Re: Looking for the weekend!

We were at the local farm store today, and if I'd given DH any  
encouragement, we would be building a chicken/duck coop tonight!  
Actually there was in their poultry ordering book one duck I'd love  
to have - a Cayuga. But it would have been a special order and those  
orders have a minimum of 25 birds!

Cathy, west central IL, z5b

On Mar 28, 2006, at 1:30 PM, james singer wrote:

> I know what you mean, Bonnie, about the chickens. Recently, I went  
> to McMurray's site and browsed through the breeds. Sure wish I  
> could have two or three of each.
>
> On Mar 27, 2006, at 6:56 PM, Bonnie Holmes wrote:
>
>> Also wish I could have some chickens.  I have been buying organic  
>> stuff
>> locally and recently had a delightful carton of eggs with hues  
>> from brown
>> to green.
>>
>> My dog Biscuit catches squirrels and voles.  As we walk, she suddenly
>> burrows in a mass of leaves and comes up with a vole.  It must not  
>> be very
>> tasty because she plays with it like a cat, kills it, and leaves  
>> it.  The
>> rabbits and squirrels she eats.
>>
>>
>>> [Original Message]
>>> From: james singer <islandjim1@verizon.net>
>>> To: <gardenchat@hort.net>
>>> Date: 3/27/2006 2:30:22 PM
>>> Subject: Re: [CHAT] Looking for the weekend!
>>>
>>> You made me wish once more that I could keep a few chickens here.  
>>> They
>>> are such great animals. And, you're right, nothing makes them  
>>> happier
>>> than a barrel of weeds--unless it's a coffee can full of tomato
>>> hornworms.
>>>
>>> Gophers can really be a nuisance in a garden, orchard, and  
>>> pasture. One
>>> July 4th my father dropped cherry bombs down all the gopher holes in
>>> our back yard--causing plumes of smoke to rise throughout the
>>> neighborhood.
>>>
>>>
>>> On Mar 27, 2006, at 11:28 AM, Johnson Cyndi D Civ 95 CG/SCSRT wrote:
>>>
>>>> I'm only cutting back the vegetable garden, so I can concentrate on
>>>> getting
>>>> the ornamental gardens back into shape. So far so good, I planted
>>>> lettuce
>>>> seed yesterday and used up all last year's packets. I think lettuce
>>>> seed is
>>>> one of those things better planted with fresh seed but it should be
>>>> okay.
>>>> I wasn't planning on buying much for either garden, but when I  
>>>> looked
>>>> at all
>>>> the bare spots in the ornamental areas I rationalized that  
>>>> planting new
>>>> things would inspire me to even more maintenance. Yes, that's the
>>>> ticket.
>>>> Anyway I didn't get the plants for the back fence in the ground. I
>>>> forgot
>>>> that the irrigation controller for that part broke earlier in the
>>>> winter and
>>>> husband has not fixed it yet. Since he was busy too it will have to
>>>> wait for
>>>> next weekend. I did put in all the salvias and erigonum  
>>>> (buckwheat) in
>>>> my
>>>> dry garden. And I weeded for a couple hours in there and dumped 4
>>>> barrels of
>>>> grass for the chickens - they were happy. I got about half of it  
>>>> done
>>>> so
>>>> that was good.
>>>> We trapped six gophers just this weekend and there are mounds
>>>> absolutely
>>>> everywhere. Husband set more traps amongst the fruit trees, in  
>>>> the dry
>>>> garden, well just about everywhere we have plants we want to  
>>>> keep. You
>>>> would
>>>> not believe my back yard. Between the lawn and the veggie garden  
>>>> fence
>>>> there
>>>> is a lot of empty space we don't do anything with. My dogs have  
>>>> been
>>>> digging
>>>> for gophers back there and it looks like the trenches of WWI. I  
>>>> guess I
>>>> won't need to clip their nails for awhile.
>>>> At least the weather was reasonable. Saturday was windy and cold  
>>>> but
>>>> we were
>>>> working a garage sale so I didn't care much. Sunday was mostly
>>>> overcast but
>>>> at least it was not windy, and it was relatively warm. We're  
>>>> expecting
>>>> rain
>>>> again tomorrow - let it rain during the week, that's what I ask.
>>>>
>>>> Cyndi
>>>>
>>>> -----Original Message-----
>>>> From: owner-gardenchat@hort.net [mailto:owner- 
>>>> gardenchat@hort.net] On
>>>> Behalf
>>>> Of Donna
>>>> Sent: Sunday, March 26, 2006 6:09 AM
>>>> To: gardenchat@hort.net
>>>> Subject: Re: [CHAT] Looking for the weekend!
>>>>
>>>> So how much did you get done.... and I thought you
>>>> were cutting back this year? LOL! We all seem to have
>>>> the same problem, lotsa willpower till the season
>>>> actually gets here.
