The Bunny Trap - A Faux Real Story

To celebrate a new week, I present you with yet another Faux Real Story!  Enjoy!

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Our biggest nemesis in our early gardens was the rabbit. And we tried several approaches to exclude them from our vegetable crops.

 

We even tried reasoning with them - after all, rabbits have this nasty habit of taking out very young plants - even if more established options were available. You would think they would understand that there would be MORE, not less, to eat if they let things get a bit bigger.  Heck, I would have gladly given them so of our bounty if they would just leave the little, baby plants alone!

 

Unfortunately, the average education level for members of rodentia is fairly low, so we resorted to fencing.

 

Rabbit fencing has smaller holes closer to the ground to keep rabbits and other critters from crawling/hopping/walking through. And, we had carefully placed timbers around the perimeter of the garden and then erected a fence that tied into those timbers. We reasoned (and correctly so) that this would make it difficult for critters to make a quick burrow under the fence.

 

We entered the gardening season feeling as if we had prepared well for the inevitable rabbit population explosion in our neighborhood. And, we might have been....UNTIL....

 

One day, the neighbors noticed the cute little bunnies in the bunny nest. 

 

"Aren't they cute? Would you like to pet them?"

 

" No. No, thank you."

 

Even then, they had beady eyes.  Never trust a critter with beady eyes.  Especially when vegetables are on the line.

 

The neighbor's dog noticed the cute little bunnies just outside their bunny nest a week later.

 

"Aren't they cute? Would you like to taste them?"

"Yes, I would," said the dog.

 

Run bunnies! Run! Run dog! Run! Look, a fence! 

 

I bet we can get through it because we are still small. Squeeeeeze... pop! Two baby bunnies, complete with beady eyes, in the garden.  One dog - crashing into said fence.  The fence stood up to the collission and the dog bounced back up to chase the third bunny in another direction.

Meanwhile the two bunnies in the garden looked around.

Utopia! Baby veggies everywhere! 

 

See the bunnies. See the bunnies see the veggies with their beady eyes. See them get fat. They cannot not get back out of the garden. 

 

They are safe because the puppy dog cannot get in. The humans cannot chase them out. The humans cannot catch them. The humans can't even throw rocks at them for fear of destroying the very vegetables they seek to protect.  

 

Sigh. Anyone for organically raised rabbit?

 

Eventually, we removed the fence, chased the rabbits out and replaced the fence. We really outsmarted those critters that time, didn't we?

How You Slice It - Postal History Sunday

Welcome to this week's Postal History Sunday on the Genuine Faux Farm blog and the GFF Postal History blog.  This entry comes to you LIVE (ish) from Chicagopex in, not surprising at all, Chicago!

One of the things the farmer enjoys doing is sharing his exhibit (display) of his postal history that features the 24 cent US 1861 stamp.  Yes, that's the topic of last week's PHS.  Good for you for remembering!  

Just as I reported in August, when I attended the Great American Stamp Show, there was a competition for those who, like me, wish to show our work on various topics related to philately (stamp collecting), postal history, deltiology (postcards), and other similar areas.  I must admit that participants see the competition part in different ways.  I, for example see this as mostly a competition with myself to see how well I can convey information to others.  To me, this is a teaching and learning opportunity more than anything.  

It just so happens that I have also had some success with the competition with others part as well.  I am certainly pleased with that, of course, but the introvert in me sometimes struggles with how to take that sort of success - so I focus on the internal push to improve.

I spent some time walking and viewing the various exhibits the past couple of days and I have been struck by all of the ways we find to determine the focus and limits of the topics we choose to display.  What each of us shows depends on 

How We Slice It

One of the tricks to creating an enjoyable exhibit is to identify a subject area, but that subject area has to provide a reasonable set of boundaries.  For example, I could do an exhibit on "postal history," but that is far too broad.  To make a long story short, I use a particular stamp issue (the 24 cent US 1861 stamp) to slice a chunk out of the bigger topic and give what I show some focus.

My exhibit is seven frames in length and each frame holds 16 pages (8.5 x 11 in sheets).  But, not every exhibit lends itself to the same amount of space.  Doug Weisz shared a one frame (16 page) exhibit that focuses on a single stamp that was issued in New Orleans after Louisiana seceded from the Union (New Orleans 5 Cent Brown Provisional 1861-1862).  Selection of this particular stamp effectively limits the date range (1861-62) and the geographical region.

 (Doug was a winner of the Reserve Grand Award for single frame exhibits.  Nice job Doug!)

Of course, you can go the other way and limit your topic with geographical limitations.  Harold Peter brings this down to a fine point by showing postal history from Koslin - A Prussian City in Pommerenia.  Harold also limits the topic by giving us a time range from 1588 to 1945, which is... well, let's just say that the time frame doesn't limit the topic much.  But, if you click on the image above, you might be able to see that the first letter shown there is from 1588 - which is impressive no matter how you slice it.  (apologies for the blurry photo)

Ed Fitch does something similar with his Little Fort/Waukegan Illinois Postal History - but Ed has a much shorter history of postal services to pull from (starting in 1841) and probably a smaller population.  In both cases, the limits make it very clear what belongs and what does not in each of their exhibits.  Mail that came from, went through, or was mailed to these locations qualify.  Unless the exhibitor can make an excellent case for some other sort of item, the boundaries are clear.

Another excellent example at Chicagopex of an exhibit that shows a geographically bounded topic is Anthony Dewey's A Postal History of Hartford, Connecticut (1792-1897).  Part of the competition is to clearly and completely show the topic you have selected.  The exhibitor sets the goals and then strives to meet them.  The judges determine how well you meet these goals.  In addition to meeting your expressed goals, you try to do so with a display that is attractive and communicates well with the audience.  Anthony's exhibit is beautifully executed and is easy for me to follow.  

(Anthony's exhibit won the American Philatelic Society's Medal of Excellence for pre-1900 material.  Congratulations Anthony!)

Speaking of beautifully executed, I have to give another shout out to Vicky Hadley for her Kansas and Nebraska Overprints.  Vicky's layout gives a person the feel that everything has the space it needs and no more than it needs.  There are places where there are layers, making use of a third dimension of space.  But, this exhibit brings out another part of the competition, illustrating that you know your topic and you can communicate to others what you know about it.  If I had a question about the Kansas and Nebraska overprints, I know exactly where to go.

