2023 Year in Pictures

Gallery

 

1st Snowfall Jan 25, 2023  2 inches

 

Wet Snowfall – Ice on Trees

 

Light Snow at the Pond

 

Wet Snowfall – Mom and Pop in Marsh

 

Sun Beam in the Forest

 

Black Eyed Susans and Echinacea in Front Garden

 

Beauty Berry, Frost Aster, Joe Pye, Goldenrod on Path to Barn

 

Territorial Bear Fight Around Pond and Barn

 

Monarch Butterflies

 

Giant Swallowtail

 

Painted Lady

 

Racoon Family Relaxing on Hot Summer Day

 

Virginia Creeper on Tree Trunk

 

Tulip Poplar Raining Fall Leaves

 

Variegated Fritillary Chrysalis Forming on Pineapple Sage

Highlights

Birds seen on the farm during 2023: 126 species; Last Hummingbird Oct. 2

July/Aug. had 3 weeks with 4 close encounters with black bears

Lilacs re-bloomed at the end of October

Butterflies seen:

  • New:
    • Eastern Giant Swallowtail,
    • Variegated Fritillary (brought in chrysalis, released after it emerged late Sep. – host plant passionfruit! vs violets preferred by other fritillaries),
    • American Lady,
    • Painted Lady,
    • Mourning Cloak,
    • Viceroy
  • Monarch: very few early but found caterpillars on some of the milkweed plants, no chrysalis though;  more in Sep./ Oct. but still sparse

Canada Geese:

  • 7 pairs attempted to nest multiple times but only the New Island Family (NIF) hatched eggs this year.  Fox and mink destroyed all the eggs in the other nests, and the NIF nest was hit once but 2 of the eggs survived to hatching. In 2022 none of the geese successfully hatched any of their eggs.
  • Waterfall Family (WFF) update – April 2nd was the last day Scooby (3 year old) was seen.  Prince Charming (PC = her mate) returned in June, stayed with Mom & Pop (WF2=parents) til molting completed and left with them.  Scooby didn’t return in the Fall, so fears confirmed she was lost trying to nest for the 1st time this Spring. WF2 nested in 3 locations and all the eggs were destroyed.

2022 Year in Pictures

Gallery

Geese in Marsh After Ice Storm 2022-02-25

 

Starlight Getting a Neck Rub (Pic Courtesy Beth Meriwether)

 

Geese in Snow

 

Bullfrog (Pic Courtesy Beth Meriwether)

 

Morning Rush Hour

 

Martha and Mortimer

 

Great Spangled Fritillary on Queen Anne’s Lace and Black Eyed Susans

 

Geese in Pond Behind New Wildflower Garden

 

Geese in Marshland Path

 

Dainty Sulfurs

 

Chicken in the Woods Mushroom on Dead Ash

 

Fall Leaves

 

Vending Booth at NJ Fibershed Fall Sale (Pic Courtesy Laura Chandler, Smiling Dog Farm)

 

Waterfall Family (Momma, Poppa, Scooby) Resting Before 2nd Sunset Take Off Attempt

 

2020 Year in Picures

Gallery

2020 was a crazy year by any standards.  A farm is a great place to be during a pandemic as there’s always lots to do, the scenery is great, and isolation is built in.  Because of a more inward focus perhaps, there were far more wildlife encounters/ sightings than usual.  Here are snapshots in time that capture the essence of 2020.

Highlights included: I lost James (15 year old Angora goat) to heart issues and gained a lot of Canada Goose friends (learned a lot about them – subject of another blog entry wip!).  Re-did the pasture fences to fence out the areas now too wet for ruminants (meningeal worm) and began returning the soggy areas to wetland habitat for wildlife.  Lots of fox, skunk family, and baby racoon interactions this year.  Ghost (hen) got nabbed by a grey fox while out in the grass but I ran to the rescue and she put up a good fight.  Once I found a specialty bandage she couldn’t pull off she healed up quickly and is no worse for wear!

Sanguinaria canadensis (Bloodroot)

Violets and Spring Beauties

Toad Lilies

Dogwoods in Bloom

Goslings Playing in Rain Puddles

Tater in Lawn

Fence Replacement Project – James at Log Pile

Fence replacement project in progress

Snapping Turtle Digging Under the Fence

Who let a fawn on our property?

Fawn Standing on Island

Fawn looking for grey fox that keeps chasing it

OZ spots an airplane while hanging with his best bud the water dish (Temporarily orphaned)

Rowboat Family Looking for Snacks

Doo – Special Needs Goose (Missing Over Half His Bill)

Morning glories Take Over the Garden Fence

Tiny spiders on Queen Anne’s Lace

Butterflies on Joe Pye Weed

Fog on Fall Foliage

Evening fall fog looking back at pond

Fall Foliage Near Creek on  East Side of Pasture

Red Fox passing through, no squirrels!

