Pollinator Paradise

I cannot say enough about the satisfaction that has come from naturalizing more of our immediate yard. It's been an explosion of native wildflowers that start in the spring with early ephemeral blooms to feed the newly emergent insects who feed the newly-arriving migratory birds.  This persists into the harvest season and autumn months as bees gather pollen and nectar for their colonies and migratory birds pass thru as they wing their way south.  Even our non-migrating birds are packing-away additional insect protein in preparation for the coming winter months.

Doggo and I went fut to  check on what's happening early yesterday morning.

Canada and stiff goldenrod area popular dining spot this time of year.... 

 

Restoration

This photo was taken the spring of 1995 the year following our purchase of the farm.  That's the original barn in the background and the well house (pump house) in the foreground.  I took the photo below of the same view just the other day.

An interesting historical factoid about this place is that the original house never had running water or indoor plumbing.  Pictured is the pump house.  It happens to be the newest of the original buildings and likely was constructed about the time rural electrification arrived.  Evidence supporting this theory?  The studs in the building are dimensional lumber milled precisely 2X4 inches (none of them sixteen inches on center), the siding was wood Dutch lap board and the surviving electrical work in the building dates to the period of the late 1930s to early 1940s.  As near as I can tell power arrived along our stretch of road sometime between 1937 and 1942.  

The shallow well in this building and an additional one in the yard were properly plugged, abandoned and registered with the county more than twenty-five years ago.  Inside this building is the original pump-jack and electric motor that delivered water via an overhead pipe to the barn.  Indeed, the livestock had running water.

In any event, about the time we constructed the house the pump house received a facelift.  The asphalt siding had been previously removed and it got a new roof.  I constructed new casings and installed replacement windows.  It got a couple of paint jobs too.  Because we have indoor plumbing we store garden tools and potting supplies in it.  Alas, over the last few decades the aging process persisted and by the time last winter rolled-around we were pondering our options for a deteriorating shed.  

The original log house was sold to someone from Chicago who disassembled it and hauled it away shortly before we purchased the property.  We hired a guy to dismantle the barn and clean-up the site.  No money changed hands in exchange for the salvage of the original posts, beams and siding.  Our house was constructed on the barn footprint.  We previously restored the original granary which dates to the Belgian settlement of the mid to latter 1800s.  Our sad-looking pump house is the second and last of the original buildings on this farmstead.  Our choices included:  Total demolition and removal.  Demolition, removal and replacement with an Amish-manufactured shed.  And partial demolition and restoration in-place.  

Weighing costs and other considerations we opted for the latter.  It was much more than a cosmetic  facelift so I'd characterize it as a complete facelift, tummy tuck and boob job.  The interior is unchanged thus preserving the old; but the exterior is new.  It's maintenance-free too.  And I gotta say, we're tickled with the results.

The only thing left for us to do is spread gravel around the base to keep dirt splatter off the siding; and tidy-up the interior.  That white cedar may have to go too.  That's worth pondering. 

If anybody in the neighborhood is looking for a talented handyman I gotta guy you should meet. 

 

Click on images for a closer look

Prickly Critter

I haven’t seen one of these in a while. A couple of decades ago, one casually strolled through our yard like he owned the joint. As a dog owner, I put these ahead of skunks as least-desired wildlife encounters.

The name for this critter ultimately comes from Latin words meaning “spiny pig,” although it shares no biological connection with pigs. It is a rodent; in fact, the second-largest rodent on the continent, second only to the beaver.

Meet Erethizon dorsatum — the North American Porcupine. These large rodents have coats of modified hairs composed primarily of keratin, with some of those hairs forming sharp quills that serve as a defense against predators.

There are two families of porcupines in the world. Ours belong to the New World family, which ranges from North America to northern South America. Porcupines indigenous to parts of Europe, Asia and Africa belong to the Old World family. The two groups are distinct families, with New World porcupines generally smaller and notably adapted to climbing trees. Old World porcupines are primarily terrestrial and many are nocturnal.

Naturally, the porcupine can go about its business without being in a hurry. From the video, you can note the short, stocky body, short legs and leisurely sauntering gait. Quills are dark brown to black, with the longest quills and guard hairs often having pale or white tips. The feet are equipped with strong, curved claws well adapted for climbing. Porcupines commonly shelter in hollow trees, fallen logs, rock crevices and other natural cavities.

This is an herbivore, preferring tree leaves and buds, green plants and the soft inner bark of trees. The female is receptive to breeding for only about 8–12 hours in October-November, with gestation taking a very long seven months. A single youngster is born in May or June. A newborn porcupette (yes, that’s the name) comes fully equipped with quills, erupted teeth and eyes open. It begins eating solid food very early, is weaned after about a month and generally becomes independent by late summer or early autumn.

