Summer on the Farm

What a summer!  So hot, so stormy, so buggy!  But with those complaints out of the way, we have been blessed with garden goodies, good health for all humans and animals for the most part and good living.  Who could ask for more?

My horses are doing well.  Jessie continues to patiently trot around the arena while young children learn to post.  Blue is being good while his mother puts him through his dressage lessons though now he has decided not to give me left lead canter each time I ask....groan!!!!  A chiropractor is coming to the farm at the end of the month so maybe she will fix his back.  The nasty flying vampires are relentless this year.  I turn out at dusk so they can't torment my poor Jessie.  I do hate horse flies with a passion!

My  deer seem to be doing well too.  So far I have seen eight fawns but I think Brownie has yet to show me her twins that were born July 3rd.  Bossy was the first to bring Cappy to the corn yard.  His pronounced markings look like he has a little cap on his forehead.  I think Bandit is the father since he has the same markings.

The fawns love Ringo for some reason.  They love to smell him.  He seems to be happy especially around all the girls.  Bossy's Boy still has that awful arrow sticking out of his right shouler.  It looks like it is trying to come out with a wrinkling around the entrance of the wound.  It hurts me to know what is inside him.  I looked the other day in a hunting catalog and the arrows are brutal. 

My little Buttons has now decided that I can pet his back!  A first for me.  It is such a joyful thing to pet him while he eats his corn.  Some will disagree with my actions thinking he will get tame for a hunter.  I am not so sure.  Thousands are killed each year anyways that are not tame.  Bossy's Boy and Bandit have survived 3 killing seasons though they are not tame like Buttons.  I can only pray my Buttons will stay around the farm like Bossy's Boy and hopefully avoid that evil tresspasser.  Also, I remember that the boys become more shy as the weather cools so I am sure the petting will soon be a thing of the past and I will back off getting close to him.

The garden didn't do as well this year. The corn was a disappointment as it was planted too early and received too much rain, then the crows ate the second planting until we planted American flags all along the rows which seemed to help but now the cobs aren't growing well and something is eating them.  The good husband thinks it is a raccoon but they have electric fencing every four inches so I am not sure....

Cricket has been on the attack lately which is very disappointing.  He will be 4 in September and so far hasn't figured it out yet that other cats are ok.  He is unlike any other cat I know with his huge fangs on the lower jaw as well.  He moves like a leopard and still remains so dense, so long and so lean.  His 15-inch tail seems like it might have grown as well!  The other day I found Daddy Cat with a bloody eye lid.  Of course it was a Saturday when nobody was open.  I elected to wait a day and sure enough, the eye lid looked better.  Then I discovered an old wound under his throat!  Probably the same day.  Then just two days ago, Callie's tail was dripping pus.  They shaved it and there are two wounds.  It has improved immensely but she is still on antibiotics.  I put Cricket in a huge dog pen at night so the other kitties can have rest and Daddy Cat refuses to allow me to pick him up and put him in the tack room during the day while Cricket is out so I am stumped.  Sylvester goes out when Cricket is in and just cowers if Cricket gets close.  So sad.  They all know Cricket rules and nobody dares to challenge him so I don't know why he continues this domestic violence!!

My little Bridget will have been with me almost a year now...August 14th....she has grown a lot but her little head doesn't match her body.  She is getting independent and doesn't want her mother to pick her up and very rudely puts her strong little paw against my chin to avoid those human kisses!  How spoiled is that?  By the way, Cricket was outside which fascinated the indoor kitties.  Princess was behind them but jumped down.

Poor Nugget had to endure another TTA surgery on the other knee.  He is the perfect patient.  I used a local vet who did a much better job than the huge well known MedVet in Columbus Ohio.  Not once did he whimper and my beautiful golden barely limped the day after surgery!! I was shocked.  Pleasantly shocked.  This dog was limping horribly before surgery and one would think the limping would continue until healed as it had done previously...not this time.  The incision was done a bit differently and the miniscus was not removed as there was no damage to that knee.  Dr. McNeel at Cross Lanes Veterinary Clinic has done over 60 this year already.  If anyone in WV is reading this, you need to see him if your pet is experiencing a torn ligament.  He is cheaper, better, and your dog will be recovering a lot quicker. 

What a long post!  Hope everyone is doing well.  I don't blog as much due to some other things that dominate my time and I do miss reading all of your interesting entries.  Have a great August and stay cool!

Beans, Beans, the Magical Fruit...

Okay, these aren't 'those' kind of beans...just having some fun! I thought I would show all of you bloggy buddies what I have been up to last week, as if you didn't know!! I canned 63 quarts. The good husband did most of the picking except my 'hour' that I picked Monday. We both strung, and I canned. I was up til' midnight each night as it takes so long. Thursday was a twelve hour day with no breaks except for barn chores and animal feeding. You know how if you have been driving all day and you dream of the highway when you sleep? Well, Tuesday night I dreamed of stringing and canning beans! No kidding. Friday was a special day for me, so I took a break and got out of the house and ran errands. The good husband knew I worked hard and didn't complain one bit. He picked some more that day, strung them himself and froze several gallons. The tomatoes are ripening so I will make some salsa next week. For those of you who grow corn, our frozen corn from last summer still tastes so good! We don't blanch it, we kept it on the cob and there is no weird cob taste either. We boil water, pop the ears in for only 5 minutes and the taste is out of this world! My friend's 8 year old twins gobbled up 5 ears for dinner one night! And we all know how picky kids are these days!