And then there was the time the red fox ran off with my mitten when I was standing less than 15 feet away!

Red Fox near bird feeders stalking squirrels

Pine Siskins and female Evening Grosbeak

Pine Siskins and Evening Grosbeaks are rarely seen in this region.  They only show up here when there is a food shortage in their native region.  First time I’ve seen Evening Grosbeaks here (23 years).  There were crowds of both for a short time.  

Pine Siskins

 

Rowboat Family

Snow at Pond – Deer on Hill

Water Fall Family – Doo closest

Doo

Hoar Frost on Plants

Water Fall Family ex Doo (Poppa closest, Momma left, Scooby back right) Chilling on Top of Snow Bank

2019 in Pictures

Gallery

Bluebirds vs Blue Jays

A pair of bluebirds have nested in one of the front gate posts and had 3 nestlings they were feeding. Unfortunately a blue jay caught on and had been stalking the nest. The pair had been attacking the blue jay, taking it all the way to the ground until it would give up and take off.

Unfortunately on Father’s Day, the bluebird father was killed defending the nest. The blue jay was found eating the father in front of the nest. I don’t know that the blue jay directly killed the bluebird, it may have been an accident, but the outcome was the same. The mother now has sole responsibility for the the remaining two nestlings. Based on when I saw her incubating them (may not have been the 1st day) they could be ready to fledge as early as the June 23rd or it could be closer to July 1st.

After the body was removed, I made a predator guard for the nest using hardware cloth. [Plans for a Noel Guard can be found at various sites including Cornell’s NestWatch sites: https://nestwatch.org/learn/all-about-birdhouses/features-of-a-good-birdhouse/ or the VA Bluebird Society site: http://www.virginiabluebirds.org/about-bluebirds/nest-boxes-guards-signs/ ]

After watching for an hour, the mother still couldn’t figure out how to get into the house so I removed the guard. All I can do is keep the bird feeders behind the house well stocked and watch for any further attacks. There are lots of youngsters coming to the feeders with their parents right now including blue jays.

As of June 20th the mother is feeding them regularly and the nestlings look like they are doing well. Another pair of bluebirds has shown up in her area and I’m watching closely for any issues between them that would effect the nestlings.

Last updated: June 20, 2019

2017 in Pictures

Gallery

Quarter Moon and Venus at Sunset

Waterfowl on Pond – Buffleheads, Mallards, Canada Geese

Dish Mount Pole Excavation Project Feb 2017

Dish Anntenna Mount Burial Project

Orphaned Rabbit

James’ Tumor

James Surgical Scar

TyeDye Enjoying the Sunny Day

Jasper Sleeping Under Blanket on Couch

Percy with Andi

Percy with Andi

Percy on Fence Railing

4 Baby Robins, 2nd Clutch

Baby Robins on Very Hot Day

3 Chipping Sparrow Nestlings in Beauty Bush

Ozzie Sleeping on Shetland Fleece Next to Picker

Dusky Blue Damselfly

Chip the Sparrow Fledgling

Fledgling Chip the Sparrow in Grapevine Hide Away

Joe Pye Weed

Cosmos and Russian Sage

Skipper on Butterfly Bush

Eclipse Photos

Fall Foliage in Fog

Megan Enjoying the Fall Sunshine

Hoar Frost

Hoar Frost

Hoar Frost

Hoar Frost

Bald Eagle with Crows

USA Made Super Wash Wool and Other Purchasing Decisions

https://extension.umd.edu/sites/extension.umd.edu/files/_images/locations/queen_annes_county/LESREC_chickens.jpg

Commercial “Free Range” Egg Production Photo from University of MD extension website

Versus

Dominique Laying Hen at Dancing Waters Farm

Installing a super wash processing facility in the USA back in 2011 allowed the production of 100% USA produced commercial wool products for the first time.  It rescued the American wool industry which could not compete with wool products made in other countries since USA produced wool had to be sent over seas to be super wash processed.  Good or bad, in order for wool to compete with other fibers used in cloth/ yarns it needs to be super wash processed so it can be machine washed.  A blog article by Pigeonroof Studios gives a good overview of the historical details and impacts of opening this super wash facility, in particular with respect to environmental issues.

The article is focused on large commercial producers, so when it says “Chargeurs is the only remaining top making facility in the United States, and one of only two remaining commercial scouring facilities.” it is excluding small USA fiber mills.  I have my tops processed by Zeilinger’s in Michigan for example, but they are one of the few mills that process tops in small lots (10 pounds minimum raw, 5 pounds minimum washed).  The other thing that has happened recently is that the military cancelled their contract for American wool and although it ‘s certain to have a negative impact on the US wool industry, it won’t be as bad as it would have been 5 years ago as many other commercial users are now taking advantage of the facility (socks for consumers, etc.).   Chargeurs is still the only super wash facility in the USA but the minimums are too large for small producers unless they combine lots with other small producers.

