Winter Came in Like a Loin

We heard the weather reports, made a feed store run, picked up a couple of items at the grocery store and came home.  It was time to prepare for the storm, all the time we were hoping it would miss our little farm but Mother Nature had other ideas.  There was a fuel run on Thursday morning, all of the vehicles were backed into their parking areas, the truck was plugged into the electric timer to warm it, so starting would be easier.  The goats hay holder was filled, along with the chicken feeder, those ducks what can I do help them.  They spend all of their time eating from the earth and this is just not going to happen.

The snow came in, Friday morning about 10:20. Mr. Bootsie began breaking a tract in the afternoon.  I was raised on farm which broke the track and we continued to run the roads every few hours as the snow fell.  He, also, removed the snow from the tunnel, as we have no heat in the tunnel the weigh from the snow could collapse the tunnel.  The first snow stopped around 7:30 Friday evening and a sleety mix began to fall, this did not last long and we did not have to clear the tunnel during the night.  I got up early Saturday morning to work the fire and check on things.  It was snowing again.  This time the flakes were small so I was once again hoping the 8 to 9 inches on the ground would be all we would be blessed with.

I put my snow plan to work on Friday, the hens were left in the coop, the run was opened up so the ducks could get under the chicken house, where I was able to feed and water them.  There were 3 trips made to the coop and barn each day to replenish the water, which consisted of dumping the ice from the water bowls and filling them with warm water.  You really do not realize how much the chickens eat outside on a daily basis until they are cooped up and only have the food which you give them.  I was feeding squash seeds as a treat to the chickens and the goats.  The duck pond froze and all they had was a water bowl, which was also a bath tub for them.

It snowed all day Saturday and there was several more runs to keep the road open, trips to the tunnel to remove the snow.  There was enough wood at the house with the outside rack right out the door.  The snow was getting deep, and the ducks have very short legs, they were now pushing their way through the snow, and could hardly get about.  I packed a path to their house from the chicken house and they were able to waddle into their house for the night.  We stopped running the road to the pasture lot after the sleet fell and the snow returned, as I was concerned about an ice crust which would have been unsafe for two old farmers to walk on.  This was a good decision.  The snow stopped around 7:30 Saturday evening.  The drifting started and with a cover of 18 inches on the ground there were places the snow was 25 to 30 inches high.

With all the snow, this storm was not as bad as it could have been.  The main road was clean on Sunday and of course, the drive was blocked with the push off the road snow.  This was moved out of the way and we were able to come and go if needed.  With planning and a reserve of food from the garden we did not need to get off the farm.  So  our days were spent visiting with our farm animals and keeping the home fires going.
Monday morning, I cleaned the coop ramp and opened the ramp door, one chicken came to the door and looked out, this being her first snow, I guess she thought someone had taken her run away and she would just go back into the coop until it was returned.  Each morning the ducks make their trip to the chicken run and spent the day there.  The goats are happy being in their parlor, standing on the milking stands, checking to see if their pasture is back to normal and realizing nothing is happening.

The night temperatures were below freezing so for week everything which melted during the day became ice at night time. We could see the snow cap going down so I knew the soil was absorbing the moisture.  This was going to be so good for the summer having this extra moisture in the land.  There are places with run off which each morning was ice puddles.  The temperature started to return to normal on Friday.  I opened the coop to see the girls come and stand on the run look about and return to the coop.  One week and none of the hens have been outside.  The goats were coming out for a bit as a couple of them decided this was the time for them to come into season.  They did find they liked staying in their protected area much better than outside on the snow cap.

Sunday came and the temperature went into the 50's everything is melting and there is land, leaves, grass and lots of mud.  The chickens, well, 4 of them are outside.  By Monday all the chickens were outside and with their working on the snow in the run, it began to disappear.  On Monday, our temperature was in the high 60's, almost a day for summer wear once again.  Monday evening the run was looking good and with over night temperature in the high 40's the melt continued, all night, with us awaking to little to no snow.

The baby chicks had no idea what was going on outside, they just put all of their energy into growing and that they did.  They now have tiny wing feathers. Their combs and tail feathers are showing. They were moved into a larger brooder with plenty of room for a few weeks.  They are eating oatmeal, egg and plenty of chick starter.  They were the bright spot for us during the snow as they were always ready to show how active they could be.