Vicky's exhibit won the American Philatelic Society's Medal of Excellence for 1900-1940 material.  Congratulations Vicky!

There are other options for selecting a topic area, for example, you could select a topic that has nothing to do with a specific stamp issue or geographical location.  You could, for example, find material that shows connections to something like... oh... libraries?  America's Membership Libraries 1731-1910 by Larry Nix shows all sorts of items, including a wooden bookmark to tell his exhibit's story.  A topical exhibit, such as this one adds the extra challenge that there needs to be sufficient connections to the postal realm - since this is a stamp show.  Larry is one of the masters in this type of exhibiting.

(Larry received the American Association of Philatelic Exhibitors Award for Epilogues for his approach to closing out his exhibit.  Well done Larry!)

And, Susan Jones moves the concentration away from stamps, postal history and geography and pushes us to enjoy the artwork.

Susan shows a ten-frame exhibit titled Carol Gordon Cachets.  While you can view envelopes that have postage stamps on them that are postmarked, this is not what she wants us to appreciate.  Instead, it is the design (cachet) that has been applied to the envelope.  The design is often typically related to the design on the postage stamp being shown.  

(Susan's exhibit won the American Philatelic Society's Research Medal, well deserved Susan's!)

Here is where my own personal bias begins to show.  Since I prefer postal history, I tended to view exhibits that have that sort of focus.  And, it should not seem odd if I have an attraction for an exhibit that shows material from the same 1861 United States issue that I favor.

How about a little bit on Trans-Oceanic Uses of the 30 Cent U.S. Issues of 1861-68 by Rich Drews?  Sure, I can enjoy that!  Rich has a knack for putting some of the most amazing 1861 issue items out for others to appreciate in his exhibits.  Let's just say he showed a few items that I would have loved to move from his pages to mine.  But, since that will not happen, I was pleased to have a chance to enjoy them in this fashion. 

(note: Rich won the Grand Award for single frame exhibits - well done Rich!)

The last two exhibits might give you a taste of how wide the range of topic area can be at a show like Chicagopex.  Most people can find something that they can relate to at some level or another.  I was able to find a couple of exhibits that actually focused on different values of the same stamp issue I favor.  Topics that are closer to my own area of expertise are easier for me to quickly appreciate BUT it is also possible that I will get stuck on missing details that I know, but the exhibitor doesn't feel are important!  On the other hand, topics that are further away from my experience can be more difficult for me to fully appreciate, but it is certainly unlikely that I'll have a strong opinion about details.

Speaking of connections with what you know and what you do not know.  Matt Kewriga's exhibit titled Danish West Indies Foreign Mail to UPU is an example where there is overlap with my own area of knowledge and yet, there is so much that is new for me to experience as a viewer.  Our time periods overlap and the connections we both have to ocean going vessels carrying the mail gives me a starting point towards understanding what Matt is doing here.  On the other hand, the routes and rates he explores are not the same as the ones I work with most of the time. 

(Matt received the Reserve Grand Award for his multiple frame exhibit, congratulations Matt!)

There were 70 to 80 exhibits at this show with all sorts of topics - lots of slices of the bigger pie.  I apologize that I could not show every single thing I enjoyed in this blog post.  I will admit that some of the limitation has to do with the quality of the photos I took - leaving me to exclude many I wanted to show.  For example, I spent time appreciating Jerry Miller's work on his Evolution of the German Post Office in China and with Emory Earl Toops' Provisional Issues of South Viet Nam - among many others - but the photos were unusable.   

The real issue is a combination of time and space.  We all do the best we can do.

With that said, thank you to all who exhibited at Chicagopex in 2021, I appreciate your efforts and I know we can all relate to the struggles and joys with the process.  To the judges and to the people who do all of the organizing for the show and the competition - thank you.  I recognize and honor your time and energy that provide us with the opportunity for us all to exhibit things we enjoy and share them with others.

Thanks for joining me for my "live" report at Chicagopex.  We'll get back to our more traditional material next week.  But, for now, I hope you have a great remainder of your weekend and a wonderful week to come.  

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Addendum

You might notice that I include some awards after some of these descriptions.  The awards were released just after I had completed this Postal History Sunday, so I went back in this morning to add some of the recognition.  In addition to these awards, I was surprised and honored to have been given the Grand Award for my exhibit, The Postal History of the 1861 United States 24-cent Adhesive.  This is the second time this exhibit has won a show "grand" award - and each time I was fairly certain that I would do well enough, but not THAT well.

Drive-by Vegetabling - A Faux Real Story

For those of you who thought I would run out of stories after putting a couple out there, you would be wrong.  But, let me tell you a secret - I've told some of these before!  But, the best thing about stories you retell?  You can improve how you tell them!

I hope you enjoy this one!

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Rob would occasionally work for Grandpa Faux for week-long stints during the summer, painting, cutting down weeds and being an accomplice in semi-frequent "drive-by vegetabling" trips.  We sometimes wonder if Robin Williams in Mrs Doubtfire heard us call it a drive-by vegetabling or if he came up with the "drive-by fruiting" on his own.  We're guessing the latter.

In order to better understand the beauty of the arrangement, some background may be in order. 

 

Grandpa was a contractor (cement and other general contracting) who had a workshop near the edge of town. He also grew up on a farm. Needless to say, some of the land around the shop was pressed into service as a place to grow some peppers, squash and other vegetables. 

 

Most of the plants he chose to grow were things that were easy to pick quickly, but were likely to produce more than he could, or would, eat.  In fact, I remember a time that we brought some veggies to a restaurant he frequented and he gave it to them and asked if they would prepare a specific meal for him - and they did it.  On the flip side, I also remember he did some work for them when they needed it too, so I'm sure the trade was a good one from their perspective.

If I could ask him, I bet he'd confirm that he grew Black Beauty zucchini!

So, what to do with extra zucchini? 

 

My grandparents lived in a trailer court, and these places often become a community of their own.  This particular community had a number of retirees who lived on fixed incomes.  Surely these people might enjoy fresh produce once and a while. 

 

Of course, Grandpa was happy to share the excess freely with those he knew. So, what exactly, is the problem with this situation? Person with extra produce meets those wanting some produce. Sounds good, right?

