That is it for Saturday and Sunday - Today, Memorial Day, is a bit rainy so we will have to see if we can get anymore built. If we do I will be sure to let you all know! Have a great day everyone! And don't forget to remember those who gave their lives so we could be where we are today!
This is a continuation of the Addition we started about a week ago. Due to schedules and weather we really hadn't done a lot on the build until today that is...Once the floor joists were secured we supported them by blockings. After the blockings were added we could start laying the floor. After the floor is installed we could start building the walls! Ariana figured it made a great dance floor and wanted to know if we could have a party to dance on it! Here Jonathan is starting to frame up the first wall. This will have our picture window that Jonathan found for free at the dump. Ariana is working on her agility training. We are using all Tukey Lumber again so all rough sawn Hemlock lumber. Love the wood but it is even heavier than I remember and I already have festering slivers that need to be dug out. Here Ben is holding up the 2nd part of the South wall. Here we will have a door to get outside from the workshop. Here we see the main structure is up. We also started with the support beam inside the room which will help carry some of the weight from the roof. This side of the room will have a door to the wood shed and a window to allow in extra lighting. The beam in the center is part of the support for roofing that I spoke about in the last picture. We will be tying into the roof from the house which will carry down to this room and then continue past the walls down to about 4 or 5 feet from ground level. This last section will be our barn.
That is it for Saturday and Sunday - Today, Memorial Day, is a bit rainy so we will have to see if we can get anymore built. If we do I will be sure to let you all know! Have a great day everyone! And don't forget to remember those who gave their lives so we could be where we are today!
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Those of you who see my Photo of the Day on facebook have already seen this structure today. But I thought I would put it here too and add a couple of other techniques I am using that are not ordinary at all! So first I will start with my Pole Bean Gazebo! Yes I recycled my corner supports from an old Gazebo thinking wow these would be great climbing trellis. Then my mind flashed back to a photo I remembered seeing in a magazine that showed a pergola being used to support a variety of gourds and the plants climbed to the top and the fruit hung from the canopy! It looked amazing. That got my juices flowing to try and figure out what I wanted to grow on this structure. Well why not pole beans! I took a sheet of livestock fence, cut an 8 foot section off it. Placed it on top of the four corner sections and zip tied it all down using the screw holes from the actual gazebo roof! Then I filled 4 pots I had lying around and filled them with soil and planted 9 beans in each. Probably overkill but I wanted the plants to really fill in the trellis and canopy area. All I had left to do was stake down the corner sections, place the system in a full sun location and sit back and watch the beans grow! I will take updated photos as the summer progresses to show how it is coming along! The next kind of recycled project I did was making Potato towers. The theory behind this idea is you plant seedlings into the lower tire which is filled with soil. As the plants grow they are warmed by the sun on the tires and kept confined in the circle area. When the plants reach about 8 inches high, you place another tire onto the first one and fill it with soil until just about 2 inches of each top of the plant is still exposed. This is just like the method of mounding the soil around the potato plants to encourage more root growth. Again you allow the plants to grow for another 8 inches and repeat the tire stacking with a third tire. Hence the term, Potato Tower. When all is said and done I should have 4 tires stacked with the potato plants growing out the top. When the plants die back in Oct/Nov all I have to do is tip over the tower and I should have between 30 to 40 pounds of potatoes in each tower! I actually took the photos prior to planting and forgot to show you the potatoes being planted... but I had to start a third tire tower because I had so many root cuts. With potatoes it is recommended to cut the potatoes prior to planting for about 24 hours with one or two eye roots forming on each section. The pieces should be about the size of a golf ball or larger. Why you ask? Well this gives the plant a smaller section to grow from and the potatoes are less likely to rot - or that is what I have read anyways. I purchased some Russian Banana Fingerlings from Johnny Select which I have in two of the towers. In the third I have a mix of some reds and some all purpose whites that kind of started sprouting in my bin :) - I am not sure how they will do but I figured they had a lot of growth on them so nothing ventured, nothing gained. I will take updated photos as they grow so you can see the different stages. Last but not least, is my cucumber trellis system. This I did mention earlier in the posting for Square foot gardening but hadn't made the trellis yet. I just used the other half of the livestock fencing leftover from the Bean Gazebo and but it in half again forming a tent shape. I stuck the sharp rod ends into the ground and secure the top using zip ties. I love Zip ties!!! Now I have a support system for 16 cucumber plants in an area roughly 4 foot by 4 foot! I planted the seeds along the inside base of trellis and will train the plants to climb up. The fruit is supposed to just hang down most likely inside the trellis area. This way the fruits will be straight, won't yellow on one side and hopefully won't get over looked until they are the size of a cat! Again the concept was good so I figured I would give it a try and see what happens. I have finished planting all the square foot boxes now, even have some seeds already sprouting! So I will be removing the strings and letting mother nature takeover from here - unless watering is needed. I will keep everyone posted on how the gardens are growing - and what is harvested when! I hope you enjoy these ideas as much as I have doing them. Don't forget to let me know if you have some cool ideas that you want to share or to ask questions on anything I have done. Happy Gardening and may your harvest be bountiful this year!
