Kingfisher

Skilled baby jiggler, yarn untangler, sunset watcher, and flavor combiner.  

Header image alt: close up of Romanesco cauliflower, knobby spirals in shades of green and a few tinged with dusky purple.
  Avatar image alt: a metal basket of red potatoes

Posts auto-delete after 6 months
#NoBridge

Agricultural Zone: 7a

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npub1atxs467evwja8cv6zg6nmshqphrkfvepypwj4uqec47wtpeaswpq0vad59

NIP-05 Address

halcyonline_at_mstdn.social@momostr.pink

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nprofile1qqsw4ng2a0vk8fwnuxdpydfactsqm3mykvsjqhf27qvu2l89su7c8qspz3mhxue69uhhyetvv9ujuerpd46hxtnfduqs6amnwvaz7tmwdaejumr0dsx0vrru

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npub1atxs467evwja8cv6zg6nmshqphrkfvepypwj4uqec47wtpeaswpq0vad59

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Last Notes

2026-04-29 15:03:30 UTC

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I really need to be brave and get connected to the swap community. People are harder than plants.

2026-04-29 12:27:49 UTC

For the first time in my long life, I have no chives plant. How will I make herby eggs without chives? Where does one even buy chives plants? Not my local growers, I checked. Chives have always just *existed* in every place I have lived. Even student housing had a little clump.
Maybe the library seed exchange will have a packet…..
#Chiveless #Unseasoned
made due with #Tarragon
#Herbs
#Gardening

2026-04-23 16:28:55 UTC

I need to learn to prune tomatoes for max health/yield. Been unschooling those naughty nightshades for years, but it’s time to get some discipline now that my space is limited.
If you have a successful process for pruning backyard tomato plants, I’m ready to learn.
#Gardening #tomatoes #zone7a #NoDig

2026-03-29 17:15:53 UTC

Overnight temp was 26F. Greenhouse was shut tight and at 10:30am measured 105F !
Got the auto openers for the roof windows attached now. Guess I can start bringing the seedlings out from my indoor rack to the greenhouse where they will thrive and not get cooked. Happy day!
#greenhouse #zone7a #gardening

2026-03-23 02:08:21 UTC

Planted three American/european hybrid hazelnut shrubs (unnamed variety) and two elderberry bushes (York and Nova). Expanding our backyard food diversity.
#gardening #GrowYourOwn #FoodForest #zone7a #Fedco

2026-02-25 15:16:55 UTC

Seedlings are coming along nicely in my new diy grow tent set up. But…The yard/meter of snow covering the spot where the greenhouse is going to be is becoming a real problem.
Hold on little plants! Spring is coming!
#gardening #allotment #vegetableGardening #growYourOwn #seedStarting

2026-02-18 23:46:34 UTC

So many seeds germinated! Signs of new, of hope, are incredibly needed this year.
Arugula, kohlrabi, spinach, tatsoi, winter lettuce….and even a few hot weather plants I want to try in the greenhouse later.
#gardening #zone7a #vegetableGardening #Allotment

2026-01-29 13:40:33 UTC

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yes, not too late yet for the majority of plants. Mostly behind on poppies (I grow a couple kinds of breadseed) and planning. There’s about 2 more weeks of stillness left before maple syrup making and late winter pruning kicks off the active season here.
Thankfully, this is joyful work …connecting with plants and earth.
#Gardening #zone7a

2026-01-28 18:46:47 UTC

Working on my seed starting plan for my #zone7a garden.
Feels hopeful, although I am a little behind schedule already!
#Gardening

2026-01-04 15:29:16 UTC

First attempt croissants. Had quite a lot of butter leaking during bake
#baking #croissants
https://media.mstdn.social/media_attachments/files/115/837/526/997/842/943/original/4c8b5e22300c1778.png

2025-09-17 14:51:16 UTC

How long does homegrown popcorn need to dry before it can be popped?
In this case Japanese Hull-less variety, if that is a factor
#gardening #growYourOwn #zone7a
#popcorn

