My tired bones

A busy day! Not only am I tired, even my bones are tired.

By 8:45 am I was over to Bob's house to load the roofing shingles. Two dozen - and a lot of sweat later - I had the bundles on the garage roof. I am glad I had time to eat breakfast before all that work. While I was there I also helped move a few big heavy items around the garage for Bob and Jan.

After I fed my "girls" I was off to the local Food Bank before they closed to get some of the bread no one takes. Last year I found the cattle like the bread and feeding it to them gets them familiar with me. Last Fall too familiar as when I entered the corral to fix something I had cattle licking me and nibbling on my clothes. Now if I had apples this spring the cattle would really love me!

I was able to score a few dozen bags of the long thin bread that people don't care for. My "girls" were interested in the bread - some more than others. Eventually two were brave enough to eat it out of my hand - but barely as sometimes they would step back quickly if another heifer bumped them, or for whatever reason. Half of the rest would eat the pieces I tossed on the ground, and the remaining ones didn't understand what the fuss was about.

After the Food Bank I stopped at the Cenex hardware / feed store downtown. I bought some ear tags for my cattle. They had a half dozen colors: red, green, white, blue, yellow and orange. Dan uses green so that color was out. What color would look good on a black heifer? Red... but for what I would write on the tag it may a little too dark for the number (or name if I come up with one) to show clearly. I like blue but this was a light blue and not a favorite. I decided to go with orange. Not sure why. I did feel it was light enough to read what was written on the tag and colorful enough to go with black. The bag contained 25 tags ($17.35). If I later get red or tan cattle like last year, would orange suit them? I hope so. Color coding cattle... who woulda thought?

I also picked up a block of plain salt. ($5.39) The plain salt I have now is in pieces and being used up fast. The salt I have with minerals is still in one piece and large enough to last a little longer.

Then off to the County election department to turn in my application to be an election judge this year. I never have been an election judge and thought it would be an interesting thing to do. I only would have to do this for the primary June 6 and the general election November 7.

The ladies in the election department were very happy to get my application. While they thought my precinct had enough judges they were very sure they could place me in another precinct. The unemployment rate is pretty low in our county and being an election judge apparently is not high on people's lists of things to do. But then I am different.

If I am an election judge then I would have to vote by absentee ballot - especially if I work in another precinct. They gave me a absentee ballot request form which I filled out.

I stopped at Lowe's to check out their garden department. Last year the garden manager told me they got a larger selection of bare rooted tree/shrubs/bushes earlier in the season. They had a lot bare rooted trees/shrubs/bushes. Now to find something different.

I found a Red Gold nectarine fruit tree. I haven't seen nectarine trees sold in the Flathead before. I checked and it said it could handle cold to -20 F. Okay... I'll try it.

It is self-fertile so I only bought one 0 in case it doesn't last the winter!

Botanical Name: Prunus persica 'Red Gold'
Common Name: Red Gold Nectarine
Sun Exposure: Full Sun
Average Height: 15'
Cold Hardiness: -20°F (-29°C)

Description: A vigorous, productive tree producing very large glossy red fruit. The firm, yellow juicy flesh has excellent color and flavor.

I next bought two thornless Boysenberry plants.

Botanical Name: Rubus ursinus var. loganobaccus cv. 'Boysen'
Common Name: Thornless Boysenberry
Plant Type: Perennial
Sun Exposure: Full Sun
Average Height: As trained
Cold Hardiness: 10°F (-12°C)

Description: Elongated, tart fruit that is wine red to black. Good cooked, frozen, and fresh. Not hardy in the northeast. Canes grow one season and fruit the next. Plant in organically enriched, well drained soil. Don't over water. Keep on dry side.

After I bought it I noticed the cold hardiness was only 10 F. Only 10 F?! Why is Lowe's selling it here? Well, if it doesn't make it through the winter I have a one year guarantee.

Lastly I found a Jostaberry. Jostaberry? Never heard of it! The cold hardiness is listed as -40 F. Wow! That's a tough shrub! I got to have one.

Botanical Name: Ribes nigridolaria cv. Josta
Common Name: Jostaberry
Plant Type: Shrub
Sun Exposure: Full Sun
Average Height: 5-6'
Cold Hardiness: -40°F (-40°C)

Description: Large clusters of nearly black berries look like gooseberries until ripe. Has a mild, black currant flavor, but larger berries. High vitamin C content. Great for eating fresh, jam, juice, and cordials. This self-fertile shrub is a vigorous, heavy bearer.

Hmmm... "cordials". Yes, that's what I thought it meant! For sure I have to own a Jostaberry!

