Community Supported Agriculture...

… Or more about “Buy Local Now!”

Having been a proponent of organic farming, sustainable agriculture and such for years – I practically teethed on Organic Farming and Mother Earth News magazines! – I often forget that not everyone is familiar with such things. Sometimes it’s due to a lack of exposure, such as people who have always lived in cities and never had the opportunity to garden or farm. Sometimes people have just flat out never heard of such a thing. Other times, it’s just a lack of interest.

However, as more and more people become educated about the importance of the food we put in our bodies, they are taking an interest in where their food comes from and learning more about these things, including Community Supported Agriculture.

This great idea has been around for some time. Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) is defined on the USDA’s website as “a community of individuals who pledge support to a farm operation so that the farmland becomes, either legally or spiritually, the community's farm, with the growers and consumers providing mutual support and sharing the risks and benefits of food production.

Typically, members or "share-holders" of the farm or garden pledge in advance to cover the anticipated costs of the farm operation and farmer's salary. In return, they receive shares in the farm's bounty throughout the growing season, as well as satisfaction gained from reconnecting to the land and participating directly in food production. Members also share in the risks of farming, including poor harvests due to unfavorable weather or pests.”

In some implementations of CSA, people why buy a share also do some of the work on the farm. In others, people pay for a season’s share of produce, but the farmer does all the work. Either way, it’s a good deal for both sides. The farmer gets a guaranteed wage for a season’s work, while those who support him get fresh produce on a regular basis.

If you’re interested in participating in a CSA, ask around in your local community, or search online. Places like Local Harvest have a map with farms marked that participate in CSA in the states. Biodynamic Farming and Gardening Association has listings for both the United States and Canada.

When you find one, hopefully close to you, ask questions. There’s a lot of variation on how these programs are implemented. If you have the opportunity, give it a try! CSA is a great way to support local farmers and get some great food at the same time.

Fresh food is good for everybody!

A Change in Weather

When I looked at the weather forecast today, it said the high would be 95° F. (35° C.). I thought, “Wow! It’s going to be a lot cooler today!”

You know it’s been too hot for too long, when 95°F. sounds cool!

It’s probably cooler because last night it rained. Not just a little-bitty, very brief hardly-wetted-down-anything shower, which is all we’ve got for weeks and weeks, but an honest to goodness thunder storm that lasted for hours. Wooooowwwww…. there was actually 2 ½ inches of water in the rain gauge this morning!

The garden was actually wet without me having to water it!
The dirt in the flower gardens was actually damp!

The pond had more water in it, which was all stirred up from the rain!

There were actually still WET spots on the driveway and road at mid-morning!

There was even a puddle of water on a little table on the front porch!

Did you notice all the fallen, brown leaves in these pictures? That's because of the drought, cause it certainly isn't fall, and the weather certainly hasn't been cool, let alone frosty!

Yes indeed, we sure could use some more of this change in weather.

More rain, and cooler temps please!

Southern Heat

I don’t know about global warming, but I know it’s plenty warm here in the south. I’m not too thrilled when you pass a bank thermometer and it has THREE digits!

Even though it’s in the shade, our thermometer has been reading 98 degrees F. for the last three days. (For those of you using the Celsius scale, that would be almost 37C.) That’s just TOO hot.

Everything here on the farm is trying to cope with the hot weather, from “A” to “Z”. (Okay, so the closest I have to the front of the alphabet is cat, with sheep at the tail end.) All the critters look for shade, but have different habitats and various ways of beating the heat.

Spot, the Cat, likes to lounge around in the shade under our truck, and keep his thirst quenched with Birdie Broth, otherwise known as water out of the bird bath – just a “faint flavor of birdie essence”. I'm not sure if I put fresh water in there for the birds or the cat.


A dust bath is the method of choice for a quick cool down for the Chickens... … while the Dogs like to hang out under the back porch or in the shade of the big walnut trees in the back yard.

Neffie takes a rest (above), while Toby enjoys chewing on a hunk of wood while lazing in the shade (below).

Even our Garden needs help with the heat, especially considering we are also under drought conditions. I’ve had to water the peppers and tomato plants almost every day. (Thank goodness for well water!)

