Devv's 2015 - 16, Life is good!

stickman · Apr 13, 2016

Hi Scott! Glad to hear you're on the mend and making lifestyle changes necessary to keep on the upside of the daisies...

Me too, so I hear ya brother. That said, you're certainly not gathering any moss either! New family, new pups, new wheels, and the garden looks great as usual. So what if you got off to a later start this year... better late than never. I'm glad you planted some Kurts again this year. They're a really sweet and meaty variety. Take care, and please give LB our best. Cheers!

FiresOfNil · Apr 13, 2016

Sawyer said:
Yes, and I have a theory about that. I think our subjective experience of the duration of a unit of time, a day, for example, is determined by comparing it internally to the sum of all the previous units we've experienced. As we get older, a single day is a much smaller fraction of our total experience, so it seems more fleeting.

This is exactly how I believe time and the speed of time is perceived as well! Wow, never heard anyone mention this before.

stickman · Apr 13, 2016

FiresOfNil said:
This is exactly how I believe time and the speed of time is perceived as well! Wow, never heard anyone mention this before.

Have you ever talked about it with anybody over 50?...

FiresOfNil · Apr 13, 2016

Hmmm, good point, not everyone my age is as progeric as me...

bpwilly · Apr 13, 2016

Scott
I am loving it watching your garden this year. I have decided to let mine take a year off (except for the tomato's which are a must) You seem to be recovering pretty darn well and I think that garden is the perfect therapy. Exercise for body and mind as well as rewarding when things work (as planned or not)

Keep it up as I really do miss growing the peppers, but needed some sanity and time off this year. I will be watching you Glog closely this year to get my fix!

Bill

Devv · Apr 13, 2016

Roguejim said:
Are you adding manure and mulch to the rcw? Why? I thought the rcw is supposed to supply all the nutes. Hedging your bets?

From what I understand the first year is a bust. Mill's hit on the head with the nutes being tied up. I did plant some extra Broccoli there this fall and wound up pulling them and moving them to more established dirt where they did fine.

millworkman said:
Better safe than sorry. New rcw can still tie up nitrogen.

You nailed it!

I hoping that next season it will do as I hope it will

OCD Chilehead said:
Great job Scott. Garden is looking great. Don't worry, the peppers will catch up. It won't be long and you'll be putting up the shade cloth. Still can't plant out here for at least another few weeks.

I have about 15 Goats Weed and around 12 Super's this year. Trying to keep it small this year. We both know that's not going to happen. LOL. Going to be growing more vegetables.

Anyways. Cool pic of the horned lizard. Haven't seen one of those since I as a kid. The garlic and onions look great.

As always, thanks for sharing. I'm glad you and the garden are on the rebound. Keep it up.

Thanks Chuck!

Spring has been great so far, except for a rabbit I can't seem to catch. I don't know how it's getting through the fence but it is. So far 20 peppers have been eaten to the ground. 15 in the last 2 days!

jedisushi06 said:
Nice tomato plants

Thanks Mikey!

Hoping the peppers will step it up really soon! The weather is perfect, raining at just the right times....just like the 80's. Hope it keeps it up!

randyp said:
I never tire of stopping by to see your layout, Scott.Thank the Lord you are around this year and feeling good,2015 was not the same without your wisdom.Congrats on the Grandbaby.

Thanks Randy!

It's great to be back in the saddle! And 2015 was a rough one don't ever want to go back there again!

Devv · Apr 13, 2016

stickman said:
Hi Scott! Glad to hear you're on the mend and making lifestyle changes necessary to keep on the upside of the daisies... Me too, so I hear ya brother. That said, you're certainly not gathering any moss either! New family, new pups, new wheels, and the garden looks great as usual. So what if you got off to a later start this year... better late than never. I'm glad you planted some Kurts again this year. They're a really sweet and meaty variety. Take care, and please give LB our best. Cheers!

Hi Rick!

Glad to hear you too are on the mend, dang life can get scary! I feel blessed to still be around after reading about all the folks who weren't so lucky with that freaky strain of pneumonia that was going around last year. Good luck with the garden this year!

FiresOfNil said:
This is exactly how I believe time and the speed of time is perceived as well! Wow, never heard anyone mention this before.

stickman said:
Have you ever talked about it with anybody over 50?...

LOL, once 50 it just screams by! 60 is comin

bpwilly said:
Scott
I am loving it watching your garden this year. I have decided to let mine take a year off (except for the tomato's which are a must) You seem to be recovering pretty darn well and I think that garden is the perfect therapy. Exercise for body and mind as well as rewarding when things work (as planned or not)

Keep it up as I really do miss growing the peppers, but needed some sanity and time off this year. I will be watching you Glog closely this year to get my fix!

Bill

Thanks Bill!

I was going to take the year off...but then I planted! And yes the garden is great therapy, I manage a school districts IT goodies. After a day at work physical work is really rewarding. I'm just thankful I can still work out there doing what I love to do!
g up way too soon!

