tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-25827723732227797442024-03-18T00:17:51.071-05:00MadCityMike's BlogMadCityMikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14694682551650633240noreply@blogger.comBlogger1452125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2582772373222779744.post-21247404235263919992015-12-18T11:10:00.003-06:002015-12-18T11:10:43.735-06:00"After a LONG Hiatus..........."Good snowy morning to one and all! After being absent for so long, I thought I should write a short post to wish everyone a Happy Holiday season.<br />
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We had snow earlier this winter, but after that snowfall we enjoyed warmer temperatures, melting all that had accumulated. This morning brought snow with it and it now is beginning "to look a lot like Christmas"........for awhile anyway. Who knows what turn the weather will take by next Friday.<br />
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Here is a photo of this mornings snowfall......<br />
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Our girls are none too happy with this change in the weather. Not one of them has ventured outside sine the snow began. I took this photo from the kitchen window, thus the "screen" shot. :)<br />
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Don sent me this photo taken by our "Chicken Cam" of all 10 girls and their version of how a snow day should be spent. :)<br />
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Enjoy the end of 2015 and anticipate a very happy 2016!MadCityMikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14694682551650633240noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2582772373222779744.post-6459923779043096962015-10-08T07:12:00.002-05:002015-10-08T07:12:41.532-05:00"More Garden Re-Arranging......."<span style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">"Finally", after being here 3 growing seasons, I started on the removal of the low raised bed that had been in place when we moved here. The raised bed behind the 4'x4' caged raised bed will be moved to this area where the soil is being removed.</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">The old raised bed was only about 6" above the ground level, and as some of you may remember, our soil is almost pure sand, so 6" isn't very much amended soil. My "grand plan" is to move both of my 4'x8' raised beds to that area, where they will have 1/2" poultry netting attached to the bottoms of the raised beds, in hopes of deterring the c</span><span class="text_exposed_show" style="color: #141823; display: inline; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">hipmunks from burrowing underneath and into them, but that meant removing the 6" of amended soil. </span><br />
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<span class="text_exposed_show" style="color: #141823; display: inline; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px;">I've now removed half of the old raised beds soil and moved the previously built raised bed to the prepared area where I attached the poultry netting to the bottom, it is now set in place and ready to be refilled. I will begin filling it by using the 2nd half of the old raised beds amended soil as the base, then fill it with the composted straw mixture that was previously in it.</span><br />
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The following photo shows how the straw and "Wholly Cow" (composted cow manure and peat moss) have broken down and and mixed well together, creating a wonderfully dark growing medium. This is what I will use to top off the amended soil from the low raised bed.<br />
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This is the other 4'x8' raised bed that I plan on moving once all the old amended soil is removed. I am also thinking about redoing the "greenhouse topper" after seeing a photo of one on Facebook that seems sturdier and easier to work with while open. If I do, I will certainly post about it. :)<br />
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Here is another view of the "soon to be" renovated/re-organinzed garden area.<br />
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You realize, of course, that once both these raised beds are in place, it leaves their previous spots open.......perhaps building more raised beds is in my future? ;)MadCityMikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14694682551650633240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2582772373222779744.post-66960162619002024062015-09-27T19:12:00.000-05:002015-09-28T06:33:14.945-05:00"A Bit of Refitting......."You may remember my building wood frames covered with hardware cloth and hinged to the top of my 2- 4'x4' raised beds to prevent the chipmunks from going in and taking bites out of strawberries? Well, I was certain it would do the trick and as the season progressed, I found out that nothing is certain when it comes to our chipmunk neighbors and their devious ways. ;) The little guys ignored the caged tops and dug their way inside by tunneling under the raised beds wooden sides!<br />
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So today brought about some refitting to the raised beds. I hoisted one of them up and off of its planted interior and turned it upside down. After cleaning the underside of the bed frame, I stapled 1/2" vinyl covered poultry netting (wire mesh) to the bottom of the frame.<br />
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Here is a closeup of the stapled poultry netting.<br />
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I have moved the bed frame next to where it stood prior to the refitting but have not refilled the bed yet. I need to purchase more bags of compost, etc. before transplanting the strawberries back into it.<br />
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You might also recall how I filled the beds originally using bales of straw standing on end, then covered with compost and soil. That worked well for the first season. I knew the straw would deteriorate into compost, too, but I did not think ahead and plan for the planting bed to sink so far below the top edge of the sides. I would have been better off filling the beds with compost and soil top to bottom since I was planting perennials rather than annuals. If I had planted annuals in the beds, then I could have added more compost and soil prior to transplanting this spring to offset the sinking due to the straw composting. Live and learn, eh? ;)<br />
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Here is a photo that gives you a better idea of how much the planted area had sunk compared to the top edges of the beds. Originally, the plants were even with the top of the frames. You can also see how dark and rich looking the composted straw and potting soil are now, too.<br />
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Once I purchase more compost, etc. (you probably remember that our soil here is almost pure sand so amendments are necessary to build a good planting mixture), I will transplant the strawberries back into the bed and then do the same thing with the 2nd raised bed. I have 2 other 4'x8' raised beds that should have the same treatment but I do not know if I will get to them this year.<br />
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Keep your fingers crossed for me that this solves my chipmunk issue! :)MadCityMikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14694682551650633240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2582772373222779744.post-35929398526516985432015-09-18T12:40:00.003-05:002015-09-18T12:40:51.056-05:00"Grow Tent"I had bought a variegated lemon tree last fall and then ordered 3 tiny citrus trees (Meyer Lemon, Dwarf Orange, and Key Lime) this past spring. They have lived out in or around the pop up greenhouses all summer and have thrived! With the outdoor temperatures fluctuating from the low 40's at night to the 80's during the day, I decided it was time to give them a more stable environment by moving them inside for the winter.<br />
