What is it?

Apparently, when I bought the zucchini and squash plants in the spring we got something a little extra. When they are small they are kind of hard to tell apart. Now that this one has grown and spread all over the place it is pretty obvious that it is NOT a zucchini or a squash plant.

At first I thought it might be a cucumber plant but that does not look like a cucumber. It has gotten fatter and is starting to develop a rough exterior similar to a cantaloupe. We suspect it may be a type of melon but to be honest we have no idea. So if anyone has any suggestions as to what it is, let me know!

This is a better picture of the leaves which may help with identification.

Even though we are still having a heat wave we have gotten a little relief. We have gotten a little rain which has helped the garden immensely and the temperatures have backed off of the 110+ mark. We are still having triple digit temps but the plants seem to be doing a little better. The sweet potatoes are doing pretty well and one of the tomato plants has decided to put out more than one tomato. Even though I got the watermelon plants in late, they have started to produce some female flowers and looks like a couple of them have pollinated. Hopefully we'll get at least a couple by the end of the season!

If we are going to have a fall garden I have to get off my duff and get things started. The fall seed potatoes still have not come in at the feed store but I'm hoping to get some of those as soon as they do. I have to admit that this year was not the best year to try your hand at a first time garden but I think we have done as well as we could given the heat and the drought. We have learned a lot this year so I'm sure we'll be able to do better next year. Now, if we can just get that chicken coop finished...

TPH Episode 28

Welcome back Homesteaders! Today we take a closer look at how we came by the idea of the perfect lawn and how we can change it. Today's Creepy Critter is the Big Eyed Bug and we have a real life tale from the Appalachian Mountains.

http://www.american-lawns.com/history/history_lawn.html

http://organiclawncare101.com/history.html

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/07/21/garden/in-philadelphia-a-garden-grows-wild.html?_r=3&pagewanted=1&ref=todayspaper

Food Not Lawns: How to Turn Your Yard into a Garden And Your Neighborhood into a Community by H. C. Flores

Big Eyed Bug

Hot Hot Hot!

Can I say that again? Oh my gosh it's hot! We have been suffering with 100+ temperatures since the middle of June and it's really beginning to take its toll. The garden isn't looking to good due to the heat and the lack of rain. The zucchini plants and the squash have given up but the tomatoes are hanging in there.

This time of year it may seem impossible to grow anything but we do have a few plants that seem to be doing well despite the baking temperatures.  Being new to gardening we are still learning a lot and one of the big things we learned this year is we need to start earlier and we need to learn which plants do well in the heat so we can still have something growing in the summer. Sweet potatoes do very well in warmer temperatures and ours have taken off. They love the heat and have been growing quite well. Maybe we will get a decent sweet potato crop this year.

Several of the herbs seem to be enjoying the warm weather as well. The sage plant had taken off when it was cooler but its growth seemed to have slowed as the temperatures got warmer. I harvested the taller stalks and now it is growing vigorously again. Despite the temperatures the mint is doing great! One of the plants in particular is well shaded and has been growing like mad. I have already had to harvest some so it can continue to grow. Some of the other herbs that are thriving include the thyme, marjoram, lemon balm, and bee balm.

Recently we went to a feed store that we had not been to previously. We found tendergreen bush bean and wando pea seeds. Both of these are supposed to be heat tolerant so this may be something we go ahead and try this year. If we plant them soon, they could be ready by fall. If we don't try them this year we will definitely put them on our list of summer plants for next year.

I can honestly say that we have learned some valuable lessons this year with our garden. You can read all you want to, but by getting in there and doing it you will learn more than any book can teach you. Hopefully we can take our lessons from the spring and have a more successful fall garden. 

TPH-Episode 27

Welcome back Homesteaders! Have you melted yet? We're doing our best not to but the heat is taking a toll on the garden. In today's show we will be discussing the element of Fire and we cover Tennessee Fainting Goats in the Ancestral Animals segment. To start with though, I touch on the issues with the debt ceiling and rant on for a bit about gardens in the front yard.

Grow veggies = Go to jail
http://www.treehugger.com/files/2011/07/michigan_woman_faces_jail_planting_veggie_garden.php
http://oakparkhatesveggies.wordpress.com/

Wood Cook stoves
http://www.lehmans.com/store/Stoves___Cook_Stoves___Wood_Burning_Cook_Stoves___The_Sweetheart_Wood_Cookstove___2603?Args=

Masonry Heaters
http://mha-net.org/
http://www.grannysstore.com/Do-It-Yourself/masonry_stoves.htm

Rocket Stoves
http://rocketstove.org/

Ancestral Animals



International Fainting Goat Association John Savage 1039 State Route 168 Darlington, PA  16115  USA Office phone: 724-843-2084 Office fax: 724-891-1440 Office email: IFGA@accuRegister.com www.faintinggoat.com

Myotonic Goat Registry Tara Lawrence 3174 Valley Ford Road Adger, AL  35006  USA Office phone: 205-425-5954 Cell: 205-451-9442 Office email: myotonicgoatregistry@yahoo.com www.myotonicgoatregistry.net

Books
Permaculture: A Designers Manual by Bill Mollison  www.powells.com

Earthbag Building by Kai Hunter and Donald Kiffmeyer  ISBN 978-0-86571-507-3

TPH-Episode 26

Finally! After getting through some technical difficulties I finally was able to get this episode up. My apologies for being late but hopefully the next one will go a little smoother. In today's show I talk about wind turbines and introduce today's Not So Creep Critter, the Assassin Bug.

Not so Creepy Critters


Book Review
The Foxfire Book: Hog Dressing, Log Cabin Building, Mountain Crafts and Foods, Planting by the Signs, Snake Lore, Hunting Tales, Faith Healing, Moonshining by Inc. Foxfire Fund and Eliot Wigginton

Ball Complete Book of Home Preserving by Judi Kingry and Lauren Devine