FarmerJamie
Mr. Sensitive
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Spotted a groundhog at the back of the property this morning. Been a while since I have had to deal with varmints. Lol
the little wild kingdom
- Thread starter flowerbug
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- #742
flowerbug
Super Self-Sufficient
All the larger rodents do a lot of damage. I'm catching these groundhogs! Boy can the dig
they sure can! if you have one that has established itself in a spot and has already dug a burrow you can slow it down from redigging by using some sticks or even metal poles across the entrance (after burying it again) or sturdy fencing... we have so many large ditch edges here i would have to armor them all to prevent the groundhogs from making new dens. so as long as they are not digging any new ones i leave them alone. also i would not even know in some spots if they are or aren't because it's too hard for me to get there to do anything about it... *old grump noise*
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- #743
flowerbug
Super Self-Sufficient
chase them off when you see them - you don't know if it is a new one scoping for a comfy new home or not, but at least if you do chase them off you have a chance of keeping a new one from thinking it is nice there... that's why i went out and chased the deer away, as much as i like animals and don't want to harm them, if i don't do anything then we get easily overrun. i sure didn't want that young one thinking it had found a comfy resting spot. i didn't want to go outside, but i got out there and did it anyways...
FarmerJamie
Mr. Sensitive
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No chasing off. I am sure there is a burrow next door.
I know how to resolve the issue, it's just been a while.
I know how to resolve the issue, it's just been a while.
- Thread starter
- #745
flowerbug
Super Self-Sufficient
got all the starts that were left to go planted out yesterday. long day but got it done just in time for the rains.
now only left to pick strawberries, weed, and plant all the rest of the gardens with beans. may take a few weeks with all the rains in the forecast, but if it is warm enough i may be doing some gardening in the rain with my mud shoes on.
the umpteenth running of the worms was also finished yesterday (i use the worms and worm compost as my main fertilizer for the tomatoes, peppers and onions). now i'm left with having to restart six more buckets and won't have enough worms and hope to find some decent replacements at a store somehow in the next few months. i have two or three species of worms in the buckets now, but i want to get back to some others that were very good composting worms (besides the red wrigglers). no rush though, it may take a few years to get my system back in shape after letting the wood lice take over (now most of those should be gone and i won't let them take over the new buckets i'm restarting because it seems that they do impact the worms).
now only left to pick strawberries, weed, and plant all the rest of the gardens with beans. may take a few weeks with all the rains in the forecast, but if it is warm enough i may be doing some gardening in the rain with my mud shoes on.
the umpteenth running of the worms was also finished yesterday (i use the worms and worm compost as my main fertilizer for the tomatoes, peppers and onions). now i'm left with having to restart six more buckets and won't have enough worms and hope to find some decent replacements at a store somehow in the next few months. i have two or three species of worms in the buckets now, but i want to get back to some others that were very good composting worms (besides the red wrigglers). no rush though, it may take a few years to get my system back in shape after letting the wood lice take over (now most of those should be gone and i won't let them take over the new buckets i'm restarting because it seems that they do impact the worms).
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- #746
flowerbug
Super Self-Sufficient
today was the second time i picked strawberries and have enough to even considering putting up a few pints of freezer jam.
first time in years we've had enough for me to even think about it.
i may have finally gotten the groundhog that was raiding or perhaps the raccoons also moved on or died off that were raiding, plus i've also got the chipmunk population down to a more reasonable number.
i still have half the patch to pick through and i hope i can get that done tomorrow.
first time in years we've had enough for me to even think about it.
i may have finally gotten the groundhog that was raiding or perhaps the raccoons also moved on or died off that were raiding, plus i've also got the chipmunk population down to a more reasonable number.
i still have half the patch to pick through and i hope i can get that done tomorrow.
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- #747
flowerbug
Super Self-Sufficient
uhg! last night just before dark the power went out, no storms, no clue why or where, called my brother so he could check the utility website to see what was up or how big it might be and it was just our tiny area. the 1st kicker was that it would be taken care of by 2am, uh oh crap, we'd just finished cooking a bunch of food that needed to be portioned out cooled, some frozen or kept in the fridge and it still have to cool off. the 2nd kicker was that i had a pile of strawberries to sort through and process and while i did get them sorted through and made a bowl of strawberries for Mom i didn't do much beyond that. 3rd kicker was a pile of dishes that still needed to be done and no residual water pressure for that to happen.
3am the power is still not on. 6am still out. i finally took the backup power supply for my computer and plugged the fridge into it, thank goodness it was a new enough one with a smaller compressor so that it could run for about 40 minutes off what charge was left. there was some time after the power went out that i didn't even notice it was out so i chewed up a few minutes of time that i normally wouldn't have bothered with as i do like to just shut down and do something else if the power doesn't come back right away.
in talking a while ago we decided that all the work that went into the chicken soup is shot and we're not comfortable eating it ourselves and if we wouldn't eat it ourselves we sure aren't going to give it to someone else.
power did come back on about 7:30ish this morning, it was something that blew out up the road from us that they missed last night when they were checking the line. file it under "sh&t happens."...
i just finished up cleaning up the dishes and getting things back in order with the power backup and the computer so now i really could use a nap...
3am the power is still not on. 6am still out. i finally took the backup power supply for my computer and plugged the fridge into it, thank goodness it was a new enough one with a smaller compressor so that it could run for about 40 minutes off what charge was left. there was some time after the power went out that i didn't even notice it was out so i chewed up a few minutes of time that i normally wouldn't have bothered with as i do like to just shut down and do something else if the power doesn't come back right away.
in talking a while ago we decided that all the work that went into the chicken soup is shot and we're not comfortable eating it ourselves and if we wouldn't eat it ourselves we sure aren't going to give it to someone else.
power did come back on about 7:30ish this morning, it was something that blew out up the road from us that they missed last night when they were checking the line. file it under "sh&t happens."...
i just finished up cleaning up the dishes and getting things back in order with the power backup and the computer so now i really could use a nap...
frustratedearthmother
Sustainability Master
That stinks! Sorry for all the mess and for the loss of food. Ugh!
- Thread starter
- #749
flowerbug
Super Self-Sufficient
yeah, thanks! a nap helped a great deal. just finished picking strawberries. so that is what i'll be doing the rest of the day in between breaks.
- Thread starter
- #750
flowerbug
Super Self-Sufficient
made almost eight pints of freezer jam last night. Mom got the wrong kind of pectin so i had to find and use a new recipe (the box no longer has directions or recipes with it). seems to have worked out ok as i mostly followed the recipe directions as posted (only added some extra lemon juice because that is the flavor profile i really love with strawberry freezer jam).
tonight i'll have to find room in the freezer for most of that jam.
busy day and gotta get going again while it is cool enough out there. actually works out perfect for today as i have obligations this afternoon which will mean i'm mostly inside instead of roasting outside.
tonight i'll have to find room in the freezer for most of that jam.
busy day and gotta get going again while it is cool enough out there. actually works out perfect for today as i have obligations this afternoon which will mean i'm mostly inside instead of roasting outside.
