put up Christmas lights today and the wreaths Mary made. i think it looks great :). also planted bulbs, as had been out of town the last few weeks. have many gladiolas, daffodils, and Hyacinth planted in the front beds, Marian garden and Francis garden. chickens are doing well, continuing to molt. placed nustock on one of the australorps where some bleeding appeared. otherwise they seem to be doing well. got three inches of rain this week, helping the garden tremendously.
Finally got around to transplanting the Kale, Lettuce, Spinach, and Snap Pea seedlings into the raised bed. Hoping it isn’t too late, but seems we’re in for a warm winter anyways… Warm and wet is what I hear.
Got an inch of rain in the last week. First notable rain in what seems like the last 6 months (haven’t checked past rain entries here). Finished painting the kitchen, so we’re slowly making our way through the house.
Our first Halloween was a success this year. Over 50 trick-or-treaters before running out of candy, so we will definitely need more candy next year. Had fun carving jack-o-lanterns.
Started the winter veggie seeds over the weekend. Lettuce, kale, snow peas, spinach… I think that’s it. A couple days later and there are already some sprouts. Also got two Paw Paw trees from the farmer’s market and planted one (will plant the other next weekend). Have gotten absolutely no rain, so have been watering once a week with our lone sprinkler. Water barrels are half empty, so hoping for rain soon. Summer veggies are about dead, and I’m letting them go fallow. Will mulch on to before planting winter veggies when ready. All of this is being done on the new potter’s table that I built. Very sturdy and convenient!
In the yard, I applied the Scott’s Weed & Feed. Seems to have caused a couple burn spots where the spreader was a bit overzealous, but those are turning back green and the rest of the yard is looking lush. Have noticed this weed, yet to be identified, which I will be working on eradicating in the future. Will also be laying pre-emergents down to prevent crab grass in the winter/spring. Have all but given up on the Asiatic Jasmine. Need to rake the existing mulch, cover it all, spray grass/weed killer, then re-lay mulch and get more Jasmine this spring. *sigh*.
On a more positive note, Fall means pansies have been planted. Those in the pots are doing great. Those in the mulch beds were wilting a bit, but Mary was able to resurrect them with a noon watering today. Probably just need to be more established… hopefully. Also on the front porch, Mary made a covered cushion for the swing my dad and I put up. Looks great and adds to the enjoyment! (Note I need to scrape and repaint the porch).
I finally got around to finishing the outlet, adding a wooden frame to make it look more finished around the cheap vinyl siding that was already there. Just nice to have a fan at all until we get the ceiling fans put in.
Inside the house, we’ve been busy painting the dining room and installing a chair rail. Ruby Lips on top, Toffee Crunch on bottom. Looking good so far, but will need another coat of the red as it’s so much darker.
Also got our fire screen (from Amazon), as one of our puppies might otherwise get his ball rolled into the fire!
Six months ago, I installed our own Reverse Osmosis filtration system (the Whirlpool WHER25) to deal with the reports of lead in municipal water. We love the water, and this weekend replaced our pre and post filters (cost around $40 after tax from Lowe’s). Recommendations suggest changing these pre and post filters every 6 months, but state that the RO Membrane filter should be good for 1-3 years depending on water pH. Should be due in six months from today at the earliest (3/3/17).
Have gotten only half an inch of rain in the past week, so will need to water the vegetable garden. Tomatoes are still producing, but fruit is small (I think due to lack of water), and blossom-end rot is observed on one plant.
Also worked with my wife to make 3 dog bed covers, hopefully chew proof from our newest puppy. Very easy, just folded a yard of fabric in half to make a pillow case and tucked inside after placing an older dog bed in it. Will hopefully keep out the pesky pup.
Hadn’t mowed in over a week due to being in Atlanta and the rain, so knew I needed to get out there today, rain or no rain, fleas or no fleas. Glad I did, as it was getting very long, and would probably need raking if I had waited any longer (last time I mowed was Monday, 8/1.
Also cleaned up the back yard, putting out an old leaf pile that the previous owners had used for leaves/branches/outdoor trash. I suspect this was the fleas last stronghold, so I lathered up in Deet and took it all out to the street corner (in trash cans, of course). Then applied Deltamethrin granules over the back yard, which should set in with the rain forecasted this afternoon.
Chickens are doing great … Collected 7 eggs from them and cleaned the coop 3 days ago. Feel bad that they can’t free range due to all the insecticides, but it should be safe once I’m certain the fleas are under control.
Wife continues to make progress on baby Lucy’s blanket and practicing for cantoring this Saturday’s Mass. We are proud Godparents of baby Lucy now, and will likely be starting many gift projects in our new role.
Rain: 3+ inches in the last week.
Plants: Azaleas are in bloom (encore). Hosta flowers have changed to small buds. Impatients and Petunias continue to bloom, although the hanging baskets on the porch may be getting too much sun for Impatients… Should probably do petunias next year. Tomatoes/cucumbers/bellpeppers continue to produce despite my neglect. Now have two from the cherry tomato plant.
2.5 inches last week and 1.25 inches so far this week, so no watering needed.
Spent time in Florida and Atlanta last few weeks. Gave probably 2-3 pounds of tomatoes to grandparents and in-laws. Much appreciated and tasted great.
Fleas appear to have developed resistance to Comfortis in our area. Picked up and administered Nexguard for the boys today.
Seems as though the plants did better while we were away. Got 0.1 inches of rain over the weekend, and ran the sprinkler for 1 hour adding another .2 inches. Negligible rain last night (.05 inches) bringing the total to .35 inches in the last week (with my watering). Noticed a tomato hornworm greedily devouring two tomatoes on the middle Early Girl plant, so I reapplied the Sevins dust mixture.
Now have two fertilized seedless watermelons, if the second one takes that I dusted today with a male flower.
Gardenias are requiring frequent watering, being as they are in full sun. Persimmon tree seems to be hanging in there, although I still haven’t gotten around to fertilizing any of the new plants.
Noticed a cluster of flowers on the cherry tomato plant, and we have four sunflower seedlings doing well along the driveway (those along the grassy part of the driveway failed to emerge or thrive).
Gave two three Early Girl tomatoes, two red bellpeppers, and 15 eggs to Mary’s mom over the weekend. She said they were delicious. Harvested one Early Girl tomato for ourselves when we returned. Also delicious and no indigestion. Came back to 7 new eggs… They never end!
Connecticut Field Pumpkin seedlings I started last week are doing well in the clay pots. Will be transplanting them in a week or two.
Mosquitoes are intolerable. Will need to fog this weekend, especially with my parents coming in less than two weeks.
Got 0.15 inches today, and I know the plants loved every bit of it. Just wish we could have gotten more, but hopefully we will later this week. I believe it should have refilled our rain barrels, too.
Also planted the Asiatic Jasmine and 4 day lilies that we got from the Farmers’ Market (which was celebrating its 11th anniversary with a 4 for $11 deal). Wifey and puppy approve. The plan is to use a grass killer and make a mulch bed of the area in front of the Azaleas.
In the kitchen we tried a Celebrity tomato. Might not have been as ripe as the Early Girl we tried last week. Not as flavorful as the Early Girl, but still delicious and no problems with indigestion. Have another one that should be ripe in 1-2 days.
Harvested a bell pepper, albeit early due to birds pecking at it. Was supposed to be a yellow bell pepper, but it needed to be picked before it could even get to mature size due to said birds. Will research ways to address this later.
Got .45 inches of rain over the weekend. With the previous .67 inches that brings it to 1.12 inches for the past week. Hoping for at least 1 inch a week, which it doesn’t look like we’re going to get much of in the future.
A Belhaven Home 