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I ordered a grow tent and grow light from The Grow Store (for you Facebook users: <a href="https://www.facebook.com/The-Grow-Store-Traverse-City-MI-354914594528446/timeline/?ref=stream">https://www.facebook.com/The-Grow-Store-Traverse-City-MI-354914594528446/timeline/?ref=stream</a>) and it arrived yesterday.<br />
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With some help from Don, I set the grow tent up in the basement, next to my weaving area, and moved the trees into their winter accommodations.<br />
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I was able to use 2 of the potting benches I had built for the pop up greenhouses.<br />
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The variegated lemon tree is the largest of the trees.<br />
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I decided I wanted to have more space between trees, so added a couple of plastic totes, allowing me to set 2 of the trees on them.<br />
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I will probably rotate the trees weekly from level to level so they get to take advantage of the better light higher up when sitting on the potting benches. I will be going out in a bit to see what I can find in timers (for the lighting) and small fans (for air circulation).MadCityMikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14694682551650633240noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2582772373222779744.post-31894030093247427512015-08-31T08:24:00.000-05:002015-08-31T08:28:56.824-05:00"Becky and Rosa's Visit......"Friends from Madison, Becky and her daughter, Rosa, came for a short visit last week. We had one full day to "show them around" and chose to take them over to Sleeping Bear Dunes National Park.<br />
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Here is Rosa trying on one of the several "bear" hats at the Visitors Center.<br />
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After leaving the Visitors Center, we drove over to the Pierce Stocking Scenic Drive, stopping at the first of several "scenic views". This one overlooks Glen Lake.<br />
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Our second "scenic overlook" is of the backside of the Dunes Climb, and gives a beautiful view of North and South Manitou Islands. Unfortunately, it was quite hazy on Friday while we were there, but still beautiful nonetheless.<br />
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"Ms. Photogenic"......<br />
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Our last "scenic overlook" was right above the Lake Michigan's shoreline.........and we were waaaaaaaay above it!<br />
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Don, Becky and Rosa went a short way down the dune while I continued on and stood on the deck overlooking the shoreline.<br />
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Between where I was, and where they were, is a small stand of windswept trees. This couple attached their hammocks to a couple of them, making many people envious, I'm sure. ;)<br />
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Don, Becky, and Rosa then joined me on the deck overlooking the shoreline.<br />
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Beautiful views despite the hazy conditions......<br />
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After leaving Sleeping Bear Dunes, we drove down to The Cabbage Shed in Elberta (across Betsie Lake from Frankfort).<br />
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We had a wonderful visit, although too short, with Becky and Rosa, and look forward to their next one.<br />
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<br />MadCityMikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14694682551650633240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2582772373222779744.post-11267282120480637002015-08-23T11:21:00.001-05:002015-08-23T11:22:18.132-05:00"Citrus Blossom and Buds......."<span style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">When checking my 4 citrus trees this morning, I noticed several flower buds on my variegated lemon tree. I knew I had a blossom on my orange tree, but to see buds on the variegated lemon was truly surprising! The tree has not been doing well as of late, although it started regrowing leaves a few weeks ago after I sprayed it with a homemade "shower spray"......having used that last winter when I "think" it had spider mites. A few of the old leaves still have black spots, like mildew, but the rest of the plant is looking, and doing, very well.</span><br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;"><br /></span>MadCityMikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14694682551650633240noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2582772373222779744.post-60843686464302803992015-08-07T11:13:00.000-05:002015-08-07T11:13:31.752-05:00"Time for Kale Chips"I decided it was time to make some kale chips today. We have several plants and I have been keeping an eye on them to make a decision as to when I had enough decent sized leaves to make the dehydrating effort worthwhile. Today was that day.<br />
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After cutting the leaves, the stems needed to be removed, leaves washed, spun dry (using our salad spinner), and they were ready to be bagged for their drizzling of olive oil.<br />
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I then laid them out in a single layer on the trays of the dehydrator and sprinkled them with popcorn salt.......this time using "Ranch" flavor.<br />
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After loading several trays, the top was put on, time set for 1 hour at 130 degrees, after which I will set the drying temperature down to 120 degrees for the rest of the drying process. I will set the timer for a good number of hours, due to not remembering how long it took from them to dry in the past. :)MadCityMikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14694682551650633240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2582772373222779744.post-71914718080832077502015-07-19T06:21:00.001-05:002015-07-19T06:21:38.169-05:00"Last Nights Gathering....."Don and I were invited to an annual summer party, hosted by PK, whom we met at a party we attended on Fathers Day. It is held at his summer home, located northwest of Honor, MI. It is a somewhat "unusual" summer home, to say the least. It sits next to a pond, which I "think" is manmade, although I am not sure about that.<br />
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PK has a beautiful garden next to the house, which he has to protect from the deer with electric fencing, which thankfully, was turned off for the party so we could wander amongst the flowers. :)<br />
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Don on the left, PK on the right, with a young man in the middle, whom I did not meet.<br />
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Here is a view of the lake......<br />
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I met and chatted with several very nice people, plus got to catch up with a few of our neighbors who were also in attendance. A nice time was had by all. :)MadCityMikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14694682551650633240noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2582772373222779744.post-4088554449199221752015-07-14T13:10:00.000-05:002015-07-14T13:10:07.971-05:00"Another Day of Sightseeing....."On Sunday, after our leisurely spent morning, we finally headed out to show Penny and Sheila some of Leelanau Peninsula, stopping first, at Leland/Fishtown.<br />
