Filed under: Farm, pond, Wildlife | Tags: beaver, beaver dam, drainage tile, farm, nature, wildlife
We rent a farm that has a creek running through it. Usually at this time of year it is dry or just a trickle of water in it. With all of the rain in August this year it is still running strong. This has attracted some unwanted attention from a beaver.
Normally I would not pay much attention to his work. The water is not backing up onto crop land, but his placement of the dam was unfortunate. He put it just right to cause trouble for drainage tile. Now when I get time I go out and drag out part of the dam so the water can empty from that tile line. For now that is all I will do. Come trapping season, he’ll have other worries.
If we can catch him, then I will get more serious about dam removal. The obstruction he has placed will divert the water and create erosion on a bank we want to keep stable. His digging has removed grass and roots that keep the bank from eroding away. That damage will have to be repaired. Not all of his work will be bad. The widened channel will provide a new opportunity for other plants and animals to access water. It will be interesting to see what becomes of his old pond.
Filed under: Corn, Farm, garden, planting, pond, rain, Soybeans, spring, water garden, weather | Tags: Corn, farm, garden, marsh marigolds, Planting, rain, Soybeans, spring, water, weather
Over 2 inches of rain has fallen in our area over the last 24 hours and more is on the way. For us the timing was great, for others not so much. I was able to get all of our corn and soybeans in the ground over a week ago. I had a few spots that needed some replant where construction or planter troubles left open spots. We also had some soybeans that were planted in ground with freshly applied manure that left chunks of earth that did not seal over the soybeans. This rain will get them all off to a good start.
A trip around the state, however, will reveal some others still attempting to get wet spots, or even whole fields planted. For them more rain is not needed.
So now we have puddles and sump pumps running. A welcome change after we missed several showers over the last few weeks. If this turns dry we will be looking fondly back on this rain. Soil moisture levels are starting to normalize after three years of dry conditions and we need it.
My Koi pond is also enjoying an infusion of new water.
I have two down spouts that dump roof water into the pond and this helps with fresh water recharge. The pond level is definitely high and the fish are enjoying it. I need to get into the pond now and get my planters refilled. The Marsh Marigolds are done blooming, but most other plants are just getting started growing. I also need to do some weeding. Wet weather will give me time to get some pond work done.
Now we wait to see how much rain this set of storms will give us. It’s a slow time for field work so we can wait a bit. More farm work awaits.
Michael
Filed under: cold, fish, Ice, Minnesota, pond, snow, spring, water garden, weather, winter | Tags: cold, garden, ice, marsh marigolds, Minnesota, new green, pond, snow, spring, weather
It always amazes me how early the Marsh Marigolds come up in my pond. The ice is barely gone and there is green.
Today brought cold and the ice is hanging on to plants, but they will keep pushing through, despite the snow that overhangs the pond.
And it is not a small amount of snow overhanging the pond.
This year was the 4th coldest on record for Minnesota. We had an average amount of snow, and an above average amount of wind. The pond was covered with much more snow than ice. I broke open that snow pack many times this winter to keep some oxygen in the pond. My aerator pump was buried in the snow and doing nothing so I had to get air into the water to keep the fish alive. Now when our area lakes and rivers still have feet of ice on them, the pond is open, and new green has come. There is hope for spring.
Michael
Filed under: Fall, Farm, garden, harvest, house, pond, projects, snow, water garden, weather | Tags: 30 day challenge, 30 days, cold, farm, garden, harvest, nature, pond, snow
It’s day 21 of the 30 day challenge and I have some yard work to do.
Farm yards, just like city yards need work, but our yards are bigger. When the harvest is done, there are things to do to get that yard ready for winter. Leaves are blowing around and the grass needs to be cut again, tree branches have fallen, and the yard just needs a tidying up. Many farmers wives have jobs off the farm and weekends are busy too, so the farmer must now tend to his yard work. I’ve been up on the roof cleaning gutters and doing other small maintenance on the house.
We also have an artificial pond near our house so blowing leaves need to be removed from that before they settle in. The pumps must be pulled up and the heaters put in to keep our fish happy when the ice forms. Every little thing you do to make your house and yard better means you have more to care for before winter sets in.
Today the temperatures are falling and snow is in the forecast. Looks like I may be on the last possible day of yard work. Better get going.
Michael
Filed under: Minnesota, pond, snow, Trees, winter | Tags: fluffy snow, leaden skies, Minnesota, nature, pond, snow, trees, weather, winter
Our area of Minnesota is not exactly know for light and fluffy snow. Usually when we get snow it comes with wind. The snow we had on the ground was looking a bit old and dirty, and was mostly ice. Then, overnight, we had 4 inches fall in near perfect calm. Before it could blow away I took these pictures. Enjoy!
Leaden skies and snow so white it looks blue were what I saw on my morning walk around the yard.
Pine and cedar are both holding loads of snow.
This birch trunk even caught some snow.
A confluence of hackberry branches is covered in this picture
Any horizontal surface holds snow until the wind blows it away.
A few leaves on this lilac bush still hang on and hold snow.
The pond has only a small hole open in the ice, the rest is covered with snow.
Even the smallest of branches can catch snow.
Filed under: fish, pond, water garden, winter | Tags: cold, ice, Koi, Minnesota, pond, snow, water plants, weather, winter
It’s December in Minnesota, my pond has had several days where it has iced over, but I have pushed my luck far enough, It’s time to winterize the pond. My floating plants died out with the first freezing day and they have long ago made their way to the compost pile. Now it’s time to turn off the water circulation pump and take it out.
My pump is under the bridge. I take a section of the bridge out to get at the pump basket. With the cover off you can see the pump churning away.