This is always a learning experience and, of course, I record it here in the blog so we can look back next year to see what we need to do when winter weather is coming.  We must always have a good stock of feed for everyone, as there is nothing for anyone to eat outside the barn and coops.  Oh, and by the way, the farmer loaded up Reggie to come over and visit with my ladies, in fact, he came over twice last week.  Maybe, just maybe, there will be an almost white baby goat who may be named Flake.   Many Thanks to our farmer friend who just keeps things so interesting on Triple Creek Farm.



 

January update thru the 15th

Mother Nature has been having fun playing with the weather.  I have become so confused, jeans and short sleeved shirt one day and the next a heavy winter coat.  I question if the plants are going to harden and be able to survive the cold of the winter.

IN THE GARDEN

I spent one rainy cold day reviewing my seed orders and placed them with the companies.  I already have seeds in hand, less than a week.  I am checking the calendar and thinking I will start planting about the end of January.  I have been reading about the winter sown program and plan to get myself organized to plant some milk jugs with seeds to see if this method works well for me.  I have had real good luck starting my seeds but we are always looking for an easier way to do things.

IN THE PANTRY

Wine is still being produced, following the directions for making wine my last batch should have been ready on Christmas Day; however, it was still bubbling and you never bottle while wine is working unless you have lots of time to clean up a real sticky mess.  Since we are making blackberry wine it might color the walls if it spews out of the bottles.  The wine settled down and was bottled on January 9, 2016.  One day later and I have another 8 cups of blackberries and 1 gallon of water working.  There are more blackberries in the freezer and I will keep this project going for a while.

IN THE KITCHEN

I try to find interesting recipes I can prepare during the summer when we are quite busy.  I am starting to find some recipes which are more of a formula than a recipe.  They just give you the ingredients and you proceed according to your taste.  I am finding these to be interesting but I am making notes as to what we enjoy and I will develop my own recipe to keep in my file.  I have found this helpful, as I am learning more about the paring of vinegar and herbs with other food items and the development of pleasurable taste.  The soup pot was filled with beef vegetable soup, there will be several containers placed in the freezer, quick meals my style.

IN THE COOP

On January 10th as I was checking for eggs, there it was, a pullet egg.  My little girl born in July has laid her first egg.  On the 12th one of the hens came out of molt.  I am thinking right now, I made it and did not have to purchase any eggs.  The ducks seem to keep laying and I use their eggs in all my baking and mix with hen eggs to make scrambled eggs.

The farmer came by with baby chicks and now I have 7 little ones I am going to be raising.  We had talked, a few days ago, and I think this will be a good venture for us.  The farmer will be reclaiming the roosters and I will be building up my layers.

IN THE GOAT HOUSE

Reggie came over for meet and greet.  We were hoping he would be able to stay but he can clear the 48 inch fence as it it was not there.  I became afraid of his getting a foot hung in the fence and breaking a leg.  I called the farmer and Reggie went home for the evening.  He is a sweet and gentle goat, he just wants to be with you.  Mr. Bootsie said there would not have been in any issues if he could have come inside and stayed with us.  As soon as he is needed, he will be visiting once again.  It was wonderful seeing him playing in our pasture with the ladies.  They appeared pleased to have a good afternoon playing goats games.  

IN CLOSING

New life on the farm brings excitement and the thought of baby goats in late May or June makes me very pleased.  The farmer will get her choice as her buck is a milk goat and my girls are milk goats, we should have some good milkers.  

It appears, things are going to be busy around here for a while.  I picked up a new pickle cookbook and  I am reading a lot of recipes.  This book has a section on small batches and this is something I have been looking for.  I have taken some time and have been studying the signs of the moon and when to plant.  I think I am really understanding this for the first time.  I shall be adding a little information as I begin my planting.  Time for me to get some rest.  Tomorrow morning I need to take care of the baby chicks.  So Exciting!!!