2025-09-04 22:55:43 UTC

Yesterday I asked my dr. About a covid booster. She said, “it’s unlikely you would die from covid now.” As if I don’t need a booster.
I asked about a shingles vaccination and was told I could get it as soon as the shipment comes in.
Why did one vaccination get zero push back and the other was questioned?
This is an intelligent person. How did she become so obtuse about the risks of “mild” covid?
#CovidIsNotOver

2025-09-01 15:49:02 UTC

Last summer, we welded the victorio tomato mill back together, thinking we would order a new one after nearly 30 years of use. Oops, we forgot to order a new one and the welded piece held for another year! #BabysGotSauce
#repair #preserving #gardening #growYourOwn

2025-08-28 22:13:26 UTC

We have an opportunity to visit a friends vacation house (yay!) which means harvesting everything possible now - dry beans, tomatoes, zucchini, peppers, broccoli, wax beans, & cukes before a much needed rain comes in tomorrow. Thankful for refrigeration.
I love growing food!!
#gardening #zone7a #GrowYourOwn

2025-08-21 16:47:31 UTC

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hooray for rain! We got 2.4” in Rhode Island

2025-07-10 00:22:31 UTC

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Tomatoes and corn get all the summer garden amazingness hype…and yes, in season corn and tomatoes are fabulous, but a potato cooked and eaten within half an hour of being dug is transformational.
#gardening #SeasonalEating

2025-07-09 23:51:04 UTC

Dug a few of the early red (Norland) #potatoes for the first glorious German style potato salad of the season with the last of the snap peas and some fresh parsley and chives added. roasted broccoli , Diva cukes, and a local farm bratwurst.
Tasty!
#SeasonalEating #zone7a

2025-07-05 17:55:30 UTC

Oh yeah! New 3 bay #compost bin to replace the old one made of pallets. Fancy!
#Gardening
https://media.mstdn.social/media_attachments/files/114/801/900/236/144/770/original/b1886e2d7d2aa287.png

2025-06-19 12:38:33 UTC

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one of post covid symptoms is brain fog. Do you think self reporting on that symptom of menopause might be impacted by overlap with post covid symptoms? Maybe there’s no way to tease these apart. Thank you for this enlightening thread

2025-04-29 22:47:44 UTC

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we are #zone7a and I haven’t planted out but kept them in a cart outside for days… which I mean to say I agree it’s hard to risk. 2 years ago we got that May frost

2025-04-29 22:45:23 UTC

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it’s a challenge to reprogram the schedule that we learnt to match new climate realities. All signs point toward plant out ( but keep the fleece ready if you’re in inland, especially)

2025-04-21 00:24:08 UTC

Big windy day in the veg. garden: Finished mulching the paths, Transplanted out various brassicas, dill, chard, sweet peas. Seeded salad turnips, radishes, spinach outside and melons, squash and cukes inside, and moved up the peppers and tomatoes to bigger pots.
#Zone7a #Gardening #GrowYourOwn

2025-04-14 23:02:06 UTC

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Thanks for your thoughtful reply! I've been growing here for 25 yrs and the soil has good structure - not wet or compacted. We did start the plot with a ton of seashell rich compost and seaweed. have had consistent problems with ph and calcium due to the shells.
been #NoDig about 3 yrs.
THe garden is quite productive, but certainly could be more so. I have most trouble with tomatoes and peppers. Bumper crops last year of beans, cucumbers and melons.
#Zone7a #gardening

2025-04-14 19:26:49 UTC

Splurged on a detailed soil test this year and received so much info, some is confusing. Any #Soil science #gardening folks here who can help?
Ph is too high but also too much sulphur (probably due to the pellets I scattered last fall). How do I fix the ph without using sulphur or peat?
And how is the nitrogen level so low when I add aged chicken manure every fall??
Just goes to show that one can always learn new things about soil health.
#MysteriesAbound
https://media.mstdn.social/media_attachments/files/114/337/302/353/007/474/original/1d4e0017d347d17d.png

2025-04-06 16:58:40 UTC

During the march yesterday, I witnessed a car wanting to use the street of the route. A clergy person (with yellow “clergy” hat and hi-viz vest) put their body against the nose of the car and got on their phone calling for help. They held the car off from interrupting the march (best case) or driving into protesters (worst case). Such bravery, de-escalation skill, and care from that clergy person.
So many volunteers made the protest possible, nonviolent, effective.
#HandsOff #RhodeIsland

