| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| mydakota |
Posted - Jul 21 2011 : 09:35:50 AM
Hi! I am new to MaryJanes Farm! My brother sent me a MJF magazine for my birthday and that is how I found this place. I am loving it so far. :-) I live in a very arid, harsh climate--but love to garden. A recipe for neurosis, yes? Or maybe just a challenge? Anyway, I would like to share some pics of my little farm. If any of you have any tips for dry/cold weather farming I am all ears!
We have terrible problems with deer here. If you leave anything unprotected, you are going to lose it. I know some of the netting is unsightly, but it is much less expensive than a fence and has been very effective. I have not lost anything to the deer since I started using it. You just have to have your beds up against something high to hang it from.
This is my raspberry patch, backing up to one of my chicken yards. There is a small herb bed in front of it. The herbs are unprotected because the deer don't like what I have planted here, and have always left it alone.
This is another herb bed, located just to the north of my cold frame.
The large white building is my husbands shop. Just to this side of that is my milk shed and my goat separation pen. This is where I put my does to separate them from their kids for awhile before I milk. To the left of the separation pen is my strawberry/asparagus bed. Directly in front of it is my larges outside garden bed protected by the green net. It is important to use large mesh net so that the bees don't have any trouble passing through.
Cabbage and onions. This was taken about a month of more ago. These are HUGE now.
My potatoes
Strawberry/Asparagus bed. The red thing is my homemade compost tumbler.
There is more/next post.
HearthCricket Farm. Where the door is always open, and the coffee is always on. |
| 23 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| prayin granny |
Posted - Jul 30 2011 : 11:53:21 AM
Kristi, what a fun photo tour! Thank you!
I too, am more of a farmgirl at heart. Live in a city apt. Have been growing some flowers, herbs and a couple veg plants this summer in containers on my balcony. It has been extremely HOT here this summer and all gardens seem to be having a tough time here.
Blessings, Linda
www.scatteredlittleblessings.blogspot
Country at Heart |
| mydakota |
Posted - Jul 28 2011 : 2:12:37 PM
Dorinda, here in the PNW, we always joke that "if it doesn't have snow on it 10 months out of the year, it is not a real mountain". Lol! One of the peaks I can see from my place is Mt. Hood. You may have heard of it. It is a popular peak for mountaineers, and it usually claims a couple of them every year. It is in the news a lot. A work of harsh and brutal nature up close--it is breathtakingly beautiful from a distance.
HearthCricket Farm. Where the door is always open, and the coffee is always on. |
| Dorinda |
Posted - Jul 28 2011 : 2:01:56 PM
That is as good as it gets! Usually we cannot grow peach trees here in central Florida. But the University of Florida has been experimenting for quite a number of years now to come up with a peach tree that will grow here. I looked at them the other day at Home Depot but they were $169.00 a piece.. Whoa thats alot of money for them! So at the end of August my husband and I are going to drive up to Gainseville Florida to a tree nursery there. They are suppose to have them there for around $30.00. Wow how I would love to see snow-covered mountain peaks. The farthest I have ever been is to Wilkesboro N.C. to see the mountains there. I think that might be the Blue Ridge Mountains. That has been about 5 years ago. But I bet the mountains where you are at are alot bigger. These mountains had no snow peaks!
Seize The Day!
Dorinda |
| mydakota |
Posted - Jul 28 2011 : 11:15:49 AM
I wish I could grow peach trees here Dorinda! Nothing is quite as good as a sweet, tree-ripened peach! Our country will grow apples and plums very well, but peaches? Not so much. When I first moved here, I had a pretty unique setup. I lived out in Lone Pine (only 4 miles away as the crow flies) and we lived right at the base of a large rock formation that was probably 200 feet tall. It acted as a radiator--soaking up heat all day and then giving it off at night. We had a couple of old peach trees there, and about one year out of three we did get peaches off of them. They were the best peaches I ever ate. Small, but VERY sweet. That property had a fantastic view of the Crooked River Canyon in front, Smith Rocks to the north, and a panorama of 13 snow-covered Cascade Mtn Peaks from SW to NW. I remember taking a knife out to the orchard, sitting at the base of one of those old peach trees, reaching up and picking a tree-ripened peach, peeling it and then sitting there eating it, looking at the view while the sun set and dripping juice off my elbows and sharing with my dog and thinking "this right here is as good as it gets!".
