Gardening...

I have a close friend who chuckles at me!
I tend to say whatever is on my mind.

She was looking for the fat free half and half, and I simply stated... I don't understand, the whole point of half and half is it is half heavy cream and half regular milk!  How can it be fat free?

While I choose not to use 1/2 & 1/2 I sure can't take regular milk in my coffee; and if you expect me to use skim you have got to be crazy!  I'll drink it black like my grandparents did (a left over from sugar rations during WWII)  Yes as a vegan I was trying to use almond milk but it truly aggravated my throat and made me burp too much for comfort!  I refuse to use soy, and coconut is just too sweet for my taste.  I do enjoy hemp milk but... as usual I digress~!

My point of bringing this up is low fat, non fat half and half is a bastardised product.  You think your drinking a better for you cream when in fact its so much worse for you it's ... well a crap storm of a product doing no telling what to your poor body!

I find it funny I can come to these conclusions myself about something as simple as half and half BUT never thought about it as applied to my garden!

YES my garden.

As of late I have had TWO books I can't seem to put down, leave alone and not refer to everyday.

The first being  Integrated Forest Gardening...

ONE of the best and greatest books on gardening I have ever come across.  It is helpful, insightful, and gives examples we all need when getting started with a newer, fresher, and different way of thinking of our gardens.

It is the simple, provoking, and common sense of each of these books I am stunned I have never thought in this manner when it come to ... DIRT and ALL it consist. 

Why it is I can say fat free half and half makes no sense but I expect a man made chemical fertilizer to make real food? 

FAKE fertilizer must give me fake food!  Meaning If I feed my veggies chemicals they are going to contain or consist of chemicals.  SO now I am building up my soil, dirt, and compost with nothing but bacteria, fungus, hummus, and mulches for compost or area needs.  

It is funny how you can read a book a hundred times but you take on something new each time because you are in a different place of your journey each time you open, close, or share a book with anyone.  

Sunday Mornings

I enjoy a Sunday morning, I get to sleep late!

I've slept without an alarm clock gone to the barn, cleaned the barn area, put the horses out, put out hay; fed them and put them back in.  Multi tasking taking care of the paw paw patch in the mean time.  I put out more cardboard to shade out the vetch in the patch. Tucking it under the previous as if putting shingles on a roof.  As I did that I watered the planted clay pots that keep the ground moist and allow the trees to draw out water as they need it.  But because there is no rain in the forecast I also filled the five gallon buckets for each tree.   I put a pin hole in so they will slowly drip for the next few days.  I'm cooking my sweet potatoes as I type this and my dishes are soaking in soapy water till I get this posted.  After which I will wash dishes, take a shower and get ready for work! Relaxing and breathing as I stand in hot water steam filling the bathroom so the birds get a steam bath as I take the moisture into my own lungs.  Make up?  Only if its a great morning like today where all the schedules come together and allow me a few extra minutes for myself.

I get to work from 11:30 to 5:15 today! Then come home and take care of the horses for the night and go to the house love on the dog, put the birds to bed and finally go to sleep and get up early the next morning for a full day of work again.

I love the little store where I work, but I love working physically on the estate.  How does one get to balance both and have them both pay you for your time?

Doing as my Maternal Grandfather (Paw Paw) did... I work at the store and I do the land morning and evening as I can.  I hope it keeps me younger than I am but... the years are starting to catch up.  My hips my knees and the arm I can no longer use, not even to hold a hammer.  Although most customers don't see me as my age a positive for any woman out in the world!

Getting my day started and I can only hope everyone reading this get theirs going as wonderfully!

My love to the world.
AegF

May 2016

 How I can't believe how fast time flies.  6:18am

I sit at my office desk still in the dark due to the mist and fog outside, but the window is open and the birds are creating a wonderful song.  My office screen is in need of mending due to the most recent Zika virus in the area.  While I do not plan on children this late in life there is no reason not to protect myself and my animals from the pest and the disease they carry.   Coffee on the desk, light for my aging eyes, and bare feet.  Life is as it should be!

I have much to do for Pirates' Lair, a regular schedule at the barn then thankfully a day at the clothing store.   Life is in full speed as tourist season starts in Asheville and life on the estate gets out of control as nature tries its hardest to take back what disturbances I have caused it over the past year and with the recent plantings.

Three Paw Paw trees.  It will take years for them to produce food,

In case you are not aware of what paw paws are, you are not alone.  Once a native tree almost over the US now rarely seen and even more rarely commercialized as the fruit does not travel or save well at all.

