Taste of the Valley

It doesn't take long for our short summers to blow right past us!  It's already the end of September and soon we will be packing up the garden and utilities for yet another year.  We had a busy summer with ups and downs.  One of the ups being that I didn't have to pick in the rain like last year but the lack of rain over the summer really played havoc with the growing.  We invested in irrigation this year and at the beginning was really  wondering if we would use it! Well good thing we did!!  Next year is row covers!!  But I am digressing.

Cherry and Roma Tomatoes 

My highlights of the year were doing the Taste of the Valley in Renfrew and the morning show with CTV.  I didn't think we were going to get individual air time but they did a whole segment on our market and we were interviewed!!  I think I did ok considering I don't so well in public speaking!  You can catch me on the YouTube video at http://www.youtube.com/user/CTVOttawaMorningLive#p/u/9/dSiLIzgaQsU .  This has made for a very busy September but good for getting my product out there. 

Andria (left) and I at the Taste of the Valley in Renfrew

At the Taste of the Valley we had approx 70 vendor displaying and selling crafts, baking, chocolate, meats, produce and more.  There are about 5 of these in various towns in the valley starting mid summer and ending in the fall.  There were a lot of people but I think the threat of rain kept a lot of people away.  A friend of mine came down for the weekend and we had a great time selling produce and catching up!  I think next year I will try and do a couple more of them!

Hill Billy Tomatoes....brain food!

This week I am going to the Eganville 100 Mile Market and then will be back at the Renfrew Market on Saturday!  Having had a heavy first frost a couple weeks ago I am hoping that I will have enough produce for this weekend and hopefully the next couple of weeks!!  

Carrots and Beets and a gourd for decoration!!

Fresh Home Grown Chickens!!

Well it is that time of year again!! We will have free range chicken available Thurs Sept 1st ranging 3 - 8 lbs.  It will be $3.50/lbs.  They are naturally raised with no antibiotics or growth hormones.  If you would like them fresh please let me know in advance as most will be going into the freezer.

Beer Can Chicken

Flower Miracles

The most blooms I've had in years!

Very hardy ground cover. I was told what it was a couple
 years ago by the nursery owner but it has slipped my
mind as to what it is called.

Going in a different direction today.  I do lots of vegetable gardening and when I have time, I try to keep some flowers about.  My grandmother died when I was 5 so I don't have too much to remember her by.  I have a couple memories of her, like her making donuts and making the centers for my brother and I, shelling peas in front of the house and washing my mouth out with Ivory soap when I said 'damn'...that was a bad word in her books.  So when we moved back here and started cleaning up the place...as it had become overgrown something terrible...I actually found some snipits of her gardening.  This in itself is quite a miracle as there was no gardening being done here since 1980.  Between this and my grandfather mowing everything or the cows running amok when they got out, I was quite surprised to find these.  This also gives me something to remember how hard she tried to make the property nicer even if my grandfather kept mowing it down for more space! I found a Begonia plant in amongst the Lilacs still trying to grow, I found 2 Iris tubers laying on the ground by the old fence, and some ground cover growing under the trees.  So I transplanted these flowers/ground cover to see what would happened.  I got some purple Irises and they have been mulitpling ever since.  The Begonia has been desperately trying to grow but every year a kid, dog, chicken, ants or something or other knocks it down or eats it.  However, this year by some miracle I have quite a few flowers blooming...it was quite surprising! The ground cover is growing so well I am pulling it and weed wacking it!!  Just a little more heritage to add to the farm !

The bush on the left is Lilac and the other on the right is a purple
leaved bush which turns green as the summer progresses.

Chatting Up Dexters

This past Monday I had a visit by some nice people from Barry's Bay.  They said they have passed by numerous times on the way to Ottawa and saw someone home (I was feeding the chicks out front) so they stopped in.  They had seen the 'little cows' in the field and wanted to know more.  So we had a nice little chat about Dexters!!  I find I like talking about them, which is odd as I never before liked talking about cattle.  I have definitely fallen for the breed that's for sure.  We have 3 Registered Dexters, Whisper, Willow and Xander.  I hope they learned something new that day!

Xander in new pasture this in May

I got to chat more about my Dexters and the breed the next day too!  I had a local farmer stop by and asked if my bull was forsale or if he could lease him.  I know there are not many Dexter owners around these parts and thought it was kind of odd for a local beef farmer asking about my bull.  I must of had a bit of a confused look and he ask if I was all right.  At this point I had to ask him if he realized that my bull was not a black angus but a Dexter.  Well was he kind of surprised and said he thought he was just a small angus bull as he was looking for something that would give low birth weight calves but have good growth.  Well Xander would definitely give low birth weight calves!  We had a good chat about the breed though.  I think he was just being nice.

Garden is Finally Done!!

