Savannah Scrapbooking

Fall in the garden...

During last night's jaunt through Dhuland, I snapped a few pics of life in the garden to prove that we're still getting a harvest (albeit small.) 

The 'maters are still producing...

as are the bell peppers...

 and scallions...

 
  My  lettuce is starting to leaf out...

(I planted it in pots, b/c I hear it likes it, but the chickens tumped one over)

hence...

 and my yellow onions (that I found sprouting in the compost pile) are on the rise...

(with lots of baby lettuces sprouting around them.)

Of course the gourds are still growing...

(don't the dead vines from the peas look terrible?)

...and the sweet 'taters are still spreading like crazy...

but I don't think the peas are going to do as well as I'd hoped...

I think it's just a little too late for them.  We'll see.

But overall, the place is still alive and well, even if there are brown muscadine leaves sprinkled on the ground. 

The chickens seem happy with it... especially the compost pile...

In fact, they're so happy I guess they don't even care that they have a peeping Archie.  ;)

And we're still getting three eggs a day...

Yep, it's Fall in Dhuland, but things are still as fresh and green as always.  Man, I think I want a salad.
 
 
 

A chicken and collards rap... in honor of Garden Bloggers Death Day.

Hey gimme a beat... 

Yeah boy, there's collards in my compost pile,

my chicken pecks them with a smile.

Beaten by bugs, something wormy and gross,

without a doubt those collards are toast.

Yo yo I say there's collards in my compost,

ain't nobody yankin' on yo' chain...

collards in my compost, don't think I'll plant them again.

The end.

Check out  www.gardeningwithoutskills.blogspot.com for more on Garden Bloggers Death Day.

;)

Tough Love...

Yep, Big Dave had to have a little 'man to hen' talk with my arch rival, Echo...

It went something like, "Listen here you red feathered bird brain... there will be NO, I repeat absolutely NO pecking of people around here." To which Echo replied, "Kruuuuuuuk..." 

Then she pecked him.

And he slapped her.

I think they've reached an understanding. 

Damn chicken.

Morning glories and chicken attacks...

According to my stats, I don't get a lot of readers on weekends... I guess y'all are cleaning, bonding, playing, lounging and watching college football right? (That's what I usually do.) So I often neglect the ol' bloggeroo on the weekends, but today's different.  I'm bored, trying to put off cleaning, and getting antsy waiting for the time when my buds are coming over for our scrap date.  Plus I have some fun (well I think so) pics from this morning's trip to the garden.  So let's get ready for some rambling about the garden...

First, check out the morning glories... so pretty! 

They even make my regular ol' garden gate look pretty don't they?

Not to mention this rickety bench waiting to be recycled into a trellis...

It makes me happy.

However something that makes me very UNhappy would be Big Dave's mean assed chicken "Echo."  Sure she may not act very mean when she's being all lovey dovey with him, but that's because she's got some sort of chicken crush on him. Me, on the other hand? Well there's absolutely no crush.

In fact this morning she first decided to pounce on one of my almost ripened tomatoes, ripping it from the bush and eagerly splitting it open...

Little terd.

And then she got all hot and bothered when she saw me planting peas in the freshly tilled soil... things got crazy.

She wanted a pea, so I gave her one. Then she wanted another. Fine, have another. But then she decided she wanted the whole envelope... uh Echo, heck no.

So I got this...

Can you see it?  Well it's a CHICKEN BITE. Yes.

Then she bit my other hand and as I stood up, she took a snip at my knee!

(Let's all take a moment to close our eyes and envision the scene shall we?)

Needless to say, little Miss Echo ended up back behind bars...

Chicken and dumplins anyone?

Hmmmm... tasty...

Welcome to the Dhuland recipe test garden! Tonight's menu features a Southern delicacy... chicken and collards.

 

...and another delicious combination, chicken and fresh green beans...

 

Chicken and cucumber?

 

NO NO NO, I'm just playing... of course nobody's gonna eat Big Dave's ladies.

 

I swear this one (Echo) has a crush on him.

 

And Edith thinks he's pretty cool too...

Especially when he scratches up under her wings...

Yes indeed, the ladies surely enjoy an evening romp in the garden.  After being cooped up all day, they love getting to stretch their legs and gobble up bugs, weeds, and collard greens.  (All of which are plentiful in the Dhuland garden.)

Muffin makes sure to get up and away from those beaks while they're out, that's for sure...

 

I don't blame her.

What's up in da 'gourdin?'

Likey the accent?  Well, it's only because I've got the cutest little gourds growing in the garden...

 

Aawwwww.... ain't it precious?

And speaking of precious...

 

The wee babies are five weeks old already, how the heck did time go by so fast?  In just three short weeks we're going to be saying goodbye to them.  Sigh...

 

The little calico is already taken, but the rest of them still need homes... any takers?  Ah, come on... you KNOW you want one.

 

And back to the garden...

 

We've got some serious Kentucky Wonder Bean action going on, as well as a late season cucumber explosion...

 

And goodness knows the chickens are positively magnificent...

 

We're getting two eggs a day (Echo is holding out for a pay raise or something.)

 

Oh yeah baby... deviled eggs for all!

What came first?

Well now we know!  It was definitely the CHICKEN!

