Homestead Updates and Summer Workshop Series 2022 Info!

Hey Friends! Lots of stuff is going on here on the homestead. Each day I ask my goat, Luna if she's still pregnant. She looks back at me as if to say, "...Yep... are you?" To which I answer with a sigh, "...yep... not too much longer, girl, let's hang in there together!" I've never been this pregnant through the springtime, and into June, so with the weather heating up, I'm ready to no longer be expecting. But, it's one of those things that happens in God's timing, not mine, and I just have to endure to the end for baby snuggles and the return of some decent sleep (HA!- just kidding, the sleep never returns) In the Gardens Anyway, we've got one of the market rows completely mulched around so that there's a clear walking path. In that particular row, I've got some mixed lettuce greens, some volunteer cilantro from last year's planting, and some of the Parisienne carrots that I thought didn't make it through winter! What a pleasant surprise! Once the remaining 3 rows are mulched, composted, fertilized, and planted, I will be using a bit of old fencing to set a perimeter boundary to deter dogs and children from stomping through the baby seedlings. I was disappointed with my tomato seeds this year- they did not have a very good germination rate- which is the 2nd year in a row my Baker Creek seeds have disappointed me. They're typically very high quality with a near 100% germination rate. This year, after planting a 12 section flat, I had 3 sections with sprouts... that's about a 25% germination rate for my Amish Paste tomatoes... not great. If that were a high school algebra test grade, it'd be an F-. So, in praying through solutions to that issue, I had a lovely friend trade me 4 cherry tomato plants in exchange for some elderberry shoots I rooted and potted! Thanks, God! His provision is astounding. And while I hadn't planned on cherry tomatoes in the garden this year, I suppose they'll can about as well as anything else for what we use tomatoes for, and they didn't cost me any time, resources, or toil, so again- Thanks, God! My oldest and I, during a lengthy conversation about the way God grows things in nature, and His character, wood-chipped an area around our fenced garden and moved our berry bushes to their new forever home. They are still in their pots until the next prime opportunity to plant them comes along, which should be in a few more weeks. Among the plants we moved were golden raspberry, arapaho blackberry, and a few other bramble berry varieties. It looks rather pretty up there now! So far this year, we've planted yarrow, bistort, bush beans, black beans, snap peas, blue butterfly pea flower, fennel, summer squash, watermelon, pumpkin, potatoes, and some mixed lettuces. I am anxiously anticipating the sprouts and eventually the harvest! Animals The baby bunnies are fluffing up quite a bit! They spend a lot of time in our rabbit tractor on fresh grass each day (weather permitting) and they absolutely love it! The chickens are laying in full swing! And we've been trying different means of preserving that eggy goodness. So far, we've tried freezing, and storing in lime-water solution, and once our freeze dryer makes it back to us following some repairs and maintenance, we'll be freeze drying some for longer term storage. Our goats are enjoying the nice weather and the abundance of fresh forage that is available to them now. With that late snow in mid-April, I thought they'd NEVER get out to browse again, but it seems the time has finally arrived! Announcements! First, I have failed miserably in getting a monthly newsletter out, but have succeeded in launching our podcast, Shaggy Maple Homestead Presents: The Wholly Holy Living Podcast. It has 6 episodes currently, and I'm planning and working on more. For the time being, I'm having to prioritize which projects get my attention as we wind down the homeschooling year and I turn my attention to the immanent arrival of my 5th child. And frankly, I find it more enjoyable to sit down and chat to folks for a bit than to stare at a screen to format a print newsletter. So that's where my efforts have gone. I'm aiming to get new episodes out once weekly, between Thursday and Saturday, depending on schedules and other family/garden/animal priorities, so stay tuned for more! Second, I've been pondering our summer workshop series. And this year, I think I am going to launch them as podcast episodes, with accompanying materials available for download in our farm store. And it is my heart to give you folks that information at no cost to you! It is so valuable and I've gained so much just in the experience, that God put it on my heart, "Freely you have received, freely give." So the first episode in the Summer Workshop Series will launch the 1st weekend in June (Thank the Lord for auto-scheduling!) And we will have one new workshop available each month from June-September! So that's exciting! The first workshop will be Herbalism 101- The Basics of Home Herbal Medicine, and it launches tentatively, June 3rd! (Pending me going into labor!) I'm also working on a means to do a Q&A Podcast episode following the workshop series where you can email us your questions and we can spend some time discussing everything we've talked about up to that point! So that's going to be a lot of fun for me, and I think it will be a really accessible way for us to share some great information, and to share what the Lord has shown us over the last 5 years. Thanks for your continued support! We look forward to a wonderful 2022 growing season with you, in garden, and spirit!