This week on the farm was filled with our first Christmas at our new home and a cold that knocked out most of the house. Christmas was a hit for the littles, a day of toy and treat chaos, as it should be. My love and I kept it simple for each other this year, this house and our new adventure is truly all I’ve wanted for two decades. But we did get a few practical things, including beautiful his/hers tool chests. He tracked down one of the only purple ones left in the state. He got some chainsaw chaps and ear protection, both of which I plan to borrow. giggle
I snagged one last end of season deal (self: you must stop) on bulbs - adding another 100 or so to the total. Daffodils and crocus to celebrate the spring, with the bonus of the daffodils deterring deer from nibbling nearby plants. We’ve loved the deer grazing since we’ve arrived, but I’ll enjoy it way less if they’re eating my new apple and cherry trees when they’re planted next year. Deer (apparently) can’t stand the taste of daffodils and will avoid it as much as possible. My new hori hori knife should help get them planted without too much effort, once this cold passes a bit more. The trick will be deciding where these trees will live in the future.
This sickness has inspired me to make chicken stock again, so that’ll be part of my work over the next couple days. I like to make a huge batch, only to boil it down so it’s extra concentrated and freeze in ice cube trays. Then I’ll add one cube to a cup of hot water for instant homemade broth.
Somehow, even with all the chaos, I made progress on the admin side of the farm - and I can now officially call it a farm! We’re registered with the USDA as an official working farm, it was the easiest of processes but it felt oddly momentous.
After nearly 20 years of dreaming, I have finally arrived.
The world that Barbara Kingsolver introduced to me in 2008 through Animal, Vegetable, Miracle is now MY world.
Raising my littles on the farm, while still having access to all the local services and community is The Dream.
And now we get to work. I can’t wait.
Registering the farm is the first step towards some of the USDA and NRCS programs designed to help small farmers. And yes, they seem to still exist despite all the recent cuts in government programs. I’ll share about that as I make contact with our local service offices and learn more.
The Department of Forestry is coming for a site visit in early January to start the process for a Forest Stewardship plan.
We’ll discuss our silvopasture and a permaculture nursery goals for the land, walk through to look at all the features and contours, and eventually we will have a report that makes suggestions down to the individual tree level.
These plans are peeking ten years or more into the future, and asking: what will benefit us and the land the most? Trees are long term partners with near term to-do lists.
If I want a sustainable pig pasture in the future, I need to plant the trees that will feed and support them now. And if I want to eat pecans in the future, I need to plant them away from the future pigs.
Our forest is badly overgrown and will need a lot of thinning, and replacement trees will be chosen to support specific goals.
But that’s the long term planning. Between sniffles and naps, we’ve kept dreaming about what’s next for the land. The next right thing. I’ve been working on writing my Winter to-do list, and making 2026 goals.
For next year, I’m focused on establishing the gardens and perennials and beyond that: 2026 is the YEAR OF THE BIRDS.
I have the coop and run for the chickens already, it just needs assembly which kept falling lower on my to do list this Fall. We’ll get it ready for spring and half a dozen or so laying chicks.
Gary and the goat’s old shed will be repurposed for the waterfowl. I fell in love with runner ducks years ago, I love their stretched out waddle and want their eggs for baking. I’m less enthralled by the look of muscovy ducks (IYKYK) as I am about their potential benefits, both as strong mothers and as a sustainable source of meat.
Chickens and ducks were always a given, but wanting geese is a new addition. I’m hoping to help start a small breeding program, which will support a threatened breed, while adding additional protection to our smaller birds. I’ve been researching, and I’ll be looking for a pair or trio of Pilgrim geese in the spring. The breed is critically endangered, so they’re harder to come by than some others but I’ll be patient.
I had been chatting with my friend and experienced farmer Morgan about the timing and qty of our first meat chickens for the Spring, when I realized this particular part of the plan didn’t excite me like the rest, so I’ve given myself permission to wait. I’ll have plenty to keep me busy with the chickens, ducks and geese that I’m already planning on.
If you want more farm life, this week I posted a cozy no talking b-roll video of our first day on the farm featuring the previous owner’s goats, pig and donkey, you can view it here.
For now, the kettle’s on again, the seed catalogs are waiting and the farm is resting - not quite fully hibernating for winter, but close.
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