CSA Garden Share

I have been meaning to write this post for weeks. In anticipation for it, I've been diligently capturing photos to share with you. Unfortunately, every time I settle to write, something else needs my attention and it gets put off for another day. I keep joking that I need a secretary to follow me around armed with a cattle prod. No more putting it off or delaying. I am proud of the hard work Sean and I have put in and excited to share it with all of you. I think it will have special interest to those who have signed up for this year's CSA shares. :)

Last year we entrusted Cameron DePaola to start some early seedlings for us. He did a fantastic job and we are thrilled to have his assistance again this year. Cameron started some of our non-GMO, certified organic seeds attached to his aquaponic system several weeks ago. Aquaponics is the growing of plants or crops without the use of soil, using fish waste and water instead. Plants float in net cups with their roots submerged inside the tanks. Cameron's system uses a 100 gallon reservoir. The system is symbiotic; the plants feed on the fish waste and in return clean the water, making it a safe environment for the fish. Cameron feeds his fish a mixture of meal worms, super worms, and vegetable scraps. We'll pick up hundreds of tomato seedlings, cucumbers, sweet and hot peppers and watermelons in just a couple of weeks. We are very excited to see how this method compares to traditional seed starting in terms of our yield.

With all those seedlings coming, we needed to expand the garden space... a lot. In the spirit of using what we have readily to hand, Sean and I have been working overtime cutting down large Alders to weave into garden beds. By that I mean, Sean has been cutting down the Alders with his ax and chain saw while Kristen, Meaghan and I drag them where we need them. I lop off the unwanted branches and use them to weave in and out of the Alder stakes Sean set deep into the ground. Krissy and Meg move the unused twigs to the burn pile. It is a fine system and our garden beds are coming along very well. With continued effort, we should have them ready for the seedlings just in time for them to arrive.

The beds in the front garden have been planted with lettuces, kale, spinach, three types of onions, carrots, beets, radishes, broccoli, peas, and summer squash. How are they doing? Take a peek:
  

Our wintered-over and perennial herbs are making a fine showing this season. From last year we have; chives, rosemary, thyme, peppermint, winter green mint, sage, basil, dill, oregano, and lemon balm growing brilliantly. New this year we have added; chamomile, apple mint, bergamot, nettle, anise, and stevia. We are looking forward to experimenting with these in our kitchen to season our food or make into teas.

Another new development was creating a brand new field for corn, pumpkin, and beans. A very good friend of ours helped prepare the virgin ground for our initial crop with his rototiller. Normally, we let the chickens and ducks help us prepare beds for planting, but we

were in a time crunch and the field was large. The birds still helped, but they had a supporting role in this project. I especially enjoyed watching the ducks follow along with Keith as he tilled the ground, snapping up any goodies turned over in the soil. Once he finished the initial ground breaking, Sean and I spread some 3 year old chicken compost and some 2 year old horse compost on top. We are ready to get the corn into the ground immediately. Before we do, we have to figure out a way to keep those helpful birds out of the garden. Eating parasites and weeds is very helpful, pulling out corn seeds, not so much. They can have it again this fall to their heart's content, but for now, the garden is off limits.

That goes for the goats, too. As soon as the garden is completely planted, the goats will be unwelcome in the back yard, too. The next project on our list, after the gardens, is to expand the goat's field once again to give them even more room. Every year, we expand their pasture deeper into the woods for them to browse. Eventually, they will have all of the wooded land to where our property borders the stream. This will give them several acres to roam at will. I can just see our family grilling on the back deck or hanging out at dinner with a nice view of our animals grazing under the trees. Close enough to see and enjoy without being so close as to be trouble.

Cassie is helping remove all that pesky, unwanted greenery from near the new garden beds. These beds have a long way to go, but it is a good start. Instead of tilling our garden beds, we cover them over with a good layer of cardboard. We soak the cardboard with a hose and then fill the beds to the top with compost and garden soil. Works great! 

We're going to try something new by way of fencing for the goats and as a separation between our yard and our closest neighbors- a variation of 5 foot tall wattle fencing. Basically, Sean will cut 7 foot sections of the thickest Alder trunks. These will be driven 2 feet into the ground every 3 feet, in an alternating, zig-zag pattern. We'll use slightly smaller Alder trunks to slip down between the posts, layering one row on top of the next the entire length, staggering the ends. Though, I reused baling twine to help secure the garden beds, I will reuse some heavy gauge wire to tie the beams together for the fencing. When it is all done, we will string electric fencing on the inside to teach the goats their new boundaries. We won't have the electricity on all the time, but it doesn't take long to teach them not to go near it. There are countless benefits of using the Alders growing here for our fencing needs. It opens up the area for fresh undergrowth to sprout up and gives us a clear view of the goats under the large pines, spruce, maple, and birch trees. Opening up the woodlands will make it more difficult for larger predators, like fox or coyote to breach our land without notice adding to our safety. Though it is labor intensive, it costs no money. And, Alders are a fast growing, renewable source of material. It will be fairly easy to make repairs and replace rotten materials as needed. This is the theory, anyway. I'll be sure to take lots of pictures of the process once we begin. And, you know you'll hear about whether this is a brilliant idea or a dismal flop. I am hoping for brilliance. :)

Enjoy it now, goaties. Your time is short for back yard munching!

