Saturday, July 28, 2012

August Events at Novellas Farm

Scout and Coco
Novellas Farm is a small Farm in Dripping Springs

We have dairy cows, bees, chickens, turkeys, giant rabbits, worms,
and lots of gardening and other projects going on.
We offer the opportunity for people in the city to come
out for the day and experience hands on what it is like to be on a farm!

  In August we are offering the following dates and events.

Saturday Farm Days: August 4 and 18 from 9 to 1
The Saturday Farm Days are nice for working parents or families
that would like to bring Dad along for the fun.
We will milk the cows and make ice cream.
Learn about the bees, look at the hive and open the hive to see
what the bees are doing.
Talk about chickens, learn about their digestive system and their role
here on the farm. We will learn the parts of the egg ( more to it than you
think)
Finally we will learn about the earth worms and their importance to us
all.
Each child can take home a worm farm if they like.

Adults are free! Kids are 30 for one, 45 for 2 and a family price of 55 for
3 or more
, (3 and under are free)


Farm Day: August 2, 7,27
Pretty much just like the Saturday one!



End of Summer Days: August 10, 21
9 to 10:30

Very short days where we will have a fast run through, I will demonstrate
milking , look at the bees, and briefly talk about the worms and poultry.
These days are for the folks who are about to melt. We are done before
it gets too hot.
Adults are free, kids are 10 per. under 3 free.
Please contact me to save a space or if you have any questions.
Amy


Saturday, July 21, 2012

Datura

Datura opening up in the evening
      When I first moved to Dripping Springs from Austin, a neighbor welcomed me and invited me to her house to see her place. It was very pretty, but she had fences around all her plants. Even the "deer resistant" plants I had seen at the garden center.

Can you see the bees?
I asked her why she had the plants fenced in, "it would be so much prettier open", I said.

She gave me a "you stupid city slicker" smile and said  "they just say they are deer resistant, the deer eat everything" 

Oh you poor ignorant bumpkin, I thought... I'll show you how it's done.You just have to put out soap, or blood meal or urine or something........ 
Guess what? I found out she was right! I would plant something and sure enough the next day it would be fine, but second or third night it would have just disappeared.
Those beautiful, angelic looking creatures were monsters who would eat anything that didn't  kill them.

There! you can see them now.
Then one day I saw these Datura growing wild along the side of the road, hmm.

I took some seed pods home and scattered them around.
Guess what! The deer don't eat them! No!

 True they are very, very poisonous, so don't feed them to your kids... but they are so pretty
and the fragrance, is wonderful.  They open in the evening and bloom through the night. And the bees love them, so do the giant moths.

One of the best things about this plant is that it is very, drought resistant and it reseeds every year. 
It is also known as Jameson Weed. Either the colonist in James Town enjoyed the high from smoking the leaves or it killed them.

Any way, it just goes to show what I will put up with for a few flowers in my life.