I planted three...

1st one closest to the road and closest to my approach of the area is a Pennsylvania Golden Paw Paw.  The company I got it from Stark.com was incredible!  My first one somehow was damaged in shipping and after creating a clean cut below the break it was barely over the graft and wasn't going to make it.  I called them the very next day and they sent me a new one with NO major questions or ANY issues.

Amazing fruit!

The second I planted was the glorious Mango Paw Paw.  I put this one closest to the fence.  As of today it struggles compared to the other two but shows promise.  The leaves are smaller and not up the entire plant like the other two.

The third and final is the Sunflower Paw Paw, planted close to the road once again but spaced aplenty so all will have room AND I will have room to dig and cut suckers for other areas later depending on which one I fall in love with the most. 

Paw Paws are amazing, once covering much of the eastern US,  Life is good with a paw paw tree as the leaves are more tropic in look and texture, and the fruit just as exoitioc in that they taste mostly like a banana custard and have about the same texture when ripe.  

I love they are pollinators are mostly FLIES!  I put them on the outside of the horse pasture and hope to keep most fly pollinators away from the barn as they stink when pollination is needed.  SOME people even hang rotting meat (road kill) in the tree when the time comes!  NOT something I want to be doing!  I'll just allow the flies from the horse barn and the cattle up the mountain do their thing!

I also planted the Persimmon Tree!  I enjoy the American Persimmon much more than the Asian you see in the grocery stores, (if you see any at all, depending on where you live)  I got the Yates American from Stark.com just like the Paw Paws.  

 Only slightly larger than a grape with one seed larger than that of pumpkin size.  As a child we enjoyed eating these out of the yard and then splitting the seed inside to see what type of winter we were going to have.  

These too can be pollinated by flies BUT can use several pollinators to get the job done.  Last year I picked persimmons off the ground at a friends house to snack on all day.  I can't wait to make Persimmon rolls etc... Besides If I don't eat them the animals on the estate will thus keeping all the small and larger animals happy. 

Last year I planted a Mulberry Tree,  The ground hog family on the estate nearly killed it by eating its leaves, but I put a fence around it and it is thriving this year.  

If you have not had a mulberry you really need to treat yourself to a bag of them from a good natural grocery store.  Sweet, easily dried and again feed the wild life and you with no issues.  Meaning Birds normally get all the berries from the top of the tree while humans normally can reach and get the rest.

I had planted the persimmon last year but my barn helpers wacked it, GONE... I also planted a lilac bush but it didn't survive either.  I am NOT wasting my time on the lilac because they do not do several duties and take 5 to 7 years to bloom and give me pleasure!   

A good day off.

It was again  a normal day but a GREAT day as well.

Don, Darrell and myself got phase one of the equine patio completed! I am so ... excited.

Today we went from... THIS

All the way to THIS.... 

View INTO the barn area... 

From in the barn...

Life is going forward... I learned SO much about laying these things by hand, and almost got it really going on fast by the end of phase one.

NOW I have to save my money again, purchase 6 more pallets of pavers and get started on phase two.

In the mean time! I plan to get my new hose extender that is going to be industrial strength

Close up and cover the insilation box for the water hose. 

Create an insulated LID for the horse water, as well as an insulated box for it!

Not to forget I have to put up the forest fence again.

Put up a fire wood shed! 

Get some trees cut down and out of the way (put onto the west wall )

My "diet" went out the door today as I was with the guys all day. 

cream in my coffee...  a muffin (regular) for breakfast... and yes... a SANDWICH for (1\2 of one) for lunch.  I gave the other half to the hubby... 

Pumpkin seeds for dinner (Jerry had carved a pumpkin for his mother)  

All is as it should be.... and I'm happy.

Signing off, want to get in some good sleep so I can ride in the morning... 

My love to the world 

AegF 

great energy....

Today was another day with great energy.
I have NO idea why or where all this is coming from, as once again the only change I have made in my life is the vegan diet to get this weight off!  While I believe I have lost 5 pounds in three weeks I have to say I tend to weigh differently from morning to night etc... So I say I have lost this amount because I am weighing myself after my morning coffee, after going to the barn... and after my shower while I am dripping wet.  SO ...

