Runamuk Acres Conservation Farm
Soil-first farming, building health from the ground up!
We’re gearing up to get underway here at Runamuk, we’ve got animals lined up to come to the farm (you know–as soon as the snow melts so that we can build shelters for them!), we’ve arranged for a neighbor with a tractor to come till the new gardens, and the bees are flying! I’m so…
I’ll be the first to admit that I’m a honey convert. I wasn’t raised on it, and to tell the truth–before I got into beekeeping the last jar of honey I bought came from the grocery store (I shudder to think of it now!) and sat in the cupboard largely untouched for years. I got…
We’ve had such a growth of support, and we are so grateful for it that I’ve decided it’s high time we hosted our first online giveaway to thank all of our readers for following along with Runamuk. I’m excited to announce that we have a copy of the Xerces Society’s Guide to Attracting Native Pollinators…
This week we added the first of many new animals to our growing farm–Willow the livestock guardian dog! Willow is a great pyrenees/anatolian shepherd cross. The Great Pyrenees breed–or the Pyrenean Mountain Dog is an old breed that has been used by shepherds for hundreds of years. Developed in southern France and northern Spain where…
It was my father in-law who first introduced me to the concept of companion planting, as we discussed gardening, and he sagely shared the secret of planting marigolds with tomatoes in order to repel nematodes. I remember wondering what other plants could be grown among my crops to aid in the health of the garden,…
When I got started with beekeeping, I had spent a year prior to bringing my bees home, just researching and doing my homework. My dear sister-in-law, who had watched over a hive in her youth, was by my side, and we were so brave and confident in our abilities to tame the stinging bees with…
“Determination gives you the resolve to keep going in spite of the roadblocks that lay before you.” –Denis Waitley. Farmers are a ruggedly determined lot. The farmers whom I know personally, are full of vim and vigor, and while obstacles may sometimes get them down on occasion, typically these challenges do not hold them back…
“What a hideous plant! Isn’t it terrific!?” “Oh my gawd–check out this spider! Look at all those long legs!” These are not exclamations of repulsion, but terms of endearment uttered by myself and our family. We truly love nature. To us the Earth is a marvel; there is beauty in even the ugliest of plants,…
Mother Nature brought us a whopping 12-14 inches of snow last week, forcing me to postpone the first class of bee-school, and while I’m sure we’ll get more snow between now and then, the first day of spring is just 6 weeks away now. Here at Runamuk, Keith and I are gearing up for the…
These days nothing is more enticing than the concept of living a life sustained by the land and nature. Folks from all walks are turning away from the mainstream and it’s commercialized lifestyle. For some it is a mission to provide a healthy atmosphere for raising their family; for others a desire to live more…