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After some time spent in Fishtown and checking out the boats at the marina, we then drove to Glen Arbor where we stopped for a delicious cup of coffee at Leelanau Coffee Roasting Company (<a href="http://www.coffeeguys.com/">http://www.coffeeguys.com</a>). Leaving Glen Arbor, we drove to Empire, then backtracked to Pierce Stocking Drive, which is one of the main scenic drives at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Park.<br />
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This was taken at the first "scenic overlook", which overlooks Glen Lake.<br />
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Although Don is usually the photographer, and I am in quite a few photos, I usually avoid adding any with me in them because it is me writing the blog posts, but once in awhile, I do include one or two with me in them, too. ;)<br />
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At our next stop, the "scenic overlook platform" faces north, giving a very wide panoramic view towards the west, north, and east.<br />
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Our final "scenic overlook platform" hangs out directly over Lake Michigan, giving us a truly breathtaking view of the lakeshore. Although slightly hazy, we could still see for miles and miles...<br />
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Here I am, using the stationary binoculars to check out a couple of sailboats.<br />
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A kind woman offered to take a photo of all of us together.<br />
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A nice photo (in my opinion) of Sheila and me making our way back towards the parking area.<br />
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We "think" this may be a new sign this year as neither Don, nor I, remember seeing it last fall when we were there. During our visit, I found it interesting to watch several people coming back up the sand dune, who had gone down to the Lake and were "slowly" making headway coming back up. The key word here is "slowly". Most, if not all of those who went down, looked to be young and fit. Even so, their climb up was done in many, many increments......most of which were only a few yards (sometimes only mere feet!) at a time before they needed to stop and rest. It truly is an arduous climb. All, I'm sure, slept very well that night. ;)<br />
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<br />MadCityMikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14694682551650633240noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2582772373222779744.post-21110163465659642082015-07-12T11:37:00.000-05:002015-07-12T12:35:41.318-05:00"The Honeymooners!"Good friends, Penny and Sheila, are visiting us from Madison, WI. They are, in fact, spending part of their honeymoon with us, as they were able to get married soon after the Supreme Courts ruling a few weeks ago. They actually got married on the day of their 26th anniversary of being together!<br />
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They arrived on Friday and we spent that afternoon/evening basically catching up, but yesterday, we drove into Traverse City for the annual Cherry Festival Parade!<br />
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We were lucky enough to be able to sit in the same spot where Don and I have watched the parade the last 2 years.......close to the street and IN THE SHADE! :)<br />
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After the parade (which had 150 entries this year!), we drove out to Light of Day Organic Tea Farm (<a href="https://lightofdayorganics.com/">https://lightofdayorganics.com</a>). We did a little walking around their grounds before going into the shop, and of course, took a "few" photos. ;)<br />
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This morning has been a much more relaxed day for "getting going". We sat out in our screen room with coffee, chatting up a storm (anyone who knows any of us understands how easy it is for that to happen), until I came in and put together a simple breakfast. After breakfast, we all sort of separated and did "our own thing". I did some watering of potted plants outside, Penny went for a long walk through the woods, Don was constructive and assembled my new laptop/iPad table for my Lazy Boy, and Sheila caught "another 40 winks". What happens this afternoon is yet up for grabs. :)MadCityMikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14694682551650633240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2582772373222779744.post-21983021817111562812015-07-09T09:42:00.004-05:002015-07-09T09:42:59.543-05:00"The Chicken Whisperer......"Part of Dons routine in the morning, and also various times during the day, is to go into the chicken run and "bond" with the girls. He is my "Chicken Whisperer"! I went out this morning but had just missed one of them on his shoulder.....but I do have one from a couple of weeks ago. :)<br />
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This photo begins this mornings photo session. :) Yesterday, I managed to find a few "left over/picked over" impatiens that I repotted and set along the front side of the coop/run. Hopefully, with some TLC they will thrive.<br />
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It will be interesting to see how many of the girls continue this practice of perching on him as they grow and become "larger". :)MadCityMikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14694682551650633240noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2582772373222779744.post-88960333566319836122015-06-25T06:35:00.001-05:002015-06-25T06:49:11.520-05:00"Juvenile Hens/Pullets Come to Live With Us......."Although the chicken coop run is not yet completed, I chose to get 10 juvenile pullets (9-10 weeks of age) yesterday. I have been checking the ads on Craigs List daily and there have been few, if any, pullets being offered for sale. When I saw the ad that a guy had 100 pullets to sell, who also lived quite close to us according to the provided map, I wrote his phone number down. Thank goodness I did because when I sat down to call him and tried pull up his ad to have it in front of me when I talked to him......it was gone! Brad, who had placed the ad, answered his phone and when I told him why I had called, he said he had pulled his ad because he had sold the number he had wanted and only had left what he planned on keeping for himself. I told him I understood and we chatted for a bit as he told me the story of how he ended up with more chicks than expected when he asked how many I had planned on purchasing. When I said 10, he paused and then said he was willing to sell me 10......and the rest is history.<br />
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The coop interior has been basically set up and ready for "the girls", although due to an error on my part, the tall tube for the feeder did not get ordered when the base did, so I await its arrival. The girls can eat their food from the bottom tray that did get ordered. :) So early yesterday morning I cleaned and filled the automatic waterer, spread a bale of pine shavings on the floor, opened the 4 windows, and was good to go.......all I needed was to drive into Traverse City and pick up feed and scratch, before driving to pick up the pullets.<br />
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I arrived at the agreed upon time and Brad went into the chicken pen and began handing me pullets, which I placed in 2 cardboard boxes for their ride back to our house. I think he had handled the pullets quite a bit as they were pretty calm and continue to be so here at our house.<br />
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He sold me 7 Isa Browns, 2 Amber Links, and what I believe is a Golden Laced Wyandotte (center in the photo).<br />