HearthCricket Farm. Where the door is always open, and the coffee is always on. |
| Dorinda |
Posted - Jul 27 2011 : 10:03:04 AM
Kristi, We have 6 and half acres that is plenty to farm on. Ours is set up about the same way except for the pens. My husband will not let me put pens every where. We have 2 cows and one is fixing to give birth. I have a nice garden and is fixing to add more to it. I have my own tractor and rototiller my husband bought me last year. I love to garden. I am fixing to add some pecan trees and peach trees. I hope they do well. We have lots of equipment sitting around because we own 2 septic businesses. Lots of work here. We will eventually have 5 more acres added to our property in the future as an inheritance. For right now though 6 acres is plenty to take care of.
Seize The Day!
Dorinda |
| mydakota |
Posted - Jul 26 2011 : 07:50:32 AM
We have been very lucky this year. We seem to have second guessed the frost pretty well so far, and covered when we have needed to. A lot of gardeners around here are having a very tough time. The only thing that is not thriving for me is my onions. At least half have died. Just withered to nothing on top and when you pull them up you get a small amount of mush and nothing else. My chives and garlic are going great guns, so I don't really know how to explain it. From my research, it sounds like either a fungus, or an onion maggot. I am not sure which. but some really big and beautiful onions fell prey to it.
HearthCricket Farm. Where the door is always open, and the coffee is always on. |
| Candy C. |
Posted - Jul 25 2011 : 08:39:46 AM
Wow Kristi! What a great place you have! I am so impressed with how much you are growing! Love your goaties too! :)
Candy C.
Farmgirl Sister #977
http://lazyjbarcfarm.blogspot.com/
www.calicocandy.etsy.com
http://stores.countrycents.com/StoreFront.bok?affiliate_no=6
Go confidently in the direction of your dreams. |
| mydakota |
Posted - Jul 23 2011 : 12:49:12 PM
It is very small Dorinda. Just shy of 6 acres. About 3.5 to maybe 4 of that is in pasture, the rest planted or in pens for animals.
HearthCricket Farm. Where the door is always open, and the coffee is always on. |
| Dorinda |
Posted - Jul 23 2011 : 12:39:08 PM
Love your farm. How many acres?
Seize The Day!
Dorinda |
| laurentany |
Posted - Jul 23 2011 : 11:55:53 AM
Kristi- thank you for the wonderful photo journey of your lovely farm! I really enjoy seeing what other people do and invent- its always great to get new ideas...Think I am gonna build a coldframe this winter myself and see how I make out. I do raised bed gardening for the past 2 years now and it has worked out wonderfully. All of my sun is in my FRONT yard- so I am one of those people you may read about for gardening in the front yard! LOL.
Thanks again for sharing...
~Laurie
"Little Hen House on the Island"
Farmgirl Sister#1403
Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away.. |
| mydakota |
Posted - Jul 22 2011 : 11:10:18 PM
I am always looking for new ideas on how to beat the weather and the deer. :-)
HearthCricket Farm. Where the door is always open, and the coffee is always on. |
| Tea Lady |
Posted - Jul 22 2011 : 06:51:38 AM
Great photos of a fabulous garden. You're asking for advice, but it looks like you're doing quite well. Thanks for sharing...
Lorraine
(aka Tea Lady)
Farmgirl #1819
www.birdsandteas.com |
| sonshine4u |
Posted - Jul 22 2011 : 06:41:27 AM
So nice to meet you! Thank you for the great photo tour of your farm! It is very inspiring and loaded with some great ideas.
Playing in the Sonshine
|
| embchicken |
Posted - Jul 22 2011 : 05:56:19 AM
I love the tour of your farm - thank you for sharing!
~ Elaine
Farmgirl sister #2822
"Find yourself a cup of tea; the teapot is behind you. Now tell me about hundreds of things." ~Saki
http://embchicken.blogspot.com
http://gusandtrudy.blogspot.com |
| LuckyMommyof5 |
Posted - Jul 22 2011 : 05:27:19 AM
I forgot to mention a funny coincidence - my youngest daughter (a very petite little one year old) is also named Juliet! Too cute!
Farmgirl Sister #3243
"The real things haven't changed. It is still best to be honest and truthful; to make the most of what we have; to be happy with simple pleasures; and have courage when things go wrong." - Laura Ingalls Wilder |
| debbies journey |
Posted - Jul 21 2011 : 11:50:17 PM
Thanks for sharing all your pictures, you really go all out to beat the weather and
the deer! I have a tiny yard and try to grow some veggies among the flowers.