Porcupines can be a nuisance as a consequence of their salt-seeking behavior and will gnaw on anything with sodium deposits, including tools like axe handles that have human perspiration on them. Many years ago, it was a porcupine that gnawed the high-pressure transmission lines on my Toyota 4Runner for the accumulated road salt. A delicacy, I suspect.

Fast Facts: The porcupine has relatively few natural predators. Among them, the fisher is particularly well known for hunting and killing porcupines; large raptors such as the Great Horned Owl can also take them. Like mice, beavers and squirrels, a porcupine’s front incisors never stop growing and must be worn down by gnawing. Porcupines do not throw their quills.

New Record

Per AAA the average price of diesel topped its 2022 record high this morning, spiking to $5.85 per gallon.  The previous record was $5.816 set in June 2022.

Farmers, truckers and freight companies have been absorbing higher diesel costs since Mr. Trump made a unilateral decision to go to war with Iran in February.

The ballooning price indirectly affects households by putting inflationary pressure on anything Americans buy that's carried by truck, which is just about everything.

While the strangling of the Strait of Hormuz cast the global market into disarray, Ukraine's highly effective drone campaign targeting Russian refineries has further strained worldwide diesel refinery capacity.

Trump has single-handedly set in motion a cascade of destabilizing events that have dangerous consequences for global stability, security and the world's economy.

Friday Humor

The innuendo begins immediately making this SNL sketch a masterclass of the double entendre.  Kudos to Amy Poehler, Rachel Dratch, Chris Parnell and Christopher Walken for not breaking character.

Best skit ever... 

The Tunnel of Doom

Years ago I got it in my head to cut a trail from east to west (or west to east) to see if the deer would prefer to walk on it.  I wasn't necessarily doing this for their convenience as there were two deer stands positioned within roughly a hundred yards of each end - the new Stand of Death 2.0 on the east, an older (but in really good shape) metal tower to the west and a third wooden guard tower in the middle.

The trail is a quarter mile in length and - yes - the deer prefer it.  I don't know if they're lazy or easily duped; although I think it is the former and not the latter.  

As the trees have grown-up the trail has gotten tighter.  Nevertheless, if I mow it and trim some branches a couple of times each year I haven't had any trouble keeping it open.  As a matter of fact, in some sections it has become more like a tunnel.

The Tunnel of Doom

Some of you may think that this affords the hunter an unfair advantage.  I would disagree.  With their keen sniffer and sharp vision it is the whitetail who generally has the advantage.  Think of this as creating three ambush points.  That is fair chase.  If we put out piles of corn and shot the hapless deer casually feeding on a corn pile that would be an unfair advantage.  While it is perfectly legal (so far) we don't hunt deer over corn as that is mere shooting and requires no patience or skill.  But I digress.

Here's some images recently captured before, during and after.

Mama and the twins...

 

Me on the New Holland Boomer going...

And returning....

Me and Ruby servicing the trail cameras on this particular day...

And the tunnel.....

 

American Culinary Dominance

The advertisement below dates back to 1964.

This was a time when home freezer ownership was becoming commonplace.  At least it was in our household.  I clearly remember the big, upright Sears Frost Free Coldspot  freezer prominently ensconced next to the ancient beer fridge in the basement laundry room.  

That freezer was a godsend as it allowed mom to freeze seasonal fruit, berries, homemade applesauce and her delicious baked goods.  We'd stock-up on bakery from the day-old bread store and all manner of grocery sale items that could stand freezing found their way there.  Amazingly, that freezer was still running when I bought my first house in 1984 and it was moved into my basement laundry room where it delivered years of maintenance-free service before the power company offered me a $100 savings bond to haul it away. 

Anyway, back in the mid 1960s the market for TV dinners and convenience foods, including frozen pizzas, was expanding and naturally, Chef Boy-Ar-Dee dipped their toe in the market.

Ironically, I have no memory of a frozen pizza served our household; although we could get carryout from a local pizzeria on rare celebratory occasions.  Chef Boy-Ar-Dee was a major player in the convenience meal niche and having dominated the boxed pizza kit sector the Chef brought to market a premade frozen pizza.  Simple cheese or sausage and cheese. 

Clearly the advertising is targeted to teenagers and their parents touting the frozen pizza as the ultimate party-perfect food; freezer to table in minutes.

Notably, this was the peak of Chef Boy-Ar-Dee as an independent company.  In 1966 the brand was acquired by American Home Products; a national leader in convenience food offerings.

I have to say, the pizza pictured is not very appealing.  There, again, frozen pizzas were a novelty in 1964; and after sixty years of culinary evolution they now command their own territory in the frozen foods section of a grocery to accommodate the selection.  That's impressive progress for sure. 

I should add that I have admittedly become a pizza snob; and make my own sourdough pizza and bread dough.  I make pizza sauce made from San Marzano tomatoes grown - not in the rich volcanic soils in the shadow of Mount Vesuvius - but in marginal Door County soil in the shadow of Brussels Hill.  

And I'm rather adept at it.