We could have bought a homestead better suited to farming, better set up–some New England style farmhouse with an attached barn, or a garage with an outbuilding we could convert into a shed for the livestock. Perhaps it would have had a sprawling pasture, an established garden however humble it may be, and a berry patch. It would have been… Read more »
Yesterday as I was preparing to head down to the field to work in the garden, I received a phone call–some locals over in Madison had seen my advertisement in Uncle Henry’s (the ad basically says that we’re looking for livestock in our area), and were we interested in a couple of goats? Goats are at the top of our… Read more »
Things are not going exactly how I’d hoped. The meager savings Keith and I had managed to set aside have been spent–already invested into the farm. Despite the fact that I ran an 11-family CSA 2 years ago, we were not able to attract the number of CSA subscribers we’d hoped for–having to skip a year last summer because of… Read more »
Hooray for spring! Let beekeepers everywhere rejoice! The sun is shining, and the trees are beginning to bud, it’s warming up and the bees are flying again! How did your bees fare during the long cold winter? With diligence, and perhaps a little bit of luck–your hives came through the winter, and if you’re anything like me–the long winter months… Read more »
Thanks to the lingering winter-weather, we’re experiencing some frustrating delays in production. New livestock shelters and gardens cannot be constructed until the snow has melted, and the mud has firmed up at least some. However, despite the delay–I have managed to bring a few new critters to the farm. Willow I’m sure you all remember Willow–our great pyrenees/anatolian mix livestock… Read more »
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 the steep mountain slopes required… Read more »
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 rush of the growing season. … Read more »