Author: Diana Blakney

Posted on

Peacock larkspur art … at last!

I have searched far and wide for art depicting our fragile and rare Peacock larkspur. I finally found a print of a painting by a local artist! Here it is, hung with great ceremony near the wood stove. Our farm art collection reflects the species that live on the farm, both plant and animal: Fender’s blue butterfly, Cutthroat trout, and now, Peacock larkspur.

Loading

Posted on

City water pump

The City put this pump in for the farm because the gravity system no longer provided the requisite water pressure. The pressure gauge under the grey-colored cylindrical thing is the house pressure gauge. The gauge in the upper right hand corner is the City pressure. When the pressure to the house is too low, the pump (the rectangular machine under the electric plug) kicks in. The red handles are for workers only. They turn off the water when work needs to be done. The interior light is on a timer.

Loading

Posted on

Men at work

The clearcut is covered in fern.
On our tour of forest roads, looking for downed branches and trees, we found a nearly hidden cache of … Scotch broom!
Narrowleaf wyethia (yellow flower) aka narrowleaf mule’s ears.
Hard to see, but there are a ton of mule’s ears to the left of the tree.
Foxglove (digitalis purpurea) is highly poisonous when ingested by humans or livestock.

Loading

Posted on

Misc. deeds on a lovely day

Buckets of rock from the Bark Place.
The rock filled a hole or two Bianca dug.
This is the inside of the mower where two belts operate the mowing blades. One of the belts came off and Sid discovered it was almost completely torn in half. The other one was only slightly damaged. We picked a replacement up and Sid somehow figured how to wind it all back together.
See that insect? We thought it might be the killer bee from Washington, but it wasn’t. In fact, it is not a bee at all. It is a robber or assassin fly (laphria vulfur). They lurk near bees nests and prey on the innocent little bees! Awful!
We found a new place for the game camera.
Pacific ninebark, a native shrub.
Bianca went to a lot of trouble to roll in cow dung only to have her master give her a bath. Sad!

Loading

Posted on

Fish count preparations

Griffith Creek crosses the Creek trail just ahead. To the right is a plastic container that holds the batteries that the fish researchers will use to count fish this Saturday. This survey is part of the ODFW Aquatic Inventories Project: Created in 1990, the Aquatic Inventories Project is a statewide freshwater and estuarine research program.  The project assesses aquatic habitat, conducts fish presence/absence surveys, monitors fish populations, establishes salmonid watershed prioritization, monitors habitat restoration projects, and reconstructs historical salmonid life history.  
The wires from the batteries lead onto a trail that ultimately reaches Rock Creek.
Sid follows the wires. Bill and I follow.
Bill makes it look easy, but this log was HARD to get over!
Two parallel lines are formed by the electrical wires.
I think the fish are stunned and counted. Hopefully they recover quickly. Otherwise it will be trout for lunch!
Sid continues to mow.
As does Bill.

Loading

Posted on

Back to back warm spring days

Kay goes for a stroll on the Loop trail.
Sid and Bill try to start the lawnmower.
The game camera was aimed too high to get the legs of this lovely forest creature.
Just to the right of the broadleaf tree, and just above the distant forested hill is a bald eagle Sid captured on film.
Sid used the skinny dead tree he hauled out of the woods on the grape arbor. Looks good!
Kay and Bill discovered two trees blocking forest roads yesterday. Sid and Bill took the chain saw to clear them out of the way. Diana was working on the garden around the farmhouse.
Just the right size for firewood.

Loading

Posted on

Scotch broom and other chores

Groan! Sid spotted a ton more Scotch broom growing near the clear cut. Sigh!
We checked the Doug-fir plantings before beginning the eradication work.
While Bill and I were pulling up Scotch broom, Sid came to the nearby woods to find a long skinny pole for the grapes. He saw a dead tree, pushed it over, and loaded it on the Ranger.
Get out of the way, Bianca!
After Sid returned, we stopped by to pick up a few pieces of firewood.
A curled up centipede in Sid’s hand.
Sid mulched and fertilized the apple trees near the lower field. Not an easy job!
Oregon Checkermallow.

Loading

Posted on

Scotch broom, mowing and flowers

This Lomatium nudicaule (aka barestem biscuitroot) was blooming along the cow lane. Native Americans used it as a cold remedy or cough medicine. It is related to the carrot family. flower i.d.
flower i.d.
Toughleaf iris (aka Iris tenax). There are a plethora of them blooming in the lupine patch as you enter the woods from the cow lane. flower i.d.
And, of course, the ubiquitous Scotch broom.
We found a patch of Scotch broom we had never discovered before. Sigh!
In the meantime, Sid kept busy mowing (see lower field as well as the orchard area) and replacing the wood stove gasket.

Loading