Pigs

Growing Boys Farm is trying our hand at pigs. Well, actually some friends of ours are growing the pigs for us on their farm since the Growing Boy's Daddy ask that we please not get pigs anytime in the near future. But we eat a LOT of pork so when a friend volunteered to add an extra pig in with his we jumped on the chance.
The pigs have been eating left over greens and thanks to several friends they are loving the leftover Halloween pumpkins. Who knew that pigs could devour a pumpkin that fast. They really are great at converting all those byproducts into meat for our family.
Usually I have a rule that anything that gets eaten doesn't have a name but I think in this case we have to make an exception for Bacon Burger and Pork Chop.

Good Fences Make Good Neighbors

This week our neighbor has been doing some fencing. That got me thinking about the old saying "Good fences make good neighbors". I totally agree with that statement at least for the farm. I don't exactly want the herd of cows from the next farm munching on my lettuce plants. But what about if you don't live on a farm where the animals need to be kept in or out?
What if your fences are to keep the neighbors them selves out? What if the reason for having a fence is to avoid the neighbors all together. Could we solve more of our communities problems by taking down the fences and being good neighbors ourselves? Could we see our neighbors houses and lives in a new perspective? Not judging how tall  the grass is or how often they leave the garage door open. I've never actually lived in a neighborhood where I could even see my neighbors garage door so I don't have the answers to these questions. And sometimes I guess nobody does.
Sorry for the wandering now back to the farm...I think that good fences do make good neighbors but even more so great neighbors just make great neighbors. Seeing that the farmer next to us has real life issues makes us good neighbors. Caring and helping with those isuses makes us great neighbors. Sometimes that means that we just have to take a few miniutes out of our day to stand at the fence and talk about those issues. Asking how the calving season is going, checking to see how the tomato crop is growing. And when things aren't going well lending a helping hand is important.
Now I'm not saying that things here on the farm between neighbors are always perfect. Our chickens tend to wander up and eat the neighbors feed quite often. And a few times there may have been chicken manure on the tractor seat. But when those times happen we have to be willing to do the hard work. To get rid of the offending chicken even if she is a good layer and then we must mend the fences.
I think these same tactics that work out on the farm could work across all fences in our communities if we only take the time to care about our neighbors.
So a big huge thanks to our neighbor for having good fences but more importantly for being a great neighbor!

Rose Hips growing on the rose bush that is in the fence row. It has been cut down a few times yet it keeps coming back and weed killer won't touch it (thank goodness).

Growing Boys Farm gates and barns are all red but the neighbors gates (in the background) are green and the barns are black. Usually the growing boys crew could care less what colors I choose but farm colors are an important decision.

Day of Rest

"Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work"

Spring time on the farm brings with it lots of work. It seems that from sun up till sun down and sometimes even longer, we are working. Preparing the soil, plating the seed, watering, not to mention the feeding, moving, cleaning, cooking, washing, all day every day six days a week. 

But on Sunday afternoon... we rest. We put aside our tools, we make a cup of coffee, and we sit, or maybe we nap, or sometimes we visit.  And we walk over the fields hand in hand just looking at the ground and the plants. We talk of there needs or the needs of our children. We discuss plans for the future or projects that need to be done. But most of all we rest and renew ourselves for the coming days that bring with them more work. We are so very thankful for this day of rest and the peace that it brings with it.

CSAs and Springtime

Spring time has once again made it to the farm. This year it has brought with it rain, lots of rain. You are right farmers do need rain and we are happy to have it but... This early in the spring it does make working the ground for planting a little difficult. Crops here in South Central Kentucky may be a little later getting in the ground. Slowly but surely we will get it all in.
The rain sure has made the grass green up and our cows are loving it. They are so fat and happy that they just lay out in the field all day. Loulou doesn't even like to get up when you call her anymore.
Baby chicks are here. Fifty of them were living in the house until they became way too noisy and had to be banished to the barn. I actually think they like it better out there anyway and I like it much better as well.
Farmers Market starts back to every week on our lovely Court House lawn soon. We are excited to see everyone again. It's such a great atmosphere.
The Growing Boys Farm CSA will start back up in a few weeks and we have just a couple of spots left. If you're still thinking about it, you may want to drop us an email or give us a call soon.We have planted lots of goodies in the high tunnel for the CSAs and we have a few treats...like maple syrup... that may make it's way into the green baskets. (I will put the brochure with information below if anyone needs to see it.)
In other exciting news, we bought another high tunnel that will hopefully be put up later this summer. That will double our growing space and I am thinking more carrots! Oh and more spinach for sure!