A few days ago, I mentioned on the picture of the day on facebook, that I was going to explain more about what I am doing in my raised beds. The term is called Square Foot Gardening - and that is exactly what it is! You design and plant in square foot boxes - and depending on the size of the plant, you put anywhere from 1 to 16 plants, seeds, or bulbs into each box. Now I have never done this before but thought it would give us more bang for the buck so we are going to try it. Nothing ventured nothing gained right? I am making a page that you can find under Gardening Life on this blog that will go into more detail how we did the gardens from design right up to planting. I have a great link to share that gives some examples of already designed gardens that you can try. Check it out, it is a lot of fun! The kids love it as all the guess work is taken out of it - it is like guess free planting! I will keep you posted as they grow! Have a great day!
One of the hardest things about building with hemlock is the weight of the wood because it is all green. So when your working with a team of 2 or 3 and it is 80 degrees out, work generally is slower than expected. In the above picture is Ben and Jonathan lifting one of the 6x8 beams that we are using for the floor supports. And you get very creative on how to move 300 pound beams without putting your back out! Ariana you see is a supervisor in training. With the support footers cut to size, we are able to place the beams and secure them using braces. This is a bit different than we did the main part of the house. I think experience is making us smarter as this part of the house will definitely be stronger. Here is Jonathan cutting the footers to size. It is now about 80 degrees in the shade so getting hotter and hotter in the sandy yard. Here we go again with another beam... only 6 more to go! Stay tuned for more later.... Have a great day everyone!
One of the first things we did this spring when the ground thawed was plant fruit trees, grapes, and more raspberries. We opted for dwarf trees as they take up less of a foot print in the yard, mature in half the time of larger full sized trees, and produce fruit in 2 to 3 years vs. 7-8 years. So it was a total win win situation for us. Our biggest problem in Maine is the hardiness zone - we are really right on the cusp of 4 to 5 - so generally limited in what we can grow. My biggest recommendation to anyone looking to plant trees or shrubs is to buy from a local nursery who grows their own stock. This means the plants themselves are already acclimated to the area and their chance of survival through the winter is greater then if you bought something from a commercial seller who ships in their stock from a warmer climate. This is really a case of do as I say not as I do, because we opted for buying some from a commercial seller who bought their stock from Connecticut. We really had no other choice as most of the greenhouses in our area buy in from out of state and most come from CT or TN anyways. So we are gambling that our trees will survive the long winters fingers x. Plus it saved us over $20 a tree to buy from the larger seller. Although my pictures are camouflaging the fruit trees, in the above picture there are 2 Tart Cherry Trees, a Bartlet Pear and a Bosc Pear. Belle is actually walking behind one of the Pears that is just coming into leaf. The rule of thumb for all the trees is that they will get to be 10-12 feet high and round. We also have 2 different varieties of Apples, Golden Delicious and Gala. The Golden is the tree directly in front with all the blossoms on it. The Gala is near to where Raji is sitting. We also have another tree (the one Raji chewed) which is starting to look like it may come back. That I put in the ground behind where I am standing whilst taking this picture. That one is a Honey Crisp. Our raspberry patch I planted last spring and unfortunately loss 2 plants of the 6 planted. So far this year I replaced one of the plants and in the next few weeks will replace the last one. We are going to support the canes by guide wires which we still need to install. That is why our plants are in between two posts as the wires will be run from post to post and then secured. I can't believe how much everything has grown since the rain. I need to catch up on my weeding already! The last of our orchard plantings for this year was the grapes. Now when we planted everything they were basically still lifeless looking stalks and twigs still asleep after the winter. But as the weather is turning everything is starting to wake up and buds are popping. All except the grapes that is :( I have still not seen any sign of growth from them - I know it is still kind of early and they may just be focusing on root growth right now, but it would be nice to finally see some buds on them too. I will keep you posted! So there is our orchard - nothing too big or too fancy - but we are looking forward to harvesting our own fruits to use here on the farm. A future addition we are looking at is some kind of nut tree! Now how neat would that be to be able to harvest your own nuts in Maine? Hope everyone has a beautiful Friday!
