Katydid

A couple of weeks ago a group of students from Japan visited the neighbor's farm where I work. The students had a lot of fun riding in the wagon pulled by the tractor, finding their way through the corn maze, shooting guns, and riding the four wheeler.

While we were waiting for the rest of the students to finish up their farm activities, this young lady was sitting quietly as a green katydid climbed up her arm. I was struck by her peacefulness and calmness, especially for a person who has spent most of her life living in the world's largest metropolitan area (of course, they may have lots of bush crickets in Tokyo, but I couldn't find that on Wikipedia).

A cell phone camera isn't ideal for evening photography, but I just love how serene this student and her new pal are.

 

Dusk

The Replacements

Looked what arrived in the mail:

Six adorable chicks! They shipped yesterday from Meyer Hatchery and arrived in town late this morning. The kind people at the post office called to let me know they had reached their destination. I took an early lunch break to pick them up, take them home, and get them settled into their new surroundings.

I ordered these six "replacements" after losing two chickens from the Original Six that were ordered in the spring. One of those chicks died when it was a couple of days old, and Blackie was a victim of a vermin attack last week. So why order six chicks to replace two? I had been debating about ordering a few more chickens for the last few weeks-- not only are chickens fun to watch, but maybe I can sell any extra eggs to earn some money to help cover the cost of the birds (although keeping chickens is pretty inexpensive once you have all the equipment and coop).

I was hoping to order another Australorp and Buff Orpington, but the hatchery didn't have any available to ship this week. So the Replacements consist of two Barred Rocks, two Light Brahmas, and two Golden Buffs.

The chicks are currently sharing the coop with the Original Six Four. The coop is divided in half with lattice (the original intention was to separate the meat chickens from the egg chickens, and one side is empty now that the meaties are in the deep freeze). Since the chicks are small enough to slip through the partition, they're in the old dog crate that was converted into a brooder. The Originals were very curious about their new flock mates, and Sassy even woke up from her nap to check out all the chirping.

Hopefully having them in the same area where they can see each other will make integrating the Replacements into the Originals a smooth process. That won't happen for several more weeks until the chicks get closer in size to the big girls.

I only had a few minutes to watch the new chicks after dunking their beaks in water and closing them up in their brooder. They all seemed active and a few made a beeline for the food. One even managed to hop out of the crate, but it didn't get too far before it was apprehended.

My vermin-trapping efforts have not been successful. Apparently vermin aren't attracted to pot roast or apply jelly. Tonight I'll bait the trap with some leftover cooked chicken.

Garden Update July 20, 2013

Garden updates have been few and far between this summer, but I finally got around to taking a few photos on Friday evening. 

Everything in the garden is growing (including the weeds), and the grass in encroaching as well. Next year I won't plant anything too close to the edge so I'm better able to keep the weeds/grass back.

The spaghetti squash is thriving!

A future squash on the vine.

The bush beans have blooms, and a there are a few tiny pods beginning to form (yes, the photo is upside down. I can't figure out how to rotate it on this iPad).

Cucumbers are starting to grow and pickles are in the near future.

Happy to see that there are peppers on the pepper plants this year!

And there are lots of tomatoes, although only two have started to turn red.

The cherry tomatoes are starting to show their true colors.

And then there's the squash. Lots and lots and lots of squash.

This is a zephyr squash-- it's cool that it's two colors

This is an eight ball squash that is in the shape of a sphere. We also have yellow squash and zucchini. 

A Chicken Lost

Yesterday morning I went outside to do the usual morning chores-- feed the cat, open the barn doors, and say hello to the chickens. I knew something wasn't right as I walked to the end of the barn that houses the chicken coop--no chatter was to be heard. When I got to the coop, one chicken (Dominque the Dominque) was laying in the floor (usually in the morning they're out and about in their pen). Usually they're all together, so seeing one by herself was cause for alarm. I rushed outside, and saw the limp, headless body of Blackie, the Black Australorp, in the run. No other chicken was to be seen. I rushed back inside to check on Dominique, and was relieved to find that Brownie (the Golden Buff) and Lacey (the Silverlaced Wyandotte) were alive and had been out of sight on the first check. 

Bloomer, my Blue Cochin, was nowhere to be found. The three survivors were traumatized by the event and spent the entire day inside.

Bloomer and Blackie must have not come back into the coop before the automatic door closed Friday evening. The past couple of weeks I had made a habit of checking on the birds each night to be sure they were safe inside their coop, so on Friday I assumed they would be fine. I was sad at the loss of two birds, but I felt really guilty that two animals had died under my care. My dad pointed out that these things happen on farms, and that all you can do is your best to protect your livestock and move on.

So, step one in moving on yesterday evening was setting a trap for the vermin that killed my birds. 

Second, I shut the coop door early to keep the three remaining pullets indoors. 

Third, I ordered replacement chickens that will arrive next week: two Light Brahmas, two more Golden Buffs, and two Barred Plymouth Rocks. 

After I set up the trap by the outdoor run, I put a cement block on top of it to weigh it down and to prevent the vermin (and horses) from being able to move it. 

