Rabbit Learnin' And The Last Fall Planting

Yesterday I started to become a bit concerned about Notch, who seemed a bit congested on the weekend, and now whose eye seems to be very teary.... So I've done some research, wiped and irrigated his eye with water, and this afternoon will make a little compress and irrigation of saline and chamomile tea to soothe what I hope is a seasonal allergy or otherwise mildly irritated eye.  It could be an infected tear duct, and the irrigation and compress should improve the situation either way.

I'd prefer less aggressive treatment if it clears in a couple of days, but I may need to switch to Terramycin eye ointment if it doesn't improve. So, this afternoon, I will heat a cup of water, and add a chamomile tea bag and a tablespoon of sea salt, and head out to give the poor boy some relief once it has cooled somewhat. He seemed to appreciate the cool water. I'll do that again at bedtime, and keep to a twice-a-day schedule for the rest of the week.  He's not off of his food or water (though the apple slices and oat/barley treats are getting more attention than his alfalfa pellets or chard).

And now for gratuitous pics of some of his cute babies:

 

They're growing fast, and will be outside soon in one of our big cages, with plywood platforms to play on, lots of fresh air and maybe sunshine - this time of year can get a bit gloomy.

The salad bar is still providing plenty of greens for a huge salad every other night, and I think salads will go down as being the 'oh, good... more' food for Adrian this year. The pole beans are still holding out on us, along with most of our tomato plants.  If the predicted rain comes I may need to rig a cover for my kidney beans, which are almost dry enough to be pulled - it would be a huge disappointment for them to mold in contact with wet soil.

 



I went through the seed box and planted out a few last-minute crops in the bed vacated by the wheat crop.  I will be planting multiplier onions and shallots in the same space later, but didn't want to leave the soil barren until the end of September.  If the weather is with us, we may be harvesting: arugula, beets, kohlrabi, turnips, parsley, and red mustard. Time will tell!