Heat wave-no rest for the sweaty and exhausted

And so begins 11 days of above 30 degree temperatures.  This Thursday is forecast to be 36 C.  

I need to get more shade cloth up over the chook palace greenhouse and run, but I need Gs help for the most part, even just to hold the ladder so I can get on top of the building safely.  I already have two fans in the palace, but at forecast temperatures and heat index of up to 110 F, it may not cool the birds at all. I will be paying special attention to the larger and older birds in case I need to soak them down or bring them inside for a few days.  But there are only so many more chickens I can fit in the basement...Heat exhaustion would be a horrible way to die.  I don't want that happening to our birds.

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G helped me with the bee hives the other day.  All three have larvae and capped brood, and I even got to show him a bee who was brand new, just chewing her way out of her cell.  Pretty neat.  There is a lot of honey on the new divide, and a moderate amount on the other hives.  Apparently the nectar flow has been spotty around this area.  We have plenty of clover, some buckwheat, and I've seen the bees on the common milkweed as well.  

I may have to make some sort of shade structure for the hives this week as well.  If the hives get too hot it can encourage the bees to swarm.

My welcome home crew

The garden is lush and looking very healthy except for some of the brassicas.  While I was away they were chewed pretty badly by cabbage moth larvae.  Apparently the nicely folded insect barrier cloth sitting beside the rows didn't do anything.  Hoping to finally get it put up over the plants after I spend another hour or so examining each leaf and removing eggs and larvae. Voracious little beasts!

Almost time to harvest the garlic. Eggplants doing well.

Our amazing basil hedge. So healthy this year!

Worm!!!

Putting up shade cloth back in  early June:

Rooster approved!

Our new chook palace run has been working well. We finished it the day I found out about my brother.  While I was away it helped G manage the birds, not only because they were safely confined but also because the new fencing material will prevent our two roosters from getting at each other. It's called poly geogrid, from Farmtek.  

The new palace secure run. 

The geogrid fence is so much nicer to work with than wire.  It was supposed to be 48" tall but is more like ~50", which is great because it seems to discourage the birds from flying over.  I have a bunch more elderberry trees to plant in there, and then the aviary netting will go up, and hopefully some more shade structures of some sort.  It's just too damn hot here....

In the shade of the seaberry bushes. 

That's it for now.  Wish us luck.  This is the weather I fear all year.