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The feed tube for the pan will arrive in a few days and fits on top of the tray they are eating from in this next photo. It works fine for now. I was also pleased to see a couple of them drinking from the waterer, which is similar to the one Brad used, so I think they are settling in nicely and getting to know their surroundings.<br />
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Don and I went out to check on them at dusk, knowing they would not be perched on the "tree branch roost" I built for them. They were not raised in a pen that had roosts, so they have to learn how to use them. With the low light of dusk, I was able to pick up each one and place her on a roost, and when we left, closing the door behind us, all of the girls had remained on the branches where I had placed them. Hopefully, they stayed there all night (its good for their feet) and will begin to understand that is what they need to do each night. I am sure that we will be out there again tonight, and perhaps a few more nights before we find them all up on the perches on their own.<br />
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I had begun building the panel sections for the chicken run and certainly now have a much more urgent need to get them completed. I will continue working on them today and may even have them finished this afternoon. I may be too optimistic, but should definitely be finished with them tomorrow at the latest. The girls need to be "cooped up" for a few days to get used to the idea of their new home anyway, so that gives me plenty of time. :)MadCityMikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14694682551650633240noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2582772373222779744.post-28398981177983979082015-06-17T12:13:00.002-05:002015-06-17T12:13:28.992-05:00"Coop Arrival"!!!!!The new chicken coop arrived today! Steve, the delivery and set up guy did a fantastic job. I thought I was going to have to move one of my largest blueberry bushes and sacrifice some strawberry plants, but Steve suggested an alternate route.....one that would be more work for him but would not harm any of my plantings. Nice, eh?<br />
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This first photo was taken by our driveway trail cam. The rest of the photos are either taken by me or Don.....<br />
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Steve used a motorized piece of equipment called a "mule" to move the coop.<br />
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Instead of taking it along the side of the deck, he suggested we take it the long way around, past the garage and behind the beds of plants.<br />
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Into its own little wooded clearing..........<br />
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Talk about precision placement!<br />
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Here it is set into place. Now to set up/organize the interior (feed and water equipment has been ordered) and build a "predator proof" chicken run. :)<br />
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<br />MadCityMikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14694682551650633240noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2582772373222779744.post-32866817793490106672015-06-10T06:37:00.001-05:002015-06-10T06:37:29.763-05:00"Another Day of "Assembling"..........."<span style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">Todays afternoon project was to assemble a large Rubbermaid Storage Shed. I had actually bought it yesterday but it wouldn't fit into our car so I had to leave it there for a later pickup. I was able to get our neighbor, Harold, to agree to drive me in his truck to pick it up this afternoon. Hooray for good neighbors!</span><br style="color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #141823; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">Wouldn't you know that it did not have any assembly instructions in the box except for how to install the "optional" pieces, "not" included with the shed.? Onc</span><span class="text_exposed_show" style="color: #141823; display: inline; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">e I figured out how it went together, it was very easy to assemble.</span><br />
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<span class="text_exposed_show" style="color: #141823; display: inline; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;"><br />I wanted something to store garden tools "closer" to the garden.......plus it seems when the tools are stored in the garage as they have been, somehow they never got put back to their assigned spot. Yep, I am guilty of not taking the time to properly store tools as they should be. If nothing else, the garage will stay much more organized without the garden tools cluttering it up.</span><br />
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<span class="text_exposed_show" style="color: #141823; display: inline; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;">It fit nicely up against the house on the far side of the house. Today I will move my gardening tools into it which will "de-clutter" the garage. ;)</span><br />
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<span class="text_exposed_show" style="color: #141823; display: inline; font-family: helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 19px;"><br /></span>MadCityMikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14694682551650633240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2582772373222779744.post-75001601092382257062015-06-08T15:34:00.001-05:002015-06-08T15:34:26.017-05:00"Chicken Coop Ordered"!I have been looking for a chicken coop for sometime now. I checked locally, asked the local Facebook chicken group for suggestions on a local builder, perused Craigs List daily, searched online, but didn't find anything I really wanted. After seeing some sheds and barns displayed at a fence company nearby, I got the name of the builder, an Amish owned company that works out of Manistee. After calling and talking with him about what I was hoping to find, he recommended another Amish builder over in Manton, a mere 40 miles away from our house to his shop.<br />
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After speaking with John at Cedar Creek Barns (sorry, no website), he suggested I come down and look at his sheds, which he would customize into a chicken coop for me if I liked what I saw. Long story short, I ordered an 8'x8', wood gable style shed. It will be stained to match our house, and will also have a green metal roof, too. I ordered it adding 2- 22"x27" windows on each side (total of 4), a skylight, and a transom window over the double door entry. My girls will be having a good amount of light, considering the coop will not be sitting in our sunny clearing, but in a smaller, shady clearing off our main clearing. It should be delivered sometime near the end of this month. Once the coop arrives, I will be customizing the interior myself. <br />
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This started yesterday when I started assembling a new metal nesting box that I bought, literally, over 20 years ago. I bought it when I lived in Niles on our 3 acre "farmette", but never even took it out of the box. I have moved it each time I relocated, hoping that I would someday have a larger chicken coop and be able to use it. We had chickens when we lived in Madison, but we could only have 4 hens in the city, so we had a much smaller coop. The nest box packaging, although never having been opened had been battered and had been taped and re-taped to hold it together, but that all ended yesterday when I finally opened the box to begin assembling the nests. Since I had bought it so long ago, I thought it was only a 5 nest piece of equipment, but found out upon opening, it is a "double decker" and has 10 nests! Way more than we need, but now the girls will have even more nests to choose from to lay their eggs.<br />
