Tag: New Jersey

Friday (04-March-2022) — New Jersey

Wintertime Nature in New Jersey.

Birds of the day viewed in the backyard, at the birdfeeder and on the patio: Dark-eyed Junco.


Birds of the day. Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.

I spent much of the day working on the yard. A lot to do to get ready for spring. The ground is wet. For the time-lapse video, I’m moving and spreading wood chips using Red Rover.

Daily Electric Energy Used (104.3 kWh) from Sense. Daily Solar Electric Energy Produced (58.3 kWh) from Sense. Sunny, but colder. Deficit of 46.0 kWh. I should note that the Solar monitoring from SolSystem via Locus Energy stopped working since the Locus LG-120 meter uses 3G cellular to connect. ATT has turned off 3G cellular.

Thursday (03-March-2022) — New Jersey

Wintertime Nature in New Jersey.

Birds of the day viewed in the backyard, at the birdfeeder and on the patio: Mourning Dove, Blue Jay, European Starling, Dark-eyed Junco, White-throated Sparrow, Song Sparrow, Northern Cardinal.


Birds of the day. Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.

Indoor Hydroponic Updates. Bounty-01 (Day 46). Bok Choi doing well. The final plants were harvested today, and the Bounty restarted with Bok Choi seedling transplants. The Dill is growing tall and the plants harvesed. The Black-seeded Simpson and Rouge d’Hiver lettuce doing well. Harvesting leaves every other day. The Genovese Basil is doing well. I’ve needed to top off the water every day and add fertilizer every other day. Bounty-03 (Day 38). Dill and Genovese Basil doing well. The Italian and Curly Parsley starting to get bigger. Bounty-04 (Day 20). Heirloom Red Tomatoes (5/5). Golden Harvest Tomatoes (4/4). The Heirloom Red Tomatoes were all transplanted to a Farm module. Bounty-04 was restarted with transplanted Basil seedlings.


Bounty-01, Bounty-02, Bounty-03, Bounty-04. Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.

AeroGarden Farm-01L (Day 45). California Poppy, Oriental Poppy, Lauren’s Grape Poppy. AeroGarden Farm-01R (Day 42). Hungarian Bread Seed Poppy, Red Poppy, Turkish Tulip Poppy. AeroGarden Farm-02L (Day 45). Somn Blend Poppy, Red Poppy Red Poppy, Red Mix Poppy. AeroGarden Farm-02R (Day 42). Oriental Poppy, Hungarian Bread Seed Poppy, Turkish Tulip Poppy, Red Poppy, Red Poppy, Somn Blend Poppy.


Farm-01L, Farm-01R, Farm-02L, Farm-02R. Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.

AeroGarden Farm-03L and Farm-03R (Day 38). Kale, Collard Greens, Spinach, Mustard Greens. All of the greens are growing fast, and producing large leaves. I am having to harvest the largest leaves to provide light to the smaller plants. AeroGarden Farm-04L and Farm-04R (Day 38). Oregano, Rosemary, Tarragon, Thyme, and Sage.


Farm-03L, Farm-03R, Farm-04L, Farm-04R. Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.

AeroGarden Farm-06L (Day 29). Snapdragon (A1); Chrysanthemum (A2, A3); Iceland Poppy (B1, B2); Sweet William (B3), Columbine (C1, C2, C3); Osteospermum (D1, D2); Blue Daisy (D3). AeroGarden Farm-06R (Day 11). Various types of lettuce. Red Sails (A1, A2, A3, B3); Deer Tongue (B1, B2); Black-seeded Simpson (C1, C2); Rouge d’Hiver (C3, D3); Paris Island (D1, D2). AeroGarden Farm-07L (Day 11). Heirloom Red Tomatoes and Golden Harvest Tomatoes. AeroGarden Farm-0RL (Day 11). Bok Choi (12/12) already sprouted.


Farm-06L, Farm-06R, Farm-07L, Farm-07R. Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.

