As the title suggests, 2016 has been a transition year here at Bottle Tree Farm. We said good-bye to the last of the pigs in 2015. Now, thanks to the wily fox, we are down to a small flock of fowl: three turkeys (two toms and a hen), two chickens, and two ducks. The turkeys… Continue reading The Farm in Transition 2016
Category: Learning
Bee Log Plus
I’ve been keeping an eye on the hives, and one of them has been noticeably inactive compared to the one on the left. A few bees coming and going. I haven’t been able to get down to open the boxes: it’s either raining or just too hot. But, today was pretty perfect for putting on the suit and… Continue reading Bee Log Plus
Very Overdue Update Plus Angry Bees
Four months? Really? I didn’t do an update all summer? I was busier than ever with workshops this spring and summer. My flower garden was lovely in the late Spring, early Summer and then I started to travel. Newspaper and mulch helped some but eventually the weeds won out. We also decided to add another… Continue reading Very Overdue Update Plus Angry Bees
Five Months Later
It was a tough winter here at the farm. We didn’t get a lot of snow but the freezing temperature required extra work keeping pigs and chickens war, keeping water from freezing and worrying about the bees. I’m happy to say that both hives survived and are now busy making honey! I added a queen… Continue reading Five Months Later
Making a Life
Over the holidays, a friend strongly encouraged me to read Kristin Kimball’s memoir of her beginnings as a farmer. I knew I had a copy of The Dirty Life on the shelf but I had someone managed to avoid reading both it and all the other memoirs of life as a farmer. For me, reading… Continue reading Making a Life
An Autumn Update
This morning was one of those mornings that have me questioning the farming life. It was about 20 degrees when I headed out for the chores. Fortunately, I am prepared for such mornings with lots of warm clothes from long underwear to boots to hat and gloves. And the animals seemed no worse for wear,… Continue reading An Autumn Update
Piglets!
I am writing this entry from the pig pen. And, I will be attending today’s board meeting from the same place. I declared this a “family emergency” and want to spend every minute with our first set of piglets. Ten adorable babies were born yesterday to Macintosh, our full blooded Tamworth sow. We knew she… Continue reading Piglets!
The Evil Wax Moths
I lost my second original hive, this time to wax moths. It had seemed to be doing well with capped comb and even some honey stores. But last Sunday, I found the first evidence of wax moths, including the moth itself. The moth lays eggs and the worms eat through comb and create cocoons. And… Continue reading The Evil Wax Moths
Long Overdue Update
I know why farmers talk about the weather…because it is so important. A lovely long spring that produced wonderful peas and spinach turned into a wet early summer that washed out the squash crop, rotted the onions, and made it impossible to get into the fields to plant or weed. Things have gotten a bit… Continue reading Long Overdue Update
Taking the Bad with the Good
July has arrived, and the rain has finally stopped. An early tropical storm in June soaked the place and then it just seemed to keep raining. We lost the early squash and zucchini plants that had just started to produce. Some of my flower seeds came up (you can always count on zinnias!) but others… Continue reading Taking the Bad with the Good