They will rebuild the ruined cities and live in them. They will plant vineyards and drink their wine; they will make gardens and eat their fruit.
We stripped this willow trunk bare feeding to the cows and sheep. They go crazy for it, gobbling it up like candy. They even prefer it when they are on grass, and the sheep peel the bark off the larger branches and eat that. Within a week or two it is already sprouting a ton… Continue reading Eats Shoots and Leaves
Tuesday was the day we installed the pump. It was not a particularly smooth process. As the saying goes... Measure once, Cuss twice. When I measured for the box I was planning on using a simple sheet of plywood for the walls, then halfway through building the box I decided to make them out of… Continue reading Installing the Pump
Measure twice, cut once. The pump for our rainwater catchment system is an inline RainFlo MHP75A Automatic Booster pump. The idea is that it will pump water from the catchment tank to the water lines that feed the pasture. Obviously, this means that the pump needs to be mounted on a sturdy surface, and additionally,… Continue reading Building the Pump Box
With the rain that has been falling semi-regularly for the last month our pastures are starting to green up nicely, but not really putting on the height like they did in the spring. I am afraid we may have overgrazed them a little this summer. That's okay. We are learning what the carrying capacity of… Continue reading Back on Grass
Miss Winnie is now two years old. As a newly minted two-year-old she feels that she should be directly involved in all the major tasks on the farm. Whatever Mommy or Daddy are doing, Winnie wants to help with it. She won't hear any of this nonsense about, "No, you're too little." What do you… Continue reading Me-Me do!
It's been a while since we've updated on the Turkeys. We originally had 7 which arrived at the beginning of June, living in our large brooder for a couple of months. One escaped the coop and hopped the fence, flying off to be a free turkey like his ancestors, but the other six are still… Continue reading Turkey Birds
Here it is, September. The gardening season is about over, because it has been getting cool and rainy again, and now... Now! the garden has decided to wake up and make something of itself. Get in my belly, corn! Tomatoes just beginning to turn, corn beginning to tassel out. Let's see if anything can manage… Continue reading Garden Update
We continue the electrical/plumbing project behind the shop, a little at a time, as we have an hour here or there. We really should try to hit it hard this weekend, but it is always hard to get time away from all the urgent things to get to the farming. We have deepened and widened… Continue reading Putting in the Conduit
Our seed cleaning screens from Siskiyou seeds came on Monday, so on Tuesday we completed the winnowing of the wheat. As it turns out, it was also the final threshing. First, scrubbing the tomato out of the rubber tote. The kids were all about this because it involved using chlorox wipes. They love the smell… Continue reading Final Winnowing
The cows are her favorites. Just like her Mommy.
Little Farm in the Big City 