I couldn't end this post without an update on sweet Chloe and Momma Lilly. Both are doing great, though Lilly still needs to gain some weight. Chloe is up to drinking 16 oz of goat's milk 3-4x/day and browses with the rest of the herd in between. She is exhibiting all the normal, healthy goat kid behaviors. We are very, very pleased with her progress. :)

Thanks for visiting with us today, friends. It's nice to share some company.
~Sean & Sonja ♥

2015 CSA Share Information and Barn Plans

Moved upstairs until they can return outside.

This post was started more then 2 weeks ago and got pushed to the background as new kids were born. At the risk of giving you all whiplash, I am posting it anyway...

It is very much like the game of getting the fox, chicken and the grain across the stream intact. Sean is working at changing the goats about in preparation of business of real kidding season to begin now that pre-season has run its course with two successful kiddings.

We begin to milk tomorrow morning. In order to get the milk stands set up and ready, the turkeys needed to be moved upstairs in the barn this week- which meant that upstairs had to be cleaned up from supplies, shelves, and the other useful bits that had accumulated over the winter and were in need of some serious sorting. Tonight, the kids all need to be separated into one stall together and away from their Mommas for the overnight. And here is where the logistics become interesting.

Asher cannot be housed with the other young bucks while the doors are still kept closed (most of the time) to keep in the heat. He can be housed with Jane, so she is moving back there. Lilly and Bailey need to be moved from a stall without doors, to one where kidding can be more comfortable and fully accessible. The best spot would be living with Abigail and her kids, Sarah and Levi. But, we can't just throw them in there and hope for the best. So, while Sean deconstructs the wall between Jane and Abigail, Lilly and Bailey can chill in the milk room. Ellie, Cassie, and Jem will be moved to live with Leah, Rachel, and Keziah in the main doe stall so that Keren and Naomi can vacate the stall with Abigail and move in with Haddie and Meme in the 2nd kidding stall. They are all due to kid next month, are the same age and grew up as kids together and should get on well. Once all this shuffling takes place, Sean will reintroduce Lilly and Bailey to Abigail while he deconstructs the temporary wall which kept Abigail and Jane apart and use that lumber to create an overnight kid pen all the while watching for any trouble between Lilly, Bailey, and Abigail. Dizzy yet? When all is said and done- for the next 6 weeks- during the daytime hours:
* Asher will live with Jane and their twins on one side of the buck stall
* Jesse, Judah, and Eli will live together on the other side of the buck stall
* Ellie, Cassie, Jem, Leah, Rachel, and Keziah will share a 10x10 stall
* Abigail and her kids, Sarah and Levi, Lilly, and Bailey will share a 10x10 stall
* Meme, Haddie, Keren, and Naomi will share a 10x10 stall

Once the weather breaks and Keren kids, she, her kids, and Jesse will all move to their new forever home to start a brand new herd and provide milk for their new family. The doors to the pasture will be reopened. All three 10x10 doe stalls will have their dividing doors open to allow free access during the day. The wall separating our three bucks will be removed and they will also enjoy free access to their stall and pasture. Once the weather breaks. Boy, that has a nice ring to it!

*************** Back to the Drawing Board*****************

Our make-shift plan doesn't work.

1. Lilly & Bailey began aggressively butting heads with Abigail and the kids upon introduction. While the goats in other stalls gave a few token pushes and feigns while they settled in to who is in charge, the sisters tried using their much larger size to run Abigail outside and not let her back into the barn- over and over and over. *Sigh* Seriously.

2. In Jane's absence, Asher decided he likes having a bachelor pad and tried to pick a shoving match with Jane's kids. Unlike Jedi who was sweetness itself with kids, Asher immediately tried to show his dominance. That lasted all of one minute before Asher was granted his wish to have his own stall, again.

We considered letting Jane and her twins live in the milk room with Ebony, the pig. This will not work. Both bouncy kids tried climbing the stairs already and that is a recipe for disaster! So, for overnight tonight, we'll move Abby to the milk room alone. Jane will sleep in with Asher and all the kids will have a sleep over together in a stall to themselves. In the morning, after we milk, we'll pick up more wood and make some changes.

