Farmchick?

I didn't set  out to be a Farmchick. Really, I didn't. Somehow having horses all of my life and keeping chickens for the latter half has just been a reality for me, as opposed to a dream. Or, maybe I made those dreams come true with the help of my parents, then, and now my husband?

Chicken Whisperer?

There seems to be a great revival in the movement of local food, farming, and the ethical implications that come along with all of the above.

Egg Whisperer?

But we're not here to discuss that in detail today. Today, we're all about this Farm Chick Hat! Is it not the cutest thing you've seen?

Farmchick - the hat makes it!

As usual, since I'm late for almost everything, I got this hat about a month two months ago, but have not taken the time to write anything about it.

The point is, I've worn it, though, and it is such a nice fitting hat! The brim is solid, sturdy and thick - the cap material is soft yet holds shape well, and I LOVE the Velcro (why did spell-check just tell me to capitalize the V in velcro? Weird.) size adjustment!  And, since I am a Farm Chick Chit Chat Farmchick (say that three times fast?) and Hobby Hill Farm is the official outfitter of the Farmchicks, it is a perfect fit - literally and figuratively.

Aaand, one more pic of that cute hat!! I wear it a LOT!

This hat is embroidered by the good folks over at Hobby Hill Farm and for a short time, you can head on over to their website and by using the checkout code HOPE - you will receive 15% off of your purchase! Folks, click the link NOW and get your Farm Chick hat on!! They have all KINDS of farm-ware - check out their beautiful sweatshirts, too! I'm loving the colors.

And after you're done shopping, hop on over to check out Farm Chick Chit Chat - I'm quite sure you'll feel right at home there, I do! A while back, we started a project, which would sort of explain the plethora of photos above, here it is in all its glory:

"We are the Real Farmchicks of Farm Chick Chit Chat.  We are scattered from as far north as Maine to as far south as Texas, and from as far east as Virginia to as far west as California.  In September of 2012, we began to work together to bring the best of what we do into one convenient resource.  We have become close friends and truly value the friendship we also share with our readers.

We are hobby farmers, chicken keepers, gardeners, goat herders, canners, knitters, homesteaders, and DIYers. We raise cows, goats, rabbits, sheep, chickens, ducks and farm kids. We grow crops; we preserve and can; we bake and cook.  We home school, knit and crochet, build, re-purpose, and craft."

After you shop Hobby Hill Farm for your official Farmchick gear: Click here to read more....

**I would like to thank Hobby Hill Farm for allowing me the opportunity to review the Farm Chick Ball Cap. I was sent a sample product in order to allow me to evaluate its performance on my farm. *Disclosure: I did not receive additional compensation for writing this review. The review framework did not guarantee a positive review in exchange for the receipt of their product. This review contains both facts about the product and my opinion of its performance while being used at my farm.

What We Did Today

It's all fun and games when I can sit down at the computer, after a shower, with a cup of tea and tell about it.

We added more raised beds today.

It was an exhausting day, but in the, it-feels-good-to-move-around, instead of sit-in-the-chair-all-day and stare at the computer, way. It's that good old-fashioned tired. You know the kind.

I smiled at the radishes poking up. They are so quick to grow.

Getting back into the groove of farming, (growing our own food, in addition to growing for market) is not a gradual step. I've primarily been in an office, in meetings, and organizing events, workshops and such for the last  year.

After three (or 15) days of convincing Captain Strong Arms that my spinach would come up - it finally began to come up. Phew!

 It's the softness of winter that gets me. It'll be a good while before I build up the strength and endurance I had and it won't come easy. And then, it will be the heat of summer that gets me. Oh for the love of farming.

Back to the Farmers' Market in just 6 weeks and three days.

I am looking forward to getting back the the farmers market - there's a reward in that unique to anything else one will ever do. Tomorrow? Meeting in the morning, meeting in the afternoon and meeting in the evening. Farming will have to resume on Wednesday, for me, thank goodness Captain Strong Arms takes good care of the farm when I'm home and when I'm not home.

Farm School Field Trip & other useless info

Because I know all of you readers plan your days around mine, I thought I'd give you some useless information:

I'll be headed out early on our first field trip for Piedmont Farm School. I've got my muck boots ready and my camera packed.

Oh, and the duck is laying eggs in a nest.  Just sayin'.

