Sunday Morning in the Sanctuary of the Grateful Farmers

Another glorious morning at Squash Blossom Farm!  Join me on my morning rounds.

First, the chickens get let out of the coop and are given fresh water and breakfast.

The  baby chicks are starting to look like chickens. The cochin chicks look pretty funny right now--just starting to grow their fluffy tail feathers and leg feathers.

Speckles always runs up for special attention.

During the foraging walk yesterday,  a pair of guineas with newly hatched keets was discovered nesting in the prairie. This morning the guineas brought their brood up to the farmyard for breakfast.

 Guinea on guard.

The koi and goldfish are always eagerly waiting for breakfast.  THe large ones have become quite friendly and allow me to pet them, especially the big spotted one, which is about 18 inches long.

The catfish have really grown, some at least five-fold in size since we got them in May, and now often swim right with the koi.

The bluegills have also grown a lot, from small fry to about 6 inches in length,  but it is hard to capture them in a photo.

After their morning treat of a scoop of corn, I moved the cows to the front yard. LaFonda helped herself to one of her favorite plants, wild grapevines, growing on the fence along the way.

The greenhouse plants must be watered morning and evening. The hanging baskets look a bit scruffy in the mid -summer heat, but I am so proud of myself for keeping them alive and blooming this long. I am more of a free-range type of gardener than contained plants.

In the veggie garden, tomatoes of all shapes and colors are beginning to ripen like crazy. I love, love, love this time of year for veggies.

The cucumbers are huge and delicious!

Buttercup squash,,,

butternut squash, not to mention spaghetti, acorn, delicata, patty pan, and zucchini!

Scarlet runner beans climb by the  Unbearably Cute Garden Shed.

Rudbeckia in the granary garden.

Zinnie  happily joins me for the walk down to check out the pond.

Wildflowers, especially black-eyed-Susans, have taken root in the clay soil banks of the pond.

 So wonderful to be able to actually see the big glacial erratic rock, thanks to the pulling of weeds and  buckthorn the Nelson family tackled during the reunion.

The pond has greatly increased farm's dragonfly population.

The pink, dinner-plate-sized, hardy hibiscus  have begun to bloom along the patio fence.

Years ago I  brought home a potted Sacred Datura plant and placed by the fountain. It self-sowed some seeds along the foundation of the  house, and now we get these gorgeous blossoms every summer.
We are so blessed and grateful to  live in this beautiful, abundant little farm! 

A Brush With Our House's History

Last winter, a Christmas card to our neighbors was accidently delivered to us. When I popped it into the neighbor's mailbox I noticed that the name on the return address matched the name of a previous owner of our farm. I copied down the return address and sent a holiday card to her, inviting her to visit someday and share stories of how the farm used to be.

On Sunday, Lois and her youngest son, John, came to visit. Lois and her husband Ray owned our farm from 1967 until 1998, raising 5 children here. When they moved here, the house had no running water, no insulation and was heated by coal. They renovated the entire house bottom to top over the next couple decades.

Lois told us many anecdotes and brought a book of old photos --it's pretty dramatic how the landscape and house have changed. The little seedlings they planted on the windswept hill have grown into large trees. With the mentorship of kind neighbors, Lois, a city girl, learned how to garden, raise chickens and preserve food. The kids sold strawberries from their huge berry patch. Lois planted the wonderful lilac hedge, the spectacular crabapple trees and most of the flowering shrubs on the property. John and his father planted many trees - once he rescued a burr oak seedling from the ditch when the road was being widened and planted it in the yard--it is now the handsome tree we call Burr Oak Obama.

What a sweet opportunity to meet Lois and John and hear first-hand how the farm grew. They have left their mark on this place and we recognize and appreciate the thought and love they put into it. I am sure it was rather bittersweet for them to relive so many memories and see how things have changed in the decade since they lived here, but I hope they feel pleased about how much we love it here.

Cactus TLC

My two grandmothers were fond friends who played Scrabble and Dominos together and both loved flowers; Grandma J. was an irrepressible outdoor gardener and Grandma W. nurtured houseplants.

When my Grandma J. was in the hospital two years ago, just before she died at age 92, she told me she wanted me to take care of The Christmas Cactus. My Grandma W. had given it to her about fifteen years earlier when she moved away to live with my aunt in Oregon (She lived to age 90.) I remember every winter when I was a little girl Grandma W. would gleefully brag about how many blossoms The Christmas Cactus was sporting. She told me that The Christmas Cactus was very old--she had inherited it from Grandpa W.'s mother. I guesstimate that it must be at least 80 years old now! The center of its woody stem (trunk?) is about 3 inches in diameter.

I am not the most reliable houseplant caretaker, so I was a bit worried about this responsibility. However, the next Christmas the plant was totally smothered in spectacular blooms- I felt like it was a gift from my Grandmas.

When we moved to the farm in September, I set The Christmas Cactus on a stack of big boxes in my office, where it thrived for several weeks until one day, there was a tremendous crash. The top box had suddenly caved in and The Beloved Christmas Cactus was lying upside down in a heap on the floor. Half of its branches were broken off. Dirt was everywhere. I scooped it back together, and it has been sort of languishing ever since. It didn't bloom for me this past Christmas.

Today Cadence and I re-potted The Christmas Cactus into a bigger pot using official "cactus" potting soil. I moved it to the west window. It looks visibly happier already.