Sunday, August 31, 2014

Buh-Bai August!

I think I slept through August! 
PATTY:  Can you believe it is the last day of August?? Holy cow, where did the time go?  And I have very little to show for it!  You, mister, have even less.

BHU:  No worries.  It's all in my job description:  sleep, snooze, hork up, wander perimeter searching for bugs and deporting them or ingesting them, depending on variety. 

PATTY:  Speaking of bugs, blister beetles ate my tomatoes and something is eating my morning glories! 

Notice the pattern of destruction in that lower right leaf!  Grrrrrrrr!
BHU:  Andy Warhol loved morning glories.  You look like him.  Except yer hairz is longer and your glasses are diffurrent.  And you have boobs.  Otherwise, you could be twins.

PATTY:  Alrighty then.  Hmmmmm.

Saturday, August 23, 2014

GNAT: don't do me like that!

Cause and effect:  trap beside lure!  bwahahaha!
PATTY:  If you have tomatoes, you have gnats.  I save seeds because I am (a) smart and (b) cheap . . . and also because I don't want to eat GMO foods.  Ya never know.  The three little tubs of tomato seeds in the process of being saved have attracted their share of gnattery, as have the two baskets of ripening tomatoes not far to the left of this little scene.  I love 'maters and so do gnats.  Now the little peskers are not harmful, but they are annoying.  Although harmful to the gnats, here is one trap that  is harmless to pets and people (and really, really cheap to set up).  This carries the Bhu Seal of Approval.

APPLE CIDER VINEGAR TRAP: 
Pour apple cider vinegar into a jar.  Use a piece of wax paper, saran wrap, or even newspaper (any kind of paper, really) and affix it to the top of the jar to seal it -- use a rubber band if you don't have a canning jar like I used.  Punch holes in it -- toothpick size holes are too small, but shish-ka-bob stick holes are totally gnat-sized!  Wait and watch.  Soon your jar will look like mine:  a little gnat floating right in the center.  YAY!  [sorry about that!]

The following trap is very effective, but not pet or people friendly.   I've never had a problem with Bhu wanting to drink alcohol, but he is a very intelligent kitteh.

RED WINE TRAP:
Based on personal observation, gnats LOVE red wine -- especially cabernet sauvignon!  This is the simplest trap of all.  Just put some red wine in a shot glass or small jar, add a drop of dish soap and leave it anywhere.  To be honest, you don't even need the soap.  They will drown but they will be so, so happy on the way to gnat heaven!

Zzzzzz.  Purraying for the little gnats who lose their lives due to gluttony.
BHU:  zzzzzzzzzzzzz.

PATTY:  Bhu is having cabin fever today.  It's hot, hot, hot and way humid so we are hanging out inside this afternoon, hoping to stay cool.   xoxo

Sunday, August 3, 2014

Checking In!

BHU:  Hai, it's me again!  Didja miss me?  Purrobly not, right?  Well, anyhoo, nothing much has been going on around here.  It's been quiet, but the weather has been "wonderful" [quoting mai mom] so the 'rents have been spending lots of time outsides!  I keep asking what is the condition of my catnip plant, but I get no answers. 

PATTY:  Well, we didn't want to disappoint you, but the fact of the matter is that every kitty in the 'hood has been butting head into the 'nip and it is beaten down and lookin' sad!  Sorry dude!  Other than that, the garden is doing good thanks to the fabulous compost I make!  And I have been busy saving seeds, too . . . chard, snow peas, mustard and tomatoes, so far.  Beans are growing, turnips need to be dug up, potatoes are almost ready and I still haven't figured out what to do with the Lemon Grass, but HEY, it's lookin' good!

Top:  Glorious sunflowers and the Mimosa in the background.  Bottom:  Madonna Lilies, Genovese basil and the mystery vine that grows in the compost bin every year.  I think it's some kind of squash.  The flowers are pretty.
Hope your summer is going well!  We are only two weeks away from the start of school here, bringing 30,000 more teen pods to the area.  Anybody else live in a university town?  If so, you know our pain. 

xoxo