*********** Success! (Or, a close approximation of it, anyway.) ************

It is not the best solution to our dilemma, but it works for the moment. We pray daily for the weather to finally break. These animals are stir crazy from being cooped up all day and who can blame them? Not I.

Keren, Piper, and Jesse will be leaving our farm to begin their new life together at their new home sometime in the next week or so. When that happens, we'll rearrange stalls slightly and it will look like this come April...

The reality is, we already need a bigger barn. While I realize that perhaps some of you might suggest keeping less goats, doing so is contrary to our reaching the goal of maintaining this lifestyle by working for ourselves. I confess, I worry about finances and whether we are making the right choices for our family, but when we weigh working for others and being away from home and our kids all day with the delight and joy our schedule has been since Sean's February lay off... well, it is not even a close call. The girls education has become more of a family focus. Working together each week in our ministry has strengthened us and brought us closer together. So many projects are getting done with time to spare for US. We are creating more of our products at a better pace in preparation for the coming season. Sean half-jokingly remarked to me that he's never worked harder, but the meals are better. It is hard work, but I don't consider that a "downside". In fact, it is really hard to find a down side. It shouldn't be so in the wake of uncertainty and the loss of a steady paycheck, but Sean, the girls, and I have never been closer or happier than we are right now, today. I understand that perhaps it won't last. Perhaps the financial bottom line will necessitate Sean's return to full-time employment elsewhere. If it does, I will choose to look on these past few months as a wonderful gift. But, how will we know for sure, unless we press forward and TRY with all our might?

Sean has been taking odd jobs as he can find them to help supplement our income until shows, craft fairs, and farmer's markets begin in earnest. We hope that one of these opportunities will become a steady 2-3 day/week employment, leaving him available for the farm the other 4-5 days/week. I am creating as fast as my fingers will allow it. And, we are working on our goal of supplying goat's milk soaps, massage melts, scent tarts, eggshell jewelry, and bee's wax wraps to 8 additional stores in Maine. We are planning for this year's CSA garden shares (Click to read.) Goat rentals (click to read.) begin April 1st. And, we have enough eggs being laid regularly to satisfy 6 of our 10 regular CSA Egg Share (Click to read.) Customers. This will increase daily with the daylight. If you are interested in signing up for any of our shares, you can use this form (Click to read.) or call to talk with Sean or myself at 207-323-4982.

Sean and I spent a couple hours this week planning on the barn expansion we'll need to frame and sheath this year. Most of the year, the does will have open access to three of the stalls and their field. Once breeding season comes in the fall, we'll be able to separate our pairs into private and semi-private kidding stalls. We've planned to create four kidding stalls (marked in light blue). If we can breed the way we did this year, with several weeks between each kidding, this will suit us perfectly. We'll increase to breed 8 does each year, alternating years so the does have plenty of time to rest and recuperate after breeding.

This is our ambitious, 2-year barn plan:

2015:
*Pour cement pad for addition
*Frame & OSB sheath 10x10 Dedicated Milking Room
*Frame & Cement Board sheath 10x5 Dedicated Milk Processing Room
*Frame 10x5 Wood Shed
*Frame and Metal Roof Addition
*Typar entire barn
*Move and install windows and doors (as necessary)
Cost of Materials Approx. $900

2016:
*Aluminum siding on entire barn
Cost of Materials ?????

When I wrote this two days ago, I felt nothing but excitement at all of the possibilities ahead of us. I knew it would take a lot of hard work, but we're up for that. Today I spent most of the day working on gathering information for a grant I want to apply for. If we are successful, we'll have the funds to expand and complete all the garden beds we want to have, a greenhouse to cover a good amount of them, and the barn expansion completed this year. It would be a HUGE jump for us and allow us to apply for our dairy license as well as more than double our CSA shares. My dream is to be able to focus part of our CSA shares towards supplying low-income and elderly families with fresh, local foods. For some reason the potential to be able to take that leap so soon leaves me feeling overwhelmed and just a little lost. It is all perception. Nothing has changed between this day and that, other than my perception and mental attitude.

I think it is time to get off this silly machine and put my hands to work. Nothing helps change an attitude so much as a little physical work help to distract the mind. I need to make another three batches of soaps to give us a fully stocked supply and there is no time like the present.

Thanks for stopping in for a visit friends.
I am glad you came.

~Sean & Sonja ♥

Hatching Guinea Keets, Missing Ducklings, Surprise Chicks and MORE!

In theory, there was a system. We went over it to make sure everyone understood it. And, yet we were constantly surprised by our hatching chicks and guinea fowl this year.

At the beginning of summer, our 14 year old, Meaghan, took over egg collecting duties in order to earn herself some additional spending money. We agreed that Meg would be responsible to collect the eggs from the various nests, wash off any unwanted debris on them, and sort them into egg cartons for our customers. Conscientiously, Meg looked for eggs a couple times each day in the main coop nest boxes, our breeding chicken coops, and in random nesting spots in and around the barn. She took pride in her work and did a terrific job for us.

