Sunday, December 27, 2009
Owen Park News
After the new year I am going to hold a meeting with Chris and anyone else who want to attend to about the future of Owen Parks Community Garden. The location we are using now does not get enough sunlight. I plan on starting a face book group to organize the neighborhood.
Brady Heights Garden News
Meeting to decide the future of BHCG is scheduled for December the 28th. Call Justin for more details. You can get his number off the sign in front of the garden.
Honey Report for December.
We had a very interesting NEOBA meeting last week. The December meeting is a time to reflect on the previous year and share your accomplishments or disasters. I didn't feel when about half the beekeepers complained about little or no Honey this year. I ended the year with one hive (hopefully) having enough honey stored to survive the winter and one in chaos. Not sure if they will make it or not. The big topic at the meeting was a desire to built up the bee industry here in Northeastern Oklahoma. So with that in mind, if you want to start keeping Honey Bees now is the time you place your orders. I limited experience has me to recommend buying Okie survivor stock. Usually you can find bees for sale on Craigslist, or you can hookup with someone on the NEOBA Group. Here is the USDA Honey Report for December
Saturday, December 26, 2009
A new look for the new year.
I hope everyone had a wonderful holiday. I wish everyone a very prosperous new year.
Sunday, December 20, 2009
Knocking Around on a Sunny Day
I actually went outside and swept my sidewalk - between the turkey poop and the upturned pots, it was a mess. We tried to start a leaf shredder - after all I have 30 feet by 12 feet by 6 feet of leaves in bags from the Tulsa area. Great job collecting - Della!
I just finished building the Access database for the Buy Fresh/Buy Local campaign - have been so frustrated by the idea of having this brochure out there but not seeing is get done this year - due to illness on one members part - not sure about all the other contributing factors. I figured I could either keep griping or help. I choose to take my time, and it was considerable, to get this done for the - well I guess for all the farmers and farmers market vendors cuz it covers meat, honey, baked goods and even nuts. I was amazed that I was able to hang the silly thing together and get reports and input pages that will do the trick - do they have someone who can build queries and get it back out - probably not. Will I do it - sure, just call me stupid and I'll help - again. I sure hope they understand that I've earned some recognition - and I hope they print it timely this year. I even pushed that it be used at HIS this year.
I have a bit of bad news - all my turkeys are male -so I am going to figure a time soon to murder one of them - the biggest one. The wing and tail feathers will go to a friend who makes art - any advice will be welcomed - does anyone else read this words of wit?
peace all - merry hoho
I just finished building the Access database for the Buy Fresh/Buy Local campaign - have been so frustrated by the idea of having this brochure out there but not seeing is get done this year - due to illness on one members part - not sure about all the other contributing factors. I figured I could either keep griping or help. I choose to take my time, and it was considerable, to get this done for the - well I guess for all the farmers and farmers market vendors cuz it covers meat, honey, baked goods and even nuts. I was amazed that I was able to hang the silly thing together and get reports and input pages that will do the trick - do they have someone who can build queries and get it back out - probably not. Will I do it - sure, just call me stupid and I'll help - again. I sure hope they understand that I've earned some recognition - and I hope they print it timely this year. I even pushed that it be used at HIS this year.
I have a bit of bad news - all my turkeys are male -so I am going to figure a time soon to murder one of them - the biggest one. The wing and tail feathers will go to a friend who makes art - any advice will be welcomed - does anyone else read this words of wit?
peace all - merry hoho
Saturday, December 19, 2009
Sad News
Any one willing to help out I am sure BHCG would greatly appreciate your support.
