Looking out at the farmyard I see a sea of yellow; with neon-yellow dandelions against the neon-green of the grass in our yard. No one would call the area around the house and buildings on our farm a lawn.
Continue reading “Dandelions and Violets in My Yard”Rhubarb Cobbler
A clump of rhubarb is a given on any older farmstead. Our farmstead is no exception, and it features two rhubarb clumps. I could divide them, and expand my rhubarb holdings, but my two clumps are enough.
Continue reading “Rhubarb Cobbler”Is Farming the Best Job Ever?
According to Andrew Van Dam’s recent Washington Post article, The happiest, least stressful, most meaningful jobs in America, farmers, lumberjacks and foresters love their jobs the most. Lawyers self-report that they are the least happy profession in the United States.
Why in the world would the whitest of the white-collar professions have less career happiness than the bluest of the blue-collar professions?
Great is My Thankfulness
There is so much to be thankful for this year. On November 9th the crop was put safely in our bins. The moisture content of our corn and beans were good, and bushel counts were outstanding.
During the growing season there were timely rains and the weather was great for raising grains. During the harvest there were a couple of rains that slowed us down for a few days, but not enough to cause the gnashing of teeth. It was a very dewy summer and fall, but the dew dried off every morning so there was little slow down to our combining. Continue reading “Great is My Thankfulness”
Country Road Safety
If you drive on country roads, you are probably aware of the dangers ahead. If you’ve never driven a country road, Fasten Your Seatbelt. It’s Going Be a Bumpy Night!
A Very Productive Gardening Method
Raise your hand if you hate to pull weeds. Are all hands up? Now that we all agree that weeding a garden is everyone’s least-liked gardening activity, I will outline the steps needed to create a no weeding and very productive garden.
Garden Plant Deals
What A Deal!
Here’s a way to get the best deal on gardening supplies. Be the last person to plant your garden!
Big Yield and No Weeding Gardening
Between the years of Covid and expanding inflation, you may be considering gardening. Thoughts of having to tend plants coupled with additional thoughts of backbreaking weeding and constant watering may have caused you to stop your gardening considerations.
Well, I have exciting news for you! We have a productive garden and we NEVER pull weeds or water much.
Farm Work in Cold Weather
Why Crop Rotation Works
Iowa is known for corn. US state maps have corn as an image for Iowa. If you’ve ever taken a drive through Iowa, you will see cornfields as far as the eye can see. Corn upon corn upon corn.
So why did we plant most of our farm in soybeans this year?