We Pull Peanuts

By yesterday night, I had (thankfully) gained some perspective on the horrific events of the day (thanks to all for the encouraging words. They were quite needed). I had prayed for protection that morning, and I realized that we were probably only minutes away from losing all the birds. To have, as of tonight, yet 27 living is a minor miracle. (I credit the homeopathic Belladonna as a major player in keeping about 20 of those birds alive. Many of them had reached a comatose state, but I mixed the pellets in a spay bottle of water and sprayed down the birds' throats.)

And the pigs have enjoyed a few of the birds, so the 25 pounds of dead bird are not a total loss.

More than half the birds yet live. I am thankful.

I've spent some time in the garden the last few days, too. So much has not worked in the garden, whether from lack of sprouting, or chickens pecking, or tomato hornworms. But we have had enough tomatoes for our own consumption. We have had okra enough and to spare. When we returned home from vacation, the plants had topped out at about 5 feet tall, and I picked several grocery bags of okra, which should yield plenty of seed for next year. That small patch was incredibly productive.

I had a bed of peanuts growing.

I pulled up a plant a few days ago, and the peanuts were clearly there.

A good size, too.

Not terribly differentiated, though.

I left them outside in the sun for a few days, and when I came back, the nuts rattled in the shell. They had dried to true peanut shape, appearance, and taste.

I love the peanut. The nitrogen-fixing, the beautiful greens that the animals devoured, the amazing underground growth with a high-protein food. Amazing! Maybe next year we'll grow some more.

As the sun set on this last day of summer, I tried to watch for the rising Harvest Moon. But, sadly, in the Virginia rolling hills, there was no place flat enough to see the horizons on the level. But we finally spotted the Harvest Moon, orange as a Smartie, larger than normal, beautiful in the sky.

Goodbye, Summer. Welcome, Fall!