should'ves , could'ves, but didn'ts

Oh I should have gathered firewood while it was dry! Dang it. I know it's weird...firewood in the desert??? But yes, we have it. We have a creek behind our house. In it we find firewood and pinecones. A long time ago a flood of snow runoff came down from the very nearby mountains bringing pine trees and debris with it. Burns really nice.

Bur I didn't get any and we have no furnace so now I'll have to be cold and wet.

I knew I should have bought that rain slicker yesterday..

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oh happy days of spring newness!!

Remember those little pumpkins that were all uprooted by my 3 year old? Well good new! Eight of the survived. Only 3 out of 12 of the snap peas made it. The Swiss Chard and radishes are doing very good.

Today I planted cucumbers , eggplant, bell peppers, corn and tomatillos. My spinach all died but I guess its early in the year for them even though I started in doors. Apprarently lettuces are a fall crop as far as deserts are concerned.

I picked up 4 barred rock hen chicks at the feed store today. I went in for burmuda/ alfalfa pellets for the horses and layer mash for the ducks. $80 later I had that And a complete set up for the chickies. It took all my might to only take four!

Evelyn the lamancha is getting delivered Sunday. My sons cant prounce it so it comes out ECHO for some reason. We'll see if it stays.

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new additions

This weekend yielded a couple new additions here at Rockabilly Ranch. We adopted a mustang colt named Thunder. Of course, he was delivered with a cold. Second - we done got ourselves a new truck, a 1976 Ford pick up. This is the FOURTH truck we've had in 3 years. Nothing was wrong with the others. Lover trade cars like baseball cards...

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one reason farm animals are awesome

Many people would see this plate of cucumber, banana peels, and potato peels as garbage, or perhaps disposal trash. Even still, some of you might think them a great addition to your compost pile. Me? I see fodder for my rabbits and ducks.... and they LOVE me for it.

If you can't have ducks or chickens, consider a couple rabbits. They'll. Eat your scraps and provide you with lovely manure for your garden!!

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super secret purchase

These shall BE MINE!!! MUAHAHAHAAHAH!!!
Lover said we needed a Buck ( not my fault which type wasn't specified ;- D )

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planting seedlings

Yesterday in the wake of my partially destroyed pumpkin crop I planted a few more seeds.

I added watermelons, radishes, carrots. And swish chard. I can only hope the majority of the seedlings survive. I didn't plant a huge crop because here in the desert we get two growing seasons. If I do well this spring then I'll. Plant a separate crop in the fall.

I've chosen heat tolerant ( and fool Hardy) crops like watermelons and squashes. I didn't want to get to big for my britches and lose a nice crop because I'm an idiot, either.
I plan on planting sunchokes and potatoes. Yet another thing I can't screw up! And sunchokes will come back year after ( even when you don't want them to).

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Yum Yums growing in crap

When most of you see this photo, you'll see weeds. What I see is a feast of rich green fodder for both rabbit and duck alike. This is where the old horse manure pile used to be. Every morning and evening I head out with my little pale and cut, yes cut, the weeds to wash and feed the critters. As long as I cut it, it will continue to grow for several months providing me with a good portion of my duck and rabbit diet. The weed in question is known as London rocket. I only have 2 young rabbits at present so it lasts quite a while. Boy ain't it a beautiful thing?

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The Giant Angora Rabbit

Its haunting my dreams at night. The giant furry beast of adorableness known as the giant Angora rabbit. I'm a bit of a fiber nut. I have fiber goats. We used to have a resident sheep here as well. I buy natural fiber yarn all the time. So when I asked other hobby farmers what their favorite heritage breed rabbit was and got ' giant / German angora' back as a reply my heart went to pittering and pattering.

In typical me fashion I probed the internet, sending my little mental feelers out into cyber space to suck up as much information as I possibly could. I emailed several breeders and one emailed me back. I am now on the list for a kit within the next couple of months.

While both the German and giant Angora are primarily fiber pets, they also have been used as a dual purpose meat&fiber breed.

However at $100-$200 each, I can't see keeping these producers of future garments as a meat breed.

My fingers are just itching to twist And spin this Angora wool into something beautiful.

By the way, Angora fiber comes from Angora RABBITS. Angora GOATS produce mohair.

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the new goat

Lily is letting me get a little closer, but still runs if I approach her. I have to let her come to me. This is a new pic.

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Introducing Lily DeLuna

We just added an Angora doe to our herd. She's a bit shy, a little flighty. But she'll come around. It just takes patience.

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oh little frustrations caused by little hands

I started some seeds indoors. There is only one place to do such a thing in my home, the sun room. That one room where the little ones aren't allowed to venture. The forbidden space which belongs to Mama is oh so suductive to the Little Ones. The treachery that is the violation of said space is punishable by death. Yet Here we are glaring down at what was once my germinating seeds.

I suppose its my fault. I did encourage them and allow them to help me pick out the seeds and spoon soil over the treasured tiny gems of edible goodness.

I now have no idea what will spring up where. For when I returned from taking water heater measurements, I found soiled little hands fleeing on fast running little feet from The Forbidden Room. Every seed packet opened and mixed. My last words prior to my 3 minute departure were "stay out of there. I will be right back." Such a fool, I was to think they.would listen.

They have been banished to their room where they shall stay until I finish reading a few chapters.

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