Garden Critters

Catch and Release

                                           Day 1 - A young possum is trapped in our garden

Lovely sweet cantaloupe; 25 total came to vine.  Juicy tomatoes; big red Better Boys and Italian Heirloom as well as sweet little cherry tomatoes both golden and red ones are abundant under a protective sunscreen.  Wonderful sweet corn; about a dozen ears came on, enough for a few good meals.  Unfortunately, Keith and I weren't the only ones keeping watch for the perfect ripe-time! 

I checked the melons everyday for signs of ripeness and any disturbance.  On July 12th, I noticed a few teeth marks on a soon-to-ripen melon just barely exposing the orange fruit beneath the still green rind.  I knew for sure that I wasn't the only one checking for ripeness.  Luckily, the animal trap we ordered online just arrived.  Perfect timing. 

We knew from last year that trapping worked well.  We had many of our melons and tomatoes hit before we rented a trap from the Missouri Department of Conservation traveling to the Springfield office 70 miles away.  We caught two critters - an old possum and a young groundhog before we returned the trap to get our $50 deposit back.  Then the drought came and pretty much finished off the remaining melons and tomatoes until fall.

So this year we were ready!  As of this writing, we have caught and released nine critters in ten days.  Of the 25 melons, only six remain unripened on the vine with the critters taking only two before we got them.  We have kept up with the tomatoes picking all before the critters get to them.  They did get most of the corn as they did not wait until it all ripened and stripped the stalks in two nights.  We did get one mess to eat ourselves but they were not quite as ready as we liked.  There's plenty available locally so we are having as much fresh corn as we want anyway.

So here are the photos taken each morning of what was trapped the night before.  We share some of our melons as bait using one half each night.  We still have more melons than we can eat 2-3 times a day for both of us.  The critters get the smallest and over-ripe ones.  We will continue as long as we have melons for bait as we still would like to have a fall garden with more corn as well as the  tomatoes to protect.  I believe the critters are better off released on public land on the lake five miles away.  At least they will have all the water they want and wildlife that that is attracted to water to keep them happy. They will be in a better place should we have a drought like last year next month. So far, at least two of the trapped critters were injured from fighting.  The critter population is likely too high in our neighborhood.  I am a conservationist.

                          Day 2 - An older possum is trapped and getting ready for a ride to the lake

Day 3 - Rocky Raccoon is caught and happily released.  He was injured with bites on his neck and the hide slightly rubbed off one arm as he likely tried to reach for food through the wired cage.

Day 4 - Another possum

Day 5 - Rocky II is Staying Alive!  This one was successful in pulling in all kinds of vegetation for a nice soft bed.  He was sleeping when I woke him up that morning.

                                                    Day 6 - This was a mean possum!

Day 7 - Rocky III was throwing a hissy-fit barking and growling at Keith

Day 8 - Poor little injured possum with it's tail and one leg all chewed up. He was able to run off well enough when released on the lake though.

Day 9 - No critters were trapped and the door remained opened when I checked early in the morning. I also checked the melons and none were hit. An hour or so later, Keith went out to get some peppers and found the trap door closed with no critter inside. Also saw that one melon was partially eaten. So one got away!

                                         

Day 10 - A very mean and smelly possum that crapped all the way to the truck leaving a mess to clean up.

Days 11 & 12 -  Empty trap

Day 13 - This cute little raccoon probably never saw people before and was so scared. 

We set the trap for a couple more days and didn't get anything so we have quit for now as the garden produce has mostly been processed by now with only a few melons remaining.  I think we have won the race! 

Garden Produce

                                                                         June Garden

July Garden

The best food is food you know the most about.  Mindless eating begins with not knowing where your food comes from and what is in it.  Information leads to making the best choices.  There is so much information available, it can be overwhelming.  So keep it simple to begin.  I like to grow foods in my garden and have done it every year since 1973.  For 30 years, I preserved a large amount and it was a staple for our family.  Fresh fruits and vegetables were eaten in season.  Canned, frozen, and dried foods were for off season.  Since the children left home in 2000, I preserve much less, but can afford to buy the more available organic products now available in stores and farmer's markets.  As always, I am ever conscious of what is in my food before I consume it.

The best source for gardening is your local Extension Office as it has the information for the local area. I have used this source for as long as I can remember and continue finding it most helpful since I became a Master Gardener.  For Missouri this sight is a helpful beginning:

http://extension.missouri.edu/publications/DisplayPub.aspx?P=CB19

Keith and I both enjoy working in our gardens and this year was no exception even with the usual challenges.  This year we have met one big challenge with huge success - trapping critters that steal our food!  Since this is an ongoing process at this time, I will blog about it later as I am still taking photos.  We are 3 for 3 today - 2 possums and a raccoon in 3 days!

Intuition combined with education and experience has helped in our success and minimized our failures. As with most things in life, nothing ever goes by the book all the time. 

This year we choose to grow lettuce, spinach, kale, onions, leeks, beets, radishes, cantaloupe, peppers, tomatoes, squash, and corn.  We like other vegetables too but sources for good produce are available nearby for the amounts we want when we want them and garden space is utilized for what we want to produce with the most success.  We also have many herbs that come back every year including oregano, lemon balm, thyme, cilantro, sage, savory, curry, peppermint, St. John's Wort and a couple that have to be replanted every year:  rosemary and basil.  Gooseberries come back every year too.

This year I am only perserving tomatoes, peppers, and onions in the form of hot sauce and salsa.  I am including my favorite recipes for both:

                                                                     Beti's Hot Sauce
makes 10 pints
25-30 whole tomatoes
4 cups jalapenos and/or habanero peppers
3 green peppers
3 large red and/or white onions
2-3 cups red cayenne peppers

Remove seeds from all peppers except the red cayennes.  Cut all into chunks for blender and process at puree.  Cook to boil and simmer 1/2 hour or more depending on consistency wanted.  Prepare jars and fill to 1/2" of top.  Add 1/2 teaspoon canning salt to each pint.  Adjust lids, process 10 minutes in water bath canner.  Makes 4-5

                                                                     Beti's Salsa

makes 8 pints
8 cups tomatoes, peeled, chopped and drained
2 cups zucchini, chopped (seeds removed, if large)
2 1/2 cups onions, chopped
1 1/2 cups green peppers, chopped (seeds removed)
1 cup jalapeno peppers, chopped (seeds removed, optional)
6 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons cumin
2 teaspoons fresh ground black pepper
1/8 cup canning salt
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup vinegar
1 (15 ounce) can tomato sauce
1 (12 ounce) can tomato paste

Mix all together and bring to a slow boil for 10 minutes.  Seal in prepared jars and process in water bath canner for 10 minutes.