Since it is getting to be mid-May and the weather has finally started to warm up, my mind is starting to focus on the outside and my gardens! I have some great ideas planned for my raised beds which I will share with you on another day, but right now I wanted to turn back the hands of time and show you something I learned a few years ago....it is so cool it even made the back of a US One Dollar coin in 2009! One of the ways we are resurrecting old ways is falling back on the ancient knowledge of the Native Americans who lived in perfect harmony with nature. They most likely walked our land here in Maine as I heard tell that Winding Hill was actually an old Indian trail that followed along the Kennebec to the Sandy River. It is from their wisdom that I found out about the 3 sisters. What is the 3 Sisters? The 3 Sisters is actually a companion growing of the main staples of the Native American Indians, Corn, Beans and Squash. Each of these plants contribute something to the others to help everything grow better. The corn for instance creates the poles that the beans need to climb up. The beans create stability to the stalks of the corn to secure them in the wind as well as providing much needed nutrients (nitrogen) to the corn and squash. The squash helps to keep the mound shaded and moist to allow for better growing conditions as well as their prickly leaves and stems act as a deterrent of pests who would eat the corn and beans. All working together doing nothing more than their own thing. Wow Team work at it's best!!! There are many variations on this type of planting and I have outlined what I did a few summers ago here for your today. The types of corn, beans and squash used are all up to the gardener as there are so many great varieties available today that who would want to limit themselves to just one type? I will recommend staying away from GMO corn and squash seeds as these contain their own pesticides in them now that has been linked to cancers, Alzheimers, and even hormone disruptors. One other thing, make sure the bean you choose to grow is a vine not a bush as the bush beans will stay as squat plants versus climbing the stalks of the corn. It is easy to start. First figure out your hill or mound placement. I would recommend using a hill about 1 1/2 to 2 foot in diameter and about 8 to 10 inches high. I generally pull the soil into the mound shape using a hoe. You will almost create a moat around the mounds as you pull the soil in. Once you have created your mound you will want to firm it into place. You do this by patting down the sides and top with your hands. This firms the soil and creates a nice planting area. The above photo will give you an idea of size and shape of the mounds. This isn't rocket science so don't worry if some are taller or wider than others. I would even space mine a bit further than Palazzo did in the picture so I could get around the plantings for harvesting beans and squash. It is all a matter of preference. Next it is planting time. Now I believe in the power of 3. So when I planted my 3 Sisters, I used 3 of each kind of seed in the mounds. BUT you do not plant them all at the same time. First you will plant your 3 corn seeds about 6 inches apart in a triangular pattern in the center of the mound following the directions on your packet. In about 2 weeks your corn should be 6 to 10 inches tall. Now you need to plant your beans. I planted the bean seeds about 6 inches away from the corn plants again in a triangular pattern in the open spaces so the bean triangle is the opposite of the corn. Again this isn't rocket science so seed placement is not an exact art. Now you can wait another week or so to plant the squash but I went ahead and planted the same time as the beans because in Maine you never know how short of a summer you will have. The squash I actually planted in a triangle pattern again but instead of planting them on top of the mound, I chose to plant the seeds about an inch or so down the sides. Now if a seed does not germinate, don't worry, just put another in until one grows. So there you have it, the 3 Sisters at it best. I would recommend using different squash varieties like summer, zucchini, butternut, acorn, or even trying some pumpkin! If you grow all one kind you will have so much that you will literally have it growing out of your ears! Of course be mindful of those hidden squashes - you know the zucchini that somehow hides under some leaves and you don't find it until it is the size of a small dinosaur! But seriously, give this a try and you might be surprised how easy it is and how much bounty you get!
