Comments for Curbstone Valley

Comment on While the Farmer’s Away… by Reed Pugh

Reed Pugh — Fri, 24 May 2013 21:01:11 +0000

My heart breaks. I don’t know how big an area is fenced in, but make sure all the deer are out.

Here’s hoping for a speedy recovery.

Comment on While the Farmer’s Away… by Clare

Clare — Fri, 24 May 2013 15:16:01 +0000

It’s so difficult, in spring, not to ooooh, and ahhh, over the fawns running around the farm. Then it’s equivalently difficult not to #*$&%*#% when they’re all grown up mowing their way from one end of the orchard to the other. I suppose this breach did prove that, providing the fence is intact, it’s working remarkably well at keeping them out. Unfortunately, fallen trees around here are just a fact of life

As for the neighbor, we did consider sending a formal notification via a lawyer regarding his trespass on the property (even though he has an easement, his actions did constitute trespass as he does not OWN the land). However, he seems like the sort that could/would potentially retaliate, and our greatest concern is for the welfare of our animals (which he clearly despises), so we don’t want to push it this time. He does anything again though, and we’ll prosecute. In the meantime, security cameras will be a must.

Comment on While the Farmer’s Away… by Donna@Gardens Eye View

Donna@Gardens Eye View — Fri, 24 May 2013 14:31:21 +0000

Clare I am so sorry for your losses…deer are such a love/hate relationship as I do know here. And that neighbor is unforgivable….I might have to consider swearing out a complaint for trespassing or destruction of property if that would any good….what is their problem…jerks.

Comment on While the Farmer’s Away… by Clare

Clare — Fri, 24 May 2013 00:42:22 +0000

Yes, I agree, the neighbor…that was pretty special…and not in good way! Sometimes I really wonder what’s become of the human race. I can’t imagine neighbors being so rude to each other in my grandmother’s day. Our society seems to be becoming increasingly more selfish.

I’m sorry the deer chomped on your tulips. We tried growing tulips the first year, and deer were clearly delighted! Daffodils they ignore, but tulips are like caviar to our local cervid population.

I do hope our run of ‘issues’ in recent weeks is now done. It does seem that things come in waves around here…so I’m hoping the bad is now shaken out of the system for the season, and we can now progress toward something more positive for the rest of the year!

Comment on While the Farmer’s Away… by Carolyn

Carolyn — Thu, 23 May 2013 20:33:47 +0000

Oh, Clare, I am so sorry to hear this. I would be heartbroken. The natural disaster is one thing, but the neighbor? Inexcusable. And the deer? Not liking those little fellows so much anymore… they munched on my Tulips. They say bad things come in 3′s so hopefully your luck will turn. Sending you far away hugs.

Comment on While the Farmer’s Away… by Clare

Clare — Thu, 23 May 2013 03:54:49 +0000

Our Madrones here are quite spindly. They’ve spent years scrapping for sun with the Bay Laurels and Douglas Firs, and most of them fall due to some sort of root-rot. I hated cutting down one that was still vertical, but it was paired with the one that fell on the fence, and it seemed imminent that it would follow suit. I wish we had some healthy Madrones on the property. I occasionally see some impressive trees along Hwy 17 that look so much more robust. I just think our woodlands were allowed to get too overcrowded for too long. I’m with you, I hope the deer got a little belly ache as a result of their overindulgence…they deserve it!

Comment on While the Farmer’s Away… by Country Mouse

Country Mouse — Thu, 23 May 2013 01:25:43 +0000

Oh! Oh! Oh! Glad you haven’t let this sap your spirit or drain your determination or extinguish your enthusiasm! but Oh! And today I was just sitting contemplating our dead madrone and feeling so happy about it – the pygmy nuthatches nested again this year in a knot hole where a branch fell off. I can only hope those darned deer got a sore tummy in punishment for their trespass and spoilage!

Comment on While the Farmer’s Away… by Clare

Clare — Wed, 22 May 2013 18:46:06 +0000

It sounds like the Milorganite is working well for you. Unfortunately, for pursuing organic certification, we can’t use products that contain sewage sludge/biosolids on the farm. Although it’s marketed as being an “organic fertilizer”, it is not approved for certified organic production. In fact, it is actually illegal under the National Organic Standards Act to grow certified organic food in sewage sludge.

“The USDA organic seal verifies that irradiation, sewage sludge, synthetic fertilizers, prohibited pesticides, and genetically modified organisms were not used.”

We couldn’t use it, even as a repellent, due to risk of soil contamination…so for now, I’m going to hope our fence holds!

Comment on While the Farmer’s Away… by Tammy

Tammy — Wed, 22 May 2013 16:41:39 +0000

I feel for your loss. we put a lot of effort into our gardens. Its hard to see it destroyed. for years we never had a garden because the deer would eat everything. I had tulips for years that I never got to see bloom. Until an internet friend told me a local nursery friend told her they hang pouches/sachets of Milorganite around and it kept the deer away. i have been doing for for about 3 yrs now with excellent results. I now grow a complete garden with potatoes, beans, strawberries etc, and nothing is bothered. I see them around the perimeter of my yard and in my neighbors yard, but not in mine. They seem to last about 2 yrs before they need replaced. This yr was about 2 yrs and I started seeing them again in my yard, so I rehung some again, and everything is safe.

Comment on The Rusty Milk Maid & A Reluctant First Freshener by Clare

Clare — Wed, 22 May 2013 16:21:44 +0000

The feta was very good. I think next time we won’t drain it for as long. Using raw goat’s milk, our cheese yield was phenomenal, but it also seemed a little more dense, perhaps a result of higher protein in the milk, so I don’t think the drain time needed to be as long. That’s the fun part though, now we get to experiment!

