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After the farm conference was over, I got to book it north back toward San Fran, and the real vacay begins! A day playing tourist in The City, a few days hiking around the hills and open space of the North Bay (aka Marin County), next will be going to the beach and a little further up the coast to Napa and Sonoma (aka Wine Country) where this small regenerative farmer can scowl at giant mono-cropped vineyards. I return to the north country this weekend and will relieve my dad of his chicken tender duties. He had a visit from the wolves a few nights ago which gave him a jump, but all the feathered and furry friends slept right through undisturbed. The warm weather has been great for the birds as they've been laying eggs left and right! Be sure to get some tomorrow, January 31st from 12-1230pm at Fireman's Park parking lot in Libby!  You could say the north side of the Golden Gate is my ancestral home and passing over the bridge with The City behind me an all the open space of Marin ahead is always a happy site!   Just some Blue Macaws napping in the rainforest as you walk up the spiral causeway that winds up the dome!   A big tropical catfish, like 4+feet long, just chilling by the elevator as you leave the rainforest  A fav photo op is in the giant walk through tunnel under the rainforest river where the fish swim over and around you. Those bigins are over 8 feet long and will swim right over and behind you! My older sister works for Industrial Lights & Magic (ILM), aka makers of Star Wars, Indiana Jones, the Mandalorian, E.T., and on and on and she took us on a tour of what visitors are allowed to see and I'm not normally a big photo op person but I had to get some with my favs! FYI, my sister has a Science and Technology Academy Award for her work at ILM and she's one of the names you'll see in movie credits! I've been returning to some of my old haunts that used to be my way to escape from the traffic and chaos of humanity and walk amongst some trees. Everyone thinks of the warm sunny California summers but winter can be just a cool since it's when the rains come, the moss gets juicy and green, and all the flowers prepare to work their magic come march, april, and may! Then the grasses turn 'gold' (the origin of the name Golden Gate) and the heat begins! But for now the woods and meadows are green and the little newts and frogs and salmon make their way down to the rivers and reservoirs to make more newts and frogs and salmon! What's available this week?
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After three years on the farm and working everyday to grow and build, I get a chance to step away, learn new things, and visit the ocean. This week I'm attending the EcoFarm Conference in Monterey, CA, right on the ocean and will get to go to 2.5 days of talks and workshops and seed swaps and meet a lot of interesting and diverse farmers from all over! The chickens remain in good hands with my dad and are all are enjoying the mild weather! Be sure to stop in and get some eggs from him this Friday from 12-1230pm at the Fireman's Park parking lot! There won't be any microgreens until after I return but the clucks and quackers are laying well and my Dad can't eat them alone! Please bring cash or check as I didn't want to bother my dad with installing the card app on his phone!  The ocean! I definitely recommend visiting in winter to avoid crowds and still enjoy the California weather! After a long few days of driving it's nice to put feet to the earth and rest.   The first day of the organic farming conference was a bus tour to three farms. This was the only one that grew flowers as well as veg & strawberries. And yes, the anemones were blooming, the artichokes were up, some strawberries were ripe, and lots of lettuce growing. Around Monterey crops can be grown year round!  A quick stopover at my parent's house before continuing to the conference meant I got to check out their Meyer lemon crop. This is just one of 5 trees and each fruit can get to be softball size! yum yum! (Sorry for the sideways photo, editing in a hotel room has its challenges)  What's available this week?
Where to find it all?
