Finally, we got 3/4 of an inch of rain! It has been six weeks since the last decent rain at the farm. The temperature has been in the 90-103 range that entire six weeks. Look at the all the dead grass as you watch the rain fall in the video below. Every plant is breathing a sigh of relief.
Seeds for Mint are unbelievably tiny. If you wish to grow mint, cuttings or transplants with roots are the way to go. However, if you want to try seeds, here is the method for starting the seeds. Notice the black dot on the second picture below. This dot is a pile of all the seeds in this package.
Put potting soil in a container and wet it thoroughly. Sprinkle the seeds in the soil and cover with 1/4 inch of additional soil. Cover with a clear top and put in a warm area that receives sunlight. When you finally get some sprouts, you will need to transplant them to a larger pot or to the ground. Mint loves a fair amount of sun and water. I will let you know if and when these seeds sprout. Another thing to note is that there are many different varieties of mint and each has a special smell. For a delightful smelling yard, put different types of mint in your garden.
Below: The trail cameras show us that the black bear cub is still around and wandering the property in the middle of the morning. We also saw a very new fawn. The last picture is Quinn driving Ike and Bruce around the property.
Below: The slideshow below shows the melon garden. You can now differentiate the Honeydew from the Cantaloupe by the fruit. The Cantaloupe has stripped fruit and the Honeydew does not. Can you identify them? Since you are supposed to water the roots of these plants and not the leaves, Craig and Bruce installed a new sprinkler system. This system runs off of the well.
Below: Picture 1. Jackie processed another pumpkin. Since the bread recipe calls for 2 C, she freezes the cooked pumpkin in 2C servings. Picture 2. We processed another pile of Zinnia seeds. We now have enough seeds to plant an entire field. I am guessing that everyone we know will have Zinnia seeds attached to their next gift from us. Pictures 3 and 4 show the new watermelon seeds sprouting. Pictures 5 and 6 are of the long awaited bean bushes sprouting. (This time we had bird netting to keep the crows from eating the beans before they sprouted.)
BELOW; While hiking in Colorado, Bruce IV discovered this shrub with the dreaded 3-leaves. Except for the “3 leaves”, it does not resemble the poison ivy from Mississippi or Louisiana. The plant app says that it is “Western Poison Ivy” which grows as a shrub instead of a vine. It contains the same oil (Urushiol) that irritates the skin as the poison ivy that we know in the South. Western Poison Ivy produces a yellowish white fruit that is also “OFF LIMITS” for human consumption.
Happy Birthday Doctor Luther! We still appreciate all the help you gave us 55 years ago!
BELOW: Camille, Ella Clare, and Rudy II are cooling off in the hose.
Happy Labor Day! If you like this Blog, please tell your friends and/or classmates or homeschoolers. You can also let us know.