This broody Australorp adopted several
chicks to love. ♥

Several of the hens became broody and the time came to set the eggs that we wanted to hatch into chicks under them. Our first attempt to hatch chicks this year was puzzling. We set a group of 10 duck eggs under a chicken. For a while, all was well. It was easy for Meg to distinguish between the duck eggs we wanted to hatch and extra chicken eggs laid in the same nest by determined hens. After two weeks, I trekked out to the nest box with the intention of candling the eggs to see how they were developing. Imagine my shock and horror when I discovered NO DUCK EGGS in the nest. My very first thought was that one of our egg customers had inadvertently been provided duck eggs... developing duck eggs! I talked with Meg to clarify which eggs she'd been taking. Meg was certain that she'd only collected chicken eggs. I talked with our customers and thankfully, no one received the eggs. So, what happened to the nest of duck eggs? No one knows. They just disappeared. I suspect a small rodent might have stolen them and had themselves a feast, but I have no evidence to support that.

It was sad that we did not hatch any new ducklings, but the time had come to set Guinea Fowl eggs and Cochin eggs. And, we did. One nest box was marked for the Cochin eggs and the other was marked for the Guineas. Like clockwork, 21-28 days after putting them in the nest boxes, chicks hatched... just not in the manner we anticipated. The Cochin nest hatched without incident. The Guineas were a little more interesting. Meaghan reported that there were "chirp chirps" coming from the nest. When we explored it, we discovered that the nest of 12 eggs I set had grown to include about a dozen chicken eggs, too; four of which had hatched into chicks! We candled the remaining eggs and discovered that most of the eggs were fertile and maturing, but at differing days of development. In the days that followed single chicks hatched randomly. I do not recommend this process! But, we learned that even marking the nest boxes and setting eggs that I would have thought to be easily identified, it is still necessary to mark the individual eggs in the nest. A little smiley face now adorns any egg we plan to try to hatch a chick from. Lesson learned. :)

We couldn't resist adding a couple new breeds of chickens to the farm this year. These will add some color to the flock and in the eggs in our cartons for our customers. We breed Cochins, Americaunas, and Aracaunas. But, we also are home to Australorps, Barred Rocks, Rhode Island Reds, Leghorns, Silver Lace Wyandottes, Buff Orpingtons, and Easter Eggers. We decided to add a couple Silkies and a couple Swedish Flower chicks this spring. They were born the week of June 21st and if they don't start laying this year, will be ready to begin laying eggs for us come spring. They are filling out nicely, but are still at the awkward tween stage. I really love the little poof on their sweet little heads!

We were told these chicks were both Swedish Flowers, but their feathers came in completely different to one another. The little red and brown chick on the left has feathered pale legs. The one on the right has variegated feathers and bright yellow legs without feathers. At some point, I will do some research to see what we have here, but it has not been high on the priority list.

In addition to new chicks and keets born on the farm this year, we have recently become home to a lovely and oh-so-vocal(!) Ring-Necked Dove. Sean found one in need of a home unexpectedly mid-August. Our intention was originally to find him a suitable, forever home, but over the past couple weeks, I have become attached to him. His coos and trills make music in my studio and I enjoy holding him and petting him. So, I think that we'll be searching for a female to keep him company instead.

We call him Love Dove because it is just too precious not to.

Other unexpected visitors to the homestead showed up in our garden beds. Though they look a little like the garden pest, Tomato Hornworm, we went online to do some research and discovered that our guests are Black Swallowtail Caterpillar which will, in time, morph into lovely butterflies. They have been enjoying our dill all summer long and I don't mind a bit.

Black Swallowtail Butterfly Image
from Butterfly Fun Facts Site

You can read all about their life cycle here: Butterfly Fun Facts Site.

The rest of our garden is doing wonderfully well this year. We have enjoyed bumper crops of string beans, peas, cherry tomatoes, cukes, and herbs this year. The rest of our veggies are producing, but are growing a little slower than we hoped. Still, we are very pleased with the amount and quality of the heritage vegetables provided to our CSA share customers. Our goal next year is to, once again, increase garden space so that we will be able to preserve more food for our family's needs.

 Thanks for visiting with us today, friends. Your company matters to us.

~Sonja ♥

Gardening with Chickens

Despite the rains that keep coming creating a quagmire of mud and unmentionable substances in all the pastures, yards, and pens and the temperatures that refuse to remain where they should, we are taking a leap of faith and have started seedlings to prepare for planting time. It does not feel like it when the wet cold is still seeping into these bones and the wood stove is still in use at least a few days of the week, but, we are going to be ready for spring when it decides to come to Maine. At least, that is what I am telling myself.

