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The Summer of My Discontent
Like it or not, and I don’t, gardening can be a bit competitive. I mostly compete with people in books: Eliot Coleman, Ruth Stout, Barbara Damrosch and Wendell Berry. No matter what I do at least one of them disapproves. Certainly the fact that I’m not...Daucus carota
Daucus carota Carrots are too often ignored as a source of great joy. When boy one was even smaller than he is now we fed him all sorts of blended and stewed veggies. He loved “carrots” and “chicken with butternut squash.” He even went for...The trouble with men
Hectic ain’t the half of it. This weekend I planted, mulched, packed, fenced, weeded, tended, and attended a dinner party. I am now, I’m afraid, officially an adult. I seldom use “party” as a verb, and most often it has an adjectival modifier....Seed Dormancy
I performed an unintentional experiment this past winter. One of my neighbors purchased a bunch of worm castings for her garden. She used what she wanted then gave me a 1/2 gallon ziploc bag full of the rest (neither this blogger nor the parent company of this blogger...Children turn to the dark side.
Children turn to the dark side. Late last summer my older son decided to sell some of our produce in front of the house. A farm stand, if you will. I picked him some beans, tomatoes and lettuce. He set up shop with relatively reasonable prices. Several minutes later...Striped cucumber beetle Acalymma vittatum
striped cucumber beetle Acalymma vittatum Today I’m writing about evil. Not just bad, like glass used for paving a bike path. Not just wrong like Michelle Bachmann’s opinions (http://politicalhumor.about.com/od/republicans/a/michele-bachmann-quotes.htm),...Root nodules
Raspberries are full of thorns, and as such, proper protective gear should be worn during harvest. ****** This weekend one of my favorite spring vegetables had to end it’s short life. Back in April I planted my peas with much trepidation. I’d had some bad...Neighborhood knuckledragger
In our household the boss is known for her good decision making. We will leave aside her decision to buy zoo zoo pets for the children this week. We should also ignore the foolhardy decision to marry a graduate student. She generally goes to bed at an appropriate time...Billions of Berries
The picture above was taken in the early evening as the heat became bearable and I arose from my lethargy. As you can see the plants have grown quite a bit since the last time I posted a full garden picture. On the right you can see where the peas were — carrots...Liberty cabbage
Spelling is not easy for me. I don’t like the word sauerkraut. If “au” sounds like “ou” at the end of the word, why not the beginning too? Why the extra “e”? We borrow too many words. We should make up our own name for this...Birdhaven
In the distant past I took a class in small fruit production at the Looniveristy. The boss thought that was the best title for a class that she’d ever heard. I was and am very interested in anything to do with small fruits. Some of my favorite fruits are small...Chicken Time
Keeping chickens has been remarkably trouble free thus far. Before getting them I read Storey’s guide to raising chickens. This is the rough equivalent of a hypochondriac reading the Physicians Desk Reference. I was prepared for my chickens to suffer from...Lichenology
Lichenology Last week in this space I wrote about humans as an invasive species. This week I wish to propose another possibility. This was suggested by a very slow walk up Bare Mt while monitoring our shortest indigent boarder. When a walk that short takes a few...Toxicodendron radicans
You may have heard of a popular search engine named after a very large number. If I type the word “poison” into this search engine, I am directed to an embarassing time from my past. Yikes! Yikes squared, this is a recent picture, these gentlemen are still...Chickens make terrible farmers.
Chickens make terrible farmers. The boarders have a few books about the labor relations between a farmer and his livestock. The first one, Cows that Type, details a labor action started by the cows but ultimately including the ducks and chickens as well. After...Tough gardening
We had a rough bit of heat for a few weeks followed by some good rain and a bit of a cool down. This has been ideal for most of the plant life in my yard. As I mentioned in my last post, I had to chase down my family last week. This was made more difficult as they...It was time
There are many lovely things about chez grouch, but one underappreciated aspect is that most of the trees overhanging our yard are actually growing in other people’s yards. This means that they own the leaves and so have to rake them. At least that’s my...Willdness
On my commute to work I pedal over the mini-coolidge bridge, I guess it could be called the Charles G. Dawes vice bridge. Sometimes I stop and look north (away from Silent Cal’s bridge). I’m always impressed by the J. Elwell Conservation area stretching up...Aphids suck
When you think of aphids, you no doubt think of the alt-country band from Basel, Switzerland and their single “I don’t want to go to heaven” (because they’re closing all the bars). Perhaps you think of the Soviet era missile nicknamed...Growing like weeds, with spikes
I have written about respberries several times over the course of the last few months. Last year’s harvest was dissapointing at least in part because of poor pruning and trellising on the part of my yard boy. This year I decided to change all of that, I fired...Larcenous bees
The boarders love blueberries. We pick a bundle every year at Birdhaven Blueberry farm. That hardly satisfies the yearly need. My parents have wild blueberries that my mother collects by the jug-full each August when she’s not busy worrying. We eat these in...A forest needs a fish like a man needs a bicycle
One of my favorite radio programs is “living on earth.” The host and journalists aren’t confrontationally leftist like Amy Goodman and her colleagues at Democracy Now! (not that there’s anything wrong with that): the “loe” people...Crop spins
Crop spins If Northampton zoning laws were as they should be, when I felt my soil fertility had declined, I’d just go into the next yard, cut down all the trees and grass then wait for the dry season (based on this year, that would be the winter). I’d burn...Tomato Mystery
Oh the humanity! I love my tomatoes. I mean, sure everybody loves tomatoes, but I really love tomatoes. When one of my plants suffers, in some real way I suffer. This afternoon I came home to find one of my plants suffering: It had probably been suffering for a while...It's getting real.
