| T O P I C R E V I E W |
| NellieBelle |
Posted - Aug 22 2022 : 12:33:22 PM
 Hello everyone! August is half over already. It's been a busy month for sure. Estella had her little heifer Sat. night/Sunday as it was midnight, so I guess the 21st. I named her Iva Mae. I was up all night just making sure all went well.  The calf needed help standing as she tried so many times and fell, wore herself out. Anyway I helped her and held her up until she finally had stability and able to move around on her own. She nursed and got her colostrum, and I waited for the placenta to deliver.  This morning after milking I turned them outside as it's so nice out.  All seems to be going okay for now. I'm canning and putting away garden produce. Quail are thriving and I've hatched several, getting plenty of eggs. Autumn is nearing and I'm ready for the cooler weather. |
| 7 L A T E S T R E P L I E S (Newest First) |
| NellieBelle |
Posted - Sep 19 2022 : 02:01:16 AM
How exciting to find a rare native plant in your prairie. Yes, if one doesn't get uplifted from walking through a prairie then they're missing out. There is a little roadside cafe where we've stopped a few times and there is a stand of the invasive phragmite, but it still gathers your notice when there is a breeze and you watch the ocean of plumes flow to and fro. Mesmerizing! It's beautiful. |
| maryjane |
Posted - Sep 18 2022 : 6:53:39 PM
I agree Janet. I just got back from a long prairie walk and brought back a bouquet of native phragmite. A rare stand of it exists in our prairie, a gift from the heavens. The invasive phragmite (sold as an ornamental) is hugely problematic but ours is native and very rare around here. We had two different plant specialists out to verify and even they had a hard time believing it at first. The reeds are taller than me. The patch itself is about 20 feet by 4 feet and isn't spreading much, if at all, although I wish it would. |
| NellieBelle |
Posted - Sep 17 2022 : 11:00:22 AM
 Hello MaryJane! That would have been a difficult message to pass onto your honeybees. Our honeybees didn't produce as much this year, mostly due to the swarming, but we still harvested plenty for us and a few friends and family. I still have several frames to do in the basement and hopefully I will get to that this weekend. I think of your prairie plantings as I watch some of my favorites bloom.  I add a bit more each year.  I hate to admit it but I'm finding I'm running out of steam. There is something cathartic about working in a prairie or even walking through. Lots of work at the beginning of a prairie but so rewarding. I don't have nectarines, but the pawpaws are almost ready to harvest. Another week and I should have pawpaws in my pockets. Autumn has arrived, walnuts falling and leaves changing to bright colors. Enjoy! |
| maryjane |
Posted - Sep 17 2022 : 06:31:06 AM
Jerseys back to 1871? I didn't know that either. Royal Jerseys. Love it.
I did know that she had a royal beekeeper and it was his job to tell the bees she'd died. I told mine: Bees, bees, listen please, your mistress's mister has died.
At present my bees are getting their stores in for winter after giving me 22 gallons of honey this summer. Just two hives so that was a productive summer, probably my best ever.
We've weaned Jubilee--she has a bright yellow device in her nose that keeps her from nursing and has adjusted quite well. At this point we're selling 36 half-gallon bottles of Miss Daisy's milk every week, by subscription, in our farm store. Lots of cream heading down the road. Daisy is definitely a cream cash cow.
I'm going to pull the rest of my nectarines off the tree this morning to let them soften indoors. I think the time between when they're still a tad hard and then fall off the tree because they're too soft is about two minutes. Since I can't stay with my tree 'round the clock, the rest are coming inside to ripen. Delish this year. Thank you Janet! My newest nectarine tree gave me two this year.
Soon I'll be harvesting pears and drying them.
We're planting dozens of native plants right now. I bought a John Deere utility terrain vehicle so plants and water can be taken easily to any spot in our prairie and put in the ground. Red Currant bushes went in yesterday. They're more deer-proof than thimble berries. The large amount of acreage that Nick planted in blue fescue last fall is doing very well. I'm keeping it mowed short to help manage weeds.
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| NellieBelle |
Posted - Sep 09 2022 : 03:03:32 AM
I didn't realize this and found it interesting.
Historic Jersey lineage still present on royal farm
There is certainly a history to The Queen’s herd of Jersey cattle. And just as The Queen has become one of the longest reigning monarchs, her herd is one of the oldest Jersey herds in the UK, with records that go back to 1871.
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| NellieBelle |
Posted - Sep 06 2022 : 07:16:48 AM
Thank you MaryJane! |
| maryjane |
Posted - Aug 31 2022 : 4:58:45 PM
Congrats Janet and a hearty welcome to Iva Mae! |
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