What do you do with all that Deep Bedding Pack!

Posted on November 25, 2024 by Just another day on the farm

Why Compost it in place and grow food of course!

First the line was mowed down(with a mulching blade, with tall pasture grasses left on both sides for winter, they will be mowed down low and tight and then mulched down next year and will be the walk ways between the big garden grow lines. This year the taller pasture grasses and flowers will act as a snow trap which will be a very good thing.

40, Yes that’s right, 40 loaded of sheep/horse/duck/fowl mixed deep back bedding has been taken out and dumped as the base layer.. and we have some very lovely cleaned stalls right down to the smooth cement. In total these lines are approx 80 feet long and they will be four feet across, so you can reach the two feet on both sides an there are two of them! Each is 320 square feet of producing grow beds..

Now if you just went, huh, that’s won’t work, were is the soil, and that is going to blow away, its not matted enough to keep things from growing though it.. you are right.. we need more on those rows!

Next comes 80 wheel barrel loads per line of cow/sawdust with a bit of extra compost to be put on these rows! It will use some of the 15 tons delivered to the farm late this fall.. I will prestart all the transplants and add dig a small hole mixed with the above and sand/soil and plant each down the row.

This will give a total of 640 new feet of bed to plant into, what o what is that crazy farmgal planning growing in these beds for next year! Next layers of the “park garden/food forest” year three is being worked on!

Are you expanding your garden next year? All work credit goes to Miss R, she is a powerhouse along side Dear Hubby when it comes to getting the farm ready for winter! Thank you!

30 Day Challenge – Day 27 of straight blogging challenge..

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No Buy November 2024 Week 3 Overview

Posted on November 24, 2024 by Just another day on the farm

Nov 15th- No spend, all good

Nov 16th – didn’t spend a dime

Nov 17th- No spend

Nov 18th-No spend..

Nov 19th- Tuesday came and went, Miss R worked hard on the farm to help get us ready for fall and cleaned up with the bin No spend

Nov 20th -Unplanned but required medical spend, farm spend on mats for the horses, wormers but we will need to wait for the first hard freeze/snow before they are given out, also picked up 50 pounds of mixed bird seed. I have not yet gone for my drive (and most likely won’t be able to do so till i am cleared) for my larger order that i tend to get about a hour plus away in bulk for the full winters bird feeding.

Nov 21st – dental costs for a cleaning and found that i need more dental, booked for the coming week but its medical so it will be done. Spent on the asked for new toothpaste. Otherwise.. steady as she goes

Nov 22nd- Hello Friday, quiet day, spend was on a cookbook that finally went on sale at 33% off and its order from EU. Its a Christmas present to be..

Nov 23rd- Picked up a very nice metal gate for use in the garden at about 20 percent the value bought new at a online farm sale, picked it up and paid for it, then weekly grocery shopping.

Nov 24th- No spend!

That’s all folks! I am keeping up on the farm, house hold and food with my eye on sales for gifts but so far its very steady as she goes..

30 Day Challenge – Day 26th of straight blogging!

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Finding time for fun

Posted on November 23, 2024 by Just another day on the farm

Halloween Photography was amazing.. There was so many amazing ideas and gatherings and photography magic made.

Most the session from Halloween were generous on the fake blood side.. very spooky for sure.. Letting their love of 80’s horror camp come out! We had a Mad Doctor, A camp Bloodfest, Spooky Clowns and so much more

I am glad they happened and loved the folks who came and worked with me and other photographer as models.. Thank you, Thank you to those who helped make it happen because without you it would not have done so.

It however time to turn towards winter and or Christmas ideas.. I have not picked up my big camera’s in weeks now.. I have not had the energy or the ability to do screen time due to light reactivity. This week was the very first time where a idea came and interested me, where i thought hmmm, I wonder?? Its a good sign as the truth was the Halloween plans were made before i got sick and while not all came into being, the ones that did, had all their planning and such sorted before i got sick and i had a LOT of help to make them happen.

It will be simple and lowkey and a good amount of them will be with my household members be it two legged or four.. I can’t risk booking folks and then not being able to do things, i need certain weather for looks and so on.. I need to find the energy to at least do some bird photos.

30 Day Challenge – Day 25 of blogging Daily! Time to get the peanuts out!

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Rats.. so many rats

Posted on November 22, 2024 by Just another day on the farm

With all the clean up, shifting of wood piles and major reno’s around and in the croft barn and lacking our normal fall skunk, we have a rat problem that the barn cats are not keeping up on.

They are Norway Rats and they are as bold as brass and they have moved from the big wood pile they were in to the croft barn as it has gotten colder. While the barn cats are killing at least one or more daily, its not enough.

We have placed out the flip bucket lid traps and have started baiting our big square metal multi catch rat traps, that one needs to be left open and feed in for a few days before you set it and then you go back to it being open and not catching anyone etc.

