Drama in the Garden - A Photoessay

How cute, Jenn! I loved keeping you company for a while. Thanks for inviting me into your world.

Awesome photo essay Jennifer! I felt I was right there with you. 10++++++

I just featured this in *My Yard & Garden* www.myyardandgarden.gather.com
Thanks for posting it there. :o)

What a fun and marvelous photo essay, Jennifer. You clearly have a grower's thumb. Those are magnificent-looking fruits and vegetables. Do you ever sell them at one of the weekly Farmer's Market?

Oh and BTW... Jackie and I need to come for a visit. I LOVE your place.

Great photos and a neat story. Jennifer what happened to make the turkens look so much better? It appears they have real feathers and no longer look like escapees from a concentration camp. Steroids? Grapes?

Hi Jennifer ,
Such a beautiful photo essay and wonderfully written I might add. You had me laughing at the (chicken/roosters) antics. And you are blessed to live in such a paradise your fruit trees and surrounding lands are beautiful. I love the shots of the mocking bird and the unfolding story of the hawks, thanks for inviting us to your very beautiful part of the world. Great read Jennifer.
Darcey D.

Thank you, Lera! I'm so glad you stopped by!

Kyra, hug to you! Thank you so much. You and Jackie totally need to come here. I was in Texas once, and I loved it there so much too. This was a super nice day, but last week was HOT and no fun at all.

Audrey, I never sold any fruits or vegetables. These trees are still pretty small but this year they are really starting to take off. I bet next year I will have twice as much. But, I am able to get rid of almost everything by dumping it on neighbors, co-workers, and friends and by making jams every day.

Ron, they are California girls so they have had countless plastic surgery procedures. Geez, I'm not going to deny them their rights to beauty in this state ;-) I really don't know what is happening to them - every day they are growing and changing and they really are so much better looking than the Turkens I have seen on the internet. I guess this climate suits them. They really were ugly babies, weren't they?

Thank you, Darcey! I love your stories too. I actually never knew Australia had so much natural beauty until I read about it from you. Today was a really active day out in the garden. I think it's because we had extremely hot weather for 10 days or so and today was mild so everyone was out playing and enjoying. These chickens are super funny pets to have. They make me laugh every day for some reason.

That was one of the best journeys I have been on in a long time!!! How neat! You should produce a movie! :o)

That would be a funny movie starring two Turkens. They do seem to attract a lot of drama. Thanks so much, Deb. These two make me laugh every day with the crazy situations they find themselves in.

EXCELLENT photo essay! LOVE the pictures!

Thank you, Bridget! I just brought the camera outside to try to photograph the woodpecker and all the sudden, all these birds started going wild on me. It made for an exciting evening.

What an enjoyable essay! Glad Ron remarked on how much more attractive the turkens are getting. That's what I thought earlier today on another photo. Love the picture of the one legged pose. What a neat place you have.

Thank you so much, Wilma. My son took the one-legged photo and I really did think she lost a leg. I was all in a panic. To tell you the truth, I was a little disappointed when I went to the feed store this spring to buy two chicks and all he had were these red Turkens. I thought they were really ugly, but I wanted to get the chicks before Easter so it was my only option and the feed store guy told me that Turkens are actually one of the best breeds for our hot summers and that they are excellent egg layers. Now they have turned out great, so I'm really glad I gave them a chance. Thanks so much for coming by!

They would have been little homeless turkens living under a bridge somewhere and begging for corn handouts on the streets if you hadn't taken them in.

You will probably get an award from the Turken foundation.

I agree, you've done wonders with them! Remind me one day to tell the story of a fourth grade science experiment that went to the dark side!

Jennifer, Thank you for the invite. I love figs but sadly have never lived anywhere they can grow. The pic's were beautiful, I wish you were my neighbor.

That's a good way to justify it, Wilma! If my neighbors complain about the crowing, I'll just tell them I'm into chicken rescue.

Dee, I didn't really do anything except put out the feed and water. These two are really low maintenance as far as pets go. I got my very first rooster as part of a high-school biology experiment. We had to inject half the roosters with testronone and the other half with a salt water solution and then measure their growth. We had a couple of extra chicks so took one home without any parental permission. My dad was not super happy about that, considering we lived in an apartment and had no garden of our own. The rooster ended up living in the apartment and was paper trained and very well behaved. It was the most loyal and loving pet we have ever had.