This year with three times the amount of shows scheduled for us, we are learning to delegate and outsource locally when and where we can. Time is at a premium (as it is for all of us) especially since Sean is still working 40 hours each week at his "real" job and then, working another 40 hours+ each week here on the farm. Hard work is nothing we are afraid of, but it takes its toll physically and mentally. We knew what we were in for, signed up willingly, and don't regret it most days.

* CSA~ Community Supported Agriculture. For more information,
read our article about CSAs on page 102 of From Scratch Magazine.

Besides tripling our show commitments, Sean and I have 6 egg-share CSA*s filled of the 14 we can supply. With 5 people participating in our Goat Rental program, we are at max capacity for this year on that front. And, we have 3 families signed up for our Veggie CSA program. And, that is where Cameron comes in. Cameron DePaola of DePaola Succulents has been heaven-sent. We supplied him with our non-GMO, heritage seeds and he started them in the greenhouse for us. And, look how they are doing!

For those of you who have signed up for our CSA, we are off to a great start at the greenhouse! 5 varieties of tomatoes, 6 varieties of hot and sweet peppers, cucumbers for slicing and pickling, broccoli, and more are all beginning to grow for your families' tables.

To prepare the raised beds for transplanting, the turkeys are already digging up the soil and turning it over for us. It will be time for the Chickens will join them in their work soon. Every creature on the farm has a "job" to do. Sure, we could do all the jobs ourselves, but it all goes back to working together. You see, to breed true, we need to separate out the hens and roosters of the same breed from the rest of the flock to hatch out pure breed chicks. Rather than move them to pens on the lawn which quickly becomes de-grassed leaving a very short or bald patch of lawn, we place the chicken tractors over our 4 x10 raised-bed garden plots. Our helpful gardening chickens do what comes naturally to them; eat anything green out of the bed (delicious, nutritious, edible weeds) and scratch and dig to their hearts content in the garden soil. Plus, they fertilize a bit for us as they go. When the bed is ready for planting, the chickens are moved to another garden spot to continue their "work". This system saves so much time for Sean and I to turn over soil and pull any weeds that have grown through the spring. The chickens get a healthy diet of greens, fresh soil to dirt-bathe in, and all the bugs they can find. In addition, since we also supplement their diets from the produce of the gardens, they are not working for nothing.

So, Cameron is tending our seedlings, the chickens and turkeys will help to prepare the garden beds, what are Sean and I doing? Much, I assure you. We are doubling the size of the garden from last year; 7 new beds will be built and filled. Some of the beds from last year settled and will need more compost and garden soil to refill them. We'll also make repairs to any beds that might have loosened over the winter. Crushed rock needs to fill in the garden walkways to keep the weeds down. And, it will soon be time to direct plant corn, green beans, pumpkin, peas, lettuce, spinach, kale, onions and all the other yummy vegetables our garden will grow for us.

Our herb garden beds are coming to life. The chives are up and growing well. I have been using them to flavor our fresh garlic herb chevre and it is just divine. I have not seen either of the mints sprout nor yet the lavender from last year, but we'll keep an eye out for them.

With twice the beds growing veggies, we are hoping for a fantastic season this year: MORE veggies available for all our CSA share friends and enough left over to preserve to feed our family over the winter months. Hard work? Yes. But, many hands (and feathered friends) make for a lighter load.

Have you ever joined a CSA in your community? What was your experience with it?

Thanks for stopping in for a visit, friends. We're real glad you came.
Sonja ♥

Garden Planning 2014

Sometimes things fall into place.

Sean and I have talked a lot about what this year's busy schedule is going to mean for us; time spent in our ministry, time spent with our children, time to share with extended family, time for caring for farm needs, time creating products, time at markets and craft events, time to sleep if we get everything else cared for. Time is one commodity that is always on our minds. Tick-tock. Tick-tock. Tick-tock. I suppose we are not alone in this. Regardless of your pursuits in life, your desires or focus, time is a commodity high in demand and seemingly low in supply. Mindful of our responsibilities, Sean and I are trying very hard to spend our time wisely. We've decided that some things can be delegated or hired out so that we can focus on the people and animals that require US without burning the candle at both ends, so to speak.

Last year, we approached a local green house owner to see could we pay her to begin some of our seeds for us? Her greenhouse was full and it was just not possible for her to do it. We started our own seeds and used some of our time to nurture them into seedlings. It was an enjoyable usage of our time, planting seeds and watching them grow into plants. But, let's be candid. The seeds we plant couldn't care less who waters them and makes sure they are getting the right amount of sun, water, and food so long as someone is. 

