If you are a fan of British humour (notice the u!) then you are probably familiar with Monty Python. Monty Python was a very creative comedy group that performed many skits back in the day. One of my favorite would be some non-sensical piece that would be immediately followed by a news anchor saying “Now for something completely different”. This would be followed by the exact same non-sensical piece that preceded the news anchor. It was quite funny in a way that only the British seem to truly appreciate.

I said all that to say “Now for something completely different”. No, I’m not going to repeat my last article. I’m actually going to talk about something completely different. I’m sure that most of you think of wood when you think about carving. Today I want to introduce you to cottonwood bark.

Where does it come from, where does it go

Cottonwood bark comes from the cottonwood tree. The cottonwood is part of the willow family. They are very fond of river bottoms and do very well in flood zones. The tree can absorb a lot of water and it is my understanding that it is very fibrous. It can be used for pallets and pulp but does not have many other uses.

The bark is the part we are most interested in. On young trees the bark is yellowish-green and smooth. As the trees age the bark gets very thick with deep furrows. When the trees die the bark will loosen from the wood and will fall off or can be peeled off. The bark is broken into pieces of suitable size for carving.

General characteristics

Cottonwood bark has some very unique characteristics. The outer bark is usually some shade of gray and is very rough. The inner bark is a very pleasing brown and will carve to a nice smooth finish.

One thing that makes cottonwood bark interesting to carve is how it is formed. It is made up of hundreds and hundreds of newspaper thin layers. This makes carving it very easy compared to hardwood but also makes the bark easier to break off. Care must be taken.

Why is it so popular (not poplar)?

Cottonwood bark offers many advantages to a carver. The overall impression of a well done cottonwood bark piece is very nice. The roughness and color of the outer bark contrasts nicely with the smooth, rich brown color of the inner bark. Cottonwood bark can be carved easily by hand. For carvers who have issues with harder woods this can be a lifesaver.

Another great thing about cottonwood bark is that it forces you outside the realm of patterns. Each piece is so different that it’s hard to do anything the same way twice. If you want to start breaking out into something new in your carvings cottonwood bark provides an easy way to do it.

Popular uses

The most popular uses of cottonwood bark are for woodspirits and other faces in relief. The contrast and finish of the bark really makes faces shine. Other uses are usually some kind of relief. You have probably seen some of these types of carvings in Carving Magazine.

I’m not saying that there is no one carving in the round out of cottonwood bark. There is usually at least one person doing everything out there somewhere. I am saying that bark does not lend itself well to in the round carving because it is not as stable as hardwood.

Carving and Finishing

You can carve cottonwood bark with your regular carving tools. In fact you’ll find it quite easy and enjoyable. I have carved it with power in the roughing stage but I find that it doesn’t respond well to power beyond that.

One point of caution, since the bark is constantly exposed to the elements the outer layers will be full of grit. In the south we like grits but up north you will want to get rid of it. You can scrub away at it with a brush to get the grit off but you will not get all of it out. When you start roughing out your carving you will be dulling your tools on this grit. This is no big deal as long as you remember to keep your tools sharp. Strop often!

To finish I take a pretty simple approach. I will spray on a couple of coats of Deft (blue can). After this had dried very well I will apply a coat or two of Watco Wax in either the neutral, dark, or 50/50 mix of the two. Once this is dried and I’m satisfied I will buff to a shine with a horse hair brush. I have also heard of carvers who finish with shoe cream. I’m sure there are many options out there.

Finishing

Cottonwood bark is an attractive medium and I recommend it to anyone who is interested in woodspirits and other types of relief carving. It carves well and easily. It can be brittle so care has to be taken while you are carving. Also, since the grit in the outer bark cannot be avoided. Sharpen your tools often.

This article originally appeared in Carving Magazine

Posted on December 4th, 2009 by John
Filed under: Woodcarving | 2 Comments »

It’s the end of the first year for my asparagus bed and time to prepare it for winter. This first year I did not harvest any of the shoots and let them all grow into tall ferns. The first order of business is to let the asparagus grow until the frost starts knocking it back and it turns yellow.

Once it’s turning yellow and starting to die back it’s time to cut it down. I had my lovely assistant cut these off from 1-3 inches above the ground. It’s very important to discard the ferns. If you have an asparagus beetle infection they will leave their eggs behind. We put the ferns into a wheelbarrow, took them to the burn pile and burned them up. This is the best way to take care of next years asparagus beetles.

