Summer vacation is officially here...day three, in fact, for us. Such a nice feeling that we don't have to go to work. What is not a nice feeling, however, is the fact that the desert we live in has become much like a desert climate all of a sudden. Gone are the lovely 75 degree days...hello 90's! Bleah. Besides meaning increasing grumpiness on my part, as I hate temperatures over 75, it also means stepping up the watering schedule. Twice a day now. There are so many veggies getting ready to ripen on the vine. A couple of different squash, cucumbers, and tomatoes! I found a few little eggplants and some little peppers. The squash and the cucumbers are hard to find because they like to hide under the giant leaves. Peas and beans look like they are getting ready to start producing...I think. Flowers, but no little veggies yet. The edamame is pretty much gone (stupid grasshoppers), but that's okay. I wasn't too excited about those anyway. Things look healthy in the garden and I cannot wait to start eating them! I think squash is on this weekend's menu...yummo!
Just came back from surveying the herb situation (I panicked because I forgot to water them...not on drip yet) and looks like all but three varieties made it through the grasshopper infestation... Cilantro, parsley, rosemary, basil, chives, and dill have survived. I think once the evil insects are under control, I will get new herbs and try again. My lack of watering didn't appear to be detrimental, so that's good.
As for the wretched grasshoppers...well, it seems the chickens, both adult and teens, have joined forces to eradicate this pest infestation. I think of it as a chicken armada. Yay! They have been doing an amazing job of this too. No longer does one step out into the yard and hear crunch, crunch, crunch, every time one steps forward. The chickens must be loving all the treats. It's still pretty funny to watch the chickens chase the grasshoppers. I wish I could let them out in the veggie garden, but I'm afraid they would eat the good stuff. There are still a ton of the buggers in the garden. I went out to pull some weeds this morning and got an air assault of the critters as I poked around under the cucumbers. I did find that the edamame has a couple of pods hanging valiantly off each stalk, as there are no leaves at all. They didn't look too healthy, so I don't know if they will be any good.
I really love my chickens. Not only do they provide eggs for me to eat, but endless hours of entertainment. I usually toss out any kitchen scraps that the chickens might like to nibble on out the back door. It's hilarious to watch them come running from all corners of the yard when they hear the back door open. Honestly, I didn't think they could hear that well, but apparently they do. Yesterday, I took out some strawberries, some avocado scraps, some bread that was a little hard, and some egg shells. Rumor has it, the egg shells are a favorite treat for chickens. Seems a little weird to me, but they seemed to like them. I didn't want the dog to get crazy and hurt herself trying to get the chickens, so I walked over by the coop to toss out the treats and they came sprinting from every nook and cranny in the yard. Chickens on the run are about the funniest thing you can see...they run awkwardly, but super fast. If that wasn't amusing enough, the teenagers came a little more cautiously into the situation...took a few looks around and after one of them came on a piece of strawberry that one of the other mommas dropped, it was game on. Gaga chased one of the Leghorn's in circles, trying to get a bite of the strawberry. There was plenty for all, but apparently she only wanted that piece. Typical kids...always want what the other has. The only kids missing were the two youngest...the Auracanas. Not sure if they are too dainty for such shenanigans or completely unaware. They seem like the dumb blondes of the group. They are very pretty with their longer neck feathers and muted colors. Supposedly, they will lay blue-ish green eggs. Those two are always hiding out in the shade over by the water spigot. They are like the girls in elementary school that never want to participate in p.e. They hang out in the back or off to the side and hope nothing ever comes their way. When it does, they shriek and run the opposite direction. The other teenagers pretty much ignore those two. We have one other socially awkward teenager, who I suspect might be a rooster. This is the smallest of all the teens...a bantam...he/she has the biggest comb on top and struts around acting quite important. When every one else was feasting on the scraps, he (I'm just going to call him a "he" from now on) was making his way through the tall weeds like some sort of safari hunter...also funny to watch.
The longer I own chickens, the more they remind me of humans I have either known or come across. They have so many quirky personality traits that I find funny. Glad they are productive, because it places them higher on the list than most humans. I'm pretty sure I like them better than most people too...family and good friends excepted, of course. :o)
