There has been no lack of adventure here at the farm recently. We have been battling a killer mole for the past 4 days or so. This little bugger has been frolicking in the north, front landscape bed for the last couple of days, disturbing the area in general but also  wreaking havoc in the newly planted pachysandra plants. Arg! We are always encouraged by our expert mole hunting friend, Lucy, and so we kept about our efforts with two newer style traps (“Easy-Set” Mole Eliminator) as well as other stealth methods of pursuit that included a hose (think water boarding) and a shovel.

Perhaps difficult to see in the photo, but here is the disruption in the newly planted pachysandra bed.

While observing the damaged area this evening, I spied some movement in the area where he was working and sent him to his maker by flipping the sod to expose him and then smacking him on the head with a shovel! It may be too much for some viewers, but here was the outcome!

Okay, so, I’m a little obsessed with the mole thing, but good riddance!

I was able to re-plant my new sprigs of pachy and off we go to the next adventure!

Yesterday was another big strawberry picking and jam making day. Everyone is already tired of hearing about the numbers but do realize that we are now at 140 pounds for the year and I also preserved another 11.5 pints of jam yesterday. I’m starting to distribute a bit of the jarred evidence since we are a sharing sort. One here, one there and everyone is happy, right? Now I need to work on the new labels for the 2013 farm harvest!

We tasted the first of the spring peas today. You can pick and eat peas at various stages of their maturity but it is really fun to pick pea pods and actually shell them for their contents. I picked the first of these today and ate tasted it right there in the field. This means, you pull a pod from the plant, open it by splitting the seam with a little pressure with your fingers and eat the wonderfully, fresh, tender, uncooked peas, as they so proudly present themselves in a delicate, offset row, in the pod. Nirvana.

There seems to never be a dull moment here. This morning was no exception. We started the early morning moments  with the quiet of a rose snipping session since the double knock outs are looking as if they needed some relief from their spent blossoms. I also planted 24 more vegetative petunia plants in the front beds.

Wouldn’t you know, one of our masons arrived with a jackhammer to start the planned demolition on the rear terrace steps. The steps were built too steeply for a natural tread and were a trip hazard in addition to be being unsightly. So I’m re-working them using old stone pavers that were removed from another job due to stone sap issues. I don’t mind the ‘aged’ look and am pleased to re-purpose the building material. Here is what we found when we removed the old Travertine treads and risers.  The good news is that there is a poured concrete base….and the bad news is that there is a poured concrete base! Although he got most of the tread and risers removed today, Mike will be continuing with the noise making tomorrow at 7am! Finished photos to follow in a couple of weeks!

Although the strawberries continue to be prolific, we see signs of future abundance everywhere we look. The blueberry bushes are full of fruit and ready to ripen any day. They look to be our next ‘cash’ crop!

Here is one pic of the apples that have also set on and are ripening as well as the peaches and nectarines! Our family and friends have enjoyed eating the fresh produce we have delivered to them, but I’ve been particularly pleased that our friend, Jill, and her daughter are experimenting with some jam making! Yeah! I’m glad to have instilled some preservation enthusiasm in others!