We will try to keep everyone updated on the progress with lots of pictures.

Salmon on the Square

You are not going to believe this, but here goes...

Saturday April the 25th is the first day of Summer Market for Bounty of the Barrens Farmers' Market. It's the day when we bust out the white tents and move back to the square. This year we have decided to add a new feature to the Summer Market, the "Guest Vendor"( more info on that later). And April the 25th our guest vendor will be Wild Caught. What is Wild Caught you ask? Well, they are Jason and Mary Beth McKinley, Kentucky's Salmon Fishermen... And here's the part you might not believe. They are bringing Wild Caught Alaskan Salmon to our farmers' market. If you want a little more information about Jason ans Mary Beth just hop on over to their website, 

 www.caughtwildsalmon.com  

The Growing Boys chef (aka Mama) is excited to get a little salmon to go with all the fresh green salads we have around here! If you are interested in getting salmon be sure to stop by market April 25th on the square. Or you may want to preorder. by sending an email to mb@caughtwildsalmon.com

Cleaning House

This week I taught a class at our local library on organization. I will be the first to admit I am far from perfect in the being organized department. Sometimes with all that goes on here at the farm I do forget a few things or I find myself procrastinating. In preparation for the class I decided to get rid of some bad habits and to tackle the clutter that had made it's way into our house.
Bad Habit: I loose my keys weekly. Ok, I don't really loose them I just forget to put them back where they go and it takes me a little longer to get them when I need them. And sometimes I can't remember which pocket they are in. So I decided to get a hook on my purse and every time I get in or out of the car I hook them on my purse. This seems to be working for me so far.
Bad Habit: I procrastinate and I am not sure why but I am working on it.
There are more Bad Habits but I think I will try to work on them one at a time for now.
Clutter: I don't know if your house is like mine but clutter just seems to find it's way in. We have more stuff than we need and we have things we just don't use often enough for it to take up our space and time.
 We started getting rid of the clutter in our closets first. The result was 4 garbage bags of clothes that just didn't work for us anymore. (That's not including the boy's hand-me-downs that get passed to a smaller cousin.) The next area was our bathroom where I found 18 bottles of lotion or soap that didn't work for us. We make our own soap and lotion that I really enjoy using so all those extra bottles just taking up space under the sink needed to go. I also got rid of any towels or washrags that were ratty. In the living room we found 52 books from the bookcase that we probably will not read again, 20 some videos/dvds, and my husband gave up his entire tape collection from the early 1990's.  The kitchen cabinets held still more clutter with lots! of  plastic bowls, 5 baking dishes, 4 pots and pans, 23 cups/mugs, etc, etc. You get the idea. So far the total is up to 360 items!
While it's still a work in progress, it feels really good to get rid of things that just take up precious space and time. Our next goal is to try and eliminate the clutter before it even comes through the door. That may be the most difficult task.
"I make myself rich by making my wants few." Henry David Thoreau

The closet

Our laundry room.

 This is the organization workhorse of our house. And this is the first time ANYONE has been let in.

Snow Cream

One of our favorite things about winter, aside from the rest we get, is snow and especially snow cream. While the Growing Boys do feel a little cheated because they never get snow days off from school, they do get to enjoy time in the snow after school work is done. And after all that playing, sledding, and snow ball fighting we always make snow cream. Here is our snow cream recipe but just make sure to get your snow from a clean spot.

Snow Cream

1 extra large bowl of snow

about 2 cups milk

2 tsp vanilla

1 cup sugar

Stir all ingredients together in a large mixing bowl. Consistency should be that of a thick milkshake. Taste and add more sugar or vanilla as needed.