A tomato plant (the classic annual veggie) typically ripens from seed to fruit in 6-8 months in the PNW. They’re an intensive plant that requires seeding as early as February, babying the seedlings with heat and light, then transplanting to the ground and covering with plastic to protect from cool nights (which stunt their growth),Continue reading “American Guinea Hogs: the perennial pork”
Tag Archives: natural farming
The scythe; it really ties the farm together.
Have you seen the Big Lebowski? The Dude, hopelessly adrift, finds purpose and grand adventure in recovering a stolen rug that was the keystone of his humble abode. That’s how I feel about the scythe on the farm. Like, The Dude’s feng shui, the farm’s flow is totally blocked without it. How strange that theContinue reading “The scythe; it really ties the farm together.”
Upgrading the mighty 5 gallon bucket
I spent many years working landscape construction specializing in steep slope installations and other sites with difficult or delicate access. Sites where an excavator or other heavy equipment could not/should not go, Some places where even a wheel barrow would be too cumbersome. On a couple jobs we used a military surplus medic stretcher toContinue reading “Upgrading the mighty 5 gallon bucket”
DIY greenhouse; 11 months in the making.
It really is a load off my shoulders and mind. All the design deliberations, cost considerations, material requisitions, and top-of-ladder installations…done. Done, done, DONE! Well, there’s still caulking, painting, and power to run, but that’s pretty mindless… …point is, no more big decisions! Geoff Lawton, of Permaculture Research Institute, says a design is madeContinue reading “DIY greenhouse; 11 months in the making.”
Pastured Poultry > Free Range Chickens = Sanity + Sunflowers
For the first year here it felt like trying to drink from a firehose. Now in year number two, things have seemed much MUCH more manageable. I credit two pivotal points for me that turned it around. One, barn organization. The barn, while small, is centrally located on the front property and so, all projectsContinue reading “Pastured Poultry > Free Range Chickens = Sanity + Sunflowers”
Using pigs and chickens to convert pasture to garden beds
Needing additional space for cabbage, beans, corn, and winter squash, we decided to expand the vegetable garden this year. The ideal location for this row cropping is our level pasture, of which we have WAY more than we can use at the moment. The spot we decided to annex was covered by foot-tall grass, alongContinue reading “Using pigs and chickens to convert pasture to garden beds”
Mole mix; making potting soil out of what you (might) have lying around.
Moles, what a scourge, right? Busily making mounds in your front lawn and tunneling through the garden nibbling on roots. Gasp! Although our days of upholding a certain amount of curb appeal are over, I’m still occasionally annoyed by the active mole population here at the homestead. I like to mow grass and cut hay withContinue reading “Mole mix; making potting soil out of what you (might) have lying around.”
Making Hay the Old Fashioned Way; A Scythe
By the time we got to so much as walk our pasture this year after moving in, the grass was knee high. A couple months later it had finished seeding out and begun to flop over in places susceptible to winds. Every now and then one of us would march out the weed-eater to keep the hot-wired fenceContinue reading “Making Hay the Old Fashioned Way; A Scythe”
The Yellow Submarine: Salatin Style Pastured Poultry
The inaugural launch of our (Joel) Salatin style pastured poultry pontoon occurred in mid-August of this year. Typically, broilers are done in the Spring when the grass is growing fast and the temps are warming nicely. But, since we didn’t move onto the homestead until May and were busy setting up 4 pastured pigs andContinue reading “The Yellow Submarine: Salatin Style Pastured Poultry”
The Hopeful Tomato
Last January, while still residing at our 1/8th acre urban lot, a cameoing sun struck the soggy ground and I was bitten by the gardening bug. We had a couple bags of potting soil lying about and my very first batch of homemade compost was looking dark and loamy, so I mixed it all upContinue reading “The Hopeful Tomato”
Bellfern Homestead 