Because of leap year, today, December 31, 2008, is the 366th day of the year. What a great time to reflect on the wonders and dream for the future.
Monthly Archives: December 2008
Post Christmas beauty
The post-Christmas weather included an ice storm, 56 degree days, a inch or two of snow, and wind.
Today was a picture perfect day.
Pheasants roosting on the ice covered fly pen that used to be their home
Pheasants feeding in the snow
The cabin at Two Mile from the East hill
Gardening question: Thistle removal
What is the best way to get rid of thistles?
The thistle is one of the most difficult perennial weeds to control because its underground stems can travel up to 20 feet a season. After chopping them down, use a plastic mulch to cover the entire area. A straw mulch, laid at least three inches thick, also will smother thistles. (Do not use a leaf mulch.) Your weed-control program must be long-lasting because the roots can lie dormant for several years. In addition to mulching, plowing the garden deeply in the fall will bring the rhizomes (stems) to the surface. But avoid rototilling, because this will cut the rhizomes, and each piece will become a new plant.
From The Old Farmer’s Almanac.
The storm was more hype than ice
The storm hit, but no where as severe as it could have been. The roads were mostly passable by mid morning and a quick review of the power company Web sites showed no significant outages. The weekend will be spent putting insulation into the floors of the Two Mile Cabin before the temps drop to 0 again.
Winter Solstice – longer days
The Winter solstice is marked this year on December 21. From this day forward (until June) the length of daylight grows longer each day. The US Naval Observatory reports Two Mile Ranch will have slightly longer days. Sunrise will actually occur 1 – 2 minutes later until the 12th of January, when it occurs earlier. Sunset will occur a minute or so later every few days.
Ice Storm ’08 or hype
It’s hard to know if this is the real deal, but the National Weather Service thinks it is:
The Ice Storm Warning is now in effect from 6 PM this evening to
6 am CST Friday.Freezing rain is now expected to develop by early evening and
continue through tonight. Significant ice accumulations are
expected… ranging from between one and two tenths of an inch
near Interstate 80… to near an inch near the Iowa Missouri
border. The freezing rain will become mixed with or change over
to sleet later tonight… with sleet accumulations from a quarter
to half inch possible mainly near Interstate 80. To make matters
worse… there is also the potential for an isolated thunderstorm
or two. If this occurs… ice accrual will occur at a much faster
rate.An Ice Storm Warning means severe winter weather conditions are
expected or occurring. Significant ice accumulations will make
travel dangerous or impossible. Travel is strongly discouraged
later today and tonight. Commerce will likely be severely
impacted… with widespread power outages. Ice accumulations and
increasing winds by early Friday morning will likely lead to
snapped power lines and falling tree branches that add to the
danger.
Radar between 3 and 4 pm
Armchair cabin building
I spent nearly 5 years as an armchair cabin builder — I had some loose ideas and visited web sites, but I didn’t own the ground. I read countless stories of other people’s building exploits. To be honest, even though I’ve read hundreds of stories, I never tire of hearing or reading about someone’s projects.
Here are three projects I am currently following:
Copyright Marc von Roojen
Mark van Roojen’s Timber Frame cabin (LINK UPDATED)
This is a 2 -3 year project of a University of Nebraska – Lincoln professor of metaethics, ethics and political philosophy. The cabin is located in the Sierra Madre Mountains of Wyoming.
A new project and blog (although it’s Topic at the New York Times, so it’s quasi blog, quasi editorial) is Lou Ureneck’s “From the Ground Up”.
Copyright Lou Ureneck
But the best of the best isn’t one project, but the collection of owner built projects housed at John Raabe’s www.countryplans.com. The discussion board, which is the heart of the site, contains 74,106 Posts in 5,744 Topics by 3,463 Members as of today, and the number grows.
I first began following the discussion on Country Plans in late 1999 or early 2000, and have been flattered that John choise to include the Two Mile Ranch cabin on his front page, along with some very impressive stories and projects.
Michael Pollan Urges Fresh Food on Bill Moyer’s Journal
The November 28 edition of Bill Moyers Journal features some provocative comments by Michael Pollan on eating fresh.
MICHAEL POLLAN: And that, there is a real crisis in the inner city with access to fresh produce. And we know, distance from a source of fresh produce is a predictor of health.
BILL MOYERS: What do you mean, crisis?
MICHAEL POLLAN: Crisis because, in West Oakland, a neighborhood sort of like this, or where I live. I live in Berkeley. West Oakland is an area that has about 26 convenience stores, liquor stores, that sell processed food, and not a single supermarket. No source of fresh produce. You might get some onions and potatoes in that convenience store, but that it is. Yet, it’s full of fast food outlets. So you have, a fresh food desert, in effect. And that is one of the reasons that people in the inner city have such higher rates of diabetes. There is a demand for fresh and healthier food that’s not being served.
As they get more specific, Moyers asks for some quick things to make a difference in our health.
BILL MOYERS: What else? Give me a list, quickly, of what we can do to make a difference in this reforming the food system.
MICHAEL POLLAN: Well, plant a garden. If you’ve got space, and if you don’t, look into a community garden where you might rent a little bit of space, like we saw in East New York.
Cook. Simply by starting to cook again, you declare your independence from the culture of fast food. As soon as you cook, you start thinking about ingredients. You start thinking about plants and animals, and not the microwave. And you will find that your diet, just by that one simple act, that is greatly improved. You will find that you are supporting local agriculture, because you’ll care about the quality of ingredients. And you know, whether you’re cooking or not is one of the best predictors for a healthy diet. It’s more important than the class predictor. People with more money generally have healthier diets, but affluent people who don’t cook are not as healthy in their eating as poor people who still cook.(emphasis mine) So, very, very important. If you don’t have pots and pans, get them.
Gardening question: Burpless cucumbers
What makes a Kirby cucumber burpless?
Kirby cucumbers, like other greenhouse cucumbers, are milder than garden grown slicing or pickling cucumbers. As a result, to some people they seem to be easier to digest, resulting in less burping. The greenhouse cucumbers now known as “Kirby-type” were developed to produce fruit parthenogenically, that is, without pollination of the flowers. Thus, Kirby-type would produce fruit in a greenhouse. The Kirby’s have no seeds, a very tender skin, and a distinctive long, slender shape. The selection process that resulted in the seedless, thin-skinned cucumbers also selected out some of the compounds that produced the digestion problems. Nowadays, the easy-to-digest qualities of the Kirby-type cucumbers have been re-selected by plant breeders. Home gardeners can choose from a number of seed sources for burpless cucumbers. Look for varieties that are long and slender with solid dark green skins.
From The Old Farmer’s Almanac.
Gardening question: poinsettias
How can I prolong the life of my poinsettias this holiday season?
The best thing you can do is keep the plant evenly moist from the time you bring it into the house. Protect it from getting chilled and make sure it is not in the path of any household drafts. Keep it in full sunlight and at temperatures between 65 and 72 degrees F.
From The Old Farmer’s Almanac.
