Vendor Fair and More Plants

 Ms. TD and myself went out Saturday morning to get some chicken feed and meal worms for the girls, then headed to a farm supply owned by a friend of ours. And that day he was also hosting a vendor fair, so all the better. We cruised through the tomato and cucumber plants and picked out a few varieties. We also got a few herbs but probably will grown some ourselves. We also ventured through the vendor fair and picked up some good looking (and tasting) cakes and looked closely at some nice greenhouses. Love to have one. Sadly we didn't take any photos but it was at Phillips Agri Sales. 

Spent the rest of the day planning for Sundays' work. We napped too since that helps. Sunday brought on said plans (there weren't any except from last week) so we jumped into it. We got another 4 beds built, one filled completely. Planted six pepper plants and four cherry tomato plants. Let's take a small tour.

I like to plant marigolds between the tomato plants to help keep the pests away. 

Here's the remaining plants to get in the ground. 

The wife spent some time with the chickens and got some action shots.

One of the girls, (the gang leader called Madge) had crusty butt so we soaked her in water and salts to help her get cleared up. She was not happy. 

Aaaannnnddd we finished up all of the tree burning. Just some minor pieces left to burn. 

Another long day and makes us wonder if we're up to it. 

WOF of the week. The Mrs. took this of herself and her (personal) dog, being said WOF. He is obsessed with her. 

Off until next time. Happy gardening. 

Thank Goodness That Four Day Weekend Is Over

 Let me start by saying my wife and I plan big, but then once we start on said plans we get in over our heads. We both were off Friday through Monday. We planned on finishing the front flower bed, removing old pool deck posts and straightening out that part of the yard, removing the old wood raised beds and installing new metal beds. We got our mini excavator Thursday but didn't start with it until Friday. Now I have used one in the past but I am definitely no expert, especially with the bottom blade. It seems I made things worse when trying to level out the ground. Let me go through each project.

Front Flower Bed       
My wife did this all by herself. She purchased a few more bulbs, weeded out everything that she could, then mulched the beds. She did a great job of it too. She had it done Sunday. We ordered in the mulch and mix for the raised beds. 

And now the finished product.

We cut down some larger holly trees and through a long process have been getting them burned at the fire pit. Our yard has been covered with the branches, etc. for over a week. We burned every day except Monday and it seems we didn't make any progress. 

I hope to get the rest done this coming Saturday. 

We tore down an old pool deck but the posts remained and were too hard for me to get out. The mini excavator made quick work of them. 

The stairs are being salvaged to use at the deck I need to build at the chicken coop. I also need to get the old filter and pump gone. 

The old garden beds were full of weeds and rotting. It was time for a change so as per last post, we ordered some metal beds, compost mix, heavy duty landscape fabric and went to work. I tore out the old beds, reworked the underground water lines, and leveled out the ground. I worked the lines to feed eight beds. The beds I ended up getting are 1 1/2 foot tall instead of 1 foot. The old metal wagon we have had an axle break and tore up a tire so it was to Home Depot for a new dump wagon. $430.00 later and we now have a 17 cubic poly wagon that holds a lot of dirt. Trust me. Here are a few photos. 

Got some of the dirt pile down some but not before we had to end the use of the mini excavator. Onward on the work this week just not Tuesday. We need a break. We may need to order more dirt to finish the beds. As far as the beds themselves, they seem to be made well and are solid when the dirt is in them. I can build on in about 30 minutes. We have about $800.00 in the beds and another $500.00 or so in dirt. I really hope to have everything done, water lines, beds complete in a few more weeks. It is a process. 

Next up will be finishing up the chicken's home. I have trim work to do, metal facia, building the deck and install the stairs, and run power. 

WOF of the week. I need to get more pictures of the new WOF here on the farm. But this will do for now. 

I took the pups to the dog park Sunday and Benjamin had a good time. Tilly too. She loves flowers. 

Until next time. 

Spring? Winter? Sprinter?

 Another blustery day today, but it did warm up some. We have been going from 45 to 70 then back. It looks promising for the upcoming weekend. We have a lot planned around here. We are renting a small excavator to do some work on the old garden beds, pulling old pool deck posts out, plus anything else we can do. Our old beds are treated limber which requires replacing every five years or so. We are going to be buying the raised metal beds that have become popular. I have purchased some heavy duty fabric, like what is used under roads, to lay over the entire area where the beds are. We have bermuda wire grass and it is a giant pain to deal with.  

I think I have decided on these beds. They are 8' x 4' x 1' tall and gray in color. 10 should do the job. I also have to redo the water lines to these new beds. I also have to do some more work to finish the chicken coop. Yes, we have chickens. Seven Buff Orpingtons. No rooster, for which my neighbors are grateful. The girls give us about 4 eggs a day right now, which we save some and give the others away. 

I will end this short post with a view of the pups. I need to start the WOF of the Week. Sir Benjamin has definitely taken that post.

When I try to work from home. 

