Wet Southern New England or......
A watched thing never dries....
We ended up with a sunny reasonably dry day yesterday so I put more clay out in the driveway to start drying. I beat this batch into smoothness with the mixer that was originally meant for mixing joint compound and plaster smooth. Unfortunately, I forgot to cover or bring it in last night, with the result that when I heard the rain start at 5:30 AM I sat up in bed and ran outside to cover it. It has some rain pits but given time it will dry......she wrote hopefully.
Meanwhile I have been wedging the dried clay I have inside. This afternoon Proge is going to rough wedge another 50 to75 pounds. I finish it off in small amounts as I need it. What I really like to do it prep my clay and whatever else I will be using the next day before I finish at the end of the day.
Just as watched clay never seems to dry, watched tomatoes never seem to ripen. It feels like these guys have been green forever. I may end up gathering my recipes for green tomatoes.
The cucumbers, however are in heaven! This year I am growing them in pots on stands. The one behind the tomato is a pickling variety. I was going to get a picture of the cukes but the drizzle turned to rain.
We do have hostas and day lilies this year. Last year the deer ate both. The hostas in particular looked like they had been mowed! That was when Winter was still a fairly young pup and had not learned her job of keeping the deer out of the yard. She is still quite shy but does a dynamite job of keeping the deer away. We call her the little omega dog, as opposed to Breezy who was a total alpha female.
I'm still not ready to complain too much about the rain. I remember recent summers when water was at a premium, forest fire danger was ever present, and we recycled almost every bit of gray water into the garden. Tomorrow is supposed to be sunnier....toes crossed. Today is a studio day.
Later we are taking Winter to the vet for shots. She has been on antibiotics for a tick borne disease akin to Lyme. She has the Lyme prevention shots but this is one of the many Lyme-like diseases out in this part of the world. We've had quite a go-round keeping the pills down. Sour cream seems to do the trick. The meds make it difficult to digest her regular food. Cat kibble has worked; I mix it with chicken in broth. We also bought some grain free kibble yesterday that she seems to be able to eat. What we do for love!
This post will also be over on Mud Colony. There's lots going on over there. CLick the link and take a look at the world of clay.
Enjoy the week end. As always, thanks for stopping by...........*s*
I'm trying not to complain about the rain, it's good to have it, but, jeez.... I committed to being at the farmers market every Saturday and people just don't come there when its raining!
ReplyDeleteHi Tracey....It's such a drag trying to sell in the rain. Even if you are in a sheltered area people just don't want to come out in the rain. I'm glad I didn't commit to the farmers market in this area. I think there have been two totally clear day since they started up this year.
DeleteSlog on!
I wouldn't mind a little rain each night, but these torrential downpours create a sloppy muddy mess here.
ReplyDeleteI do hope Winter is feeling better soon. I remember cooking ground beef and rice for my sick dog. It's so sad when they don't eat.
Rain in summer is supposed to be like Camelot....only at night. We get that same muddy mess in the downpours and the well pump floods too!
DeleteWinter is doing better now that we have a good selection of food for her. She always looks so surprised and upset when she vomits.....I'm pleased we seem to be past that!
Slog on!
Tomatoes looking good.......pretty lemon daylilly...xox
ReplyDeleteHi Corinne....I just want them to show some sign of red! I'm planting more day lilies tomorrow.
DeleteYour story about recycling clay makes me cry! I don't like the job. I hope it will dry sometimes soon! Tomatoes will turn red when you have almost given up! (I am experienced) Be patient : ) Woohoo for cucumbers! Ours are still doing well, too!
ReplyDeleteHi Midori....Don't cry! I find I can handle clay recycling if I do it all in one stretch. Then I can wedge as needed. I've grown lots of tomatoes, but everything is late this year....even the blueberries! I'll probably pick my fist cucumbers at the end of the week.
DeleteI never even planted tomatoes this year. The garden has been too wet. My friends with gardens have nothing but green ones... I need tomatoes!
ReplyDeleteI know I should be happy for all the rain but a little sun would be very, very nice.
Hi Meredith.....I have one cherry tomato ripening. Fortunately we have an excellent local farm stand where we can get excellent produce.
DeleteThe sun came out around eleven....hope it stays that way for a few days.
Dearest Suzi,
ReplyDeleteSo sorry to read about your Winter; Lyme disease is quite aggravating and can take a long time. Ticks are nasty critters...
Oh my, your clay got rained on with all the wet weather and the tomatoes are missing some sunshine but there is still plenty of time. We had yesterday the maximum of rain I guess; unreal.
Hugs and love,
Mariette
Hi Mariette....Lyme disease and all the ailments that come with it is a terrible insidious disease. The main thing is to be aware!
DeleteThe sun is out. The vegetables are beginning to ripen...hurrah!
I'm so sorry your pup is sick. I hope she has a speedy recovery.
ReplyDeleteIt's been taking days for anything to dry, then the minute it starts to dry the temps go up, I turn on the AC and have to work really fast before the pieces dry out too much. It's been a fun summer.
Hi Lori.....Thanks, Winter is showing a slow but steady improvement.
DeleteI had pots sitting on my shelf as wet as, if not wetter, when I made them three days before. I am now using my heat lamps and a small fan. As you say, timing is of the essence!
how true that drying clay needs to be so closely monitored! I've too forgotten about clay.... and it's dried too fast.
ReplyDeleteI must say that because it's hot here in NC I miss the rain. I was always one of the few who didn't mind it.
Hi Amy....It's annoying, but easily taken care of, when recycled clay dries too much. What really gets me is when I forget to check a piece I'm working on.
DeleteYesterday was hot, but the humidity was lower......sort of like a kiln!