April - Fools, Spring, Planting, and More!

Whew! Made it through April Fool's Day without too many fools! While I can appreciate a good prank, I get so angry at pointless pranks of someone supposedly getting married, or having a baby, etc. It sends me over the top! Fortunately, I didn't have to deal with a single prank...just a few fools. ;-)

While Winter is my favorite season, I have some things I love about every season. Spring especially! Spring is a time of rebirth, resurrection, and renewal. I love watching the grass change from brown and crispy, to green, lush and soft. I love seeing the trees bud out, and flowers break through the soil. My absolute favorite thing...getting back into my gardens! I am still anxiously awaiting warm enough temps to get in the gardens this year, but oh when I do!!! I have lots of plans for outdoor projects this Spring and Summer. 3 vegetable gardens(and some Three Sisters Planting experiments), a new deck on the front of the house, a courtyard and fenced yard for the dogs, my wild garden, our orchard, and lots of new trees! We have some seeding to put in that was worked under last year. Lots of grass seed that didn't grow last year and finally gravel for our driveway. We have a tractor and baler to get ready for haying, and fence to build in our pasture, the front of the house and in the big pasture. We have gotten 25 meat chickens for butchering later, and 18 new laying hens to replace some of our older hens. We have 2 sows that should pig later this month or the start of May. After a long Winter, with several animals lost to the cold and predators...I am ready to reconsider livestock!

As Spring is always a busy season for us, I start planning my gardens in January. The planning this year began by learning about the Three Sisters Planting, and companion planting. While these methods have been around for hundreds of years, it's only now coming back into view. The American Indians and early farmers were aware of the changing weather conditions, so they planted to maximize their crops with minimal stress from those changing weather conditions. One example stays with me. They would plant corn, runner beans, and squash(vine) together. This would have corn growing in the center, supported by the ring of runner beans, and the vines of squash would keep the ground covered to retain moisture. Using this method, allowed the beans to support the corn from strong winds, and the beans put nitrogen in the ground which is a vital nutrient for corn, and the squash being a vine plant would cover the ground around the corn allowing moisture to stay during drier weather. It seems like a perfect fix for poor soils, drought, and prairie winds. So, we are going to experiment this year with a small patch of our garden. We'll see how this goes! We have decided to plant several dwarf fruit trees to begin our orchard. We have also decided to give blueberries, strawberries, lavender and several herbs.

As our lives get a little crazy for a few months, I hope my "garden therapy," holds out! I am hoping to get to see one of my best friends graduate from college in May. I know how hard she has worked to get this done. Plus she has done it around a job, a child and a home life. I am so very proud of all she has accomplished! I also hope to continue my education and be able to get back into nuclear power for a job. While it's not ideal for me to have a job aside from mom/wife and our farm...I need something for me. The thought of being able to make a decent income, with something I always enjoyed, and do most of it from home is very appealing. While I will continue to interview and hope someone will take a chance on someone who hasn't worked outside home for 10 years...I will continue to learn, grow, and improve myself. As I have said many times, I love to learn!

Speaking of learning, you just never know where your studies will take you. I don't get out much, away from our property. However, I talk to people online every single day. Many of which live all over the world. While it's fascinating to me how different areas live, it really makes me appreciate the simple, laid back life we have. While talking to different friends over the past week, I've learned some valuable lessons, valuable information, hurt from a few comments, and enlightened by some of the best friends ever. I can't help but appreciate every aspect of the lessons I've learned in just a weeks time. While I have actually had phone/online conversations with 6 of my closest friends...each of them has had their own issues. I value their friendship and would never judge them. I would also do anything I could for each of them. I've always heard that the number of friends is unimportant compared to the quality of your friendships. These 6 people are the best! I love each of them dearly and even when life throws us curve balls and we lose touch for a period, we pick up right where we left off.

As I begin our day, and enjoy the sunshine, warmer temps, and the sight of green grass...I am counting the many blessings I know of, and offering a thanks to all the ones I take for granted. Have a beautiful day!

~Sal~