Hardening Off
Posted on | April 15, 2010 | 4 Comments
Hardening off is a transitional period during which one accustoms seedlings started indoors to the natural environmental conditions outdoors, in preparation for transplanting. It’s a delicate process requiring patience and diligence to prevent shock or stress to the seedlings. Or so I hear.
I’m not exactly sure how hardening off works because patience and diligence are in short supply around here. The little bit I was saving for this week was Read more
The Big Hay
Posted on | April 1, 2010 | 7 Comments
I know it’s not a big deal to most farmers. With their hundreds of acres and farm machinery worth thousands of dollars. But around here we work our 4 acres by hand. And we buy our hay in the squares bales that fit in the back of the Suburban. Or on a big load, in the back of the Chevy S-10. I know, I know, Diary of a Wimpy Farmer.
So when my local hay dealer told me there were no more square bales, I was aghast. Read more
Seeds
Posted on | March 24, 2010 | 9 Comments
I bet you’re wondering if I ever finished that fence. Guessing whether I gave up and threw all my tools into the pond with a flurry of curses or if I’m hopelessly trapped in blackberry canes and a roll of barbed wire. Trying to figure out if I got tired of complaining or just finally got it done. Let me give you a few hints:
1. I never give up. I just console myself with chocolate and move on.
2. The kids would’ve notified the authorities if I didn’t return from the woods in time for dinner or when their stomach pains become unbearable from eating all the snacks in the pantry, every box of sugar cereal, the treats in the cookie jar, and all the ice cream.
3. I never get tired of complaining. When my friends and family won’t listen anymore I just, well….now you know why I started this blog. Read more
We Didn’t Farm Yesterday
Posted on | March 20, 2010 | 7 Comments
Not a bit. Even though my mom gave me a bag of shredded papers for the brooder room that is still sitting on the deck. And there is a gap in the chicken wire on the duckling pasture. And hay needs to be moved from the kidding barn to the goat barn. And someone needs to make a trip to the feed mill because the chickens are out of layer pellets.
Instead we went to the beach.
Because the kids started Spring Break.
Because they brought home incredible report cards and deserved a reward.
Because it was sunny and 74 degrees. Read more
Blood, Sweat, and Tears
Posted on | March 17, 2010 | 6 Comments
Some people say the phrase “Blood, sweat, and tears” originated with Winston Churchill. That may be true because it certainly wasn’t stated by a farmer. Any farmer worth her vegetable patch would have defined her tasks as “Blood, curses, sweat, and tears.” Statesmen may have to be politically correct, but out here in the country, in front of the cows and the corn, we let ‘er rip. And if you haven’t dropped the F bomb in a while then you haven’t had a tractor stall over a yellow jacket nest. Or watched the neighbor’s dog exit the chicken coop with your favorite laying hen in his teeth. Or had a wind storm topple the tomato cages, snapping Read more
Frenemies
Posted on | March 11, 2010 | 2 Comments
I love the fence.
I hate the fence.
The fence allows the goats to wander around, pooping outside of the barn where I don’t have to clean up. The fence leads the pony and the sheep to the pond to graze so I don’t have to mow the grass on the tractor-tipping slope of the dam. The fence lets the chickens rush through its squares to safety, leaving violent offenders of the leash law barking and foaming at the mouth on the other side.
But the fence is so needy. Read more
Moving Day
Posted on | March 1, 2010 | 10 Comments
I can only guess what other people do on Saturdays.
If you live in a suburb, you probably sit by your kitchen window, sipping coffee, and watching what your neighbors are up to. As in, wonder if Rob-next-door will take out that huge pile of trash in the garage or spend the day washing his car? (I know. Who washes their car? But I have heard it is big in the subdivisions.) Or, will Carrie-down-the-street come out to get her newspaper in her hot pink sweatsuit or, please God, no, that horrifying moo-moo no one wants to see ever again but can’t look away from? Also, who will go by walking their dog (a necessity) and who will go by jogging with their dog (an activity favored by the sick and twisted trying to make one feel guilty for the 6 tablespoons of caramel mocha flavored creamer in one’s coffee)? I can see how this would be a fascinating way to relax. I mean, why would you need facebook if you live in a neighborhood? Read more
No Charge for Cuts
Posted on | February 18, 2010 | 3 Comments
This story begins with a tarp. Specifically, a tarp on a chicken coop. Not exactly glamorous, but stay with me. Now if you’ve worked with tarps (and if you own a farm or have a spouse who drives a pick up truck and wears work boots even in the summertime then I know you have!) you understand that there are some basic rules to proper tarp usage.
