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On June 14, I received notification from WordPress that my post Newspapers Now on Blog for Iowa was selected for Freshly Pressed, “a showcase where (they) feature editors’ picks and community favorites on WordPress.com.” The result was an immediate and substantial increase in views and likes of the post. There are more than 60 million… Read more
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The following was posted on Bleeding Heartland as part of their “Wildflower Wednesday” series. I re-wrote an earlier post, adding new content. I appreciate Laura Belin making me part of that series. Is reed canary grass an invasive species? The photo above suggests that it is. Thriving along the lake shore, this grass formed a… Read more
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After seeing the garlic crop up close—by weeding for three hours—I can say it looks quite good. Most of the leaves are still green which means it is not quite ready. It won’t be long. As summer approaches I am ready to turn the page on the garden to focus on cooking, writing, and property… Read more
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When I accepted employment as a poll worker, I decided to buy a new shirt—one with a collar. I’m not one to spend much time on presentation, yet the white shirt with blue vertical stripes made me look more professional. I wore it on primary election day when I began a fifteen-hour shift greeting and… Read more
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Finally the garden is in! On Sunday I fenced and planted the final plot for the year. There are plenty of the usual tomatoes, greens, peppers, alliums, and curcurbits. Also growing are tomatillos, fennel, celeriac, huckleberries, and okra. A lot of good cooking and eating lies ahead. Week 10 was the first for donations to… Read more
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After a restless night, I spent about six hours preparing the final garden plot. That means clearing last year’s structures, turning the soil, fertilizing, rototilling, raking, laying down ground cover, and driving the fence posts. It’s as far as I could get today. I took a nap and was achy all over. I headed to… Read more
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After two days of heavy rain, gravity takes water from the subdivision toward the lake. We needed rain, and it looks like the garden will survive damage incurred from the heavy storms. A lot of leeks are now angled from their roots. Here is a gallery of photographs from the last two days. Read more
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My spring ritual of replenishing the shelf of vegetable broth is comforting. I enjoy lining up the quart jars on the shelf, and being able to take one from to make rice or soup. The annual process results in never running out. This year I changed the varieties of greens and the amount and mixture… Read more
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Friday after overnight and early morning rainfall I came across this common snapping turtle laying eggs next to the state park trail. This location was a few yards from the lake where the turtle spends most of its life. Because of all the foot and bicycle traffic, it is not the safest place for a… Read more
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On Monday Big Grove experienced a steady, soaking rain early in the day that transitioned into a mix of heavy downpours and thunderstorms. I was optimistic I could do some outdoors work in between scattered showers. It was a challenge. The first thing I did was inspect the previous day’s eggplant and tomato plantings. These… Read more
Tales from the pilgrimage.
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