Hard to believe it’s been almost 2 years since I posted! I assure you there has been plenty going on.
I decided that in 2023 I would simplify things somewhat–streamline the farm a bit and jettison things that weren’t bringing me joy. We put the pigs into the freezer (mmm, mmm Good!) and I cut down the number and variety of things I was growing. I also spent a lot of time being more intentional about what I was putting my heart and soul into.
This resulted in me spending a lot of time getting the garden more organized and a bit “self sustaining”. I made about 20 self-watering grow tubs and built some raised beds out of straw bales in an effort to minimize weeding and watering. I enjoyed quite a bit of success with these innovations and will expand on these ideas going forward.
Summer is so busy with my lovely blessings out of school, and I didn’t want the garden to stress me out–I do enjoy it and think it’s paramount to our lifestyle. We also installed some rain catchment (more to come) in order to conserve water and decrease expenses. I installed micro-irrigation in both gardens, with some success. This is an area I have LOTS of room for improvement in. I’m thinking 2024 will be the year I fine tune that.
The final big shift in garden land was to attempt to eat fresh out of the garden for 9-ish months out of the year. My early spring game was ok, but this fall is going strong, and I am hoping we’ll be eating fresh veggies through Christmas this year with the addition of a high tunnel and some cold frames. With cole crops, peas, and spinach in the spring and fall surrounding the summer staples, the garden is supporting us nicely. I added more berries to the front patch and a huge asparagus section that may bring us a harvest next year.
I enjoyed success this year with my first honey harvest! The bees have been a big addition with a steep learning curve! Thank God for great bee-people, I definitely wouldn’t have made it this year without a lot of help from my mentor. Honey sales are going well and I’m almost ready to make my first soap. I’ll be using honey and beeswax and even incorporating my homegrown loofahs into the product for exfoliation!!!
My immediate plans include sustaining what we have going while adding soap, felting alpaca dryer balls, and getting this website updated and more alive! More posts, more information, and adding a store! Technology is not my forte, but I’d like to add a section featuring our animals! Aahliya has taken up photography so maybe we’ll see some of her work here.
