There are two major winds here in northern Albania. The southern winds come from the Sahara bring sand and dirt with a hazy cloud of muck over the valley and the northern winds that clean the air and the muck out. The southern winds rolled in for about a week and we were hopeful for a northern front and some overdue rain. The forecast looking promising mid week but failed to produce ending the week with the sprinklers on and running. One disadvantage to our location rain comes in small bursts, no substantial amounts in the spring and summer. The grapes due well in our dry climate, most homes with a garden have at least a few vines.
As previously posted, https://www.homesteadalbania.com/post/spring-garden-complete, we planted a large garden and this can consume a few hours a day with watering, weeding or pruning. We walk the vines and trees each day inspecting the health and quality of each tree, vine and plant. Everything is alive and thriving minus a few pears and peaches damaged from the late frost. The production of the veggies are with in a week or so of picking the first tomatoes, squash, cucumbers and baby potatoes. The pomegranate trees add a fall like color to the overwhelming green landscape with this beautiful bright red orange.
We heard a few peep sounds on Tuesday coming from our hen, Mamasita, nesting cradle and by day end we counted 10 baby chicks. We have one more hen who is nesting currently so we could potentially have another ten or more in a few weeks. We used the nesting cradle Art made last year and our previous chicken "sick bay" is now the maternity wing for new mamas. We are extra aware of any falcons flying nearby or feral cats entering the garden (lost a few too many last year).
After spending the week tending to the garden and hanging a power line next door (yes he is a man of many talents). We made a side road trip to our beloved Albanian Alps as some of the travel restrictions have eased in the green zones. Luckily our area has remained free from any known cases during this current pandemic but we were still under restrictions for major movement until this week. I will upload a new video to our growing YouTube channel, @Homestead Albania, later this week to share this adventure but here are a few snaps (unedited) to tie you over.
When we returned from our short drive up the alps it was finally time to shake the first mulberry tree of the season. Sign up for the latest updates as I will be posting more on the mulberries this week.
As always stay safe and well as we want to see your lovely faces someday in the future on this side of the pond. For those that are yearning for a piece of Albania but can't leave the walls of home check out our new shop: https://www.homesteadalbania.com/shop