Beemaster's International Beekeeping Forum

ALMOST BEEKEEPING - RELATED TOPICS => FARMING & COUNTRY LIFE => Topic started by: jalentour on February 03, 2020, 02:49:27 pm

Title: Great weather this weekend to get outdoors
Post by: jalentour on February 03, 2020, 02:49:27 pm
We finally had a few dry days followed by a sunny Sunday.  It was tough not getting into the excavator or tractor to get some heavy work done.  Instead we tapped a few trees for sap, cut down 2 small oaks for shiitake (got 20 logs), and pruned up the apple orchard.
Of the original 44 apple trees planted twenty remain.   Deer, moles, voles, blight, black walnut and lack of knowledge have made it difficult to grow apple trees.  Hope to get a small crop this season. 
It was nice in the woods and trails.
Title: Re: Great weather this weekend to get outdoors
Post by: The15thMember on February 03, 2020, 04:19:24 pm
Super nice here today as well.  I checked my hives in just jeans and a tee shirt!  My little sisters were happy to get to play outside too.  Looks like it's supposed to start raining tomorrow though.  :sad:
Title: Re: Great weather this weekend to get outdoors
Post by: Seeb on February 06, 2020, 09:41:31 am
Jvalentour -

just reading the description of what you were doing during the few sunny days makes me drool! Well all but the part about the voles and moles that just laugh and point at me as they pull whole plants down into their tunnels

Title: Re: Great weather this weekend to get outdoors
Post by: Ben Framed on February 06, 2020, 11:41:12 pm
Jvalentour -

just reading the description of what you were doing during the few sunny days makes me drool! Well all but the part about the voles and moles that just laugh and point at me as they pull whole plants down into their tunnels

Seeb, what do you do in defence of your plants? We have, (had) green leaf, with white tip border hostas, lined up as a border on one of our flower gardens I caught one of the little buggers (voles) red handed drawing down a hosta stalk. uggg. lol
Title: Re: Great weather this weekend to get outdoors
Post by: Seeb on February 07, 2020, 09:14:02 am
I feel your pain Ben -

I've been diligent and tried just about everything over the years, oil drenching soil, mothballs, perm-til, wire wraps around bulbs, traps, grub deterrent, etc to no avail for any length of time. My yard looks like a runway, for both voles and moles.

One theory I have for my poor result is,  I live on 1 acre in the middle of 25+ acres of horse pastureland. I don't buy ornamental plants anymore, but do put in veg garden