I would love to know if anyone decides to try this and hope that you will send pictures that I can put up on the blog to show others. If you have any garden ideas to share, let me know and I will add them to the site too! Have a great day everyone and Happy Gardening! Yes it is tick season and they are out in full force. I know most areas of the US saw a very mild winter which in effect will make the ticks more abundant this season. So I figured I would pass on a neat trick for tick removal I heard about.
When I was little, I would be the one everyone on my street would call to remove a tick out of their dog, cat, kid... but that was before Lyme disease was rampant and I would just pinch and yank them out. Yeah you probably figured out that bugs don't bother me... or at least touching them doesn't. So I would yank and either smoosh them between rocks or burn them with a match all depending on where I was or what was available. I do remember one story (I was really too young to remember much) when we were in Texas visiting family and went to a park for a picnic. Well my cousin Kim and I made a make shift fort in some bushes and unbeknownst to us, it was full of ticks. Well I guess we had so many ticks on us that they literally sat us on the toilet and scraped the walking blood sucking creatures off of us and into the water... Flushed away....it probably is a good thing I don't remember too much :) Now that we are more aware of the diseases ticks can carry we have to be more cautious of not getting them to bite us and if they do, how to remove them safely. The following is a facebook message a friend shared yesterday that I think is fantastic and I had to share it here: Easy Tick Removal A nurse discovered a safe, easy way to remove ticks where They automatically withdraw themselves when you follow her simple instructions. Read this one as it could save you from Some major problems. "Apply a glob of liquid soap to a cotton ball. Cover the tick With the soap-soaked cotton ball and swab it for a few Seconds (15-20); the tick will come out on its own and be Stuck to the cotton ball when you lift it away. This technique has worked every time I've used it (and that was frequently), And it's much less traumatic For the patient and easier for me.." "Unless someone is allergic to soap, I can't see that this Would be damaging in any way. I even had my doctor's Wife call me for advice because she had one stuck to her Back and she couldn't reach it with tweezers. She used This method and immediately called me back to say, "It worked!" Please pass on. Everyone needs this helpful hint. Isn't that a neat trick? Ariana has already had two dog ticks this spring, and both times they were found while she was at school. The school's method of removal is just to dab the tick with rubbing alcohol and wait until it dies to pull out. I am hoping that if I pass this information on to them, that they will find it helpful and try this method next time one of the kids has a tick. The most common tick we get here in the Northeast is the dog tick (the larger of the ones pictured above). And for the most part they do not carry the lyme disease strain or that is what I heard. That disease carrier tick is the smallest pictured above, the deer tick, which really is quite small. I have never had one bite me that I know of only found one walking on me, but my cat sometimes gets them around her eyes. This is one way we as humans can get ticks as well, our loving pets bring them to us. Binx our cat sleeps with Ben, and he has found a tick in his bed on more than one occasion. This is why it is so important to keep doing tick checks... on you, your kids and your pets. I remember a few years ago some country singer even made a song about someone wanting to do a tick check on a woman...lol yeah I don't listen to country I just remember it from camp. Oh and despite popular belief, ticks do not drop from trees this is a myth! Ticks are climbers and may walk or climb to an edge of a twig, stem, or grass blade awaiting a poor unsuspecting victim to brush up against them so that their legs which have fish hook like barbs can catch onto them as they pass. If they end up in a tree, they could drop onto you, but for the most part they are low dwelling creatures. I guess the easiest way to avoid ticks is the use of bug spray, wearing a hat, long sleeve shirt and pants that are tucked in at the bottom when walking in the woods or working around the yard. I personally hate wearing long pants or shirts in the summer, I am stubborn that way, so the best idea is just to keep doing those visual checks of your body or your children's bodies and your pets, after they have been outside playing. If you do find a tick and it is imbedded into the skin, use the trick above and then kill the tick. If it is a deer tick, it is recommended that you keep the tick in a crush proof vial full of alcohol to give to your doctor if Lyme disease is suspected. A way to check is to keep an eye on the bite area to look for the tell tale signs of lyme disease which is a red ring that develops around the bite mark, sometimes a rash develops, as well as flu like symptoms. Some people are bitten and never even know until they have the advanced stages of the disease which can be very severe muscle aches, stiffness, headaches, tiredness, numbness in the arms and legs, memory loss, additional rashes on the body as the disease spreads and even fainting. If you suspect you may have been exposed to Lyme disease I would seek medical attention immediately, treatment is as simple as a dose of antibiotics. Click this link to find out more: LYME Disease or just google it on the internet. There you have it, the basic 411 on ticks~ Have a great day everyone! I thought it might be fun to add a bit of herb lore to the blog. So maybe once a week I will choose some plant or tree that is in bloom or ready to harvest and write up a bit of history on the plant and its medicinal uses. This is following the blog on Dandelions from a week or so ago. I will also make a new page under gardening life titled Herb Lore which you can find each of these blogs posted in.
