Squatting Squirrels

It was the day I'd set aside to start some seeds yesterday. You might recall we came home to a giant mess in the greenhouse when we returned from our trek south. Squirrels had obviously been in the greenhouse. They'd knocked the slats off the bin where potting soil is stored and made themselves a little nest there from the leaves they'd stolen from our dead and dying tomato plants. Also, they'd chewed off half a box of flower bulb food.

What do you suppose they were after? The fertilizer or the cardboard from the box? When I found all this, I'd moved the box to the far side of the greenhouse and put the slats back in place. When I went in there yesterday, I found even more bulb food had been eaten, and there was a big mess of fertilizer all around the box. Also, the slats had been knocked into the potting soil bin again. (Shakes fist at marauding squirrels.)

So my first job was to clean up the mess they'd made. While I was doing that, I heard one barking...right inside the greenhouse with me!!! I couldn't see it, but I took the hose and sprayed in the areas I couldn't see. Then, I heard the little rat bastard barking outside. I have no idea what he was saying, but I'm sure the "F" word was involved. I know because I, myself, uttered it.

So I went looking around outside in the trees, and what did I see?

I was trying to get a picture of him for his "Wanted: Dead or Alive" poster. He kept trying to run around the trunk of the tree, but I followed him, snapping as I went. Little. Rat. Bastard!

Hmph. Vee haf our vays of dealing with the likes of you. 

So, anyway...I got on with my seed planting. This year I'm planting beets, green beans, and corn, but I'll sow all of that directly into the ground. Yesterday, I planted zucchini, cantaloupe, and pickling cucumbers. I have no idea how prolific the cucumbers and melons will be, and so I'm planning six hills of each. The cucumbers will also get their own tomato cages to get them up off the ground. (I'm kind of excited about making pickles this year.)

The rest were all flowers. I planted two different colors of hollyhocks and some black eyed Susans. The hollyhocks were a gift from my friend Marei. The black-eyed Susans are just so pretty, and I wanted some. I'll plant them near the echinacea. (I'm hoping the echinacea survived the winter. No sign of it yet.)

And then I planted three each of 12 different kinds of sunflowers. After last years debacle and war with the squirrels over the sunflowers, these are all going inside the vegetable garden fence this year. 

The ones in the vegetable garden were the only ones that were safe from last year's thievery.

As I filled my trays, I set them outside. Mike helped me haul them up to the house where they are staying inside the laundry room for now. Mike is going to hang a grow light over them. This window used to get a lot of light, but the catio is outside there now. They'll want more light than they can get as it stands.

They look like valiant little soldiers...ready to march, march, march to become the flowers and vegetables they were meant to be! Possibly I get a little too attached to my garden friends, but I have very high expectations of them.

The only sewing I did yesterday was to embroider the name for the next Shop Hop quilt.

Making the next Shop Hop block will be my next sewing objective, and then I'll get on with quilting the Sundress quilt. 

By day's end, we were all in our places.

This morning I'm excited to be going to the farmer's market with Erik and Mae. Pre-pandemic, we went often, but we didn't go even once last year. We're still required to wear masks at the outdoor market, and so it should be safe. Erik and Mae are completely vaccinated. Mike and I will get the 2nd vaccine in three weeks. Tomorrow, we're having dinner with them. It's a little bit reunion, and a little bit birthday dinner for Matthew, who turned 37 yesterday. How did this little kid

grow up to be this cool guy?

I had a nice conversation with him yesterday. He has a new job and a new place to live. His main squeeze Lyndsey is returning from Bali next week (she got stuck in Bali for the pandemic...poor thing), and so he's pretty much on top of the world right now.

So that's all I have for you today. May your weekend be free of squatting squirrels, and may your vegetables be prolific. Blessed be the fruit. (Can you tell we're binge-watching The Handmaid's Tale?)