2024 Happenings

 Well 2024 is upon me and I obviously haven't put in the time on this blog as I have should have. That changes this year. I've dumped Facebook for starters and only use Instagram for myself and Lady Matilda Mae and Benjamin. I have been visiting other sites and have been inspired by their commitment so I plan on the same. It is Thursday so I will have a larger post this weekend with photos and all. 

Happy New Year of 2023

 2023 is upon us and Amy and myself have been under the weather since last Thursday. We thought Covid was the culprit but appears to be crud. I get this every year about this time. A Saturday morning visit to the clinic brought a few medicinal items home and  I am feeling somewhat better today. The weather is warm but we are staying inside nonetheless. Time for some seed orders to go out. 

Merry Christmas!

 Well Christmas is upon us all. Amy and I have traveled back to WV for the holidays to see her parents and family and friends. We were up over Thanksgiving as well. It is about a 7 hour drive for us each way and with the weather being so cold this time, it was definitely harder as we brought the pups with us. We left the house at 46 degrees and hit 0 degrees 2 hours later at the top of Fancy Gap, VA. It never really warmed up from there. And to top it off the WOF mobile developed a running problem we diagnosed on the final leg, so that means repair work this morning. Some very close friends of ours have offered the use of their shop near their farm so thankful for that. I say that as it is 2 degrees this morning with a high of 16 forecasted today. Definitely better than yesterday but still cold for transplanted Tarheels. 

I am starting to get the seed-  ordering feeling this year as the catalogs have been steadily arriving at the farm. I have some work to do on the beds and then I am going to make a solid plan on what we will be planting this year. I also have thoughts on a greenhouse build as I am taking down a pool deck and will have some excess materials (after back deck repair.) I cruised by Our Happy Acres last week and noticed Dave had one and inquired how his was built. This is something I have wanted for a while so we'll see how it plays out in this spring's preparations. As far as the seeds, I definitely will be getting some heirloom tomatoes as we love a good tomato. Also will get our standard cucumber and green peppers. We'll see what happens. I do have some left over seeds from last year that I need to check for viability. I usually order from Territorial Seeds, Sow True Seed and Peaceful Valley. 

And with that we wish everyone a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays. 

Winding Down 2022

 Hello and how are you doing? I hope everything has been well for everyone. There have been many changes here on the 'farm' so let's dive right in to that.

Our business slowed down this year, more than likely due to the economy, so I searched for a full time job. I was hired in July at the same company my youngest son works at but was laid off three weeks later, dur to 'going in a different direction.' It took me a while to get that one. So I went on a short golf trip and started applying again when I returned. I eventually was hired by The Town of Benson, NC as their project manager. I started at the end of October. It is a little different from what I have done in the past but I do like the work environment and people. I will say it is demoralizing getting so many rejection letters and emails. I know my age had a lot to do with that although companies will not admit that. I will also say that my commute is a lot shorter than my last one was a few years ago. 15 to 20 minutes to get to work now. I would love to have my wife find something closer too as I know her commute is hard on her. 

Here we have Sir Benjamin Woffington the Third

And Lady Matilda Mae of Woflandia.

Otherwise known as Benjamin, B- dog, or Scooter and Tilly, Tilster or Brat Dog. They have been with us for a little while, Benjamin 3 years and Tilly 2 years. Benjamin is a mix of Saint Bernard, Boxer, and a few other things and Tilly is a Husky/ Malamute mix. She is definitely wild at times (especially when she was little) and Benjamin has taken up the role as farm WOF. He is definitely attached to my wife and Tilly hangs with me mostly. Always something with these two. And Princess Leia the cat is still going strong, sleeping everywhere and letting the dogs know she is in charge. 

We still have our Etsy business running and we have reduced our booth presence to one location now. 

We need to work on more than we do but now time is limited with me working full time now. We sell antiques and vintage items, both online and in the booth. We also sell repurposed and original furniture in the booth. With the holidays coming up I hope we do well. Check us out. Google WOFdog Farms Trading Company. 

The garden this year was pretty much a bust except for some cucumbers. It all falls on me as I didn't put the effort into it. Next year it will definitely be different and I am expanding it. I don't think grocery items are going to drop too much so it is good to plan ahead. I am on the fence about chickens but Amy isn't. She is not too keen on them but I am still considering getting some. I think now is the time to place the order for them. I have downloaded some coop plans and will build one, hopefully to make it a little mobile. 

The 'fix the garage door' item from last post was this. My oldest bought a trailer and lent it to me to move some furniture out of a storage building. One day I was going to hook up to it and take it up to where he works so he could have it back. I pulled out of the driveway to back up to it, saw my neighbor coming up the street, panicked, reversed too quickly and hit a bush on the side of the driveway. I then really panicked, pulled forward, then reversed even faster. I hit the trailer which hit a set of metal nesting tables, that hit the garage door hard, knocking it off of the tracks and putting a good dent in it. Took me the better part of 3 hours to get it fixed enough to operate correctly. What a way to start a day. It seems my to do list keeps growing. 

That's about it for now. Back to watching Hallmark movie and list a fe more things on Etsy. See you soon.