Things are growing in the Hoop House

View from the back., originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

The seedlings that I transplanted into the raised bed only a few days ago have already grown and what was even more surprising they didn't even wilt after being transplanted, perhaps because of the humidity. The temperature has been going into the 30's everyday that the sun shines.

I re-potted my two Fig trees into much larger pots and have dreams of ripe figs next year. I have had many green figs in the past but very few ripe ones our season just isn't long enough. In the past I have always brought the fig trees in the basement for the winter once they have lost their leaves and gone dormant. After a conversation with a flickr friend in Spain I'm now considering an experiment and leaving one of them in the hoop house to see what happens. She tells me her sister in Switzerland has a fig and gets lots of frost, snow and cold temperatures, last winter as low as -17 and her three is loaded with figs this year. Well I have a digital thermometer which records minimum and maximum temperatures and I just checked, our coldest day was -21 last winter. So I just might give it a try.

Sowing and Transplanting Fall Crops in the Hoop House

My new Hoop House is up and in use. Eventually it will have three raised beds in it plus space for some large Smartpots. So far I have built one of these beds and filled it with soil mix and compost and transplanted the seedlings that I started in late July. I also moved the Smartpots of tomatoes and peppers that were in the garden inside. The Hoop House is 16 X 20 feet which is a very good space for a hobby greenhouse but it feels huge to me after years of working in my old 8 X 10 feet greenhouse.

Building a Hoop House in 55 Seconds

Over the past few weeks I've been building my new Hoop House Greenhouse and taking time lapse video of the process. Playing time is 54 seconds I wish the real process had been that fast. Well worth all the work though I'm very pleased with the end result.

I couldn't resist I took the same video and add the Flight of the Bumble Bee music, what a hoot.

Boggar - Bantam Plymouth Barred Rock

Buggar - Bantam Plymouth Barred Rock, originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

Rest in Peace little guy. Died August 16th after an attack by an Osprey.

Dale's Free Open Pollinated Seed Exchange: A little explanation of my plans for this blog

I'm starting a second blog which is very much a work in progress at this point but will be hopefully up and running this fall. Please take a moment to stop by and check it out, make suggestion and comment. Oh yes and please subscribe if you are interested in the seed exchange or want to follow the progress of the new blog. (To get there just click on the highlighted title below.)


Dale's Free Open Pollinated Seed Exchange: A little explanation of my plans for this blog: "This seed exchange isn't an attempt to reinvent the wheel so to speak I know there are several very good exchanges out there and I have us..."

The girls have turned into little Hens

I now hear hens clucking instead of chickens peeping, can a rooster crowing be far behind.

A stage with a pig driving a stake so they can add a fence, simple as can be!!

A stage with a pig driving a stake so they can add a fence, simple as can be!!, originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

I haven't seen one of these in action in years. I used to play on them when I was a kid, when they are not in use they pull them up on the beach. The hammer driving the large pole(stake) into the ocean floor is called a pig because it is made of pig iron and the floating platform is called a stage they are building a fence for a Herring Weir (Pronounced wear).

August in the garden

August in the garden, originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

August is always the busy month in the garden everything seems to mature at once and there are cucumbers to pickle and tomatoes to can and sauerkraut to make and this year it looks like a good crop so far. I'm very pleased with the cabbage, broccoli and Brussels Sprouts I guess the cool wet spring must have got them off to a good start. So far just green tomatoes but there are lots of them and I plan to make Green Tomato Chow Chow this year so they are a welcome sight.









I have made a good start on putting up my new Hoop House which is 16X20 and 8 feet high. Right now it is just the frame while I wait for some lumber to be delivered for the base board once that is installed it should progress quite quickly.

I have also started a lot of cool weather fall crops to grow in the Hoop House, it will be interesting to see how long our season can be extended with an unheated greenhouse, I hope long enough that I get a harvest from most of these seedlings of Brussels Sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli, Chinese Cabbage, Kohlrabi, parsley, spinach, lettuce and Swiss chard.

Early August in the First Nations Style Three Sisters Permaculture Garden

Even though the coons got most of the corn the garden continues to grow and it looks like there will be a decent harvest of beans, pumpkins and squash. The permaculture aspects of the garden are paying off the wild plants and flowers are attracting lots of bees and pollinators to the garden.

