My parents planted a Christmas tree farm when I was just a young girl, so I grew up learning to make holiday decorations to sell for extra spending money at the tree farm. As a 16-year-old, I was a Christmas craft extraordinaire! And also a really big geek, but that’s a story for a different day. Evergreen Kissing Balls, […]
Homestead Monthly: November {barn demolition, butchering, and winter preparations}
Bye Bye Barn So, one really big thing happened this month that has taken a lot of our time, energy, and brain space. We essentially “sold” our old 100+ year old big beautiful barn to a reclaimed wood furniture company. The back of this barn started to cave in during the last month, so we […]
Homestead Monthly: October 2016 {shiitakes, rare apples, and an unfortunate honey harvest}
Welcome to the homestead monthly, a collection of all the major events that happen on our homestead every month! Unfortunate Surprise Honey Harvest You may remember that I reported (just last month!) our meager honey harvest, and that all three of our colonies were full of plenty of honey and looking great going into winter. Well boy was I […]
Homestead Monthly: September 2016 {purple veggies, mushroom hunting, and canning}
Hi friends! This is where we take a look back at all that we’ve accomplished during the month, and reflect on the real-life ups and downs that come with “living close to the land.” We’re on the downhill slide towards winter and are busy wrapping up summer projects on the homestead. Here’s what happened in September: […]
Homestead Monthly: August 2016 {heirloom veggies, abandoned chicks, and monarchs}
Tomato Dreamin’ You know what’s silly? Planting 60 tomato plants for 2 people. You may remember that last year we were completely blind-sided and devastated by tomato blight. Forty tomato plants and one pint of tomatoes harvested… it was a terrible sight. This year we were determined to beat the blight, so we tilled up […]
Homestead Monthly: July 2016 {weasel trouble, chicks, and the great harvest begins}
You Dirty Weasel We started out the month with sadness and heartbreak, unfortunately. If you’ve farmed for long enough, or experienced the loss of an animal to predators, then you know the feeling. The “something isn’t right here” feeling. For us, it was when Karl went out in the morning to let the chickens and […]
Homestead Monthly: June 2016 {garden boxes, blight-control, and babies}
Get Growing June was the month we officially got all of the gardens planted! We have three main garden areas this year, which is one more than the previous year, and two more than the year before that… somebody stop me! We (well, Karl actually) built two, 28-inch tall raised beds last month and we (well, […]
How to Freeze Lettuce
Freeze lettuce?! You might think that sounds crazy. I think it’s genius! Vibrant lettuce, grown organically, picked fresh that very day from your own garden is full of nutrients… preserve them! Of course, a couple of beautiful lettuce heads from the farmer’s market are also worthy candidates for freezing. This all started last year in May when I […]
Homestead Monthly: May 2016 {mushroom growing, bee swarms, and homestead loss}
Fungus Farming At the beginning of May, Karl and I took an all-day class about cultivating mushrooms, taught by a local mushroom grower and wild mushroom expert. We learned so much, and it immediately ignited a new fire in us… a fire to grow fungus! I actually can’t believe I never seriously considered this prior to learning about […]
Prevent Deer from Eating Fruit Trees {natural organic deer repellent}
I’m pretty excited about this. As I get older, I find that the things that excite me are not…. normal. Natural, organic deer repellent that actually works? Yep, gives me butterflies. I don’t want a tropical vacation, I want sheep. And please don’t buy me flowers, I want heirloom beans and tomato seeds instead. No manicures […]