Violets also named Viola or Violaceae, are small perennial plants that grow throughout the US and the world. If you can believe, there are between 400-500 different varieties of Violets. They are found in Ancient Greek mythology both as food for Zeus's lover io who he turned into a cow so Hera wouldn't find out about her, and also were the flowers that Persephone was walking in when Hades stole her to the underworld. In Christianity, the Violet is the symbol of the Virgin Mary. Because of her modest, shy nature like the flower who often hides beneath the heart shaped leaves only peeking out at times.... you remember the old saying...She is like a shy Violet. Napoleon Bonaparte's wife Josephine is rumored to have worn the scent of the Violet. And when Napoleon died a locket was found on him that contained violets and a locket of Josephine's hair. So you see Violets have a long history even making it into Shakespeare's play, Hamlet, as one of the flowers Olphelia was going to present to the King and Queen but only remarked that she wanted to give them Violets but that they had all withered and died with her father. Ok so that is a quick history but what about some uses...First lets look at culinary uses. Violets for years have been used as Candied Violets as decorations on cakes, picking the blossoms and using them in salads or in lemonade or even picking their heart shaped leaves and putting them in a salad of mixed greens to eat. Yes they are very edible! To me they have a slight sweet and minty flavor - Yum! Medicinally, Violets have many uses. The leaves contain a great amount of Vitamins A and C, so using them in a salad is definitely good for you! The flowers can be picked and made into a tea that you dip a cloth into and apply as a compress to bruises, sprains or even bone breaks to aide in the healing. You can drink the tea to aide in relaxation and it has now been studied that the Violet contains properties to help heal tumors and cancers! Do you have a sore throat? Well Violet syrup is a natural remedy for sore throats and coughs! Amazing isn't it? One little shy purple flower has so much it can do. And don't worry about over picking the flowers in the spring, Mother Nature has taken care of this because she is so wise! The plant produces flowers in the spring that do not make seeds so if you pick them it only stimulates the plant to make more flowers. It isn't until later in the summer that the plant will actually make the seed producing flowers, which are hidden away under the leaves, so pick away and enjoy! Have a great day everyone and as always, if you have questions or want more information, all you have to do is contact us! Be well! So what better way to start the week then to have a blog about all the things we did and to update some works in progress... First we will start with our fuzzy bunnies - It was time they were out of the mudroom and into a new outdoor fresh abode, so Jonathan gathered some scrap wood and began to build a platform to put the 3 cages on. It will also allow the manure to drop so we can shovel it up and use it in a compost. The roof is only temporary - it will be a bit higher once we get some 2x4s from the store. But as it was going to rain we wanted to put something up to keep them dry. They are loving the new environment and now my mudroom doesn't smell like the inside of someones boot :) Next stop is our goats. The boys are getting older so it was time to separate them from the girls so we didn't have any unexpected pregnancies. None of the goats were happy with this separation as they really are social animals, but Gandalf and Sky are dealing with it ok - especially now that they found out they have all new scrub to eat! Typical men think with their stomachs! And the girls - well once they realized that this meant less mouths at the trough they were happy too! Here they all are sampling the bark of a maple tree. As the sap is still evident, they are loving the sweet taste and are devouring all the trees as far up as they can reach. Their pen reminds me of some kind of Tim Burton film - everything is dead or eaten from head height down to the ground... Future site of a garden I think ;) Chickenville is coming along nicely. The BCM hens are all laying now as evident in the picture! As the ladies lay more and more our eggs should become darker and darker until they actually look like chocolate in color! We have many people ask us about buying fertilized eggs or chicks as this breed of chicken is becoming more and more popular. All I need is an incubator but right now that is low man on the totem pole. I had my first cock fight the other day. Abe