November Hill farm journal, 8

There's nothing like being on the farm after days away. I took peppermints out with me and anyone who was maybe annoyed that I'd been gone made amends pretty fast with peppermints as apologies.

We had a lot of rain while I was gone and as usual, June = Jungle on November Hill. The vegetable garden is about 40% bigger than when I left, the just-weed-eaten fence lines will soon need it again, and the grass seems to grow while I'm standing there watching it.

Horses are appreciating the shady barn with fans during the days. It was nice being in there with them, puttering around doing chores while they munched and relaxed and drank from fresh buckets.

While I was gone dear husband was able to get a large round of our old favorite local orchard grass hay and this spring's cutting looks good. I love this hay when all the many factors that go into baling good hay cooperate. It's easy to balance in terms of minerals, it's low s/s, and the horses love it.

The oak tree that sits at H in the arena looked "wilty" today and I stood for a few minutes and fretted over it. To lose either of the big oaks at H and F would be terrible. I don't see anything wrong with the trunk or bark but it just seemed slightly off. I hope it's okay. 

I researched paints for the porch screens and cat tunnel before going away and my samples were here when I got home. I spent a little time today painting a section of cat tunnel roof to see how the color looks. I have three to try for the tunnel and three whites to try for the screens.

The company I found is https://www.realmilkpaint.com/paint/ and so far I am very pleased with how the milk paint is working. Raw wood works really well with it and I'll apply a coating of tung oil over it once I get the color right to seal and waterproof. I'm eager to try it in other areas of the farm. It's easy on people, animals, and the earth, and I love the matte texture.

I felt like Tasha Tudor today on the ladder for some reason, with husband mowing/dragging the front field and Keil Bay sneaking down the grass paddock to see what I was up to. Bear was on the porch keeping me company as I painted and somehow the milk paint set me thinking of Tasha Tudor and her Corgi Cottage.

Right now the sun has set and I'm sweating and probably need to close the front door but the frogs are out there singing and the night sounds are so pleasant to hear.

I'm happy to be home again. Jiggety Jig.

The view from the Jade room (Porches Writing Retreat, Norwood, Virginia)

This is the view I've had this visit to Porches and it's been a wonderful way to feel the sense of farm and home without having the daily chores and distractions of November Hill.

I've gotten so much done writing-wise, and feel the blessing of time and space dedicated to the creative process. This is my second visit here and I am already looking forward to the next one. 

Highly recommend for writers and artists. You can find the website online if you need a retreat! 

Writing bliss at The Porches!

My office for 5 days:

November Hill farm journal, 7

Warm weather has finally arrived. We hit 86 degrees here yesterday afternoon and it's forecast to be. 91 today. I went out at mid-day to clean stalls and feed Keil his lunch tub, and to top off water buckets. It was warm enough to offer showers to horses and the pony and all three appreciated the cool water in the shade of the oak tree outside the barn.

We're starting to dry out from all the rain last week. The arena and the pastures are at a perfect point between wet and dry right now, offering a slight cushioned give underfoot that I think might feel good to a horse's bare hooves and to their joints.

I'm pleased to say that dear husband cut the weeds down in the flower beds and I have a grand plan (even while my last grand plan lies still unfinished in the form of saplings cut and still waiting for my fence project) to put down layers of thin cardboard topped with half soil/half compost. This should help with knocking the weeds out and claiming new areas adjacent to both beds that would give me much more room to expand. As if I need it! But it will cut down on the weed eating that has to be done in those areas and prepare the beds for something new. I'm thinking pollinator garden modeled after the one outside our local co-op.

We have a wild muscadine volunteering in the back yard. I have ideas about building a simple structure to give it space to grow without tangling along the fence.

In the vegetable garden I'm seeing the first yellow crookneck squash. The broccoli is ready to harvest and we still have lots of lettuce and rainbow chard. There were some kind of greens in the back of the chard and broccoli bed that got totally eaten by unknown insects. I admit I became mildly obsessed with the pretty lacy pattern that formed as the insects munched and so I did nothing to deter them. Each morning a bit more had been eaten away. I figured if I let them have those leaves maybe they would leave everything else alone. That either worked or they only eat the mystery greens anyway!

And though I know these were insects I can't help but smile thinking of fairies or little garden trolls out there snipping away with tiny scissors, making lace for dresses or to sell at the fairy farmer's market.

Everything else is growing steadily. Now that the heat has come we'll need to get back into the habit of watering. 

I also found tiny oak seedlings which I considered transplanting to the sunny corner of the barn. I ponder - shade in a very hot spot during the summers and shelter from wind and rain, but more leaves to rake and acorns to clear out. And then remind myself that these tiny oaks would have many years to go before that becomes an issue.

Lest it seems all I did yesterday was create new projects for myself, I promise that I spent some time sitting in the red chair in the grass paddock watching the trees and letting the sun turn my arms pink. I walked to the mail box and stopped along the way to admire the wildflowers along the way. 

I even stood and waited and sent thought requests to Keil Bay to walk to a spot in the barnyard spotlighted by the late in the day sunshine. And when he did I called him Sunset Bay.

Higher Math

Power of one:

Power of three:

Power of three plus one: