Homestead Update 10-30-16

Just a quick post to let you know I am still alive. I haven’t had an outbreak of psoriasis in 3 weeks so maybe the medicine is finally taking effect. Our cotton is almost completely harvested and the yields were pretty good.

I made this cherry picker basket to lift up with the bucket on my front end loader on my tractor.

I had to replace the security light on the front of the shop. While I was at it I replaced my American flag. She’s flying pretty and proud ain’t she? I had to buy that light at Home Depot, they don’t sell metal halide lights at Lowe’s anymore. All they had were fluorescent and LEDs and I thought the metal halide would be brighter.

After I took the old one down, I had second thoughts however. This old one got hot enough to burn and melt the wires and ballast in the fixture, that is why it quit working. If I hadn’t already mounted the new halide light, I think I would have opted to put up an LED light. I have decided I really like the LED lights in the house even though they are really expensive up front. As the lights need replacing around here, I replace them with LEDs. Someday they will all be LEDs unless they come up with something better in the next few years.

I planted these mustard greens 4 weeks ago and they have grown big enough to pick. Sweet Thing has already picked several sacks and took them to her mother and sister. I guess the next sack will be mine. I love fresh greens!

I grew a few cantaloupes to go along with the peppers and tomatoes I grew in the raised bed I made. I am declaring the raised bed method a success! Next Summer I will have a couple of more beds ready. Until then, keep prepping everyone!

Homestead Update 8/27/16

I thought my psoriasis was getting much better until I went out to look at a cotton field and walked around for a couple of hours and got hot and sweaty.

 

Now I have this red, itchy rash again! Oh well, I guess Sweet Thing was right, it is too soon to get out and work. Man, I hate it when she’s right!

We were out looking at some cotton with a new disease for our area called Target Spot. If you look at picture closely, you can see a pile of leaves on the ground underneath the cotton plants. The leaves are supposed to still be on the plant, but the disease infected them and caused them to prematurely defoliate. That caused the cotton bolls to be underdeveloped and probably not be harvestable. There is really not a good cure for this disease, so that is just one more problem to worry with!

I did manage to check my bee hives again, and they were doing quite well. We harvested 4 frames of honey and ended up with almost a gallon of honey. Sweet!

My bees have been searching for water and I noticed them drinking out of this bucket I placed under the dripline of my barn. I use this water for watering my plants when the bucket catches some rain. I sliced some 1/4 inch slices of swimming pool noodles and placed the slices in the bucket for the bees to land on and get a drink. So far, they are not using the slices, they still land on the bucket and walk down the side to the water.

I filled up this plastic tray with rocks and fresh water and they started drinking from it as well. I guess I am going to start feeding them sugar water again. I have been looking around for plants that might be blooming to provide forage for the bees and I see very little available. I guess we are in the late season dearth. Some of the fall plants such as Goldenrod will be blooming soon, but until then they could use some supplemental feeding I think.I promised myself I would take better care of my bees this year. Last year I neglected them due to beginners ignorance, and this year I was unable to tend to them for 8 weeks due to my allergic reaction and psoriasis. Well, even though I missed the summer caring for them, there is no reason to neglect them now. Hopefully next year will be the year they finally improve and excel. Until then, keep prepping everyone!

Homestead Update 8/20/16

I am happy to report my psoriasis is getting better every day! I decided to go outside today since it was overcast and cooler. It has been raining here off and on for ten days straight. That is bad news for our crops. The bolls are rotting on the cotton, the pods are shedding off of the soybeans, and the corn ears are sprouting on the stalk. In fact, I went outside while it was raining. I think it rained over an inch in 30 minutes, it just poured down. There was no lightening so I felt it was safe to be outside. I wanted to look at my culverts while it was raining; now I know why they washed out. The water was running so deep in the side ditch where I have the two small culverts, the water was overflowing the crossings. The water has never been that swift and deep in that ditch previously, so I think someone must have changed something upstream. There must be a new ditch or terrace dumping water into my ditch that wasn’t there before. This winter, I will walk upstream and see if I can see what is going on.

After the rain let up, I brought out my 45 Colt for a little target practice. I am so sick of being cooped up inside, I really needed to hear something go BOOM! I had my pistol in this nice leather bag I bought at the Goodwill for $2. I don’t know who Chuck is, but I am glad he donated his bag. I need to keep my shooting skills sharp because no matter who wins the election this Fall, things are going to be bad. It will just be a matter of whether things get bad fast or get bad slow! It is really hard to believe these two &^%$# are the only choices we have now. Keep prepping everyone, and keep practicing your shooting skills, the Zombies are coming!

Flooding In Louisiana

I saw this today and it made me laugh out loud. Sometimes truth is found in the funny papers.

My allergic reaction is over and I am getting over my psoriasis slowly but surely. Do any of you have psoriasis and do you have any tips and advice for me? I’m starting to feel like my old self again so maybe I will start posting again soon. Keep prepping everyone!