These two photos are separated by a week. You’ll immediately note that the weather is better in the second image. We did have one lovely weekend. You might also notice how clearly lazy I am; the hose is still there. I did manage to move the green rubber ball. In...Fried green potatoes
Potatoes (Solanum tuberosum) are in the nightshade or solonaceae family. When Linnaeus a noted Sweedish perve, first started classifying plants he did it in part based on the way the flowers looked. If you wonder through a garden, you will notice that tomato, potato...dirt is not soil
Sometimes in passing some citified slicker will claim to be working the dirt in his/her garden. I usually smile politely and edge away. Gardens don’t have dirt in them, they have soil. The difference lies not only in the connotation of “dirt” and...Cantaloupe
I have only recently begun growing Cucumis melo var. cantalupensis. A good cantaloupe delights me and monster #2. We sit an munch away at breakfast while monster #1 prattles on about pokemon or some such rot. The smell alone, the musk, can set my mouth to watering....Corn armor
I wish I had some armor for my corn. Some years ago I grew corn but didn’t wind up eating a single ear. All of the ears were consumed either by evil ear boring caterpillars or raccoons. Sweet corn is delicious and the varmints know it. Corn is also a big feeder;...Opiliones sp.
I spent the most recent on a secludedish island with several associates. We canoed out for a weekend of quiet reverence and prayerful vigils. Needless to say, the talk turned to daddy long legs, or “harvestmen” as wikipedia says they are commonly called....New additions
We have again expanded the animal population of the household. Apparently her name is Balance, because, according to the “gentleman” in the picture she’s “really good at balancing, no, like, really.” I might also take this moment to...Come on Irene!
Certainly I’m the first to make that allusion. As I write the rain gently falls outside, but I’ve been assured by some time tomorrow my dead bloated body will be floating down the Mill River as our town is ravaged by a category 16 hurricane. In preparation...Bucket of rain
Bucket of rain The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center just outside of Austin, TX has an assortment of rainwater catchment systems. These satisfy all of the center’s horticultural needs. Of course they only grow native plants, so the need is lower. Nevertheless,...Freezing beans and an unfortunate guest.
In my last blogulation, I discussed the hurried harvest brought on by Ms. Irene. When a lot of food comes in, I must do something with it: I dried basil in the dehydrator, I’m making tomato sauce (more on this later), I’m drying the potatoes and the...Want some politics with your hay?
I can’t say I’m exactly a devotee of the Ruth Stout method of gardening, but as with lots of other methods, I’ve picked bits I like. http://www.motherearthnews.com/Organic-Gardening/2004-02-01/Ruth-Stouts-System.aspx Briefly, her method consists of...Founding Gardeners
Andrea Wulf’s founding gardeners has gotten a lot of play in recent months. By “a lot of play,” I mean I heard interviews with the author on “All things considered,” and the locally produced book show “Writer’s Voice.”...Terroir
I’m a recovering Catholic and as such feel guilt about most things. When I’m at work, I feel guilty for not being with my children. When I’m at home, I know I should be working because it’s difficult to avoid the children at home. Work has, for...Remembrance of things past
I’ve been disappointed by my tomato harvest this year. Initially I wanted to react as the two boarders do: sit down in the middle of the floor and cry or scream until someone makes me go to my room for awhile. The boss got tired of this behavior, so I have...Papas
My reader has sent me a question, so I thought I’d answer it. The question: “I planted some potatoes this year. The plants are now enormous and very exciting. Before I hacked up the seed potatoes, dried them out, and planted them, I listened carefully to...White people ruined the continent day
In spring, I’ve been told, a young man’s fancy lightly turns to love. This may have been true for Tennyson, but when I was a young man, my thoughts of love weren’t light. Now that I’m old I question whether Tennyson was really talking about a...Succession
My parents have fled far from civilization into northern New Hampshire. This ensures that they will see few people, a prospect which delights them. They mention it a lot when I show up with the children. Their back “yard” is really just a former potato...Circinate Vernation
circinate vernation An upraised is what one might call a “floating signifier.” One sentence and I’m already out as an effete northeastern liberal. If referring to semiotics makes me a liberal so be it! I know that in some contexts an upraised fist...Children gone wild.