Making the hills with a homemade hiller

Well almost.  I still have my succession plantings to do but that will come.  We were finally able to get out on the garden to plant and I have been doing so since the beginning of June.  I will hopefully be at the Renfrew Farmer's Market June 25 with lettuce, swiss chard, radishes, maybe strawberries if there is extra for market, rhubarb and hopefully some other stuff!!  Now I am just working on market set up.  I had some issues with my bunching onions so that will be a little later. The chickens are growing well and will be processed at the end of June beginning of July.

Row covered in plastic mulch

Making the holes using a propane torch

Chickens and Strawbery Rhubarb Crunch!

I am currently taking orders for meat chicken.  I have a limited number this year so call to reserve.

Also the Rhubarb is ready!!  $2.00 per bunch (approx 5 stocks).
Eggs for farm pick up available $3.50 per dozen.  Tueday and Friday pick up 12 - 6pm or by appointment.

I have also posted a recipe for Strawberry Rhubarb Crunh if you don't know what to do with Rhubarb!  I have used this recipe with mixed berries as an alternative!  Supper yummy served with ice cream :)

Rain, Rain, and more Rain

No I'm not going to complain about the rain (as much as I want to) as there are places that are worse off than we are.  I just can't get into my gardens, unfortunately.  We get nice weather for couple of days and as soon as it dries out enough to get on with the machinery...it rains again.  We are on clay loam soil with old drainage that is starting to fail so when it is time to go we have to get going.  So today (as it is raining) I thought I would bring you all up to speed as to the goings on around here.  We finally made a mini greenhouse to get the indoor seedlings outside and I have had to start more in pots so they will be along far enough to plant when I can get into the gardens.

My 4 yr old broke his collarbone at the beginning of May and that has been quite an adventure for us and him.  For us it is a new experience as we have never had to deal with broken bones till now!  For the 4 yr old, learning how to manage with something that is so painful but there is little they can do for you.  It's like breaking your toe...not much they can do.  He is in a light brace to keep everything aligned while it heals and that's it.  He is almost back to normal and giving his mom, me, and dad constant anxiety.  We go next week to see the doctor and x-rays and hopefully get the brace off!

The Dexters out on a newly opened pasture enjoying the fresh grass.

I'm thinking Xander, our Dexter bull, did he job as Willow and Whisper haven't shown being in heat lately, so hopefully they are bred and will have our first calves next spring.  I can't wait!!  I hope everything goes well and we have some happy health calves!

Hey any bugs on here!! One of the layers checking out the newly planted  Red Pines.

We have gotten our meat chickens for the year.  We are doing the White Rock Broiler and Bonnie's Meaty Reds (I think that's what they are called).  We are using Bonnie's Hatchery this year to give them a try!  The chicks are doing well and the Reds have moved to the outside run to get the fresh grass and bugs.  Once they get a little bigger they will be let out to graze freely for a couple hours each day.  We were disappointed in the weights of our meat birds last year and we are thinking that they were allowed to free range a little too much thus getting too much exercise!  So this year we are going to try controlled free range.  The Chicken Tractors get moved daily and near the end of the day they will be let out to go about freely but not walk miles and miles like they did last year!  The White Rocks are about a week behind the Reds but they should finish at the same time by the end of June!!

Layer and Rooster enjoying the outdoors!  Yum Yum Bugs.

Also in May we had the 1rst Renfrew Scouting Troop out to plant 200 Red Pines.  The Beaver came here and Cubs and Scouts did another property.  It was a really good day!!  Although it pretty much rain the week prior it was an absolutely gorgeous day.  Bubble, one of the Beaver leaders, showed up in shorts!!  She was heckled a little bit in the morning as it was cloudy but 1/2 later was laughing at all us hecklers as the sun came out to stay!!  We hosted the lunch afterward and a good time had by all.  Most of the Beavers got to check out the new baby chicks and some got to check out the Dexters!

Our littlest beside one of the new plantings.

Well I see the clouds are starting to break up a little so maybe there will be a break in the rain and I can get the rest of the chores done!!

Spring Clean Up and Chickens

As we all know it is that time of year when we get our yards already by cleaning them up, raking, etc, etc.  Well today being colder but nice, I decided that I had to get some done before this next stretch of rain hits...they are calling for a weeks worth...yuck!  I am letting the chickens out in the afternoon after most of them have done with laying....saves me a lot of time trying to find them when they are free to lay where they want....the best of both worlds I think.  I get my eggs in one spot and they get to freely go about their business after.  So this afternoon after doing the egg collection I let them out and I grabbed my rake and proceeded to the work area...only to have a bunch of chickens follow me like they were going to get grain?? But it wasn't feed time??  So I had to ask " Do they remember me digging around in the dirt to get the potatoes and carrots?"   I always had a chicken or three right beside me when I was digging those root crops up, they were not after the crops but all the bugs and worms in the ground.  So I got to where I was going to rake and as I moved the rake past a spot...the hens would jump right in there looking for bugs!! I'm surprised some of them didn't get a good wallop as my job had to get done.  Well then I moved on to another section where some scrap wood had collected and I swear as soon as I had my hand on the wood, there were chicken heads waiting... I had to laugh and I am probably well known in the chicken world (mine anyway) as...the bug lady...just follow her and you will get bugs!  Amazing what they remember seeing as they have been in the barn the whole winter!  I'm sure we will have some very tasty eggs in the next couple days!