Needing something relaxing to do after the drama earlier in the day, I headed down to the vegetable garden to do some weeding. On my way back up the hill into the barn, I heard "bawk baawk baaawk." At first I thought the noise was the chickens in the coop, but then I realized the sounds were coming from the tall grass. I started looking around, and look who popped out!

BLOOMER! She was such a welcome sight-- I thought she was a goner! I can't say that chickens are intelligent, but this girl is a survivor. She must have flew the coop when Blackie was attacked and had been hiding all day. Who knows, maybe she was just bawking to bawk as I passed, but something tells me she knew that I take care of her and would take her back to safety. 

Next came the dilemma of how to get her back to the coop. My chickens aren't handled very much as they're aren't picked up, petted, or cuddled on a regular basis. However, they are use to taking treats out of my hand. Bloomer wasn't too keen on following me, so I grabbed some cornflakes, lured her within reaching distance, and scooped her up. She fought back a little (just flapping her wings), but once I got her tucked under my arm she calmly enjoyed the lift back to her home. 

In other news, no raccoon/possum/murderous creature took the bait in the trap last night. Tonight I'll try a different kind of bait.

New Lily

Little Praying Mantis

Few insects give me the creepy crawlies-- I can deal with spiders, beetles, ear wigs, dragonflies and grasshoppers. But put me in an area within 10 feet of a praying mantis and I start to freak out! I'm not sure why they have that effect on me-- maybe because they're big insects or maybe because they look like aliens. Perhaps its because the females rip the heads of the males and eat them. There are a lot of mantis that live on the farm (especially in the tall grass out in the field), and I'm always on the lookout for them.

Wednesday night marked the first mantis sighting of the season-- this little guy was crawling along the one of the soaker hoses. He was less than an inch long. Since they're insect predators and eat a lot of pests, he lived to see another day.

Off to the Races

Tuesday night we continued our yearly tradition of attending the harness races at the fair. The last race of the evening is always the celebrity race, featuring well-known individuals from the local community. This year we knew three of the people in the celebrity race, and it was fun being able to cheer for them!

Racers behind the starting gait.

At the Draft Horse Show

Every year since we moved to Michigan, I've attended the annual draft horse show at the county fair. I've been a spectator, ringmaster, and handed out ribbons, but this was the first year I actually had a horse to show!


On Sunday morning we got to work early bathing and clipping Charlie, and we had to pack all the supplies we would need. We borrowed a fancy show harness and cart from the neighbor, loaded up Charlie in a trailer on loan from another neighbor, and headed to the fairgrounds.

Charlie standing patiently during his bath.

It had been over a decade since I'd taken a horse to a show, and I'd forgotten how much work it takes to get your horse ready for a few minutes in the spotlight. Fortunately, we've got fantastic friends who are willing to share their time and expertise to help out a rookie. And it helped that Charlie was a perfect gentleman.

Waiting by the trailer before the first class.

Kevin showed Charlie in a halter class for geldings of any age and placed third.

Charlie and I came in second place in our cart class.

Heading into the ring...

Trotting very.... very.... very.... slooooowly...

Whew! We made it!

Posing for a quick picture with some of our fans.

  Charlie did really well in both outings, even though he was a little on the slow side as he prefers walking to trotting. We weren't expecting to win so I was thrilled to get a couple of ribbons! I also learned a lot about braiding tails, manes, and putting on a show harness (which was a little more complicated that the work harness we use at home).

My best efforts of trying to avoid showing in a halter class were unsuccessful. Earlier in the week I  insisted that I would not handle Charlie in a halter class (I had major fears that a horse a) would drag me all over the ring or b) buck, get loose, and run chaotically around the arena).  After Charlie's first time in the ring, I asked our neighbor, Wendel, if he needed assistance as he was putting show halters on his team of very big Belgians, Jack and Morgan. He responded that he needed someone to take the mare, Morgan, in the matched pairs class. So as a result of being thrust into a position where no one else was available, I grabbed her lead and followed Wendel and Jack up to the ring. (Karma certainly has a way of teaching one a lesson when one is trying to get out of something!) I was nervous about handling a horse that I wasn't familiar with, but Morgan was a pro and didn't give me any problems. Once again, I was forced to face my silly fears and learned that halter classes could be fun, too :-).

I'd like to thank everyone who helped us on Sunday including Kevin Courtney, Wendel Weber, and Karen GreenBay. We also had support from my husband, Will, and our friends Tomi and Dave Newcombe, and Bob and Carla Miller.

Run!

We have started to let Kobe off the leash in the back field. He's still not great about coming when called, but there's enough space for him to roam (and get tired) that he doesn't make a break for the road. He seems to enjoy it!

Fun Friday Video

A Real Mouser

Ever since Sassy was invited to stay, I have questioned her usefulness as a barn cat. For nearly a year I saw no evidence of hunting. She bats rocks around, chases butterflies, is very intent on watching birds, and is always on the prowl for a head scratch. Don't get me wrong, she's really sweet, but we've got a large barn and there are mice, so we need a barn cat that will step up and take care of the little rodents.

So imagine the surprise last week when Sassy brought me a mouse while I was in the garden! She continued to carry it around the barn for the rest of the evening.

Who knows how many of the pesky vermin she's dispatched! And yes, I did apologize to her for doubting her mousing ability...

Sassy providing proof that she is indeed a mouser!