Ok, you've forgotten something.  Remember Aunt <fill a name you want here>?  You know, the one who would try to give you money for everything and anything - especially when you were trying to be nice and provide a gift?

Or, is this an Iowegian thing?  I'm not sure, but I do remember the struggle to do the right thing with another relative.  She would always want to give a dollar or two to each of the kids for whatever reason when we visited.  A seven-year old kid is going to have a difficult time looking at a dollar bill and not be happy to take it.  

 

Of course, manners dictate that you should not accept the money. The resulting tumult of repeated offers to pay/give cash and refusals to accept payment/said gift could become tedious, frustrating, uncomfortable and...well... you get the idea.

 

So.... back to the story at hand.
 

Entering the picture is a grandchild who is capable of dashing from the cab of the truck, to the front door with a bag of produce and back to the truck in a few seconds. After all, he did need to stay in shape for baseball. 

Grandpa Faux looked at me one day and said, "Let's go to the shop."  

 

Hey, he's my ride, I couldn't exactly say no.  So, we went to the shop.  We trudged out to the long single row of plants and he gave instructions on what to pick.  Once we'd picked it all, we went back to the trailer and put the excess into paper bags because we had some 'errands' to run before we went to dinner ourselves.

I am positive Grandpa enjoyed this game more than he let on.  But, I'll tell you this, I took it as serious business.  I was NOT going to get caught and I was going to make each delivery without squashing any squish (yes, you read that right)!  

 

He'd stop in front of a place and tell me where to put the bag.  I'd run up to the target home, rap quickly on the front door or ring the doorbell and dash back to the truck.  This was followed by burning rubber (ok, I exaggerate a bit there) as we zipped away. 

 

There it is, the anatomy of a drive-by vegetabling.

As I look back on it, I am not sure who was having more fun - me, Grandpa...or the people who began trying to anticipate when we would arrive so they could find some way to catch us.  In one case, we noticed someone peaking out through the blinds of their window as we pulled up.  So, Grandpa sped back up and we went on.  We drove up on the road that was a block away and he gave me instructions to run through the backyard and then slip it onto the front porch.  Then, once the delivery was dropped off, we drove around the front so we could wave as they picked up the bag from their porch.

I realize now that I only did this a few times since I only stayed with him for a week at a time twice a summer while I was in high school and early college years.  But, I still remember the joy of giving - with a little bit of "daring do" to put an edge on it.

No Eggplant for You! - A Faux Real Story

Well, I sure did open a Pandora's Box!  I tell one Faux Real Story to Crazy Maurice and then share it on the blog.  Next thing you know, both Maurice and people who read the blog are asking for more stories.

Who knew?

So, here is another one for those who might enjoy it!

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Tammy's mother, Sue, is fond of growing nice, big, purple eggplants. These fruits are often the key ingredient for Eggplant Parmesan, one of her favorite dishes. But, as is so often the case, Mom's dish of choice is NOT appreciated by all members of the family.

 

Tammy likes vegetables. It was actually Rob who was deficient in that department.  It was Tammy who had to encourage Rob to eat more veggies?  Cheese on the broccoli comes to mind as one of the things that needed to happen (until we learned how much better our own broccoli tasted.)

 

So, who was sad during the years when the eggplant crop at the Genuine Faux Farm was poor? 

 

It wasn't Tammy! 

 

The mere suggestion that we grow some eggplants was enough to make her question someone's sanity (guess who?).  In fact, Rob's winning argument for growing eggplant in the garden several years ago went something like this:

 

"Hey, we won't have to feel bad about selling all of the eggplant we grow since we won't want to eat them anyway!"

 

Even more amazing than this is the fact that Rob found out he kind of liked eggplant - much to Tammy's horror!

 

We tell you all of this as a prelude to this GFF story:
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Some years ago in the Zenk garden, Mom and Dad, with their two lovely daughters, worked to plant their vegetable garden for the year. The asparagus was already sending up spears and the mulch had been tilled in. They would plant a little bit of everything, just as they did most years. There would be beans and tomatoes, oregano and garlic, onions and ... eggplant.

When you are kid, there may be no greater injustice than to have to care for a plant that produces something you do NOT want to eat.  It is one thing to have to weed the garden, or pick the beans or dig the potatoes and yet another to have anything to do with one of the banes of your existence. 

 

In Tammy's case, that bane came in the form of the eggplant.

 

The garden grew. The plants in the garden were, in general, healthy. The crops were being harvested and consumed. The eggplants grew tall, with green, healthy foliage.  In fact, it was noted by the rest of the family that these might have been the biggest, lushest eggplant plants they'd ever had in the garden.

 

But, for some strange reason that year, the eggplants were not blooming. And, without a bloom, there would be no fruit.

Tammy rejoiced.

 

What could the problem be? Too much water? Too little water? Was there some sort of disease that needed to be diagnosed? There was discussion about this, of course. And, some amount of disappointment that there would be no Eggplant Parmesan. 

 

But, in the end, the crop failure was attributed to either bad seed or just a strange year.  After all, the rest of the garden did well.  There was no shortage of fresh food for the family.

Yet - it was a year without eggplant parmesan.  Again, Tammy rejoiced.

It wasn't until many years later that the blight that caused the crop failure was discovered. And now that we've had a number of years experience growing crops on the farm, we can attest to a long list of possible causes for production failures.  If someone would have described this situation to me now, I might have been tempted to ask questions about how much fertilizer they had put on their garden.  Often a crop such as eggplant that grows bigger and greener than usual without fruit has too much nitrogen.  But, in the end, all of my answers would have been guesses and they would have been wrong.

In any event, we mentioned that the reason for the crop failure was discovered years later.  Or should we say, the culprit confessed? 

A plant that has its flowers pruned diligently will tend to continue to grow bigger and produce more leaves.  We also know that a child who is aware that

1. flowers on an eggplant plant will turn into fruit
2. eggplant fruit will become Eggplant Parmesan
3. said child wishes to avoid eating Eggplant Parmesan

will result will be a motivated child.

We also now know that a kid can be successful in making sure that every flower is picked off of an eggplant plant before they turn to fruit.  And Tammy was that successful child.

But, Tammy forgot something.  Other people grow eggplant.  And Mom can always buy an eggplant from them.  Oops. 

 

I guess there was some Eggplant Parmesan that year after all.

