Before I jump into the wicked ways of the world around here, I want to offer multiple updates. First, several years ago I began growing comfrey. I am now a true comfrey farmer. It’s hard not to be a comfrey farmer. Actually, it’s almost impossible not to become a comfrey farmer as comfrey, much like… Continue Reading
Turkey Merger
Before I talk turkey I want to offer a garden update. Between the high temperatures and me remembering to water, the first of my all-volunteer sunflowers are now over eight feet tall. I’m in the picture to give you perspective. Because most of my sunflowers are volunteers I doubt any of them will have the… Continue Reading
Too Many Tomatoes?
Is it possible to have too many tomatoes growing in your garden? I’d like to think not, but this year I may well discover the answer to that question. Like every other gardener in the world (except my youngest sister), I love a fresh, home-grown tomato. This is saying a lot considering that early in… Continue Reading
Birthing
Any remaining doubts I had about Tiny, my oldest ewe, being pregnant (not just fat) were answered last week. Not that I had many doubts remaining, not after her udder swelled to the size of a volleyball. That’s the big giveaway when it comes to pregnant sheep. Just days before delivering, a ewe’s udder gets… Continue Reading
Rabbit Coop Failure
Firstly, I apologize for missing last week. Technology on the Farm got squirrely prior to the big weekend, and then got worse. By Sunday we had radio, tv, telephone, and internet silence. There we stayed until Wednesday. I thought I’d be able to write one after we were up again, but that was wishful thinking.… Continue Reading
Switchel
I was going to write about Rupert, who has become a swimming dog now that the temperatures have climbed into the 90s. He slides into the ditch and lets the current float him downstream for a bit, then paddles like heck, gets out and rolls in the grass…and, of course, then runs in joyful, cool,… Continue Reading
Teen Rabbits
Let me say, if you haven’t experienced life with a teenager of some sort, you just haven’t lived. I, unfortunately, have enjoyed that experience with human children (ugh), puppies (lordy, lordy), ram lambs (someone save me), and calves (OMG, I cannot believe you used your tongue to open that gate!). I am now officially adding… Continue Reading
Rabbits, Turkeys, and Gardens
It turns out Bitsy wasn’t pregnant. This confounded Christina, who was certain she’d felt little bunny babies in Bitsy’s belly. (Say that three times fast!) With an eye on the temperature, we put Bitsy in with Buddy three days ago. This is because Spring lasted a nanosecond here and we’re now in mid-Summer with temperatures… Continue Reading
Locked in ’til Lunch
That’s my egg laying chickens I’m talking about. As you, my plucky readers, will recall, my laying hens have endured predator pressure for the past two years, including golden eagles, ravens, puppies, and egg-eating skunks. That’s why I’ve been periodically locking my girls into their coop over the last few months. The Farm’s version of… Continue Reading
Rupert the Garden Dog
When I first moved up to Northern Arizona I left behind the (tiny) garden of my dreams that I’d created in the backyard of my (equally as tiny) Scottsdale home. However small that garden, when I turned my back on it, it had been in constant production for almost twelve years and supplied most of… Continue Reading