By the way, the good husband's brother has informed me that he was going to 'beat' me and that the race is on...okay, I never heard of a bean competition before...I think he got jealous that I canned more than him so today he bragged that he is up to 70 cans now. Hmmm, I thought the hematoma was going to set him back; evidently it didn't! He needs to give me back my huge bucket of beans that I so kindly gave him on Monday and play fair! Bad brother in-law...what a bean head!

Pickin' -n- Cannin'

This morning we learned that the good husband's garden buddy (brother) hurt his leg so he is unable to pick beans. Poor good husband, he was all upset so I decided to pitch in... the normal routine is that the men pick and the wives can, but this time it will be different and wouldn't you know the days are back to hot summer scorchers!

Last night the good husband brought in a mess of beans that were beauties. No blemishes. So out came all the canning pots, jars, lids, etc. I put on a huge pot to boil water. Thankfully, the good husband used to own a really nice restaurant and we have these super sized stainless steel pots. I boiled my jars, then let them cool, poured boiling water over the lids (not supposed to boil those according to the 'book' as the rubber gets ruined), we both strung beans (yes, good husband, you did most of them!), I washed them several times, then began the process of putting the beans in the jars and packing them tight! I pour water in the jars to about 1/4 inch from the top, tighten the lid and put them in the Presto cooker. The process takes awhile as the pressure cooker needs a lot of time to cool out before the lid can be released. The good husband purchased another pressure cooker for me yesterday. All of the cans 'popped' (sealed) and are very pretty. Where am I going to put all of these beans? Before I forget, I was taught to can by one of the most wonderful humans I know...her name is Janet and she is truly gifted in gardening, canning, cooking, etc. Thank you Janet!!

Today I picked for an hour. It is a killer job on the back so I sat down between two rows! With three stress fractures and a little bit of arthritis, I will find the most comfortable way to labor! No bunny this morning, just a lot of beans and a few bees. I gave my pickings to the injured brother before my hair appointment. While I was gone, the good husband refused to wait until the sun went down and picked more beans!!! So, a lot of work awaits me and I still haven't gotten the barn chores done. Now you will know what I will be doing for the next few days. All is well on the bean farm!

Bounty Hunter!

The Big Man Garden is flourishing! The beans are ready to be picked as we speak, the tomatoes aren't really pretty yet, but we are getting a few good ones. The green (yum) and hot peppers (yuck) are doing fabulous as is the cabbage. The eggplant is so pretty but just beginning to grow a beautiful purple 'fruit' and the broccoli will be ready in about a week. The corn however is disappointing. The hard rains along with the timing of the planting did not bode well.

We gathered some 'bounty' yesterday evening and just as we were leaving, I spotted a bounty hunter! Uh oh! I told the good husband to go on and that I would walk up to the house. He knows me too well but not well enough as he warned that I was not going to find a turtle in there...what, a turtle? Who was thinking of turtles?? Silly man, but I acted as if nothing was going on...he saw through me and just sat there in the Kubota patiently watching...

I felt like a hurdler, carefully straddling the bean strings, trying to catch up with this perpetrator without breaking any delicate stems. It darted fast and hid well. Darn! But, my eyes are still good. I finally caught up with the cute little thing after about 10 minutes as it decided I was not going to hurt it and sat in the open beside a bean plant. Upon my return, the good husband asked if it was a rabbit or a woodchuck as he must have seen the flashes of brown. I told him. Then he asked why I didn't shoo it away...uh, hello!!!! My blog name is Kritter Keeper, we have 13 animals and I feed several deer, an occasional fox, a raccoon and a couple of rabbits their nightly corn and I also feed the birds...now why would I shoo that tiny thing away when the huge Big Man Garden will offer more than we can eat, store and give away to friends.... besides, I told the good husband how to keep those tiny garden ghouls from entering as I learned how from a garden magazine this Spring and he didn't listen, so now he has to learn to share!

The Big Man Garden

The good husband came from a farm family and has recently returned to his roots. Last year, he and his brother decided to grow veggies. Of course, being men with large egos, everything had to be large to match those egos. The garden is huge. We now have 300+ ears of frozen corn, and bag upon bag of half runner beans. I also canned about 50 quarts of beans, some salsa and a few pickles. It was my first canning experience and thankfully I had a dear friend show me the way.

We are now embarking upon our second year. The land was 'plowed' last week, the plants were purchased a few days ago, the rows were dug yesterday, and today the tomatoes and beans are going into the ground.

I am sure we do things a little differently on our farm. The good husband's brother likes to use his deceased father-in-law's tool they call a "liner". It makes the rows. This brother also has a creative streak and made two handy 'bean and corn planters'. He attached a plastic holder to a plastic pipe. He fills the holder with beans. He then firmly indents the dirt with the pipe, drops 2 beans and continues this procedure every 18 inches or so. Before covering the beans, they do the same only with fertilizer. With gloved hands, they pinch a bit or use a small spoon and let it fall about an inch or so beside the two beans. Now the beans are ready for their summer blanket of dirt. This neat little tool eliminates sore backs at least for the bean and corn planting. The tomatoes must be planted the old fashioned way.

Their favorite tomatoes are Mortgage Lifters and Big Boy's. Mortgage Lifter was developed by a West Virginian and I guess he was pretty successful with his plants. Upon the advice of our local garden expert, I was told to use Roma or the new name "Viva Italia" tomatoes for salsa. So I finally found some, but my good friend who helped me last year insists that they are not that great and to find some 'German Queen' plants. So far, I haven't found any! Will look again today.

It is supposed to rain all this week, so the plants should be happy in their new surroundings. I still have a pear tree to plant, lots of weeding, some more planning as to where I am going to put my flowers, and I need to add some better dirt to my blueberries. Other than that, all is well on the farm!