Fall in the country

We are having beautiful fall weather here in Michigan. The colors are better than I expected and the cool but sunny weather is great. Cool is relative I guess because while its much cooler than summer was its still a bit above average.

Friday I had just came out of the barn after the morning chores when I saw three deer ambling down the middle of the road. There was a pick up behind them and it was almost as if he was herding them. They didn’t seem scared and they kept up a fast walk right down the center of the road. They were headed to the corn field southeast of us.

Saturday I was trapped inside on a beautiful day, hosting a fruit tree pruning seminar until about 3 pm. Then when I got home I went outside to sit by the pond in the sun to unwind. I was sitting on my redneck bench, an old van seat, watching all the dozens of kinds of birds eating the autumn olive berries in front of me. Suddenly my eyes caught movement across the pond and I watched a young buck strolling along, rubbing his head on everything and also eating a few autumn olive berries. He was there for several minutes before he was out of my view.

Later when I went to check the back pasture fence I scared up 2 big does. They had been resting under the arched branches of another autumn olive right up against the fence. That autumn olive is invasive but it sure seems to please a lot of animals. Lily my horse almost made herself sick eating the berries before I caught her doing it and penned her away from it.

We have had autumn olive on the property since we moved here, we’ve fought it like crazy, but I have never seen it being enjoyed by so many critters as this year. I remember some birds eating the berries, but usually a bit later. I never remember seeing horses and deer eat them. Maybe the drought kept more native plants like dogwood and Virginia creeper from setting a lot of fruit. That’s what would attract more birds, but hardly horses and deer. Maybe they are sweeter this year.

Autumn Olive berries can be made into jelly quite easily. I have done it. It’s a beautiful red color but has little taste. They are high in lycopene and vitamin C. I should pick some branches and let the chickens eat them.

The mast crop is big around here. We had tons of acorns come down and now the black walnuts make it dangerous to stand in the front yard. One hit the top of my plastic bird feeder and went right through. They make it difficult to walk without turning an ankle. I will have to sit in the yard and throw them into the street. Cars crushing them let birds eat the meats.

I suppose I should save them and husk them and shell out the meats like my grandfather did. But that is very messy and time consuming work. I used to have an older guy who would ask to pick them up every year but he hasn’t been around the last few years. Black walnuts may be fine as a woodland tree but why people planted them in yards is beyond me.

A big nut and berry crop- does that mean a long cold winter? It’s not predicted but we shall see.

Kill deer-tax cell phones

We had a couple nice days here lately, with temps above freezing a bit, enough to make me think of spring and get the urge to wander outside a bit in the sun. The sun was great but the knee high snow soon put an end to my exploring. That will wear you out faster than a treadmill.

I noticed the deer have been up in the yard and exploring all around my gardens, no bad damage yet. I think they may be jumping into the horse pasture to finish up any left over hay. Our neighbor hit a deer on her way home from work Sunday. It shook her up and damaged her car pretty good. I think the state should have to pay for deer damage to cars. After all, they own the wildlife and make the rules about hunting them. If their loose animals damage cars then they need to pay. I also think that those that intentionally feed the deer, despite a state ban on feeding, should be responsible for part of the damage bill when deer damage things like cars close to their home. They are encouraging them to collect near the spot.

With all the hungry people and all the damage deer do to cars and landscapes you would think more people would be hollering at the government to control the herds. Just think of all the venison some sharp shooters could donate to food kitchens. Instead people get emotional every time a plan to kill excess deer is attempted. If deer had long naked tails and beady eyes like rats then the hue and cry for exterminating them would raise the roof.

Deer carry disease just like rats and just like rats they do a lot of damage when they are out of control. People are more likely to die or be injured because of a deer, than a rat. But beauty counts in this world still.

Ok, lets go further into that beauty kills thing. With all the people out of work and losing their homes, getting food from soup kitchens, do you think they stop buying make up to smear on their faces and jewelry to hang on their bodies. Nope. Women still buy hair dye and even pay to have their hair and nails done when they are losing the house and their kids are hungry. And its not just women, men buy some of that stuff too, expensive aftershave lotions, tattoos- there’s another money waster. When I think of some of the dollars that some tattooed idiot in the commodity food line wasted it makes me want to scream.

