Juicy farm gossip

Some say it's nothing to be taken seriously.

But chicken tongues are beginning to wag.

The girls of the flock, of course, have been gossiping about it for some time now.

Honey, my chicken-free-spirit, has been hanging out lately around the chicken coop. She hasn't done this in almost three years.  At first I thought she was considering reintegrating herself with the flock and I got really excited.

But then I realized, it's not necessarily the entire flock that she's interested in.

The other hens are none too pleased.

But rumor has it (and, as you can see, some tell-tale photographic evidence exists) that a certain yellow buff chicken and a certain studly rooster have been spending more time than usual together.

It's slowly becoming clear that they have a bit of a "thang" going on.

Honey does all sorts of flamboyant-chicken-things to try to impress Roopert.

I don't blame her a bit; he is awfully handsome.

Roopert, though, generally remains aloof and pretends not to notice.

Except for sometimes, when he thinks nobody is watching.  I caught this shot yesterday through my kitchen porch door. 

He is actually very attentive to her.  Where can all this lead?  We shall see.  Perhaps I should have titled this post: A Belated Valentine Tale?

(Roopert and Honey....sittin' in a tree...K-I-S-S-I-N-G)

How I know things are finally melting

Aside from drippy trees and muddy paths, there are many signs my critters give me to let me know that "the melt" has officially begun.
 

Sure, I could just look at the obvious signs - like dripping fence boards - but I find animal behavior a much more reliable (and enjoyable) indication.

When melting begins for real, Beau and Chester begin to assist with mucking again, instead of hiding in their stall.  One of their favorite mild weather activities is to stand as close to where I am working as possible, barely giving me any space to shovel between their feet.  Of course, they act all like they're not doing anything other than just hanging out, but I know they're secretly messing with me.  I don't mind.

Another indication of the melt is when Pete and Reggie come out from the safety and warmth of their cozy goat house to stand on their look-out towers wooden spools again.

These boys are the proud guard goats of the upper property, where the keep a watchful eye on all the comings and goings occurring in the driveway.  I can tell they are relieved to have returned to duty.

But probably the biggest sign that the melting trend is for real is when Honey (my chicken who left her flock to explore the world as a solitary, free-ranging hen) finally ventures out of her crate on the porch, where she has been under self-imposed house arrest since the snow began.  She does not like snow and she really does not like cold feet.  This girl stays put when it is snowy or below 30 degrees outside.


So, you can see why it's a good sign when she starts doing her walk-abouts again.

After carefully calculating the danger levels of temperature, snowpack and distance...

 

Honey ventured the farthest she had in over a week - all the way to the goat house, where she scratched and pecked and clucked happily, finding her first juicy bugs and worms in days.

Of course, Reggie was at his post and alerted the neighborhood accordingly.


Tomorrow:  Rumors are flying in the chicken coop!

It snowed on my hoody... and other things

The weather predictions came true and we wound up with 14" of snow.  The initial flakes that fell were tiny delights to my eyes....amazing six-pointed stars and heart shapes landed on my hoody sleeve.  I must've looked really silly photographing my arm, but I was enthralled.

 

It snowed on my farm pup, Roxy.  That girl loves the snow.  She snuffles it. 

It snowed on my donkeys and llama.  Kai, like Roxy, loves the snow, but Chester and Beau look a little disgusted by the whole event, don't you think?

It even snowed on Pete and Reggie, who normally steer clear of any contact with cold and wet.

Pete went so far as to tell me he wanted to go for a walk with Roxy.

Until reason took over (or his little goaty feet got cold) and he and Reggie suddenly turned tail and bolted back to their goat house.

It snowed on my ancient little car that slide off the hillside, rendering it incapacitated until the snow melts.

It snowed on my kitchen porch.  A lot.

It snowed a ridiculous amount on the back deck.  Poor Roxy, she briefly considered going out here.  Now she is just dreaming of summer when this is her favorite place to nap in the sun.
 

As near as I can tell, the one thing that it did not snow on was shy Clyde.  She took refuge in the barn under the tarp covering the straw and simply waited out the storm.

Once I got my fill of taking pictures of snow on things (can you tell it's kind of a novelty in my part of Oregon?), I realized how long it was going to take to melt 14 inches of snow and I sighed heavily.  And then the forecast warnings for freezing rain began.  Fortunately, the worst of it is now over and I have returned to focusing all my energy anticipating the return of spring.

My thoughts are also with my friends (and everyone!) in the south and east who are currently dealing with yet another round of intense winter weather.  Please stay warm and safe, everybody!