This year, by chance, we met Cameron Depaolo of Depaolo Succulents at the Krafty Flea in Bangor. Cameron grows some of the healthiest plants I have ever seen. I seized the opportunity to talk with him to gauge his interest in using some of his greenhouse space to start some of our seeds for us this year. Some seeds will be direct planted and we'll care for those. The direct planted seeds have an asterisk beside them in the list below. To satisfy this year's CSA plans, Sean and I have calculated that we need to grow this many plants in our vegetable gardens:

* 60 Bean plants

* 60 Beet plants

* 20 Broccoli plants

* 400 Carrots

24 Pickling Cucumber plants

12 Straight Cucumber plants

* 2 lb Corn seeds

* 40 Lettuce plants

* 200 Onions

* 200 Pea plants

30 Sweet Pepper plants

18 Hot Pepper plants

* 40 Spinach plants

24 Table Tomato plants

18 Cherry Tomato plants

24 Paste Tomato plants

* 200 Radishes

* 100 Garlic plants

* 30 Kale plants

In addition, we'll have several plantings of basil, mint, sage, thyme, dill, rosemary, lavender, and chives available in our herb garden. Through agreements with local growers, we'll again provide strawberries, blueberries, rhubarb, cranberries, apples, and pears in season. 

It will be worth every penny it costs us for Cameron to start some of our seeds so that we can focus on other necessary spring tasks. Through the next few weeks and months, I'll be updating you on the progress, sharing the images Cameron captures.

We have one CSA share still available or two half shares available for the 2014 season. A half share portion for last year included an average of at least ten items each week and looked something like this: 2-3 med tomatoes or a pint of cherry tomatoes, 1 head garlic, 1 med zucchini, 1 med summer squash, 2 cucumbers, 1 head lettuce, 10 oz kale, 1 pound carrots, 8 oz broccoli, 12 oz peas, 2-3 onions or bunching onions, 10 oz string beans, 6-8 radishes, 2 sweet peppers, 2-3 hot peppers, a pint of blueberries, strawberries, stalks of rhubarb, or other seasonal fruit and an assortment of herbs. The cost for a half share is $250 for the season (averages to less than $20 per week). A full share provides you with twice as much produce as the half share and should comfortably feed an average family of four. The cost for a full CSA share is $450 for the season (averages to less than $36 per week).

If you are interested in participating, please contact Sonja at 207-323-4982 for more information. 2014 Enrollment forms can be downloaded HERE. A deposit in the amount of $125 is due at the time of enrollment for either share. For a half share, the full payment is due before May 31st. For a full share the payment schedule is: $125 down payment, $125 due April 31st, $100 due May 31st, final payment $100 due June 31st.

Though the weather outside is howling and very, very cold. I am dreaming of fine spring weather and the garden planting to come. If you grow a garden, what are you most looking forward to growing this year? If you participate in a CSA, what has been your experience?

Thanks for visiting today, friends. We're sure glad you are here.
~Sean and Sonja ♥

2013 Turkey Shares

After last year's disappointing lesson regarding not counting our turkeys before they hatch, we hedged our bets and ordered turkeys from 3 sources this year. This plan seems to be working in that 10 mixed color heritage turkeys are living in a brooder in our front room. Better than that? They are nearly all resold already! We'll be raising them up for those family, friends, and neighbors who ordered them. Then, when they are grown, Sean has the unenviable task to bring them to the butcher.

I thought this would be easier for me. I thought that by selling them to the recipients immediately, banding them to indicate to whom they belonged, and knowing from day one that these were destined for dinner I would be able to not get emotionally involved. I thought wrong.

I picked up these first chicks on Thursday morning. I was unprepared for their cute factor. When I held one later in the day, it shocked me when it began to shake in my hand until it calmed down with my petting and fell asleep. I buried the little pang and went to call a reputable local butcher to discuss pricing and find out how all this worked since this would be our first time raising any kind of meat at the homestead. I left a message when no one answered and went on with my day, creating Turkey Share Contracts to protect all the parties in this venture. The moment that I knew I was definitely in trouble? 2:17pm, Thursday afternoon. I was sitting with a couple chicks nestled in the collar of my shirt while I was typing up contract information when the butcher called back. Discussing the method of their demise, payments, and reserving dates was a bit "real" for me. It was at that moment that I knew Sean was going to have to handle that part of this deal. It was going to be too much for me.

And, that is okay.

