New 'Bear Cam' pics

Close ups of our recent visitor. FYI, bears love equine senior feed. This one busted up a container of it in our feed room. Guess I need to "bear proof" the feed room. We got some good pics of a fox too.

Bear Cam

OK. We set up this wildlife camera before we knew we would get a bear, but it is now officially known as the "bear cam" due to the awesome shots we have of the culprit raiding our trash and compost bin. We also captured most of the body of a ringtail cat, very elusive animals that few people have seen around here. I just found out recently that they even existed, and how funny that a few days later we got one with this camera! We had this camera set up before on a different property very near here for quite a while and never got anything more exciting than a coyote and jackrabbit even though it was aimed at a water source.

Enjoy! ~Jenna

I couldn't resist posting pics of this fig fruit and fig tree. This is a baby fig tree that is producing figs the size of small pears. I had heard that fig trees do really well in containers, so when we acquired this one a couple months ago and I didn't know where to plant it I decided to give the container thing a try. It seems to be working. The tree went into a bit of shock from the transplant, but came back with a vengeance! I was not expecting to get any decent fruit this year...but much to my surprise, we are.

If anyone is considering growing fig trees in our area of CA (93518), you should go for it as they do really well here. I have had this variety before (Turkish brown) and another (Violette deBordeaux) and they both flourished with little care. One warning though, if you plant directly in the ground remember to have a support for the tree as they tend to be top heavy and can uproot in high winds. Also make sure to check your tree daily if you want to eat the fruit since birds like them too. The fruit is usually green and then ripens to a dark color depending on the variety and you can tell they are ripe as they soften and you can smell the ripe fruit.

The yummy, somewhat exotic fruit is good fresh, with soft cheese (feta/goat), or try brushing with honey and put halved fruit face down on the grill to carmelize. The flavor gets stronger if you let them sit on the counter a day, but I usually can't resist just eating them right off the tree.

Besides the fruit, I find the tree to be a nice lush looking addition to the garden. It has a somewhat tropical look with broad leaves. Well I hope you give figs a try. Let me know if you have any fig feedback. Enjoy the pics.

OK. Some readers may know that I am a novice beekeeper. Currently, though I am sans bees as we felt they should stay with the orchard on our previous ranch property. What can I say about bees? Well, they are incredibly interesting just for observing the intricacies of nature. If you have any type of garden, they will help the plants produce more flowers and fruit/veggies by pollination. This is especially true for orchards/fruit trees. Some people harvest the pollen from the hive as a holistic treatment for allergies. Finally, and my main motivation for having bees...honey. I love honey. REAL honey. Beware the stuff diluted with high fructose corn syrup! When we first moved to the country, a large oak tree on the property was inhabited by a wild hive of honey bees. How wonderful, I thought (after nearly being stung while standing in their flight path). Then, when admiring the incredible wildflowers in Spring here...I imagined what incredible honey the bees must make here. In fact, when standing near the aforementioned oak tree you could smell the honey. Thus began my education in honey bees.
I endeavored to learn as much as I could by subscribing to beekeeping journals such as The American Bee Journal www.dadant.com/journal . Reading the beekeepers bible; The Hive and the Honey Bee and the journals, I soon realized beekeeping had many different angles. Mostly depending on what your goals in beekeeping are. There is the entimology and bee breeding aspect, the commercial pollination aspect, the honey extracting aspect...and shades of bee management one could never imagine. Suffice it to say I was a bit overwhelmed. A trimmed down guide like the ebook on the right (pic of me and hubby Dino in our bee suits) would have helped me wade through so much technical info aimed at experienced beekeepers.
If you know anyone who keeps bees and they will let you follow them around...do it. This was what I was constantly wishing for. Especially as there is so much that is intinsically local about beekeeping. Very much like gardening, and of course that makes sense. I learned by doing, and learned lots but I am far from an expert. I was just happy with my busy little hive of Italian bees (supposed to be the friendliest/least aggressive) pollinating our flowers, trees, and veggie garden. After watching how hard they worked, I actually felt guilty taking their honey and the only taste I had was during a hive inspection when I couldn't resist taking off my glove and getting a bit!
More about my adventures in bee land next time. ~Jenna

What I will miss about Summer

Hi again,
Well, there is a touch of Fall in the air. Though Fall and Spring are my two favorite seasons, I will be a little sad to see Summer pass. What I will miss about Summer is...mainly the long days and how quickly you dry off when watering various plants and animals around the ranch! Flip-flops, shorts, and a tan...they will all be gone by Winter. My horses' short Summer coats gleaming in the sun and how easy it is to groom them this time of year.
I shouldn't languish too much, this part of California is by no means severe and it is nice to see the seasons change. What will you miss?

Country Living blog launch

Hey friends and neighbors! ( I stopped just short of "y'all" even though I was raised in Florida which is technically the South) Welcome to my Country Living blog. I would like to invite you to share your thoughts, advice, experiences about our rural lifestyle here. Photos and links welcome.
Urbanites who have questions or just want to visit the "virtual countryside" are welcome too.

Topics of interest I will be commenting on are:

Horsekeeping and riding.

General animal care including housepets and livestock.

Gardening, for food and for fun/landscape.

Green living: alternative energy sources, organic practices and holistic animal care will guide the overall theme here.

Enjoy your day!
~Jenna

affordable CA ranches and land for sale www.JennaSellsRanches.com