DEER  CONTROL

I have written many articles about deer control and sometimes resort to sharing thoughts from other authors. Here's an article I just found in Country Folks Grower. Vermont is just now ending its various fall deer seasons including rifle, archery and muzzleloader and reports suggest a good success rate. Even though there are now fewer deer in Vermont by thousands over a couple months ago, if your property appeals to deer, they will be moving in now that the snow is falling.

My greatest success has been with the use of Tenax fence which is easy to install even for one person. The trouble is that many communities prohibit fencing via zoning so your gardens and landscaping will be challenged. A couple years ago I spent a week in the fall hiking the upper Maine coast above Machias. Each night after dinner I'd go for a ride down a peninsula adjacent to Roque Bluffs State Park. The first night I went just to see where the road went but I quickly became interested in the landscaping, architecture.....and the high deer count. I'd see 25-30 deer a night on a mile ride and along the way it was obvious what trees, shrubs, and gardens were dear to people..... as well as deer.

Read the article and see if it offers any ideas. If you happen to be out and about come spring, stop at Vermont Flower Farm, 2263 US RT 2, Marshfield, Vermont and I'll show you my strategy. 

Managing deer - Country Folks Grower (cfgrower.com)

THE VERMONT CLIMATE ASSESSMENT

I often mention climate related topics here or on my George Africa or Vermont Flower Farm & Gardens Facebook pages.  Climate change is significant and I figure if I can feel the impact on a 4 acre flower farm, others should recognize the change too.

          Here is a report worth reading. If you have observations or questions,  please share them with                      others.

          George Africa

          Vt Climate Assessment

Lyme Disease

 

This article was posted in the latest online version of the Smithsonian. If you are a gardener you are outside a great deal and you have an opportunity to contract Lyme disease from ticks. There's more than one disease you could contract and none of them are anything you'd ever want. 

The article tells about the progress we have made using guinea pigs and applying a testing technology we learned when working on a vaccine for Covid. The results to date are positive. Read on to see where the research is heading from here.

Progress on Lyme Disease vaccine

Mt. Cuba Center

 Consider a Visit!

For a couple years now I have posted this link to the Mt. Cuba Center in Delaware. My theory has been that maybe some of those heading south for the winter might be going early enough to stop in Delaware if they were not yet familiar with this special horticultural magnet. In the previous years a couple travelers each time thanked me for mentioning it. If you have visited there and have any comments that might encourage people to stop, please post here.

Mt. Cuba Center

Bat Houses

 As winter approaches I begin getting supplies together to build birdhouses for the farm and also the fields and forests at our home property. This recent article from Vt Digger suggests I need to add bat houses to my construction efforts. If you have a source of good house plans, please share with us.

https://vtdigger.org/2021/10/21/vermont-fish-wildlife-wants-to-provide-homes-for-endangered-bats

Gentian and Bumble Bees

 For the past month, Gail has been picking flowers every morning and filling Mason jars with colorful arrangements for visitors to take home for their enjoyment or to pass on to friends. I sold a nice arrangement yesterday and then watched Pay It Forward in action as the customer handed it to a new-to-the-farm young woman with two little kids. So nice!! Lately, the arrangements have included zinnias, Verbena bonariensis, ageratum, 'Lemon Queen' helianthus, vibrant orange-red tithonia and some peony leaves for filler. As we enter further into September it's always a guess as to when an abrupt weather change will bring a single night of frost and many of the annuals will be finished for the year. But as for now we are enjoying the colors and watching various bees fly into our display area and work the flowers in the very same arrangements. We all get along!

I have mentioned writer Mary Holland many times. She comes from down Hartland, Vermont way and she writes about all things nature. I love her writing and always learn something. Today she writes about the relationship between bumble bees and the flower Bottle Gentian. It's worth reading. Earlier this week when I was brush hogging a backwoods road on our Peacham property I noticed that the gentian was in bloom. The wild gentian is shorter than the hybrids but their blue color is so very beautiul I always stop the tractor and just gaze at the blue blossom. If you have a chance to get into the woods soon, keep an eye out for the gentian. We have blue and also white growing wild on our property.

https://naturallycuriouswithmaryholland.wordpress.com/2021/09/09/a-win-win-situation/