Pileated Birthday to You

Every year, in November, Rob "arranges" a special gift for Tammy - provided the gift actually is willing to make its presence known.  Surprisingly enough, more often than not, we have some success.  Maybe it has to do with our willingness to take a little time on a nicer day in the Fall to go places where this special gift resides.

This year, the location was Malanaphy Springs.

The evidence was around us.  Some of the trees exhibited some large, square to rectangular holes excavated into their trunks.  There was the sound of "knocking" in the distance that was clearly being made by a larger woodpecker.  The gift was present - but would it make itself visible?

If you don't already know what I am talking about, I am referring to a Pileated Woodpecker.  These birds are about 18 inches long and have a wingspan at around 27 inches.  They are the biggest woodpeckers in North America and, of course, can be found in wooded areas.  As far as Iowa is concerned, they are located primarily in Northeast Iowa and the Mississippi River valley.

photo from Cornell Lab of Ornithology

These birds have a fairly distinct set of calls that are easily recognizable once you hear it a couple of times. You can hear examples of the call and the drumming noises they make at the All About Birds website.  I encourage you to go listen.

It is one thing to see evidence of a Pileated and to even hear drumming or it's vocal call.  It is quite another thing to actually see the bird itself.  And that is the gift I hope Tammy gets to receive each Fall - a sighting, no matter how brief, of one of her favorite birds.

As we walked back from the falls at Malanaphy - complete with a camera that had just informed me its memory card was full - we heard knocking that sounded much closer than we had been hearing.  So, we tried to quietly work our way (from a distance) around the trees we thought *might* be the source of the sound.  If you have ever tried to get a view of any woodpecker, you probably know that they have this knack of moving around the trunk of the tree so that they are ALWAYS on the opposite side of the tree from where you are located.  

So, the trick is for one of us to go one way and the other to go the other - slowly.  And, perhaps, one of us will get to see a glimpse of the bird we are looking for.

It didn't work.

Yet, as we were starting to walk away, what should happen?  Not one, but TWO Pileated Woodpeckers decided it was time to fly down-river, making their call as they did so.  Tammy saw the first one and both of us got to see the second.

Two this year?  I think I've outdone myself!

Not So Marigolds - Another Faux Real Story

 After yesterday's story, I received some feedback that I thought would be worth sharing here.

First - there was a question about how Maurice took the story I told in yesterday's blog.  My direct reply was that Maurice was getting pretty sleepy.  Perhaps this was a bedtime story for him?  Though, if it were, I would have selected something a little less frightening from the tree perspective.  Our Weeping Willow's response was just a long, drawn out, "hmmmmmmmm."   

I was worried that, perhaps, he was upset with me, so I went out today.  Upon seeing me, he asked for another story.  And, it just so happens, a comment in yesterdays' blog ALSO asked for another story.

So, here you go!

Our desire to grow our gardens without chemicals has become stronger over the years, but we held this conviction even with our first garden in Burke, Wisconsin.  Tammy and I probably had a tendency to think this way already, but Tammy likes to point to the moment when we read the label for a popular pest control dust that was commonly used by gardeners.  It said something about NOT eating anything treated with the product for 48 hours (or something like that) and we both asked the question, "What sort of magic happens between hour 48 and 49?"

The answer?  Nothing special... the product would not just simply disappear because it was following label directions.  

Anyway, I tell you that little tidbit so I can tell you THIS story!

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Our landlords were kind and had a section of ground tilled up for our garden. We already knew that there were many rabbits in our area and we had nightmarish visions of our entire garden being mowed over by the 'evil' little critters. We didn't really have the money for fencing and we weren't anxious to spray a repellent or kill the bunnies. So, what to do?

Thus begins our first foray into companion planting. We had heard from somewhere (or someone) that marigolds were a good companion plant for vegetable crops. Why? We didn't know. But, when we also heard that rabbits did NOT like marigolds and would tend to avoid them, we formulated a plan.

It was a simple plan that would be the master stroke. It would solve all of our rodent problems! Let's go buy enough marigolds to circle our garden. Surely it would provide us with a natural fence that would keep the critters out, be a friend to our vegetables, AND look pretty as well!

 

In went the garden. Around it went the marigolds.  As we stood back to look at our handiwork, we came to realize that the were not all that big - now that you saw them in the ground. They were only 2 inches tall - most with a single marigold flower.  We had spread them out evenly on the border and watered them in well. 

 

In one day, we had planted our first garden, complete with a natural fence.  Even if that fence looked a little... well... inadequate.

 

But, hey!  Rabbits do NOT like marigolds!  We were sure we had put enough of them around the garden to do the job.  So we went inside, feeling quite pleased with ourselves.

Our first morning foray into the garden revealed our first gardening tragedy. The tiny peppers were fine. The little tomato plants were fine. The broccoli plants? Well, we lost a couple. The marigolds?

Every last marigold plant had been nipped just above ground level. And, the rest of the plants (with now wilted flowers) were neatly lying next to the stem. It was true. Rabbits do not like marigolds.

And they had just seen to their removal.

Box of Maple - A Faux Real Story

 

Crazy Maurice asked me to tell him a story.  You see, the good thing about Maurice is that he understands that his stories often take too long for him to tell the farmer - but he knows the farmer can manage to tell him a story AND he tolerates the brevity.

Maurice did not particularly like the idea of me cutting a tree down, but he actually asked if I could explain why humans sometimes cut down trees that had not lived a full life.  So, since he had that question AND he wanted a story - I told him this one:

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Once upon a time there lived a family who had a backyard that was filled with one too many trees. The mighty pin oak and the sprawling locust had left very little sky for the maple tree to reach into with its sparsely leaved branches. While the tree had, in fact, grown to a respectible 20 feet in height and had a 3 inch diameter trunk, it was a bit sickly and was judged to be entirely too close to the humans' abode.

The decree came down from the parents of the household that the tree should be removed. And this task fell to their first child on a fine June day. Out he marched, with a saw and a branch pruner, determined to reward the trust placed in him to do the task efficiently and thoroughly. 

 

Taking the tree down in manageable portions, it was soon reduced to a pile of brush. But, what should he do to prepare its transport to the city brushpile? The solution came in the form of one cardboard box that was slated for disposal. This box had once held an artificial Christmas tree. What better container to use for a downed maple?

