YoknaMelons
Watermelons are finally here and our shareholders couldn’t be happier! Did you know that a watermelon contains about 6% sugar and 92% water by weight? Last week at our distribution, Alex and Nicolas weighed one of our Georgia Rattlers at around 20 pounds! The fruit is not only delicious, but is ultra-hydrating and contains large amounts of beta carotene, vitamin C, and lycopene. As well, earthclinic.com recommends watermelon as a remedy for kidney and bladder infections as well as bloating.
We grow several varieties of watermelon, including Georgia Rattlesnake, (pictured above,) Sugar Baby, Crimson, Stone Mountain, and the newer Moon and Stars variety, which has been around since 1926. Its rind is dark green/purple and has many small yellow circles (stars) and one or two large yellow circles (moon).
Our apiary has been such a great help in pollinating our melon fields this summer.
Kevin carefully rescues a swarm from a nearby branch.
The apiary: Kevin keeps our bees happy and healthy so they can keep our plants happy too!
Check out this video about how bees work!
Don’t forget our full moon drum circle this Saturday night (August 13) at the farm! Here’s the event page with more details.
Also, Join us at Taylor Farmer’s Market this Saturday morning from 8-12 for local, organic produce, eggs, pork, gulf shrimp, breads, jams and jellies, pickled and canned vegetables, as well as beautiful handmade products and kickin’ live music. We’ll bring the melons!
Keep growing! Viva las locavores!
Doug, looks like the farm is really thriving this season – I am very happy and even more inspired. Oh God, give me the utter guts to attempt something like this in the future!
Going to try to make the drum circle, but residing in Pontotoc now may make my wife hesitant (she worrries more than I do about law, etc.) – I’ll have to be limited concerning consumption, ect. – a good time amyway (as long as the wife can let go of her daily concerns for a while, I will be loose and easy).
No matter what though, I’ll be in your multiple perspective course this term – looking forward to the exchanges we’ll all have during the meetings.
Thanks for being such a freedom-bearing advisor. I intend to show well for the rest of the committee – which will bode well for your guidance and academic navigation in my pursuit of a worhty disertation project.
Please let me know if I can be of assistance to you anytime – being head principal definitely has it’s advantages in terms of making things happen. My God is keeping me humble – as you know I consider this a key to sucessful principaling – especially in the beginning. Your master’s degree students need to hear about this attribute of succesfull leadership – I’ll make every effort to come when you call- because it is key to winning loyalty with parents and staff.
That said, I have been quite frugle with monies so far (I’ve said “yes” to teachers request for time, but “no” to request for large expenditures we can make do without and,furthermore, I intend to return some money to the district at year’s end (this is an old Marine Corp accoutning practice – while every other branch of armed service requests additional funds at mid-year, the disciplined Marine Corp actulally returns money to Congress each year. I’m looking to establish that sort of reputation, so that when I hit the board up for additional space for extra pre-k programs, they’ll be willing to oblige. I am also going to request an assistant principal – we have over 800 students and almost 90 staff members and our newly re-elected supt. supports both the expansion of the pre-k program and the assistant principal addition. He knows better than to let this continue – even as we’re still growing (we have boo-koodles of parents calling from Tupelo Public School District trying to get their kids in a “Star” district.
So, concerning the assistant principal posrition, please keep your eyes peeled for an inexperienced female assistant principal who is strong in curriculum – that is what I’m looking for – especially the inexpeienced instructional leader who will be open to molding – older folks simply don’t make the effort to conform to a good vision – they tend to have their own. That won’t work with me – I’m unorthodox, to say the least.)
Finally Doug, take care of yourself and don’t leave UM (not that I’ve heard anything to suggest your departure -you’re just marketable and I know that professorships are rather transient at times, but I hope you’ll hang around and contribute to any new research department that may be initiated (and, selfishly, to see me through my dissertation process. I’m indebted to you more than you know – you’ve been a true inspiration, like no other professor I’ve had in my master or PH.D. program overall. You’ve empowered me to be myself more often and that’s a wonderful gift.
See you for the drum circle or for classs on the 22nd, I believe.
Loving my new job,
Scott Haley
Principal
North Pontotoc Elementary