CHERRIES, COYOTES AND DOUBLE JEOPARDY ''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''''

DONE FARMIN'

BING CHERRIES

CAVALIER CHERRIES

Monday,  8:00 AM.  69 degrees F on the porch, 62 degrees at the lakefront.  The wind is N, calm with light gusts.  The sky is clear but hazy over the Islands, and the humidity is 95%.  The barometer is up, at 30.23".  It will be a nice but somewhat muggy day to do yard work.

   We stopped out at the Larsen camp yesterday evening, just to catch up on things after both we and they have had constant company for the last couple of weeks.  The mosquitoes were biting and the coyotes howling, but a good smokey fire kept both at bay.

   The fields of golden yellow Coreopsis continue to impress us.  The above scene is on Hwy J, just east of Valley Road.

    Local sweet cherries are available at Apple Hill Orchards, $4 per pound.  Owner Bill Ferarro says it is the best crop of cherries he has ever had.  Bing cherries are not hardy here, but several newer sweet cherry varieties are, and the trees at Apple Hill are now mature enough to bear well.  The first crop of sweet cherries is the hybrid 'Cavalier'.  They are the same size as the Bing cherries, and I actually prefer them  because they are a little less sweet and have more of a cherry taste.  The cherry harvest should last a few weeks, perhaps longer.
   The jury verdict of "not guilty" for George Zimmerman should be the end of the affair.  If the Justice Department indicts him on some sort of trumped up "racial" charge it will be for purely political purposes and will be akin to double jeopardy for the defendant, which is unconstitutional.  Do we really want to be like Italy, where a person can be tried over and over until finally found guilty?  Sounds like counting the votes over and over until you win, doesn't it? 

   

  

CARRIAGE RIDES AND BEACH PEAS

CARRIAGE FOR HIRE

BEACH PEA

Sunday, 8:00 AM.  70 degrees F on the porch, several degrees cooler on the lakefront.  the wind is N, very light.  We had a trace of rain early this morning, and everything is wet again.  The sky is heavy with rain clouds to the east and south, and partly cloudy with some sunshine to the north. The humidity is 88% and the barometer is up, at 30.11".  the day is a tossup weather- wise.  

   I managed to clean up the perennial garden yesterday, which had become a huge mess with all the rain-induced growth.  The New England Asters have encroached on everything else and I cut them back severely with the hope of giving the tall phlox and other summer plants a chance to bloom.

   We are now seeing carriage rides in town on a regular basis, a nice addition to summer.   I don't imagine there is enough walk-on business to just have the carriage stationed downtown waiting for riders.  This one was probably hired for a wedding. 

   The beach peas (Lathyrus maritimus , synonym japonicus) are blooming everywhere now, they are quite beautiful but you don't want them in the garden, as they vine very strongly and choke out the other flowers.  Like the lupines, leave them grow where they want to, in the wild.  They are an interesting plant, appearing on large lakes and ocean shoes circumpolar in the northern hemisphere, and even in locations in the southern hemisphere.  Use the blog search engine to find more information from previous posts.

BEER BATTERED COD, COW PARSNIPS AND TRIAL BY TELEVISION

VALHALLA VALLEY PUB AND GRUB

SIOUX RIVER ABOVE BIG ROCK

COW PRSNIP

Saturday, 9:00 AM.  71 degrees on the porch, 68 degrees F on the lakeshore. The wind is calm. The sky has a few errant clouds and there is the usual haze in the east.  The barometer is steady at 29.99" and the humidity is 85%. We had thunder, lightening and a trace of rain about 4:00 AM. It looks like a pleasant repeat of yesterday.

   We went to Friday night fish fry at the Valhalla Pub and Grub last night, which is on Hwy. C between Washburn and Cornucopia.  We get tired of white fish, even though it is probably the best of fresh water fish, so we both had the cod.  It was fresh and the portions ample and the price reasonable at $11.99, but we both prefer the traditional beer batter, and this was I think corn bread or something.  The home fried potatoes with onions smothered in cheese were all a biker could ask for.  They had a good crowd, mixed locals and tourists, and the ambience is north woodsy and the service very good.  But I'm still looking for Milwaukee style beer-battered cod.

   On the way home we took the back roads past Big Rock Park and the upper Sioux River.  There was nobody in the beautiful campground.  Either the mosquitoes or the economy is really bad.  We almost hit a deer, which encouraged me to stop and take a photo of the cow parsnips, Hereacleum maximum,  in the parsley family, which are filling up all the ditches this wet year.  They are very tall and have enormous leaves and flower heads and are quite beautiful.  However, although they are not poisonous, many plants in the family Umbelliferae are,  and I would leave all of them alone.

   The whole nation is supposedly awaiting the jury verdict in the George Zimmerman trial, with riots feared if he is not convicted.  How about riots if he is convicted?  Where are we going with all this nonsense?  We have a justice system, the best in the history of civilization.  If the prosecution, defense, jury and judge do their usual good work, justice will be served, and if not there is a system of appeal, all the way to the Supreme Court.  I for one am sick and tired of trial by television

BEARS, FIREFLIES AND A BLUE WILDFLOWER

AMERICAN VETCH...

...VICEA AMERICANA

ANOTHER SUMMER DAY

Friday 8:30 AM.  70 degrees F on the porch, cooler at the lakefront.  Wind N, light with occasional stronger gusts.  The sky is mostly clear with a few high, thin clouds.  there is the usual haze in the east, quite heavy over Madeline Island. The humidity is 84% and the barometer is still high but trending down, currently at 30.01".  It will be a nice summer day.