I have lost inches... lots of inches... and the energy is CRAZY!
I have had more and more trouble sleeping through the years.  I thought it was my hormones getting out of wack, my husband snoring like a freight train, and getting older!   Recently the husband has complained about MY snoring! but even last night when he woke me up more than 4 times I was able to get back to sleep (I have never been able to do that)   BUT this could have been a fluke for only last night.

Having said all of that my knee pain is not as much as it was three weeks ago.  I say this as MORE about the little bit of weight I have lost and not as related to the diet change itself.

These are ONLY MY results, nothing scientific here! only me, one person doing what I can when I can and how I can to get my weight off my bad leg, keep my life going forward in a way I am comfortable with, and I am NOT preaching or telling anyone else what they need to be doing.

I had an apple with almond butter and hemp for breakfast.
I had beets in orange and ginger, an avocado, and cauliflower in curry for lunch...
I had a banana with peanut butter and hemp for a snack later in the day...
and tonight I didn't crave a dinner so... that was my day... coffee with coconut milk when I got to work! (can't do that all the time it is too sweet of a creamer for me)

I had so much energy this morning I laid yet another few bricks before going to work!

I know it may not look like a lot to most but this takes a little concentration, although I have to admit I am starting to get the hang of some of it! 

I also took pictures of the trees just outside my zen spot to be... 

This fall is just amazing this year.... I am enjoying it very much.  

Yes horse friends these are maples and bamboo.  I have not yet decided what to do about the maples as they are above the barn and the leaves could blow into the fence below.  NOT sure but keeping an eye on the situation!  

I also had to stop and take a photo of the sun set tonight... it was breath taking! 

Life is good and getting better. 

I am moving around well, having energy to stay up and type out my day... and enjoying the mornings again. 

My love to the world 

aegF

Well, lets see.

Sense last I have really posted, I've given myself a black eye, planted lots of food, stocked the barn for the next months hay!  ( I hope it last a month, given it's going down to freezing again tonight!)

I have such a to do list I ... it should be in hard bound instead of so many separate pieces of paper!   Basicly I have a need to plant something every night for the next month ... in order to get my garden in the ground.  having said that! If I get a day off I could probably knock it out in 12 hours.

I did get corn, peas potatoes,asparagus, and more lettuce in the ground yesterday! Already up are the broccoli, brusselsprouts, green cabbage, red cabbage, Asian cabbage, thymes, sages of many kinds, chives, garlic, shallots, and cilantro.  So we shall see how everything else comes along.

oh yea! the black eye thing, stupid, but I was pulling on my hot water hose trying to wind it as large as possible, when the end came up a little faster, and a little lighter than I expected... popping up and hitting me in the eye.  Thank goodness the silly thing hit the bone around my eye as I was trying to close my eye and react to object flying at my face.  I ended up with a beautiful black eye that eventually faded into the best eye shadow I'd ever had! encouraging me to do my shadow differently from now on.  So lessons learned.  Watch what you are doing! and hey as the rest goes south... take the eyeshadow north! ha ha ha...

Got 50 bails of hay to the barn, had it not turned into freezing cold again I would have expected these to last me a while but... having shaved the horses, packed the blankets, I'm paying for my preparedness... with my hay rations.  DARN! I was doing so good!

BUT the shave paid off with Navarre! He rides longer without all that hair! no huffing or puffing, no sweating 1/2 mile down the road.  It was great!   I got to get out with the horses, ride with a helper around the estate, and RELAX for a while.

We got so much done after our ride.  We cleared the hay from around my water container, put stepping stones in the kitchen garden at the entrance, cleaned hay stall and filled it with hay,feed, and FLY control!

oh well... hope to take pictures soon.  I'm just on the move so much I dare not carry the camera with me yet! once I get my new schedule down pat... I'll consider it more!

Till then... Much love to you all
Amber.

Water for the barn,

While NOTHING is done yet.  I had an appointment yesterday with a woman in the area who specializes in water solution's for animals and gray water systems.

We are both in agreement on a LARGE water container, but it will have to go on the south side for winter exposure and I want a solar pump!  I do not plan on running any other electricity to the barn.  That money will be used for clean energy systems.

I am enjoying my barn more and more everyday.   But I digress...

Both women agreed, we needed to use only one tank in order to use the system to it's fullest. 

I am in the process of getting clutter???? free??? gutters. I am only getting bids at this point.
then I need to install down spouts to the area the cistern will reside.

I also need to worry about the cistern base.  Do I bury it?   or Do I create a concrete platform?