Of course the Goats like to hang out under the shade trees in the back yard with Neffie.

Keira the Llama often joins them, but she also cools down by “burying” herself in a sea of green plants in the bog area of the bottom pasture, though it’s not much of a bog right now!

In the aviary, the Peafowl go for a combination of bathing in the dust or pool.


Last, but not least, the Sheep also opt for spots under the shade trees. Our flock matron has a special spot under a pile of lumber and gets double shade from that and the overhanging tree branches.
One way or another, everyone is looking for shade and the coolest spot possible. I’m thrilled to be able to enjoy the air conditioning inside the house. Yep, I admit it, when it comes to extreme heat, I’m a Wuss.

Beating the heat from "C" to "W" -
Just keep that air conditioning on for the "W" please!

Of Gardens & Goats, Part II...

This morning we worked in the garden again. I had a few tomatoes and peppers left we wanted to plant out there. I had put them in big pots to give them more growing room while waiting for the repair shop to finally fix the rototiller, so we needed a shovel to dig holes big enough to accommodate the balls of dirt without disturbing the roots. Farmer Jess dug holes and plopped the plants in. I helped cover them back up, and we were good to go.

I reckon this is about as late as I’ve ever planted hot weather crops in a garden, but we should get some produce from the stuff we planted today. Better planted late than left in the pot to rot.

As for the goats, it’s like this. Yesterday afternoon I went out to walk a bit and take some pictures. I made it as far as the driveway when I heard that distinct bleat that signals a goat in distress. It didn’t take me long to find the problem:

Yes, even after I’d added a second bungee cord to secure the gate, one of the goats had returned to the scene of the crime, and discovered yet again that once in the aviary, he couldn’t get back out. I’m not sure how long he was in there, but too long.

He obviously tried to get out by jumping through the net. He knocked down one of the supports for the hoop in the very back of the aviary but must have just bounced back off the netting that time. He tore a hole in the netting in the front, and that time he didn’t bounce back. Nope, there he was, hanging in a pocket of netting, until I got him on his feet…

I had to untangle horns and legs from the netting, then pull him up and out. I left the door open when I went inside the aviary to rescue the Houdini Wannabe (after all, he got IN where he shouldn’t be, but then got trapped and couldn’t get back out), so once I had him loose and his feet touched ground again, he was out that door faster than I could get my body back in the upright and walking position.

I added a third bungee cord to the door’s security system. I hope that takes care of pushy goat kids, because the aviary and my back can’t take many more trapped goats and rescues.

And I’m not kidding!

Of Gardens & Goats...

Jess and I wandered out to check the garden last night. The Alabama Crimson Tide Honeysuckle by the gate is blooming. I love the color, and the hummingbirds love the nectar.

We’re actually getting some tomatoes and peppers out of our little garden. Jess helped pick the produce. He enjoys the fresh tomatoes and peppers for lunch, and store bought tomatoes just do not compare to home-grown vine-ripened tomatoes.

He also pulled the water hose out to the other end of the garden, attached a sprinkler, and let the water soak the earth around the most recently planted tomatoes and peppers. We keep hearing rumbles of thunder, but it’s just a tease, and we still haven’t been getting much rain.

As Jess pulled the hose through the fence around the garden, he noticed a caterpillar hanging on the fence. Yes, hanging.

I would guess it’s going to pupate. I have no idea what kind of caterpillar it is, and what type of moth or butterfly it will turn into,so will be out checking it from time to time to see what happens.

This morning after the guys were both off to work, I went out to check the garden again, fill the water buckets for the animals, and throw scraps to the peafowl. Things looked fairly normal at first, but then I saw a strange sight in the peafowl’s aviary - - -

Apparently, Cinnamon’s twin buck kids had stretched out the bungee cord and pushed their way through the door. Once in the aviary, they obviously couldn’t figure out how to get back out. Cinnamon was bawling, and they were playing “butt heads” (which seems pretty appropriate to me).

Those little rascals are such escape artists, but this time they escaped INTO prison. Serves them right. However, getting the goats OUT while leaving the peahens IN was a chore, but I finally managed.

I really got my goat(s). … at least until the next time the little Houdini’s escape!