The real issue with farming is that it is so labor intensive that the real cost of producing anything (eggs, vegetables, wool, mohair, etc.) is so high that no one will buy it at true cost.  Eggs would sell for about $9/dozen to be equal to what they sold for back in the 1920s, after  adjusting only for inflation/ value of the dollar changes.

The only way to make a profit is by economies of scale, using the cheapest possible ingredients, practices that reduce labor costs and depending on government subsidies.  This translates into poorer feed quality, smaller living quarters (ridiculously small for chickens and pigs)  and less attention to health in animals and large scale use of herbicides/ pesticides/ genetically modified plants and large equipment in the case of plant crops.

A somewhat humorous sidebar is that John Deere makes more money financing than selling equipment.  [See: https://www.statista.com/statistics/271866/john-deere-net-sales-since-2001/which shows $23B in sales, net income $1.5B in 2016 from equipment, but $2.7B from financing (look at revenue by segment to get amount from finance)].   They are making their money by financing bigger and more expensive equipment to farmers who are trying to keep their economies of scale large enough to pay their bills (those big tractors can easily cost $500,000).

That’s why the majority of small farms have a second job to pay the bills that can’t be paid with their farm sales.  Keep this is mind when you’re buying farm products.  Do you want to use your money for products that have been produced using the best sustainable practices (kind to the environment) and which provide animals humane care or do you only care about the cheapest product?  This is a social issue which receives very little discussion.  I believe there has to be a way to feed and cloth people including those with limited means as well as pay the producers (small farmers) what it costs to produce the items and provide some profit.  Small farmers are doing what we do for the perks: enjoying and assuring  good life for animals and the environment, the ability to work in the great outdoors and to be our own boss.  However, I believe they should be earning at least minimum wage for their efforts.

 

Sock Knitting Exploration – Version 2

My second project ….

Used FLK  (Fish Lip Kiss) pattern for sizing and heel.   I used Turkish Cast On and Magic Loop from the toe up approach. This pair was done on two circulars, and I did an inch on one sock then an inch on the other sock in order to avoid the dreaded SSS (single sock syndrome).  Still not quite ready for two at a time Magic Loop!  It took me about 15 hours of knitting for the pair which was dramatically better than for the 1st pair (>40 hours). I can only hope this trend will continue!

The yarn used for the  sock body was Rambler’s Way Handpaint Rambouillet DK (100% American raised wool and spinning) which is spun with a high twist.  The heels were done in a worsted 2ply 100% mohair yarn which was very slippery and hard to knit with to keep about the same gauge as the sock body.

I also tried “Feeding Ducks and Holding Hands” stitch pattern for the top of the sock body (available as a scarf pattern free on Ravelry). I converted it to a knit only version (it’s written as a purl version).  The knit version is initially slightly more difficult to do than as a purl version, but easy enough as long as the stitches are not made too tightly.  Loved this stitch pattern as it’s easy to do as well as remember (no need to keep checking the pattern!) and looks fantastic with this kind of yarn (relatively short color repeats).

Due to the size of the yarn they don’t fit in regular shoes but are fine in boots or slippers.

Now to test wear ability vs version 1!

 

Learnings:

100% mohair is slippery and more difficult to knit with than all wool.  Up to this point had only knit with my 75% mohair – 25% wool roving/ tops that had been handspun.

Next….Same pattern, but using superwash wool with 25% nylon ie-classic sock yarn. Already not happy with my choice – took 4 hours to convert the skein into a center pull ball. It’s also a very slippery yarn.  The superwash process removes the scales from the wool (so it won’t felt) which not surprisingly makes the yarn slippery vs regular wool.

Project info

Fish Lips Kiss Heel by Sox Therapist

US 4 – 3.5 mm

: Rambler’s Way Handpainted Rambouillet DK, = 600.0 yards (548.6 meters), 10.58 ounces – I used about half a skein;
: Sunglow;
: Discontinued Brand Name Yarn

Construction Details:

Toe up, each sock on it’s own circular working one then the other about an inch at a time

Turkish Cast on (4 stitches = 1″), wedge toe, increased (inserted a backwards yarn loop) 4 stitches/ row up to 24 stitches then increased every other row up to 40 stitches total

Foot and leg: Stockinette (on circulars so straight knitting)

Heel: 100% 2 ply mohair yarn, FLK pattern

Finish: 2 x 2 rib for an inch and a standard loose bind off

Socks Version 1
Socks Version 2
Socks Version 3