Container gardening, Flowers (annual and perennial)

African Daisy or Cape Marigold

The African Daisy or Cape Marigold are commonly called by their fancy name “Osteospermum”. You commonly find these plants in the greenhouses coming mainly in yellow and purple but many colors in between. They make for great plants in containers. You must dead head these to keep them flowering all summer long.

African Daisy

This white one I grew from seed is a “wilder form” which should be hardier to wind and heat. The white bloom and shiny purple center are reminiscent of the true roots of this plant. The flower opens on sunny days and closes on cloudy days or at night. The newer varieties stay open more.

Whether grown in a container or ground, African Daisy needs a little water and some fertilizer and that is all. Too much water creates leggy, weak plants.

The plants where brought to Europe and America in the 19th century.

DIY Projects, Rural life

Chicken Coop

Thinking about raising chickens? First, think about your chicken coop. One thing to remember if you are buying one or building one is to give your chickens 4 square feet of space per chicken. More is better, after all, they are going to be pets and a happy chicken is an egg-laying chicken.

Now think of nesting boxes. These are where they are going to lay their eggs. Boxes should be a foot high, a foot wide, and a foot deep. Straw is a good medium in the nesting boxes. I like the use of milk crates, however, I have seen pics on using many other kinds.

Chickens need a place to rest at night. This roost needs to be away from the wall and the top roost should be away from the ceiling, so they do not hit their heads. Give them at least a foot apart so they do not crowd. You can make your own roost or use wooden ladders.

The most important thing to keep in mind is to provide proper ventilation. Provide cross wall ventilation by putting in windows and screens so you can open and closed them.

Make sure the coop is secured to the ground, so a wind does not tip it. Any gaps or holes should be covered with wire cloth so predators like rats and raccoons do not enter. Make sure the entrance latch is secure. If a child can open it, a raccoon can open it.

My neighbors have a chicken coop, where they let their chickens out (free-range) and towards night, they shut the door on the coop.

Astronomy

Night Sky Tonight

Venus can be found in the early morning sky climbing higher as the days go on. The planet is now in the constellation of Taurus the Bull near the star cluster: Hyades in the night sky tonight.

Jupiter rises around an hour after sunset becoming the most conspicuous object in the evening sky. If you have a telescope, you can watch the four moons of Jupiter with their shadows dancing around the clouds on Jupiter. You can download an almanac of the moons and their times going around Jupiter.

Saturn rises after Jupiter making the duo a conspicuous sight in the night sky. As we pass on the inside of Saturn, it will begin its move to the west. Maybe that is why the ancients thought the planets were gods.

Mars with its reddish hue rising after Jupiter and Saturn around midnight and getting brighter.

The familiar three stars that make the summer triangle show up now. Vega the brightest of the three followed by Deneb and Aquila. This asterism begins to rise from the east horizon gaining height each night.

Look to the north as you find the prominent Big Dipper sliding down in the Northwest like it is spilling its contents. Take the two stars marking the outer part of the bowl and draw a line till you see a star to the north. This is the North Star ((Polaris).