December 2008

Isabelle, a 3-month old Jersey calf, arrived this month. I built a small pen and metal-clad shed for her on the eastern side of the property, with plans to fence a larger western pasture soon. It will be some time before she's ready to be bred and produce milk, but that gives me time to learn about dairy cows.

It will also provide more time to learn the art of cheese-making. I took NCSU's 3-day Farmstead Cheesemaking short course this month and came away with a couple pounds of cheese—and a couple pounds heavier from daily cheese-tastings.

Apple and pear trees went into the new orchard and nearly 5-pounds of garlic was planted in the garden. Cold and wet weather continue to make for a lot of indoor days.

November 2008

The heirloom apple and pear trees arrived this month. I've scoped out a northeast facing slope beyond the hoop house for the orchard. However, five days of rain have soaked the ground, delaying their planting.

Organic seed potatoes also arrived from Milk Ranch. I'll plant La Ratte and French fingerlings, Rose Finn Apple, Garnet Chile and Yellow Finn varieties come early Spring.

October 2008

This month brought the highly-coveted, County-issued "certificate of occupancy" for the temporary house. Without it, there is no power to the house. No house number on the mailbox. No legitimacy with the local government. And, as far as I've been able to ascertain, there is no step-by-step guidebook for do-it-yourself building neophytes. What have I learned in the process? You can request a free consultation with an inspector prior to having them inspect. I discovered this important piece of information on the day of the first inspection, right before I failed. Two weeks and another $50 later, all items passed.

September 2008

I finally have water in the new pond after Hurricane Faye's remnants brought more than 5-inches of rain in one day, closing out a dry August. Hurricane Gustav topped off the remainder with another 5-plus inches. Hopefully I'll be able irrigate the new apple and pear trees I've ordered by pumping water to the orchard. The trees will arrive in November from Century Farm Orchards, which specializes in the preservation of old Southern varieties. Just as I prefer to grow only heirloom vegetables, I think it's important to preserve heritage fruit and nut trees. I'll grow Kieffer and Seckel pears, and apple varieties include William's Favorite, Bevan's Favorite, Aunt Rachel, Grimes Golden, Blacktwig and Old Fashioned Winesap.

Organic garlic is also on the way from Hood River Garlic, with delivery scheduled this month. Varieties include Early Italian Red, Red Toch, Shantang Purple and Susanville.

The eggplant crop is finally coming in—at least the few plants the Colorado Potato Beetles left me. Covered in homemade tomato sauce, the eggplant makes a fabulous parmiagiana.

August 2008

Up to my eyeballs in tomatoes, canning season is off to a good start. After 8 to 10 hours at my day job, I was back at the farm in the evening for picking sessions followed by canning the harvest. I'll have plenty of vegetables stored for the winter -- canned tomatoes, sauces, salsas, preserves, jams and jellies, green beans and black-eyed peas. Quart bags of wonderberries, squash and melon have pushed the freezer's holding capacity. Fresh melons are still coming in daily, providing plenty of vitamin C.

Putting up food from the harvest provides a satisfying sense of accomplishment and independence. I'm controlling what goes into my food and into my body. No chemicals or pesticides go into the garden. Nothing is genetically-modified. No endocrine-disrupting bisphenol A lining the inside of canned goods. Seems home food preservation is making a comeback as people begin to take charge of their food again. (Read Preserves Become Ideology in a Jar).

July 2008

As June rolls into July, I continue to enjoy a good harvest. Over 80 lemon cucumbers were picked in just one day. Tomatoes are now in -- grape, paste and Homestead varieties, and melons are about ready. I'm still battling a few hornworms and potato beetles, but so far handpicking is working. Check out my What's Growing page to see the full list.The first wonderberries came off the bush and into a pie this month. The general consensus is that they're better than blueberries when baked.

June 2008

Zucchino Rampicante turns out to be a VERY prolific squash. The skin is tough, so must be peeled, and the pulp is similar in taste to a winter squash. Cut into slices and sautéed in olive oil, it's quite good. Rare Seeds, my source for heirloom seeds, says it's good for baking so suspect this will turn up in a pie soon.

Lemon cucumbers are also coming in and the bees are very fond of their flowers. Melons are also doing quite well and should be ready to pick soon.

Work has finished on the long driveway into the property, up to the temporary home and back to the middle pasture where the future house and cottage will go. See driveway photos. It took many loads of dirt to raise the driveway's low spots. Because the front pasture had an area that was consistently wet, I pulled dirt from this area and had it sculpted into what is now a one-acre pond—or rather, a one-acre hole. Heavy rains moved in the day after the crew finished the pond, leaving a few puddles of water. It will take awhile to fill. As the rain fell, a dinner-plate size snapping turtle dragged itself to the top of the pond wall and stared out into the hole.

After the dirt-moving equipment finished the first day of work in the pond area, I found a woodland vole running frantically in circles across the large expanse of sun-baked earth left void of its vegetation. I deposited it in a nest of leaves in the small forested area next to the Bee Haven. This brings up a difficult question. One of my goals is to care for and nurture our land, yet heavy equipment, in the process of establishing the farm infrastructure, leaves uprooted trees, bare exposed earth and displaced creatures. How do I reconcile my need to make space for a farm and meet my goal of treating the Earth gently?

Treating the Earth gently is one thing. Sharing my produce with Tobacco Hornworms is quite another. I discovered them feasting on tomatoes and wonder berries. For now, hand-picking the worms appears to work, and as an added bonus, provides fishing bait. I hooked, then returned, a Bluegill Sunfish from the small pond using the hornworm as bait.

