Growing Food Is No Small Task
As I am parking the lawn mower I see a groundhog in the main growing gardens. What now!
First it was the hail. Large, ragged, ping pong sized hail shredded the whole growing area. A total loss. The day after was heartbreaking, A few days later, a glimmer of hope. Some of the plants look like they are going to recover. A boost of joy.
The other day as I was putting the chickens away, I saw a raccoon in the growing area. Another pest ready to eat all the plants. A person can’t get a break. Everything wants to eat your produce!
A couple of days later, I was walking in the garden and guess who I saw, a rabbit. Now what! I chased the rabbit around trying to see where the rabbit got in. No luck. I couldn't find the entrance point that the rabbit was using to get into the garden. Yesterday, I was mowing and I saw the rabbit on the other side of the fence. Hoping the garden eating pest stays out for good. I found an entrance point. It is now fixed.
The birds eat the strawberries, cherries, berries, and serviceberries. The raccoons love to eat everything. The rabbit will destroy your crops, piece by piece. The woodchuck loves garden plants. And these are just the beginning of crop damage.
Next comes the bugs. The cucumber beetle is the worst for the vining varieties. They are vectors. The bug feeds on the plant, the disease is along for the ride, attacks your plants, and poof, the plant will be finished in a little bit of time. Yes, there are some plant varieties that have been developed to resist the disease. The key word “resist”. Not totally, untouched by the disease.
After all of this, you may ask yourself “why in the world does he grow in the first place?!?” Because I ask myself the same question. Here’s my answer to that question…I grow because I can. Simply put. I get to grow food. Yes, there are really hard times. Yes, I have seen a lot of plant destruction over the years. This year has been one of the most challenging. I grow food on the farm because I can.