Farm Life, Real Life

Farming has it days, when you are so pleased with everything and then, there are days which you would have been much happier if they would have never happened.  This is the same as it is with life as there are good memories and sad memories.  Having grown up on a farm, I as a child saw both sides of life.  I knew about life and life becoming food for our farm.  I, also, had experienced the loss of farm animals and how it was dealt with.  When we made the decision to add animals to our farm, I seemed to have forgotten this part of life on the farm.  After settling here, we had to put down our faithful friend who had made this journey with us.  She had gotten so old, could not lift her weigh any more and was depending on me to carry her outside when needed.  After a long talk with the vet and all of us getting our heads straight the decision was made.  We loaded her into our van and made one final trip to the vet.  They met us in the parking lot, saying they did not need our help as there were tears flowing all over the parking lot and I know they felt more than helpless in dealing with us. They knew how to deal with our cherished girl.  So my city girl, then farm girl became a memory.  One I still think about to this day, there will never be one who could replace her because she and I became one.  It took me several weeks to remove her bed from her corner, but one day it was time.  I had my heart filled with memories and my kitty was starting to show her age and once again I was dealing with losing another of our city pets.  So in settling here, we had lost all three of the pets who moved to the farm.  It was our strong desire for all of them to make the journey to the farm and enjoy the calm of our farm.

The first critters added to the farm were chickens, then came the goats.  The chickens have been here for eight years and are starting to show their age.  My mind set was for my first girls to live out their life on the farm.  Well, this happened over the Christmas season.  My girl, Ornery, became sick.  We were able to bring her around and things seemed good but with the bitter cold weather, she went down again.  I moved her to our house and took care of her.  I was spoon feeding her and watering the same way.  I was hoping she would recover, but I knew better.   After one day, I knew this was just a waiting game and I would have to let it play out.  Wrapped in a blanket and lying in a basket, she took her final breath.  There is now another grave on our farm.  I am pleased to have had this ornery chicken in my life, she made me smile, she sang a little song for me everyday until I moved her into our house.  I knew she wanted to end her days in the coop with all of her friends (I say this with caution as she kept everyone in line when pecking was called for)  I know she enjoyed being with all of the chickens.

I have other chickens who are also getting older, I have read where some have lived to be in the tens, teens and one who made twenty some years.  I am not sure how old my girls will get but they have a good life.  Warmed oatmeal and scrambled eggs for breakfast, lots of grain and seeds, fresh water and a covered run.  They are protected from the rain if they wish to be and we, the chickens and I, argue about their being out when there is snow on the ground.  I was touched with the loss of a chicken's life here on our farm but I know that is part of farming.  I stood up strong and remembered she was lucky to be here.  They do not have to worry about hawks taking them away and I see their alarm systems begin to work when a hawk is crying from the sky and they do move to their safe place.  There was always food and she never had to do with what we could come up with.

This chicken managed to get into our heart and head just like our big fluffy dog.  I dealt with their deaths and I know I have to move forward for there are others who will be waiting for me to take care of them.  This is one part of farm of life I could say I do not enjoy but this is an important part of farm life.  It teaches you how to let go and move on.  Having seen life and death all of my life, I think I understand how to accept death much better than a lot of folks I know.   Accepting someone is no longer with you leaves a void or a hollow in your soul and /or heart, taking your memories, cherishing them will fill you with overflowing joy.

I was sang a song  and I noticed just a few days ago, another one of my hens is now singing a song at bedtime.  Ornery lives on as she taught someone to sing her song. 
  

Reflections of 2015

Where did it go?  How quickly this year passed away.  As I prepare to put the new calendar on the wall and check the almanac to begin my planning I see the year is 2016.  Now let me think what happened in 2015?

The year came in with a bang,  as I was at the doctor's office January 2, and continued to fight to regain my strength for several months.  Having to make a decision to cut back on a lot of things as my strength never returned to what it was before I became ill was not pleasing to me but I had no choice.   By the end of the year I was able to stand on my feet for most of the day, bend over and pull weeds for a couple of hours at a time but the heat during the summer took it's toll on me.

Spring time on the farm is about new life, and there were not any new little creatures on Triple Creek Farm until July and 2 chicks were hatched from our eggs.  No baby goats or ducks.  It was a sort of sad spring.  The only productive thing was the garden.  All of the seeding did well, for the first year there was not a damping off problem.  I used some logic starting seeds and did not have plants which I would not be able to use setting around  everywhere.  I found without having to maintain a number of plants I would not be using and putting my attention on what I needed kept from overwhelming me.  I started more plant varieties for my garden, this year I had squash plants to transplant, something in the past I had never done or believed in but I learned my lesson.  There was a bumper crop of squash and yes, the squash bug had a wonderful time in the garden but the plants were strong and could handle the damage from the bugs.  So, my trade off was working in the garden and learning about the crops I want to plant, we ate well but I missed my babies.