thought it would be cool to attack me when I went into the pen as you know I am one big mean rooster he has to defeat. One thing I learned is never argue with a rooster as they aren't capable of understanding. So I ended up with a bite to remind me of my stupidity, no blood but a nice bruise on the hand. Now I go in armed with food and a squirt bottle. Why you wonder? Well the food is because another rooster would not feed him so he automatically forgets why he was agitated because it is time to eat... (see the pattern of the male species???) and the water bottle is if he should remember why he wanted to fight the big rooster coming to take his eggs then I can give him a squirt! Another rooster would not know how to squirt water so like the food he is so shocked he forgets what he was trying to do. Sort of like the dog in the movie UP he sees a squirrel and forgets what he was doing. Thank God we are human and can rationalize these things out! As for our chicks... well they aren't chicks anymore! All our hens are getting so big now and should be making big hen clucking soon so they can join the rest of the clan in the big coop. I hear them make clucking sounds every once in a while, but then they revert back to peeping so I don't dare put them in yet. Why you ask? Well if they go into the large pen peeping, there is a really good chance that the other older chickens (ie the rooster I mention above) will attack them not knowing that they too are chickens because they are not making the same sound. Once they get a taste of blood it is hard to break them of the habit. I was told this and it sounds logical so I am following the recommendation to wait until everyone talks the talk. Then we can have one big happy hen house with two worn out roosters! And look at this beauty! She is one of the ducks - Winking, Blinking and Nod! Ok so they are hens and I need to change their names but I haven't come up with anything fitting yet so I just call them duckies... lol I know how original right? They are Mallards and it is amazing how well they blend in to the back ground. Mother nature at her best! They are all learning to fly and hopefully when they do fly they will still stay here as if they get a yearning to go to the river they may never come back. I could clip their flight feathers but I believe that if they are supposed to be here then they will stay, if they are meant to go then they will go. Just like children everywhere. And last but not least is Garden World. This weekend we planted a Rhubarb plant, and a raspberry bush to replace one that died. The strawberries are coming up so nice! See the picture above and already they have at least two full sets of leaves each! The grass is slowly coming along - it got so cold out that it has delayed the germination, but now that the sun has returned and it is a bit warmer, we can see some green seedlings! Our apple tree is blossoming finally and I saw a cherry tree not too far behind. We also have wild blueberry shrubs everywhere and they are all in full bloom too! Hopefully we get a really big harvest this summer as the last few years have been slow. The following pictures are just random shots of plants and flowers found around the property - I have done them in a slide show format for something different. Enjoy and have a great day! Well here are my three reasons why I too can celebrate this day! Funny how you think you have so many pictures of all three together when in fact most are single person or one person missing photos. So yes I had to go back a year or so to find a picture that showed my three kids together. Pretty funny that it is a Christmas shot!
My day today is like any other day. But isn't that what being a mother is all about? We never stop being a Mom and for me it isn't just my three human children, I have others in the fur, fin and feather clan that have come to rely on me for their well being too. It is a hard habit to break for a day not to do the things that are routine in our daily lives. So today I will cook, clean and do laundry. I will most likely help Jonathan with building outside, plant a rhubarb plant and raspberry bush that Jonathan bought for me yesterday at the greenhouse. I will feed, hay, water and milk - make some bread and share time with my family. Because if we are truly honest with ourselves, then everyday is Mother's Day because once you are a mother you know no other way... Have a Wonderful blessed Mother's Day to all the Mothers in the world! |
Heidi Burrows
A 40 something woman who has decided it is time to take control of our life Archives
February 2014
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