::farming::

THIS PLACE!!  I love it.  I hate it some times too - when it rains for two weeks and all the weeds I pulled come back.  Or the barn floods - again.  BUT - mostly I just love it.  We have a love hate relationship, but this time of year we are making googly eyes at each other and madly in love.  It's green like Ireland right now.

My front garden has had an interesting year.  It looked so good, just trucking along all pretty, with a few issues that I was going to get to.  Them my fat pet sheep Oz decided it was so nice of me to grow it all for him and he was happy to eat the ENTIRE thing.  He got in and ate everything except swiss chard, some zinnias, garlic, and kale.  What a brat.  He was very remorseful when he got locked up for the rest of the season.  It actually ended up being good for the garden.  I replanted one entire strawberry bed that really was over due for a makeover.  The other strawberry bed gets to live this year as a sweet potato bed and become a strawberry bed again next year.  The soybeans bounced right back like nothing has ever happened.  The broccoli and peppers could not be saved.  But I replanted the peppers and they are pretending nothing every happened.  The few cantaloupes got new seeds put in the ground and caught right up.  I think the garden really is going to look all the better for Ozzy's remodel.

No sheep remodeled my other garden areas.  The tomatoes are going INSANE!  I dare say the best they have ever been.  The blueberries look amazing this year, and I am coming up with strategies about how to make them every better next year.  The grapes may start knocking on my back door, I think they might be alive - like Little Shop of Horrors.

BUT - my old orchard garden is OUT OF CONTROL!!!  I planted it with cover crops this year in an attempt to choke out weeds.  The wheat did just that.  It has taken over its area and has few weeds.  The 2/3 that I planted with clover couldn't fight the weeds.  It's a jungle.  I am currently letting the chickens try and take it back but they may have some major issues.  I think I need to just till that bad boy under and come up with a better plan.

The fruit trees are doing great this year.  My Fuji apple tree is so loaded I had to thin her out.  We planted to cherry trees and two more peaches.  The weather was wrong this year for peaches but maybe next year.  The plums still have issues.  I can't figure out why - I have two and I thought for sure they would cross pollinate but so far no luck.  I am adding a bee colony next year for honey and pollinating so I hope that this helps, and I will plant one more plum to see if that does the trick.  

tomatoes with zinnias on the end to attract bees