Cooking the Syrup

This past weekend was another work weekend mixed with boiling the sap down and not a finer weekend to do it till the rain hit!!.  Years back we stopped using the wood furnace due to safety issues but had held on to it for I don't know what reason.  Well last year it was decided that it was never going to be used to heat anything anymore but Carl had the idea that it might make a good boiler for the sap!  Well he was right...the only issue we had was that the chimney wasn't high enough but it worked good enough.  We tended the sap while finishing breaking up the old summer kitchen that had to be torn down last fall!  We were also doing some general clean up and finishing the last of the siding that we didn't get done last fall.

Carl is tending the new syrup cooker on a beautiful Saturday

Our old wood furnace is getting a second life as syrup boiler

Sap starting to boil

 

Carl's solution to the afternoon rain that came on Sunday.  Hopefully next year there will be a shack for the boiler :)

The aftermath of the storm that hit Sunday night !

Rhubarb is Emerging

Things are starting to happen as I walked the gardens today to see how they were doing.  I came across the rhubarb patch and noticed that it had started to poke through!  It won't be long before we will be getting fresh rhubarb!  The strawberry plants are looking good and I am hoping we didn't get too much kill from the early rain we got near the end of winter.  The ground is softening up and hopefully I can get some areas dug up that we couldn't get to in the fall due to other commitments.  In most places the snow has left...thanks to the rain we have been getting, the days are getting longer and warmer and you can start to smell the spring in the air.  The first seedlings are coming along and have turned to little plants and the new seeds have sprouted.  We are building a greenhouse this year so I have a place for the plants to go once they are out of seedling stage so we are going to have to get to that real soon!! 

Seedlings!

Pepper newly emerging

Tomatoes and Peppers

Here we are with all the new seedlings.  I have tomatoes already getting their true leaves and will have to plant into larger container in a couple of days!  I have more onions, tomatoes, lettuce, and spinach getting started today  so I can get a really good start to the year!  We are working on an out door greenhouse this coming weekend and if we can get it done I will have pictures next week.

Xander is doing really well and would like to meet the rest of the herd but he still has to stay in to get use to me.  I want him to know that I am not going to harm him and also if I notice if something is not right then I don't have to try to get him into a strange barn!  I am hoping by the weekend to let him out as long as thing stay good and he is eating and drinking well.

My mini greenhouse

Welcome Xander (aka XXX or Triple X)

Xander in the barn

Whisper hearing Xander bawling in the barn

Whisper at the barn trying to figure out who is in there!

Boy what a beautiful day for March Break and exciting news.  We have a new addition to our Dexter herd...a wonderful bull named Xander (aka XXX).  I like his real name Xander but DH thinks it should be XXX like after Xander Cage in the movie XXX. It is his turn to do the naming so I can't complain as I got the name I liked for his registered name.  His father is Saturn's Galaxy and his mother is Royle Nora.  He will be our herd sire for the next couple of years!  We hope he will produce some great offspring in the future.   We picked him up yesterday in Alfred, Ontario. It's a 2 hour trip when we have to pull a trailer behind our van with kids in tow.  All went well though and we had a good trip home.  Xander is adjusting to his new home very well and even let me give him a rub this afternoon!  He has such a docile temperment for a bull it still quite amazes me.  I had to keep the girls out in the field yesterday as we had to open the gates so that we could get Xander in the barn.  So this morning I let them up to the barn for water and a treat of grain, when Xander bawled!  Well our herd boss ,Whisper, heard this she was quite concerned and ran to the barn doors and started bawling back.  They won't get introduced right away as I like to quarantine new animals and get them use to me before they get out with the herd.  Well after the bawl fest, which means Whisper is satisfied for now, thing went back to normal for the rest of the day.

I took the boys to the library to learn about the Science of Flight and a Magic Show using Chemistry!  They sure had a lot of fun!  As they were doing this I was entertaining our youngest so that he would not be tempted to take all the books off all the shelves!!  This is a favourite pastime of his at home and it is one that he itches to do every time we go to the Library.  The rest of the afternoon they played outside making a rocket that the "magicians"  showed them how to do at the Magic Show.  They took a film canister put some baking powder in it, then added a bit of water, put the cap on, turned it upside down and then waited for the gas to expand and then shoots the canister up in the air!  I kept an eye on them while they did that and I finally managed to get some of the maple trees taped.  Nothing is running yet, so I will try and head up to the bush to get the couple of trees tapped up there before it starts to rain!!