The final treatment consists of mulching the bed. This will help keep the soil warm and is the first defense against weeds. I just used newly fallen leaves for this application. They are free and plentiful in my area and should do fine.

Posted on November 25th, 2009 by John
Filed under: Country Life | No Comments »

It’s hard to believe how things change in a week. The asparagus is growing like crazy. Some stalks grew 8 inches in 7 days. Almost all of it has broken the ground by now. These stalks will keep growing and open up into some something like a fern. This first year we leave them alone and let them pump all their energy into the root system.

Also amazing is the potato box. We had to add another six inches in height this week. That’s 12 inches of growth over the past two weeks. We keep piling in the compost and the tops keep growing. By the end of the season we should have a tall box full of taters.

Mandi also planted her strawberry bed last week. We had destroyed our other when we built our shed. In just one week we witnessed an amazing amount of growth on these things. This is one of the two boxes. Both have seen incredible growth.

Also planted this week were raspberries. A friend offered me enough shoots to for 12 plantings. I gladly accepted and prepared an area. I will give them about 48 square feet. This should be enough for 2-3 gallons a year which will be a nice supplement for freezer jam and a few cobblers.

Besides these items I’ve included pictures of some blueberries, grapes, tomatos and Bubba laying an egg. She is a loud cackler.

Posted on May 11th, 2009 by John
Filed under: Country Life | 1 Comment »

Got home today and had to work with the bees. I had not been able to check them for a week. My new hive needed fed and my old hive needed sugar dusted. Mandi decided to pull up a chair so we could chat while I was working. Right after I got started she noticed a very large swarm about 12 feet up in the air. My first ever swarm!

I thought I would have one soon and was preparing a place but it wasn’t ready yet. I quickly pulled out my old Black and Decker Workmate and put one of my old hives from last year on it. I grabbed a frame of wax with some nectar from another hive and put in a feeder. During this time Mandi had called my dad and he came over to lend a hand. He used to have nine hives and had captured several swarms before.

The swarm was on about four different branches. It appeared to be around four pounds of bees. If it had been lower it wouldn’t have been too bad but the spot wasn’t very level and I don’t like ladders. My dad thought I should shake them into a box but I want to try and cut them down. The cutting went ok at first but I found out pretty quickly that what I thought was a slight movement could dislodge a few thousand bees. By the time I was done with the cutting I had half of them in the hive and the other half was forming another ball a little bit further out of reach.

I decided to get a box and then shook the remaining bees into it. I then dumped these bees into the hive with the rest of the bees. I couldn’t guarantee that I had gotten the queen but felt pretty good that I had. I noticed about 1000 bees making a new ball in the tree and that had me worried. About that time I noticed a very small ball of bees forming on the outside of the hive. I gently ran my finger under the ball and the queen walked right out of it onto my hand! I couldn’t believe it. That was a real blessing. I put my hand down into the hive and she walked off of my finger into the bees.

I put the top on the bees and noticed that the small ball in the tree was gone. There were about 50 bees on the front porch of the hive with their abdomens in the air and flapping their wings. I assume they are putting out the chemicals to let the remaining bees know where to come to. About two hours later I went out and several bees were doing orientation flights.

This was not only a lot of fun but was also a great learning experience for me. Here’s a link to the Youtube video.

Posted on May 5th, 2009 by John
Filed under: Beekeeping | 2 Comments »

Thought I’d supply a little farming update. Lot’s of good things going on this week.

First off, we have a new addition around here. Moses the cat. He is the family cat but Abi got to pick him out and name him. We hope he becomes a heroic mouser. That’s the role we hired him to fill.

I was able to plant my asparagus bed. The crowns came in the mail and I didn’t even realize what they were. They looked like really long squid. Quite a root system. Anyway, the bed has been planted and we should see our first growth in the next couple of weeks. Here’s a link to a pictorial on how to plant asparagus and here’s a link to my other posting with just a few technical details.

We are experimenting with growing potatoes vertically. The ‘box’ is made out of cypress so it won’t rot. The potatoes are planted in the very bottom. As they grow you put dirt around them and keep adding sides to increase the height of the box. One gentleman in  Washington has grown 100 pounds of potatoes in one 2×2 spot. Here’s a picture of where we are right now. It’s almost time to add to the sides and put in more dirt. We have filled in about 6 inches so far on these. At the end of the season these should be totally full of potatoes. Might be a really good solution for people in the city with limited space.

