Being Farmers - Walking in High Cotton

Sheep on the Loose…And Other Daily Adventures

Posted on May 10, 2013 by Jamie

Mr. Fix-It popped in the kitchen on a recent, foggy, soggy morning to say, “Um…we have a situation.”

Actually, what he said was, “Tiberius is out and coming around the field. Can you get dressed–I need you outside.” So I threw jeans and a tee-shirt on over my pink nightgown and hollered for Speedracer to grab my muck boots and charged outside–into the sopping wet grass.

And I do mean sopping. I was wet to the knees from the tall grass within minutes.

I saw the cows, looking a little confused by my frazzled haste.

I also didn’t see any sign of our big, dumb, ram galloping blindly around the field as he is known to do whenever he’s foolish enough to get out.

Now, I hate to call any animal stupid. I prefer things like “driven by instinct” or “just being how God made them.” But when it comes to Tiberius, there it is. That sheep is a few eggs shy of a dozen, folks. And that’s being generous. He’s big, and beautiful, and throws good lambs on our ewes…but I’ve seen earthworms act more intelligent. (Oh, how I miss our ram, Ozzie!)

The spring calves are really growing, aren’t they?!

Anyway, I didn’t see any sign of him galloping around crashing into things, leaping clover patches, and falling into ditches. I just saw one, lone, crying, lamb looking lost and confused and headed in the wrong direction. Mr. Fix-It hopped on the tractor and headed out to cut off the long-way-around-side and I hustled through the backyard and cut off the short side.

I turned him around and Mr. Fix-It and I converged on the little guy…

He squeezed back under the gate he’d come out of and everything was fine. Mr. Fix-It added a little extra security (we’re still not sure how Tiberius managed to get his 220 lbs of brawn-not-brains out and then back in again) while I looked everyone over.

And what did I see?

A ewe, off by herself in the field…

All our readers know that a sheep by itself is a sheep that has a problem!

It turns out that we thought we were done lambing and we weren’t!

We had one Clun ewe that was sick and struggled badly with worms over the summer. She barely put any weight on over the winter and we were just glad she survived. We assumed that with the high doses of medicine over the summer she either would not breed or would lose the lambs early. Her lack of size seemed to confirm that she wasn’t carrying lambs.

I can't wait until we shear--their wool gets so raggedly-looking in the wet spring weather!

I can’t wait until we shear–their wool gets so raggedy-looking in the wet spring weather!

She started putting on weight like everyone else when the fresh grass started coming in and we thought she had finally made a turn for the better.

Turns out, all this time she was carrying twins!!

They are very small. We’re worried about whether they are going to be completely healthy, or if the medicine from last summer will have affected them. But so far they are ok and their momma seems to be handling everything fine.

I pray that they’ll both grow up normal, but I’m very happy that she seems like she’s going to make a full recovery. She’s a very valuable ewe and we’ve been worried about her most of the winter. We had even added extra feed pans to the winter field to reduce the pushing and shoving at feeding time to make sure she could get her share. (We don’t like to completely separate an animal from the flock if not absolutely necessary because it’s so unnatural to them that they tend to fret themselves more than heal.)

These two bring our count for the year up to 20!

I’m usually not a fan of lambing out in the big pastures because it’s harder to keep track of everyone. But in this case, I’m very glad that she lambed after the grass was in. There’s just no dietary substitute for fresh green grass. It’s what God made sheep to eat! It will be absolutely the best thing for her, health-wise, right now.

I’ll keep ya posted on how it goes!

How is your weekend shaping up?

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Companion Planting…Working our Garden Plan Out

Posted on May 6, 2013 by Jamie

It’s chilly and foggy today and I’m actually hoping it rains so I don’t have to water the garden. We put some new plants in this weekend and they’ll need water this evening if these clouds don’t make themselves useful! We spent most of the weekend doing a few chores and some desperately needed housework, and gardening. Oh yeah, and continuing the never-ending, car-hunt debacle–but I’ll spare you the tears of exhaustion and frustration on that topic for now.

So far, other than lettuce and broccoli, we’ve been following our little garden planning sketch pretty well. Our strawberries and onions (did you know they’re great companions?!) are looking beautiful!

Strawberries and onions in a raised bed together.