We ended up the winter with only a small amount of firewood left over.  Toward the end of the winter we were careful and only built fires when they were needed.  Mr. Bootsie spent quite a bit of time cleaning out an area we have always been in question about if there was some really bad weather.  I had always been afraid of these trees hitting the house.  There aee a few more to take out but progress was made.  The wood racks were filled in time for the wood to season and ready in the fall.  Mild fall weather has kept the wood racks looking good as most continue to be filled.

There were blackberries, I was picking blackberries everyday.  There is blackberry wine aging and a few more batches to be make.  I freeze the berries during the summer and continue to make wine during the winter.  I tried peach wine this year, Mr. Bootsie informed me it was not good until one day in December when it had aged and mellowed, I was told I should make more peach wine next summer as it has changed quite a bit.  Funny how the aging process works.

There was canning, freezing and dehydrating going on during the summer.  One of my favorite new friends is skinned, sliced tomatoes dried, I did 1/2 gallon jars of these, I add these to my fresh salads.  No more of those rocks from the grocery store during the winter.  Learned this year to make refrigerator pickles to use in salads, so during winter we make these to add to the salads and do not have to be concerned about cucumbers going bad in the fridge.  I try to always buy English cukes  but I sometimes have to get the waxed ones.  I just peel them and pickle, they are working great for my salads.

I lost my sourdough starter and almost lost my kefir grains when I was not feeling good.  I am so pleased I lost my starter because the new one is so much better.  I worked hard to save my kefir grains.  I cleaned them and added to fresh milk until they started growing once again.  As many as you share when you need gains it seems everyone else has some sort of problem.  I always try to keep a backup in the fridge but my backup had molded.  I was too busy trying to get well so a number  of things went without the attention they needed.

As the summer progressed so did my strength,  Mr. Bootsie was always there to put the canning pot on the stove and handle all of the heavy things.  He filled and opened the pressure canner as I just cannot do this anymore.  He has found he really enjoys working with the canner, taking on the duty of watching the pressure gauge and timing, this does free me to go on to another task or get a little rest.  I think he has become a team player and for man who had worked by himself all of his professional career this was a real challenge.

The things we have been most pleased with this year were NO SNAKES IN THE CHICKEN COOP, well that we saw.  This was a first for us.  There is a bottle of moth balls with a shaker top and the lid is left open in the coop. one of  us tries to shake this on a regular basis, we spread ashes around the chicken run and coop. RACCOON'S  do not like to get ashes on their feet.  Saved my later crops of corn by applying ashes around the plants.  Both of our pest problems seems to be helped by the use of ashes.  We are quite lucky to have a wood stove and ashes to aid with a natural fix for our problems.  I have no idea if these fixes will work next year but they did this year and I feel as I learned something helpful.

Fall came and so did more of my strength.  Tomato hills are ready for next spring, dug with a bucket of manure in each hole to breakdown over the winter.  One corn row is dug down 12 inches filled with manure, edged with ashes. We have stopped because the rains have come and continue, our garden is now to wet to do any additional preparing.   Tunnel is filled with veggies, still learning about tunnel gardening and with the warmth this fall we are harvesting chard, spinach, salad greens and herbs.  There are row covers throughout the garden keeping plants warm.

The one thing 2015 ended with is excitement for our next year.  We are looking forward to a new season in the garden, applying  techniques learned in the past and looking new directions for the future.  We have a filled freezer, canning and dehydrated jars filled and lots of stored winter fruits.  We learned and applied what we learned to help make our little farm productive.  A year of my not having my strength may have one of the best seasons of my gardening life as I had time to study and learn new procedures about what we are trying to do. All I can say is we have been eating some delicious meals,  I know where it was grown and I know what was not applied to the plants.  I use nothing in my garden but the hand picking method of bad bugs from my plants.

Time to close this chapter on our little farm, Time to thank you for sharing our farm and most of all for caring.  Why in no time at all we shall be starting seeds and looking for eggs to hatch.  Spring will be on it's way, that is spring 2016.