Mandi has reestablished the strawberry beds. She really enjoys fresh strawberries. Right next to these is the herb bed. Fresh herbs are fun.

The blueberries are doing really well. I studied up on pruning at the end of winter and tried my best to prune them well. They seem to have established themselves very well. The bees were all over them pollinating and now the berries are forming. It’s really neat to see fruit growing that was pollinated by your own bees. I put out some chicken manure around them yesterday and it rained later. Will help the manure slowly work it’s way through the mulch into the soil.

Speaking of bees, this is what they look like on a damp morning. They don’t like coming out to go to work either.

The grapes are coming on as well. It always seems they are way behind everything else as far as putting out leaves. Then they just take off. You can see the little clusters here. Each spot will be a bloom and once pollinated will make a grape. I also put out some chicken manure around them and then some lime. Grapes don’t like acidic soil so it’s important to keep it more neutral. This variety is a seedless Concord.

This grape variety is my favorite. It taste good but that’s not why it’s my favorite. The land I live on is old family land. My great grandfather, grandfather, and father all grew up here and farmed it. I got this grape from my dad. When he was a kid he said the house these grapes were at was already gone. When I was little he went to the old home place out in the woods and got some of the vines and took them to his home. This year we transplanted this vine here so the grapes are back close to where they came from. He’s not sure what family lived at the old home where the grapes were and now that whole spot has been turned into a cow pasture.  We have the only vines that we know of. We’re not sure of the variety but they are a pink grape.

This is part of our tomatoes. I think we are going to have around 40 plants. These are growing on part of our terraces. We have several heirloom varieties and also lots of Romas for making sauce and canning.

This last picture is of our Bloodgood Maple. This was given to us by some good friends of ours and represents the covenant we have with them.  God is a covenant maker and keeper. Jesus came to be our representative with the Father and to make a covenant with God on our behalf. Marriage is also a covenant. David and Jonathan were in a covenant of friendship. Every covenant had a sign to remind the makers of it. This tree represents our covenant friendship.

Posted on May 3rd, 2009 by John
Filed under: Country Life | 3 Comments »

Here’s a little farming update for those of you keeping score at home. The first photo is of two fresh eggs. They were still warm when I picked them up.With only three chickens we get 2-3 eggs per day. Soon we’ll have 10-12 chickens and they should all be laying by September. An unfortunate accident involving a dog that is still lucky to be alive cost us 9 chickens about 3 months ago.

This photo shows our new terraces. This section of land had too much slope to farm effectively so Michael decided he would set it straight. He did all the work with the little yellow grader you see. Borrowed it from his son….Michael did do all the work by hand with a shovel and maddock. Then gathered the rocks and built the retaining walls. He’s 35 with the back of an 80 year old from all the improper lifting.

This is my favorite of the day. We have kept bantering around about building an asparagus bed. We’re too far south for asparagus to grow in the wild but I’ve heard it can grow in north Georgia pretty well. I did some research and found that was true. Asparagus likes ph around 7.0. In the southeast lots of our soil is very acidic. This plot tested at 4.5. So I dug up about 10 inches deep and tilled in lime and cow manure. I then built the box box and added top soil and more cow manure. Then tilled it all again. I have a total depth of around 14-16″ of soil that has been cultivated. Added about 150 pounds of composted cow manure. Took me about 4 hours total work. Buying top soil, manure, and asparagus crowns cost a total of about $55.00 but since a typical bed can last from 15-20 years I figured it was well worth it. You can see an update on the planting here.

I also learned that asparagus spears grow best from male crowns and there is a hybrid out now called Jersey Giant that they sell in male only form. I bought 20 JG crowns and 10 Purple Passion. It’s a little sweeter and more tender. Ordered them from Starks Brothers. Will see how they do when they arrive.We’ll be able to harvest a little bit next year and then year 3 begin a full harvest.

Posted on April 25th, 2009 by John
Filed under: Country Life | 5 Comments »

Not really an inspection today as much as a feeding and a quick glance. My strong hive is a survivor from last year. They are doing very well. I didn’t treat them for mites very well last year because of lack of experience and they still came through very well. These are Russians crosses I got from fatbeeman last year as a nucleus hive. Lots of bees started hanging out on front today. Not sure if they are just hot (85 today) or if they are just starting to think about swarming. Guess I’ll know soon.

