Daily Farm Photo Extras: 8/18/06

A Most Extraordinary Hug















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Daily Farm Photo Extras: 8/5/06

Donkey Doodle Dandy In Dust-Rolling Action
(No Captions Necessary)



















Like I said before, who needs TV when you have Cary & DDD? Life on the farm is far from perfect (or easy), but rarely does a day go by that I don't do a lot of laughing (and staring in disbelief with my mouth hanging open). You just can't put a price on that.

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Daily Farm Photo Extras: 8/4/06

The Coziest, Warmest Bird Nest I Have Ever Seen



View From The Underside



This Blue String Is Woven Through Half Of The Nest

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Daily Farm Photo: 7/10/06 #2

Tana & BB: Which One's The Mother & Which One's The Daughter?

Daily Farm Photo: 7/1/06 #2

DDD Under The Pawpaw Tree!

I had so much fun reading all of your comments regarding the mystery food in the 7/1/06 Daily Farm Photo. There were some very interesting guesses, and many of you did correctly identify the unripe fruits as pawpaws. (For those of you who thought they were walnuts--we do have many black walnut trees on the farm.)

As I mentioned, I finally tried my first pawpaw last year. I had heard many people describe the taste as similar to banana custard. I have never actually had banana custard, but the pawpaws didn't taste banana-ish to me at all (though the texture of the very ripe fruit is somewhat custardy.) The only word that kept coming to my mind was "tropical." To me, pawpaws have a completely unique (and very pleasant) flavor. Unfortunately they are chock full of large seeds that makes eating them rather difficult.

I now know that the reason our trees don't set fruits every year isn't just because we often have late frosts that kill spring flower buds (which is why we don't have an orchard down here--or lilac blooms every year). It also has to do with the fact that, according to Wikipedia, "the flowers emit a weak scent which attracts few pollinators, thus limiting fruit production." Bees ignore pawpaw trees. They are instead "pollinated by scavenging carrion flies and beetles."

Well, I don't know what the deal was last year (because we certainly didn't "locate rotting meat near the trees at bloom time to increase the number of blowflies" as large growers apparently do--we have enough problems with meat eating predators already), but 2005 was definitely The Year Of The Pawpaw. The tree in the photo above, which hangs over the spring box, was absolutely loaded with pawpaws. The ground was covered with them, and I was constantly fishing them out of the water. This year I saw maybe 8 or 10 fruits on the entire tree. According to Joe, we will have to beat the raccoons to them.

Click here to learn all kinds of other interesting facts about pawpaws from Wikipedia. And thanks to Aunt George for finding this other informative link about pawpaws.

6/6/06 Snake Day Photos

Black Snake In A Pen By The Barn

Black snakes are harmless, and they do help keep down the mice population. But it can be a little unnerving when you come upon a 6-foot long one curled up in a nesting box in the henhouse. Yesterday I saw one several feet long slithering through one of my raised beds in the garden. The one in this photo was on the driveway a few days ago, and I didn't see it until it was practically right in front of me (and Cary). It was as startled as we were and quickly slithered into a nearby pen and disappeared. It is fascinating to watch them move.


Copperhead Slinking Out From Under The Back Steps Of The House

Not 15 minutes after seeing the black snake in the garden yesterday, I headed for the house and came upon this frightening sight. Unlike black snakes, copperheads are indeed poisonous. And this is not the kind of place you want to find one lurking. Their bite can be deadly to anything weighing less than 35 pounds (like Cary or Robin or any of the cats), so I really don't like having them anywhere around. But they are all over the farm, and are often quite brazen. This one stayed right there, unmoving, for several minutes while I took a few photos and then marched into the farmyard to annouce to Joe that we were having Snake Day and did he happen to have a gun or machete or a sharp hoe handy. It was still there when Joe arrived with the machete (which he reminded me is always under the front seat of the tan truck in case I should need it).

