Mucking out..

what a great day, did some shopping at the feed store, had a date lunch out with hubby and we spent the afternoon and early evening working on the farm..

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Cleaned out the rabbit hutches and added more bedding in the inside areas, the litters are looking good so far..

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Spent time with crème and Burlee the new goat kids, they are passing all their health checks with flying colors..

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we mucked out a good size pen, it was already self-composting in place, got to love well done deep pack and it was added to a number of beds, they will get a dirt dressing on top and it will be for the very heavy feeders

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this bed used to be a cold box but it was really in the wrong spot, so I said enough, but we built a hill on the back side, so taking it would be a ton of work, dropped in composting straw bales, then a bird load of mixed bird and rabbit and will cover that will my own done soil and plant it up

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Self-seeded something for sure.. but sure what.. pulled some, rabbits like it, will grow some out and see what it turns out to be..

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Juno’s has Kidded..

After a calm steady afternoon of care, juno had a lovely set of twin bucklings, the darker kid was born first with the cream second..

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These are very new, just born photo.. Both have been up, nursed and where dipped and the whole family carefully tucked into a freshly bedded stall, I am very pleased with the shape, size and teat placement on juno’s bag..

She birthed well, was very much a instant mom, bonded and gentle.. steady and calm with us humans.. everything you could hope for in a first time fresher..

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Rhubarb Crisp Recipe

I can honestly say that I have been making this recipe for so many year, that I can not remember the last time I read the official recipe.. but this is close..

  • 8 to 10 cups of rhuabarb, fresh or frozen.
  • a heaping tbsp. of flour
  • 2 heaping tbsp. of sugar
  • a pinch of salt and a pinch of ginger

Topping

  • quarter cup of butter
  • half a cup of brown sugar
  • 1 cup of flour
  • 1 cup of oatmeal
  • Pinch of salt..

Blend the dry together first, then cut the cold or room temp butter into the dry and rub it though, in the end it should be loose and well blended but hold just a touch if asked.

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The key to good crisp is how to put the topping on, you need a light covering on it and then you gently kind of mound it at the middle..  the bake time varies up to ten or so min, depending on how juicy the fruit is.. you want to see bubbles of boiling juice on the edges and golden brown topping..

Can be served hot, cold, plain, or with whip cream or ice cream..

 

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Its slowly greening up..

What a quiet and lovely day it has been today, a rest day as they say..

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Napping can be a wonderful thing indeed..  This wee bundle is called Marble, and now we have three kittens on the farm this year..   an Marble makes three..  three lovely kittens that have joined the farm’s purrpots pride.. we will see who stays and who might get a new home off the farm..

Tuesday, was a ladies day.. one of those magic moment where a group of women gather, its a joy really.. they all knew me but while strangers meet in the morning, I think I can say that friendships were made.  We spent the morning visiting and playing with boxes, and totes of seeds, picking and share the bounty, no one left empty handed.. Then we had the most awesome potluck lunch and got busy planting out trays of seeds and transplanting baby tomato’s, peppers, and rhubarb seedlings..

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it was great fun! we put those tomato babies into their big grow out pots and they were tucked in right to their leaves so that all the stem can grow more roots and create a strong plant to be moved out in five weeks give or take on my last frost dates..

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We started more tomato’s cabbages, cucumbers and so much more.. just a handful of so many things, the push to get a few more of this and that to produce the first eating crops..

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Afterwards it was perfect timing for tea and cake and more visiting..  Weds arrived bright and sunny..  and Farm Helper GG arrived to give a hand..

We got more layers planted into the teepee, we got all the early plantings into the front garden, and then we started on the main garden front area.. I am not sure how we forgot before photos.. but it was a lovely old mess with everything having overwinter but by the time we called it on Weds.. it was coming a long really well..

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The front rows of fencing was already planted into peas a week ago, but the rest is being cleaned and prepped, it will be finished being planted by this weekend and I will do a proper walk about for you.. Are you getting your hands into soil yet?