AeroGarden Farm-08 (Day 45). California Poppy, Oriental Poppy, Lauren’s Grape Poppy. The odd plant is Celosia. The first California Poppy flower opened yesterday. Today I made a time-lapse video of the flower opening. This California poppy is bright red. Most in the past have been yellow or orange. AeroGarden Farm-08R (Day 45). Hungarian Bread Seed Poppy, Red Poppy, Turkish Tulip Poppy. AeroGarden Farm-09L (Day 45). Somn Blend Poppy, Red Poppy Red Poppy, Red Mix Poppy. AeroGarden Farm-09R Seed Starter (Day 11). Nine different Basil varieties. Row A: Dark Opal Basil (6/9). Row B: Cinnamon Basil (9/9). Row C: Genovese Basil (8/10). Row D: Holy Basil (8/11). Row E: Italian Large Leaf Basil (8/8). Row F: Lemon Basil (9/10). Row G: Lime Basil (10/11). Row H. Sweet Basil (9/9). Row I: Thai Basil (6/8).


Farm-08L, Farm-08R, Farm-09L, Farm-09R. Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.

Daily Electric Energy Used (79.2 kWh) from Sense. Daily Solar Electric Energy Produced (57.3 kWh) from Sense. Sunny. Deficit of 21.9 kWh. I should note that the Solar monitoring from SolSystem via Locus Energy stopped working since the Locus LG-120 meter uses 3G cellular to connect. ATT has turned off 3G cellular.

Wednesday (02-March-2022) — New Jersey

Wintertime Nature in New Jersey.

Birds of the day viewed in the backyard, at the birdfeeder and on the patio: Mourning Dove, Black-capped Chickadee, Tufted Titmouse, European Starling, Eastern Bluebird, Dark-eyed Junco, Song Sparrow, Northern Cardinal.


Birds of the day. Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.

I noticed the Purple Crocus starting to bloom across the street. It is not the earliest, but still a sign that spring is coming.


Spring is Coming!. Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.

One of the indoor Hydroponic Garden California Poppies started to bloom (Day 45). This one is bright Red. Normally, I think of California Poppies as being yellow or orange. The final Bok Choi (Day 46) is ready to harvest.


Indoor Hydroponic Garden. Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.

The Troll with the Hot Peppers guarding my mailbox. It survived the winter without being hit by the snow plows.

Mailbox Troll. (David J Mathre)
Mailbox Troll with Hot Peppers. Image taken with a Leica SL2 camera and 90-280 mm lens. (David J Mathre)

Daily Electric Energy Used (82.3 kWh) from Sense. Daily Solar Electric Energy Produced (54.3 kWh) from Sense and SolSystems. Sunny. Deficit of 28.0 kWh.

Tuesday (01-March-2022) — New Jersey

Wintertime Nature in New Jersey.

Birds of the day viewed in the backyard, at the birdfeeder and on the patio: Mourning Dove, Black Vulture, Black-capped Chickadee, Tufted Titmouse, Dark-eyed Junco.


Birds of the day. Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.

Daily Electric Energy Used (94.0 kWh) from Sense. Daily Solar Electric Energy Produced (68.4 kWh) from Sense and SolSystems. Cloudy. Deficit of 78.6 kWh.

Monday (28-February-2022) — New Jersey

Wintertime Nature in New Jersey.

Birds of the day viewed in the backyard, at the birdfeeder and on the patio: Mourning Dove, Turkey Vulture, Bald Eagle, American Crow. The Bald Eagle returned for a second day. At this point, most of the carcass is gone, with two Turkey Vultures waiting for the leftovers. On the right leg of the eagle there is a green tag (D 99). This may identify the eagle as a nearly eight-year old male born at Duke Farms. While the big birds are around, the smaller song birds have been hiding.


Birds of the day. Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.


Bald Eagle and Turkey Vulture. Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.


Turkey Vultures. Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.

Indoor Hydroponic Updates. Bounty-01 (Day 43). Bok Choi doing well. Two more plants harvested this last week. It was important that I thinned it down to 1 plant per position. Even then the plants are crowded in the Bounty. I also have to top off the water every day, and add fertilizer every other day. Bounty-02 (Day 43). The Dill is growing tall. I started harvesting the top of the Dill. The Black-seeded Simpson and Rouge d’Hiver lettuce doing well. Harvesting leaves every other day. The Genovese Basil is doing well. Needed to trim some of the Dill and lettuce so the basil gets more light. I’ve needed to top off the water every day and add fertilizer every other day. Bounty-03 (Day 35). Dill and Genovese Basil doing well. The Italian and Curly Parsley starting to get bigger. Bounty-04 (Day 20). Heirloom Red Tomatoes (5/5). Golden Harvest Tomatoes (4/4). The Heirloom Red Tomatoes are about ready to be thinned and transplanted to a Farm module.


Bounty-01, Bounty-02, Bounty-03, Bounty-04. Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.