I am looking into both?  I have no idea which I will decide on at this point.  It may depend on how much rock or bolder we run into when digging it.  we shall see!   They each have their advantages.

Concrete... a clean area to walk around the cistern? but harder to hide into the natural setting I have. And it will be colder in the winter? what will it do to my freezing issue? All matters I will have to research.

Digging a hole?  Well it will look better from the road and in the barn BUT what about settling?  I may have to go down 3 feet or more for this to work for YEARS ... which is what I am expecting... and nothing less. Which will cost me as well.   Labor is not cheap and now that the barn is up this is not an easy area to get to!  Which is why I called her earlier(over a year ago) but she ???? needed something to go on, as where I would have dug the hole at the same time I was digging for the poles.  BUT that is me!  and as I always say... I have never fit into a perfectly shaped whole/ group in my life, why would I expect to now?   NOT...

Moving Horses.

Well... it has only been years (4) in the making... The barn is NOT finished or complete it has a few things to go.

1. Water.  I have no water system as of yet but am hauling water everyother day for the horses.
2. Gravel. I have no real footing beyond 20 feet of the barn over hang.

I am split with emotion.

I am excited the horses are finally on our place.
I am terrified the horses are finally on our place.

I am worried to death about the horses trying to get out and not having a friend around to warn me, call me, or ? anyone to say hey???? are you just out having fun?

I am about to create a flier, with color photos... to put in every mail box up and down the road. with pictures of the horses, ALL my phone numbers etc... I also want to figure out if I can put my trailer on the property I think I have a spot it will fit with out any issues for the horses or me. ? but this is one of the last things I will worry about this week.

I have LOTS to clean up at Joe's!
I have LOTS to figure out at my place.  ?
    a. Compost bins.  Where, How far from barn, how much exposer to sun, air, wind etc...
    b.  Gravley ... getting me a cleared path to my compost piles.
    c.  life in general...

I am a nervous wreck... How is it I can worry so much about horses?

As of this morning both horses are a nervous wreck as well.
SweetPea has thrown a shoe, She is snorting at everything! on guard, ... protective mode...
Navarre has loose stools? but water is no longer well water, so the tap water could have killed some of the bacteria in his stomach... or as normal SweetPea could be trying to kill him every 5 seconds I am not there!

I think I am going to get a cheap bottle of wine... take my table and chairs over there and sit with the horses after work... I have asked one friend to show up... and I am extending this invite to anyone else who doesn't mind the horse smell. 

The art of relaxing will be required.

Update on barn.

I find that sense I have been away, I can more appreciate what has happened to the estate.  Sound funny?

Every day I got up and the first thing in my mind was... what's the list for the day.

What do I need done today,
In What Order,... thinking through every task in detail in order to not touch things twice, getting things done in a needy fashion.
What is that going to leave me for the next move, what prep do I need to do for tomorrow? 
How can I build this or that and save time, materials, and energy.  What materials do I have that I can use, What materials are going to be necessary to purchase.
Who do I need to call for the barn, metal, wood, etc...
What supplies do I need for the day, Do I have them, What do I need for tomorrow?
Who has the cheapest prices today? Great... call suppliers ASAP... again...
Gas... Gas do we have enough gas and oil?

It was non stop

I find now that I rarely ever just stopped! Looked at all the progress and while I was estattic with daily results I was NOT seeing the full picture.

I now see this place is beautiful... even if I do say so myself!

Thank you Troy, for getting all of this on a roll, I could have never gotten up that first pole without your guidance, help,and teachings.  You are the person that put ALL of this in motion.  Yes I had the thoughts and plans done but I had no one to help me get the thing UP and Ready for animals.

Troy did EVERYTHING he could to stop the world on its axis, and did so. While his life got very busy I was blessed with another man who wanted to work and was willing to work but best of all had the skill to work.  He worked under Troy's direction till I took over having seen all the work Troy had and needed to concentrate on at his real paying job.

Karl is the person that helped me with the roof, walls, floors etc... There is so much detail, we spent hours each day talking things over in detail, making sure we were on the same page of what I expected, wanted and needed long term.

Karl is to be credited with all the craftmanship that has gone into my little barn.

Its functions are simple but this is what I wanted,
Its looks are rustic, but this is what I needed in order to fit into the area I have placed the barn.  I did not want it to stand out too badly in the winter.  I can only hope my neighbors can see the thought I put into making sure it was not a RED BARN with a GREEN ROOF that screamed at them as they drove by...