Justin Pickard wrote:
We are officially losing the community garden lot. As some of you know, an heir of the deceased lady who owned the fire-damaged-house that was bulldozed by the City, contacted us a couple months ago wanting to reclaim the lot. Because the lot is encumbered with so many liens (close to $40,000 with the City's liens and a mortgage lien), we believed that no heir would want to go through probate to get a lot that had so much debt compared to its value ($5-10,000). Unfortunately, we guessed wrongly. The heir who contacted us has a wealthy nephew who is a very successful boxer and is unconcerned about losing money on the deal. At one point he considered selling us the lot, but now has decided firmly that he is not going to do that. He has asked us, graciously, to move everything off the lot by the end of January (so we wouldn't have to do it during the holidays).
Obviously, the need to move everything is discouraging. However, it is quite doable. (1)The bed frames will pull up easily and are light to move; (2) I have a friend who has a front end-loader and we can scrape the soil from the beds and transport it with that (3) the fence can disassemble into sections (4) that just leaves fruit trees and strawberries to pull up and some other odds and ends. The main concern I have is that we nail down quickly a new location to which we can move the garden, so that we do not have to move everything twice. And having had this experience, we would want to have the ownership of the new lot sealed to avoid this happening again.
There are two lots that are possibilities (and if anyone knows of others, let us know). One lot is for sale at 1024 N. Denver Ave. (sw corner of Denver and Latimer by the Tisdale Pedestrian bridge). It has some advantages such as its central location in Brady Heights proximity to the commercial buildings (when say when our grocer and Tara's coffee shop are open), room with the closed off portion of Latimer for holding famers' market, outdoor concert's or neighborhood block parties, etc.). Novus Homes is currently asking $15,000, which is probably why they have been unable to sell it. We could offer less. I spoke with the owner and he is interested in self-financing it, but only for two years. This would give us the option to break it out into manageable payments.
The other available lot is the second lot north of Marshall on the east side at 1207 N. Cheyenne Ave. The owner of it actually contacted me when he saw my number on our garden sign. I am now having trouble getting a hold of him, but I think he would take $5-6,000 for it. The lower cost would obviously be a benefit, plus the easy proximity to the current garden in terms of moving everything. I also see it as an opportunity to get to know our neighbors to the north of Marshall. The adjacent owner of the blue house to the south is a sweet elderly lady, who said she was definitely in favor of the garden being there.
What does everyone want to do? Should we have a meeting to discuss this? We could hold it at my house. Should we try raising money prior to the end of the year to catch the tax deductible donations? Or should we try raising it amongst ourselves? Russell or others, do you know of grant opportunities? Again, I'll stress that we really need to work out a permanent location so that we only have to move things once, which means we need to do that in the next month.
Justin Pickard
Justin Pickard wrote:
We are officially losing the community garden lot. As some of you know, an heir of the deceased lady who owned the fire-damaged-house that was bulldozed by the City, contacted us a couple months ago wanting to reclaim the lot. Because the lot is encumbered with so many liens (close to $40,000 with the City's liens and a mortgage lien), we believed that no heir would want to go through probate to get a lot that had so much debt compared to its value ($5-10,000). Unfortunately, we guessed wrongly. The heir who contacted us has a wealthy nephew who is a very successful boxer and is unconcerned about losing money on the deal. At one point he considered selling us the lot, but now has decided firmly that he is not going to do that. He has asked us, graciously, to move everything off the lot by the end of January (so we wouldn't have to do it during the holidays).
Obviously, the need to move everything is discouraging. However, it is quite doable. (1)The bed frames will pull up easily and are light to move; (2) I have a friend who has a front end-loader and we can scrape the soil from the beds and transport it with that (3) the fence can disassemble into sections (4) that just leaves fruit trees and strawberries to pull up and some other odds and ends. The main concern I have is that we nail down quickly a new location to which we can move the garden, so that we do not have to move everything twice. And having had this experience, we would want to have the ownership of the new lot sealed to avoid this happening again.
