July 20th sunflower

Big sunflower opening

I measured the sunflower's height today. I was 95 inches. Almost 8 feet tall.

Garden stuff


This one stalk of popcorn has at least 8 cobs on it. This main stalk also has 2 more stalks from the base that has more cobs.


The popcorn tassels are strange on this variety. It seems confused. It has silk and a little corn like cob, but the rest of it is the tassel with the pollen that falls on the silk of the cobs to fertilize.


This is a big sunflower that is about to open up.

Tall sunflower and some corn

The sunflower is getting huge and the popcorn is starting to get it's tassels.


Almost each plant has grown several stalls from one seed. Hope to have lots of popcorn for the rest of the year. I'm planting some white corn for us to eat and freeze for the winter.

The Goats text

I had some trouble with the first post of this image. This is an image that you can enlarge and read.

Goat Cheese

After milking the goats we washed up with Goat Milk Soap and went to the cheese making room. There is a batch of cheese hanging in the far sink. They hang it to separate the curds from the whey. The whey is in the buckets under the sink. It will be fed back to the goats.

After trying some of the cheese we went to the shop and got some ricotta, chevre and a new mug for tea. It was wrapped in the pretty purple tissue paper.

The goats on their way into the barn. The owner thought it might have been too hot for them in the fields. It was an unusually warm day for Pescadero.

Harley Farms

We went on a tour at Harley Dairy Goat Farm today. While we were waiting for the tour to start I found this sign that spoke about the The Goats. If you enlarge it you will be able to read it.

This is the first baby goat we came across. She was very sweet and wanted to suckle on Sid's knuckle.

We got to go out into the fields and hang with the goats. They come right over to you wanting to be pet just like a dog.

These are American Alpine goats. They come in many different colorings. Some have long hair all over, others, like this gal, has a patch of long hair along her spine and hind quarters.

Sid wishing he had a tractor.

They have 3 Llamas to protect the goats. They will spit in a Mountain Lion's eyes and kick it until it leaves.

Another pretty goat. Number 26 to be exact. Most of the goats don't have names.

The farm has about 220 milking does. They love to climb. Here is a pair on top of the chicken tractor.

Everyone got a shot at milking a goat. It was really easy. Sid was a pro his first try.