In a careful and well thought out manner, the tree was cut into lengths that were very nearly a perfect fit for the length of the box. Any side branches were cut off of each limb. As a result, all of the larger branches and the trunk were placed lenghthwise in the box. And, happily, there was still plenty of room!

In went the small branches, covered with leaves. Anything that didn't fit well was trimmed down until it did. By mid-afternoon, there was no pile in the yard, just one box - complete with a lid that fit perfectly over the contents.

Upon the father's return from work, he went to the backyard and wondered out loud where the brush from the tree had gone. His son, of course, proudly pointed to the box.

"Son," he said evenly, "have you tried to move that box yet?"

To make a long story less long - it took a makeshift ramp and both of us to wrangle the box into the vehicle. Getting it out again was only a little less difficult. To this day, I wonder if Dad didn't force the transfer of brush to other boxes just to temper the disappointment I might have felt if we had done so.

 

Or maybe he was just as stubborn as I was.

The Secret Life of a Farmer

The gate is open right now, even though it is normally latched.  You see, the farmers typically keep that gate shut, just in case things should get out that they don't want the rest of you to see.

This is a reality for many small-scale growers who focus on direct to consumer sales.  You see, we're aware that what sells our product are smiling farmers, smiling kids, calves, chicks and kittens.  Well arranged bouquets of produce and flowers with an upbeat message entreating you to come and pick up your share of the bounty are what seem to get some response for the effort.

This is just a gentle reminder to all of you who do patronize local farms for food that there are real people who are doing difficult jobs behind the beautiful pictures and positive messaging you see in social media (and wherever else you connect with these farmers).  

Now, before you get all worried.  I'm not talking about Tammy and I.  We're always unhappy, grumpy, and unsmiling and you know that.  But, as the Genuine Faux Farm moves further away from direct to consumer production, we feel we have a bit more freedom to remind those who read our blog that those fine people you do patronize - they're much more complex than the image they put in front of you in hopes that it will get you to buy their product.

Just to make the point, I want you to look at the photo above.  It was taken on a nice, sunny day.  Very little wind.  Beautiful blue skies.  

So, what draws your attention here?  The sky?  The green and growing things?  Do the interesting items in the foreground make you wonder what they might be used for?  Maybe you'll notice some fall colors in the background trees?

Guess what I see?

Well, I do see the green and blue and I can actually make myself believe that I feel the sun and a very light breeze. If you know me, or have read the blog, you know that I appreciate what nature offers us.

But, I also see no less than 14 different things I need to do on the farm over the next couple of weeks.  And, I suspect there are a couple I am not remembering at the moment.  A picture like this can introduce a bit of discontent if I'm not ready for it!

When a small-scale grower looks around their farm, they cannot escape the running tally of things that need doing - because that is what they do.  And, they do it as they also take the time to recognize and appreciate the beauty and wonder of our world.  It's the secret life of the farmer - one that builds us up and tears us down all at the same time.

And, you wonder why this farmer goes to talk to Crazy Maurice, the Weeping Willow?

Look, this is not always an easy balancing act that is going on here.  Even this photo reminds me of a half dozen other things I need to address at some point.  But, it's just a picture of a few trees and our turkey and hen pastures.

So, what exactly do I want all of those who patronize local farmers to do?  Ask your local farmer to rant and rave for a while so they might feel better?  Offer a shoulder for them to cry on?  Tell them they're lying because no one can be as happy as they seem to be on their Twitter, Facebook or Instagram pages?

Of course not.

I am asking you all to do the same thing I ask every time I take on the local foods topic.  Consistently and faithfully support your local producers.  Do it when it's not always convenient.  Be kind and patient with them, recognizing that they are walking a tightrope between joy and sorrow.  Contentedness and stress.

And maybe, you can give them permission to open up that gate once in a while - and share the secret, full life of a farmer.

One Design, Bigger Story - Postal History Sunday

Welcome to this week's Postal History Sunday, featured every Sunday (imagine that!), on the Genuine Faux Farm blog and the GFF Postal History blog.  This will be, much to my astonishment, the 65th entry of this series that I have offered up for public consumption.

As has been the case for each PHS prior to this one, everyone is welcome - whether you know anything about postal history or not.  I encourage you to put those troubles and worries into a place where they cannot be found.  Grab the fuzzy slippers and a drink and snack of your choice.  Always be aware that you should keep edibles and liquids away from the keyboard and the paper collectibles!  Let's see if we can all learn something new today while I share something I enjoy.

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Some of you might recall that I attended the Great American Stamp Show in Chicago back in August.  For those who are not familiar, there are stamp shows or conventions for persons who are philatelists (they collect stamps) and/or postal historians.  The Great American Stamp Show moves to a different location each year.  Coming up next week is Chicagopex, a philatelic exhibition (hence the "pex" part of the name), that occurs every year about this time in, of course, Chicago.

I am fortunate to be able to go to Chicagopex this year and I am looking forward to it.  Given our location and our vocations (education and farming) we have limitations on what we can manage to attend.  Chicago is one of the closest opportunities for us to participate and it comes at a time of year where we can manage to go - so there you have it.

This year, I will be showing an updated version of my postal history exhibit.  But, since many of you will not be there, I thought I would share a little bit of the story I tell.  So, without further ado and todo, I present...

The Postal History of the 24 Cent United States Stamp

The primary purpose of this particular denomination of postage stamp (24 cents) was to pay the simple letter mail rate between the United States and the United Kingdom (England, Ireland, Scotland, Wales, and the Channel Islands).  This particular design was issued in 1861 and the earliest documented use is August 20th of that year.  These stamps continued to be produced until early 1869, when they were replaced by a new design.

The 24 cent postal rate between the US and the UK was effective from February 1849 until December of 1867.  So, it would make sense that there might have been other designs for a 24 cent stamp before 1861.  But, it might surprise you that there was only ONE - and it wasn't issued until 1860.

To the untrained eye, the stamp on the cover shown above may not look all that different.  But, if you click on the images of each cover shown above and study them a bit, I think you'll see the changes in design.  The new stamp design came about because of the secession of the southern states from the Union.  Post offices that now resided in Confederate States still held stock of the old postage stamp designs and there was concern about the potential loss of revenue if no change was made.  

