Tag: small farm

We have an Orchard (sort of)

~ wattlesandcombsfarm ~ Leave a comment

Sometimes the way a child looks at the world is exactly what you need. One of my big wants when I dreamed about moving onto property was an orchard. However, this first year we spent most of our efforts and budget on getting the animals set up and fencing done, therefore the orchard was put on hold for the season. The other day when I walked outside I noticed we had a ton of berries on a few plants around the property. I assumed they were not edible, but I Google lensed them anyway. To my surprise they were chokecherries. Turns out we have probably twenty chokecherry trees around the property. Right next to the original plant, we have a different tree that this spring I was told was a wild plum tree, but it turns out it’s a crabapple. I brought my daughter out to show her and she had the best reaction, “Mom, you have an orchard!” I could have cried at her words. Her sweet simple reaction reminded me to look around and be grateful for all I have. Yes, I want a large orchard someday, but how lucky are we to find these blessings already here and thriving?

We have already picked a five-gallon bucket of berries and I am working on preserving them in a few different ways as we speak. Chokecherries are described as having an astringent taste and not really for fresh eating, so I have cooked some down and made a syrup which I can turn into jelly or use as a base for anything that needs a good fruit juice. I have added syrup to hot tea and it’s delicious. I plan on making jelly in the future and I have a whole freeze dryer loaded up with the berries and a few bags in ziplocs in the freezer.

There will definitely be an orchard planted in the future, but for now I am thankful for my daughters perspective and my “mini orchard”.

Upcoming Changes

~ wattlesandcombsfarm ~ Leave a comment

With a new name change comes content changes as well. We are still homeschooling and that will always be a part of what I share, but we are also finally moving out onto a small piece of property and getting ready to start my homesteading dreams. We even have baby chicks sitting in the living room right now! This is something I’ve been dreaming about for the last 8 years if not longer. I can’t believe it’s finally becoming a reality, and I can’t wait to share some of it with you.

Chickens are here!

Chickens are sort of what started this whole thing as they tend to do. I’ve dreamt of them for years now, and have really been disappointed time and time again when we had to move somewhere that didn’t allow them. Pretty much as soon as our offer on the house was accepted my husband got me a dozen hatching eggs. We have friends who raise chickens and likes to have different breeds, so she sold us a dozen Swedish Flower hatching eggs. Into the incubator they went. Unfortunately, my incubator decided this was the time to act up and the turner didn’t work very well, so on lockdown down we found out only five had made it that far. Five chicks, with the possibility of a decent number being roosters, meant we needed a few more. We headed to our local farm supply store and came home with six more chicks. We chose two Black Australorps and four Welsummers which are already sexed and should be hens. Now the problem we face is that these won’t lay for months and I am wondering if I should find a few adults to add as well. Chicken math sure does kick in quick.

What’s Next?

I am so excited for what the future will bring. I plan on starting a large vegetable garden, an herb garden, flowers everywhere, an orchard and berry patch, and of course our farm animals. As much as I would love to do this all right away, I know it will take time and I will have to be patient. So I hope you will all follow along as I work to accomplish my dreams.