Tag: folk ar

June 19-June 25: The Weekly Garden and Afield Report

Photos and Writing by Joseph Sapia

Sapia - 6.26.16 garden

GARDEN AND AFIELD

2016, June 19, Sunday, to 2016, June 25, Saturday

Sapia - 6.26.16 lettuce

Lettuce

              HARVESTING FROM THE GARDEN: I began picking lettuce, harvesting it leaf by leaf, rather than by the head, so the plant keeps producing. (In my haste, I pulled out too much leaf. So, next time, will clip them, saving the plant.) Then, I either munch on the leaf right there in the garden or take it inside for a sandwich.
Sapia - 6.26.16 blueberries

Wild blueberries

HARVESTING FROM THE LOCAL PINE BARRENS: Blueberries are ripening. I picked some the other day and mixed them into a cup of yogurt.

Sapia - 6.26.16 birdbath

Bird bath

             BIRD BATH: I keep a bird bath filled with water at ground level. Birds not only “bathe” in it, but birds and other animals drink from it.

              WILDLIFE IN THE YARD: The raccoons are still taking advantage of the sunflower kernels in the bird-feeder. And, one evening, I saw a huge skunk passing by.

Sapia - 6.26.16 mullein

Mullein in front of the American holly

WEEDS IN MY YARD: As I have mentioned, I leave many weeds growing to see what they develop into. Well, I have a huge mullein taking over my American holly in my backyard. In the front yard, I have pokeweed growing.

Sapia - 6.26.16 roses

“Knock Out” roses

               “KNOCK OUT” ROSES: Surprisingly, the first bloom of “Knock Out” roses continues.

Sapia - 6.26.16 fungi

Fungi in the backyard

               FUNGUS, IN YARD AND WOODS: Fungi growing in my backyard and some in the local Pine Barrens.

Sapia - 6.26.16 sassafras

Sassafras with its three styles of leaves

          SASSAFRAS IN THE LOCAL PINE BARRENS: Sassafras trees can have three leaf patterns on the same tree: a two-prong mitt, three-prong, and oval. I found an aberration this week, one with five prongs.

Sapia - 6.26.16 sunset

Helmetta Pond at sunset

      Joe Sapia has been a professional journalist since the 1970s. He also is a writing teacher, folk artist, vegetable gardener, Pine Barrens woodsman, Helmetta area historian, and Jeep driver, along with being Marquette University Jesuit-educated..

     Born in 1956, Joe is a lifelong resident of Central Jersey, where his family — through his maternal side, the old Polish and Slovak workers of the George W. Helme Snuff Mill in Helmetta — has lived since about 1900. He is a voice of the land and Old Jersey ways.