Thursday, March 17, 2011

Planting Potatoes

So, should I plant my potatoes on St. Patrick's Day (traditional) or 'by the dark of the moon' (folklore), or just whenever I get the chance?   Today is supposed to be nice and nearly 70 degrees by the time I get off work, so it would be a good time to work outside.  The next new moon is not until April 3. 


I'm going to try, try again this year, even though I didn't get a single potato last year.   I planted in containers, and didn't think it would matter that I planted tomatoes and potatoes next to each other.  It did.  The potatoes and the tomato plant nearest them both succumbed to late blight.   I'm still putting my potatoes in a container, with new soil, and nowhere near the tomatoes, and we'll see how it goes.   I'm planting Red Norland for new potatoes and Kennebunk for whites.   Lettuce and radishes could also go in any time now.

Abigail is still not laying, so I turned her over a few nights ago to check her vent, pubic bones and abdomen, and she is nowhere near laying!   I think she's a young bird!?!  Being a novice, I only had books to go by, and one told about how pigment in legs, beak and eye rims bleach out as they age and lay their eggs.  Hers had and still have pigment.  Her legs are rough (a sign of age), but she' s a feather legged breed, so it's hard to tell.   She's eating a lot more, so maybe she's (gradually) working up to something.  She seems to like standing on my forearm like a perch (which she never uses), so I might try to teach her "step up" like a parrot.  It's worth a shot - and if successful would make getting her out of her coop easier. 'Notice how I said that as though it's a perfectly sane reasonable thing to do?

The French Angoras, on the other hand, are having no trouble growing out coats and getting ready for the Kentucky Sheep and Fiber Festival   I, on the other hand, need to hop to it if I plan to have samples and some yarn for the UARC booth!   I'll be in the livestock area this year.  be sure to stop by and see us! 

That's all for now from Wren Cottage .....

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