Comment on The Rusty Milk Maid & A Reluctant First Freshener by Clare

Clare — Wed, 22 May 2013 16:20:40 +0000

Definitely! I think of purchasing goats a little like buying a car. If you buy one that’s been ‘previously owned’, you don’t know how that goat’s behavior was shaped. The advantage of kids is you can raise them the way you want them, and form that bond with them early on

Comment on The Rusty Milk Maid & A Reluctant First Freshener by Gail

Gail — Wed, 22 May 2013 15:19:53 +0000

That was a fascinating account of milking and boy, would I love to try the feta cheese you made. gail

Comment on While the Farmer’s Away… by Clare

Clare — Wed, 22 May 2013 15:14:51 +0000

Well, keeping it in perspective, it’s definitely not as bad as a tornado, and relatively minor on the scale of natural disasters. It is certainly frustrating, and events like this do take away from other things we need to get done on the farm. By next season though, most of the damage will hopefully be a distant memory. We may have a few funny shaped trees for a few seasons, but it could have been worse.

With our terrain, I used to joke that a guard llama would be perfect here. I’m not sure we have enough flat ground for a donkey. I have always wanted a miniature donkey though, I think they’re adorable!

Comment on While the Farmer’s Away… by Clare

Clare — Wed, 22 May 2013 15:09:23 +0000

I often had visions of deer in camouflage gear, lurking behind the oak trees on the hill with binoculars and walkie-talkies just waiting for an opportunity. The roots on the Madrone that fell were almost completely gone, probably due to fungal disease that’s common here (that or the deer are in a cahoots with the local gopher population ). I was stunned at the amount of damage too, and how far they had managed to wander while sampling the all-you-can-eat Curbstone Valley buffet. I guess the deer have good taste! Fortunately though, like you say, we do have a long growing season here, so hopefully all is not lost…I can’t believe I started those tomato plants in January!

Although we don’t have bears, the section of fence that came down was right behind where we keep our hives. I was very grateful that the skunks didn’t get in, as they cause a lot of problems for bees, and do a fair amount of hive damage in their quest to reach honey.

Comment on While the Farmer’s Away… by Clare

Clare — Wed, 22 May 2013 15:04:09 +0000

Our deer pressure here is absurdly high. We tend to see small herds passing through the property. I had one group of 5 bucks wandering around the slopes a couple of weeks ago, and now the does are back, with their fawns in tow. I don’t mind seeing them outside the fence. In the grand scheme of things, it could have been much worse, but it did make me stop and think about all the farmers out there that struggle to produce food. There is always something, no matter where you are. Whether it’s animals eating your crops, pests, disease, drought. I think most of us forget what it takes to produce quality food when, at least in this part of the world, there seems to be an abundance of it. Whatever fails in the garden this summer as a result of this, I will buy from other local farmers though, as I’m happy to support them.

Comment on While the Farmer’s Away… by Clare

Clare — Wed, 22 May 2013 15:00:16 +0000

I’ll definitely be taking note as to how the respective plants recover. Who knows, maybe the cucumbers will be shrubbier if they bounce back, and produce more fruits. My biggest concern is the set backs for the fruit trees. We take our time when shaping the trees during the dormant season, but now so many of the lower branches are damaged. It’s tough, as with the orchard on a slope we prune to keep the tree heights low (to make harvesting easier), but it also leaves them much more vulnerable than a standard height tree when there’s a fence breach

Comment on While the Farmer’s Away… by Clare

Clare — Wed, 22 May 2013 14:57:00 +0000

We’d love to get a livestock guardian dog, which would also keep the deer further back from the gardens, but for liability reasons we can’t do that here. The area our neighbor sprayed with herbicide is a road easement (just a right to pass) that crosses the entire width of the property. I can’t gate the road as by law we are not permitted to block that easement, and without gates/fences there is risk both to the dog, and potentially to the neighbor that uses the easement to reach his property. We will never own another property with an easement like this. It’s definitely been a lesson learned. It restricts how we can use our land, and when entitled neighbors start doing what they want on the easement, it also jeopardizes our organic production.

Comment on While the Farmer’s Away… by Clare

Clare — Wed, 22 May 2013 14:53:58 +0000

We were livid about the herbicide. As our orchard is maturing, and at the point of producing more fruit (sans fence failures), we were considering applying for certified organic status so we could sell excess fruit at the farmer’s market. The orchard can’t be certified for 3 years though if it is contaminated with herbicide. I don’t understand why this neighbor feels so entitled to use our land, and it’s clear he doesn’t understand the concept of what an easement is!

Comment on While the Farmer’s Away… by Nancy Lewis

Nancy Lewis — Wed, 22 May 2013 13:57:43 +0000

Oh, Clare, I am so sorry to hear about all the heartbreaking damage. Like a tornado.
I’ve heard that donkeys are good, protective watch animals, but I don’t know if they see deer as a threat.
May your garden have a speedy recovery under your careful and loving hand.

Comment on While the Farmer’s Away… by Alan @ it's not work, it's gardening!

Alan @ it's not work, it's gardening! — Wed, 22 May 2013 10:21:25 +0000

Wow, that’s certainly large-scale destruction! Amazing that it was in just one day — the deer must have been eyeing your enclosure for a while.

The fruit trees are certainly the biggest hit, but for everything else just think of yourself as living in a colder climate, where it’s still early in the season. Your tomatoes are weeks (at least) ahead of mine, but you have the advantage of better-established root systems on everything — I expect you’ll be harvesting tomatoes before I am, regardless of the damage.

Chin up! Gardeners are the penultimate optimists, and I know your little farm (and its farmers) will be fine.

Look on the bright side: it could have been bears attacking your hives, right?