The radishes popped up today. I could almost see them in motion.

Yesterday's egg count: 12
Today's egg count: 10

Keep calm and farm on,

Un-doing

There are days when not one single productive activity happens on-farm. Today was one of those days. The day consisted of breakfast, some studying, a couple loads of laundry, lunch, a birthday party, a trip to town, supper, and then the bare minimum in regards to farm chores. Then, for dessert, graham crackers with some more studying, 2 essays, and 3 quizzes.

Some call this kind of day a loss. I call it a day of un-doing. Although there is always something to be done, on some occasions it isn't necessary to be so pressed that it becomes a burden.

With a farm, even one as small-timey as ours, most days are filled with to-do lists and not enough hours in the day. I'm grateful that we can occasionally take one day "off," if you can call it that.

Today's egg count: 10

Where My Seedlings Get Their Start

There is always a sense of urgency during this time of year. I call it the "hurry up and wait" session. There is so much to be done in the garden area, and if you're anything like us, you've been inundated with the deluge of water from the clouds lately, making a lovely mud soup out of the area that needs to be tilled.

Looks like a bunch of junk, huh!?

No entry. Unless you want to lose your muck boots in the 12" deep mud. I survey the untouchable landscape with some anxiousness. I NEED to get in there and plant the cabbage, kale, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, and cauliflower seedlings that are getting far too big for their infant carriers and either need to be transplanted or potted up.

Digging, welding, and more. Captain Strong Arms had his work cut out for him.

But I digress. I may be getting ahead of myself, because after all, this greenhouse has only been up since late fall of 2011. We came by the 1938 Lord & Burnham beauty just in time. She was going to be torn down. Can you imagine? In order for her to fit in the space which we needed her to reside, she had to be shortened a bit. This meant that the supporting beams and cross-braces had to endure some fabrication. I just make the sandwiches, folks, let that be clear. Captain Strong Arms is to blame for all the hard work here.

It looks like.......a ?

See that look? That means, "put the camera down and bring me a sandwich," to which I happily oblige. If it means I don't have to hammer here, "hold this" there, and stand with my arms over my head for what feels like hours, I'm all about the sandwich. 

Suddenly, there she is.

 I digress. Again. Hardening off will have to occur before transplanting, but potting up requires a step up container-size wise and more potting soil or soil-less mix. Then, they'll begin to need fertilizer as they won't be getting the nutrients they need to get to the next size.

What I'm trying to embrace, here, is that all good things come in due time. "Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished." Lau Tzu

I'm grateful that Captain Strong Arms has the vision, tenacity, and know-how when it comes to tearing down and re-building something like this. I've watched him time and again repair something, restore a part of the house, all with little investment (use what you've got mentality) and the results are always shining.

Thank you, dear husband, for working so hard around this small-timey farm, making our lives that wee-bit easier.

I'm really glad my seedlings have a nice place to wait.

So, this is where my seedlings get their start. And I am so grateful. Even if I have to wait for the rain to stop and the mud to dry up. All good things come to those who wait. I'm going to hurry up and wait. Meanwhile, I'll be starting more seeds.....and watching over the seedlings, assuring them of their future.

How are YOUR seedlings waiting?

Farm School?

It seems kind of crazy, to go to school to become a farmer, but I'm willing to do what it takes to learn all that I can. Even though I've been growing a lot of different things over the years, I have a great deal to put into practice.

Piedmont Farm School, they call it. Tonight is the first class in a seven-month series of classes and farm field trips.

PIEDMONT FARM SCHOOLThe Piedmont Farm School is a seven-month educational and outreach program that trains beginning and transitioning farmers. The program is designed to help them operate successful small-scale, sustainable farms. The effort aims to increase the number of local growers and the production of locally grown products within the Piedmont region. It also plans to create a network of local small farms and to help cultivate viable markets for their products. The school involves students from Davidson, Davie, Forsyth, Guilford, Iredell, Montgomery, Randolph and Rowan counties.
Mike Roberts and Jonathan Baros, both affiliated with the N.C. State agricultural and resource economics department, will teach business planning seminars. Baros is also a member of N.C. MarketReady, the Cooperative Extension outreach of the Plants for Human Health Institute.
Learn more about the 2012 Piedmont Farm School.