When people blog about gardens and spring in winter

 Ok. I admit it.  I dreamed - and then wrote - about spring and planting way too early.  Any hopes I had of planting early spinach and pruning my raspberries this week have now been dashed. Patience, I tell myself...patience.

Here on the farm, I know the temperatures are dipping when I find Clyde sleeping on the hot tub cover.

Another sign that it's nippier than normal is when I bring in kindling for the fire and all the chickens rush to the door wanting to come in and get warm.

For mild-weather northwestern Oregonians, when temperatures drop to the teens, it's a pretty big deal.  We just aren't accustomed to being that cold and it requires a great deal of panic and freaking out  preparation to ready for it.

Fortunately, I've got my beyond-reasonably-cold farm routine down pat and this morning was the time to run through it.

Roxy insisted on wearing her favorite pink sweater for this morning's chores, but casually mentioned on her way to the barn that she is going to need some matching pink boots if she is going to work with me any more this week.

Once at the barn, I alerted Mr. Goldy, the stock tank goldfish (see the orange blob in the water above?), that we wouldn't be having our morning chats for a few days.  He's cool with it.  He doesn't seem to mind at all when the sky over his head completely freezes over for days at a time.

I made sure the heat tape wrapped around the water pipe was turned on and I put my handmade insulator (bungee cord and loose insulation) around the outdoor spigot.

I pulled the heated water bucket back out of storage and connected it to the lengthy extension cord that is once again running across the barn floor.

I made sure the bedding in Kai llama's stall got some fluffy new straw.

Kai insisted on inspecting my work.

She is always very thorough.

Shy Clyde surprised me by coming into the barn for a bite to eat while I was there.

But she quickly retreated (flew?) when I got too close with my camera.

I turned to find Chester behind me.  He wanted to know if he could do anything to help.
Just kidding.  He actually had some complaints about the quality of hay I've been serving and wished to request a bucket of chilled carrot coins for his mid-afternoon snack.

(I'll get right on that, Chet.)

When we got back to the house, Roxy informed me she had changed her mind about the winter boots.  She has decided to spend the rest of the week right here.

My best girlfriend

My very best girlfriend is having a birthday today.














Roxy Lou, my farm pup extraordinaire, is turning 9 years old. 
It's hard to believe that this little bundle of light, joy, and enthusiasm is almost a decade old.

She and I always celebrate this day together doing our farm chores and just hanging out together.  She loves the morning routine and very clearly knows her place here on the farm.



These goats are her goats.  Clearly, she is very proud of them.































Pete and Reggie look to Roxy for which way to run and where to get the best treats.  She never lets them down.

The trip to the barn is second nature to Roxy now - as is keeping a safe distance from the big animals' feet.  She has learned so much since her transition from city girl to country dog. 

There is no doubt in her mind how important her role is here on Critter Farm. And not a soul who knows her has any doubt either. 

 Happy birthday, pup. You simultaneously impress me and make me giggle every day.

Pretty close to an obsession

My thoughts are consumed with my garden this year.  I haven't planted one in two years and this has weighed heavily on my heart. 

 

One of the two main garden plots that I have lovingly tended over the years currently appears forlorn and forgotten. It has ripped and sagging deer netting - destroyed by a persistent barrage of deer-bullies last year who devoured the entire strawberry patch. The ground itself is so overgrown with grass and weeds, it is almost impossible to recall a vegetable garden ever being here.
 
But this will change.  The deer netting will be restrung and the earth will be turned.  Seeds will be planted and my hands and heart will remember the healing this soil brings me. 

 

I've always considered gardening my own personal form of therapy, so to have gone for so long without touching the earth, well, it doesn't speak highly of my current mental state. Heh. 

All joking aside, though, every morning I look for signs that the ground beneath my feet is warming.

 

I'm skimming less and less ice off the stock tank in the mornings.

 

Though the persistent frost still coats everything through late morning, the beautiful red rhubarb tips pushing through the earth are more visible each day.

 

I have garden thoughts saved on my phone, pieces of paper, scrawled with seed and plant names, scattered on surfaces throughout the house, and piles of gardening catalogs with corners of pages turned down.  I have seed orders planned (Wintersown.org, Territorial Seed) and am investigating new raspberry canes and blueberry bushes. I want to plant asparagus.

I am ready. I am anxious to try again.

A couple days ago, a sweet friend bought me a few seed packets from a local market, knowing how happy this would make me. With the exception of the Titan sunflower, the seeds are all early season plants that should go into the ground in the next four to six weeks.  I'd plant them tomorrow, if I could.

Beau says he doesn't care which variety of garden pea I plant this year, he's just excited that I'm going to be spending time outside again.  Me, too, Beau.