Farm News 04-08-07
Sunday morning, after chores, 23°
Global Warming
The parts of the garden that are planted are now covered with floating row cover, a lightweight protective sheet. Supposedly the temperature underneath the cover will be about two degrees higher than the air above the cover and it will protect the plants from frost. Keeping the plants two degrees above the air temperature is very helpful, even though it doesn't sound like much. On clear nights the heat radiated by the ground is not reflected back, and the surface temperature of the plant leaves can drop lower than the air temperature.
That is how frost is able to form when the air temperature is below 42° but still above 32°. The air must be still and the sky clear for frost to form. Saturday morning the temperature was 23° and the sky was clear, but there was a very slight breeze, enough to keep frost from developing.
The temperature this morning is 23°; the record low for this date is 20°. The sky is clear and there is no breeze, so, yes, there is frost.
Goodbye Goats
Sally goat, who was born last year, had her first kids this year, a buck and a doe. The buck failed to start and died when less than a day old. The little doe, named Silly, has been growing rapidly. Sally, unfortunately, figured out how to get through an electric fence without being zapped. As I have said many times, intelligence is not a desirable trait in most domestic animals. Last week I had finally had enough of Sally nibbling on the fruit trees, so she and Silly both went to the sale on Saturday. It was cold and breezy, resulting in very few buyers who were willing to stand outside and bid on a goat. The pair of them sold for $32, about half of what I would normally expect to get for them. Now, though, they are someone else's problems.
Bunnies Visit Cardiologist
Thursday, two of Suzette's bunnies went to visit the Cardiologist. It was an exciting trip for them. First, we stopped at the Oskaloosa State Bank, where the bunnies learned about money. Each of the women working in the bank made the mommy sound, a long, warbling, “Ohhh,” when they saw the bunnies. The bunnies were very nice to them and didn't pee in anybody's hand.
After the bank they stopped at a convenience store, where I purchased coffee, and the young woman at the cash register held one of the bunnies while I felt around in my pocket to find money for the coffee. She also made the mommy sound. The bunnies didn't ask for donuts or pop, being a bit young for junk foods.
At the Cardiologist's office each of the front desk clerks looked at the bunnies and made the mommy sound. Even the Cardiologist made a shortened, deeper, version of the mommy sound when he saw them. The bunnies' hearts are in good shape, so it was a pleasant visit for them.
On the way home we stopped for a cheeseburger, my reward for visiting the Cardiologist, and the young woman at the drive-thru window made the mommy sound when she saw the bunnies.
Making the mommy sound seems to be a universal female response to cute little mammals.
Some years ago I read a book in which the author insisted that a pet monkey was necessary for a thinking man's well-being, and that a pet rabbit was necessary for the monkey's well-being.
Monkeys, he said, can get cold in the night, and benefit from having nice warm rabbits with which they can snuggle. This makes me wonder if there is an equivalent monkey mommy sound that female monkeys make when they see a baby bunny.
Maybe Dr. Alexander, who did the very clever study of young monkeys and toy preferences, will shed some light on this question. I am still puzzling over her study of monkeys and toy preferences by sex.
E-mail Subscribers: To subscribe, unsubscribe, contribute stories, complain or send a gift subscription, send an email to FarmNews@GeezerNet.com . The editor reserves the right to steal ideas submitted, rewrite submissions, and sign false names to them whenever it strikes his fancy to do so. Farm News is now a blog at idfafarmnews.blogspot.com
Global Warming
The parts of the garden that are planted are now covered with floating row cover, a lightweight protective sheet. Supposedly the temperature underneath the cover will be about two degrees higher than the air above the cover and it will protect the plants from frost. Keeping the plants two degrees above the air temperature is very helpful, even though it doesn't sound like much. On clear nights the heat radiated by the ground is not reflected back, and the surface temperature of the plant leaves can drop lower than the air temperature.
That is how frost is able to form when the air temperature is below 42° but still above 32°. The air must be still and the sky clear for frost to form. Saturday morning the temperature was 23° and the sky was clear, but there was a very slight breeze, enough to keep frost from developing.
The temperature this morning is 23°; the record low for this date is 20°. The sky is clear and there is no breeze, so, yes, there is frost.
Goodbye Goats
Sally goat, who was born last year, had her first kids this year, a buck and a doe. The buck failed to start and died when less than a day old. The little doe, named Silly, has been growing rapidly. Sally, unfortunately, figured out how to get through an electric fence without being zapped. As I have said many times, intelligence is not a desirable trait in most domestic animals. Last week I had finally had enough of Sally nibbling on the fruit trees, so she and Silly both went to the sale on Saturday. It was cold and breezy, resulting in very few buyers who were willing to stand outside and bid on a goat. The pair of them sold for $32, about half of what I would normally expect to get for them. Now, though, they are someone else's problems.
Bunnies Visit Cardiologist
Thursday, two of Suzette's bunnies went to visit the Cardiologist. It was an exciting trip for them. First, we stopped at the Oskaloosa State Bank, where the bunnies learned about money. Each of the women working in the bank made the mommy sound, a long, warbling, “Ohhh,” when they saw the bunnies. The bunnies were very nice to them and didn't pee in anybody's hand.
After the bank they stopped at a convenience store, where I purchased coffee, and the young woman at the cash register held one of the bunnies while I felt around in my pocket to find money for the coffee. She also made the mommy sound. The bunnies didn't ask for donuts or pop, being a bit young for junk foods.
At the Cardiologist's office each of the front desk clerks looked at the bunnies and made the mommy sound. Even the Cardiologist made a shortened, deeper, version of the mommy sound when he saw them. The bunnies' hearts are in good shape, so it was a pleasant visit for them.
On the way home we stopped for a cheeseburger, my reward for visiting the Cardiologist, and the young woman at the drive-thru window made the mommy sound when she saw the bunnies.
Making the mommy sound seems to be a universal female response to cute little mammals.
Some years ago I read a book in which the author insisted that a pet monkey was necessary for a thinking man's well-being, and that a pet rabbit was necessary for the monkey's well-being.
Monkeys, he said, can get cold in the night, and benefit from having nice warm rabbits with which they can snuggle. This makes me wonder if there is an equivalent monkey mommy sound that female monkeys make when they see a baby bunny.
Maybe Dr. Alexander, who did the very clever study of young monkeys and toy preferences, will shed some light on this question. I am still puzzling over her study of monkeys and toy preferences by sex.
E-mail Subscribers: To subscribe, unsubscribe, contribute stories, complain or send a gift subscription, send an email to FarmNews@GeezerNet.com . The editor reserves the right to steal ideas submitted, rewrite submissions, and sign false names to them whenever it strikes his fancy to do so. Farm News is now a blog at idfafarmnews.blogspot.com
posted by The Geezer at 8:30 AM
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