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After opening the box, I found that mice had used the box as a home, so I had some scrubbing to do before I could begin assembling the nests. As if that wasn't enough, the mice had also chewed up and shredded the instructions! Back in the house I went and sat down at the computer to find a photo that I could use for a visual. Seems nests boxes haven't gone through much of a design change since I found exactly what I needed right away.<br />
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The beginning.........front.......<br />
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and back.......<br />
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a little more assembled.......front......<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYoT5TgkhjI6T8VTDLFlozkZlBECewG6XA1ts1acjIcocTgVgp51mpqGE3HvvQ6o8_HDD7rQGlC_Ql56v59MHV1Al2yzluDllLGTRyfFZW0p6Yfdn0QZgFHRvTI9HHZ8vZupYut8jCh0U/s1600/IMG_5482.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYoT5TgkhjI6T8VTDLFlozkZlBECewG6XA1ts1acjIcocTgVgp51mpqGE3HvvQ6o8_HDD7rQGlC_Ql56v59MHV1Al2yzluDllLGTRyfFZW0p6Yfdn0QZgFHRvTI9HHZ8vZupYut8jCh0U/s640/IMG_5482.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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and back.......<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx71Stmb7pJ6iwaEirgzNyHTqLWjiWdztG06xKYzLZsOrPxYEdJ91Gv7yI4pdXW3_X_-pGk_gMFHiCOXkhdLY7BkHSIJLKbRiuIxeifPNc5G8bqdJsZLGEEqYfYfgLfEmjcNwflW2uHkY/s1600/IMG_5481.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx71Stmb7pJ6iwaEirgzNyHTqLWjiWdztG06xKYzLZsOrPxYEdJ91Gv7yI4pdXW3_X_-pGk_gMFHiCOXkhdLY7BkHSIJLKbRiuIxeifPNc5G8bqdJsZLGEEqYfYfgLfEmjcNwflW2uHkY/s640/IMG_5481.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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At this point I had to quit. Not only did I not have the assembly instructions, but many, many small nuts and bolts were also missing. Were they there 20 years ago? I have no idea, although the box did contain 1 bag of bolts, just not enough needed to complete the project. I'm thinking they might have been missing all this time because one bottom plate (each nest has a metal insert for inside the nest) is also missing, but I cut a piece of wood, replacing it, so no harm, no foul. :)<br />
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After purchasing more nuts and bolts this morning, I continued the assembly again this afternoon. Again the front.....<br />
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and back......<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcvJNacJkairauEKmdudJdSVjkajJ7j645bgYa6sRCW3rY3rzOorWlJhblbyShhuJHl3SD-sKuBg-xwU-R4NQCSHzFHFnREohQkbgRUElAug5O4AbgQRehN6X77bGCxp_omFnms3SVWds/s1600/IMG_5484.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcvJNacJkairauEKmdudJdSVjkajJ7j645bgYa6sRCW3rY3rzOorWlJhblbyShhuJHl3SD-sKuBg-xwU-R4NQCSHzFHFnREohQkbgRUElAug5O4AbgQRehN6X77bGCxp_omFnms3SVWds/s640/IMG_5484.JPG" width="640" /></a></div>
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Once all the metal pieces were assembled, I moved it outside (with Dons help), sprayed it with undiluted bleach, then hosed it down completely and let it air and sun dry. The wooden rails were added last (these each fold up if I would want the hens to use only the top or bottom rows of nest boxes. I'm thinking I may leave them all open and let them choose which nest "they" like best.<br />
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Here is another photo which better shows the inserts that go in the bottom of each nest.<br />
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The nest box is now ready for the coop to arrive. Can you tell I might be just a wee bit excited to have chickens again? ;)MadCityMikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14694682551650633240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2582772373222779744.post-13528961950757282462015-05-23T08:12:00.001-05:002015-05-23T08:22:11.473-05:00"An Afternoon in the Greenhouses......" I spent most of the afternoon working in the greenhouses yesterday. For those of you who may not remember, I have 2 greenhouses, each 5'x5'x61/2' tall, set end to end to create one 5'x10'x61/2' greenhouse. With these last several nights of temperatures dipping down into the low 30's, the greenhouses have been WONDERFUL! With all of the water filled containers soaking up solar heat during the day and releasing the heat throughout the night, I have had no problems protecting the plants from the cold.<br />
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Yesterdays time was spent transplanting seedlings from their sowing flats into 3" peat pots. Since each sowing flat holds 55 seed pods, moving them into peat pots takes quite a bit more space. Add the 4 hanging pots of flowers, the 5 hanging bags of strawberries, one huge hanging pot of cherry tomatoes, and 2 large pots of green peppers, space inside the greenhouses is at a premium! <br />
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Here are some photos of the greenhouses before I closed them up for the night. The first greenhouse houses most of the larger pots, and the 2nd greenhouse has mostly seedlings in flats, although the 4 hanging pots of flowers and the 5 bags of strawberries are in there, too. "Someday" I will have a year round greenhouse which will allow hanging pots to actually "hang". :)<br />
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This coleus was given to Don 40 years ago, which he has continually taken cuttings from and propagated. This is the only one in the greenhouse, but we have 2 more large pots of it in the house, along with 12 beer bottles with cuttings beginning to root.<br />
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I have sowed green pepper seeds the past 2 years and have decided this year is my last year doing so. I have planted the seeds in a domed flat (effectively a mini greenhouse) according to the directions for the starting date, provided heat via "starting mats" underneath the flat, and have had horrible germination rates. Last year, and again this year, I have had to buy a few green pepper plants because the ones I have started are less than 3" tall! As you can see, the pepper plants in these pots are not "my" homegrown ones. ;) Oh! I almost forgot! Those 2 small pots in front of the peppers have pumpkin seeds sown in them. So far, only one has sprouted, but the reason I bring it up is because we received the seeds as a gift from our neighbor's sister, Ana, and her partner, Francisco, who live in Argentina. These are the variety that Francisco, who is a farmer, plants on his farm. They also sent some Arugula seeds, which I will direct sow in another large pot.<br />
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The following photo shows the 3 bee balm plants that I purchased from Gurneys Seed Catalog earlier this Spring. Each is a different color and they were quite small when I received them, but as you can see, they are doing VERY well and have grown quite tall!<br />
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This next pot was purchased 2 summers ago, filled with a huge cherry tomato. I planted cherry tomatoes in it last year and again this year. (new potting soil, of course!). ;) This year it has 3 varieties......"Golden Gem", "Jelly Beans", and one I call "Andy's Cherry Tomato", because he gave me the seedlings at the Easter potluck they hosted. He'd bought a package of cherry tomatoes at Sam's Club which were especially sweet, so he planted a few seeds. We'll see if they grow true or if we get something other than the wonderful red cherry tomatoes he purchased.<br />