First of all, a flat tarp is a bad thing. Flat tarps are what the rain gear industry refers to as “water resistant”. That translates into “you will get wet wearing this item if you travel for any distance further than from your front door to your car.” Similarly, a flat tarp will deflect water for about 2.5 seconds before a puddle the size of Lake Michigan forms in the middle, causing the tarp to collapse or rip in the center, and soaking whatever valuable you were trying to protect. Bummer. So all tarps must have sufficient slope so that the water runs off in an expeditious manner. Read more
“My goat is down and he can’t get up”….and other interesting excuses.
Posted on | February 15, 2010 | 1 Comment
“Hi, um, I won’t be there for Girl Scout cookie pick-up. My goat is down and he can’t get up. I’ll call you later.”
If you know me, then you’ve heard these sort of excuses.
You may even have been talking to me on the phone when I screamed “Big, get the hoe!” and then clicked off. That usually means there’s a black snake in the nest box.
If you heard me call for the BB gun then it means the neighbor’s dog has slipped under the fence (again) and is trying to make chicken pot pie out of my flock. Read more
Welcome
Posted on | February 12, 2010 | No Comments
It finally happened. Today I opened the barn door to the sound of peeps and chirps. There was Grey Girl, huddled over two freshly hatched chicks, a bright yellow and a mixed tan. Huh.
Back in December, Grey Girl decided she had to have some babies. She chose a corner of the goat barn and dutifully sat a clutch of 8 duck eggs. Ducks should not be sitting eggs in December. The temperatures are too low and the necessary humidity is nonexistent. Besides, a corner of the goat barn is a bad choice. The eggs were trampled just a couple weeks after she started her mission. All except for one slightly cracked survivor. Grey Girl stuck to her guns, rebuilt her nest, pulled some more feathers, and went on with her business. I watched her, hoping she would discard the egg and move on. I could have taken it, but more surprising things have happened here than a duckling hatching out of a cracked egg. We waited. Read more
« go back — keep looking »Pages
Recent Posts
Categories
Subscribe
1. Feed your farm addictions HERE
2. Cluck
4. Meh
5. Mommy! Mommy! Mommy!
Archives
- December 2025
- November 2022
- October 2022
- December 2020
- June 2020
- August 2019
- June 2019
- November 2018
- October 2018
- September 2018
- November 2017
- August 2017
- July 2017
- March 2017
- February 2017
- January 2017
- November 2016
- August 2016
- July 2016
- April 2016
- March 2016
- February 2016
- January 2016
- December 2015
- November 2015
- October 2015
- September 2015
- August 2015
- July 2015
- June 2015
- May 2015
- April 2015
- March 2015
- February 2015
- January 2015
- December 2014
- November 2014
- October 2014
- September 2014
- August 2014
- July 2014
- June 2014
- May 2014
- April 2014
- March 2014
- February 2014
- January 2014
- December 2013
- November 2013
- October 2013
- August 2013
- July 2013
- June 2013
- May 2013
- April 2013
- March 2013
- February 2013
- January 2013
- December 2012
- November 2012
- October 2012
- September 2012
- August 2012
- July 2012
- June 2012
- May 2012
- April 2012
- March 2012
- February 2012
- January 2012
- December 2011
- October 2011
- September 2011
- August 2011
- July 2011
- June 2011
- May 2011
- April 2011
- March 2011
- February 2011
- January 2011
- December 2010
- November 2010
- October 2010
- September 2010
- August 2010
- July 2010
- June 2010
- May 2010
- April 2010
- March 2010
- February 2010
- January 2010
- December 2009
- November 2009
- October 2009
- September 2009
- August 2009
- July 2009
- June 2009
Tags
| M | T | W | T | F | S | S |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ||||||
| 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 |
| 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 |
| 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 |
| 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | |
Meta
