Jess172 journal: I want to do it all!

Thanks Britesea. They are getting braver but still not going to the water. I think they are going to find and eat every patch of clover before going swimming.
Deb, from what I read it was only chicks that came from that one hatchery.
I got lots of weeding done in the garden over the weekend. Something is eating all of my cabbage and broccoli though. About 15 plants were eaten in one night. Im not seeing tracks so its not deer. Thought maybe rabbits but again no tracks. We also have a low electric fence around the garden to keep out cats (works pretty good too) so unless they figured out to jump over it it's not them either. Hubby is wondering if its not crows. Whatever it is isn't eating anything else so far....
Update on the puppy: potty training is going pretty well and she is still sleeping all night! right now she is curled up in my lap. I'm spoiling her but oh well. Its been a busy week so tomorrow I've got to get caught up on my house work. I'd much rather be outside though.

I'm having problems with something eating all my brassicas, although they are leaving everything else alone. I've had to replant the kale and it looks like I'm going to have to replace a few broccoli and cauliflower as well. I've got them all covered with bird netting now, because that is the only thing that could be getting mine

I think I'm going to have to invest in some bird netting as well. Hubby replaced the broccoli and cabbage once and they already ate it again. Last time I checked I'm down to 2 of each but they'll be next im sure. My mom says it won't be long before I'm one of "those" people who are sitting in the garden with a shot gun waiting for whatever tries to eat my plants. I used to laugh when she said that, now I'm wondering if she may be right.......

I'm loving this time of year. Yesterday I found honeysuckle blooming so me and the kiddos entertained ourselves all afternoon working on getting out that one little taste of honey out. I've got lots of blooms on my 2 blackberry bushes. I planted them last summer and they've tripled in size. Hubby bought me 2 more blackberry bushes and 1 blueberry last night! I'll be planting the blackberries today. They grow really well here. I just plant then and leave them alone and they do great. Blueberries, not so much. If I plant them and leave them alone they die. Same for raspberries. I'm thinking I don't have the right soil for them. The ph is wrong maybe? So I'm going to try planing them in a big flower pot so I can better control the soil conditions. Going to have to do a little research first to see what they grow best in.
Hubby has decided he wants to try one last time with the broccoli and cabbage so I gotta go into town today and get some started plants. He thinks its too late to start from seed. The plan is he is either going to build some sort of cage around them or if I can I'm going to find some bird netting. Hopefully that'll keep the critters from eating them again.

Blueberries need a fairly acid soil. The only way I may be able to grow them is going to be in containers. I think raspberries tend to need more water than blackberries- that's why I planted them instead- they won't intrude into areas I'm not irrigating as quickly.
As for your blackberries- be prepared! They will take over your entire property if you don't keep at them. I have seen blackberries break through a concrete patio! I adore the berries though, so it's hard not to plant them. DH has stated absolutely NO however; he spent too many painful hours trying to keep the blackberries under enough control that they could at least access the well house.

From what I've been reading it looks like I'm going to have to plant both blueberries and raspberries in containers as well. I planted the two blackberries today next to the two existing plants. They are all along the far bank of my pond. They won't get in the way there. Near water and against a tree line is where I always found them growing wild around here so that's how I'm planting mine. I noticed when planting that I've got a different type of blackberries than what I planted last year. The two from last year are Navajo and the new ones are apache. Hope they do as well as the old ones.

Guineas are here!!

These came from cackle hatchery. Ordered 15 and they sent 17. All arrived alive. They are st run hatchery choice and they ended up sending 1 white, 2 royal purple, 2 pearl grey, and 12 lavender. They sure are cute, and tiny. They won't stay little for long though I'm sure.

Won't stay little or quiet! I love guineas - not so sure my neighbors do....

I like them at that age.

Been a busy couple of weeks. My daughter got strep throat so I've been taking care of her and trying to keep the house disinfected so no one else would catch it. School is out for the summer now but of course they had a million end of the year programs to attend. And of course the garden is keeping me busy with the weeds.
The guineas are doing great! I haven't lost any and they've doubled in size and gotten their feathers in on their wings and little tail feathers. I'll try to get some updated pics of them soon.
I've got my mother in law coming over tomorrow to stay a few days and visit. I'm hoping that I'll be able to do some odd chores that need to be done while she keeps an eye on the kids for me tomorrow but what happens is we usually get talking and I don't get anything done. Oh well.