TanksHill...Roll on!!

[TanksHill]

Butcher just called. My piggy dressed out at 178 lbs!!!!!


Whoo hooo!!!

I am very excited.

Should be ready in 2 weeks.

g

 

[keljonma]

Butcher just called. My piggy dressed out at 178 lbs!!!!!


Whoo hooo!!!

I am very excited.

Should be ready in 2 weeks.

g

Congratulations! Good size piggy....

 

[Henrietta23]

And here I was excited that I've got CSA pork coming this weekend!

 

[Javamama]

 

[TanksHill]

Monday July 18th

Lets see......

Today is one of my brothers B day. Happy Birthday big Bro!!!

Not much going on this week.

Freedom Ranges are now almost 3 weeks. Still in the yard hut with the light at night. I think I will keep them as long as possible. Just to make it convenient.

Garden is growing well. I picked several yellow squash and zucchini this week. My butternut in the yard is producing really well. Still picking pole beans and cucumbers.
When does corn get corn?

The weather here has been Ca perfect. Mid to high 70's with an ocean breeze. It's supposed to warm into the high 80's for the next week.

I have been up since before dawn and got started on my house chores early. Almost done.

Kids are off to the beach today with Aunties and cousins. I am going to try and get some school shopping done. DD 8yo has no clothes. Literally. She is very picky so I just don't buy her any. I have some skirt ideas in mind. Looks like I am going to need to do some sewing next week.

I also need to take my new kitten to the vet for shots and neuter. That's not going to be cheap.

In the kitchen....

Kefir humming along.
Kombucha on the counter. If I started with a live store culture about how long does it take? 3 weeks?
Limoncello is brewing.
I canned 14 quarts of peaches yesterday.
Made the granola recipe with GF granola. Need to mix in the fruits and nuts today.


Oh, I have some turkey issues. 3 toms are all getting a bit randy. They seem to like on of my older hens. She is definitely out numbered and getting picked on. To the point where while one tom is standing on her the others will peck her on the head. What do I do about that? I have an add on CL to sell some or a mating pair. I want a couple for the freezer. Do I need to divide them up? Perhaps by age? Or pull one tom to keep with my older hens and fence off the other 4. That would put 2 male and 2 female juveniles together. I have no idea what to do.

Well I guess I should get my grove on.

I'll be around.

g

 

[TanksHill]

I am now officially angry.

I HATE gophers with all my heart. And think I am going to suffer from gopher induced depression this week.

I lost a pumpkin vine of some sort 3 days ago. Ds set a trap. Caught a huge gopher 10 ft from the scene of the crime. I thought I was safe for a bit.

Then today. I lost another. My big beautiful yellow squash. I have only harvested 4 squash from that plant so far.

I am so frustrated. Now I know why I have never planted the hill next to my driveway. No gopher wire.

 

[TanksHill]

Saturday, Not much going on. Got to sleep in because dh is home. That was nice but the late start throws me off a bit.

Went to the local farmers market. I talked to a couple people about buying #2 tomatoes in bulk. To supplement what I grow. They said I need to wait a couple weeks. Nothing available yet.

Today I moved the meats into the orchard. I had 1 50 ft roll of fencing left so a month or so ago dh and I sectioned off a corner. I have been watering the area. I did throw out some seed but I think the crows ate most of that.

The first trick was to climb into the hut and grab the little buggers one at a time. I put them in an XXlarge dog crate and my original brooder box. Then dh and I moved the hut into the area. This was a bit harder than expected. The gate was supposed to be wide enough but turned out a bit to slim. So we had to pick up the hut and turn it on its side to fit. But all went well.

Then I got the hose hooked up and added the feeder and birds. Those little guys a not even a month old yet but chunking up nicely. Almost fully feathered. The have been in the yard for almost a week with no light. So off to the field they went.

I am going to keep them in the hut for probably another week. I want to be sure they cant squeeze through the fence before I let them free range.

So far I am very happy with these Freedom Rangers. Very mobile, not quite so stinky. A bit on the sketchy side though.

My corn is over 6 ft tall, and growing tassels. I can't wait to see how it does. I think there are 3 kinds. Country Gentleman, The dried corn I bought form Azure Standard and another one from Baker Creek. The name escapes me.

I have some Butter Cup squash growing. Looks interesting. Butter nut is taking over the yard. New batch of green beans in and growing well.

Not sure what to do with the ground cherries. I think they take up to much space and are to hard to harvest. I am thinking of pulling the entire plant and shaking it over a tarp. Maybe next year I can plant in buckets. This will enable me to lift them and get under for collecting the fruit.

Tomatoes are loading up. Still green though.

Just under a month until school starts again. I can't wait.

DS is turning 11 in a couple weeks. I have no idea what to do about that.

Well that's about it for me. I have lots of pics on my phone but need to wait for photo bucket to finish uploading.

g

 

[TanksHill]

This is my corner with the new fence and gate. You can really see the left T post leaning. My dh has gotten really good making the gates to fit the hill. The tree in the pen is a Macadamia nut.

Freedom Rangers

Turkeys

My youngest birds. My last two hatched turkeys and some hens I bought to go with.

Corn next to driveway.

Mellon's, ground cherries and squash.

I have dh cell phone hooked up to my photo bucket. And I found this pic today. Its a hard Rock Maple Saddle stand he is making with Great Grandpa for his sister. Actually I think their making 4.

 

[Denim Deb]

Very nice!

 

[Farmfresh]

I am selling my last two turkeys tonight to my friend. The whole turkey project was pretty much a bust this year since the dogs killed so many.

Your turkeys are looking really good!