On Being a Farm Wife (and other hazard: Joyce Bupp It’s all about the birds and the bees. Spring’s early insistence on rushing into summer picked up the pace recently for critters that snooze away the chilly months. Nowhere is that more evident than at calf feeding time, when last week’s imitation of July stirred the dive-bombing-bunch out of hibernation. Weeks earlier than usual, feeding calves began requiring a sort of weave-dodge maneuver to deliver bottles around an aerial threat that usually turns up only by early summer. After being continuously buzzed by this slow-flying forma tion last year, it took some study ing to pinpoint their source. The o £)° FBSBKbKB* sd° 1» s» A>° ■MMMMtaviUMM A° y ln... The SaVlngs Are In Full Bloom” _ W f| / SOFA AND LOVESEAI' \/3 PC. END TABLE SET' / ~ RAM'S HORN ~ x ff 3? 'ss» ■ «S7s nri m 1 S CLOSEOUT **M E nI N 4 I TSkw Mi.. IT! I ___ _ gft."* 1 jfe H $ 589 04 COLOREDFABR,CS I c SL p 2f IHBfe 1 I ® JTo | tJJiL . 1 $209.95 I Qt— - $799.95 . JLa © ; r j ; © o' o I“”I T r * v * *■ mm4)* w| * m m*l mi m 4ft i> at^* i -I . » I I 5 DRAWER DRESSER \ ■ ir.HTTr\ f'lnzm ' In Pecan Oak Finish . t i FT LIGHTED CURIO ■feSggnrifM Reg. Ret. yM Available In Oak and 1 EftjjHlH $179 95 I |f~t' Cherry Finish I ■ry "SlWi Our Price . If# Reg. Ret $489.95 ■ *89.95 Lj-1 Our Price $229 95 StPfflJW CLOSEOUT | HJ $4 CQBB I $<3QO4 . U_k Special . -i op SD° <3p u /3 PC. LIVING ROOM SET\ I Sofa Loveseat & Chaise . Dark Brown Velvet 1 igwpF $lOB9 95 I CLOSEOUT $ 799 88 , TWIN/DOUBLE \ ' futon BUNK | in Black Red "fj "*x White w/8' 1 I ' t Futon Mattress | r*®- • - / Reg Ret r ~ ■ n $898.95 I Cs 9 JO° i' 1 b‘ IFECIj / 7 PC. DINING ROOM I Oak Table w/your Choice -1 I 2 an [Factory Special | PINE COCKTAIL TABLE , , Only 23 Leftt I Reg. Ret. $349.95 f UNDER | WHOLESALE CLOSEOUT •79 95 | pc7end table set fat, slow-buzzing bumblebees would cruise around my head and ears as I fed calves, then sud denly disappear, as if into thin air. Finally, I spotted a couple of tiny, perfectly-round holes in the two-by-fours overhead which support the calf condo’s metal roofing, and watched the pudgy bees neatly vanish into them. Those bumblebees had tun neled holes right through the wooden bean&.to locate then homes snug against the shelter of the roofing. It would be hard to find a more ideal hibernation site than that, where the winter sun warms the metal roof, a secure and handy hideaway for a buggy bunch. With increased hours of sun- ( 3 PC. COCKTAIL & ' 1 END TABLE SET I -ft! rr ■ Cash Price I $560 95 CLOSEOUT r, . . »289 95 6 29Sets' ' Reg Ret I | $2200.00 , Cash Price SOFA TABLE Reg Ret. $399.95 Our Price $209 95 CLOSEOUT $ 119 95 We can coexist with bumble bees. Their foul-tempered cous ins, the wasps, which also burst from winter sleep, are another story. Wasps are just plain down hateful, and too often choose to build their papery nests in busy people-right-of way places. Inevitably, a couple of tall cans of “wasp wipeout” arrive on the scene and in the coolness of evening, when these nasty bugs settle in for the night, we mount an attack. Well, maybe it isn’t a fair fight, this version of a stinging rebuke. But it works. Equally persistent on moving into our turf, but more fun, are the birds, driven by spring frenzy to homestead anywhere they can find three square inches of nest ing space. Which becomes a problem only when their space and ours cash. Robins those rusty-breasted, cheerful-songed, harbingers of spring are notorious for their nest-siting. Each year. The Farm- 3 PC. END TABLE SET' HP [f|| RegJßet [ I I $209.95 1 