Barn at a standstill...

I can't do much more work on the barn for several reasons.

The track (door) company has put me behind, not delivering on date promised.

I need to purchase gutters.. seamless...

I need to get appt with Sistern Sister, but they too are on a back log.

All three of these things are NOT cheap and there is no way I can do them any cheaper... These three things along with more gravel are the four most expensive things to do with the barn. 

Small steps from here on. 

Update on pictures.

Above is my stall DOOR solid and it matches the grain/45 degree angels on the back wall of the barn, so it looks good from a distance. and is more sturdy for the horses...

Again this is just the inside but now all the walls are two and three layers think as where the last update they were outside walls and stall kick boards only.

I like my new horse stalls and can not wait to get the horses settled in their new place but... first a trip out west to get me settled!

ok.. for those of you who are NOT horse people this may make NO sense.

But Below is my walk through....

Having to never open a gate to get into my paster while the horses will be able to run freely.

It is too narrow and too sharp of a turn for a horse to make but plenty big for me to get in and out with no issues...  Just one more thing that makes my life a little easier on a daily basis.

This funny picture is my 30 mile fence charger... solar charged! I am very happy to finally have it up and FULLY charged now all I have to do is run the insulated wire to the fence and ground the silly thing.  This will take all of 10 minutes! So I'll do it when I get back

Pasture from the barn!

While it is not pretty yet my one area planted a year and a half ago... is so think I wasn't able to cut it with the mower, and using my bush hog that cuts through young saplings like butter... I could only cut one foot with each circle...

It took me all day to do what little is done! BUT at least I know it's good hay/grass for the horses... and the smell! I love that fresh cut hay smell.

A closer look to the holding pen till they get used to the rich grasses... Nice Clean and ready for the kids...

And finally ... getting settled in... Tools I've already had to use and find a home for.

barn update.

ok... sit back relax... take a deep breath... I keep repeating these things...

My barn is starting to look like more than just a building with a purpose.  It is starting to show signs of holding horses specifically.

I am so excited.

This is Sweetpea's stall...

Both stalls... and yes although any horse person will tell you NOT to put door openings next to each other .  You will see as the design plays out I wanted this ... it is my barn .... and I am having the doors made to my specifications instead of the norm.  Just wait you will see.

I know... I know it is a mess but it is still a work in progress.

I can barely contain myself.

1st update on the barn... here is the latest picture from this morning...

now the part I can't sit still about.

While the picture of the barn up loaded I grabbed my lunch, fingers wet with juice, hurry to wipe them off and type this in.

One thing about SUMMER I can not live without.  TOMATOES.... get a load of this!

what glorious tomatoes and bread... the knife was as sharp as I could find and still ... it went everywhere!  but NEVER wasted!

call in the fat police... I love mayo on tomoatoes... a little pepper for bite.

Basil from the garden...

Lettuce and close it up...

It is officially summer in my house.... bring it on! I'm set for anything now!

Cool, sweet, soft, juicy... salads, sandwiches, grilling you name it my tomatoes will be on or in everything till they run out.

Hurry up Troy! You gotta come and get your tomatoes before I eat them all!

More HOT days in June, well above average

Considering everyone is suffering the heat, here are some shots I thought I would share... as it was just cool enough to get out in the due this morning and take a few pictures.   Hope this brightens your day, spirits, and cools the soul.


This is the first sunflower I got this year, I am hoping to have hundreds this year, but only a few have opened their eyes to my house, thus far....

I just about have my side area to where it re-seeds itself each year... I am experimenting with several types of sunflowers but we shall see what does best.

Borage... one of my favorite flowers to put in a salad. It taste like a cucumber but looks so pretty on top of a crisp multi green salad. You should try! They are beautiful in the garden and great for eating!

no one likes onions in their flower garden, except me... I enjoy the tangle, mangle, strange beauty of the wild plants.

A bee on its morning borage run... wet sweet cool time of the day.

Dill, some things just don't change, tomatoes, Basil and dill are all a MUST even if no real garden is in effect this year.

Lavender, I use this for EVERY THING... cleaning, medicating the birds baths... making tea for myself and sprinkeling it on food.... anything you put Rosemary on Lavender works just as well!

the BACK of the barn... not a good picture but everyone is asking for updates more often now that it appears to be a building with a purpose.

only the outside of the barn is on... but I will get to the inside soon enough...

by 9am Karl is hot and eating to keep up his strength!