Feast For The Frogs!

  At daybreak, the Boysenberries were sparkling like jewels on the vines. My bucket was fast filling to the brim which made me smile as I thought of the delicious pie that I had made just the night before.  These, however, would be made into jelly.  Picking was easy since these berries are huge.  Normally, I reach in, grab a berry and plop it in the bucket with nary a thought.  Perhaps I should change my method as one berry was covered with critters!  Ugh!

  One adult leaffooted bug was surrounded by a whole slew of nymphs. This, in itself, was a tad strange as the bugs do not care for their young. They lay the eggs and leave.  The eggs and nymphs are left on their own. But it was not the presence of the adult that frustrated me.  Those rascals were sucking the juice right out of my berries!  Nope, not happening!  Sorry. Bugs you have to go.  While I hate spraying chemicals on my plants that provide food, I am not adverse to snipping a limb and tossing it into the frog pond.  There the frogs can do the dirty work.  Sure enough, once the branch hit the water, the nymphs scattered. This sent the frogs into a feeding frenzy which did nothing but make me smile!  Way to go, froggies!  

  The leaffooted bugs are a regular nuisance as they not only suck the juice from fruit, they can ruin entire crops depending upon their numbers.  With my berries under attack, it was only commonsense to eradicate this bunch while they were still nymphs. It only takes a few days before they mature enough to lay a billion (at least it seems that way) eggs on the underside of the leaves.  Our lack of winter this past year seems to have graced us with more bugs than necessary.  My contribution is to feed the frogs as many as possible.  Love my frogs!

Endless but Delicious!

  Endless!  Yep, it seems like this chore is endless.  For the past two weeks or so, I have gotten up at daybreak to pick the Boysenberries. The early morn is the chosen time for this task as I merely wish to beat the birds to my berries.  It seems that critters like these about as much or more than I do!  Now, however, it seems like this is an never-ending quest.  For some strange reason the berries just keep making!  I have given berries away to folks, filled my freezer space and eaten far more than I should every day.  All in all, a total of seventeen gallons have been harvested so far this season.  Not that I am complaining, though, as I do indeed like to pick berries.  Contrary to what most folks claim, berry-picking is a relaxing task.  Being in the garden at sunrise gives me time to meditate.  Birds are singing, frogs are chirping and I am picking!

  The Boysenberry is one of those oldtime hand pollinated breeds of berries.  Some say it is a cross between not only the (once believed) blackberry and raspberry but, also, dewberry and loganberry.  When you throw all those together something good just has to happen!  The berries are large and not too very sweet but make the best pies, tarts, scones and jelly!

  With the amount that I have already picked and the amount that are still on the vine, it seems to me that I will have plenty to share with my kids.  Some of these fine berries will be headed to Georgia two weeks from now and the others will be stowed in my daughter's freezer. Tomorrow, I plan to try my hand at making some non-churned Boysenberry ice cream!  Yum! Good things are coming from the garden!

It made me smile!

  Today was a "work in the garden" day.  I was out at daybreak picking the Boysenberries and pulling weeds.  Next came fertilizing and "hilling" the okra and cucumbers, then transplanting dozens more tomato and pepper plants.  The tomatoes needed their cages while the radishes needed thinning.  All in all, the garden is flourishing.  We still have some grand specimens of Swiss Chard and the broccoli is trying to give a go at a fifth bearing this year. These are leftovers from the winter garden but the summer garden is in full swing!  In this small garden, cucumbers grow on the wire arbor walkthrough and everything with the exception of the okra is planted in raised boxes.  The box gardening is a necessity due to an invasion of voles.  It is one of those "if you can't beat them, outsmart them" type fixes that most seasoned gardeners initiate when all else fails.  

  My morning was full of surprises.  As I worked, I found that many of the plants were blooming and some are setting fruits already.  Besides the berries, I was tickled to find tiny figs, squash and peppers!  It shouldn't be long now before we are feasting upon the fruits of our labor!  The day was rounded out by the harvesting and drying of mint for tisanes this year.  Two quarts of dried, ground mint leaves are now taking up space on the pantry shelf.  Ahh, yes!  The garden makes me smile!

Sure Signs of Spring!

Spring is here!  Hurrah!!  Yep, spring is definitely here.  Our weather has said this long ago with the temperatures reaching the mid-eighties during the daytime hours but some things take a bit longer.  Today, however, I can truthfully say that the season is in full swing.  How do I know this?  Grasshoppers and berry blooms!  It seems that these two things are harbingers of spring here on the Bayou.

The grasshoppers are of the Eastern Lubber type and are the ones that wreak havoc on the hillside.  They have a tendency to eat every green leaf in sight.  I was a bit disappointed to see quite as many this year as in the past.  I thought that we were getting rid of a good many and perhaps would see a lull in their reproduction this spring.  No such luck.  The critters are covering the volunteer blackberry bushes.  (These are the little ones that are not in a row yet!)  It will not be long before the entire back yard is jet black with their squirmy little selves!  Everyone in the household will start doing the "Grasshopper Dance" as we try to kill as many as possible.  (Before anyone complains about this...come take a walk through my yard and see if you do not agree that something has to be done!  If a goodly many of these critters do not meet their doom, there will not be a sprig of green anywhere within two weeks!)  In just a matter of five or six weeks, the grasshoppers will be a full three inches in length with the appetite of elephant! Yep...these guys do scream spring with their coming.  Not a happy part of spring by a long shot but still, spring.

The other sure sign of spring is the berry blossoms.  The blackberries or Boysenberries (whichever you prefer) are in full bloom!  The hedgerows are solid white with their one inch diameter blooms! This is such a pretty sight in the early morning sunlight! I love seeing the millions of blooms although this does mean that next month (in the summer's heat) I will be picking those millions of berries!   Still, that delights me as all of that picking leads to jars and jars of jelly!  The shelves can be restocked and there will be plenty to share with others who come to the Little Bayou House.

So, in all honesty, I can say that spring has come to the Bayou.  All signs point to no more winter for this year!  Now to get ready for heat, humidity and the coming of hurricane season..oh, my.