They have some very strange idea of where to sleep.

They have some very strange idea of where to sleep., originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

I built them a roost with four levels and could hardly wait for them to start using it. Now they just use it as a ladder to get to the top of the wall and out under the eves. One is even roosting on top of the fan and I had to turn it off because I could hear the fan clicking on her toe nails. The bantam breeds might be able to continue this but the six standard size breeds including the Black Jersey Giant on top of the fan are going to find it hard once the are full grown. They might still be able to get in the rafters but I doubt if they will fit on the narrow ledge on top of the wall.

An orchid I guess. Can anyone name it? Correctly identified by two friends Carole and Joyce. Pyrola elliptica Shinleaf "White Wintergreen" Pyrolaceae (Wintergreen Family)

An orchid I guess. Can anyone name it?, originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

I found this growing on my property a few years ago and there are even more of them know I guess it is an orchid but I'm not sure. Can anyone help?

Time Lapse Bumble Bees in the Lavender Bed

Time Lapse Bumble Bees in the Lavender Bed, originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

The Lavender Bed is alive with bumble bees.

Late July in the Square Foot Garden

The wonderful weather that we have had in July has made a big difference in the garden. Lots of Broccoli this year and the Cabbage and Brussels Sprouts are coming along nicely too. Thanks to a comment posted on my last update I discovered that my soil has a Boron deficiency and an application of Boron has made a noticeable improvement in my Beets and Cucumbers. I also give you a look at the monster mystery squash plant that is growing out of my compost pile.

Chickens nine weeks old, lavender and bumble bees.

Just another short look at my little flock, the lavender bed in bloom and the bees.

Dehydrating Food Grapes, Garlic Scapes and Salmon Jerky

I just received an inexpensive food dehydrator and I'm having a lot of fun using it so far I have made raisins, dried Garlic Scapes and made Salmon Jerky . Right now I'm dehydrating blueberries. You can pay a lot of money for these things but I went with the cheapest I could find. $35.00 and it seems to be working very well. As summer goes on I plan to dry a lot of things from the garden such as peas, beans and herbs.

Bay of Fundy Tides at Campobello Island, N.B. Canada

I live on Campobello Island at the mouth of the Bay of Fundy which has the worlds highest recorded rise and fall of the tides. This is a time lapse taken over a 14 hour period which covers one and a half tide cycles.

The girls enjoying their Breakfast scratch feed.

I think the status is in being the highest

I think the status is in being the highest, originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

Ginger has made it to the top roost but she hasn't tried the top of the wall yet. The hen on the right on the top roost is Ginger. Tonight there are five on the top of the wall two of them are even peeking out from under the eves. I left a quarter inch space all along the eve and covered it with window screen, for ventilation, so maybe it is cooler out there. Whatever it is great fun checking ever night to see where they are roosting. I don't think the larger breeds will fit up on the wall much longer, they are only about half grown.

Eureka Ginger is on the roost with everyone else

Eureka Ginger is on the roost with everyone else, originally uploaded by Campobello Island.

I'm pleased to report that ginger was able to get up on the roost tonight with all of the other girls. I put a little makeshift ramp up to the bottom rung but I'm not sure that she used it. I will leave it there for a while just in case she needs it. Also as you can see we are now roosting on three levels Ginger and a friend on the third roost, eight more on the fourth roost and two of the bantams have out smarted everyone they have gone to the top of the wall next to the fan which is running. Maybe they like the breeze.

Time Lapse of my 3 Sisters First Nations style garden

This time lapse was taken between June 29, 2011 and July 18, 2011. The camera was watching one of the six mounds in my First Nations Style three sisters permaculture garden. During that time span the mound was attacked twice by raccoon the first attack tore down one of the two large corn plants and the second attack last night got the other corn plant so I decided to end the time lapse experiment at this point. Obviously I'm not going to get any corn but the pumpkins, squash and beans are still struggling on so there is still hope for a harvest of some sort. I will keep you updated on the progress. Hope you enjoy the time lapse.