I wish you were my neighbor too, April! Figs are not the easiest trees to get started. I think we had several failures because these two trees took off. The problem with figs is that they are totally delicious in small quantities but what are you going to do with loads and loads of them? They are practically 100% sugar. It would be so fun to meet you for coffee and just spend the day chatting away.

Jen! I loved being in your garden with you!!!!!!!!!!! Send me some of that delicious apple butter you were telling us about! You've got my mouth watering!!!!!!!!!

By the way you can make apple fig jelly with all the extras and it's delicious! We make some down here every year! Want to swap? lol

A great and amusing essay. Looks like you have a beautiful garden of fruits and veggies. :)

Jen, darling, it was absolutely admirable - as always! ;-) And, oh-h, how I wanted to taste these grapes!!! ;-))

Love and hugs in a plenty - S.

I'm sitting on this haystack watching your world along with the turkans and am wondering to myself, "Why, oh why, did we sell the farm in Lake Elsinore"!" Like you, we had all these wonderful fruit trees, Thompson seedless grapes...and vegetables galore. Oh yeah, I remember...we couldn't make a living on our produce alone. But your pictures brought back some many fond memories.

I always enjoy your photo essays, Jenn... really fun!

I love this article Jennifer!
I don't know what else to say, except this was a great read for me this morning!

Hi Jennifer ♥
I'd love to come and visit....as long as there is some of that butter and avacados!
You did a perfect job on your garden and the essay. I really do love it and the turkens are a precious addition to the essay! Watch out for those hawks.

J

I enjoyed your garden, and fruit orchard. I was especially eyeballing those figs. I really like fig preserves, however I have not been able to find anywhere to purchase any. I planted a tree last year, and it was covered, but before they were ready to harvest the ground squirrels had a picnic with them. I live along the Mohave river, and there are plenty of squirrels here, and they all seem to know when the fruit is ripe before I do. I'm a thinkin though...

Jenn, excellent photo essay! I so enjoyed your garden! Every photo was wonderful. The fruit was stunning. Your narrative was conversational and enjoyable. I had a great time! Please invite me again, and tell me what I can bring next time!
Czella and Cooper are both looking great!

Great photo essay!

What kind of peppers/chiles have you planted?

Krissy, apple fig jelly sounds so yummy! I bought most of the canning supplies last night at Walmart to start jelly production. In the past, I've only done jam and preserves so I'm hoping I can do jelly. Jellies look so pretty! I have to email you soon for that pear cake you were talking about earlier.

Thank you so much, Jennifer. This year has just been productive for some reason. Last year I planted twice as much and got almost nothing. No one did because last summer we had a month long heat wave that peaked at 119 degrees.

Sveta, hi! These grapes are really good. They are smaller than ones you find in the store here, but super sweet. I wish you were here! Wouldn't we have the best time together?

Elizabeth, I always think of you when I'm on that freeway that passes through Lake Elisinore. You would not believe how built up that area has become recently. I think you would be disappointed in it now. When I hear of the community farm movement which is trying to take off, I always think of you and the other couples that were selling produce directly to the restaurants. If I wasn't already wise to how hard it is to survive in that kind of business, I would probably try it myself.

Thank you so much, Julie!

Hi Melissa! Thank you so much for dropping by.

Jackie, I used to totally love seeing hawks above my house until I got my babies. Now all I see is a big threat. Kyra already promised to bring you to my house. So, coffee's on. When are ya'all gonna get here?

Mike, I'm actually thankful that birds come and eat some of our fruit. There is still plenty left over for everything I want to do with it and after a while, it just becomes a big chore since I hate wasting food. Yeah, I think I told you about the hawks a time or two ;-) I wish you were sitting with me on that haystack!