We went to stay at my folks’ place up in New hampshire this weekend. They’ve kind of let the place go to seed. At least they’re showing their patriotism. A trip up to New Hampshire can sometimes be a bit trying for the indigent boarders. They are...Faith in the seed.
I have a neighbor who enjoys gardening but has been thrown out of her house this spring by contractors intent on making my house look crappier. I often time my plantings by hers. She feels the itch about the same time I do, but tends to be of a more hopeful spirit....Native Corn
I used to visit my grandfather in Narragansett, RI pretty frequently. In the summer, roadsides became dense with signs proclaiming the availability of “native sweet corn.” I’m not sure whether their claims to “nativeness” would stand up...Weed, Goats etc.
The garden is finally feeling like a garden. I’ve got onions in on the far left. In the central of the three dark beds is a mixed bed: spinach, carrots, lettuce and some radishes. They’re all coming up from seed and pretty tiny yet. I don’t plant...Choppin Broccoli
In the mid 80’s I lived in a country without Saturday Night Live. It also lacked malls and all of the wonderful sights and sounds that these offered teenagers. In my mid-teens this seemed like an affront to my American personhood. I bitched about it quite a bit....Humble Bumble
The humble bumble I stepped out this morning to attend to my chores. The indigent boarders let the chickens out these days, but don’t feed or water them. If you don’t water a chicken it’ll dry up and blow away in the wind. So one of my chores is to...Mr. Stink
My corner of Northampton has a pretty diverse population of wild beasts. Bears sometimes stroll through on their way to the meadows. Herons fly over most nights returning to the heronry and at dusk the air fills first with swifts and swallows then with bats cleansing...Sparrow grass
Sparrow grass Shortly after moving into our first house I made a trench in the backyard and put down some asparagus crowns. The spot didn’t get enough light and over the next few years I never really got a satisfying harvest. The plants also got infested with...Advocate
Advocate Here at chez Rounds dinner is a routine affair. This stems largely from the finicky eating habits of the elder indigent boarder. Tonight we had black beans with rice. It’s his favorite. The younger favors split pea soup, again with rice. That’s...Transplanting is a terrible thing to do.
Transplanting is a terrible thing to do. When I was a youth my parents moved us around a lot. Frequently, they came withus. The common explanation given had something to do with my father’s profession, but since I never listened to my parents I have no idea what...Garlic
In the movie Goodfella’s the wiseguys in jail don’t live with the other prisoners. They have their own lock-up and it really doesn’t seem all that bad. Dinner in particular was a big deal: “Pauli did the prep work, he was doing a year for...Rain Day
I do think it’s appropriate that we’ve finally gotten some rain on earth day. I took advantage of the weather to transplant the broccoli, cabbage and brussels sprouts. This kind of weather is perfect. I added a whole lot of dried blood (4lbs/100 square ft)...Life liberty and the pursuit of happiness.
In these officially if not philosophically united (adj) states (n, not proper), we have several “founding documents.” Amongst these, the two most often quoted are the Constitution and the Declaration of Independence. To your average Joe (six-pack, plumber...Broody
Last April I succombed and bought some chicks. At first they kept me up at night because I made the mistake of keeping them in our bedroom: I was worried they’d get cold. A few months later they were living in the garage. Now they have survived a winter and seem...Mea culpa
Most scientists cling to the passive voice in the belief that it makes their writing more objective sounding. I’ve worked with a frequently mad scientist who believes he is one of the finer writers in the field. He contends that scientific authors should use...Omnivores
This spring I’ve had a series of new critters visiting Chez Rounds. I, well really some of the animals, have found 3 baby snakes. At this point they are four or five inches long and cute as bugs’ ears (as Grannie Rounds used to say). I’ve rescued one...More corn
The garden today looks a little bare to me, but when I look back at a post from about a year ago it looked about the same.I’ve harvested onions and garlic and some f the fall crops are still coming in. I won’t despair yet. Off to the far right of the...E-Edition
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