With the pump off I can remove and disconnect it so that I can drain the hose. I’ll clean off the pump and put it away for the winter.
I already added the heater to the pond when the colder weather started, but now with the pump off and the stream bed quiet it’s time to add the air pump.
The air pump has two long hoses to get air down into the pond, a pair of metal nuts are needed to keep the hose down in the water. I have a cover for the pump made from an old plastic juice bottle so that snow and rain is kept off of it.
Now I can be sure that fresh oxygen is getting to the fish when the pond is iced over. The koi hang out around the heater appreciating the extra warmth.
Here’s where I hang the pump. I have a screw to hold it all on the board beside the electrical outlet. The pond is now ready for winter.
I’ll set some of the flower pots in deeper water so the ice will not damage them and the pond is ready for winter. There are no flowers in bloom, but the koi keep a bit of color as the ponds settles in for winter.
Michael
Find the frog(s)
Yeah, I admit, they are a bit hard to find. There are two of them. Here, does this help?
The wildlife visiting my pond is different every day. We get way more birds than I did when I tried feeders, plus we attract a few other critters. Right now I have a vole that is making the pond edge his home. I wouldn’t mind just staying there, but he has decided that the flowers need to be harvested. They are barely done blooming and he snips some of them off. Since we are short adult cats right now he has free range. Oh well, he’s just part of the wildlife in my yard. For now I’ll have to live with him.
Michael
Filed under: garden, Minnesota, pond, water garden | Tags: broad leaf arrowhead, garden, Minnesota, plants, pond, water garden, water hyacinth, water lettuce
My pond has been overrun by floaters this year and something has to be done.
I took half a wheel borrow full of floaters to the compost pile earlier this week and the floaters filled the cleared spot up the next day. All of this green is from 10 small plants purchased in early June.
The floaters in my pond are water lettuce (Pistia stratiotes) and water hyacinth (Eichhoria crassipes). They are just leaves and roots. So far neither of these plants have bloomed for me.
The roots on the water lettuce are about 8 inches long on mature plants. The plants send out side shoots with smaller plants on them. As the plant gets bigger, it also sends out more babies. They continue to grow as long as they can reach water.
Water hyacinth are much like the water lettuce in that they are just green plant and roots, and they send out shoots to produce more plants. The hyacinth have bladders to help keep them afloat. In southern states they are considered invasive. Some places in Africa and Asia they will heap hyacinth together to make floating islands where people will live. Here in Minnesota both plants will freeze off as winter nears. Then I just net them up and add them to the compost pile.
So, after taking all of these floaters out of my pond, I can now see some water.
We shall see how long it takes to fill in the open spots now.
If you look at the bottom of the picture you can see the newest addition to the pond, sagittaria latifolia. Sagittaria latifolia is a plant found in shallow wetlands and is sometimes known as broadleaf arrowhead, duck potato, Indian potato, or wapato. This plant produces edible tubers that were extensively used by the Indigenous peoples of the Americas.
Michael
Filed under: birds, Farm, fish, house, pond, water garden, Wildlife | Tags: animals, barn swallow, farm, garden, goldfish, Koi, plants, pond, raccoon, raspberries, robins, wildlife
We’ve had a few animal visitors lately, some we want and some we’d rather had stayed away.
I was delighted to see this frog sitting on a lilly pad two days ago. I had lots of frogs in the pond early this spring, but very few since.
My mom had been harvesting about two quarts of raspberries until the robins found them. Now every time she approaches the garden a dozen or more fly off. They don’t even let the berries get ripe, but eat them just before they are ready.
I heard a splash in my koi pond two nights ago when I went to look at it before going to bed. In the morning a few pots had been dug in, but not much to worry about. This morning my goldfish pond looked like this.
Water lilly’s had been torn up and hyacinth and water lettuce were upside down. Worst of all, four 10 year old goldfish are missing. I suspect a raccoon, but have no evidence to prove it. With my sweet corn about ready for harvest, I hope I am wrong.
Some barn swallows built a nest on a roof bracket over the kitchen window. Although I like barn swallows since they eat insects, what they do to the side of the house has my bride upset. The word is out, they need to move soon!
I really do want animal visitors, but sometimes i wish they would not be so messy.
Michael
Filed under: fish, garden, house, pond, projects, rain, water garden, weather | Tags: floating water plants, garden, Koi, pond, railing, screen porch, water garden, weather
Our porch and pond continue to change. This week the railing that we had ordered special made came. 
Sunday we spent some time cleaning and roughing the metal, then Karen painted it. Today I installed it.
It looks great, and adds a bit of safety also. It’s only 4 steps up and a drop to soft grass so we were not worried about spacing on the bars. The hand rail will help get up and down the steps.
When we were in Colorado we found some nice brackets to add to the west posts of the porch, they were installed Sunday also.
They will allow the hanging of some decorative items to add some color.
Our floaters in the pond are really growing in this warm weather. Here’s the pond on June 30th,
and here’s the pond today, July 9. More and more the year old koi are turning from black to orange. It’s fun to watch them all come when I feed them, it is taking more and more food to make them happy.
I finally found our newest batch of kittens today, they are about 2 weeks old. Mom is not happy to have me around so I left them alone for now. When they get older I’ll start getting to know them.
Our grass is starting to show signs of stress from the heat of last week. Many places are starting to turn brown. No rain is forecast for the next week, but temperatures will be a bit cooler than they were.
Some areas in the corn are showing a lack of water. This was more pronounced in the 100 degree heat. Now that temps are in the mid 80’s the roots are able to keep up with the demand for water. There is some water if you go deep enough, I just hope it is enough to get the crop to the next rainfall.
Michael
Minnesota Farmer 