 

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Breakfast on the river bank

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Yesterday, we took a hike down a river edge and farmers fields early in the morning and had our breakfast on the river bank..

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We also took a hike over and across a hay field and these two just begged to be taken in black and white..

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Grandfather tree above and this fence to no where.. this was the whole fence.. what was left of something..

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Then we went to town and I got a few fresh things, the forage pickings on and off the farm is so slim at the moment, last week, the only things I could forage was Bloody dock leaves, Stinging Nettles, Strawberry Leaves and SunChokes..  just not enough..   I am craving fresh so much!

I also am craving color and so I said to hubby, do you think that the local greenhouse is open, they will have little pansy’s ready already, they always do.. I knew that I would not buy a basket but I could buy a little set or two and make my own basket, so we turned in and then hubby said.. hey check this out.. Pink Blueberries..

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Photo not mine, off the net, but gives you the idea..

How cool, so four new Pink Lemonade Blue Berry Bushes came home to the farm as well. I will keep them in their pots for a while yet and take the time needed to prepare their ground well and add them into the food hedges..

Any of you growing pink lemonade blueberries and if so, want to share what you think of them, some say, they taste like blueberry and other say they have hints of lemonade to them..

We spent a good amount of time mowing and taking back a area that got away from us last year.. we are mowing early this year with the mulching blades as I did not want to rake it all, but now that is nice and open, I can carefully put Juno out for a graze as goat control but it must be done very carefully or she will be happy to eat many things I do not want eaten 🙂

Still waiting on my goat kids but her bag is developing nicely, really liking what I am seeing so far, and her baby bump is growing daily at this point..

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Warm sun and fresh air..

Its been a amazing week in terms of spending time outside, another 80 feet of peas planted, for a total of 165 feet worth in different gardens, total five kinds, snow pees, green peas, purple podded peas and one kind for drying and soups

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Expanded the bed around the teepee garden, its first planting out is in peas..

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my tray of rhubarb seedlings are doing well, some are tall and red and other short, thick and green.. having a seed starting, seedling transfer potting up girls day coming next week, going to be fun!

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three nests full of healthy now eyes open of rabbit kits..

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Patrick is the calmest, most friendly kitten ever!

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and trusting, hubby say to me.. does this comfortable, I laughed and said, must get picture.. o Patrick.. you are truly a chill cat

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I on the other hand am in training for my bust plans to get out an do more hikes this year.. running Sunday to Saturday, I got 5 walk-hikes in for a total of 7 km, which is both great and not to much at the same time. I still need energy to do the farm and slowly build up strength after a winter of healing from falling though the floor in the out building..

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Have a great sunday..

 

 

 

 

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Spring really is just around the corner..

I was going to write a more detail post today but the truth is, that while my brace is helping, I pulled my wrist the wrong way and I am being kind to say that its tender at the moment..  so I will be keeping the typing to a min today..

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Strangely on the same day as me, my mom hit her own hand and pushed her thumb backwards, I am grateful that mine should be better with a bit of careful looking after in a few days.

I looked outside to my melting world and thought, I can rake one handed right and I am sure I can get some beet seeds in without needing my left arm LOL I think I will wait till tomorrow and give it one more day to melt out.

Spring really is starting to show itself though.. guess what I found on my last walk.. yup.. coltsfoot! for more info on coltsfoot, see my post here!

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and we had two more lambs born on the weekend, both first time mothers, both just rocked it.. as I would like with first time girls, they both had singles.. the first one had a lovely cute, mainly white with black bits and bobs ram lamb.

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and the second new mom is our lovely Tess, and it was fitting as hubbies got his auther copy of Tesseracts 19 with his story Black Sheep in the mail.

Tess had a stunningly pretty ewe lamb, and she is called Teaya, as long as all goes well, she will be staying in the flock, and she is my only pure hair sheep born this year 🙂 I have twins that are full wool and they are black, and I have one full hair lamb, she is pinto and the rest are hair sheep breed to a wool ram..

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And what wool he grew.. I can not wait to shear him this spring..