All of this is preparation for our getting our breeding stock. Sean and I have been quite comfortable being a "no-kill" homestead. But, we aren't vegetarian. We eat meat. And, we hatch cute little chicks for other people to add to their flocks, knowing full well that most folk will "retire" their older hens and their roosters into their soap pot. And, we have been fine with that decision. Our intention is to keep the nicest tom and the 5 nicest hens to supply us with chicks to sell to those who want to raise

their own heritage breed turkeys. But, we are a year later than we wanted to be with this aspect of our farming business, so after much discussion, we decided to raise some birds for customers here, in addition to getting and raising our breeding stock. The hope is that these customers will be happy with their experience and come back to purchase birds next year when we are hatching them ourselves. And, maybe, they'll be so happy, they will tell their friends about us, too. And, that helps... somewhat. Knowing that I can bond with, raise up, and love on a group of turkey birds that will live out their natural lives here on our farm is a little spot of sunshine. It also helps to know that the turkeys we are raising for our customers will have had a very good life here; plenty of food, room to run, and a clean coop to roost in. And, as morbid as it is, a quick end. I have spent a good amount of time looking into how "the deed" is done. It was unpleasant to be sure, but it is important for me to know that when the time comes, they won't suffer or be mistreated.

It is not my intention of scaring off potential customers with my candor. This site has and will always be a real, honest look at what is happening here. Sometimes we have much joy; other times, we are full of doubts and worry. That's just the way it is.

With all that being said, I was just contacted by the neighbor who hatched this set of turkey poults for us and she has had another 20 hatch successfully. If you are local and interested in our raising a heritage breed, organic turkey for your family's dinner, please feel free to contact us to order yours now while we have them available. If you are wondering why we feel so strongly about eating organic, heritage breeds and why you should be, read on HERE. Click to read our Turkey Share Contact.

Thanks for visiting with us this evening, friends. We're sure glad of your company.
Sonja ♥

Seed Picks for Spring 2013

Sean brought home the new FEDCO SEEDS CATALOG a few days ago to create a very happy and excited wife. I love looking forward, planning and lists. I love LISTS. Immediately, we sat down and started reading through the pages to decide which kinds of seeds we would purchase for this year's gardens. With over 150 pages to look through, it was difficult to narrow our choices. Once we stepped back to evaluate the landscape a little, picking which varieties we would grow this season became easier.

Our goal is to eventually maintain our own comprehensive seed bank, for several reasons. First, the seeds we harvest will become acclimated to our particular growing climate over time, leading to a better yield for us. Secondly, it will save us money. It may only be a small expense each year, but every expense eats into any profit we hope to someday realize. And, by selecting and saving seeds from plants which boast the qualities most desirable to us (flavor, fruit yield, disease resistance, etc.), we will have more control over the genetics of the plants we choose to grow.

To do this right, we feel that it is important to mainly purchase seeds that meet these criteria:
1. Heritage Variety: are open- pollinated vegetables varieties that have been grown for 50 years or longer
2. Open-Pollinated: seeds not labeled hybrid, F1, F2, etc. These seeds grow true-to-type.
3. Certified Organic: certified by a USDA approved agency which can be proven with an audit trail.
4. Locally Grown: seeds offered by gardens and farms grown in our climate and geographic area.

It is still strange to think that in this day and age, you can grow your own food in your own backyard, and STILL be eating food that has been genetically engineered. And, you can plant seeds which you yourself have saved, and still not realize a harvest because the seeds planted were sterile. With those thoughts in mind, I appreciate that FEDCO "does not knowingly carry genetically engineered seeds" in their catalog. Not every seed variety listed for sale, is certified organic, though. So, it took us a few hours to narrow our selections for this year's gardens.

We decided to purchase 31 varieties. All of them, except the scarlet runner and the multi-colored pole bean mix met all of our requirements. These two varieties were not certified organic. They were labeled ECO which indicated that they were "grown without pesticides, herbicides, or chemical fertilizers in gardens and on farms which maintain an active soil-building program" but had not been through the certification process. That sounds like us. We won't have the money to spend to be certified this year, but we plan to use organic growing practices and we will label our foods "Naturally Grown".

I am excited about this year's garden effort. We hope that we will have enough produce to eat, freeze, and store to feed ourselves through until next year. Additionally, we will be offering fruits and veggies for sale at our farm stand for our neighbor's tables. And, hope of all hopes, it would be just spectacular to produce enough to sell Five CSA Shares beginning in June and running through October.

So, what will we have to offer?

2013 Seed Selections

 

Yellow Sweet Corn
Ashworth

Beans
Bush Green Beans
Pole Beans
Multicolored Pole Bean Mix*
Scarlet Runner*
Red Kidney

Peas
Sugarsnap

Watermelon
Blacktail Mountain

Cucumbers
Little Leaf Pickling
Marketmore Slicing

Pumpkin
Young's Beauty

Carrots
Nantes Fancy

Radishes
Plum Purple

Scallions
Evergreen Hardy White

Onion
New York Early

Lettuce
Freedom Lettuce Mix

Kale
Red Russian

Spinach
Tyee

Beets
Early Wonder Tail Top

Broccoli
Solstice

Peppers
King of the North
Purple Beauty
Tangerine Pimento
Carmen

Hot Peppers
Czech Black
Hidalgo Serrano

Tomatoes
Soldaki (Table)
Peacevine (Cherry)
Heinz (Paste)
Amish Paste (Paste)
Hog Heart (Paste)

We already have planted 60 cloves of organic Red Russian garlic. We grow herbs like; dill, basil, sage, thyme, chives, and rosemary all year long indoors. We will offer either cut bunches of herbs or potted herbs as soon as we open this spring. And, through partnerships with local orchards and growers, we may also have available strawberries, blueberries, grapes (grown right here), and apples!

