CHICKENSTEAD.
Another epic scrap project is complete, taking the form of the all new (from all old) Rough Draft Farmstead Chickenstead. We utilized scrap barn wood for the walls, an old cabinet for nest boxes, millions of spare screws and nails, some chicken wire we had leftover and all sorts of random odds and ends we collected from around the farm to piece this thing together! All in all it cost us about about $12, and that was for the paint. Will it last?! That remains to be seen, but we feel pretty good about the stability thus far. All we have left to do now is find a few feathered inhabitants...(Coop pictured without the finished roof, so imagine it looking just a little cooler. As if it could look any cooler.)- Jesse.
CSA STUFF AND STUFF.
Shooting for the end of May/beginning of June for our first CSA deliveries means that we've had a busy week: getting a lot of plants started and some ground worked up alongside some general plotting, crafting, planning, designing and deciding. The chicken coop is coming along nicely, our new house is coming along nicely, the garden is growing, we've made some great new farmer friends and the weather seems like it will be much more friendly to our poor baby plants this week than it was last. It really doesn't take much to do better than 3 frosts in a row... as I write this, however, we're getting a much needed light and gentle rain here in Danville. Apology accepted, weather.Anyway, we hope our CSA members are as excited about the upcoming season-–and especially the fresh vegetables!––as we are. It should, God willing, prove to be a diverse and plentiful 15 weeks. Also, we looked at the pear tree yesterday, and I can't make any promises...but weather permitting, our fall CSA might be getting some tree fruit in their baskets! However, let's not get ahead of ourselves yet as the summer season is just around the corner and will be far from short on treats! If you are still on the fence about signing up for the CSA, don't sweat it, there are a few spots left but we don't know for how long –– here's the info on the shares. Please contact us if you have any questions, reservations or suggestions.Lastly, Hannah and I are excited about an interesting upcoming event this weekend. For the Earth Day Forum taking place in Washington D.C. on Sunday, there will a sermon by Kentuckian Matthew Sleeth at 8:45 in which he will be launching the new Seminary Stewardship Alliance and having a conversation with Wendell Berry on "why the church should take a leading role in environmental conservation," as quoted from the Lexington Herald Leader. The events will be streamed on the Blessed Earth site and at the National Cathedral site, nationalcathedral.org. As you know, we love Mr. Berry, and environmentalism in the church (or lack thereof) is something Hannah and I discuss all the time. This should be fascinating no matter your faith or denomination, so remember to tune in!And for no reason whatsoever, here are some pictures of the other Wendell Beary, looking a little bored on this rainy Monday morning.- Jesse.
FROST, TRELLIS, RIBBONS, AND COOPS.
Here is a brief recap of the week: As predicted, we had several more frosts and had to keep covering and uncovering the plants with sheets and blankets, checking on them, worrying over them. But despite that, everything continues to grow! The garden is full of peas, chard, kale, lettuce, potatoes, onions, and garlic. We trellised the peas, mulched the berry plants, direct seeded beets, and dug rows for our tomato plants. The cold frames are full of herbs and celery preparing to go into the ground. Yesterday, we started lettuce, squash, cucumbers, and cilantro from seed. I ripped a bunch of fabric strips out of the aforementioned sheets and blankets and tied them all around the fence (super scary deer defense, I know). Jesse nearly completed our (100% salvaged!) chicken coop, and Wendell got really dirty.- Hannah.
BYE BYE BAGGY.
Inspired by a generally simpler life (and by our friend Kalie's quest to be Zero Waste at All Things Homespun), Hannah and I have decided to start cutting back on plastic until we no longer have any in our lives. Recycling just seems insufficient, and encourages the further production of more plastic. We have little use for anything that doesn't biodegrade and that we can't turn into food or soil. Plastic, chemicals and fast food are all on that list. As Kalie writes, and what Hannah and I have quickly discovered about this venture, is that it's not easy. It takes a LOT of planning ahead, some sacrifice, and also a little acceptance that certain plastics will simply take time to rid from our lives.Our peat moss, for example, comes in a large block wrapped in plastic. We need peat moss or a similar substance for our soil mix, but we could do without the plastic. There are alternatives we could make or find ourselves, namely leaf mold, but we cannot have them immediately. This fall we will stockpile a giant pile of leaves to start their fungal decomposition, and it will take at least two years for that to break down properly then will have to be renewed every year. We are going to experiment with a few more alternatives such as decomposed tree bark, but until we find a solid option, we will have to continue purchasing that large, necessary block of material in its large, useless piece of plastic. If only this were the only example...We're coming to terms with the fact that a lot of our foods come in plastic bags, also. Our cheese is cryovac-sealed, our milk has a small plastic piece that comes off the lid then presumably goes straight into the ocean, all of our organic greens come in not-so-green bags. The obvious answer to all of this is to simply make our own, grow our own, or shop at the farmer's market––all of which we do, or we're in the process of doing. In the future, we'll have our milk cow, and we'll make our own cheese from her milk. In the (very near) future we'll have our own vegetables, and what we don't have, we'll buy in bulk or have to do without altogether. The less obvious answer to the problem of plastic is setting an example for not only other consumers but companies to stop packaging everything so heavily, because the surprising thing about not using plastic is that plastic is nearly unavoidable. Even checking out at the grocery store plastic-free is a challenge. The cashier will inevitably slip your sack of potatoes into a bag then look at you like you're suffering a stroke when you insist you don't need one. Bags in bags is tangible madness.Anyone else tried a similar change before? Have you any tips? Success stories? Criticisms or guffaws? Encouragement? Hannah and I, along with so many of our friends, want kids one day. To me, improving the environment, eliminating waste, and at least working towards a sustainable lifestyle will help to leave them a cleaner place to play.- Jesse.