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The 4 previous photos are of the plants in the first greenhouse and now we move on into the 2nd greenhouse. :) I have 8 flats in here of vegetables and flowers. Some of the flowers are annuals, but most are perennials. And, as you can see, this is where the hanging pots of flowers spent last night, along with the 5 hanging bags of strawberries.<br />
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Here is a photo from the night before last, before I spent the afternoon potting up seedlings into 3" peat pots.<br />
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Last night was predicted to be the last night of extreme cold temperatures so the hanging flower pots and strawberries can go out today and stay in their permanent spots, leaving a bit more room in the greenhouses. I will probably wait a few more days before setting out the pots of tomatoes and peppers......MadCityMikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14694682551650633240noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2582772373222779744.post-83976482463036154712015-05-17T13:48:00.000-05:002015-05-17T14:21:05.459-05:00"2015 Annual Asparagus Festival in Empire, MI"Patrick, Julie , and Abigail joined us yesterday for the Annual Asparagus Festival in Empire, Michigan. Don and I had gone last year and enjoyed ourselves and thought it would be a fun to have the "kids" with us this year. They arrived at our house in the early afternoon and we soon headed to Empire.<br />
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The Festival had a few stations set up for the younger set to enjoy. Abigail sat right down and painted a postcard after seeing some of the others hanging up.<br />
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I'm sure those people with younger children already know this, but paint can be purchased that already HAS glitter in it! It was news to me! Its hard to see in the photos, but her butterfly "sparkled"!<br />
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After finishing her painting, Abigail found these stalks of asparagus and actually allowed us to take a photo of her with them. She's become more shy about having her photo taken as of late, so this was a nice change. :)<br />
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The Empire Village Library was right next to the food/refreshment tent so Julie and Abigail are seen here returning after checking it out. Don went in with Abigail a bit later, after we had snacked on a few "asparagus delicacies", and thought it was very nice, too.<br />
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As it neared 4:00, we went and found a spot to watch the Festivals Parade. I had brought along 2 telescoping tri-leg stools that we put into use. The following 2 photos show the intersection where most (at least that is what it seemed to me) people come to view the parade.<br />
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And here are some photos of this years 2015 Annual Asparagus Festival Parade! Not being "locals" of that area, we were not "in the know" who some of the participants were, since not everyone had "signage". :)<br />
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Very cool "pedal powered" car, eh?<br />
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I had to show what pulled the final entry since we "like" John Deere tractors. :)<br />
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That pretty much sums up the parade, which as you can see, is fairly small, but we had a very nice time, as did everyone there, in my opinion. :)<br />
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One last photo..........<br />
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<br />MadCityMikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14694682551650633240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2582772373222779744.post-31303949850879377672015-05-07T13:58:00.001-05:002015-05-07T13:58:55.887-05:00"A Little Outside Work......"While Don blazed some new trails in our woods, I did some transplanting of seedlings into their permanent spots in one of the raised beds.<br />
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As you may remember, I made a hinged frame and attached the hoops (formerly attached to the raised bed) to it, covering them with semi clear plastic. I figured it was time to transplant some of the heat loving tomato seedlings into it. I decided to plant one each of the 5 varieties of tomato seedlings, hoping they will thrive and I will have tomatoes earlier than usual. I also planted some bush green beans, kale, and sweet basil seeds, too, since the bed will have quite warm soil, so should have ideal sprouting conditions. The hooped top will, of course, be lowered to cover the raised bed overnight.<br />
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I also decided the "strawberry bags" would have to be hung up, going against what Park Seed Company's suggestions were. They have been lying flat for a week (2 weeks was suggested) but I have had a hard time making sure they were well watered, so I hung the bags, added more potting soil to the open top and planted a few more strawberry plants which I took from one of the raised beds in the garden. They are now thoroughly and easily watered. :) Originally I planned on hanging them from shepherds hooks, but decided this might be the better way to go.<br />
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And why not plant more of the cherry tomato varieties in their permanent hanging pot? I have 3 varieties and have one each of 2 and 2 of the 3rd variety because there were 2 of them in the peat pot. Hopefully the one with less roots will survive, but if not 3 tomato plants will do fine in the pot, too. This huge hanging pot will stay inside the greenhouse until the nighttime temperatures stay consistently warm.<br />
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<br />MadCityMikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14694682551650633240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2582772373222779744.post-53017811680311576522015-05-03T18:29:00.001-05:002015-05-03T18:36:42.926-05:00"Don's New Tent........"Don has been chomping at the bit to get his new tent and set it up in one of our clearings in our woods. For those who do not know this, he had one set up last year but made the mistake of keeping it up a day too long into Fall. We had a heavy, wet snowfall, earlier than expected, and it damaged the tent beyond repair. So......this year he has found a larger tent, and LOVES it!<br />
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Last Friday Patrick, Julie, and Abigail came up and Patrick took down a few select trees that Don wanted gone before he set up his new tent. Yesterday, Don cleaned up the clearing, moving the cut logs and raking up the debris. He then took a break and we drove to Menards to buy some indoor/outdoor carpeting to lie underneath the tent floor. He had trouble with "things" trying to regrow under last years tent so wanted something substantial between the tent floor and the ground.<br />
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Once we returned with the carpeting, he was out and back to work! :)<br />
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First, the main frame had to be assembled.<br />
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Don follows directions very well. :) Next, the tent was attached underneath the frame, followed by the tent fly stretched and attached to the frame.<br />
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Then legs inserted into the frame.......<br />
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Once everything was up and attached, he then arranged the legs, making sure the tent material was properly stretched before securing it to the ground with tent stakes.<br />
