Farm Update

     Little Savannah (in Birmingham) will be featuring the herbs and wild edibles of Hollow Spring Farm at their Community Farm Table Dinner this Wednesday!  We look forward to tasting the wonderful creations from the chefs there!  Yesterday I went out to camp out at the farm in order to rise and shine early and do some much needed weeding out at the farm.  When the weather is especially dry like it has been, it is more important than ever to weed and mulch your crops.  Remember to conserve water during this dry time, too.  If you water your lawn, do it early in the morning or late in the afternoon to avoid evaporation and water waste.  Today we also picked the garlic that will be used for planting next year's garlic as part of the "seed saving" efforts.  Summer foraging class dates coming soon; it has just been so hot, we are hesitant to put any dates on the books.  We will keep you posted.  Thanks again to all of you for your ongoing support!
Have a great week!
Elizabeth

Farm update

I hope everyone is ok from the awful storms of last week.  We lost one chicken tractor and one hen, but we are extremely lucky that there was not more damage and no one was hurt.  This week is shaping up to be a very busy one - a foraging visit with the Waldorf students, weeding winter savory and cutting garlic scapes, several hours of picking wild strawberries, picking up chicken feed and Jersey Greensand which is an organic source of potassium for soil.  I am also experimenting with letting the chickens out during the day so they are not so overcrowded and stressed.  During the day they were fine and seemed to enjoy themselves.  I am going to take out the roosters from the tractors and leave them outside so they will not bother the hens so much.

This week

It was very windy yesterday with the approaching storms.  That means pollen was blowing like crazy.  The blackberries and multiflora roses are starting to bloom.  I've been working in the garden cultivating cilantro, which is especially interesting because it does not grow during the summer as it prefers cool weather.  I've also been walking all around the woods and hollow with my dog, Wu, checking things out.  During the spring things grow so fast that new things appear weekly.  The mountain azaleas are blooming and all the trees have leafed out now.

This past week

We have had lots of good rain this past week and weekend.  Spring is usually a wet time of the year.  All the rain now gives us a head start when we get into the hot dry months of the summer.  The crabapple and dogwood trees are starting to bloom.  April is fast approaching, and that means blackberry winter and the start of summer planting.  You might not know about blackberry winter but, it is usually in the first part of April and it is when the blackberry bushes start to bloom. 

 

This week I will go to Wilsonville to get chicken feed, adjust the chicken tractors, cut wild watercress, and host a Girl Scout Troop who will be learning about foraging.  I hope to get in some more spring planting very soon!

I hope everyone has a great week and don't forget about the next foraging class coming up in April!

This week

     Spring is here!  Dogwoods are starting to bloom, the trees are starting to show new leaves, and the Irises and Tulips are opening up.  I'm pretty happy about the longer days as this time of the year is very busy with planting and planning.  I've finished up another chicken tractor and will be moving half of the Barred Rock chickens in there this afternoon; I've also will be constructing a high tunnel (similar to a greenhouse) within the next month.  It's hard juggling everything, but my days working in restaurants have been invaluable with the farm work I do in terms of making lists, priortizing as I go, and keeping it all organized.

I hope everyone has a great week and don't forget about the next foraging class coming up in April!

Foraging Class

Here is a list of things we will be learning about this coming Saturday March 19th at the foraging class.  You don't want to miss it!

Curly Dock

Broad Leaf Plantain

Field Onions

Field Garlic

Wild Daylillies

Wild Ginger

Pear Blossoms

Sheep Sorrel

Cleavers

Redbud

Wild Lettuce

Dandelion

A Quote

When you love your land
You want to make it known to as many people as possible
And to make it rich.
Gastronomy is a magnificent way to do all that.
                                                 Jean Giono