Today’s homestead update covers two weeks since we were at the Self Reliance Festival last weekend and not around to livestream on Friday. Fall is really taking hold here, we have stayed unusually dry so do not have much grass, will be processing sheep next week, and more.
Forage
- 80 + chestnuts from one tree
- Watercress looks sad
- Last round today for any sensitive herbs like mint
- New mullein plants are popping up
- Timothy is starting to finally grow
- Too dry for oysters, alas!
Livestock
- No baby sheep yet
- Need a livestock trailer to move 5 sheep to slaughter on Oct 11-12 (Barn splitting project)
- Ducks are laying in the yard and going back in jail
- Muscovies and Khakis have intermingled
- 8 sheep, 16 acres, 3 months – and not enough rain to regrow enough to go back over it
- Pigs will be leaving - hard decision because we got SO MUCH meat - at about $2.35 direct cost (Not including labor)
- LGD update - Max doesn't respect the fence - but now he does again
- Feeding dogs dogfood without feeding sheep dogfood (Thanks Steve)
Grow
- Tromboncino as long as T’s leg (and how we grew it)
- Harvesting timothy seed heads to save on seed money
- Have not set up indoor lettuce yet
- Ripping out the whole garden
- Cauliflower update
Holler Neighbors/Community
- We left and no one died - thanks to the network housesitter, Steve and Tracy, KH, and the other Tracy who kennels dogs for us
- Had a delightful dinner at the Eversoles - will start one here next week (This week got nuked by surgery)
- SRF was a screaming success thanks to many hands pitching in
Infrastructure
- Decommissioning the solar water heater and cleaning chimneys
- AP heat
- Burying the water line for the gravity fed water project at the coming Food Forest Workshop
- Need to move the bees
Finances
Membership Plug
Make it a great week!
GUYS! Don’t forget about the cookbook, Cook With What You Have by Nicole Sauce and Mama Sauce. It makes a great Christmas Gift!
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