It's going to be a great year. What are you doing this year that you never thought you'd do?

Snapshots & Memories

A beautiful brisk day in the southern Piedmont of North Carolina yesterday - I got out of the house in the early afternoon and enjoyed some barn chores. Sometimes spending time with the animals is the most therapeutic form there is for a grieving heart.

Just over a week ago, just two days after Christmas, we laid to rest my childhood pony mare April. She was 38 years old. She had been in the family for 31 years.

April

Egg Count: 13

Hattie supervises feeding time

Roll in the mud much?

Gaston, the Rhode Island Red Rooster

Mr. Bunny

Sam Speaks

A lady to the end. 

What to do with your raised beds at the end of December

Of course it would be ideal to say that at the end of harvest, the raised beds were cleared and prepped for winter. Alas, if you're anything like me, they are not. So, what to do if you've procrastinated with the best of us?

First - dig in.

Clear all the debris you can see on top, removing spent plants and any leaves that might have blown in when fall came our way.

Now is a good time to get an assessment of your soil done, too.  Contact your local Cooperative Extension office for further instructions on how to get your soil tested for FREE.Ideally now is the time to do this, because when spring arrives, the offices will be very busy and your results will take longer to come back.Whether you intend to plant some early cool crops or wait to plant the main summer crops, the results of your soil test will determine what it may need if anything.

I was pleased to see this worm in the dirt!

The hardest part of this is cleaning up the piles of your labor. Currently mine are still where I left them. I had to come inside and devour a bowl of homemade version of pasta e fagioli soup leftover from yesterday.

And so dear fellow slackers, there you have it.

And, photo-bombed, bigtime, by Bob. Thanks, Bob.

And then, here came the dogs:

And this one, in particular, was very serious....

And another dog is not quite so serious....

Whatever lofty things you might accomplish today, you will do them only because you first ate something that grew out of dirt.
- Barbara Kingsolver

December-ful

Sometimes, it's nice to see the faces behind the computer screen...

Some friends from Farm Chick Chit Chat recommended THIS SITE for putting some photos together in a collage format, and I sorta had way too much fun.  Give it a try - you might like it and make a photo collage of your own! Be sure to come back and tell me what you think!

Hope your December is full of love, peace, mercy, and grace.

Love, 

Ed, Sheila, & Eddie Jr. of

'Tis The Season To......Dry Apples!

Apples are in season in many places, and they are beautiful this year. I had no idea up until about 5 years ago that the southern Piedmont of North Carolina had such wonderful apples.  In my farmhousewife head, I thought they all had to come from cold climates....

Of the many ways to enjoy apples, besides fresh, in pies and applesauce, one of my favorites is dried apples.

Golden Delicious Apples - from a local grower

A terrific snack for on-the-go, they fit nicely in a school lunch, backpack, pocket book or for a long car trip.

First, get some apples - for dehydrating, cooking apples are best.  Next, gather some supplies and tools.  You'll need:

• peeler-corer
• knife
• cutting board or mat
• fruit fresh, lemon, orange or pineapple juice (to prevent browning)
• couple quarts of water (2 quarts of water to about 1/2 to 1 cup of juice)
• dehydrator

A peeler-corer makes short work of slicing apples.  It's way too much fun!

So, after you get an apple peeled, cored, and sliced - cut the stack of apple in half.  Then place the pieces in your water with juice or fruit fresh (to prevent browning).

At this point, there is some snacking going on!

Let the apples get thoroughly coated in the solution while you peel/core several more.

I wish I could tell you that I have the manual to this.  I do not.
So, I did what I do best; I WINGED IT!

So, yeah, I had no real idea of the temperature of this dehydrator since it was a second hand gift.  And, I was too lazy busy at work to look up the manual online.  This one rotates and I left it on pretty much all night because I like a more firm, chewy apple slice - almost crispy.

They are so good, naturally sweet and can be used to make APPLE PIE!
Just reconstitute them with some boiling water and you can have seasonal goodness all year long.
Check out this recipe for further details.

Just one more thing - this book comes highly recommended.  I like to collect them every year just for their pretty covers.  It's how I followed the steps to dehydrate the apples.

 Keep calm and preserve your own food!

p.s. one really cool way to save energy by doing this is to hook it to the solar power!  I do this with my crock pot also.