I am not sure why our skunk didn’t come this fall, almost every fall and for the past five years a lovely female skunk has come visit the farm for a few months in the fall/late fall and feasted on our yard grubs, moles, mice and happily hunted the wood piles and barns/outbuildings for the rats.

Once the bigger rat/mice population that grows over the summer season of bounty is take down, the skunk will move on.. but this year maybe due to the warmer weather? we have not gotten our annual six to 12 week skunk visit and boy O boy is it bad news.

We can not and will not use poison bait due to our cats/dogs/local owls/hawks and more. Ah, i mean they are always around but the number should be low enough you never see them.. if you can see them. you have a BIG problem indeed..

Right now, this week are Barn cats – 5, Flip top bucket -3, traps- 0 and way to many rats.

What is your favorite non poison rat trap that works for you?

30 Days Challenge Day 24th of blogging daily..

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Beef Stock Cube Homemade

Posted on November 21, 2024 by Just another day on the farm

In prepping to clear my freezers of last years beef before this years order comes in mid dec, i need to use up the very last of the beef stock bones. I had been luck enough to get extra soup bones and dogs bone a few time though the year from my suppler, which was great as i have the freezer space an use.

My bone broth is very simple, bake the bones till they are golden brown with almost burnt brown bits on the tips.

Then into a pot with onion and cover and bring to a simmer and simmer for 12ish hours, let cool over night, crack off the tallow and render it down clean and save, then strain and take out the bones. Place in a good heavy bottom pot ( i used my good jam making pot) and bring back to a boil, drop it to a simmer and simmer all day, you will get approx one cup finished per gallon of starting stock.

Check it hourly once its at about 1/4 left

Once you get it down to the point that it starts to have a shine to it, you need to watch much more carefully as like maple syrup it can go from perfect to burned quickly at this stage. when it can coat the back of the spoon with a thin or thick stick (your choice, i like thick personally) its ready to be poured into a cake pan and chill it.

Once fully chilled, it will slice into cubes the size you want and can be stored in the fridge for a future use for up to a week and or frozen till used.

So good and a amazing way to turn a huge bag of bones into a very small space with ease of use!

30 Day Challenge – Day 23rd of blogging daily..

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Dried Liver Dog Treats

Posted on November 20, 2024 by Just another day on the farm

This is without a doubt the most beloved dog treat the house is dried liver treats. I thaw the liver slices, cook them just covered in water till just cooked. At that point i take them out and lay them whole in the dryer.

Once they are in a few hours and have firmed up, I take them out, slice them into stripes and pile them back in, i am not really to worried as you can see if they are touching at this point and the biggest bits still had a bit of pink.

Every hour or so, i go and shake the tray and once they all dark and bendy, i will take the time then to make sure nothing is touching and finish drying them till they are snap dry, Some of these will be given to dog lovers as Christmas treats and my own pack will be enjoying them daily.

30 Day Challenge – Day 23 of Daily Blogging!

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Freezer Camp Time for Extra Drakes

Posted on November 20, 2024 by Just another day on the farm
Salt Cured Duck Breast Prosciutto

With the cold and snow coming soon? Maybe? Its been a very warm and dry November so far, my eye is on the big drakes that are running as the drake flock. I have plans to make some of my favorite duck recipes with them over the next while.

I will be for sure curing two of them into Duck Breast Prosciutto and using the meat slicer to make very fine slices indeed for my Christmas Charcuterie Board.

I have a new propane smoker that I am very much looking forward to getting set up and into use, its been sitting in its box, just waiting for the right time. What are you looking to take to the butcher or get processed in the next weeks so that you are not feeding them overwinter.

Let the weather hold!

30 Day Challenge – Day 22 of blogging every day!

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Passing the Lead Rope Horse Care

Posted on November 18, 2024 by Just another day on the farm

Clearly everyone was really stressed out while they waited for the Ferrier

Oh to be young and just climb on bareback backwards and lay down for a warm up and hang out..

then to get off with a back end slide lol… Caleb is such a good old boy!

Miss R has taken riding lessons as a child and she has been riding Caleb since she started coming to the farm. They have a great bond and she does love to spend time with them. Since moving to the farm, when she is home, she takes over the feeding, watering, grooming and training time for them.

We of course take over if she is gone and the horses still nicker a greeting to me or hubby when they see us, hubby did a work around on their winter feeding area and their big walk in lean too stalls are all cleaned and prepped for winter.

Today she took over getting them ready for their foot care, we had started out in the front field, thinking we would be able to use the tied posts but then it started to rain and so we moved it into the barn for cover.

I hung back and let her take lead on being with them while they got their feet done and it went very well indeed. Proud of everyone for making it go so smoothly!

I am often amused that she asked him if he would like her to ride him and he will tell her, hey, lets ride.. yes let ride, no i would like to spend time but not ride and NO i do not want to give you a ride..