   The bears are out and about;  two nights ago one visited  Mayor MacDonald's yard on 6th and Manypenny, and we saw a large bear last evening about 8:00 PM, probably a boar, crossing Washington Ave., just west of the cemetery.  He was ambling along unconcerned, after  descending Bear Ridge.

   Last night was moonless but starry, and the fireflies flitting through  the treetops could have been mistaken for shooting stars.

   The  American vetch, Vicea americana, in the legume family, is a common roadside plant.  It has quite colorful panicles of small, blue plea-like flowers.  It creeps and climbs by tendrils and can be somewhat weedy by is not very aggressive.  Blue wildflowers are a summer rarity, and it adds color and interest to our roadsides.
   Blog reader Norman Freeman asks how to get rid of black knot of plum (see April 23, 2013 blog).  I know of no satisfactory control for this disease except to prune out the diseased portions, being sure to sterilize the pruning tools in bleach or alchohol after each cut.  Also, burn or bury any affected fruit or plant parts.  I would contact the local Extension Agent for advice regarding the disease in fruit orchards.

   

COREOPSIS BLOOMING IN THE ORCHARD FIELDS

LUNCH AT THE BAYFIELD INN

FIELD OF COREOPSIS

..COREOPSIS LANCEOLATA FLOWER

...LANCE-SHAPED LEAV ES

,

   Thursday, 7:00 AM.  62 degrees F, wind N, calm.  The sky is clear with some haze in the east.  The humidity is down and the barometer is up, currently at 30.09".  It will bel a warm summer day.
   We have had a fine visit with old friends Dave and Betty Craig, who leave for southern Wisconsin this morning and then on back home to Tennessee.  We showed them the Bayfield orchards, bought fresh strawberries and maple syrup, and took them to the Northern Great Lakes Visitors Center.  We reminisced long ago good times on the Craig family farm near Waukesha Wisconsin.We ate lunch at the Bayfield Inn, which has wonderful views of the harbor and Madeline Island.

   The fields in the orchard country have suddenly turned golden with Coreopsis, There are several native species and a number of horticultural selections.  I believe ours are the perennial Coreopsis lanceola.  There also  is the annual Coreopsis tinctoria, a native wildflower still used to make a natural yellow dye.

GUESTS, AND A SOLUTION FOR EDWARD SNOWDON

A BETTER DAY

Wednesday, 7:30 AM.  62 degrees F, wind W, light with stronger gusts.  The sky is rapidly clearing after a bit of rain last night.  The humidity is 84% and the barometer is trending up, at 29.94".  I was a cold and foggy day yesterday, Duluth actually socked in with fog.  Not a good weather welcome for our guests and old friends Dave and Betty Craig who are on the last leg of a Lake Superior Circle Tour, but we will have a fine a time showing them the sights today.
   I have a solution to the Edward Snowdon "man without a country" problem. It's very simple and equatable all around.  The CIA won't have to assassinate him, the FBI won't have to snare him at some international airport.  Venezuela won't have to grant him asylum.  The US Attorney won't have to indite him, and US courts won't have to try him.  The Administration won't have to listen to a lot of embarrassing testimony in open court.
   All that has to happen is for Congress to grant him immunity from prosecution in return for his testimony as to what the NSA is up to.  He can testify in open session and if need be in secret.  If in closed session, the public will soon know what he said anyway, because congressmen can't keep a secret either.
   This whole episode is a comedy of errors, a true farce.  Snowdon is either a traitor or totally naive, and the only individuals more sinister or naive than he is are the generals at the NSA who hired him.
   We can have a happy ending here for everyone, and Edward Snowdon can come home to his family and live-in girlfriend, if either still will have him, and he can probably get a job with the IRS deciphering Obama Care rules and regulations.

REMEMBERING TO LOCK THE CAR DOORS

SOCKED IN

STEVE AND NAMI'S GARDEN

...AUTOMATIC WATERING...

.. FENCED. AND GATED...

...RAISED AND SHELTERED  BEDS 

Tuesday, 8:00 AM.  54 degrees F, wind calm. The sky is overcast and there is considerable ground fog.  The humidity is 98% and the barometer is trending down, currently at 29.91".  The day could go either way; storms or clearing.
   We are headed to Duluth today for an appointment with Joan's eye doctor and will be gone until late afternoon, when friends Dave and Betty Craig will arrive from Tennessee for a few days visit.  They are on the last leg of the Lake Superior Circle Tour and will be stopping in Bayfield before visiting family in southern Wisconsin.  We look forward to renewing an old, old friendship and hearing about their trip.
   Neighbors Steve and Nami have gone into backyard gardening big time this year.  The project started last summer with the creation of raised beds and loads of good topsoil.  Then hoops to hold plastic sheathing and shade cloth were installed, as well as an automatic watering system, and fencing to keep the critters out  (I hope the deer that came through the neighborhood yesterday didn't see the tempting goodies, as the fence is only 5' tall)..
   They planted as soon as the snow melted and the ground dried out, and got a super early start with onions, peas, lettuce and other early vegetables.  They have a nice crop of squash and cabbage coming on and their staked tomatoes are growing well.  I like the looks of the garden as it is well proportioned, neatly fenced and very orderly.
   But I wonder if Steve and Nami are fully prepared for the bounty which will be bestowed upon them.  They will be inundated with produce and will have to can and freeze and consume an enormous amount of vegetables, as I doubt they will be setting up a stall at the farmers market; but if they do, good for them!
   But come late summer and the zucchini start to ripen, I will have to remember to lock the car doors  at night.