Wishing each and everyone  a wonderful New Year!!!

Good-bye Fall, Welcome Winter

Indian summer is hanging around, this pleases me so much.  We are saving firewood as we are not heating the house.  I always let the fire go down during the day and rebuild around 4 in the afternoon.  With the weather we are enjoying we can build a small fire later in the evening.  However, everything changed this weekend for a couple of nights.  It was time for a good fire.  Winter has come by the calendar but these last few days have been so warm, I was without my jacket or sweatshirt.  Winter is breaking high records.  I know it will not last, but our firewood is staying in the racks and I do so appreciate this.

IN THE COOP

December 9, one of my olive egg girls began laying eggs after the molt.  In a week the other one began.  It is much too early in the season, I am thankful as there would not be any chicken eggs coming into the kitchen but I am also concerned if this these girls are confused or if their being cross-bred has caused the confusion in their reproductive system.

My pullet which hatched during the summer has not laid, but the little roo has taken over his duties in the run.  Mr. Bootsie is questioning me about getting rid of the rooster and going back to purchasing, begging and just flat out asking others of fertile eggs in the springtime.  I have some older ladies who just want to hang out in the run and enjoy life, the young rooster is a total bother, they peck him and run him off at every opportunity.  

IN THE KITCHEN

Sourdough, I made a new starter this year, I lost my starter last winter and had not replaced it.  This new starter is much better than the one I had in the past.  The farmer who is always ready to help us, loves to bake and I have been sharing my starter with her.  Of course, she is much more knowledge than I am about baking, so this gives my an opportunity to learn about working with the leavening.

I am trying to learn how to use many of the items we preserved during the year.  The dried tomatoes make a delightful addition of our salads.  Using dried squash chips with homemade dips. We have lots of winter squash which is being used to make soup.  Adding our dried veggies and fruits to the soups have introduced us to new tastes and flavors.  I have really enjoyed trying a little of this and that.

The kitchen by way of the tunnel has been good this fall.  Spinach salads, spinach chowders, turnip green pizzas and greens just cooked with peppers/onions have made for a tasty fall.  We are harvesting greens for salads and have more developing if the weather holds.  This season in the tunnel has been rewarding.

IN CLOSING

This has been a productive fall season, we went to the orchard and purchased 2 bushels of storage apples and this has added to new interests in the dishes we are preparing in the kitchen.  I am so pleased we are learning how to use the items we produce on our farm, there are canned black-eyed peas which we pair with tomatoes, chicken meat canned with broth meaning we have soup, tomatoes which are used to make tomato basil soup.  (There is basil growing here in one of our cold houses now.)  I am thankful for the long growing season we have experienced this year.  Our winter garden crops are garlic, onions and winter sown peas.

It is the time of our year to start thinking about spring 2016, seed orders, starting of new plants.  But before I get into all that, Thank You for stopping by and visiting our farm.  Now where did I put those new seed catalogues?

Triple Creek Farm, a Week in Review

Indian Summer has stayed with us here on our little farm.  I have enjoyed each and everyday, this is my favorite time of the year.  We have worked in the woods clearing out some of the fallen trees.  This is not fire wood and it would break down in the woods, but I have found these trees are wonderful for the garden.  My soil is getting deeper each year.  I left a garden I could dig down two feet and find nothing but rich composted soil.  {When I sold my home, the new owner contacted me as to how to retain the soil in the garden.  I shared with him how I had worked the soil and he felt it was hard work.  The last time I drove by I saw my garden was now a place to park cars.}  I hope to get the garden soil here as deep as what I left.  We take one afternoon each week and go to the woods, this brings back so many memories of my childhood.  Daddy would hitch, Katie,  the mule to the wagon and we would go into the woods to collect fire wood.  I always looked forward to spending a morning in the woods with Daddy, knowing he would let me drive the wagon home, but Katie knew the way home and she did not care how much pulling the wrong reins I did, she bought the wagon loaded with firewood home.  How strong can a 5 or 6 year old be, but I thought I was driving the wagon.  Katie was playing with me, she was as proud as I was.

IN THE GARDEN

I have been digging 2 foot deep holes, filling them with manure and replacing the soil.  These will be my tomato hills next spring.  How do I find them?  I put the tomato cage on top of them, come spring I remove the cage and plant my tomato.  The results were wonderful this spring and summer.   I plan to do this for the pepper plants as I did the peppers hills in the spring, I would like to try doing them earlier allowing the manure to break down.