Given that she “asks” him in the pasture with full freedom of choice, she is of course right, if he walks away and leaves he is say, no not now or not today, and on the other hand i have seen him pick up his halter and bang it while calling her, lets play, lets do something friend and i have also seen her stand with his halter and bridge and him make the choice to put his head in and so on

While i do love my horses so much, i am beyond grateful they currently have a horse crazy teenage girl to love on them..

30 Day Challenge – Day 22 of daily blog posting.

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Yellow Split Pea Soup Recipe

Posted on November 17, 2024 by Just another day on the farm

Today is a perfect fall day to cook off a pot of Canadian Style Yellow Split Pea Soup I plan on enjoying it fresh made and canning up of the leftover soup into pint jars.

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In the oven slow roasting is a nice meaty pork hocks, one that will be used finely diced to add to this soup at a later point, you are welcome to add in leftover ham or not.

16oz or one standard bag of yellow split peas, wash the peas and remove any bits that float or are discolored, into a pot they go with 2 quarts of water to bring to a slow simmer, skim the water and cook till they are tender (depending on your heat, this will range between 60 to 90 minutes

I like to drain my water and start over with chicken stock at this point.

Yellow Split Pea Soup Recipe

  • prepared yellow split peas
  • 2 med onions peeled, finely chopped
  • 2 med carrots, peeled finely chopped
  • 3 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
  • 1 tbsp of oil or fat of your choice
  • 2 quarts chicken or veggie broth stock
  • Salt, Pepper, Bay Leaf, and in our case tbsp of montreal steak spice

In your pot, at medium heat add your oil and onions and garlic, cook till tender and clear, add your carrots, stock, spices and prepared tender yellow split peas, bring to a simmering boil, reduce heat to a slow simmer and cook, stirring now and again for 30 to 60 minutes depending how soft you like your peas and veggies.  If you want you can take some out and blend it and add back in or if you like it smooth, blend the whole think, if you like it a bit more chunky, leave as is.

Remove the Bay leaf!  Can add the tiny bits of meat at this point and heat though, to serve you can serve as is, its thick and hearty, or you can add a pat of butter on top, with a handful of seasoned croutons, serve with bread on the side.

This makes a good size batch of soup, will keep three days in the fridge, might need to add a touch more broth to thin it out after sitting in the fridge as it can get quite thick. Freezes well and can be pressure canned in pints for 75 minutes for shelf stable.

30 Day Challenge  Day 21 of blogging daily!

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Recycle

Posted on November 16, 2024 by Just another day on the farm

While we have the bin for a good amount of things, other things need to go to the dump itself for a more special Recycle program. In this case we had older or broken electronics for recycling. Different locations within our county have different programs of what and where certain things can go.

The location we went to today offers a number of services with quite limited hours and a large sign worth of fees, while some things are included in our tax’s many are not, still overall their fees are depending very reasonable and in other ways, ouch they add up.

The location we went today, has a official clothing drop off for the Canadian Diabetics society, a mattress spot, electronics recycling bin, Fridge/freezer/ac you get the idea, these ones have a $20 drop off fee to cost them being drain and tagged by the tec, and tire drop site, tree chipping and the biggest pile of yard waste in brown paper bags you have ever seen plus a few other spots that we did not drive in our loop enough for me to be sure.

They have got higher tec, when we went years ago, it had to be cash only, now its debt only, no cash.. I think they should have to take cash if offered which we did but it was declined and if there is one thing you never do is make the guy who is writing out your forms cranky, I can walk away from a coffee shop or a other places that say no cash and make it clear that i am not using or buying from them for that reason, but the county dump is not one that i am going to wage walk away at. I will however nicely write a very polite letter to the county asking that they go back to taking both cash and debt.

As has been the case with the limited hours they are open, each time we have been there, its a very busy place, i have never not have to wait in line to be served, nor has others lines up behind us. They offer battery recycling at the local drug store with a bin anytime they are open etc.

The dump at least locally are hard core that only those from our own county can use them, we made the mistake once in the early days of thinking we could go the closest one to us but we didn’t live in the right zone and we turned back for having the wrong address.

What is it like in your neck of the woods.. the county dumps have sure changed, i remember as a child going and you could just roam around the place, with a don’t fall in the pit etc and you could go though it and bring stuff home, then as a teen/young adult, they stopped letting you roam around but they would put the good stuff that someone might want to rehome to the side and i am given to understand that a county two over does that, a big lean too shed that they let folks unload the still good but don’t want to before sorting the rest, but here there is none of that.. once its head there and not to our second hand shops, its done for..

Do folks from the city ever take loads out, or is it just days for certain things, or having to hire the folks that come and haul things away! It was a good thing to get done and i am hopeful that it will in fact been worth putting it into the correct stream that it will in fact get recycled

30 Day Challenge – Day 20 of blogging.

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