Winter Thoughts—Great Farm Search 2013, Pt 2
It’s strange to me how most real estate agents don’t get what would make a place a good homestead. I say this based on our experience selling a farmstead and buying another in 2013. (Part 1 of the tale is here.) Then again —unless your agent also happens to also grow some of their own food, raise some of their own meat — why would they know?
Read MoreWinter Thoughts—Great Farm Search 2013, Pt 1
When we were looking for land and a home where we could really settle down and create our next (hopefully last) beloved homestead we were seeking a very specific place. Despite the clear specs we relayed to real estate agents, you just would not believe the things they thought we’d love. But I was a frustrated farmer with a mission: find home.
Read MoreDecember already?! Looking back…and ahead
The years are picking up speed every year. My Grandmother did tell me this would happen but wow I didn’t understand then just how much speed. Still, as the calendar year gets ready to flip I enjoy looking back at things on the farm that went well and those that didn’t. It’s also time to pick the things on the land I want to focus on and learn more about as well as skills I’d like to add or develop.
Read MoreA treasure at the farm: the native miner-bee colony
When we were buying this farm one of the owners walked us around to a red clay patch of bare dirt on the east side of the house. It’s an area under an addition that juts out over a steep slope. A series of tiny arched entrances the size of your fingertip covered the slope like an adobe village in miniature. This was the first time I had ever seen a colony of miner bees or chimney bees…
Read MoreFebruary In the Bee Yard
Around the mountains the thin branches of willows and maples are beginning to flush yellow and pink. Even with the winter weather, beekeepers see those changing colors and know in just a few weeks honey bees will start getting ready for spring.
All during winter, or anytime temps are much below fifty degrees, honey bees gather to form a cluster inside their hive. Using stored honey as fuel
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