I'm back! After a couple of busy weeks, I'm ready to give an update on the chickens and the garden. I guess there isn't too much to say about the chickens. They're growing steadily and I think they're almost done. I haven't gotten any eggs yet; none in the nest boxes and none hiding around the yard. They're at 18 weeks so I should be getting eggs soon. It would be nice for them to start paying for their room and board, you know?
So, now on to the vegetable garden. The zucchinis have performed prolifically, resulting in several loaves of zucchini bread, zucchini fries, and two quart bags of frozen shredded zucchini. The green beans were also great performers. We ate a bunch of them right away and I also froze a quart and a half. The carrots tops are getting tall and the vermont cranberry beans are fully grown; now I'm just waiting for them to dry. I have three pie pumpkins turning orange and four butternut squash getting to a decent size.
On to the not-so-bright side of the garden. Powdery Mildew is attacking the squash and the pumpkin leaves. I can't put any chemicals on them, since I'm trying to go organic, so I'm hoping the plant hold on long enough to ripen the veggies. I may have to look into an organic spray. I've also been plagued by tomato horn worms. Luckily, I caught them early and was able to pick them off by hand. They were a tasty snack for the chickens who played tug-of-war with them all over the yard. The tomato plants suffered some damage, but they seem ok now. Now I just need the tomatoes to ripen.
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| Roma tomato plant suffers horn worm damage. |
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| Carrot tops |
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| Pie pumpkin |
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| Butternut squash |
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| Moskvitch tomato plant |
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| Turnips |
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| Tomatillo |
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| Quick pickles with cucumbers from the garden |