Warm Days and Cool Nights

Here they come! The nights are cool and the days are warm...time for the sap to run. I haven't done maple syrup in two years as we had such a surplus. Well I finally ran out just before Christmas...I guess we had too many Pancake Tuesdays! Well it will be fun as I now have 2 kids old enough to help a little more. I love getting them to help and Ethan, who is 4, is super excited as he thinks its his first time. Little does he know that I would put him in the backpack and trudge through the snow in the bush to collect the sap. That's quite a work out that's for sure.

I am also getting a pen ready for the new bull we are getting. I will post some pictures when we actually get him home.

We had a really nice day and I let the roosters out and took the little one out to meet the Dexters and roosters.  He looked at them and they looked at him, neither of them impressed with each other. The cows were more concerned with the roosters as they were eating the leftover grain that they like to spill on the ground.

On the seedling front, my onions, lettuces, and tomatoes have sprouted...just waiting on the spinach and the peppers!!  I found out our market starts at the beginning of May so I will have to get working on that green house soon so I can plant out the lettuces, spinach, radishes, chard and beets so I can hopefully have something by then!!

Whisper and Willow...My Sweet Little Dexters

I was just looking back on here and realized that I don't have any pictures up of my 2 dexters!!  We got our 2 girls from Dan and Ellen Riopelle in the Ottawa Valley about one and a half years ago.  I wasn't really into the cattle as I grew up with Shorthorns but I needed nourishment for my gardens and these came up so my cattle herd began.  As we have 3 young boys and a city slicker husband, we were looking for a breed that wasn't high strung and large like some I have been around.  We did some research and realized that some of these mini breeds might be good for us.  I knew after seeing the Dexter breed at a local farm that if I was going to have cattle again, then this is exactly what we were looking for. In a couple of weeks we will have a new addition, a bull, to help get us on the way to expand the herd and I am looking forward to trying to milk the one dexter I have been conditioning to do so.  I am also looking forward to having our own meat, but that will be a couple of years for that!  For now we will enjoy them as they are!  The top picture is of Whisper and the bottom picture is Willow. 

One Blistery Day!!

March is really coming in like a lion that is for sure!!  We has 15 cm of snow on Monday and today the wind is just crazy!!!  However,  the chickens are quite cozy in their coop!  Finally have the egg production back up and running regular enough that I can offer eggs for sale once again!!  There is still so much to do before spring planting. We are getting our seeds started, plans for the gardens and new idea's brewing for the market!!  Today is a good day for that.  I also have to get my maple syrup equipment cleaned and accounted for this year as I ran out syrup this winter!!  I think we had too many pancakes and french toast dinners :)  So that is on the menu today as well as getting more seeds planted.

Frosty Morning Fun

Wow!!  Yesterday sure was a frosty morning!!!  It is one of the things that gets me excited about winter.  While heading out to put the kids on the bus, I snapped a couple of pictures around the farm.  It sure was a cold nippy morning too!!  Sometimes it's what keeps you in the fight to make living on the farm all worth it.  As my husband has to work in the city, he doesn't always get to see the beauty that I get to see at those special parts of the day.  In other news, we had a good dumping of snow last week and we tried something new.  My husband took the tractor and snow blowed a path so the kids could get their x-country skis out and not have to wade through the snow.  I think it was the first time too that the little one in the sled wasn't carrying a load of snow :)  It sure adds a lot of weight and you know who is pulling the sled....mom sure gets tired after that!!  Well I am sure it won't be here too much longer so we will enjoy it while it last as we start heading into March in a couple of weeks and the sap starts to run!!

The Newest Addition!!

Happy Belated New Year Everyone!  It has been a while but we have been busy getting everything else done.  The picture to my right is of our new charolais heifer.  We don't have a name for her yet but Ethan seems to like to call her Olivia??? She is suppose to have a name beginning with 'X' but Ethan doesn't know any 'X' names and to be truthful, neither do I.  The baby book that my husband wishes that I throw out doesn't have much either.  I wish it was a lot warmer out as you can see she is quite dirty and I would like to hose her off but that will have to wait till it warms up.  In the meantime, we are still getting to know her and she us.  She has a fairly quite temperment but will let you know right away if you are doing something she doesn't like.  Unlike my Dexters, she eats and drinks twice as much but she is also a larger breed and has a whole other purpose than the Dexters.  Willow and Whisper are still letting her know that she is last in line for everything, especially when it comes to grain time!!