The tunnel is doing good, harvested spinach, swiss chard and turnip greens this week.  The winter peas are producing shoots which taste wonderful in salads.  We harvest the shoots with no more than 2 sets of leaves on them, I have them growing in the tunnel and outside.  The goats love these plants and await any I wish to remove from the garden.

pea shoots

As my plate has not been full enough we have started a new adventure.  Mushrooms.  The farmer is knowledge about mushrooms and came over to our farm looking for them.  She found summer oysters and a few weeks later I found winter oysters.  

oyster mushrooms

I had found loin's mane a few years before, however this year, there were more around the farm.  We are finding the loin's mane on lightning damaged oak trees.

loin's mane

I am not knowledge about mushrooms, so this is going to be a slow process for me.  I am studying and trying to learn as much as possible.

IN THE COOP

The chicks hatched in the summer are no longer little.  The roo started crowing this past week and now I await the first egg from the little hen.

So pleased you stopped in and spent a little time on our farm.  Looking forward to seeing you again real soon.

Indian Summer

It came one night, we were prepared, the tunnel was covered and all of the winter plants were covered.  I had picked peppers and pulled pepper plants which were stored in the tunnel.  I left the corn until the last minute,  corn-on-the-cob in late October.  I went out to check as I had done for several mornings as there was a promise of frost for several days.  I would pick summer spinach each day it was still green and growing knowing the end was in sight.  Morning low 27, the spinach was frozen, leaves on the remaining pepper plants and butter beans burnt from the cold.  Looking I found many pods on the butter beans and if we have the time they will fill.

Indian Summer came, the weather has been beautiful.  There were a few peppers on the plants and they managed to recover.  I have been amazed watching them grow.  We will have a couple of fresh peppers off our plants a little later in the season.  Butter beans are growing and we will be picking them.

It is time for the chickens to grow their winter feathers, this means they must molt, molt means they will be loosing the feathers which covered their body earlier this year.  At this time as the nights are chilly I have half naked chickens trying to stay warm.  The sad thing is they want nothing to touch them.  I have one who hides in the nesting box at roosting time.  There are several running about with only 1 large tail feather.  My roo, Mr. Wonderful, was the first to molt.  His feathers are back, he is working on his saddle feathers, the long ones which float around him.  This year we have 12 molting, the coop is filled with feathers and I am not cleaning the coop until the molt is over.  Then I will bring in new bedding and they will be set for the cold winter.

So far I have only seen one acorn on the forest floor.  Last year there were so many acorns, I collected them and was able to have treats for the goats during the winter.  I have seen the goats out looking for the acorns, they seem to know which trees to check but there seems not to be any acorns for my girls.  Hickory nuts, yes, there are lots of them which makes the squirrels quite happy.  They are working all the time carrying them to their nests. I see the results of their work on the ground.

We have not slowed down, there is work to do thinning trees, collecting dead trees from the forest floor.  The storms of last few weeks have bought down a number of dead pine trees, we use the pines for garden borders, as they break down and adding their goodness to the soil.  We do stockpile garden border logs so there is always a replacement when I find ones that no longer are of service to us.  This came at a good time as there are several borders in the garden needing replacement after this summer.

I found myself one evening eating a bowl of our vegetable soup with some homemade bread which was quite yummy but the fire coming from the wood stove reminded me we did all of this with our two hands.  We speak of comfort food and things which just make a house a home, let me say a bowl of homemade soup and a fire in stove says it all.

I am enjoying this Indian Summer, we made our trip to the orchard and there is apple everything in our future.    Peach pits to plant and apple seeds, maybe one year we will be able to harvest from our own trees but until that time I will look forward to the fall trips to the orchard.

This year, the mild fall season has lasted for such a long time.  I had this blog ready to post for a while but I was waiting but now I find it is time for me to move forward.   I will share some pictures of our tunnel which will be our fresh food source during the winter.

Austrian Winter Peas

Swiss Chard

All covered waiting for the winter cold

Happy Indian Summer, enjoy everyday, and maybe with no acorns the coming winter might, could be a mild one.?.  Until!!!