{this moment}

Spring is on it's way

And peas!

When the forsythia/crocus bloom or you see red winged blackbird females -
time to plant peas.
When the chickadees build their nests, plant peas and spinach.
When dandelions are blooming plant potatoes, beets, lettuce, spinach and
carrots.
When the iris bloom, plant the peppers and eggplants outside. 
Plant beets, lettuce, spinach when lilac is in first leaf.
When lilac blooms, plant beans, cukes and squash.
Plant corn when oak leaves are the size of squirrels ears.
Plant your corn when apple blossoms start to fall.





-Edith of the Rockland County Gardeners

How many times... everyday

I was out this evening and it occurred to me that I go out to my animals at least 4 times a day. breakfast to let them out for the day.  mid-day egg check. evenin' meal time.  and before bed to close the condos so the hens aren't eaten by the raccoons, foxes, or skunks (which I have smelled lately.)  Sometimes the hens decide it's a party night.  They hang out in the cage below sipping martinis and dancin to dean and sinatra.  Drives me crazy cuz on a cold winters night I just want to snuggle up an get some zzzz.

spring summer fall and winter.  (summer days are even longer) I am now a farmer... this is what I do...

tonight was  cold quiet and calm. My ladies were all up on there roosts (its a friday night don't they know...), the sheep were nestled in to their hay. the sky was cloudy and bright from the light pollution.  the things that go threw my mind when I go out by myself into the darkness: I saw that there was a pack of coyotes sited this week in this area. I hear them yelping sometimes along the creek. We have a lot of deer back there too.  hmmm I am surrounded by cemeteries (which is why it seems we have so much land to ourselves in this urban setting) when will the zombies come up and start hunting the living? or worse how about zombie sheep and chickens hehehe (for you craig.)

Anyway I thought, how fast can I get back up to my house... I know I will dream about this later while the owls are whoooooing.

Its not even a full moon...

Our eggs

we are getting about a dozen a day

At the farm we are getting ready for winter

Winter means taking the sheepies off the grass and into a winter yard. We had a few trees taken down on the property that were diseased and loosing limbs.  The wood  chips make a nice bedding in the winter yard and compost faster under the sheep.

Moving logs for milling and firewood. There were logs all over the yard.

My hens are also taken off the grass and have to be plugged into supplimental light so they will continue to lay eggs as the daylight grows shorter.

Goings on at LillyZoo Farm

Fall has begun and that means harvest and wine making.

We don't let the moss grow under our feet.

Vintner  Anthony racking his wine in what we call our 'General Store'  it contains a treasure trove of interesting antiques that came with the house. This cellar room maintains a 55 to 60 degree temp which is great for making wine.

Our 2010 wine list will be a Cab Sav, Merlot and a reserve Malbec.   about 60 gallons of wine which will be ready to drink in 2012

Vintner Anthony show off some ready to drink Merlot 08

Pickled harvest: Jalapenos and pickled green beans

one days harvest with my herders/farmers

Chestnut harvest came and went

pear harvest was small this year

lots of beautiful winter squash this year

More Roosters...

We received a rescue rooster last year that we named Van Gogh. He is a gorgeous enormous Buff Orpington but meeeeannn. His name should be Diablo. He has attacked my oldest daughter and myself despite attempts to kill'em with kindness. He is a rooster of the worst kind. Once they are bad there is no way to retrain the dominance out of them. I thought I would make some soup but couldn't bring myself to do the deed because he is so pretty. We made him a smaller coop to try and tame him and tone down his roosterness but he is none the less aggressive. Well now we have an up and coming 11 week old araucana (we'll call romeo) that could be trained to be nice if I show myself to be the dominant bird.

Did I mention the constant screams coming out of these birds that started this morning? Ugg

6mo Rooster VanGogh

I guess it is time to make a giant soup...

Happenings

The garden is a little over loaded

Flowers are helping attacted all the right helpers. The girls and I saw our first hummingbird the other night

Our mix of araucanas and americanas are 10 weeks now and should begin producing blue and green eggs in October

Ant and I have been painting and he is rebuilding the sitting porch

Sitting porch

We cristened a new addition to the farm

Nicey nice!

Harvesting in the LillyZoo

Just finished a Chicken harvest of 26 Cornish X Rocks and now on to a daily harvest of:

Tomatoes,
Blackeberries,
Dried Pinto Beans
Chard

More on the chicken harvest in a later post

1 down and 26 to go

chicks at 3wks

So last night I harvested my first chick. The chicks are about 7-8 weeks now and I need to get busy. I built a fire to boil the scalding water. When the temp it 150 I gathered one little chick, lit a candle in her honor and put her in the cone upside down.  It was quick but felt like it could have been quicker. She had a better than expected life for a Cornish X Rock. (protected but out in nature and eating bugs and garden leftovers.) Now for the scald and plucking by hand. I quickly decided against that since it was late. I skinned the bird and cleaned her out. Now for those of you out there who are thinking this is a foreign concept lets just compare it to going fishing. Cleaning the catch it is pretty much the same thing.

1 down 26 to go and I will be a little lighter in the chore load... with food in the freezer.

Ps. If you are wondering, my girls were sleeping and Daddy was holding the baby who decided this would be a good night not to go to bed.

Garlic harvested

June 16

It is not quite clear enough how large the cornish X chicks are compared to the aracana but the differences is amazing and they are always hungry. Someone half criticized why I would buy this breed since it is the breed of big business but honestly with 3 children and no extra help 6 to 8 weeks is enough time with these chicks before harvest. I am interested to see if I feel a weight lifted when the work is done.

Keeping the weeds from over taking the garden is a daily job, but the pulling is worth it and the girls enjoy their time harvesting.

E my 3 year old sowed the seed for these California Poppies along with other flowers which cut well and look lovely around the house.

Garden Update

Radishes gone to seed, corn is 18inches high, egyptian onion front and center

california poppies, lettuce, arugula, beets, kale and lots of grass

sheepies top left, blackberries flowering, bed left: snap peas, red fingerlings, bed center: blue fingerlings, yellow onions, dianthus, pinto beans,  bed right: pumpkin and corn

Groundhogs

Every year groundhogs make there way into the gardens and once they are in they must be caught. As I have learned from a couple of old timers there is nothing else to do. It is against the law to transport them elsewhere, so I am sure you can guess the ending

Harvest this week

Lettuce and radishes

We had to separate our meat birds from our egg layers. The meat birds are growing so fast.

Garden Update

Tomatoes and peppers are planted scored from the Pfeiffer Center plant sale.

baby lettuce is ready daily as are the radishes

Grass is high, potatoes, onions, and beans with some flowers. Blackberries in the background

Grapes and quince tree loaded

Corn is growing pretty good

Garden in full force, 

The sheep have been sheared

Morels in season

Last years morels were a nice surprise. This years harvest was an even nicer surprise.