On the way home I stopped at Bob's house to show him my plant finds as he is very much the gardener. Jan found a few more items for me to move for her in their garage.

After lunch (late) I unwrapped my plants and put them in a five gallon pail to soak their roots. While waiting I dug more of my garden to finish digging another section. I then found some room in my fruit tree area for my new plants. While digging the hole for my nectarine tree I uncovered a relatively deep pocket gopher tunnel. *sigh* At least I had trapped them out last year. The tunnel ran between two areas where I had captured pockets gophers. The pocket gophers are gone, but the tunnel remains for any new ones that find it - and find the tunnels they do!

Over the years I lost two pear trees to pocket gophers who ate all the trees' roots. I didn't want this to happen to my nectarine tree so I got three pines cones and stuffed them into the tunnel. I took a small piece of roofing shingle and placed over the end of the hole. Let's see a new pocket gopher get through that!

I checked my other fruit trees and berry bushes. All my fruit trees are starting to bud - even the peach tree I bought last year cheap at Walmart's "closing down the nursery" sale. It is my understanding peach trees will only grow near Flathead Lake where it is warmer in the winter. Our lowest temperature last winter was around -20 F and the peach tree survived.

Most of my berry bushes are budding out - especially the buffalo berry and serviceberry (juneberry) bushes. I wish I had bought more than just one serviceberry bush last year. The grapes are not budding yet, nor the kiwis, nor the shrubs I got in the mail (late!) from a nursery. There is time yet so I hope they make it.

By now the wind picked up strong. I could see large isolated rain clouds to the south and to the west. I imagine the air temperature difference between the two large clouds was causing the sudden strong wind. For a while the wind was blowing loose dust/dirt fairly strongly from the SE.

Yesterday and today I noticed the wind had cold bite to it. Then I realized yesterday the wind was from the NE - from Glacier National Park and its snow covered mountains. Today's wind was partly rain cooled and partly from the SE mountains, also with snow. If I have to have a breeze give me a SW wind - please!

I decided not to go with my plan of burning the middle pasture after planting my trees and shrubs. Too windy and cool now. But digging in the garden... um... I needed a break. Instead I checked my pocket gopher traps and got my 50th one for the year. I started moving a few traps into the pastures as the hayfield has been trapped out - as far as I can tell - except for the last three traps, two of which pockets gophers buried instead of entering.

I went into my crawl space and got my remaining beets and carrots. What a difference between the carrots I stored in the ground and the crawl space. This winter I will leave more carrots in the ground over winter.

I put a beet on to steam and went to the north pasture to dig around tree roots. I want to also burn the remaining tree stumps in the north pasture. The previous year they burnt down to the ground but would not continue on into the ground. I also found two more tree stumps since last year. With a spade I dug around the stumps to expose them at least enough to allow a fire to "take" and burn them completely. Often I dug the stumps more than necessary; but as the soil is damp and cool it makes the stump the same. Hopefully the warm weather predicted the next few days will dry the stumps enough to allow the fire to "take" and follow the stump into the ground.

While digging the last tree stump in the north pasture I was startled when a large furry animal suddenly ran from the other side of the tree stump I was digging around. It looked to be a regular gopher - or prairie dog. It ran and ran away fast towards the main prairie dog "town" before I could do anything (like hit it with a shovel). "What the..?" Then after a few more shovels of dirt I found were it came from. The tree stumps have large roots spread out, and which I dig around. In the ground between a side root and the main stump/root was a hole. In the hole was a large mass of dead grass. Here was the gopher's home. Well, no more.

After I finish off the pocket gophers my next mission will be to get rid of the prairie dogs. I see this year they have spread their area larger with new holes. While I dug in a few areas one, then another when I moved, would chirp a warning to the other dogs/gophers. They could read my mind!

Also while digging my northern neighbor's dogs (a cocker spaniel and two poodles) came running over towards me loudly barking up a storm. Apparently the dogs think they own my property. I ignored them and they got distracted and starting digging up a prairie dog hole before losing interest and running home having given me warning that this was their property.

After four stumps in the north pasture I went to the middle pasture by the river to where I had burnt stumps the previous years. There were a half dozen of these partially burnt stumps but after digging around four of them I ran out of gas. I had dug around eight tree stumps in 2 hours 40 minutes. It was getting late so I went home to make supper arriving home at 9 pm. Besides a hoot owl was in the south pasture hooting. Usually he/she is in the middle pasture near the river. By the time I got home I heard the owl back in the middle pasture.

So here I sit stiff and sore. Very stiff and sore. Wonder if I'll sleep in this morning? Plenty of work to do.