My other hive is from a two pound package I put in on 4/19/09. The queen was released on 04/21/09. They have already built out almost two frames of wax to go with the two I gave them. My modified feeder is working well. I’ll have to get some pictures up soon.

Posted on April 25th, 2009 by John
Filed under: Beekeeping | 1 Comment »

We have been adding to our food production as time, space, and money allow. We have been interested in apple trees but had not pursued it. On the property there is an area that is almost 1/2 an acre of pine beetle destruction. Pine trees laying everywhere and in some pretty dangerous angles. I have never thought much of the spot.

Michael checked it out and recommended we put our orchard there. He said it was a great location for fruit trees and with a little cleaning up we could get right to planting this spring. Needless to say, I felt like it would be way too much work to have a suitable spot this spring but since he is a forester by trade I went along with it.

You can see from the first pictures that this was anything but an easy job. We cut and piled, cut and piled and then cut and piled some more. If running a chainsaw makes you feel manly then this was the place to be. After we got everything piled up we got a burn permit and let it rip. There were three large piles for our Phase 1. They burned away to nothing. You can see how cleaned out it is in this area.

The trees are finally in the ground. I started with one red delicious and one golden delicious. Apple trees will self-polinate but you always do better with cross-pollination. These are good pollinators for each other and will also pollinate other varieties well as we add them. These two are semi-dwarfs and will average around 15′ in height. They will produce 12 to 15 bushels per tree on average when mature. I wanted dwarf trees but did not have access to any. That’s probably what my new ones will be. Dwarfs will top out at 10′ at the most and still produce around 6-8 bushels. Either way, these two trees will be good additions to what we are doing. These are also right behind my beehives so it will be an easy flight. I like efficiency.

I wanted to plant several but at $20.00 each I don’t have the money for many. Michael reminded me that overseas they do things when they can knowing it will still be good and that they are helping their kids and other future generations as well. I decided to drop the American attitude about getting it all done now and practicing some patience. Jesus continues to teach me and it was extra nice to learn something through farming since so many of His parables used the same subject.

Phase 2 will consist of continued cutting, piling, and burning. We’ll plant more apple trees in this area and most likely some peaches and pears on up the hill. If you want to run your chainsaw and feel manly then come join us!

Posted on February 26th, 2009 by John
Filed under: Country Life | 1 Comment »

Learned a hard lesson today. I came across a solid food recipe for wintering bees and decided to use it in my hives. Everything looked like it should go pretty well but it definitely did not. The recipe I was using called for using 1 cup of corn syrup to 7.5 cups of powdered sugar. Mix it together into a thick clay-like substance. No cooking so it was very easy. Fit into some screen, hang from a top bar and I was ready to go.

It was 61 degrees today so I decided to do an inspection. I’m glad I did. You can see from the photo what I found. It was not pretty. Hundreds of dead bees, ants running everywhere. I was afraid the hive had been seriously set back. I worked my way to the front and found the brood chamber was in good shape with lots of bees. That was a huge relief.

I had two hives this year and one died out. I took their hive, scraped it down, and moved this hive to it. While I was at it I put powdered sugar all over them. Once all that was done I put the new hive back in their spot so the foragers would find home. I then took the old hive and scraped out all the sugar goop and sprayed it out with water until it was good and clean. That hive is now drying in the shed.

Was a pretty disappointing day overall because I’ve worked really hard this year on my bees. I’ve made a lot of mistakes as well. Hard work doesn’t always overcome mistakes but so far so good. This hive seems to be really strong. I didn’t treat them well for mites but they’ve held up well. I’m going to have to keep an eye on them for food since this solid food is gone but they didn’t have some honey. I also put in some dry sugar for the time being.

Posted on January 4th, 2009 by John
Filed under: Beekeeping | 2 Comments »

My friend Michael had a chicken coup he built at a place he was renting. Since he had moved he wasn’t using it and he took it down and reconstructed it here at the house. It’s a great coup with four built in laying boxes, plenty of roosting space, and enough headroom where I can stand up inside. We hope to have 8-12 laying hens when we are at full speed.

Another friend gave me the 10′x10′ dog lot. We took apart one corner and then attached the sides to the chicken coup. Michael put in a lot of sweat equity and buried some fencing a foot deep all the way around. I put up some netting across the top to keep predators out from that direction.

It’s right next to our shed where we’ll have feed storage and a rain barrel. Should make it much easier to take care of them.

Posted on January 4th, 2009 by John
Filed under: Country Life | 3 Comments »