Jay, I have never even seen fig preserves so I'm going to find a recipe right away. The only way I see figs is those dried ones in the paper packaging from the middle east. We don't have a rodent problem, thankfully! I'm surprised about that because our parks are full of ground squirrels and gophers and rabbits. We just have some birds that eat a little fruit, but even that is not too big of a problem. Our biggest problem is with the Santa Ana winds that either blow off all the blossoms occasionally or sometimes even make the entire tree break at the trunk. Your place must be so beautiful! I love the Mohave river area.

Hi Debbie! I'm always thinking of you when I see my Turkens. Just bring yourself - I have plenty of stuff here to eat!

Shannon, I think I planted red peppers, anaheims, yellow bananas, and jalepenos this year. The problem is I planted so many peppers all around the garden and the tomatoes have totally overtaken their space and are crowding them out. A lot died too when they were first planted because it was too hot and windy. This isn't turning out to be the best chile year for some reason. One year I had so many chiles and almost no tomatoes. How are yours doing?

I really envy you and wish I could be there. Wonderful photo essay Jennifer. I'd be right at home with all the animals, birds, veggies and trees. This is a lot of work and so rewarding. I love the feral cat so much. Reminds me of my little Fuzzy and makes me wonder if his momma misses him.

I love walking through other peoples gardens! Thank you for the tour!

Nana, thank you so much. I love feral cats too but my neighbors do not share my love and have gotten annoyed with me a time or two. I've done my very best to capture and find homes for all the cats I can, but the mother of this kitten is very intelligent and has managed to escape my traps many many times so I just let her be. A few cats in a neighborhood are actually beneficial. Who wants to be overrun with rodents? I have always particularly loved those orange colored cats. I bet your little Fuzzy is adorable.

Thank you for coming, Melinda. I love looking into other people's house too. I always leave with new ideas.

Thank you so much, Steve! Well, you're a local boy, so stop on by sometime. I'm right on the way to Las Vegas, you know.

my garden isn't doing that well, I do have some tomatoes on some of the vines..

what a great photo essay, crowing...? hens dont crow. got any spurs growing on the leggs yet? hopefully not. They are growing into beautiful birds!!

Wonderful photo story... thanks for inviting me!

Larry, you can have some of my tomatoes. My garden didn't do well at all last year so I know that feeling. My peppers aren't doing well this year but it might be too early.

Angela, no spurs yet. No big tail either. I think they might be too really spoiled and vocal hens. They mainly get loud in the morning just because they know I'm supposed to let them out of their coop. Tonight they were funny, because I got talking around bedtime for them and when I went to put them back in the coop for the night, they went by themselves for the first time. If they ever learn to open the coop in the morning, I may be totally useless to them. They are really great chickens and wonderful pets. I'm so glad I got them.

Thanks so much, DW! I had no intention at all of doing a story yesterday, but the whole thing just unfolded itself and I had some extra time on my hands so why not? You can touch my rack whenever you want ;-)

Thank you so much, Carole! I'm so glad you took a look at my crazy backyard.

I love your garden! I only have the herb garden, a wall of concord grapes, boysenberries, and one potted tomato plant this year. So I'm glad to see yours!

Cecile, you have boysenberries? I'm so jealous! You were working hard in the garden this spring, I remember, but weren't you mainly putting in planters and stuff. Next year you'll probably grow a ton of things in it. I have never had any luck with herbs in California. I used to grow them really well in Michigan. I planted two packs of different kinds of basil this year along with parsley and I ended up with nothing, like usual. I couldn't even grow cilantro last year, and that's native.

Jenn, this was so lovely! I'm featuring it in The Barefoot Gardener. I'm so jealous of all your fruit! Do you spray to get them soooo perfect? And those red tomatoes are killing me, every day I go out to check mine and am still waiting for the first ripe cherry tomato! We've been inundated in zucchini and other squashes, though. I'm giving them away by the bagful. Lots of green beans, collards, turnips, peas (gone by now), lettuce, and early potatoes. My corn is well over my head and tassling now. I just hope the deer and coons don't remember where it is - a few years ago they wiped me out! We are also picking blueberries, red and black raspberries, gooseberries, and jostaberries. (like a combination between a gooseberry and a black currant.) But everyone loves the fresh eating so much I never have enough left to freeze! LOL. Lots of folks in my house, guess I'll just have to expand the gardens even more!!! Thanks so much for this, it was wonderful. ;o)

I am overcome with the urge to run away from home & to your place. It's idyllic. It's charming. It's heaven on Earth. The photos really take me there. I love the grapes!

