want to name one, ‘Weber’ (as in on the grill) and then, since we like old re-runs, we’ll name a future steer, ‘Hamilton Burger’ after the (DA? Public Defender? - who never wins!) on Perry Mason, LOL!

Garlic likes water, but if you got a ton of rain and the bales are that rotted, that explains it right there.

I’ll plant Garlic in August and Tulips in September or October. I usually plant a bed just for cutting, because I can buy them in bulk so cheap. Gives me lots of pretty cut flowers for in the house, come spring.

Been digging new potatoes and I have a lot of tomatoes on, but it’ll be a while. Picked my FIRST Zucchini today - very late. We have had lots of rain and not enough sun and cool night temps. Cukes are coming along, but also slow due to the night time temps.

Salad greens and spinach were phenomenal this spring. Hoping for a repeat this fall!!

Rabbits are a REAL problem this season; since I lost my Yellow Lab, they’ve moved back in. It’s not unusual for me to see a dozen rabbits in the house yard at a time, enjoying the white clover and anything else they can get their teeth on this season. Mr. Woodchuck destroyed my red cabbage and chard. Grrrrrr! I’ve been here 25 years and have NEVER needed a fence. I guess The Times, They Are A Changin’.

My potatoes are looking great, so I won’t starve, LOL! I said to Beau the other day, “I am so glad we don’t have to produce ALL of our own food - we’d STARVE this season!”

There is a huge flock of American White Pelicans on Lake Barney, across the road. First time for them to live here, ever! They usually head further north (Green Bay area) but seem to like our little lake and are staying. They are magnificent! What a treat to have them around.

Made Red Lake Currant Jelly this week. 5 of the 8 jars jelled nicely - I’ll use the others for pancake syrup or over ice cream. Waste Not, Want Not! :)