Because she made THIS...

 

Holy chicken vents Batman... that there's an EGG!!! Our first one!! I know, you're as excited as I am right? I couldn't believe it. 

Every day I go out to the hen house and talk to the ladies, then I crack the door to the nesting boxes, and always it's a big fat zippo.  We knew we were getting close thanks to Holly in SC who told me they should start laying around 4 months.  Well lo and behold, I went out this morning and this is what I found...

 

See it snuggled down in the nesting box? Exactly where it's supposed to be.  I tell ya, that's the coolest thing in the world; that these ladies know that they're supposed to go into their nesting box to pop out an egg. No training required. Totally cool.  I guess that's God's sovereign plan for ya eh? 

Well, now I'm gonna wait a couple days and see if I get anymore. Then I'm gonna fix one heckuva an omelette! YUMMY!!

GO CHICKENS!!

Garden Goodness...

Well, if there's two things for certain around here it this:

1.) It is daggum hot in Savannah, Georgia.

2.) We've had more rain this year than any I can recall.

And apparently the combination of the two have made for a gangbuster growing season in my garden... yay! It's starting to look like a tropical rain forest with all the overgrowth, but I absolutely love the look of a garden gone mad with colors, textures and produce.

I had to make an arbor for my Big Boy tomato...

 

(Forgive the bed head and pajamas in the photo... it happens.)

 

The beans have gone wild, and I've had to rig up a 'bean pole' because they outgrew their cages. (Hopefully no giants come down here... fe fi fo fum!)

And there's plenty o' bounty. Here's yesterday's haul...

 

Yummy!

Welcome to the Zinnia Garden Bar and Grill...

Here, let me make the introductions...

 

This is Erv.  When he's not running his Fortune 500 investment firm, he's into powerboating, big game hunting, and Vegas show girls.

Then we have Lucille...

 

Lucille retired from the local police force last year after twenty seven years of service. She was awarded the medal of honor, and the Captains certificate for exemplary service.  Now she enjoys long walks with her dog, Bowzer and Janet Evanovich novels.  (I think she's got her eye on Erv, but he's worried she just wants what's in his wallet.)

And this fella...

 

His name is Bob, but his friends at the bar call him 'Flighty.' Ever since a particularly harrowing stint in the Marines, he's been unable to sit still for long.  The bar crowd puts up with his annoying habits on account of his tendency to pick up a tab or two. 

And finally there's Karina...

 

Miss Karina is currently on holiday after shooting "The Last Song" with Miley Cyrus.  Known for her radiant beauty and beguiling manner, Karina has captured the interest of almost everyone at the bar and grill.  Surely they must know she's only here temporarily until her next movie.  Ah, I'm sure there will be plenty of broken hearts when that time comes.

And there you have it... a slice of life at the Zinnia Garden Bar and Grill. Stop by anytime!

If you build it, they will... cluck?

Well, well, well... Haven't you ever had one of those days where you and your precious husband are standing around, kinda just lazing and scratchin'.  One of those days where you find yourselves out in your garage pondering what the heck you wanna do for the rest of the day.  It's too hot to work in the yarden, but it's still too nice out to do stuff in the house... The kid's boarded herself up in her bedroom with the vow to not come out until she beats the entire Madagascar video game... etc, etc.

Then it hits you.  (Well, me really... but then again, we all know I'm the 'big ideas' person around here.)

"Hey Boonk, whaddya think about us here buildin' a mobile chicken pen for the ladies so they can graze, scratch and poop {lotsa poop} in different areas for a change?"

He's known it was eventually gonna happen because I read this gardener chick's blog and she and her Mama built one and ever since then I've been hinting around that it seemed like a pretty cool idea.  (I hate the idea of the chickens just hanging out in that boring ol' coop everyday, and want 'em to have yummy fresh grass to eat.)

Then Big Dave says, "Hmmm... I guess we could try, but you're gonna have to do helpful stuff like fix me a ham sandwich and hold my wood while I'm hammering."  

Um, okay. (I may not be able to build a mobile chicken pen on my own, but I'm pretty good at hammy sammies and wood holding you see.)

So we sketched it out, found some wood in our garage, and stole a big fat roll of screen from Mom's workshop (otherwise known as "Judy-Depot.")

Big Dave sawwed lots of stuff, and I held lots of wood...

 

Then we (um, Big Dave) built a 3' by 5' frame and wrapped the screen around it...

 

Miss Priss finally came out of her room and lent us a hand...

 

And even Ruby helped out by being our chicken stunt-double...

 

"Look, a pomerani-hen!" (Sorry.)

And after about an two hours, zero dollars, and some good ol' family bonding time we had our masterpiece...

 

It's very lightweight and Big Dave's gonna put some wheels on one end so one person can move it instead of having to wait for help. This is technically called a 'Chicken tractor' and lots of chicken lovers have them... so don't go callin' me crazy until you google it and see we're not the only nutsoes out there. 

 

Geraldine, Edith, and Echo are quite pleased with their new playpen and scratched around for hours out there... ah, it does a mama's heart good to see her lady babies happy.

 

And they say that happy hens lay more eggs, so I guess we'll have to see. We're thinkin' they'll start laying in August... how exciting!

Omelettes anyone?