Aaron, thank you so much! The only spray we have ever used anywhere in the garden is a little dishwashing soap with water. Your garden is truly a work of art. We eat most of our stuff fresh too, or I make jams. I have never been one to like food from a freezer for some reason and I generally forget it's in the freezer until it's way too late. I would go crazy with all your berries. We grew blackberries once but they never really produced anything except for thorns. I would love to be able to find black currants because my very favorite dessert in the world is made from a thin layer of yellow cake, a bunch of currants and topped with merringe. Yum!

Hi Karen! The leg thing wasn't a joke. I ran out in a panic - I really thought she lost her leg. What a tricky chicken! hehehehe. I'm not all that talented - it's really easy to make jam - it just seems like it would be hard, but all it involves is putting fruit with a ton of sugar and then heating it up. It's just hot and messy. I'm actually getting tired of dealing with all this produce. It seems to be a full time job.

Thank you so much, Jane! What a nice thing to say! The weather here is unbearably hot during the day - only the mornings and evenings are nice enough to enjoy the garden so it's not really a heaven on earth kind of place. The grapes are one of my favorite parts too - because I love the shade they make. And grapes cost such a fortune in the store around here.

Thank you, Amy! Good luck in growing your own grapes. Try it! It's easy!

lol at the ending of this "false alarm" I am going to pack up April and we are going to come see your beauitful garden

Anne Marie, that would be a dream come true! That would be the best day ever. I really really did think she lost a leg. These Turkens are funny enough, but can you imagine how strange a one-legged Turken would be? Yesterday afternoon, I found out for absolute certainity that Czella is indeed a hen. There were four small eggs hidden under a tomato plant! Yeah!

I know, I know....I'm SLOW!! I'm just now getting back to this.

I see that Jennifer has accepted our inviting ourselves to her place and the coffee is a-brewin'. Soooooooooo.... Jackie???? How fast can you put your clothes on, through a few in a bag along with your camera, and shut your computer down? I'll be there in about 5 hours. Then we'll head the van towards.... California. You game?

Hey Jennifer, you might have to pour that pot of coffee out. I think it will be mud by the time we get there. I'll call ya from the road and let you know what time to have a fresh pot and a hot fruit pie or cobbler ready for us. :o)

Hi Kyra!
You ARE slow.
I have been waiting outside with my bags packed! I even got all wet!!!
Coffee would definitely hit the spot....and the pie, of course.

Pick me up this time, Kyra! lol

Hi ♥ Jennifer ♥

Kyra and Jackie, this is going to be a blast! I'm going to make a nectarine cobbler tonight as soon as I get home from work. I can't wait to see you two! Texas is such a big state to drive across! You two are going to be such a Thelma and Louise. I can just picture it.

mmmmmm

You guys are sooo bad. Here I was trying to be nice and then this.
Sheesh! I can't get away with anything, huh? LOL

Jennifer and cobbler.....no need for a plate.....just serve mine on a rack!
We should invite DW as well.
♥ to Jennifer Mike and Kyra!

Ouch, that would burn! But, be fun! So, ok.

Super Jenn. How interesting. And all of this is in your front yard you say?! Wow. As far as the corn... Uhm that's a bummer crop kiddo

Terry, it's the backyard. My neighbors already think I'm weird enough - I don't need them watching me chase chickens around and taking their pictures ;-) Yep, one ear of corn isn't going to make much of a party.

Thank you, Sierra!

By the way, everyone, I have eggs now from the "rooster" chicken, Czella. The drama never ends!

oh that was so much fun!!!
thanks for sharing your backyard.
I can't believe all the fruit you have!
My dad tells stories of growing up in CA and eating figs of the trees and how much better it is fresh than dried.
I loved this!
It felt like I was right there.

Man I want to come visit!

This is a fine job with the photos!

I like looking at your fruit! Will that get you tagged? Hope not.

A wet Jennifer! Wow. WHat an article!