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I am planning on playing with the wool tags chopped up to use them in the big plant pots as a way to create water retaining to the pots, anyone tried this and have any advice, I have used wool in the garden but I tend to use it to smother and as a cover crop, not in the soil itself, well mixed in.

they say the rest of the week will be on a upward climb of warmer weather! Everyone have a great Day..

 

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Bush Hiking with the horses

I wanted to get in a hike on sunday before the coming storm moves in again, I wanted to work with the horses, they need their spring ground training so that we can safely start riding again, and I wanted to spend time with my wonderful husband, a little couple time as it were..

So we went hiking with horses as a couple 🙂

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So Brandy was with Hubby and Caleb was with me..

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Up the road, and cut into the fields and then into the bush we go..

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this was the rest point, everyone took a breather, I needed it and even the horses are out of shape and where breathing a bit and had a bit of damp on their first working spots..  we all need to get back into shape.. (well other then hubby, he was fine)

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We did not seek the clear path, we looked and went though, between and over as much as we could find, we made as much effort as possible to find ways that made them work for it!

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Now that’s what I call a great “date”..

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adore this cute photo bomb by Brandy.. it turned out to be my favorite photo of the trip!

 

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Speaking event- Food Preservation

Yesterday I was up bright an early, checking my lists twice and packing the truck and off I headed to a great event, there was a very good turnout, we sold out on the tickets available (a few folks in the end where not able to come ) but it was  good crowd.

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like this photo as it shows a idea of the room, the set up and this was a great talk on the local food shed and how each person fits into it, very interactive class, I took the classes, when not speaking myself.

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This was a great talk on intensive gardening and succession planting.. the photo was showing a great point, the squash plants took the same space but one produced six of the little ones and the other produced four of the big ones.. got to love her banana squash, its a thing of beauty!

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Then came my talk, and hour and half plus questions on both old and modern food preservation that is available to us, it was a good talk, I was pleased that I found it not quite as nerve racking as last year, I was better prepared which helped and to be honest, I know the subjects well, which helps a great deal to remain calm, I had some show an tell, I have examples and hubby says he is going to make me a couple power points as I have been asked to do talks and hands on seminars in the future.

just over 50 percent of the folks who were there made a point afterwards to come up, either to just say hello and enjoyed the talk and or in combo to ask follow up question, so I feel safe to say that everyone felt they got something from it, which makes it so worthwhile to me

 

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Camping Trips

Well, most these will be with a girlfriend or two or six LOL but one is going to be with hubby, we are getting farm sitters in for the one weekend..

Its been to long since we did more then day trips, and I have lots of those planned for sure, but we are going to do more hiking this year as well.

Last year we had folks come to us and they kept up hopping and it was awesome, this year, we are doing a bit more off the farm time, with lots of horse riding time planned, Bush time and tenting time..

I went though my gear and decided that as most of it was gotten in 2000 to 2001, maybe its time to get some of the newer tec stuff, I am not getting rid of my older tough as nail gear but I did order in a newer lighter weight pack for some of our trips this year, as I do not need to use the bigger heavier pack..

So I found a great mine tour for my hubby for later in the season, I have found a few new parks that we have not been to and lots of day use areas. Till then, I have selected just a few photos from over the years of camping and trips for you in this post..

Its got some of our local day trips, some of our longer holiday trips, some from B.C.  Sask, Alberta, including the badlands, Ontario from my cross country trips and NWT and Nu as well.

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Last year we did really well at getting off the farm and trying new things, we went hiking, we went and learned new parks on the Quebec side, we went to a country music festival (which turned hubby onto country) we did a rodeo, we took in a local fair..  and we had our first big party on the farm 🙂

This year, I would like to find hopefully the right blend, the farm and the animals always come first but its a good thing to give ourselves time off it as well, so if you have a farm or homestead, while I know that 90 plus percent of your time will be spent on the farm and that sometimes you almost need to drag yourself away from it

What if anything do you have planned for this year that takes you off the farm?

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