And cell phones- don’t get me started. Every article on saving money should start with GET RID OF THE CELL PHONES. You are not serious about spending less unless you do this.

I can’t believe how much money people spend each month to call someone from the grocery store to say “What’s Up? A cell phone is nice to have for emergencies. Buy a simple phone with pre-paid minutes and keep it turned off unless you have an emergency. If you are going down in an airplane disaster, or trapped in a crumbling building or attacked by wolves your emergency cell phone is there to use. An emergency is not that you are bored or want to show someone how popular you are. Money is spent for special ring tones- ring tones- how important is that? Special colored covers, little ear plugs, all kinds of cutesy accessories. Phones that play games, phones that show tv and take pictures. If you are rich then get the toy. If you are using food stamps and have no job then you don’t need expensive toys. Most people today can’t really afford those toys if they are honest with themselves.

Yes I know some people have replaced their home phones with cell phones. But they almost always fall victim to advertising and wanna be rich syndrome and buy phone plans that allow them to yak all over town for some outrageous amount, way more than a land line plan. Kids do not need cell phones. No, they don’t, they managed just fine without them 15 years ago. If there is some outstanding reason they might need an emergency phone get them one that only calls 911. No teenager that drives should ever have a phone that does more than call 911. Talk about spending money on something to die for. There should be a law like there is a seatbelt/carseat law because their parents are too stupid to protect them.

I think there should be a big tax on each minute of cell phone use. That would rake in the bucks, even just one cent per minute of a call or 5 per transmitted picture. Cell phones are a luxury for most people. Just like beer and cigarettes. If they are legitimately used for work there could be a tax credit.

Whew- I’m done. We’ll talk about cable TV another day.

Lazy Fall days

We had our first frost on the 15th - a light one but it meant I had to bring in the tender stuff and cover the tomatoes. I put everything on the porch for 2 days then today I put it all back outside because we are supposed to have a spell of warm 80 degree plus weather coming up. I like it when everything comes inside all lush and shiny after a summer outside. It’s always a little crowded at first because I can’t stand to leave anything outside that might be saved. But some things die or get so bad looking that I toss them and that frees up space. My houseplants that I left inside this year have a bad case of scale, tiny shell like insects. They suck on plant tissue and secrete honeydew, which is tiny sticky droplets that are all over the window, etc. I am trying to clear that up before I expose any new plants to them.

I cut the pumpkin off the vine that grew by the back door and tossed the vine into the compost pile. The pumpkin is quite large and well shaped. If you turn the side that Henny Penny sampled from time to time, [ she left a few peck marks], away from you , it really looks good. Maybe I will get ambitious and decorate for fall soon. It looks better just to get that ugly vine out of the roses by the back door.

I find it hard to concentrate on anything in the early fall. I have a bit of allergy symptoms, probably ragweed, and I think the high air pressure in fall makes me feel drowsy and lazy. I just want to bask in the sun before these sunny days are gone. Later in the fall I will get my buzz on to prepare for winter and start loading the pantry, wanting to bake all the time and make craft projects. I guess this time of year I really start to appreciate what I’ll be missing before long and just want to soak it up. I went down to the pond and to the woods, just walking, collecting some seed pods and such. You have to be a little careful this time of year walking out in the woods - lots of people are very eager to hunt and some don’t wait for the official start of hunting season. There are sure a lot of deer around this year.

Usually our oak tree alternates producing acorns with the walnut tree producing lots of walnuts. This should be the year for acorns but it doesn’t look like there will be many. If this is happening all over there will be some hungry squirrels this winter. Maybe some of the little buggers will finally die- hopefully the ones that keep getting in my attic.

I am kind of ready to have the frost kill it all. I will have to water the potted stuff today and we are getting a little tired of tomatoes anyway. A heavy frost will kill all the flies and mosquitoes, which is always nice and I can then get rid of the hornets nest on the porch, in the sheep shed and under the fill lid on the propane tank. As of yesterday I was still seeing lots of hummingbirds. I guess they know there is still warm weather ahead.