Fish Food Farms

Not much this weekend in the garden. Between baseball, football and rain I did manage to get Dolly’s final resting place planted with a rose named “Angel Face” a nickname I’ve always had for her. She had such a sweet angelic face. I miss her so much.
Then I bought a trellis to put inside the gate to the garden to plant some climbing roses. Took the measurements and was ready to go. Farmer George cussed and ranted and raved but got it together and up. Of course, when you opened the gate the top of the trellis is about a quarter inch too low. So a rethink and change to garden layout is already in progress. Always something!

**The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly**

I know I said we weren’t going anywhere, and technically we didn’t—but life had other plans. In truth, it was the DEER that got in the way. After planting the garden twice, only to have the deer destroy most of it, my heart just wasn’t in it anymore. The tomatoes were spared and we had a great season, but almost everything else was gone. Even our electric fence couldn’t keep them out. Through tears, I told Farmer George I wouldn’t plant another garden until we put up a proper fence. He made it happen, and now we have a fence that surrounds the entire area, including the chicken coop!

I thought the chickens were safe to free-range (they loved it!), but a fox somehow got in and took out seven hens. Ugh. On the same day, we lost our beloved garden dog, Dolly, which completely crushed me. We still have Weesie, and today was her first day of training on how to avoid the chickens! Even Satchel was allowed into the garden—he’s learned to ignore the chickens just like he does with me.

Now we’re ready to reclaim the garden! Today is day one. Farmer George handled the w**d eating while I focused on specific areas. As I cleared, I noticed that the chomped peppers were making a comeback, so I cleaned, fed, and gave them a deep watering. Then I mulched (side note: check out the photo where I mulched at the beginning of summer—NO WEEDS). There’s still a LOT left to do, but it was a great start. I’m not sure if I’ll plant a fall garden, my main focus is getting everything ready for a fabulous spring garden. My goal is to not only have a productive garden again but also to add pollinator-friendly plants.

**THE GOOD:** The tomatoes were amazing! I canned sauce, salsa, and diced. The peach tree did phenomenally well! I learned the importance of thinning fruit and doing a better job pruning. We did make some delicious peach jam! The Satsuma trees are doing great!

**THE BAD:** Deer, rabbits, foxes, and not mulching enough.

**THE UGLY:** Weeds.

We’ll be back out there tomorrow.

George L Fisher

Time to sow these peas! Today’s lesson: The Fishettes were not helpful in the garden 😂. My initial row was promptly devoured.