AeroGarden Farm-01L (Day 42). California Poppy, Oriental Poppy, Lauren’s Grape Poppy. AeroGarden Farm-01R (Day 42). Hungarian Bread Seed Poppy, Red Poppy, Turkish Tulip Poppy. AeroGarden Farm-02L (Day 42). Somn Blend Poppy, Red Poppy Red Poppy, Red Mix Poppy. AeroGarden Farm-02R (Day 42). Oriental Poppy, Hungarian Bread Seed Poppy, Turkish Tulip Poppy, Red Poppy, Red Poppy, Somn Blend Poppy.


Farm-01L, Farm-01R, Farm-02L, Farm-02R. Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.

AeroGarden Farm-03L and Farm-03R (Day 35). Kale, Collard Greens, Spinach, Mustard Greens. I initially thought I also planted Swiss Chard but during the transfer from the seed starting tray probably swapped with Sage. The Swiss Chard ended up in Farm-04L and Farm-04R. All of the greens are growing fast, and producing large leaves. I am having to harvest the largest leaves to provide light to the smaller plants. I also harvested the Swiss Chard in Farm-O4L/04R to make room for the Sage from Farm-03L/03R. Next time I should probably only plant a single type of greens in each Farm with a limit it to 4 or 6 plants. AeroGarden Farm-04L and Farm-04R (Day 35). Oregano, Rosemary, Tarragon, Thyme, and now Sage.


Farm-03L, Farm-03R, Farm-04L, Farm-04R. Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.

AeroGarden Farm-06L (Day 26). Transplanted from seed starter Farm-09R. Snapdragon (A1); Chrysanthemum (A2, A3); Iceland Poppy (B1, B2); Sweet William (B3), Columbine (C1, C2, C3); Osteospermum (D1, D2); Blue Daisy (D3). AeroGarden Farm-06R (Day 8). Various types of lettuce. Red Sails (A1, A2, A3, B3); Deer Tongue (B1, B2); Black-seeded Simpson (C1, C2); Rouge d’Hiver (C3, D3); Paris Island (D1, D2). AeroGarden Farm-07L (Day 8). Heirloom Red Tomatoes and Golden Harvest Tomatoes. AeroGarden Farm-0RL (Day 8). Bok Choi (12/12) already sprouted.


Farm-06L, Farm-06R, Farm-07L, Farm-07R. Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.

AeroGarden Farm-08 (Day 42). California Poppy, Oriental Poppy, Lauren’s Grape Poppy. The odd plant is Celosia. AeroGarden Farm-08R (Day 42). Hungarian Bread Seed Poppy, Red Poppy, Turkish Tulip Poppy. AeroGarden Farm-09L (Day 42). Somn Blend Poppy, Red Poppy Red Poppy, Red Mix Poppy. AeroGarden Farm-09R Seed Starter (Day 4). Nine different Basil varieties. Row A: Dark Opal Basil (6/9). Row B: Cinnamon Basil (8/9). Row C: Genovese Basil (5/10). Row D: Holy Basil (2/11). Row E: Italian Large Leaf Basil (8/8). Row F: Lemon Basil (9/10). Row G: Lime Basil (9/11). Row H. Sweet Basil (9/9). Row I: Thai Basil (5/8).


Farm-08L, Farm-08R, Farm-09L, Farm-09R. Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.

AeroGarden Farm-10L (Day 26). Row A (1-3): Calendula; Row B (1-3): Osteospermum; Row C (1-3): Sweet William; Row D (1-3): Snapdragon. AeroGarden Farm-10R (Day 26). Row A (1-3): Calendula; Row B (1-3): Osteospermum; Row C (1-3): Sweet William; Row D (1-3): Snapdragon. AeroGarden Farm-11 (Day 26). Row A (1-3): Chrysanthemum; Row B (1-3): Iceland Poppy; Row C (1-3): Chrysanthemum; Row D (1-3): Iceland Poppy.


Farm-10L, Farm-10R, Farm-11. Individual images in the slideshow are available in my PhotoShelter Gallery.

Daily Electric Energy Used (89.3 kWh) from Sense. Daily Solar Electric Energy Produced (55.3 kWh) from Sense and SolSystems. Sunny. Deficit of 34.0 kWh.

Monthly Electric Energy Used (2564 kWh) from Sense. Daily Solar Electric Energy Produced (834 kWh) from Sense and SolSystems. Deficit of 1730 kWh.