The bees now have a third 8-frame super on each hive. I added a queen separator between this box and the last. If they're able to fill the box, perhaps I'll get honey this year after all.

The 100-degree plus heat wave continues, making movement in the garden slower than usual. Sometimes you just have to take a break and paddle for awhile. My son put a canoe out on the pond for just that purpose.

I've harvested the first crops, purple plum radish and summer squash. Tomatoes, beans, peas and more are progressing. Eggplant has been decimated by Colorado Potato Beetle. See garden photos.

Drip tape is hooked-up and I'm now able to water the garden using the generator to operate the well pump.

May 2008

This week brought the purchase of an old John Deere tractor. Working with a scythe and other "old-fashioned" farming implements has certainly given me a new respect for previous generations that farmed without petroleum-powered engines. I'm glad to have the help.

Finally found time to install the wax frames in a new hive body for the bees, so they've gained a second-story. They'd managed to completely fill the first hive body added in April.

Both the electric and phone companies were out last week, installing underground lines. It will be nice to have power as I'm currently working off a generator.

The septic system is now in the ground. A 1500-gallon tank sits near the site of the future cottage, while the drain field is west of the main house site. Don't get me started on what a waste of money and space this is. See photos.

Deer fencing is up around the 120' x 120' garden and hoop house, and the seedlings are in the ground. While a portion of the drip tape is in place, it's not yet connected to the well, making watering an important issue. I'll have a pump and well house installed soon. In the meantime, I'm manually watering the seedlings using rainwater collected in rain barrels and water hauled from the pond.

I planted the seedlings on a Saturday. By Sunday morning I discovered something REALLY love Suyo Long Cucumbers. I'm researching companion planting and natural bug deterrents. No sign of deer or rabbit intrusion yet.

It's time to hire an electrician. I'm finding it incredibly difficult to identify contractors and get consistent quotes for jobs. In some cases I've been fortunate to get referrals.

Flooring is going down in the temporary house. All three bedrooms are primed and painted. Decks are up on the front and rear entrances.

I experienced my first bee swarm. A cloud of bees filled the air, surrounding me as I worked in the garden. As I slowly moved away from thousands of hovering bees, they flew off in unison. I've been too busy to suit up and go down to the hives to see how many remain.

Located the nest of Killdeer eggs in the un-planted section of the garden. The mother has spent the last few weeks scolding me as I've worked in the field. Fortunately for the eggs, my tiller expired before I could finish that row. Apparently the bird is common in farmyards and likes to lay her eggs in gravel.

April 2008

Six pounds of bees arrived April 5th. Fortunately, Brushy Mountain provided an introductory lesson that made it easier to transfer the bees from their temporary home into the hives I'd prepared. Otherwise, prying the lid off a box of buzzing bees would have been a scary challenge. They seem to be adapting well. I find it difficult to leave them alone, wanting to peek into the hive to see what they're up to.

Permits have come in from Orange County for septic, well and the first temporary housing. I'm in the process of interviewing contractors to put in septic, driveway and possibly a second pond in the front pasture. What's the best way to build a gravel driveway? How much should it cost? What's the best septic system? Who should I hire to install these features? These are some of the questions I've pondering this month.

I asked a dowser to help me find a spot to drill my well. Using a dogwood branch, he slowly walked back and forth with the divining rod held horizontally at chin height. After a few passes, the branch tugged toward the ground, announcing the presence of water.

A few days later, the well driller confirmed the dowser's talent when he struck water at just 165 feet at 20 gallons of water per minute -- in an area where the average well depth runs 230-400 feet. I should have all the water I need for house, cottage, barn and gardens.

I've hauled more loads of compost from the horse stables to spread over the fields. In the meantime, seedlings are growing inside for planting after the last frost. I'll make it to the 13th Annual Piedmont Farm Tour next weekend, but need to make time to get the first seedlings into the ground.

Spring growth is filling in and the pond in the back pasture is beautiful. I recently discovered the remains of a partially-eaten large-mouth bass on the bank of the pond, so I'm assuming there are more where that one came from.

March 2008

Still waiting on septic and well permits. The heirloom seed orders have arrived -- over 137 varieties, ranging from amaranth to zucchini. Found a good source of aged horse manure and have begun hauling in loads to till into the soil.

I decided against making the first hoop house out of PVC, and instead ordered a 16'x96' hoop house from Atlas Greenhouse. The parts have arrived and construction will begin as soon as I can get a dry weekend. Discovered the source of the "peent" sound coming from the southern field at dusk. One or two American Woodcock males chirping to attract the females. Listen to the sound here.

February 2008

The first two beehives have been purchased with bees scheduled to arrive in April. Began researching hoop house construction as a way to get an early start on our seedlings. I also started tilling a 100'x100' area for vegetables, which quickly made me aware of the differences between smaller backyard home gardening and larger-scale farming. I've determined an old used tractor would be a good thing.

January 2008

This month saw the clearing of trees to make way for a farm gate entrance and driveway culvert, a bush-hogged front pasture and the first 450 feet of farm fencing installed. The land is flush with bluebirds who seemed to appreciate the addition of bluebird housing installed on fence posts.

I were also accepted into Orange County's farm enterprise incubator program -- the PLANT (People Learning Agriculture Now for Tomorrow) at Breeze program is dedicated to revitalizing agricultural activity in Orange County and the Piedmont region through training on small-scale sustainable farming techniques.