Tag: spring

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Spring peeping around the corner

Although winter has not packed his bags ready to go on his March break trip just yet, he has decided to, go for an extended drive into the country. Of course, when the cat is away, the mice will play, and the starlings, the skunks, foxes, and of course the butterflies. Yes, the butterflies and bees are back. Butterflies are like last summer's wishes that have come back after a long winter snooze. While walking our trail with Beauty-dog, a curious Mourning Cloak butterfly gently graced my shoulder for a breath-taking moment, then flew off again in search of food and a place to lay her eggs. The tell-tale band of bright yellow that bordered her burnt umber wings told the story of today. Spring coming to visit us early and she seems to be sticking around. The bees have told us it's spring already, as have the birds, and the love struck squirrels running around in the yard. A dangerous proposition with a Beauty-dog around! But it was none of these things that brought spring home for me. No, it is the marshland lullaby that convinces me that spring is close on the heels of old man winter. I will be sung to sleep for the next few weeks. If the cold weather returns the song gets quiet, but it doesn't stop. Today's sunset brought about the spring-time song that I favour the most. Rising from the marsh just a few dozen feet away it came. A love song really. A love song about new beginnings and surviving the cold. The soft song of the Spring Peeper, a tiny, frog that sings like a giant. Their song drifted across the evening sky. It made me smile. Now it really felt like. Spring was here.

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Spring? Already?

It seems like only a couple of weeks ago that we were at the Guelph Organic Conference doesn't it? The weird weather here that has taken us from mid-winter to late spring in the matter of days has completely discombobulated everyone here. The birds are singing, the fennel is coming up (yup!) and I already feel behind. I have to keep reminding myself it is only mid-march, not mid-may.

Things have shifted slightly here over the winter. Tim and I have moved our eggs around to make sure we don't have them all in one basket. You see, I have just finished up farm business planning course called  Farmers Growing Farmers through Everdale. For the last few months I have been busily taking stock of everything that we do here at All Sorts Acre. Looking at what is working, what isn't, what I like, what Tim likes, and how all of this fits into the life we want to lead. We are creating the permaculture lifestyle we want, and the first step is having a good plan. Well, we think it's a good plan (subject to change without notice).

To anyone out there who wants to start farming in any capacity, I highly recommend you do this kind of inventory and exercise. It has helped us immensly to define what we are as a farm. It has been a freeing experience. One of the best things is being able to see all the reasons WHY we can't do everything.

So this season we are starting down a slightly curved path from where we were last year. It will be exciting for both Tim and I to see how all of this plays out. In many ways we are even more excited about what we are doing than we were last year, and that can't be a bad thing.

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More Babies

 

 

Spring is the season for babies. First it was kids, now it is lambs. Izzy had two lambs a couple of weeks ago. The boy and girl are both are black with a bit of white. Izzy's bundles of wool arrived at around 12pm on March 29.   were done in the morning Izzy appeared to be in labour. She was pawing at the ground and not eating. She didn't even eat her grain, which for Izzy is unheard of. I put her in the barn and shut her in. I did chores and kept an eye n her hoping that she would have the lamb soon. I needed to go out.

At around ten to 12 I went down to check on her. The baby was showing. From what I could see it looked like a normal birth. I ran up to the house to get some warm water and by the time I returned Izzy had given birth to a little boy. I then cleaned out his mouth and gave him back to her. Wih a huge sign of relief I then went off to mt internship.

 

When I arrived home I found another baby with Izzy. She had had another while I was out. Luckily there were no complications and the little family was just fine. Izzy is a good mother, and an easy birther. I was amazed at the speed which which the babies literally popped out.

At two weeks old they are all doing well and the babies are out and running around. So far they don't have names. The ram lamb is well on his way to become a whether and the ewe lamb will either be kept or sold on.

Now we are waiting on Itchy!