Faith, we are just starting to bring in the figs by the bucket load. They are so delicious fresh and I've never had this many before so I'm not sure how to preserve them or what to make with them. I suppose I'll have to google it. Thank you so much for your lovely comment!

Virgil, well, come on over!

Tom, thank you so much for your comment. No, Jackie's the wet one ;-) Maybe it should be tagged but I bet it will slip by the censorers.

That was fun! You always have some wonderful pictures. The bluejays there look different than here, ours have a point on their head like a cardinal and are blue all over. I have to try to catch a picture of one. They are very aggressive with the other birds. It always amazes me to see one or two little birds chasing a hawk around, but I see it often. I saw a poor squirrel being chased in circles by a tiny bird the other day. They were in the street and I think the bird was trying to get the squirrel run over by the cars. At the last second the squirrel dashed away off the street.

marty

Marty, I thought our blue jays look funny too - like blue mockingbirds - not like cardinals much at all. I am glad that we have birds that keep hawks out of our neighborhood since I have my hens free-ranging all day - but I certainly do love hawks. Little birds are so much more aggressive and territorial than most people realize. Poor little squirrel! Thank you so much for your comment.

Hi Peter. Glad you stopped by. The turkens are now addicted to red grapes. They play a little game where I roll a grape and they run after it and fight for it. It might become a new sport in California with betting and everything.

Looks amazing and the fruit absolutely delectable! What a brilliant photographer you are Jennifer. We have a flock of wild parrots in our neighborhood that are gorgeous but their squawks are annoying as hell!

Amanda, thanks for coming by! It's so nice to see you! You are lucky to have parrots! We get them sometimes too. What we have is a bunch of mockingbirds that really get loud sometimes. The hens aren't exactly quiet either.

That fruit looks scrumptious! Nice essay!

Thank you, Sue. This has been a fantastic year for fruit production for some reason. I think our very cold winter was good for the trees. I'm a little tired of dealing with this amount of produce on a daily basis though. I try not to waste any of it.

Pack it up and send it here. I'll pay the shipping!

Figs, Sue? That's what I'm knee-deep in now.

Cool - your chickens are awesome.

Well I don't have any particular affinity for figs but if you ever have a surplus of those beautiful pears, please advise.

Thanks, Benjamin!
Sue, I'll be sure to let you know when the pears come in. The pear trees are fairly young so they might not produce a huge crop until next year. I have no idea what to do with perhaps 50 pounds of figs. Fig preserves just doesn't sound all that appealing to me. And how many fig cookies and cakes can one family eat?

Great images Jennifer - what fun :)

Jennifer - your pix are a strong message. You do a masterful job of this stuff. I used to take a lot of pix when I was younger and if I'd had Gather I would have tried to do the kind of posts you have done. Lord knows if they would have been as good.

You have crossed my path before. Check out my Short Story: The Husband and the Lover - it has been getting good reviews so far.

Great work!

Thank you, Audrey. So nice to see you!

Thanks, Lisa! The chickens make every venture out in the garden more fun.

Tom, how nice to come by! I loved your story The Husband and the Lover and look forward to more chapters of that. Thank you!

What a delightful stroll through your garden! Thank you!

Thank you so much for coming by, Tina!

That was terrific Jennifer, very good photo story,,,,,,all that food made me hungry though! habenarro hot! but for the family I have to stop a jalepeno hot,,haha!

hello there! wow...i am so impressed with your wonderful and bountiful garden!
and your chickens are so cute!

nice essay.

Blessings

Randee, once I grew habenarros and no one could eat them. Boy, those are hot!

Thanks, Synch. I love those chickens. The garden is always a lot of work, but with today's food prices, it's so worth it.

Paulette, thanks for coming by. I'm off to read your article.

Thanks, Wiaka!

Liz, that would be a total blast. I have really noticed a drop in the grocery bill since the garden is going full production and we have about 10 eggs or so a week from these two hens. Normally I don't see that many creatures in such a short time. The day I did this photoessay, it was the first nice day in several weeks. We just had gone through a brutal heatwave and I think all the animals were out enjoying the day just like I was.

Marvelous -- I want to come visit.

This was really nice, I enjoyed it. I am wondering where you live.