CC Pygmy Goats

It looks like something took a bite out of Trip’s fish! Pretty sure the culprit was a decent size shark.

Cousins Aidan, AMPD, and Rowan (below) are still enjoying Lake Keowee.

Did you know that watermelon have male and female flowers just like pumpkins. Just like pumpkins, the female flower has a bulb below the flower. The male flower does not have the bulb below the petals. Unlike Pumpkins, the center of the male and female watermelon flowers look very similar. You have to look below the petals to tell the difference.

Once the bees do their job and pollen from the male flower is moved to the female flower, the fruit starts to form. Pictures 1, 2, and 3 below are male flowers. #4 is a female flower that has not opened yet. Pictures #5-7 are male flowers. Pictures 8 and 9 are females. Pictures 10 and 11 are small watermelons that have formed from the pollinated female flower. We plan to cover this plant with a bird net to keep our wild friends from eating our new watermelons.

Goats have a very strong herd mentality. If one decides to move to a new area, the rest will usually follow. Goats also establish a pecking order and are continually making sure they protect their position. Notice that April, the small brown and white kid, can eat next to her mother, but leaves the trough when a bigger goat comes near. She ends up getting food off of the planks to avoid being tossed by a bigger goat. Even the twins, Einstein and Tsunami try to muscle each other out of the way for food. There is plenty of food in the trough and the smaller goats are able to eat when the more dominant goats have had their fill.

We are still finding new pumpkins and keeping tabs on the larger pumpkins. We place a board under the pumpkins to get them off the ground and prevent their molding. Even with the boards, the vines self-prune and some of the young pumpkins fall off of the vines. Flip though the slide show below to see the changes in the pumpkins from just a few days ago.

The corn we planted last week has sprouted. You have to look closely to see the very new stalks.

A small Pine Warbler paid us a visit. This bird relies heavily on seeds for food. Watch the video below, then flip through the slides to get a good look. This bird is about twice the size of a humming bird.

We only have one cherry tree that still does not look happy. The verdict is still out on that tree. The pear trees are the only trees that have problems with bugs in our orchard, so we sprayed them again today.#1-5 are apple trees, #6-8 are cherry trees #9 is the poor avocado which is still struggling #10 is a fig tree #11 is the pear tree with bugs #12 is persimmon #13-15 are fig trees