2025-03-16 17:27:56 UTC

Stashed many precious and sentimental #iris in a vegetable bed last fall (due to removal of a huge tree ). I didn’t expect them to make it but they ALL are showing signs of growth! Now transplanted to new garden beds. Hoping they continue to thrive.
#Gardening #Zone7a

2025-03-16 15:35:41 UTC

What to do with this (potentially) useful pile of bricks? #Gardening
https://media.mstdn.social/media_attachments/files/114/172/837/420/574/071/original/c1f4d4df36417136.jpg

2025-02-27 21:56:35 UTC

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my mother, who could transplant anything, said the secret is to take time beforehand to explain to the plant about the reasons you’re going to move it, the process, benefits, etc.
surely, this practice isn’t going to be comfy for everyone, but I find it useful. There a lot of science that remains to be understood about how plants interact with people… maybe some sort of absorption happens, even if I can’t explain it. Mom really could move ANYTHING

2025-02-27 21:43:32 UTC

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I have found many things that “can’t be moved” are quite resilient, especially when it’s going to be a better spot. I moved five mature tree peonies that were in the path of a new parking lot. Everyone told me, tree peonies won’t move. They are all thriving and flowering 10 years on.

2025-01-17 22:03:29 UTC

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Just ordered fabric pots for the potatoes, which I can place adjacent to the main vegetable garden area. I haven’t had great luck with container grown spuds in the past, but I’ve learned a lot about growing in the intervening years. I feel optimistic.
Isn’t that what #gardening is all about anyway…belief that good things are ahead?

2025-01-17 21:41:11 UTC

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Thanks for the replies! I was thinking to go wider as a plan for gardening as I age, but you folx have convinced me to keep on with my current bed width (3ft/1m)
I’ll put that saved energy into creating a cold frame for season extending.

2025-01-17 16:35:40 UTC

Bed size: is 4ft/1.2 meter width better than 3 ft/1 meter? If you use a 4ft or wider bed, why - what benefits do you find?
I’m trying to figure out if it’s worth reconfiguring my #vegetable garden layout as part of a general path overhaul this year.
Thanks!
#gardening #allotment #nodig

2025-01-14 20:19:12 UTC

onion seeds (red Wethersfield ) beginning to germinate after just 3 days is just the kind of news I needed today.
#gardening #seedStarting

2025-01-11 18:20:45 UTC

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those are good metrics!
I decided to do the curtain first because then my testing for air exchanges on the hrv will be better/ more accurate

2025-01-11 17:49:03 UTC

The materials for two different #diy #maker projects arrived so I have to choose which to do first:
1) Insulated door curtain?
OR
2) Heat recovery ventilation unit?
Both are wacky, site specific hacks with fun problem solving and opportunities for side quests!
#tinyHouse #MicroDwelling

2025-01-10 22:24:29 UTC

I got swept up in the excitement and over ordered seeds. Now where will I put 4 varieties of potatoes??
#gardening. #nodig

2025-01-06 18:06:59 UTC

Will start onion seeds later this week for #zone7a
Time to find and rig up my homemade seed starting rack/lights set up…. Maybe someday I will lay down the big cash for that specialized one, but maybe I’ll just keep on being #thrifty .
#gardening #germination #nodig

2024-11-27 16:28:34 UTC

Been fussing over the #BrusselsSprouts for weeks to have some of harvestable size for Thanksgiving because I planted late…. improvising a cold frame, watering through a freak drought, keeping cabbage moth caterpillars and aphids away. And today I get to harvest these delicious marbles!
#vegetableGardening is always a gamble. “Will the stars align and I will get to eat something from this effort?” Today the answer is YES
#zone7a #SeasonalEating #Nodig

2024-11-17 21:43:03 UTC

More closing up the garden today, had to water the #kale because it’s been super dry, planted another half bed of #garlic, and tidied/mouse proofed the potting shed.
#gardening #zone7a

2024-11-04 15:11:13 UTC

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Hoho! Only the snap peas froze hard (and I picked the pods of size to eat for lunch) Happy that I sowed oats in all the beds which seemed to have protected the greens for now.
#gardening #zone7a #AllIsNotLost