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Now for a few photos of the interior and surrounding area. The front screened in porch has zippers on both sides and can be used as a door, but the tent also has a door on the backside, too, plus another inside door that allows one to close off the inside room from the screened porch. The large inside room can be divided into 2 rooms, too, but Don is leaving it as one large room.<br />
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This shows the rear entrance.<br />
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And this shows the door to the screened porch.<br />
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This next photo shows where the tent clearing is located compared to our house clearing. Our house is way back and to the left of the tent.<br />
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Fortunately, mosquito season has not begun yet, so working outside has been quite nice. Once the mosquitoes hatch, we'll have to spray ourselves each time we go outside......."if" we want to retain our blood. ;)MadCityMikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14694682551650633240noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2582772373222779744.post-66472512897291258672015-04-29T13:16:00.001-05:002015-04-29T13:16:08.686-05:00"Planting My Strawberry Bags for Hanging....."My "Strawberry Kit" from Park Seed Company arrived today. The kit includes 24 strawberry plants and 2 plastic bags for hanging. Each bag will hold a total of 12 plants, but the top 2 will be planted later when the bags are ready to be hung outside. I had purchased extra bags with plans of taking some of my existing strawberry plants from one of the raised beds and transplanting them into a hanging bag, too.<br />
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Each bag is filled with potting soil to about 2" from the opening at the top of the bag. The top back of the bag will be laid over the front and taped so that no soil will be lost when the bag lies on its side. The directions suggest having the planted bags lie on their side for a few weeks to give the plants a chance to become established.<br />
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I added a couple more slits in the bottom to allow for better drainage when hanging.<br />
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After the bags were filled, I hung them on a shepherds hook and thoroughly soaked the potting soil, using warm water so it would be absorbed easier/quicker.<br />
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Here are the 2 bags from the kit filled with top edges taped so no soil will be lost and ready for planting.<br />
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Planting is done by using my forefinger as a dibble, creating a nice sized hole for inserting the plants. Nice bruise on my arm ,eh? I have no idea how I got it........but know my old skin bruises so easily the older I get.<br />
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Here the plant is inserted into the planting hole. The soil is pressed around the plant by putting pressure on the plastic around the opening and moving the soil underneath towards the plant.<br />
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Here are the bags filled with the plants that arrived today. I will add more strawberry plants to the 3rd bag and to the top of the bags which now hold 10 plants, using strawberry plants from my garden.<br />
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Heres to hoping I have saved this years strawberry crop from the local chipmunks by "raising the bar" so to speak. ;)MadCityMikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14694682551650633240noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2582772373222779744.post-35923423491077041862015-04-27T15:37:00.001-05:002015-04-27T15:37:46.029-05:00"Abigails Day With Us......"Our granddaughter, Abigail, spent last Friday with us. Let me preface this whole post to say we ALL slept well Friday night. ;)<br />
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Abigail and Grandpa Don took a hike in our woods after she and I got back from picking her up from her house. "Hike" might not be the correct word for her outing in the woods since she moves much faster than Don. She does occasionally stop and explore whatever takes her interest. Thankfully, she is not squeamish when it comes to bugs, etc.<br />
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When they came back to the house, we got in the car.....er, excuse me, Abigail corrects me each time I say that.......we got into the "Jeep" and drove over to the playground in Grawn, the little village next to Interlochen. They have a wonderful playground, which includes a "splash pad", too, for the warmer days. I "assume" that opens up after Memorial Day, but do not know for sure, although we WILL be going back there. :)<br />
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This may explain why Abigail slept so well Friday night. :) The girl runs and runs!<br />
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Grandpa Don joined her in moving some sand......<br />
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No fear of heights either......<br />
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Moving some sand by hand, too. That is the splash pad in the background.<br />
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One piece of the varied playground equipment is a HUGE Goldfish, featuring its spine as a climbing ladder.<br />
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After a lunch stop (and ice cream), we came home and once again the paths in the woods called. I tagged along for some of the hike but Grandpa Don and Abigail soon wore me out. They came back a bit later carrying this organic sculpture, which now resides on our front porch. Abigail had seen my bundle of dried Dill hanging in the garage and asked for a few stalks to add to her piece. It is quite attractive in my opinion. Perhaps she will work in or own a nursery/florist shop, eh? :)<br />
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<br />MadCityMikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14694682551650633240noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2582772373222779744.post-13228530942915307822015-04-20T13:30:00.000-05:002015-04-20T13:30:14.539-05:00"A Little Construction........"On Saturday, I removed the stationary hoops from one of the raised beds. I decided to build a frame, covering the entire bed, attaching it to the raised bed with hinges. This way I'll be able to open it during the day and close it at night until the nighttime temperatures are warmer. The warmed soil inside should keep the inside temperature higher during the night compared to the outside temperature. I chose to open it along the wider side, but am now thinking I may have to change that to the end so that I can easily reach everywhere in the bed........although, I suppose it depends on what I plant in the back center area. :)<br />
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I still need to tweak it a bit so that I can open it up in increments and have it safely stay in place without the wind blowing it wide open.<br />
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Sundays project was to build 2 potting benches for along the insides of the new pop up greenhouse. Unfortunately, I miscalculated in my lumber usage and shorted myself one 1"x3"x8'. I will be able to easily cut the pieces and install them with the bench in place. Luckily the missing piece was for the top and not for the main construction. :)<br />
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The containers underneath the benches are filled with water, soaking up solar heat during the day to release during the night. See a reoccurring theme here? ;)MadCityMikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14694682551650633240noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2582772373222779744.post-63575974769715149812015-04-12T13:50:00.001-05:002015-04-12T13:50:11.891-05:00"About Time, eh?"I finally sat down after months of silence to write a blog post. Amazing, eh? ;)<br />