Once the new design was released, they demonetized all postage stamp designs that had been issued prior to August of 1861.  For those who do not know what it means to demonetize a postage stamp, it simply means they made them invalid to pay postage.  

Here is an attempt, in 1866, by a person to use some old 12 cent stamps that were issued in 1851.  I think some of us can recognize this scenario.  A person found an old envelope that already had the two 12 cent stamps on it or they found the two stamps in a back of a drawer somewhere.  They knew the letter they were sending was a bit heavier, so they slapped a newer 24 cent stamp on the envelope and they mailed it, thinking all was well.

The postal clerk recognized that the old 12 cent stamps were demonetized and could no longer be used for postage - so they wrote the words "not good" in blue pencil under those stamps.  Then, they wrote "short paid" to indicate that the lone 24 cent stamp, though valid, was not enough to pay for the postage due.  As a result, the recipient had to pay the full postage (2 shillings) to receive this letter.

Getting to the US Post Office

A US postage stamp pays for US postal services.  But, sometimes, there were travels just to get a piece of mail to a US post office.

The envelope shown above has a 24 cent stamp that pays the cost of mailing the item from New York City to Liverpool.  But, the blue 1 cent stamp actually pays for the service of having a New York City postal carrier take this letter to the post office.  In the early 1860s, carrier service to and from locations outside of a post office was not all that common.  Most people had to go to the post office to mail their letters and pick up any items they expected to receive unless they were willing to pay more for the extra service provided by a mail carrier.

Or maybe a letter actually originated OUTSIDE of the United States, just like this 1867 letter that got its start in Lima, Peru.  If you aren't paying attention to this one, you might just assume it is just a letter that went from New York City to London, with the 24 cent stamp paying that postage.  But, then you should notice the docket that reads "via New York" at the top left.  Once you notice that, you need to ask the question - "where did this letter get its start?"  

That's where the docketing on the inside of the folded letter sheet comes in handy.  It turns out Alsop and Company had branches of their company in Lima and New York.  So, it is likely this item was brought or mailed from Peru with a bundle of other letters that were to be sent on to their eventual destinations from New York.

At the Post Office

Once we get to a US Post Office, the clerk there would determine the amount of postage required for the item to get from here to there.  Sometimes, a letter might already have postage stamps and perhaps other times, the client would purchase the stamps at the point of mailing.

The envelope shown above originated in New York City and was sent to Middlebury, Vermont.  The postal rate for letters that did not leave the United States was 3 cents per one half ounce.  The clerk must have weighed this out and found it to be more than 3 1/2 ounces and no more than 4 ounces in weight, requiring 24 cents in postage.  The clerk then applied a postmark that included a city-date stamp which was paired with a canceling mark to prevent someone from re-using the postage stamp.

Once the clerk properly marked a piece of mail, it would be placed in a letter bag that would be prepared to take a scheduled mail conveyance - such as a train, coach, or boat.

Leaving the country

Most pieces of mail bearing a 24 cent postage stamp that still survive today were items that were mailed to destinations outside of the United States.  And, most of those crossed the Atlantic Ocean to destinations in Europe.  

So, the first order of business was for the US Postal Service to use railroads, coaches, steamboats and other means of conveyance to get the letter to one of the special post offices that had been identified as exchange offices for mail to the destination country.

Since I will be attending a show in Chicago, it only makes sense that I would show a cover that went to the Chicago exchange office.  Other exchange offices at this time for mail to England included New York, Boston, Philadelphia, Detroit and Portland, Maine.  And, it was up to the exchange office clerks to place foreign mail into the proper mailbags and get those mailbags to the correct mail packet (steamship) to cross the Atlantic Ocean.

There were several shipping companies that carried mail from the United States.  The letter above is an uncommon example of a letter carried by the Galway Line, which was under contract with the British postal service.  The ship left Boston on November 3 and made stops at St John's, Newfoundland (Nov 7), Galway, Ireland (Nov 14) and finished the trip at Liverpool (Nov 16).  The letter itself was probably off-loaded at Galway and shipped by rail from there to the east side of Ireland, where it would cross the Irish Sea and again go by rail to London.

It can be interesting to try to find letters that traveled by different ships from the various shipping lines.  And sometimes, you will find a letter that was on a ship that ran aground or one that had to endure a hurricane.

So, now we're in the UK

Congratulations!  We've made it across the Atlantic and our letter is now in the hands of another postal service.  Well, actually, the MAILBAG is in the hands of another postal service.  And, that mailbag needs to get to one of the post offices that exchange mail with the United States.

Here's a letter that went to Scotland.  The exchange office for the United States was Detroit, where the letter was put into the mailbag.  The receiving exchange office was in Glasgow, where the letter was removed from the mailbag.  In this case, each exchange office put a marking on the cover that give us clues as to the travels this item took.  I suspect most people would not be surprised to learn that the most commonly found exchange office for mails with the UK is London, which is why I wanted to show you something different here!  You can find examples of London in the other pieces I show if you are interested.

If a letter was destined for an address in the United Kingdom, it would take the British Mails to their destination.  Oh.. look, a London exchange office marking at the bottom left!

It was not all that uncommon for the destination of a letter to be a financial or other institution that would either hold or forward mail for their clients, who were often traveling.  This letter was sent care of McCalmont Brothers & Company, a banking firm located in London.

The recipient, B.J. Lang, was a touring musician, sometimes teaching or performing in the UK.  We cannot be certain, but it seems fairly likely that the letters might be held at the bank for Lang to pick them up at his convenience.  But, it is possible that they were bundled up with other letters and sent to Lang at his current location.  It all depended on the agreement the recipient had with the McCalmont Bros - which probably had to do with how much money Lang wanted to spend on such a thing.

This letter is also very interesting because it shows an uncommon example of a "triple weight" letter.  Until the middle of 1866, this would have required one more 24 cent stamp.

And beyond...

The British Mail system provided an opportunity for persons in the United States to send mail to other destinations beyond the United Kingdom.  

As an example, here is a letter that was destined for Melbourne, Victoria (Australia).  The postal agreement between the US and the UK allowed the sender to prepay the postage to the UK AND beyond. With another 21 cents in postage, this letter could get all the way to Australia via the Suez (Egypt).

Or, maybe the destination is the Corisco Mission on the West Coast of Africa?  This one required 33 cents in postage to pay for its trip from the United States, to London, and then on by ship to what was once Fernando Po and is now Bioko.

