What did you do in the garden today?

[WthrLady]

Never had ants attack plants. I see many on my Peonies, but I've heard that's a good thing. Some sure like attacking me though! European Fire Ants...those little Ba$!@rd$!

Peonies NEED ants. They won't open without them. The ants chew the honeydew on the plant and crack open the flower pods.

 

[MotherofOrpies]

I always thought they stopped the buds from opening, cos I had so many ants on my peony buds, and they never opened

 

[WthrLady]

I finished putting massive deer rings around everything in the orchard - a pricey pain in the butt.
The cincy chili came out of the freeze dryer and it is amazing. It rehydrates beautifully too!
Next is sweet potato chips.
Chicks are doing fine. They even found a barn mouse to share their cage with.

 

[TillyPeeps]

I never saw my chickens eating flowers. They are really weird chickens who don't like store bought strawberries and will not eat treats from my hand if I was wearing a rubber glove. And there's a supper fat mouse that is their friend. When I gave out treats (grains and lettuce), they make noise and the mouse always comes to eat treats with them. Yes, the mouse even eats lettuce with them. However, they did attack and killed a frog, before I could save it.

 

[chicken opey]

My birds chill in the blackberry patch all the time
It's only a problem when the fruit's ripe

I don’t know if it’s bc he’s young or what but he wouldn’t leave the baby/unripe berries alone! Kept trying to pick them off - a few he did!
Tomorrow I think I’ll put them under the mulberry tree and give it a hard shake!

 

[Liz Birdlover]

Peonies NEED ants. They won't open without them. The ants chew the honeydew on the plant and crack open the flower pods.

Yes, I heard it's a synergy type relationship. The native ants tend to my Peonies, average size ants & teeny tiny ants. Not those large worthless Fire Ants.

 

[Liz Birdlover]

I got my grass & neighboring grass cut, watered everything because the rain we were supposed to get Wed & Thurs is hopefully coming Friday now. I Pulled weeds...oh my aching back. I went to TractorSupply & on the way I saw a big, old pine tree being cut down. I'd always seen birds nesting in that tree over the years, so later after the workers left, I parked nearby & walked over to the tree debris. They cut it down but left one heck of a mess. I heard the distinct baby bird cries. I waited to see if any parent birds were around, but none showed up. This tree was in the middle of 3 roads, so no other trees nearby. The heap of pine branches was enormous & the baby bird sounds seemed to be coming from the middle. I called my DH to see if he was home yet...he was, so I asked him to bring me the tree pruners. It took awhile but I pruned my way to the middle & kept listening for them. I pruned inward about 10 feet, then started pruning the tall stuff down. I cleared a path & was in the middle of the heap, so I pruned downward, and about 2 feet above the ground, suspended in branches, I saw a nest. In the fall, it had been turned upside-down then crushed between big branches. Whatever babies were in the nest, had obviously been dumped out when the tree fell. I kept pruning towards the sounds below the nest, 2 more feet to get to the ground. I saw 3 little babies looking up & crying. I just reached down & scooped them up. They were very cold. I set them up with this tree's soft outer branch pieces in a 5 gal bucket & sat it in the warm afternoon sun while I made sure there was no number 4.

Anyway, I get sidetracked when it comes to living creatures needing help. I took them home & set them up in my baby bird brooder & fed them using a small watercolor paint brush & baby bird formula. They were so cold & hungry, they ate & promptly snuggled to nap. They loved the brooder warmth. I fed them overy 20 min til about 10pm & the improvement they made in just a few hours was amazing. They did not even have any mites on them. They will be ok! Today they went to Tri-State Bird Rescue where they'll be raised til they can be released & survive.

The garden...well, it got weeded & watered. The Swamp Milkweed & raspberries are all doing well. I did get the sacroiliac shots today, so I will be getting back to the garden in a couple of days.
Here are the little 3 cuties that sidetracked me.

 

[WthrLady]

Yes, I heard it's a synergy type relationship. The native ants tend to my Peonies, average size ants & teeny tiny ants. Not those large worthless Fire Ants.

OH ya, fire ants.....not a whole lot of purpose to those.

 

[Smokerbill]

I planted 16 black currant starts today. Yesterday I mowed the grass as short as possible where I decided to put the new berry patch.

This morning I started out by marking and digging out the planting locations. I amended the dirt with compost and used it to refill the holes. Then I rolled out the kraft paper, shoveled on the woodchips and planted the currants through the paper.

I leveled out the chips and watered everything in really well. It's going to take another couple loads of woodchips to get the mulch thick enough to keep the grass from growing through, but that's a tomorrow project.

If I have the energy I might set out my tomato plants later on today.

 

[WthrLady]