The Muddy Muddy Month of April

It's official - this is the wettest April of all time with over 9".  And the month isn't over.  As I write this storms are barreling in our direction from Alabama.  Considering all the damage caused elsewhere by this month's weather we're very lucky to have nothing more than a muddy yard to contend with.

However, muddy fields mean no fence progress although we now have a replenished stock of fenceposts.  The bees don't care much for the rain, either.  We've seen some activity - they've explored the vast dandelion field outside the hive and made some trips to the barn and the house.  More things are blooming now which should help with their pollen collection. 

Here's a couple pics of the girls' arrival last Thursday.  Yes, it was sunny that afternoon.  Ah, how I wish it would be sunny again!!

The girls check out their new condo

Selena and the girls

After they get settled we'll check the hives for activity and make sure the queen's out of her candy cage (probably Saturday - it's supposed to be sunny!).  We'll also refill the feeders with Brady's special bee syrup and leave them alone for another week.

Confirmed hummingbird sighting on April 26 at 7pm.

What's Blooming
Tulips, Crab Apples, Lilacs, some blooms spotted on the apple tree near the garden

Coming Up

Hive inspection, break ground in the garden (weather permitting), clean chicken coop, continue fence project

The Weekend Buzz

It was a hit-and-miss weekend.  Saturday: rainy & cold.  Sunday: windy and cool, but sunny by late afternoon.  I'm beginning to think it'll never be spring.  But we remain optimistic - the hummingbird feeders are out and Brady & Cody braved the cold on Sunday to set up the bee hives.  We should get our packages of bees on Thursday.  Hope they bring their jackets.

Cody & Brady with Hive #2

 
Other things are happening at the farm when the weather won't allow any progress on the fence project.  Brady has a new router (woodworking, not computer) and already has two nucs built and painted.  I'm knitting a pair of socks for his grandmother - just a basic sock pattern, something I can veg and knit while watching TV at night.  I love the yarn - Premier Deborah Norville Serenity Sock Yarn in Tanzanite.  It has a lot of purple in it - reminds me of the "When I am an old woman I shall wear purple..." poem.  I hope she smiles when she wears them.

Soon I'll publish my basic sock pattern and eventually have a few original designs to share.  Once the fence is done, that is.

Spring Break

The fencing project on the farm continues (weather and time permitting). Two weeks ago we put up the first gate on what had to be the most miserable spring day in the history of Ohio - 40° and sleet! Ok, maybe not the coldest April day on record .... but it had to be close. By this past weekend we were on the extreme high side of spring - 80° and loads of sunshine. Much better fencing weather.

During the sleet weekend Brady & Cody accidentally chewed up more than 3ft of Ohio farmland - they drilled through a mysterious PVC pipe which we later found out was the driveway runoff to the creek.  After a couple of trips to Lowe's Brady had everything repaired and flowing once again.  We even had an impromptu rat burial (courtesy of Cody's well-placed barn trap).


We're up to the last 300ft of fencing but running low on the fencepost stash. By the end of the weekend our little project will be on hiatus until more supplies are trucked in.  In the meanwhile, here's a couple of pics:

The sleet gate - note the few remaining posts on the right

Looking down the field

What's Blooming

Daffodils, Bradford Pears, Tulip Trees, Forsythia

Coming Up

Paint and put out bee hives this weekend.  Swarms arrive on the 21st.

Put out hummingbird feeders.  Here's a handy site for migration dates -  hummingbirds.net

Lost and Found Bluegrass Band

The New Toy

The new tractor is here!!  The new tractor is here!! 

Kubota BX2660 with front end loader, tiller and auger attachments.  Brand new, orange paint still shiny (chances are it'll get washed more than the truck).  And yes, it has a cupholder, lol!  BTW, the owner's manual is located in a hidden pocket behind the seat.  I'm just sayin'.  The "quick hitch" system isn't all that quick and although Brady can handle it by himself it would be a struggle for me to manage alone.  We couldn't wait to put it through its paces but we had to wait until Sunday night to introduce it to the farm.  First chore on the list .... the dreaded fence.

Since it was our first trial of the auger attachment and since we didn't want to dig random practice holes in the field, we decided to dig an actual hole for the first fence post where the general public wouldn't see it in case it turned out a bit lopsided.

All in all, it was a successful first fencepost. But with the light fading and the weather getting much colder (hovering around the freezing point) we put off the 2nd post for another day.  Only 70 or so more to go.

 

Fencing 101

Although winter is "officially" over in Ohio, Mother Nature never got the text message. We started the week in the low 70's and will end the weekend in the low 40's with snow flurries.  Yikes!

Regardless of the weather, spring chores have begun at Smith's Creek Farm.  Any day now our brand new tractor will arrive and soon after that the new fence goes in.

Brady bought the fencing and gates this morning and two weeks ago we cut black locust logs for posts.  Now all we need is the tractor and auger.