Our new raspberries are a heritage variety. They’re not doing nearly as well as our wild transplant variety, but they are brand new this year so we’re trying to give them a chance before I consider moving our wild variety into the bed with them. Our wild ones are already two-three feet long! We’re also looking forward to planting garlic in the raspberry bed once the raspberry patch is established.

We planted four heritage raspberries. This is the biggest one so far.

Our asparagus came up a little late this year. I think that was just because we put a late layer of compost and mulch on top of them so they had an extra couple inches they had to grow through before we saw their little heads poking out. Asparagus season is kinda fun and kinda crazy. It takes forever for them to show up, but one they do you have to check the bed every day because they’ll shoot up inches over night. So this is the time of year we start eating asparagus in everything. (Last year Mr. Fix-It drew the line at eating it raw in salads. I have to admit, it was not the tastiest thing we’ve ever tried.)

We plan to add chives to the asparagus bed. They’re supposed to be good companions with asparagus and keep away bugs. But chives struggle with weeds and so does our asparagus bed so until we get the wire grass under control we’ll just leave well enough alone!

The kids love to hunt for purple “baby” asparagus heads pushing out of the soil. This bed definitely has the biggest weed problem.

We put in a row of tomatoes this weekend and we have room for a second row in a couple weeks. Canning tomato sauce and salsa is on our short list of new things to try this year. We’re trying to both simplify and expand our horizons at the same time by focusing on learning to make our own versions of things we eat all the time. Not necessarily trying new food in the garden, but trying to produce our own food with the garden–beyond just salads. So spaghetti sauce and chunky salsa are our major new goals this year. Everything else we just plan to eat fresh or save frozen like usual this year.

There's like a thousand different tomato varieties to choose from. It's overwhelming. This year we're only going with Celebrity and our second row will be Romas, to keep it simple.

There’s like a thousand different tomato varieties to choose from. It’s overwhelming. This year we’re sticking with Celebrity and our second row will be Romas, to keep it simple.

And while I was doing all that reading on companion planting for the garden we came across several natural pest deterrents too–including herbs. Have you ever noticed that the more you study natural systems, the more things fit together? Herbs like basil, oregano, rosemary, and mint are great natural pest deterrents. And they just so happen to also be great accompaniments to salsa, spaghetti sauce and lamb! Hmm….

We planted “Herb Row” in the middle of the garden this year.

There's basil, oregeno, and rosemary in "Herb Row." We planted mint in a contained flowerbed out front.

There’s basil, oregano, and rosemary in “Herb Row” in the garden itself. We planted mint in a contained flowerbed out front. Eventually I’d like to border between the garden and the orchard with lavender, which is good for bugs and to attracted bees. Eventually. {smile}

We’ve also got our green beans and sugar snap peas in, although they’re not sprouting their little heads out yet. They should be up by this weekend. The potatoes are doing well, of course, and I’m not giving up on the idea of carrots. Mr. Fix-It has tilled and tilled the garden and the soil is looking really, really good this year. I know carrots like loose soil, so we’re laying out seed tapes (we used this simple seed tape tutorial) this week.

You can see the irises are just starting to thicken up and get ready to flower…

Meanwhile, my flowerbeds are pretty much on their own. {smile}

Are you doing a garden this year? What’s your family’s favorite food? Have you ever thought of how you could grow it yourself?

See where I’m sharing this week…

Ducks on the Loose…And Other Daily Adventures

Posted on April 29, 2013 by Jamie

Our chicken field pen (also know by names like “chicken tractor”) is a few years old. We use it to raise meat chickens on grass and raise chicks until they are old enough to move into the big chicken house. And now we use it for the ducks too.

We just added a plastic pan (which is cut down from a mineral block tub) that holds about 6 inches of water for the ducks to splash around in. There’s a separate waterer, but the ducks seem to prefer drinking in the water they swim in, go figure. {shrug}

The chicks and ducklings seem to get along just fine.

But as I was saying…the pen is a few years old. Mr. Fix-It patches it up every spring when we go to use it. (You might notice the wire and zip ties!) But we haven’t gone in for a complete renovation yet. I think he has plans to just start from scratch, but as they say, “if it ain’t broke, there’s always something else that needs to be worked on.”

Ok, I just made that up, but it’s certainly true!

As usual, it's the feisty layers that start all the trouble!