What about you?
Do you grow a garden?
Have you ever purchased a CSA Share from a local farm?

Thanks for stopping in for a visit today!
Sonja ♥

This post also linked to: Hearth Soul Hop. Check them out for some great recipes and growing tips.

Almost Time for Salsa!

Wednesday morning, after Daddy Dale helped me by mowing our front lawn, we visited Sean's grapes to find... you guessed it, MORE Japanese Beetles! Uggghhh! There was easily 40-50 of them mating undisturbed or munching away at the tender grape leaves. THAT. WAS. IT.

Notice the mutilated leaves and the dirty looking masses of beetles.

Armed with my newly purchased container of food grade Diamataceous Earth (DE) and a table spoon, I marched outside to battle the hordes of my winged foe. The day was windy, so all that was necessary was for me to stand upwind and hold the tablespoon of DE near the grape plants to spread it fairly evenly all over the grape plant leaves and dusting the beetles in the process. For good measure, I dusted DE over the other plants in the raised beds in front of our house. Then since I was on a roll, I sprinkled a tablespoon down the backs of each goat in the main pen. They did not seem to like it, at all, which is strange because it looks like a fine powder and cannot possibly have hurt them. In contrast, the chickens LOVED being sprinkled with the DE. They treated it like they were getting a dust bath. For good measure, I sprinkled a little on the chicken coop floor, on a singular pile of horse manure in Jasmine's stall and over the hill of manure full of tiny flies buzzing along a fence at the edge of the horse pasture. I was not sure that this was going to have any effect, but felt relatively better for my having done SOMETHING.

A few hours later, at around 2pm, I returned outside to capture some pictures of our garden's produce. Since I was near the grapes, I took a minute to check out if the DE had done anything. It had. Really. There were maybe 10-15 beetles collectively on all the vines and they weren't looking so good. The flies in the manure in the horse stall were gone. This was all very promising, but 10-15 beetles were still beetles too many. Maybe I needed to give it more time? Or, maybe these were other beetles that found the grapes and had not been treated? Or, maybe it just wouldn't work.

When Sean and I checked the grapes tonight at 8pm and there were still a few beetles present on the leaves, but no where near as many as had been on previous days/nights. And, the ones there did not seem to be active, like they had been. So, again, promising results, but not perfect results so far. The jury is still out.

As I surveyed and photographed the various garden spaces, I was very happy to find several yellow blossoms had developed into the promise of several tiny watermelons beginning to grow. The extra heat and natural funneling of water inside black tires seems to be paying off for their growing this season. Our cucumber plants are sporting many tiny cucumbers, too. Our tomatoes are HUGE and full of flowers and fruits. Several varieties of our hot pepper plants are ready to harvest. Others are covered with tiny white blossoms which will bloom into tasty peppers in the weeks ahead. Under the premise that a picture speaks 1,000 words, I took a few to share with you.

Serrano Hot Peppers

Jalapeno Hot Peppers

Mildly Spicy Banana Peppers

Teensy, Tiny, Baby Watermelon

Cucumbers

Tomatoes

Some of our best and healthiest veggie plants are living in medium containers on our deck. From these, I harvest Basil, Chives, Scallions, Oregano, Mint, Hot Peppers, and Tomatoes. Even if you only have a small area, you CAN still grow some fresh veggies for your family.

Last night, I separated the soft goat cheese I made from a gallon of milk into 3- 5oz plastic tubs. To one, I mixed in fresh basil, garlic, scallions, & oregano. To another, I mixed in fresh dill and peppercorns. To the last, I added garlic and chives. They all tasted really, REALLY good, but did not harden to the consistency I wanted this time. The cheese spread will still be lovely on bagels, or to eat on chips, crackers, or fresh garden veggies. I have enough milk to make another batch or three this weekend and will attempt my hand at cheese again on Sunday afternoon. Practice. Practice. Practice.

Garden and pest update complete, I will turn my attention to the critters happenings for you soon. I am especially excited to candle the latest batch of eggs incubating in my living room area. I sure hope we have a good hatch rate on them!

Thanks for visiting with us.
Sonja ♥