Devv · Apr 13, 2016

capsidadburn said:
Your garden looks great Scott! It must be a joy to look at each day!

There are plenty of the Texas Spiny lizards around here but not the horned lizards anymore. They are supposed to be doing well in the panhandle and west Texas. We were taught (Master Naturalists) that the influx of St. Augustine grass as well as under ground creeping Live oak was the most prominent factor in crowding out the Harvester ants native grass food supply. I suspect out away from the cities here they could be found. Apparently the Horned toad likes to set up along the Harvester ant trail and just pic them off as the march by.

That Spiny lizard shot is really nice!

Mike

Thanks Mike!

Same here with the spiny lizards, they're everywhere. We have plenty, I mean plenty of harvester ants here. Probably 10 or more "master" nests on the 20 acres. They seem to love anything we plant, tree wise. But they are not so destructive regarding the native growth. I'd love to have more Horned toads around. But seeing this one I know more are around!

pepperguy1 said:
Every time I see your Glog,It blows my mind.That's a nice Horny Toad you got there,we don't have much of them around here anymore neither.

Thanks!

Gardening is just one of my passions, I can't wait until I retire and have the time to do everything I really want to do!

Jeff H · Apr 14, 2016

Garden is looking great Scott. That has to be the best looking garden soil I've ever seen in Texas. Your plants look to be loving all the hard work you've put in. :dance:

Devv · Apr 15, 2016

Jeff H said:
Garden is looking great Scott. That has to be the best looking garden soil I've ever seen in Texas. Your plants look to be loving all the hard work you've put in.

Thanks Jeff!

It's both rewarding and relaxing after work; IT work is a real brain suck.

I finally found out what ate all my OW's to 6"s in height, chopped up my young Crepe Myrtles, ate half a Peach tree, ate down the roses, a centrury plant, and ate 20 peppers to ground level the last few days. A dang Opossom, the dogs treed it yesterday while I was at work and it came down with lead poisoning in the afternoon. The dogs were like "look Dad, look what I found". A read on them stated they love young plants, fruit and will eat small pencil sized branches. Now I know where all my peaches went last year, 15 trees and we got like 4. I hope that's the only one around. Stupid (but stealthy) critter entering a fenced yard with 3 dogs.

tsurrie · Apr 15, 2016

Devv said:
I finally found out what ate all my OW's to 6"s in height, chopped up my young Crepe Myrtles, ate half a Peach tree, ate down the roses, a centrury plant, and ate 20 peppers to ground level the last few days. A dang Opossom, the dogs treed it yesterday while I was at work and it came down with lead poisoning in the afternoon. The dogs were like "look Dad, look what I found". A read on them stated they love young plants, fruit and will eat small pencil sized branches. Now I know where all my peaches went last year, 15 trees and we got like 4. I hope that's the only one around. Stupid (but stealthy) critter entering a fenced yard with 3 dogs.

I can just picture that...

After some IT work...

"
:flamethrower:

Leave!
My .....fu**... plants alone!!!
"

Congrats on the successful intruder removal. And I hope the other opposoms around there saw that.

TXCG · Apr 15, 2016

Looking great Devv. Also that is an awesome picture of that horny toad! I haven't seen one of those in this area since I was a kid although I saw a few out in West Texas near Ft. Stockton back around 2006 or so. We have those Texas spiny lizards all over the place around here though, I see em pretty often hanging out on the trees at work.

One got caught in the deer net at our community garden a few years back: http://imgur.com/a/Nszfg
He was just playing dead though, I cut him loose and he took off running into the woods.

Good luck with your 2016 season, looks like it's off to a great start.

stickman · Apr 16, 2016

Interesting info on the 'Possums... i didn't know they did that, but there's so much around here for them to eat that we mainly see them if a neighbor puts out kibble for feral cats or as roadkill. :think:

FreeportBum · Apr 16, 2016

Your garden is really nice, love the horned toad!

Sawyer · Apr 17, 2016

I hesitated to "like" the possum post because that's a lot of loss, but hopefully your problems are solved. Like Rick, this is something I didn't know about possums. It could explain some things I've previously ascribed to deer or rabbits. I don't have any dogs to do the treeing, but possums are pretty easy to live trap, so I should get started on that. Canned cat food and, surprisingly, chocolate cupcakes make good bait.

Devv · Apr 18, 2016

tsurrie said:
I can just picture that...
After some IT work...

"
Leave!
My .....fu**... plants alone!!!
"

Congrats on the successful intruder removal. And I hope the other opposoms around there saw that.

Well it seems we have a second one. What we read said if you have one, watch for more. More Peaches missing, more peppers gone. I bought a live trap and have it baited, as well as snares set in the Peach tree. 2 out of 15 Peach trees are loaded, and this critter has ate half from one, let alone the pepper damage.

TXCG said:
Looking great Devv. Also that is an awesome picture of that horny toad! I haven't seen one of those in this area since I was a kid although I saw a few out in West Texas near Ft. Stockton back around 2006 or so. We have those Texas spiny lizards all over the place around here though, I see em pretty often hanging out on the trees at work.

