The Pitiful Louisiana Freeze-Scare

OK. So, it's going to 'freeze' and we all freak out. Of course, we can be forgiven for this because

(a) it hardly ever freezes and
(b) we actually have crops that will be killed by this.

The seasonal crops, well, that's just the way it goes. Plant some more stuff next month. It's a roll of the dice. But then there are the long-term issues. Like fruit trees. We already know not to put the Meyer Lemon trees in the ground. That would just be asking for it. So we move to ever-bigger pots each year. And we haul them into-the-house; out-of-the-house etc. etc. We think this is worth the effort. I mean, hey - it's January, and there are lemons in the living room!
But there are the 'Louisiana fruits', right? Satsumas, yes. Figs, yes. Both must be planted in the ground for the long term, and both must be protected for the 48-hour nastiness of freezing temps we get once a year, maybe twice. And so, last week, we knew we must prepare. Will thought about it...sheets draped? Plastic? Both? and then there is the wind. Would either or both blow off? And what of the middle of the day? Sometimes it warms up so much you have to uncover them, then cover them back up. And, if covered by too many layers, they will drop their leaves for lack of sun. So...we have (TADAAA) the Satsuma Teepees!
This is the skeleton only, of course. We kept the Satsumas in pots for two years, or maybe it was three, before we finally put them in the ground. A couple of years from now, they'll be too big for this, but for now it will do. I mean, 24 DEGREES! Thats' big stuff for down here. A layer of plastic, then a sheet, and there you have it! (notice the very lazy dogs in the background)...and now we get to the 'totally lame' part. You know, we don't get ice. I mean, the natural kind. So, if we want to see ice, we have to make our own. We are not the only ones guilty of this, I know that. But as long as you're keeping a little bit of water running, you might as well try to make something pretty and icy for the morning after. We've done better, I must say, but here is our pitiful ice event...don't laugh! Besides, the whole thing is so last week...today and yesterday and the day before that..70 degrees. Now all we have is a very soggy sad garden. However, the carrots look good, the Collards can take anything, and the spinach is all for me! (sadly, there's not enough for the public...maybe early spring for another round).

Al The Owl

...standing watch on the dock.

Actually, I bought this 'big plastic owl with rotating head' for Will for Christmas. This is because, last June, he kept asking me to "find a big plastic owl to put out in the corn". Well, not only did I know that the town of Zachary had no big plastic owls, but i wasn't willing to drive all over Baton Rouge in search of a big plastic owl. And then, while online shopping, looking for a couple of (hopefully artistic and not too expensive) metal cranes to put out by the pond...there he was, lo and behold...the afore-mentioned 'big plastic owl'.
There is a reason he is keeping watch on the dock. There are some very ugly and quite annoying muskovy ducks that like to come over from the pond next door and hang around. That's not so bad, really...but they like the dock and they roost on the dock and anybody that has seen what they leave behind when roosting on a dock can understand why it's icky. And messy. And hard to clean up. And Will was dutifully out there shooting them with the bottle-rocket-gun-contraption-thing he has...previously used to scare off herons and egrets and the like. But these ducks just didn't care. It didn't scare them in the least. He even hit one with a bottle rocket (I think that was an accident but I'm not sure). and it didn't even make him jump (hardly). and it certainly didn't make him fly away. But they hate the owl. So they just roost on the fountain instead. Which means you have to turn on the fountain periodically to chase them off. I'm sure this will be an on-going saga. But, for now, the owl is at least keeping them off the dock. I wish they'd just go home!
UPDATE: Well, it's dark now, New Year's Night, freezing cold, and Will has been stalking the ducks...he spent probably most of an hour shooting them directly with bottle rockets...there's still one who won't go home. So he is off to East Feliciana Parish to score some larger ammo before all of the fireworks stands close up for the season!