As usual, it’s the feisty little laying hens that start all the trouble!

It holds the meat chickens fine because they get huge and ungainly and lazy pretty quick. But those layers…oh those layers! One reason I love our laying chickens is because they have unique and quirky little personalities and are so fun. But they’re also pretty smart (for a chicken) and get into trouble a lot. And they grow much slower, so they’re small much longer. It’s a recipe for disaster.

Penny helped me catch this one. Thankfully I was right there to appropriate her from the dog--sometimes she get a little too enthusistic,

Penny helped me catch this one. Thankfully I was right there to appropriate her–sometimes Penny get a little too enthusiastic.

And this year we have the ducklings.

Turns out those little guys (or girls, I’m not quite sure yet) are quite the little adventurers as well. {sigh} They’re pretty smart too! Usually they slip out and then slip right back in the same hole when it’s feeding time. You start to feel like your eyes are playing tricks on you!

Sunday morning the whole flock greeted us at the garage door.

Sunday morning the whole flock (minus the meat chickens) greeted us at the garage door!

In between our fruitless search for a new car, and our very productive efforts weeding and mulching the garden, this weekend the Ladybug and Speedracer and I patched the entire front of the chicken pen with fresh chicken wire.

And one red layer (I’m betting it was the same one!) promptly squeezed through the right-hand side. Right in front of me–no shame at all!

{Sigh}

So we’ll be out there again this week when the rain stops, to patch up both sides too. We don’t want to lose anyone. Honestly, it’s hard for me to even be mad when I heard those ducks quacking–sometimes it almost sounds like their laughing at me!

How was your weekend? Mine was sneeze-y and headache-y but fairly productive.

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Farm Life in the Spring

Posted on April 26, 2013 by Jamie

We’re well into spring, here in Virginia. Which means my hay fever has gone crazy and the weather changes just about every 5 minutes or so. 55 and rainy one day, 75 and sunny the next! But one thing that’s not changing is that the days are definitely longer–and it’s all I can do to get the kids to come back inside in the evenings.

I think buttercups are our first spring flower around here.

We finished lambing a few weeks ago, right before I left for the Titus 2:1 conference. It’s a weight off. Now the sheep are starting to move around to new grass and we’re not out feeding twice a day all the time. There’s twice as much water-bucket filling, but the boys don’t mind that because they can run and play outside while the water runs.

Look–no grass three weeks ago…(this is the last baby from this year!)

Looking at lambing pictures really bring to light the way the grass as suddenly come back again!

Look–grass! Green, green grass!

The sheep are pretty happy about it. They love grass and will start leaving food in the trough once the grass comes in. The cows are still adjusting though. Every evening when we come home, Molly comes running to the feed trough and just looks at me with those big brown eyes like “Isn’t it dinner time?”

The birds are singing, and building nests, and generally making a racket every morning outside our bedroom window again.

And the kids are off adventuring as soon as their chores are done.

The Ladybug is back to taking Penny for walks–which is a big “independence” thing for her because she gets some alone time off away from the house. Penny doesn’t mind either. {grin}

I've managed to keep them in long sleeves in the evenings. They LOVE their 100% wool sweaters from Ireland that Grandma and Grandpa sent them. They practically live in those things this time of year.

The kids LOVE their 100% wool sweaters from Ireland that Grandma and Grandpa Hohner sent them. They practically live in those things this time of year.

Can I just add that good ole’ Penny has the patience of a saint! She is so happy to have the family at home on the weekends that she just goes along with whatever the kids drag her into. I make them take her with them all the time because she just loves to hang out with them (and needs the exercise!).

A few chicken-chasing incidents aside, the dog is a treasure.

Poor Penny! The dog is the definition of loyal. She army crawled across the yard with the Cowboy and stayed with him through “sniper fire” and “grenades” and even ambushes from the back porch.

This weekend we’ll be doing some gardening (mostly weeding!), some reading, some budgeting and some car shopping. We’re on the hunt for a new car–new used car, that is–because the transmission has gone out in our Isuzu. (Happened right after I got home from driving it to Titus 2:1–what a mixed blessing!) This car situation is such a trial–prayers appreciated! Pray that we stay true to our commitment to a cash-only purchase (which makes our budget discouraging to say the least!) and make the right choice.

spring on the farm 3

I’ll also be doing a bit of crafting and working on a few new blog projects–and taking pictures of our ADORABLE ducklings for Monday’s posts. (Seriously friends, I could watch those little tag-wagging water-slurpers for hours without getting bored!)

