AN OVERDUE MOWING

The grain is ripening quickly in the July heat

Fruit is very scarce here, no cherries or prunes to speak of, apples scarce and poor, no currants or gooseberries, and only a few raspberries. It was too wet and cold this spring. We had a good crop of strawberries . . .  Ina Dobson, 1933

Well, when we last went to the farm, the riding mower wouldn’t start. We were discouraged since we hoped the new mower would be trouble-free. When Mike was unable to fix the mower, we trailered it to town for service. You might not be surprised to learn that those pesky mice were the culprits. The shop said they found a mouse – maybe a nest? – between the flywheel and the starter, which knocked the starter out.

Anyway, it was ready yesterday. So, after yoga – yes, we went to yoga class first – we picked up the mower and headed to the farm. Mike had anticipated that we might need to rake the grass since he hasn’t mowed in about a month, but actually, it wasn’t that bad. We don’t have a wonderful lawn there, and we don’t water either. We had a lot of weed heads – whatever those weeds are. Mike set the mower as high as it would go. Otherwise, he mowed according to his usual pattern.

It was a lovely day. The cool breeze made the July heat bearable – sort of. While Mike mowed, I carried water to my garden beds and trees. I expected to find the zucchini wilted in a heap, but this was not the case. It looked a bit stressed, but it’s blooming and I even picked one small fruit. I poured plenty of water on it, sprinkled a little fertilizer, and set four 2-liter bottles of water in the plant nannies.

I missed a picking of strawberries or two, but the good news is that the plants are blooming again. I hope the timing of our visits will coincide with picking. I carried plenty of water to them.

My experimental drought-tolerant bed on the bank looks good. I don’t think all plants survived, but many did, and they should spread. I have yarrow, lavender, and a stonecrop groundcover there. I need to weed and gradually expand that bed. (“Gradually” because it would be overwhelming to do it at one time.)

Laurel tree

Hallie’s laurel trees look good. The grass has grown up around them, but Mike cut a path for me so that I can water them. Even without water, they are doing well. Mike suggests the proof of their ability to survive might be the winter.

But – like Ina in 1933, I notice a lack of fruit. I see no pears on the old pear tree. If the cherry tree bore fruit this year, the birds got it, but the tree has lots of new growth and looks good. In fact, I think a cherry pit might have sprouted in the raised bed. I left the plant there to see if it really is a cherry tree. I’m afraid the gooseberry bush might be dying. And I had already decided to quit trying so hard with the raspberry patch, though some of the bushes look good and are bearing – or did bear. And as Ina said, apples are scarce and poor.

A view to the north

I didn’t have time to check out the serviceberry bushes, but the black hawthorn trees have plenty of berries. And the elderberries in bloom look wonderful. The farm kitchen won’t be ready by jelly-making time, and my town stove isn’t adequate for that process, but I can make juice for the freezer.

Oh!! And I had an encounter with a rattlesnake. It pays to be on guard at this time of year. I was crossing the yard in front of the house when I heard the telltale rattle and stopped dead in my tracks. I just caught sight of a little vole scampering away, my sudden appearance undoubtedly saving its life. I hailed Mike, who was mowing on the backside (east) of the barn, and he removed the rattler from the yard. It didn’t seem exceptionally large, but having ten rattles, it was a mature snake. I was busy keeping Bess back and didn’t get a picture. (Bess has had her antivenom shot and booster – just in case.)

Torn apart

I did unlock the kitchen door and take a picture. As you can see, the sub-floor has been removed, and this is where we are in the process. Materials to lay a new sub-floor are on the front porch.

By 3:00, we admitted we were tired. It still took us some time to put everything away and load up for town. Mike is planning to camp soon, so we brought the 4-wheeler back to town as well as one of his bikes.

As we drove down the grade, I watched the thimbleberry bushes on the bank for berries, and I saw some. We couldn’t stop to pick. Thimbleberries are delicate but lovely.

You haven’t forgotten about the little zucchini, have you? I wasn’t sure about its quality, but I cooked it up for supper with onion and green pepper, and it was very good. It made a nice side dish with the bass that Ken gave us. He also brought a big bag of raspberries from his garden. KW