One got caught in the deer net at our community garden a few years back: http://imgur.com/a/Nszfg
He was just playing dead though, I cut him loose and he took off running into the woods.

Good luck with your 2016 season, looks like it's off to a great start.

Thanks!

I'm doing my best to keep the peppers from being eaten! The remaining few have 5 gallon buckets with the bottoms cut out around them or tomato cages with a wrap so the dang thing can't see them. And people say they have deer issues. at least they're edible

stickman said:
Interesting info on the 'Possums... i didn't know they did that, but there's so much around here for them to eat that we mainly see them if a neighbor puts out kibble for feral cats or as roadkill.

Yeah I just read up on them, had to...LOL

I'm wondering if the compost pile which is in a critter proof wooden frame made from old pallets is an attractant? Before I boxed in the compost pile something ate all the new additions. I'll be relocating them soon.
Perhaps the critter has been around a while. I know it was here all winter eating every plant that had pencil sized or smaller branches. They just decimated my OW's and several other plants, like 40 now..I WILL persevere! Now I have a live trap, so I can deliver them to a new place, I just hate to kill something because it's just trying to exist.

FreeportBum said:
Your garden is really nice, love the horned toad!

Thanks for stopping by!

Sawyer said:
I hesitated to "like" the possum post because that's a lot of loss, but hopefully your problems are solved. Like Rick, this is something I didn't know about possums. It could explain some things I've previously ascribed to deer or rabbits. I don't have any dogs to do the treeing, but possums are pretty easy to live trap, so I should get started on that. Canned cat food and, surprisingly, chocolate cupcakes make good bait.

I bought a live trap Sunday on the way out to Eagle Pass, it's in the garden now with a bad tomato, bad strawberries and young peaches I picked to lighten the branch load on another tree. I did learn not to prune and drop under the tree. This is what made me look at the tree. I dropped like 25-30 young peaches on the ground, under the tree, and they were all gone. As well as half the future harvest.

Thanks for the info on the cat food and cupcakes. They will into the bait mix if I don't see a critter in there in the morning. I also have the peach tree rigged with 2 snares, but that's an iffy chance of catching one.

bpiela · Apr 19, 2016

Something to do with the possum's I guess.

http://www.redneckpossum.com/Recipe_Stew.htm

Devv · Apr 24, 2016

bpiela said:
Something to do with the possum's I guess.

http://www.redneckpossum.com/Recipe_Stew.htm

LOL, don't think I could go there! Ever see a dead Possum? Kinda rat like :snooty:

Well LB and I have been in the garden a lot this weekend. I feel the good Lord gave us just so many squats before the knees say no. I like to save them for when I REALLY need them. LB still has good knees so she weeds and does stuff down low, she trimmed all the tomatoes so we can see under the plants. We've had rattle snakes in the garden before, and we want to be able to see them.

I'm finished with the mulch spreading, the garden has been on auto-pilot with nice rains this spring. Although if we don't get rain tonight, I'll hit them with some water tomorrow.

I started the sunshade application along with bird netting. One thing we have is birds, they hit anything close to red. So they ruin Tomatoes, Peaches and Peppers.

Just low end stuff to see how it works.

Garden shots, notice all the open slots in the pepper row. The red coffee containers are replacements. 22 peppers ate by the dead animal walking so far.
Yeah the Tom's are going crazy!

Shot of the additional pepper plants, in protection mode, yep, many open spaces there too :crazy:

First peppers from OW Growdown from last season. Yep, trimmed courtesy of the "I'm gonna git you soon" bastage.

One of my favorites, MoA!

Justa Hab

They love the bee station.

LB is stoked! She has three Pineapples set. If you ever have the chance to grow one, they taste ten times better than the store bought, as they are picked immature. Let them turn gold on the plant and they are 2-3 times sweeter.

With "normal" (for the rest of the world) rain this spring most everything is just going nuts. Garlic harvest is 60 days out and I've never seen trunks like this, ever! My brother sent me some hardnecks from Georgia (not US Georgia) and Romania. I have 3 8' rows. I'd be willing to share. Large cloves!

I expect to work on the sunshade and bird netting all week if I can stand the heat. I getting to be such a wuss here lately..LOL. And hopefully it will deter Mr. pepper eater. If not it will leave a hole where I can use to trap it. Gonna get some fur traps manana...

tsurrie · Apr 25, 2016

Great gardening as usual. Love the photos.

You inspire me to try harder and make a nicer garden next season.

Sawyer · Apr 25, 2016

Looking good, Scott. Great photos, as always. No possum in the trap(s) yet? I haven't baited my box trap yet, but there's a road kill carcass out by the mailbox. I'm afraid I waited too long to bury it and it's turned stinky and juicy now. Guess I'll let nature take its course.

What are you going to do with all the tomatoes those plants will produce?