>>>>
>>>> Donna
>>>>
>>>> --- Johnson Cyndi D Civ 95 CG/SCSRT
>>>> <cyndi.johnson@edwards.af.mil> wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> We finally are having some nice days, I hope it
>>>>> lasts through the weekend.
>>>>> I'm helping at a garage sale tomorrow but Sunday I
>>>>> have much planting to do.
>>>>> I bought a whole bunch o' stuff at Theodore Payne's
>>>>> (my poor credit card!),
>>>>> and my order from Forestfarm showed up too so there
>>>>> is no shortage of
>>>>> plants.
>>>>> I'm going to get serious about trying to hide the
>>>>> neighbor in back of us but
>>>>> the plants I put in have to be tough. Thus all the
>>>>> natives from Payne's. I
>>>>> bought 3 different kinds of saltbush - atriplex
>>>>> polycarpa, atriplex
>>>>> canescens, and atriplex lentiformis. None of them
>>>>> are terribly attractive
>>>>> but they will take just about anything. We have
>>>>> atriplex canescens already
>>>>> back there and it is about 7' tall now, the quail
>>>>> just love to hide in it.
>>>>> Since another of my wants is to provide cover and
>>>>> food for birds I'm hoping
>>>>> they all do well. Considering how much less habitat
>>>>> the critters have these
>>>>> days they might need my place.
>>>>> What is it about developers anyway. There are
>>>>> millions of acres of flat
>>>>> desert out here with nothing on it but rabbitbush
>>>>> tumbleweeds and alkali. Do
>>>>> they build there, NO, they buy up the juniper
>>>>> woodland in the foothills, the
>>>>> places with the biggest biodiversity we have here -
>>>>> hundreds and hundreds of
>>>>> species - and then they bulldoze it, pave it and put
>>>>> up houses. Makes me so
>>>>> mad I could spit. Not to mention that part of what
>>>>> is currently being
>>>>> bulldozed used to be city nature park, the city just
>>>>> rolled over and showed
>>>>> the developers their throat. Sure, take whatever you
>>>>> want, just promise us
>>>>> taxes. Citizen complaints are met with smiles and
>>>>> nods and no action. Of
>>>>> course now the housing bubble is popping, who knows
>>>>> maybe they'll just stop
>>>>> after bulldozing everything.
>>>>> Oops didn't mean to go on a rant.
>>>>> Anyway. I also bought 3 sambucus mexicana, an
>>>>> elderberry, as an experiment.
>>>>> There is one growing in a canyon where we go hiking
>>>>> on the weekends. Not too
>>>>> far from my house but a little higher in elevation
>>>>> and probably more
>>>>> sheltered. Who knows it may have found a little
>>>>> pocket to tap into for
>>>>> water. But it is there so I will see if I can grow
>>>>> one too.
>>>>> Second experiment, I bought two different mesquites:
>>>>> screwbean mesquite,
>>>>> prosopis pubescens, and honey mesquite, prosopis
>>>>> glandulosa. I see them
>>>>> growing here where I work but there are none near
>>>>> where I live, so we'll
>>>>> see. Beautiful once they get a little size to them
>>>>> but you don't want to get
>>>>> too close - major thorns on those plants.
>>>>> Third experiment, this one I'm not all that hopeful,
>>>>> arctostaphylos glauca
>>>>> aka big berry manzanita. Never seen one growing so
>>>>> far as I know. But the
>>>>> description sounded like it might live and I love
>>>>> manzanitas, it might make
>>>>> it. If none of my experiments work then next year
>>>>> it's more saltbush! And
>>>>> they might not...I have already tried
>>>>> fremontodendron and matilija poppy
>>>>> back there, neither lived. Course you know what they
>>>>> say, try it three
>>>>> times.
>>>>> I bought the hakonecheloa (sp?) grass from
>>>>> Forestfarm, and a few nandinas -
>>>>> the dwarf "Firepower" ones - and a dwarf oakleaf
>>>>> hydrangea...ummmm...can't
>>>>> remember the name now. The japanese garden needs
>>>>> more work than I thought
>>>>> due to the gophers eating a lot of my liriope around
>>>>> the teahouse edge. That
>>>>> may have to wait for a while though.
>>>>> Can't wait for the weekend.
>>>>>
>>>>> Cyndi
>>>>>
>>>>>
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>>> Island Jim
>>> Southwest Florida
>>> 27.0 N, 82.4 W
>>> Hardiness Zone 10
>>> Heat Zone 10
>>> Minimum 30 F [-1 C]
>>> Maximum 100 F [38 C]
>>>
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> Island Jim
> Southwest Florida
> 27.0 N, 82.4 W
> Hardiness Zone 10
> Heat Zone 10
> Minimum 30 F [-1 C]
> Maximum 100 F [38 C]
>
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