July 31, 2008 - Lettuce Leave No Ground Unplanted

I just cannot stand to have a bare spot in my garden. I'm controlling myself and not planting in the bed I'm using for trench composting, but yesterday afternoon I kept looking at the box I'd built for next years salad greens and I just couldn't stand it any longer. I grabbed the two packets of seeds I had leftover from my failed attempt at growing bunny greens in a pot in Arizona last winter, and headed for the garden. I combined the two packets, "Mesclun Spicy Mix" and "Mesclun Gourmet Greens", and scattered the seeds over the entire bed. I tamped them down with the rake, and will let them grow wherever they wish....or not, whichever is the case. If they grow, I can transplant the thinnings over in the ski-bean-pole garden, where they might benefit from a bit of shade.

Our house rabbit, Cookie, is (shall we say) spoiled. We make do with the cheap heads of iceberg, romaine and leaf lettuces from the market, while Cookie is given the "Spring Mix" at around three-bucks for a 5-ounce bag. It almost pays to drive all the way to Costco, where I can get the same thing in a one-pound container for about the same price. If I can manage to grow more of his food, it would be a huge savings.





We've had Cookie, a Netherland Dwarf, for over six years now. He'll be 7-years old in October. He's always roamed freely through our homes, until we bought the puppies this past April. Now a baby gate confines him to one room, unless we are right there to monitor his safety. I think he's finally getting used to the dogs, though. And they don't show quite as much interest in chasing him any more. When they do chase, it's more in fun than going after prey. I really think Cookie lives to antagonize them!

6 comments:

  1. Lunch for Kodiak!

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  2. Who? Cookie? Cookie's a pretty tough bunny *g*.

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  3. is your bunny litterbox trained? i'd love to have one but just cant stand the idea of cocoa puffs all over the house! :)

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  4. anonymous, yes and no. He was litterbox trained until recently, and now I'm afraid old age has set in. The past few months he has refused to use his litterbox, so he is usually confined to his cage now. He used to have free run of the house when he used his "pooper box", only being caged at night.

    Cookie turned seven last month, and his variety is expected to live 5-7 years. He has never had a sick day in his life, an we have had him for over 6-1/2 years now.

    I would warn you, the cocoa puffs are not bad, even when they miss the box. They are hard, have no bad odor, and are easy to control with a hand vac (I use a Dust Buster). The urine is the problem. The stench is horrid, so one must be constantly changing the litter box.

    They are easy to litterbox train. Although they are not a rodent, like rodents they will go to a corner to poop and pee. So confine them, initially, and put the box in a corner. It doesn't take long for them to learn, especially if the box contains (or is near) some lovely fresh hay to munch on while doing their business.

    If I can be of further help, feel free to email me at anniebloom1@gmail.com

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  5. oh my goodness...cookie is the cutest!!!

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  6. Kelli, he's an old man. He was 7 years old last October, and Netherland Dwarf rabbits usually only live 5-7 years. He's still healthy and spry...must be the fresh garden veggies I feed him ;-)

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