Our Price $B9 95 CLOSEOUT *79 95 ' ' FUTON CLOSEOUT \ ' In Black , * Comes w/8 Mattress i 39 ; / 7PC DINING ROOM \ I CHERRY Finish , I w/36x60 Table m fT) nn 4 Side Chairs and ft] I 2 Arm Chairs MU I 'THI j~W I Reg Ret s9499sJpnn |fT\i Our Price $449 95 1 I 1 ‘ ' 1 CLOSEOUT $ 309 95 ' STORE HOURS: Mon -Fn 9-9 • Sat 9-6, Sunday 12 to 5 PM • No Refunds • All Sales Final For purchases with a check bring FINANCING •Csshi’Cirry drivers license and phone numbers AVAILABLE responsible for typographical errors We reserve the right to substitute gift items shine, enhanced by the early burst of heat, the bees were stirred into action earlier than usual. Naturally, their emergence for breakfast, and later reentry for the evening, coincide right on schedule with calf feeding. er relates new tales of robin nests in equipment: poked into tractor motors, packed into mufflers or balanced on truck frames. This year they chose the spray ring, with two pairs sharing the same piece of equipment. The pairs balanced their nesting effort, one out on each of the opposite fold ing spray booms. Maybe one of them was the robin he earlier evicted from a tractor cab. Who knows? Maybe they planned to snatch worms on the move and save the effort of fly ing. The robins he finds entertain ing. Not so the busybody black birds that literally stripped away the outer layers of protec tive paper from a bag of seed corn left uncovered in the ma chine shed, shredding and carry ing off bits of the paper to feath er, or maybe wallpaper, their nests. After the birds and bees came the beasts at least a beast getting into the act. On a very warm afternoon last week, I paused at our little green house to run a bucket of water Questions, Anyone? Get answers about federal government programs, benefits, and services from the Federal Consumer Information Center. Just call toll-free 1-800- PED-DVPO (that's 1-800-333-4636) Monday-Friday, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Eastern lime or visit vwv.pueblo.giA.gov/ciD. U.S. General Services Administration | & ! n HERNLEY’S FARM EQUIP., INC. Elizabethtown, Pa. 717-367-8867 B.H.M. FARM EQUIP. INC. Annville, Pa. 717-867-2211 it 0 B. EQUIP., INC. Waynesboro, Pa. 717-762-3193 Lancaster Farming, Saturday, April 27, 2002-B3 for some potted pansies begin* ning to droop in the heat. When a rustling started back in the far comer, stuffed with a Norfolk Is land pine and several large sprawling plants, I glanced back to see which cat was lounging around in there this time. The head that popped out from around a large potted calla lily was not of a cat. It belonged to a groundhog. A groundhog? And a big one! Without thinking, 1 turned the hose toward the spot from which the startled chuck had already disappeared. In a split second, though, one of those quick “management de cisions” was made, based on the realization that I was standing, barefooted, at the only exit. I de parted as quickly as the ground hog had. No sign of a groundhog in the greenhouse has turned up since. My level of comfort, frankly, would be a lot greater if I’d seen the tail end of that “hog” fleeing across the yard toward the field. Which leaves me wondering: where did it go? And, of more concern, how often does it come back? FARMERS EQUIPMENT & SUPPLY Airville, Pa. 717-862-3967 WERTZ FARM & POWER EQUIPMENT, INC PA Rt. 516, Glen Rock, Pa. 717-235-0111 CJ. WONSIDLER BROS. Quakertown, Pa. 215-536-7523 New Tripoli, Pa. 215-767-7611 Oley, Pa. 215-987-6257 GRUMELLi FARM SERVICE Quarryville, Pa. 717-786-7318
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