Sweet Local Farm

Take a tour of our farm in the winter.

Or should I say, once every two and a half years? Tomorrow night we will witness a true blue moon. A blue moon is the second full moon in a month. Usually, there is only one full moon per month. What a rarity for New Years Eve.

The moon will be full tomorrow night, but I shot these photos tonight because I couldn’t help being drawn to the glowing moon hanging low in the sky.

We were so happy to have our niece and nephews stop by the farm after Christmas. They brought treats for the goats and chickens to eat.

Rosemary and Birch sure love visitors, especially if they bring food!

Bella Grace taking in the scene from a safe distance:

We hope they visit again soon!

The men of Piebald, Luke’s band, are on the farm rehearsing for an upcoming show. They took some time off from practicing to chop down some trees we have been meaning to clear from our berry patch.

Ryan took the lead and got to work:

Luke and Travis oversaw the cutting:

Later they got out the chainsaw but I was too nervous to watch.

A few days ago it was warm. I awoke to a soft rain melting away the snow. It was about 40 degrees out and the trees glistened with droplets of water as the sun bounced off. I went for a long walk wearing only a t-shirt. I snapped these photos on my phone just up the street from my house. It felt like spring for a few hours.

The road was shaded and tree lined until I reached the top of the hill. This is the view just over the hill:

The sun melted away the snow:

See the hawk in the tree?

The sun was bright:

One of my favorite blogs, Beekman 1802, sent out this charming holiday video. Please enjoy!

Tomorrow is the Winter Solstice, the shortest day of the year and the longest night. We are celebrating tonight with a traditional yule log and a Walnut Orange Buche de Noel.

Our Yule Log

“The Yule log is a central part of Yule festivities. The log is kindled from the remains of the previous year’s Yule fire. This piece was kept in the home throughout the year for protection. The Yule log symbolizes the light returning to conquer the darkness. According to tradition, the log must either have been harvested from the householder’s land, or given as a gift… it must never have been bought. Once dragged into the house and placed in the fireplace it was decorated in seasonal greenery, doused with cider or ale, and dusted with flour before set ablaze . The log would burn throughout the night, then smolder for 12 days after before being ceremonially put out.”
source

A Buche de Noel is simply a yule log cake. I got the recipe from Martha.

Our Buche de Noel

Yule is a time to reflect on your past year and renew hope of the new year ahead and the returning sun. We wish you a very joyous Yule!

All seeds are from High Mowing Organic Seeds in VT.

Tomato: start inside
Sweetie Cherry Tomato
San Marzano Paste Tomato
Medford Tomato
Yellow Brandywine Tomato
Amish Paste Tomato

Pepper and Eggplant: start inside
King of the North Pepper
Early Jalapeno Pepper
Maya Red Habenero Pepper
Black Beauty Eggplant

Potato: start outside
Rose Finn Apple Fingerling Potato
Russian Banana Fingerling Potato
Yukon Gold Potato
All Red Potato
Red Gold Potato
All Blue Potato

Greens: start outside
High Mowing DMR Lettuce Mix
Astro Arugula
Samish F1 Hybrid Spinach
Fordhook Giant Chard
Dwarf Jewel Nasturtium

Peas and Beans: start outside
Sugar Snap Pea
Gold Rush Wax Bean (bush bean)
Kentucky Wonder Pole Bean
Light Red Kidney Bean (drying bean)
Fiskeby Soybean

Corn: start outside
Luscious F1 Hybrid Corn

Beets, Carrots and Radish: start outside
Early Wonder Tall Top Beet
Guardsmark Chioggia Beet
Cherry Belle Radish
Napoli F1 Hybrid Carrot

Brassicas: some inside/some outside
De Cicco Broccoli
Lacinato Dinosaur Kale
Red Express Cabbage

Winter Squash: start outside
New England Pie Pumpkin
Howden Pumpkin
Long Island Cheese Pumpkin
Sweet REBA Acorn Squash
Waltham Butternut
Baby Blue Hubbard Squash

Summer Squash and Cucumbers: start outside
Yellow Crookneck Squash
Dark Green Zucchini
Little Leaf Cucumber
Marketmore 76 Cucumber

Onions and Chives: start outside
Cortland F1 Hybrid Onion
Red Baron Onion
Chives

Herbs: start outside
Genovese Basil
Dill Bouquet
Santo Cilantro
Common Sage

We are in for a big winter storm starting tonight and into tomorrow. Six to ten inches are expected. We may set up the live feed so you readers can check in on the winter fun! Last year I acquired an awesome toboggan. I’m looking forward to breaking it out and doing some sledding tomorrow.

In other news, we thought the chickens stopped laying two weeks ago. The days are very short and the temperatures have dropped to well below freezing. There were no eggs in the coop so we assumed they took a break. To our surprise, Michael found a hidden nest with over two dozen eggs. It is in the “goat room” in a far corner. We are happy to have eggs again.