rho @rho@fosstodon.org

Though this thing was a gonner after it froze solid over the Winter. We were shocked to see it coming back this Spring, and now the first bloom of the year!
#gardening

A few notable standouts that I've used today:

+ OTA device firmware updates.
+ Dashboard showing all devices and simple state switches for capable devices.
+ Zigbee mesh network map.
+ Touchlink factory reset broadcasts for devices with no hardware reset.

Some of this has been in the project all along, but it feels like a coherent package now.

It's a watch!

Working great. Was able to go through the setup easy enough, including setting Lat/Lon.

I think I'm going to roll with the stock firmware for a week or so just to feel it out, though I'm already itching to flash some timers onto this thing.

This screen is showing the time of today's sunset.

Dove into the F-91W/Sensor Watch assembly. Overall pretty straight forward. Some light magnification helped my older eyes, but I don't think it is necessary.

The only finicky bit was the buzzer spring connector, but the inserts in the PCB made that a fairly easy solder job once it's finagled in place.

Documentation and assembly video were great (and refreshing). Also don't forget to connect the sensor if you have one! The addendum document makes that clear, but it''s not in the video.

Received an exciting package in the mail today. I know what I'll be up to this weekend!

https://www.crowdsupply.com/oddly-specific-objects/sensor-watch

Most of the pepper plants have started to set fruit, but is particular variety is cranking them out.

This is the second time I've thinned them trying to encourage more growth.
#gardening

Getting ready for summer in the veggie garden today. Had to document the wall of cilantro/coriander before I cut most of it down.
#gardening

Saw the first of the bluebonnets (Lupinus texensis) on a walk this morning. Spring has sprung.

A warm but overcast day today provided a good opportunity to move the pepper starts out to the cold frame to begin hardening off.
#gardening

We've got some Winter weather moving in and I had to do a bit of improvising to protect our fig tree.

A warm winter (so far) has lead to some odd harvest companions in the garden. Cabbages are wrapping up, while the pepper plants are still going strong.

#gardening

Starting a new job, and the company has sent me a computer that has been provisioned to work with their systems. It's a MacBook Pro. Having been full time on Linux for the better part of a decade I have some mixed feelings.

So slowly configuring this thing to behave more like my personal system. Not quite where I want it but getting there.

#screenshotsunday

Our pepper plants are racing the first freeze to ripen what they have hanging out there. That means I'm still getting a pretty steady haul of pain.

In this year's installment of 'Crazy Vine We Let Take Over a Fence', Bird House Gourds!

#gardening

The ground cherries are really going off this year! Love these little things. Super productive and a sweet almost tropical strawberry kinda flavor.

#gardening

Potatoes in bags, first harvest.

A couple of our plants saw a lot of insect pressure and started dying back a little early. So we decided to harvest them and see what was going on in there. We got potatoes!

I'm very excited to see the harvest from the plants that fared better with the insects.

#gardening

Update on the growing potatoes in bags experiment.

As the potato plants grew I would mound up around them by adding more soil and unrolling the bag. Eventually the bags were completely filled up. Now it's just a waiting game while they do their thing.

Trialing an analog tech upgrade to the coldframe. This spring loaded arm has a hydraulic piston that expands and contracts with temperature, opening the cold frame lid when things get too hot. A common bit of kit in greenhouses, but looks like it may work out here.

#gardening

One of this year's garden experiments will be trying potatoes in bags. I'm using some insulated reflective bags (and one dog food bag) saved from imperfect produce deliveries earlier in the year. I don't expect they'll hold up too well out in the sun, but figured it was worth a shot just to test the method.

#gardening

A very rare sight on the sunrise loop from GOES-16 this morning. ❄️