There are two lots that are possibilities (and if anyone knows of others, let us know). One lot is for sale at 1024 N. Denver Ave. (sw corner of Denver and Latimer by the Tisdale Pedestrian bridge). It has some advantages such as its central location in Brady Heights proximity to the commercial buildings (when say when our grocer and Tara's coffee shop are open), room with the closed off portion of Latimer for holding famers' market, outdoor concert's or neighborhood block parties, etc.). Novus Homes is currently asking $15,000, which is probably why they have been unable to sell it. We could offer less. I spoke with the owner and he is interested in self-financing it, but only for two years. This would give us the option to break it out into manageable payments.
The other available lot is the second lot north of Marshall on the east side at 1207 N. Cheyenne Ave. The owner of it actually contacted me when he saw my number on our garden sign. I am now having trouble getting a hold of him, but I think he would take $5-6,000 for it. The lower cost would obviously be a benefit, plus the easy proximity to the current garden in terms of moving everything. I also see it as an opportunity to get to know our neighbors to the north of Marshall. The adjacent owner of the blue house to the south is a sweet elderly lady, who said she was definitely in favor of the garden being there.
What does everyone want to do? Should we have a meeting to discuss this? We could hold it at my house. Should we try raising money prior to the end of the year to catch the tax deductible donations? Or should we try raising it amongst ourselves? Russell or others, do you know of grant opportunities? Again, I'll stress that we really need to work out a permanent location so that we only have to move things once, which means we need to do that in the next month.
Justin Pickard
Friday, December 4, 2009
The November No One Remebered
Wow - nothing in November. Second latest freeze on record, 70s during the days and often. Yes, I was waiting for a freeze - my greenhouse is loaded with plants to the point of no return. I have no room for new plants - what to do, what to do.
I have assumed the roll of putting the Buy Fresh/Buy Local information into an Access database - a simple job complicated by many ideas and suggestions. Inability to sleep has my mind frayed, a new pet cockatoo to take the place of our sweet little Moe has been similar to adopting a rowdy 2 year old with a severe overbite and an ability to truly bite your finger off. So far, she's been gold but still, entertaining takes time and a much needed rubbing at the end of the day is demanded by this large pigeon sized, two legged descendants of the dinosaurs. Until you have scratched the feathers off a small squab who gleefully raises each wing in anticipation clutching your shoulder with talons, you simply haven't any idea how much like a puppy or a kitten a parrot can be.
I haven't died - but it sure seems that email time is low on every one's list. Real contact seems to be limited for farmers - even at this time of year. Seed catalogs to peruse, or is that puruse - an odd word for "stare at" huh! Have you tilled yet - the freezes can kill some of the grass - fluff it up for that help.
Stack those tomato cages - this year closer - that walk to and from - insane!
The compost heap must be cleaned - I can grow bigger weeds in there than anywhere and what a waste. We have 14 pallets in groups of 2 making 3 bins with one side open and the top exposed - the wood had rotted - time to pull it all into the gardens.
My new beekeeper is a leaf collecting troll - she's got a van and an extra driveway to stack the leaves so once a week we drive over in the NEW Truck - a nice new (used) diesel with dump bed and side rails - and it is lovely for such a thing. I have leafs in bags almost as wide as my house and 1/3 as long about 3 high. We need to spend hours with the shredder - I love shredding but it takes hours. All of this will go into the gardens - tomatoes will be moved - to where the geese call home - because the gardens seem to be overrun with army worm refugees and the various wilts seem to claim the weak - a cleansing is needed - we have the space.
My 6 turkey chicks are now 3 huge birds (3 were lost) - a hen and two toms who seem to be as horny as any teenagers - one head scarf set them off and they strut and gobble as if they were the handsomest men on earth. I know this sounds weird and they are ugly in one way but in another, because I love my birds, they are handsome. The color had drained from their heads - a sign of lack of arousal and at first I was concerned - but with a flash of my shiny blue jacket and a bit of red glove, their passions turned those knobby heads into a festival of color. I will have to limit the hen with each tom so as not to overtax her - I'd love a dozen chicks for next year - those young toms will be destined for my table - and I pray I can butcher them well. At least 3 hens will be saved for future growth.