2024-11-04 12:04:37 UTC

Surprise hard freeze last night! Neglected to cover the remaining peas and greens, so those are lost. Can’t complain as this is the latest killing frost ever. #Gardening #GrowFood #zone7a

2024-10-30 12:56:02 UTC

The entirety of our cranberry #harvest
#Gardening
https://media.mstdn.social/media_attachments/files/113/396/474/332/875/596/original/e3bf4ec95385cb9b.png

2024-10-26 19:45:12 UTC

Do #fig fruit ripen after leaves have fallen?
#Gardening
https://media.mstdn.social/media_attachments/files/113/375/426/940/704/790/original/9a957ce01622a282.png

2024-10-23 12:30:38 UTC

Hickory tree in full glory
#FallColors #zone7a
https://media.mstdn.social/media_attachments/files/113/356/733/692/794/144/original/9bc430d7a0a52535.png

2024-10-15 01:26:13 UTC

Looks like a frost tonight in our corner of #zone7a
I picked the last tiny zucchini, covered the lettuce and cilantro with floating row cover, and pulled in the potted plants including the fig tree.
Hoping the snap peas, pak choi and salad turnips will be ok. Barassicas should be safe.
#Gardening #GrowFood

2024-10-13 13:14:29 UTC

#beets a plenty!
#zone7a #Gardening #GrowFood #SeasonalEating
https://media.mstdn.social/media_attachments/files/113/300/284/205/278/928/original/e205c9e6eb9a0976.png

2024-09-15 15:07:36 UTC

#aphids on the #peas. Never had that happen before. Is it because of late summer sowing? #zone7a #Gardening

2024-09-11 18:56:04 UTC

No rain for over a week means it’s #compost sifting time!
#gardening #zone7a
https://media.mstdn.social/media_attachments/files/113/120/437/788/362/246/original/d197f0c7a4d4e88c.png

2024-09-08 20:54:55 UTC

First time growing intentional baby #corn ( Japanese Hulless variety)
The kernels look unfilled. Is that a water issue?
#Vegetable #Gardening #zone7a
https://media.mstdn.social/media_attachments/files/113/103/908/220/041/343/original/6dd140b6da046406.png

2024-09-08 14:00:16 UTC

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I’m trying to save all the #iris , many of which are from my mom and hold enormous sentimental value and I can’t replace (due to not knowing their names). But the excavator is coming this week to remove the tree stump nearby, so no time to get soppy and sad.
So emotionally loaded that this bed got neglected while diverting time to care for her in recent years.
@npub1v5a…ny6w #Gardening

2024-09-08 11:48:45 UTC

The long neglected perennial border will get attention today as part of the overall redesign of the front yard. This is entirely overwhelming. Bindweed and bronze fennel have taken over. The rootstock roses left after the too-tender-for-this-zone roses died years ago. Etc etc.
It’s a space I feel ashamed of letting get so bad as I prioritized vegetables in recent years.
Let’s go.
#Gardening

2024-09-03 23:09:03 UTC

It’s a late summer just eat whatever veggies we are freezing kind of dinner. #vegetable #gardening #SeasonalEating
https://media.mstdn.social/media_attachments/files/113/076/127/330/670/433/original/f2eb9d4761ee36dd.png

2024-09-02 11:39:23 UTC

Even with a productive home #vegetable garden, I typically use about half to two thirds the seeds in a packet. I wish I could buy a smaller sized packet - especially of lettuce and other seeds that serious reduce germination after a year.
My waste not want not upbringing makes it really hard to toss unused seeds.
#Gardening #SeedSaving

2024-08-14 21:30:43 UTC

Having family over (outdoors, because #CovidIsNotOver ): assorted types of garden cuke pickles and garden melon for starters, tossed salad entirely from garden, roasted garden eggplant stuffed ravioli with garden basil pesto sauce, and local orchard nectarine/blueberry galette. #seasonalEating #Gardening #zone7a
Feeding people makes me happy.

2024-08-05 11:59:12 UTC

Am I bummed out because my plans got canceled due to high heat and I won’t see some old friends? Yes.
Am I joyous that I won’t need to put on the social persona in hot humid conditions? Double yes.
#introvert