Neither of us likes to needlessly take the life of any living creature, but it's a little difficult to successfully relocate a poisonous snake. And there was a good chance it would have simply slithered under the house (where Bear and Robin often sleep). Snake Day was a good reminder that it's time to make sure I'm wearing my boots every time I leave the house.

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Daily Farm Photo: 5/14/06 #2

It's A Lamb Handbag!

Note: No lambs were harmed during the making of this handbag.
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Daily Farm Photo: 5/8/06 #2

Darling But Dangerous

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Weekend Cat Blogging #47 Bonus Photo

Molly Doodlebug In The Pet Bed I Bought For The Other Cats

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Bonus Baby Pictures: 4/29/06

First Day Out For Bruisie's Baby Girl









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Daily Farm Photo: 4/23/06 #2

Someone Beat Bruisie & Baby To The Bonding Suite Last Night

You'd think it would be much happier in the garden than the barn, but maybe it enjoys the company of sheep. Click here to return to What's Growin' On: 4/23/06 at In My Kitchen Garden.com. Click here to return to the Farmgirl Fare.com 4/23/06 Daily Farm Photo.

Daily Farm Photo: 4/19/06 #2

Wild Watercress Growing In The Spring Runoff

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Look What I Spotted This Morning!

Doris' Big Baby Girl, Born 4-15-06 & Doing Fine

Current Lamb Count: 15
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For Those Who Want More Lamb Pics

Silly Wendy & Her Baby Girl Born 4/9/06, Five Hours Old

Daily Farm Photo: 3/10/06 #2

Love In A Frozen Dog Dish

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Weekend Dog Blogging #23 Bonus Photo

Do You Think Dan Loves Bear A Little More Than Bear Loves Dan?

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You Never Know What You'll Find In The Forest

The Mossapagos Islands

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And Posh Digs In (The Rest Of The Pictures)

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1/19/06 Bonus Farm Photo

A Lesson For The Llama?

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One Of My Pet Wethers

Skinny Chip

Click here to read about how Chip got his name.
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Weekend Dog Blogging #13 Extra

Sun, Hay, Fresh Venison. . . What A Life!

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Weekend Cat Blogging #25: Special Addition

A Sunbath In Bed: The Epitome Of Relaxation

Miss Domino, our foster blog cat, really knows how to live.

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Weekend Cat Blogging #23 Special Addition

Miss Domino, our lovely foster blog cat, asks: Where Are Clare & Kiri?

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Farm Equipment Lesson

After The Hay Is Cut, You Rake It Into Windrows With The Hay Rake

Cozy Comfort Food

Grilled Cheese Made With Sharp Cheddar On Oatmeal Toasting Bread

Farmgirl's Oatmeal Toasting Bread

But It's Tasty Untoasted, Too

Cluck, Cluck, Cluck

Lindy The Chicken

Click here to find out how Lindy got her name.
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Wool On Wool

Sweet Pea About To Get Comfortable

Weekend Dog Blogging #7 Bonus Action Shots

Lucky Buddy Bear's Shameless Appeals For A Tummy Rub

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Weekend Herb Blogging #4

Greek Oregano Can Easily Be Grown From Seed

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Same Scene, But Still Green

Heading Out To Breakfast On October 6, 2005

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Weekend Cat Blogging #21: Another Special Addition

Party Shy

R.S.V.P. Miss Domino regrets that she will not be attending Kiri's Birthday Party as she is spending the evening in bed, under the covers, with a heating pad (and her favorite person in the world, Kat). But she does hope that Kiri has an absolutely wonderful birthday!

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Weekend Cat Blogging #21 Special Addition

So Where's The Party?

(Photo taken last week in Yosemite, California by Joel, aka The Farmsitting Farmbeau). Click here to return to Weekend Cat Blogging #21 at Farmgirl Fare.

Barn Shots

These three photos were taken within moments of each other. The only setting I changed was the 'zoom.' So what was the real color of the sky? Who knows. My little automatic camera has a mind of its own--and it is obviously a wishy-washy one. (I think I have outgrown my camera.)