It wasn't just the British mail

Most of the surviving mail pieces that bear a 24 cent postage stamp went to or through the British Mails, but there were certainly other options and other destinations.

And, you knew this was coming!  I'm going to give you a "for instance" or two!

Here is a letter that went via the Prussian Mails so that it could eventually find its way to St Petersburg, Russia.  

And a folded letter that traveled via the French Mails to Rome, Italy.  

The United States had agreements in the 1860s with the British, French, Prussian, Bremen, Hamburg, and Belgian postal services.  Later in the 1860s there were also agreements with the Italians and Swiss.  The point I am trying to make is that a person can have a great time finding items that show how mail traveled using these different agreements - all using the 24 cent stamp as payment for all or part of the required postage.

And that, my friends, is a summary of the exhibit I share at these stamp shows.  It may have been long for a blog post, but it is actually quite brief when you consider the complexity of the subject.  The exhibit itself consists of over 100 pages that show somewhere in the neighborhood of 160 examples of postal history.

The good news?  All of this complexity and detail provides me with plenty of fodder for more Postal History Sunday blogs.  If you enjoy them, that would be good news.  If you don't?  Well, I suspect if you don't, you didn't make it this far in today's post!

Thank you for joining me as I share something I truly enjoy.  I appreciate your patience and attention as I gave you the "nickel tour" of a subject I have been studying and working on since 1999 (more or less).  I hope you learned something new.  May you have a fine remainder of your day and a good week to come!

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Hungry for more?

This is the area of postal history where I have the most comfort.  So, it makes sense that I have written on items that bear the 24 cent US postage stamp more than any other type of item.  If you are a person who wanted a bit more depth, rather than breadth, in this week's post, you have several opportunities to review prior PHS entries that focus on particular aspects of this topic.

This link should take you to all of the PHS blogs that feature this stamp.  Read to your heart's content.  And, remember, I do not claim to be perfect and have all knowledge.  But, if you have questions, I will happily respond as best I can.  If you have corrections or additions, I will gratefully receive them.

And, to close, I provide you with one more folded letter.  This one to Belgium.  Perhaps, one day, this piece of postal history will show up on a Postal History Sunday with more description than I've just provided!

Saturday Music Playlist

Welcome to the weekend everyone!

I realize the weekend can mean different things to different people.  For example, those of us who farm still need to do the farm chores.  Teachers have to grade and prep.  Health workers and emergency services are at the ready to do their jobs.  Add yourself to that list in whatever way you feel is appropriate.  

What it means for us on the Genuine Faux Farm blog is that it is time to share a new music playlist.  You can check it out whether you are at work or at play.  Or, you can ignore it.  That's always an option - which is why is a good option for these things.  It will sit here, patiently, just waiting until you are ready for it!

I'm not sure that there is any big theme this time around other than these are songs that are currently capturing my attention.  For those who do not know me, I tend to create a new playlist for myself that holds anywhere from six to ten hours worth of music.  And, no, I do not listen to music constantly, but this gives me a combination of diverse listening and some constancy that provides a little comfort at the same time.

So, without further ado, here are some tunes from my November playlist that are currently grabbing some of my attention:

Salt and Shadow - Thrice

I always like a tune that has that nice swing the 6/8 time signature brings with it.  I also find it relaxing - perhaps you will like it too.

I Still Believe - the Call

This has been a favorite of mine since college, when it first came out.  Thoughtful lyrics, instrumentation that builds, an excellent vocalist and a rhythm that makes you move a little.  

She - Veil of Ashes

Another great tune that has been a favorite for a long time.  This one is also a bit more mellow and includes some thoughtful lyrics.

Spider and the Sun - Indian Calling

And now for something with no lyrics that I understand.  Yet, I understand at the same time.  

Nobody's Fault But Mine - Blind Willie Johnson

Nobody's Fault But Mine - 77's

Nobody's Fault But Mine - Rising Appalachia

Blind Willie Johnson is the original blues artist that wrote and recorded this song.  He died (1945), destitute and ill, continuing to live in the remnants of his house that had been mostly destroyed by fire.  But, his music has become influential.  I selected two additional versions or remakes of his song, which was popularized by Led Zeppelin, that I enjoy.

25 - the Pretty Reckless

Break In - Halestorm and Amy Lee

I appreciate a strong, emotive vocal now and again - and both of these songs deliver on that front.  What I like most is that they don't put too much ornamentation into their presentation, allowing the feeling of the lyrics to come through.

Take the Moment - Classic Crime

And, finally, a song that provides me with a worthwhile reminder to take the time to live life.

And, that's it for this month's play list.  I hope you enjoyed some of the tunes if you were so inclined.  And, if you weren't, that's fine too.  The world around us plays music all the time.  Listen to the wind, or the birds, or the song your heart makes when you see something that touches it.

Bee Prepared

We were enjoying the nice warm (for November) weather over the last week - and so were the honeybees on the farm.  I noticed significant activity by the two hives closest to the hen pasture one day and thought I should go get the camera.  But, I had things to do and by the time I got out there ready to take pictures, the activity had subsided somewhat.

But, even with the reduction in activity, there was still plenty going on.  

I am not certain how much foraging the worker bees can do in late October and early November after we've had multiple freezes.  I do know that workers who were returning to the hive were not laden with great amounts of pollen.  On the other hand, it is likely that there was a substantial need for water that must be brought to the "in-hive" worker bees and the queen.

When temperatures drop below 50 degrees Fahrenheit, our honeybees prefer to stay at home.  If they allow their bodies to get much colder than that, they cannot function and will die.  So, they use the heat of the colony to stay warmer.  And, since outside food sources are no longer plentiful, the bees have to begin subsisting on what they have stored for the cold months in their hive

The other thing that's been going on with our bees has been the late Fall "eviction" of the drones from the hive.  Once evicted from the hive, they die and often leave a carpet of bodies nearby.  If you look closely at the photo above, you will see evidence of this on the ground cloth.

Drones don't do any work for the colony and they require food and water, both of which are becoming far less plentiful  In order for the colony to survive, they treat the drones as "deadwood" and prune them off.  Once food and water become more readily available in the Spring, they colony will hatch more drones.