The geese have been given full run into the new flowerbed on the end of the house - the straw wasn't clean - seeds sprouted - there's nice fresh wheat grass for their tummies - so they take a bit of French sorrel with it.
And a few nights back the guineas were howling - chattering after bedtime - I sent my husband scurrying to check for the reason and a huge owl flew out of the tree - damn him. No loss - these are mean spirited guineas - strong minded - that's why they are still here. I have one Cockatoo, two spotted guineas, three fat turkeys, four honking geese and a New Truck - I have 5 days of Christmas. Hmmm - how would that go - One White Diesel Truck, four honking geese, three fat turkeys, two spotted guineas and a Cockatoo named Peaches.
Happy Holidays.
I have assumed the roll of putting the Buy Fresh/Buy Local information into an Access database - a simple job complicated by many ideas and suggestions. Inability to sleep has my mind frayed, a new pet cockatoo to take the place of our sweet little Moe has been similar to adopting a rowdy 2 year old with a severe overbite and an ability to truly bite your finger off. So far, she's been gold but still, entertaining takes time and a much needed rubbing at the end of the day is demanded by this large pigeon sized, two legged descendants of the dinosaurs. Until you have scratched the feathers off a small squab who gleefully raises each wing in anticipation clutching your shoulder with talons, you simply haven't any idea how much like a puppy or a kitten a parrot can be.
I haven't died - but it sure seems that email time is low on every one's list. Real contact seems to be limited for farmers - even at this time of year. Seed catalogs to peruse, or is that puruse - an odd word for "stare at" huh! Have you tilled yet - the freezes can kill some of the grass - fluff it up for that help.
Stack those tomato cages - this year closer - that walk to and from - insane!
The compost heap must be cleaned - I can grow bigger weeds in there than anywhere and what a waste. We have 14 pallets in groups of 2 making 3 bins with one side open and the top exposed - the wood had rotted - time to pull it all into the gardens.
My new beekeeper is a leaf collecting troll - she's got a van and an extra driveway to stack the leaves so once a week we drive over in the NEW Truck - a nice new (used) diesel with dump bed and side rails - and it is lovely for such a thing. I have leafs in bags almost as wide as my house and 1/3 as long about 3 high. We need to spend hours with the shredder - I love shredding but it takes hours. All of this will go into the gardens - tomatoes will be moved - to where the geese call home - because the gardens seem to be overrun with army worm refugees and the various wilts seem to claim the weak - a cleansing is needed - we have the space.
My 6 turkey chicks are now 3 huge birds (3 were lost) - a hen and two toms who seem to be as horny as any teenagers - one head scarf set them off and they strut and gobble as if they were the handsomest men on earth. I know this sounds weird and they are ugly in one way but in another, because I love my birds, they are handsome. The color had drained from their heads - a sign of lack of arousal and at first I was concerned - but with a flash of my shiny blue jacket and a bit of red glove, their passions turned those knobby heads into a festival of color. I will have to limit the hen with each tom so as not to overtax her - I'd love a dozen chicks for next year - those young toms will be destined for my table - and I pray I can butcher them well. At least 3 hens will be saved for future growth.
The geese have been given full run into the new flowerbed on the end of the house - the straw wasn't clean - seeds sprouted - there's nice fresh wheat grass for their tummies - so they take a bit of French sorrel with it.
And a few nights back the guineas were howling - chattering after bedtime - I sent my husband scurrying to check for the reason and a huge owl flew out of the tree - damn him. No loss - these are mean spirited guineas - strong minded - that's why they are still here. I have one Cockatoo, two spotted guineas, three fat turkeys, four honking geese and a New Truck - I have 5 days of Christmas. Hmmm - how would that go - One White Diesel Truck, four honking geese, three fat turkeys, two spotted guineas and a Cockatoo named Peaches.
Happy Holidays.
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