Kittens!

I didn't think I'd post while on vacation, but....

Mopsy had her kittens! Friends from church (the ones who gave us Raz) stopped by to visit Raz and found the new babies in the goat shed. Seems like there are four. 

I wondered if Oreo, the black and white cat we see around from time to time, was the dad. Based on their coloring I think it's an unknown third party. 

TBD if the kittens are boys or girls!

Vacation!

This week I'm camping with my college travel buddy up in the Iron Range of Minnesota. We're staying at McCarthy State Park and will do day trips out from there. 

The day after we get back from that trip, G and I are heading up to Brainerd for his family's annual lake trip. 

So, you'll have to wait two weeks for the next homesteading update!

Fruit Trees

Even with the battle with the deer, a couple of our trees are actually producing fruit! One peach tree and one apricot tree, to be specific.

I covered the fruit with seedling netting I saved from the garden center hoping it will keep the bugs off and other creatures out. 

Some fruit fell off the trees. I wonder if they'll ripen on the counter. That little guy on the left is an onion from our garden.

I finally got to the mulch stage around the orchard. The deer fences around each tree makes it more time consuming because I have to fill pails instead of the cart.

It does allow for precise placement!

 

Hostas!

When I close my eyes, I see hostas. 

This was not my plan for the day. I wanted to put mulch around fruit trees. But, while I waited for G to be ready for that, I dug up the hostas growing among the berry bushes along the fence. It was hot and windy, so I worried the roots would dry out if I waited to dig them in. 

So we spent the day placing hostas. 

We had to move some boards I had relocated months ago. Interesting little mushrooms underneath! 

Step two is to put cardboard and mulch around them. Step three: figure out a border.

Fun With Elderflower

The last time I was at the farm I brought back some elderflowers. I dehydrated some for tea and kept some fresh for kombucha and flavored sugar. We'll check the flavor in a few days!

 (I've actually remembered to shake the jar every other day.) 😅

Lawns to Legumes

I started my medicinal garden today. Here's what it looked like before I started:

Step one is to put down a tarp to kill the grass (or in reality weeds).

That's all the progress I made today!

Wood Pile

I finally moved the wood pile away from the garage and into the goat pen. I found some interesting things...

These logs have been here for months, but I guess it's been so wet, this one sprouted! 

Who knew we had ferns growing along the fence? Definitely need to relocate those before we expand the goat pasture.

More evidence of hostas' incredible resilience.

I pulled two big logs apart and found some incredible mold. 

When I flipped the log over, a mouse popped out. The log was hollow! The mouse had built a nest inside.