I know people generally do this kind of goal-setting around New Year's, but hey, we are non-conformists.
Here's what's been accomplished so far this "rainy season":
- Compost "bin" made from chicken wire
- Chicken coop thoroughly mucked
- Fallen evergreen branches placed as floor of chicken run (you can see that the kids ran out of patience about halfway through, and I have a bit more to do, but 50% mud is better than 100% mud)
- Apple trees pruned, plum trees sort of pruned, grapevines sort of under control
- 30% of Himalayan blackberries hacked out (pure evil, those things).
- Leaves raked and placed over veggie beds for mulch
And here's what I'd like to accomplish in the next few months. This may be a bit ambitious since, ya know, the kids spend most of their time in the garden saying things like, "I'm bored," I want to go inside," "Can I play with the hedge trimmers?" and "Mommy, the baby's eating grass!" But if I don't make a list, then nothing will get done. This way, if I accomplish 1/3 of what's on the list, at least something happened.
Chicken-y things to do:
- Fix garden fence so deer can't get in, chickens can't get out.
- Tinker with chicken coop to make cleaning and egg collecting easier (add one wall, add hinges)
- Create some type of very simple paddock-shift system for chickens, where they get out of their sad, muddy run to eat grass, then a week later, I rotate them to fresh grass to give the old grass time to recover, etc. Also, I'd like to reseed their run once I have a way to keep them out of it long enough for the grass to sprout.
- Get the chickens into the fenced-in garden so they can eat some bugs before it's time to plant.
Plant-y things to do:
- Prune the peach trees in February
- Finish pruning the other trees
- Hack out the remaining 70% of the blackberries
- Get the grapes a little more under control so they don't attack the fruit trees anymore.
- Plant some comfrey under the apple trees to replace some of the grass (did you know that grass under trees competes with the trees for nutrients, since both are surface-feeders?)
- Plant early cool-season veggies in my established veggie bed
- Start tomatoes and peppers from seed indoors (unfortunately, this should be prefaced with "clean out place by windows to sprout seeds).
- Find some sort of seed to plant as a living mulch in my veggie beds once veggie seeds get established.
- Make a "bean tipi" for the kids to play in in the garden.
I want a bean tipi to play in!
ReplyDeleteI know! Hopefully the kids feel the same way. :)
DeleteHomestead works for me...you have a garden and a chicken coop which is more that I have going for me! LOL. Sounds like you have some great plans.
ReplyDelete-Amanda
www.beringseaadventures.blogspot.com
Thanks! Now to make those plans really happen...
DeleteI love hearing and learning about your homestead! Thanks for sharing, Danielle, and good luck on your list :)
ReplyDeleteDog the size of a cow DEFINITELY counts as a homestead. Haha, love it!
ReplyDelete