The winter egg/microgreen delivery is every Friday from 12-1230pm at the Fireman's Park Parking Lot. I'll be there rain, snow, shine, or freeze! The carport has been finished just in time for the snow to fall and for me to shove everything underneath it! The wind likes to put the snow wherever it decides it should go, so I go and move it again as the paths emerge from the field. The chickens soak up any sunshine they can get as it is few and far between! And Hella explores the new jungle gym that has been built just for her (or so she thinks!) There will be eggs and microgreens tomorrow in Libby at the Fireman's Park parking lot from 12-1230pm. It will be the last microgreens available for the next 3 weeks since I will be gone. But the eggs (both chicken and duck) will be available while I'm gone since my Dad is here to watch over them and bring you the yummy yolks! He'll be with me tomorrow so stop by to say Hi! (look for a dark red Ford Ranger instead of my usual black truck as I will be driving it down to the conference)  Snow in sunshine helps to brighten up a winter day! And helps show off the completely finished carport helping to anchor the barn in place, not that is was gonna float away, but it certainly helps!  It has also become the new fav hangout of Hella, when she actually wants to go outside. She can sit atop the stored wood and watch over her kingdom!   With the snow keeping the chickens inside, the old sawhorses step up and become perches so the hens can get up in the sunshine and get their feet outta the cold snow!  The ducks and drakes also decided to enjoy the sun with a little splashy bath time in their heated bowls! Scrub a dub duck! What's available this week?
With the coming cold, it seems like the snow might finally stay this time. This also means the hens stay inside as more than a dusting of snow is not to be trusted by them and they prefer their covered runs & huts with warm heat lamps and tasty treats. The carport is also done in time for the snow and the next few days I'll be able to fill it up with all the gear for washing veggies and prepping flowers, as well a car or two and a tiny tractor. More and more inside work gets done as seed ordering and planting plans get prepped and labels and packaging gets completed for the upcoming year. It's filled with many new varieties of flowers and some favorite veggies! As usual I'll be in Libby on Friday from 12-1230 with eggs & microgreens at the Fireman's Park parking lot. Pick up some before the storm come and really brings the snow!  Only the metal roof remains to be finished, but the rest of the carport was finished yesterday as the snow really started blowing!  I moved the bones of the new veggie washing and prepping area right away to see how the layout would work in the new area!    Even though the roosters are now sequestered in their bachelor space, the hens like to come over and say Hi as Bae and Elvis share a moment through the gate. Even if the poor roosters have become jail birds, the hens are better looking and less stressed for it.  The next week will see this all covered in snow hopefully soon to be followed by some ski tracks going round and round the field.  Hella has her favorite bow on the couch that she likes to curl up in and sometimes, very naughtily just as I step away to take a break, she steals the shuttle from my weaving to use as a pillow requiring me to very carefully remove it from her possession. What's available this week?
Welcome to 2020! With rain, more rain, some hail, and a distinct lack of snow. The hens are tolerating it well, mainly since no snow pack means they still get out for recess so they can find those spots of green grass and the wet soggy soil means a lot of bugs and grubs are trying to escape upwards out of the deluge (if they aren't frozen in lower down). At least the microgreens grow happily in their inside lighted suite, unbothered by the cool or damp. You can get them and some eggs this Friday between 12-1230 at Fireman's Park parking lot to help celebrate the new year and help you with any resolutions you might be trying to keep! Nothing like fresh, local veg and eggs packed with good for you nutrients and good for you taste!  Wet, soggy runs means a layer of straw to help keep chicky feet dry and also so I don't slide into a muddy mess.   The hens get into everything. Anywhere I am, they soon follow. This isn't a problem in winter since I'm not in such a hurry as spring or summer. Here Shirley helps me loosen up some straw for the ducks, even if it is only to get to some grass underneath.  The ducks are the messiest there are. With their big feet that squishes the dirt and mud, and their bills that slap in the water bowls and splash it all out, they always create a muddy (and eventually frozen) mess. A little straw goes a long way, even if it doesn't last for long, in making the mud navigable. I do have to admit that I am to blame as well since I give them extra water bowls to splash and play in but they could just splash it into the bowl and not out. Just sayin'.  Laverne, (Shirley's other half), help RiRi, in her hen saddle, find yummy grass and grubs amid the muck and mud. What's available this week?
Where to find it all?
The winter egg/microgreen delivery is every Friday from 12-1230pm at the Fireman's Park Parking Lot. I'll be there rain, snow, shine, or freeze! |
AuthorI'm Farmer Megan with a life full of cackles, clucks, quacks, weeds, crazy kitten, and one tiny, senior, blind dog. Archives
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