Sunday, May 22, 2016

The Melon Department

There is no time to waste in the vegetable growing season at a 4000 foot elevation. It was time to get busy. I spent the morning reorganizing my collectibles, moved the bottle tree to a more forward and secure setting with boulders resting on its rebar feet and started leveling the dung.

One pile done.





















Two big piles in progress.





















This is going to be the melon department. I intend to grow some of the finest cantaloupe this side of the Mississippi. That's the plan anyway. The dung piles will also be getting some butternut squash since that seemed to be a family favorite.

The lesser squash will be grown in the roadside vegetable garden.





















That is some fine looking dung. It grew big pumpkins for me a couple of years ago.





















Two big piles done. It's ready to plant. I'm germinating my seeds in trays of four inch pots though. I have less seedling loss that way.





















One Blue Ridge Red Salamander, Pseudotriton ruber subsp. nitidus got lucky. I was furiously shoveling poop when it got scooped up. It is lucky not to have been cut in half.























I gave it a bath for its closeup and then put it back in the woods near the compost pile.




















One nice tidy melon department with a new bottle tree is ready to go.


4 comments:

Lisa at Greenbow said...

What a cool way to do your squash. I wish I had some of that manure. I could put it to good use too. How exciting to find a salamander in your garden. I have never seen such a creature.

Barry said...

That's one fancy salamander - out here, we have a jet black species that is reputed to be so toxic that it will kill a dog that dares to even lick it once. I have relocated a couple of them to an inaccessible part of the riverbank.

Lola said...

Looking good my friend. You will have a fine crop of melons.

Christopher C. NC said...

Lisa there is plenty poop for the taking. I'm taking a break until after the vegetable season is over. That is the first time I have seen that salamander.

Barry I hope that thing wasn't poisonous. I gave it a bath, it was covered in dung, and let it crawl all over my bare hands.

Lola I hope I get a good crop of melons. I'm counting on a warmer than normal summer. Could be my best okra year too.