October 2021

“October had tremendous possibility. The summer’s oppressive heat was a distant memory, and the golden leaves promised a world full of beautiful adventures.” -Sarah Guillory, Reclaimed

Tis the season to set the garden to rest, stump the reclaimed land, pick apples and brew beer. The crab grass fades golden with the first cool nights. Old and rented equipment break in protest. Indefatigable, we push on to tackle new projects and set old familiar places straight. Highlights from the month included:

• Stumping south of house with excavator 10/1-10/2;
• Heavy equipment (Track Loader arrives) 10/3/2021;
• Stumping and bulldozing south of house  10/9-10/11;
• Plow, disk, and seed garden with oats (~50 lbs) and turnips (2 lbs) 10/17/2021;
• Brew Cider and English bitter ale (total 9 gallons) 10/17/2021;
• Widen farm entrance with culvert 10/17/2021;
• Plant thornless blackberries (12) 10/20/2021;
• Remove 30 more stumps from middle pasture 10/24/2021;
• Repaired seed drill (ordered parts) 10/30/2021;
• Drilled Valley Mix for pasture 10/31/2021

Eight chickens, 2 dogs, 2 cats, and four humans hold down the farm. Brendan continues to research the potential to bring cattle to the farm and Lilli dreams of the day she and Gus will gallop across the pasture.

Meanwhile, the apple trees produced enough ugly apples to make a delicious Arkansas Black and Gold Rush apple pie. An orchard specialist stopped by and gave us a quick assessment of the trees. More pruning and spraying are the order for next year!

The end of the month found us racing against the clock to get cover on the new ground and plant the pasture. We purchased 125 lbs of Valley Pasture Mix from Featherstone Farms (45% Orchardgrass, 10% Harvest Orchardgrass, 20% Perennial Ryegrass, 10% Timothy Grass, 10% Kentucky Bluegrass, 3% Landina Clover, 2% White Clover) and drilled the new pasture at a rate of 25 lbs/acre on October 30th and 31st.

The new ground received a mix of wheat (200#) and red clover (150#). Fingers crossed we have good germination and growth, despite the late hour of planting.

At the end of the month, with the fire ring complete, we welcomed family and friends to toast marshmallows and blacken hotdogs. Together we enjoyed the good feeling of family and campfires. Next week, we’ll be joined by a production team from New York and L.A. as the farm gets a temporary makeover for some TV magic.