Corn Is Looking Good

The corn is looking good!  Last week Dad and I sprayed the weeds and put the last of the fertilizer to it.  It was about to get too tall but the weather cooperated perfectly.  We were able to get in the field and now the rain has come!  It looks like this is going to be the best corn we have had in several years if we keep getting rain.  The deer are going to love us this fall and winter!

In the field we call the "Kudzu Patch" we planted a strip of chufa here for the turkeys.  It is growing but notice how the ground had been raked.  This is the second day after a rain and it was unbelievable how the ground had been scratched by the turkeys. 

Our granddaughter Mattie in a wildflower patch enjoying picking flowers.  She loves being outdoors!

Do You Know What This Is?

Can you identify this plant by its fruit?  They are covered in fruit this year and there are many plants on top of the ridge that have fruit on them.  It is a Pawpaw plant and these are the pawpaws.

Lisa(Felicia) and I planted about twenty oak trees across the field on top of the hill.  Every other oak was a saw-tooth oak planted especially for the wildlife but there were several other types of oaks also.  I started these trees in pots and they were ready to be put in the ground.  Some were about 4 feet tall.

Interesting Article

In Japan, researchers have long studied what they call “forest bathing.” A walk in the woods, they say, reduces the level of stress chemicals in the body and increases natural killer cells in the immune system, which fight tumors and viruses. Studies in inner cities show that anxiety, depression and even crime are lower in a landscaped environment. 

Jim Robbins is the author of the forthcoming book “The Man Who Planted Trees.”

OP-ED CONTRIBUTOR

Why Trees Matter

By JIM ROBBINS

Published: April 11, 2012

New York Times

This Week

This week saw soil testing being taken in our pasture.  This sample was taken for 40' down and it was to help determine the footings for the cell tower.

One afternoon over at my shop I found two green tree frogs in between two short pieces of tin I had standing up.  They were so colorful with their gold eyes.  This one was ready to jump as I bothered them as I made pictures.

He jumped over into a muscadine vine where he was well camouflaged.  (There are more pictures of the frogs on the wildlife tab.)

The honey bees were really working the crimson clover.  It was good to see so many honey bees on the clover.

At the end of the week Dad and I worked on planting summer food plots.  We are planting chufas, sunflowers, corn, brown top millet and grain sorghum. 

In this field our cool season crops are going to seed.  Dad picked a seed head off of the crimson clover, wheat, oats, rye grass and fescue that was heading out.  The young turkeys, as they hatch, will have a feast here and there were many grasshoppers for dessert too.

Grandchildren on the Land

We had James, Selah and Eden till Sunday and they had to go back to Kentucky with their mom and dad, then early Monday morning we got Mattie because her mom and dad had visitors there about the farm.  The  most exciting thing we did on the land while she was here was feed the fish in the pond.  This was the first time she had gotten to do this. 

She tried to count them, two, two, three. 

We took her home Thursday night and left there the next morning going to Tuscaloosa for two days for the annual Alabama Forest Landowners Association meeting.  On Friday we had a special tour of Moundville which is always interesting. 

The museum is now opened and redone.  I wish James could have been with us because we always talk about the Indians(Native Americans).  I want to take him someday.  The first time I went I was impressed.  The remains were on display in the museum which was built over a burial mound.  The remains have since been removed and the Indians(Native Americans) taken possession of them and had them removed from display.  

Moundville is such an amazing place. 

We had supper there and it was suppose to be native food, some was and some was not but I could get use to eating the buffalo meat.

The next day we were on campus for seminars.  Some were really interesting such as the architect that does cabin plans, the apps for smart phones, and mapping.

It was good to get back home.  Tomorrow I have to meet with drillers for the cell tower evaluating the soil.  This is the third test including electricity in soil movement for grounding and the civil engineer that reviewed and recorded information about the site.  

On the Move

Really been busy the last few days.  I have been doing everything I can to protect our corn we have up from the birds, turkeys and ect.  The corn looks good and this rain we are getting today will help.

I have been to meet with people doing the studying for the tower twice and will meet with someone else this Wednesday.  They are doing soil electrical test, plant and environmental study and Wednesday they will be drilling to take core samples.

James, Selah,  and Eden was with us Thursday through Sunday and the highlight of our week was a picnic over at Bowden Grove at our park area.  They played and played in the water, climbed trees, watched butterflies, caught caterpillars, and walked to the swamp.  James did not want to leave.  He said the next time he wanted to camp and stay all night. (More pictures in Family Tab)

Sunday, we made some pictures that we are going to submit in a Tree Farm photo contest.  One of the categories is "Generations".  We made pictures of the five generations of Dewberry's.  I don't think anyone can top that.  We might not win the contest but no one will top five generations!

Busy Past Week

Last Wednesday Dad and I got all of our Roundup Ready Corn planted.  The rain came just at the right time and tomorrow I have got to go over and do what I can to help keep the birds from pulling up the corn.  It should be coming out of the ground.

Felicia and I left Wednesday afternoon and drove up to Kentucky to help Nathan and Liz with their new home.  There were several dead and cull trees that Nathan wanted removed.  This was a new thing for me cutting the hemlocks in the back.  I had never cut hemlocks before, only the trees of Alabama.  We made two benches out of some of the wood and used the other parts to build wildlife dens at the back of their new home. 

Today, Monday, I hosted a trip with county commissioners, someone from the mayor's office and others interested in economic development on a tour of a pellet mill in North Alabama.  We hope we might be able to get this company to consider coming to Clay County to start a new business.