Self-taught farmers confidently raising chickens, ducks, geese, and pigs. Our focus is on practices that are environmentally harmonious and respectful to our livestock. We appreciate the beauty around us, clean eating, fermenting, and responsibly utilizing the bounty of the land. If you like thinking for yourself, continuous learning, and connecting with the homesteader lifestyle, check us out.
One morning, as I filled one of several five gallon buckets for the geese, I noticed a sunflower seed spinning around and around in the eddy created by the water. We feed black oil sunflower seeds as treats to the poultry, so seeing one in a bucket is not usually cause for alarm. Until you realize that it’s not a seed at all.
Continue reading “Around the Farm: Who’s Looking at Whom?”
The natural world is full of wonders. If you’re like me, you can’t help but notice – and revel – in these amazing moments that demand your full attention. One hot summer morning, as I was loading up my Gorilla Cart with 5-gallon buckets of fermented feed to begin the animal chores outside (there are “inside” animal chores, too, of course), something caught my eye. It looked like a floating bit of cottony matter. I watched it for a bit, soon realizing that it wasn’t merely drifting on the breeze – it was flying. It invited a closer look.
Continue reading “Daily Wonder: Fairy Fly-By”
For this momentous post, I decided that I would focus on a creature that is often maligned (mostly by gardeners), but that I find immensely fascinating. It’s an animal that reminds me of two important things: that (1) there is an absolutely amazing world of tiny plants, animals, and other matter that is overlooked by people and (2) sometimes, we need to slow down and enjoy the wonders of the world around us – or even our own inner world – at a snail’s pace.
Continue reading “Musings: The Wisdom of Wild Snails (Post #1,000!)”
It’s turtle breeding season here, when the urge to find a mate and/or breeding grounds strikes, there’s no dissuading them. Even if it means that they must make a death-defying trek across a busy roadway to get to their destinations. We always try to give our wild turtle friends a helping hand when it’s possible to safely do so, even if that turtle has incredibly strong jaws and feet with sharp claws.
Continue reading “Haiku: Turtle’s Tenacity”
We’ve known about a skunk living under the barn’s tack room for a while. It sprayed in the barn a couple of times, then stopped (thankfully). While we didn’t necessarily want a skunk living there, we decided to just try to co-exist with it.
Continue reading “Around The Farm: Solitary Striped Skunk”
The cold and snow are upon us, making the very act of living more challenging for wild creatures. I suspect that the canid tracks above may be from a coyote, as they appear a bit larger than I would expect from a fox (though we have both here). Other tracks, mesmerizing in their own way, were left by other animals and invite imagining their destinations and their difficulties during this time of year.
Continue reading “Haiku: Clandestine Crossing”