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Today has been an absolutely gorgeous day for doing some outdoor Spring work. The day dawned bright and sunny with a somewhat mild temperature, which only gained warmth as the day progressed.<br />
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Don started us off by washing a few of the windows inside and out.....<br />
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I set up the pop up greenhouses.....yep, I said "houses". We bought another to add to last years because I have planted more varieties of seeds this year and need more room when I set them out to harden off in the greenhouse.<br />
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Here is last years greenhouse that I set up this morning. I set it up with the doors facing the opposite direction than I had last year. I wasn't able to easily reach one of the doors last year to unzip it, so decided to have it this direction this year.......plus I wanted to add the 2nd greenhouse to it as seamlessly as possible. Both greenhouses are 5'x5'. With both set up, I now have a 5'x10' greenhouse.<br />
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I installed the potting benches and the 55 gallon drum, filling the drum with water so it can begin gaining solar heat to help temper the fluctuation of daytime and nightime temperatures........gaining heat during the day and releasing it at night. I also had several kitty litter buckets that Patrick and Julie had given me, so those, too, were filled with water to serve the same purpose. Those, along with numerous gallon milk jugs filled with water, will "hopefully" do as I hope with the temperature fluctuation.<br />
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Here is what the two look like attached together.<br />
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I also laid the plastic sheeting, which is weighed down on opposite ends with 2'x4'x8' lumber (that I had configured for the hoop raised bed), over the top of the 2 greenhouses. It will protect the area where the two come together, plus perhaps give the greenhouses a layer of extra warmth due to the dead air space between them.<br />
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Now to let the filled containers soak up solar heat until I am ready to move seedlings out into the greenhouses.MadCityMikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14694682551650633240noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2582772373222779744.post-37741915038395885832014-12-21T12:18:00.002-06:002014-12-21T12:36:48.047-06:00"Our Afternoon at Caberfae Ski Resort......."Don and I met Patrick, Julie, and Abigail at Caberfae yesterday so we could watch Abigail ski. Don was the camera man and, of course, did an excellent job!<br />
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We found the resort's history very interesting.....<br />
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Here is a map of the resort's layout.....<br />
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Here is Abigail prepared to go up the rope tow for her first run of the day.<br />
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Patrick gets her in place and away they go!<br />
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Julie is right behind them.....<br />
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Once they arrive at the top (these photos were taken at the "Bunny Hill"), Patrick snaps the ends of the "ski leash strap" to the back of the harness on Abigail and they start down the slope with Julie right behind them.<br />
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A little amount of pulling from Patrick on either side of the leash helps Abigail make turns as she skis down the slope.<br />
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He can also release the pressure when she doesn't need it. :)<br />
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Patrick takes a break. Some of you who are skiers will know how uncomfortable it is to stand around in ski boots which make you stand in the correct position for skiing....keeping you bent at the knees. Todays boots are a far cry from the lace up ski boots I started with. ;)<br />
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Leaving the Bunny Hill and rope tow behind, the kids headed over to a chair lift to go further up the slopes which will allow them much longer "ski runs" down, letting Abigail have more time to work on her turns.<br />
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After a couple of runs down this longer slope it was time to stop for lunch. We chose to eat in the resort's hotel restaurant where it was much quieter than the ski lodge cafeteria.<br />
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Grandpa Isabell and Grandpa Don walk with Abigail to our car so she can pick up the bag of cut out frosted cookies that we brought for them. We would meet Patrick and Julie at their car so the 3 of them could change out of their ski boots and some of their heavier ski clothing.<br />
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Abigail is being extremely patient with the knowledge that the cookies were to be tasted "after" lunch. :)<br />
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At the restaurant, Little Miss Abigail "listens to the breaking waves at some distant seashore" while we wait for our food. :)<br />
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My last photo is of Patrick with his "Abe Lincoln" style beard. This is the longest I have ever seen his beard allowed to grow. Unlike his Father, he keeps his trimmed very well, don't you think? ;)<br />
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<br />MadCityMikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14694682551650633240noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2582772373222779744.post-54524151887550327782014-11-09T10:48:00.000-06:002014-11-09T10:48:55.370-06:00"Barb and Geoff's Visit Continued....."I apologize for so long between blog posts.......I definitely have no excuse, other than laziness.<br />
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Barb sent some very good photos of their trip, which I will post along with some explanations.<br />
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Our first day of exploring began with a stop at Light of Day Organic Tea farm. Here is their main building. (<a href="https://lightofdayorganics.com/">https://lightofdayorganics.com</a>)<br />
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This is the yurt where several classes are offered. Don and I have taken a couple of classes in here.<br />
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Broader view of their grounds.....<br />
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We made several stops along Stocking Pierce Drive in Sleeping Bear Dunes Here are several views from those stops.....<br />
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Geoff, Barb, and Don hiked on Sleeping Bear Dunes Empire Bluff Hiking Trail, too.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgF9DEzA9VWlzzvYw4-DgXOsVMlw5p_FUM-byi36UYZBdmJ8sC05Z0kT5ed9ibdOSwEbzECgKyqTR5tjitYCD-B-lBQlkTo9Z9cuY-Q2xlkUp71rc4efkaVtrYYqk5n5-lwzu4rKcdzK9U/s1600/MITrip2014_51.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgF9DEzA9VWlzzvYw4-DgXOsVMlw5p_FUM-byi36UYZBdmJ8sC05Z0kT5ed9ibdOSwEbzECgKyqTR5tjitYCD-B-lBQlkTo9Z9cuY-Q2xlkUp71rc4efkaVtrYYqk5n5-lwzu4rKcdzK9U/s1600/MITrip2014_51.jpg" height="278" width="400" /></a></div>
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Ending up at a wooden deck overlooking Lake Michigan.<br />
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To be continued.....MadCityMikehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/14694682551650633240noreply@blogger.com3