The vegetable starting thing went pretty well, over all. I produced 247 flats. Yes, even I am astounded I managed to do that on my own. The original plan was to attend a local market on a weekend, and to that end I started quite a lot of tomatoes and peppers. As it turned out, no market was held and I was left with a bajillion (okay, not really a bajillion, but it sure seemed like it!) extra peppers and tomatoes to find homes for. I eventually placed them all, with the last being stuffed into my nieces' car on the sly ;)
Weather was not especially cooperative and I got into my greenhouse pretty late, according to my schedule. Everything I start has to be timed correctly to be of a certain size by a certain date....and it was very cold for several weeks longer than normal this spring. But, despite the setbacks, I was able to provide what was needed. Like normal, I had a few busts, and a few "oh my gosh, would you look at that!" items, and on the whole, I am satisfied with the results. We also invested in a new ballast and bulb for the main light, and having the newer bulb made a huge difference in growth. I also invested into a different type of organic fertilizer, and was pleased with the results there too.
This spring, the chicken yard was blessed with six new chicks-replacement layers for the older hens. The rooster went to "freezer camp", and now it's pretty quiet up there. Also early this summer, I lost both my turkey hens. One, I am positive, went to go set on a clutch, and the other...all we found were feathers at her nest out in the woods. The two boys remain, and they still stay within a couple feet of each other. I did find three replacement poults, and luckily one of those is a hen too. So, I am in a quandary-I know I should butcher the two boys, but my heart just isn't in it. Just a few weeks ago, I ordered in a quantity of meat birds and they're up at the barn, proving every day why they are known as "super poopers" Egads, they are awful. I am thinking that in about week or so, I will be able to remove their feed 12 hours a day and maybe that will cut down on the volume a little bit. We've rigged up a pen for them, which we will be expanding this week, to make sure they get to walking as much as possible.
The two dogs enjoyed spending the summer home with my son, and I have enjoyed having peace and quiet here at work, lol We have a family member staying with us right now, so the dogs are being entertained and spoiled, and soon enough it will be back to bringing them to work every day. The two house cats are thrilled it's summer, and we've even seen Belle out on the grass! You have to know that this cat does not do "outside", she bolts across the ground like her feet are on fire if you carry her out, lol She's a great hunter when she wants to be, but grass, and dirt, and stuff is just not her thing. Which is to sleep in the laundry basket between meals, near as I can tell.
The old man is doing pretty well. We've been turning him loose to graze when we're able to keep an eye on him, and he is slowly working his way through the abundant grasses around the property. Last week he figured out he could just walk in the barn and was caught red handed (er, muzzle down) in a grain can. Needless to say, the barn entrance is now paneled off so he can't wander in and make a mess, checking all the cans for goodies. He was just like a little child caught with a hand in the cookie jar too, horse owners know exactly the expression I mean, lol Sometime the end of the coming month I'll be getting my winter supply of alfie hay in, and I need to stock up on straw too, before the snow flies.
Speaking of stocking up, I have been doing what I can to get poultry feed in, before the major price hikes arrive here in Alaska. I've been reading online, what's been happening with the price of that, and have taken the warnings about the drought to heart. It's not a very convenient time of year to be doing this, but every extra bag I put away will help get us through the price increases, I hope. Yet another reason to butcher the two adult turkeys, right?
And in the same theme, this spring I ordered in mangel wurzel seeds. Yeah, I know, you're thinking-um, wut? The mangel wurzel (or Mangel beet) is a common crop in some European countries, and is still grown in some areas of the US as well. They are not a sugar beet, nor a "red beet you eat" but are known as a "fodder beet". The variety I chose is suitable for humans, and most small livestock-not just the roots, but the top greens are edible too. Naturally, the reasons I looked into alternate fodder was, of course, our food security here. With that in mind, I shared seeds, with the hopes that others would try growing them also. For myself, I started them maybe two weeks too late, and got them planted sometime the first week of June-again, too late but who knew? I didn't. As it is, they are doing best in the best soils of course. I pulled one up on the weekend and measured it. Fully ten inches long, the bulbous root (pictured with this entry today) weighs in at just over three pounds. Mangels are reputed to grow as large as 20 pounds, in optimum growing conditions. And they are also supposed to store well in the "pile" method, not needing specific humidity or temperature like seed potatoes.
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