Here we are, nearly mid-July, and it seems that the summer weather is still not ready to start in earnest. Even so, the plants are finally taking off and I’m feeling optimistic that this will be a good year at the farm. [Read more →]
Take time to stop and smell the lavender blossoms
July 14th, 2011 · Crops, Farm Work
Goat Hoof Trimming
January 4th, 2011 · Farm Animals, Farm Work, Tools & Techniques
Liz & Thomas stopped by the farm during their Christmas break. Liz has always taken care of our goat hoofs, so I asked them to help out once more. I took some snippets of video and assembled them into my first video.
→ 2 CommentsTags:goats·tools
2010 Corn Maze, Crows in the Corn
September 13th, 2010 · Activities, Crops, Farm Work
Crows in the Corn, the 2010 Corn Maze Photo by Cameron Lerum
The first aerial photo of our 2010 corn maze, Crows in the Corn, was taken by Cameron Lerum as he flew past the farm. [Read more →]
Soil Testing. The Tools & Techniques of a Farm. Part 3
April 10th, 2010 · Tools & Techniques
Each year I collect soil samples for testing. Knowing the nutrients already in the soil and the crop I plan for the field, I can make informed decisions on the optimum compost, fertilizer, and other soil amendments. After testing the same field for a few years, I can look for trends and adjust my strategies to suit.
I want to know not only the amounts of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium (the NPK of the fertilizer labels), but also the micronutrients boron, manganese, zinc, copper, iron, and sulfur. In addition I’ll look at the soil pH and the amounts of calcium and magnesium which affect the availability of the other nutrients for uptake by the plants. The report gives other useful information that I won’t go into here.
If I were starting a home garden, particularly in an urban area, I would pay particular attention to the amount of lead reported by the testing lab. Leafy greens such as spinach are well known to take up lead & other heavy metals from the soil.
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Broken wrist: doubly painful.
April 9th, 2010 · Farm Planning, Farm Work
I fell and broke my wrist a week ago last Monday. I figure this is a fairly good explanation for the lack of recent entries here. I have several ideas for entries, but I’m not up to doing much typing yet.
Turns out there are a number of things I have trouble doing one-handed. I had to hire in an extra worker to help at the farm yesterday, so it turns out the broken wrist is also painful in the wallet.
The continuing series of rains has kept the fields too wet to work, so as the fieldwork falls behind schedule, at least I can blame the weather rather than my broken wrist.
I can mouse around on the computer and turn pages, so I’ve been doing more research on a number of topics, including possible herbs to add for essential oils or teas and additional plants to use as cover crops. I have been adding more tasks to my list at a much greater rate than I have managed to complete any.
I’m hoping that soon I can get back to shrinking the task list. There’s a whole lot to get done.
7 Techniques for Microclimate Manipulation. The tools & techniques of a farm. Part 2
March 13th, 2010 · Tools & Techniques, Weather
The idea of a microclimate is one that good gardeners learn to utilize, even if they don’t know the idea by name. Tender plants do best in that area along the house that is sheltered and always warmer. Hostas grow in the shady spots, grass dies out. That damp spot in the back corner is bad for raspberries, but great for irises.
On the farm, where we are growing a large number of plants, we need ways to change the amount of heat, light, and water that our plants receive. Anything we do beyond sticking plants out the in the field and waiting for them to grow will cost us in time and materials, so you can be sure we wouldn’t use methods if we weren’t convinced the techniques paid us back for our efforts. The payoff may come in being the first to market, extending the growing season, providing some insurance against an unusual weather year, reducing weed competition, or even reducing plant disease. We’re not doing anything that couldn’t be done in a backyard garden. We’re just working on a bigger scale and with a smaller budget for each plant. [Read more →]
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The tools & techniques of a farm. Part 1: Introduction
March 11th, 2010 · Farm Planning, Farm Work
What do you need to farm? If you were starting a farm from scratch, what would you need to pull together to make a go of it?
Every farm is different. The crops or livestock grown, soil type, climate, amount of cash available to invest, accessibility of water, farming style, zoning and other regulations associated with the land, attitude of neighbors, and many additional factors all affect the farmer’s choices. Even so, there are common themes and tasks, including planning and record keeping, planting, weeding, harvesting, animal care, maintenance, buildings, water, and crop sales. In this series I will look at our choices here at Dr. Maze’s Farm. [Read more →]
Are they really too cute for their own good?
March 2nd, 2010 · Farm Animals, Farm Friends
Meet our alpacas and pygmy goats. Three African pygmy goats and two alpacas live at Dr. Maze’s Farm. They have been favorites of visitors to The South 47 Farm.
I’m hoping to find a volunteer or two to help keep our alpacas and goats socialized and trained. They all are interested and curious about people, but they tend to get shy and skittish without ongoing interaction with people.
Stella wants to know what's up.
Announcing Dr. Maze’s Corn Maze & Pumpkin Farm and Dr. Maze’s Botanicals.
March 1st, 2010 · Crops, Farm Planning
This year will look different at The South 47 Farm.
Much is changing, but some of your favorites will remain. [Read more →]
→ 4 CommentsTags:chamomile·corn maze·essential oil·herbs·lavender·mazes·pumpkins·winter squash
My Twitter Weekly Updates (oldest first) for 2010-02-23
December 6th, 2009 · Uncategorized
- Chilly, gray overcast sky. Nasty headcold started today. I'm thinking bacon pancakes & coffee will cheer me up. #
- Smashed a corner of the pump house with the tractor. Now sitting down. Should I be sipping Viognier/Marsanne, or should I open a Pinot Gris? #
- Moved the goats & alpacas to the winter paddock a bit earlier than I hoped. Too much rain – summer paddock turned to mud. #
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