Welcome Kristi
Debbie |
| debtea2 |
Posted - Jul 21 2011 : 7:52:14 PM
kristi
how nice of you to share
and i love juliet ..what a sweetie..
blessings and happy harvest
deborah
inch by inch we find our way
jersey farmgirl
#1330
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| mydakota |
Posted - Jul 21 2011 : 6:45:28 PM
Thank you everyone, for all the nice compliments! (Everyone is so nice here!) It was a lot of work setting all that up, but it is pretty low maintenance now that it is going. I can and freeze a lot of my produce, as well as goat cheese. I have sort of made a hobby of "how low can my grocery bill go". Last year we averaged under $200 a month and there are 4 of us, including 12 and 15 year old boys. Even though the farm is small, it produces a LOT of what we eat. I also have a couple of things set up on the barter system, so we spend very little on food. It works out nicely, and we know where our food came from, what went into it, and how it lived. I really enjoy that.
HearthCricket Farm. Where the door is always open, and the coffee is always on. |
| Sharon Denise |
Posted - Jul 21 2011 : 5:59:53 PM
Oh, I love it!! Thanks so much for sharing! I hope mine will be this big and well thought out eventually. :-)
"There will come a time when you believe everything is finished. Yet that will be the beginning."
~Louis L'Amour |
| quiltingfarmergirl |
Posted - Jul 21 2011 : 4:48:43 PM
Hi Kristi and welcome to the farmgirl site!
Thanks for sharing your farm. You certainly have been creative outsmarting the wildlife and the weather!
Barb
at
Breezy Acres Farm |
| LuckyMommyof5 |
Posted - Jul 21 2011 : 2:39:08 PM
Hi Krisit! So glad you've joined the farmgirls here! I loved seeing the great photos of your garden, property and animals. Everything is just amazing - you should be so proud!
We don't live in a rural area, but we have enough undeveloped spaces around us that we also have issues with deer. I use the mesh, too, and it works well.
Visit the Farmgirl Connection often - it's a great place to stop by!
Farmgirl Sister #3243
"The real things haven't changed. It is still best to be honest and truthful; to make the most of what we have; to be happy with simple pleasures; and have courage when things go wrong." - Laura Ingalls Wilder |
| LadyInRed |
Posted - Jul 21 2011 : 11:21:50 AM
Kristi...thanks for the tour of your Farm! That was fun to see all of that and I know some of the other farmgirls will like
seeing what you have done too because they have had all kinds of problems this year with deer and other critters.
I don't live on a Farm but I do live in a rural location and love to garden both flowers and veggies. So, I am more of a
Farmgirl at heart. You are the real deal!!! lol
Welcome to Mary Jane's Farm and I am so glad that your brother sent you the magazine. If you haven't ordered yourself a
subscription to it...absolutely do. I can't wait until each and every issue arrives. I take a big ol' cuppa tea or coffee
to the Porch and just pour over each issue until I've about read the words of the page.lol
If you want another fun thread to go on everyday...go to THE PORCH...you'll find it under A Farm Of My Own. And be sure to
check out all the Farmgirl Swaps and Barters.
Just kick your cowgirl boots off and stay as long as you can each day. I usually check in Mornen, Noon and Night.
blessings,
Peggy
Farmgirl #1326
http://ladyinredsite.blogspot.com
"I'm only as strong as the caffeine I drink, the hair-spray I use and the Girlfriends that I have."
When I was a lonely wallflower, Jesus asked me to dance. Then he asked me to be joyous, to be passionate, and to Be His! |
| mydakota |
Posted - Jul 21 2011 : 09:44:17 AM
This is the view from the other side. You can see my hoophouses and my greenhouse in the background. Because it can freeze any month of the year here, you have to grow things that are VERY tender in these hoophouses. Some people don't, but there is just too much heartbreak with that, so I grow mine in houses.
One of my hoophouses. We have two, and are planning 2 more for next year. Again, this was about a month ago, so these plants are MUCH bigger now. I have lots of little green tomatoes on them!
Juliet in the separation pen. She is such a sweetie!
This is my cold frame. It is resting right now, but I will plant it sometime late next month. I harvested fresh greens out of it last winter until I finally tore them out on the 22nd of February. I replanted the first of march and was eating from it again by about the 10th of April. The coldest temp it withstood was -14. I was amazed at how effective this thing was for winter gardening--even in my climate!
I put an old 6 lb bag on top of it at night for insulation, and then cover that with a tarp to keep the snow off.
HearthCricket Farm. Where the door is always open, and the coffee is always on. |
