Death of a Guinea Fowl

Until next time, remember, this is not paradise.  It's Purgatory Ranch.

Fencing, Weeding, and Purgatory

After weeks, even months, of intermittent work, the fence encompassing the front 20 acres of Purgatory Ranch is complete, gates and all.  The barbed wire on the easy end will remind me of the location of the  dreaded poison ivy.  (Speaking of which, how have I stumbled into it three times this summer with tiny patches?  No major outbreaks, but itchy nonetheless!)

 Weeding this year is a battle.  JoJo is a most delightful baby, much more cooperative than Jimmy ever was at this age, but I still can't seem to get ahead of the weeds.  James set out to help me today... But before that story, bask in the sight of my not-quite-so-empty north potato bed.  At one point, I thought I had lost 95% of this bed.  Now I'd estimate my losses at 40%, which is much more reasonable and will undoubtedly yield more potatoes than we can possibly consume.  I enjoy extras when it comes to food.

(The exuberance of tree onions always fascinates me.)

And the purgatory of the title can be summed up as... A once-friendly neighbor may have irreparably damaged our friendship by calling James some terrible names and attempting to bully James to solve his own problems.  Thus, James spend 6 hours burning brush piles.  I even have sunburned forearms to prove my participation in the excitement.

Until next time, remember, this is not paradise.  It's Purgatory Ranch.

Home!

We left home, the animals, the gardens, and the weeds for five days for a family reunion and vacation.  While we had delightful fun, every time we climbed in the car, Q asked, "Are we going home?"

Hope was as excited to see us as we were to be home.  If only I had taken pictures of her leaping and wiggling when we arrived!

We came home to a bridge out, 2"+ of rain, some brave guineas, weeds enough to keep us hopping, our first strawberries, growing peaches, and... a broken faucet.  Our hard water is... hard... on metal fixtures, and the stem had corroded into nothingness.  Exciting times.

There's nothing quite like coming home to the inability to wash your dishes in your kitchen.  The bathroom sink and I became friends yesterday.  James was stellar and replaced the sink as soon as he took care of outside chores.

It was pleasant to have the distraction of berries to pick

As well as peaches to admire.

And I seem to have found a touch of poison ivy somewhere.  Pray for me!

Until next time, remember, this is not paradise.  It's Purgatory Ranch.

Purgatory Ranch, End of May

Tree onions are setting bulblets in a wild frenzy of growth.

I haven't hacked out too many onions in my weeding, and neither downpour nor animals have consumed entire rows.

The north bed looks to be a 60% loss.  What there is, is so choked by weeds that I am freeing row by row.  It will take time.

 The south bed is looking wonderful.  After this picture, I managed to hill up and weed four rows of potatoes.  Growth is amazing!

Much to my surprise (not, I think, to James), our pond holds water for the first time in almost three years.  Clearing out the cedars and junk helped!

Until next time, remember, this is not paradise.  It's Purgatory Ranch.

Solar Oven

Behold!  The first two successful cooking adventures with our new solar oven.  Once I am more adept at setting it up and using it, we should be able to avoid turning on the oven for most baking/cooking adventures!

Every summer, we do our best to avoid turing on the air conditioning.  Last year, since I was pregnant, we had to turn on the AC early, but the year before, we made it to July 22 before we turned it on.  Then, Bear Cub Q ran a fever, and it was unfair to him not to turn it on,

Who know how long we can go if I don't have to use the oven?

Hard-boiled eggs.
The yolk is a smidge grey from being in the oven too long,
but who wants to eat half-boiled yolks?

Pumpkin bread

We purchased the SOS Sport Solar Oven Combo.  I can see it won't ever be my only cooking source with our growing family, but if I can reduce my baking but still keep us in fresh bread, it's worth it.

Until next time, remember, this is not paradise.  It's Purgatory Ranch.

Radio Silence

We interrupt our silence with a brief note...

It's crazy around here!  Between the rain, cold, and small children, we are frantically attempting to complete a myriad of urgent projects. In the midst of the insanity, thanks to the rain and a downed downspout, we now are also battling mold and a wet office.  The computer is in said office, so pictures are difficult to upload.  Hence, no photos.

Some projects... Planting our 300+ tomatoes along with beans, peppers, herbs, sweet potatoes, and various vines.  Finishing a turken tank and guinea coop.  Right now, we move the guineas outside daily and back in nightly.  Ever-present mowing.  Cutting down dead trees, bushes, etc., that did not survive last summer's devastating heat and replacing them

Until next time, remember, this is not paradise.  It's Purgatory Ranch.

The More I Learn

and get my hands in the earth, the more I realize how little I know.  Just a few of my ponderings while weeding today...

What is this plant? When viewed from a standing position, the stems look like red and white twine twisted together.

Why are my potatoes so... sprouty? this year?  Looking back, I don't remember so many sprouts per plant.  This second picture perfectly demonstrates.  I'm accustomed to three or four stems in one place, but these are spread out.  Is it something to do with the cold weather?

Speaking of cold weather... Look at how big the potatoes were in APRIL of last year!  We were harvesting by the end of May last year.  Somehow, I don't think that will be the case this year.  We are well more than a month behind in growth.

Back to my ponderings... What is THIS plant?  It secretes a white sap when broken off.

If I were to attempt to grow quinoa for chick feed, must it be rinsed as for human consumption?  (Just wondering... I haven't gotten far enough to bother determining whether or not we even have the right climate.)

Why is my garden having such people-problems this year?  Some of my peas were taken out by tractor wheels.  A late but well-meaning application of compost smothered a section of onions.  Another well-meaning act of tilling took out all my spinach and lettuce.  I can plant in straighter rows at Purgatory Ranch, but any attempt to call my planting "rows" at YJ Acres is a farce.

Will I ever feel like I really know what I'm doing?