Next week I’ll be co-hosting the Everything Frugal {LINK UP} so if you’re a blogging buddy, get your posts ready. You’ll be welcome to add up to 3 posts to the {LINK UP}, new or old and it will be live for 2 weeks!

everything frugal

And if you’re a busy woman, this {LINK UP} will be just what you need to find some new money-saving inspiration! I’ll be sharing a few posts about how I use a simple coupon system that saves us money without taking hours. (No $400 to $2 receipts here. But I usually manage to save 30-50% on our grocery bills.) Dimes add up to dollars, folks. Besides, I could use a little savings refresher myself–hope you’ll stop by!

Have a good weekend!

The Farm in Spring

Posted on April 22, 2013 by Jamie

I mentioned last week that I came back from a conference and everything seemed to be blooming and growing–as my sneezing can attest to!

Please just ignore the weed overload! A couple days of rain and a few days of 70 degree weather and we’ve had a weed explosion!! We’re working our way through with weeding and (I hope) mulching this week.

The kiddos strawberry bed is coming along really well!

So far our companion planting of strawberries and onions are doing great! The onions have doubled in size and every single one of the crew’s strawberry plants is surviving. Mr. Fix-It didn’t think they were going to make it that first week, and I have to admit, the bed looked a little scraggly. But other than the weeds, they look quite vibrant now.

Right now only two of our four raspberries are sprouting, but if our previous bushes are any indication, that’s more than enough to eventually fill the bed.

It seemed like forever before they popped up, but once the potatoes sprouted, they just took off.

The main garden is moving slow this year, but that’s our fault. We’re behind on getting things in the ground. The potatoes are up, the onions are up, and the beans should be popping out any day now.

Our new fruit trees are alive too. They just looked like sticks when we planted them, so getting leaves as proof of life is a big step to me! {smile} The boys adopted the two apple trees and the Ladybug took ownership of the new peach. (Our older peach is already showing baby fruit!)

This is a Pound Sweet semi-dwarf apple tree.

We picked two old variety apples to start with. The Pound Sweet is supposed to be delicious for baking and eating fresh from the tree. The Tompkins Country apple is supposed to be delicious for eating or for apple sauce (which is why Speedracer latched on to it!) and for canning. I’ve got my eye on a Grimes Golden and a Baldwin to add to the orchard next year. We’ll need the Grimes as a pollinator because the Tompkins and the Baldwin will not pollinate other varieties.

Our new peach tree is a Golden Jubilee and our old one is a Hale Haven. Peaches are self-pollinators so you don’t need more than one–but we like peaches! {smile}

By the way, if you’re wondering about all the pollination requirements, etc. then I would recommend two things. First, The Backyard Orchardist by Stella Otto–this little book has everything you need to know. Everything. Second, call the nursery you’re planning to order from. We’ve used Miller Nursery for all our fruit trees so far and their catalog and website are great and their staff is very knowledgeable if you just call and ask. {We’re not affiliates with Miller or anything. I’m sure other nurseries are probably just as helpful. That just happens to be who we’ve used and I called them several times to ask questions when I was picking out our varieties. The choices are just overwhelming and they were super helpful!}

Cherokee Dogwood from our front flower beds.

Mr. Fix-It and the crew also moved all the chicks and ducklings from the brooder house into the field pen while I was out-of-town.

Every year we patch a little more, but it still works.

And then the smallest and most adventurous individuals promptly discovered yet another hole…

The trouble-makers.

But it’s hard to be mad when they’re so darn cute waddling around!

Our “baby” runner ducks are growing up! They’re losing their baby fuzz and getting real feathers.

How are thing around your house and homestead? What’s new and in bloom by you?

See where I’m linking up…

Walking in High Cotton

Redeeming the Everyday Grind…with Boots on!

Category Archives: Being Farmers

Sheep on the Loose…And Other Daily Adventures

Companion Planting…Working our Garden Plan Out

Ducks on the Loose…And Other Daily Adventures

Farm Life in the Spring

The Farm in Spring

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