Thus far, our honeybees seem to be relatively well prepared for the coming months.  Here's hoping they will survive and we can see them active again next year.

Steward of the Soil

One of the key tenets for organic agriculture/horticulture is that the health of the soil is important and should be maintained.  The simple logic behind it is that healthy soil makes it easier to grow healthy plants.  But, of course, keeping soil healthy is one of those things where our desires to cultivate the land is at odds with what is actually the most healthy thing for the soil - let nature do its thing and leave the soil alone. 

Cover crop seedlings emerging just five days after seeding.

Since we do need to grow food to live and we must disturb nature to do it, it is our responsibility to do our best to find strategies and compromises that balance our needs with the needs of the soil.  There are numerous ways for each of us to do this and many possible answers.  I am hopeful that if I share some of our successes and failures it might encourage others to find their own balance as well.

Cover Crops

One of the things we like to do and wish we could be even more successful at is establishing cover crops.  A cover crop is essentially a vegetative crop that is intentionally seeded for the health of the soil and the surrounding ecosystem and is not intended to be harvested as a cash crop.  Typically, the cover crop is incorporated into the soil at its conclusion so its biomass can break down and replenish nutrients and feed the microbiology that lives on the surface of the Earth.

Sunn hemp cover crop after a few weeks.

The hardest part about cover crops is finding a way to include them AROUND our cash crop growing schedule.  There is a tenuous balance between our need to grow a certain amount of produce so our farm can be financially successful and the need to use growing time and field space to grow cover crops. 

In recent years, the bigger issue has been the available time and labor needed to prepare, sew, and establish these covers.  Cover crops require some effort and need to be scheduled into the work load.  When your slate is already full, it can be difficult to want to spend time on a crop that you're just going to till in eventually.  It's even worse when you are having trouble just finding any time to do the farm work in the first place.

And then, you have to factor in the weather.  If you can't prepare an area for planting a cover crop because the field is saturated there's not much you can do.  Or, perhaps you managed to plant the cover crop but the rain stopped falling.  If you can't manage to get to setting up some overhead irrigation (for whatever reason) the seed may not germinate.  If they don't germinate in a timely fashion, the schedule that you so carefully figured out so you could have your cash crops and your cover crops gets disrupted.  So, now what do you do?

Sunn hemp at full size.

The good news is that every year on our farm, we have some cover crop successes.*  The bad news is that every year on our farm, we have some cover crop failures.  But, the best news is that we do not intend to give up on using cover crops.  Our tools change, our knowledge grows and our success rate improves.

*As a side note, we actually did NOT plant any cover crops in 2021 - something we don't even want to admit to ourselves.  But, we had other things taking priority this season.  We'll get back on it in 2022! 

In 2015, when this blog post was initially written, we had poor germination for our clover cover crops.  We know part of it was simply a timing with the weather issue.  There is always more to it than that, but we have ideas about how to address it in future years.  We had fantastic success with buckwheat, but ran out of seed at an inopportune time.   We missed on the japanese millet and just never got the area prepped.  But, the sunn hemp trial went extremely well.  You win some, you lose some.  For the most part, we'll admit that most of the failures were probably 'operator' error.  We just missed our opportunities.  

But, the good news is that we didn't give up and we didn't miss ALL of the opportunities.  As good as you can do is as good as you can do.  You just strive to get better after that.  And that has been true every for every season at the Genuine Faux Farm

Structure of the Soil
Without getting too technical here, we are also concerned with the structure of the soil and the soil aggregates.  We harm the structure with any type of tillage or soil disruption, so it is important to limit destructive behaviors including leaving bare soil (with no plant life), frequent tillage, compaction from excessive traffic and the application of chemicals that specifically harm the microscopic life forms that live there.

There are processes that aid in forming healthy structures.  Among these things is the natural cycles of wetting/drying and freezing/thawing.  So, simply allowing soil to be exposed to these natural processes without interruption can help.

Another process that aids in the building of healthy soils is the activity of root systems and animals that live in the soil (such as earthworms and other invertebrates).  So, if we do things to allow plants with good root systems to grow while supporting a good environment for soil organisms, we help to rebuild soil structure.  Now cover crops seem like an even better idea!

But, the cycle is furthered when you let the residue of a cover crop break down.  The microbial activity that works on organic matter also helps rebuild soil structure.  And a healthy soil structure has better water holding capacity and a better nutrient balance for future crops.  Sounds like a good plan to me!

And hey!  It's nice when you write something and then find that a course on that topic agrees with you.  There is always more to learn, but it feels like I am still heading the right direction.

Maintaining Untilled Areas

We'd love to have more delphiniums

The temptation of any farmer is to start thinking about each and every acre as something that must have an easily traceable income stream each and every season.  If you can't point to a yield number and a corresponding dollar amount, it may feel like that land is not pulling its load for the whole farm.  But, this is one-dimensional thinking that gets us into trouble and bad habits.  Not every piece of land is meant to be cultivated, just like every person is not meant to be a farmer.

We regularly question whether we are doing things in the best way we possibly can to support untilled areas on our farm.  We have perennial flower and vegetable plantings, buffer strips and path areas, pasture areas for our poultry, bush lines, new trees, lawn areas and areas where we disturb things as little as possible.  

Sometimes our efforts to maintain certain areas fail, sometimes they succeed and most of the time, we're not entirely sure if we're doing the right thing.  This is made all the more difficult when you consider that the 'right thing' may differ based on perspective, goals and surrounding environs.

In order to keep things simple for myself, I consider this.  If I leave some areas untilled that are adjacent to my tilled areas, that means I have a safe harbor for all of the soil organisms that are important for good soil structure/aggregate and soil health.  That means, when I harm the soil structure and organisms in the tilled area, but keep the destruction as low as possible, there is a bank of soil organisms just next door who can move in and help rebuild.  If I do things in my tilled fields that help make that area more attractive, they will be more apt to move in and repopulate.

And now you know some of our motivations and thinking as we continue to learn how to be good stewards of the soil. As I reflected on these topics, I am amazed by how much we have learned and changed in how we do things on our farm.  I am pleased by a significant number of our choices over the years and I am equally dismayed by others.  Yet, I fully realize that we continue to operate in good faith - we are doing our best with the knowledge and tools we have at any given time.  

As always, we're looking forward to continuing to learn and improve what we do as stewards of the soil.