Photos by Barbara and Ivan Linderman In Biodynamic farming we are asked to include animals on the farm, something most farmers no longer do. We want to have enough of the right kinds and numbers of animals to provide manures to compost to then fertilize our crops—and have enough food to feed the animals. That… Read more »
Sticky monkeyflower tends to hang outwith poison oak and coyote bush. One of the plants in full bloom now is sticky monkeyflower. A member of the figwort family, the flower blooms on our hillsides most of the summer. The hummingbirds love it, and so do goats! I wonder what energies are collected and moved about… Read more »
Anna and the compost pile (which is in process of being spread) This short YouTube film shows the importance of soil building in sequestering carbon (in carbon dioxide) and slowing and/or stopping global warming. Inspiring in its four minute message, it also lacks detail, like what would it mean to increase organic matter by 1.6%?… Read more »
If you don’t want your goats in your garden, and believe me, you don’t! —then bring your garden (weeds) to your goats! Goats (and llamas) are energetic disposers of weeds, in this case, lots of plantain and mallow, turning this windfall of green into manure to compost. This also cuts down on the hay we… Read more »
Putting Oak Bark “prep” into manure ball. It’s a Messy Job, but Someone’s Got to do it! We wear gloves to insert compost preps. Once I didn’t―and, well, let’s just say, even lemon juice and Clorox didn’t help! We insert six biodynamic compost preps into the pile in… Read more »
Large load! Shoveling Sh_ _! Yes, it smells like it looks, and yet, it is like gold to us! Since we do not have cows on our ranch, and cow manure is the Biodynamic gold standard for fertility, Donald got two truckloads from Tresch’s Family organic dairy this… Read more »
Harvest Bouquet Food
Spreading Compost We spread last year’s compost pile yesterday afternoon and this morning, saving some for transplanting the helichrysum and lavender plants. The helichrysum will be transplanted this afternoon and tomorrow. Anna in finished compost pile Spreading compost in orchard. The white are minerals a soil test suggested. We till these all in after… Read more »
One of two bins of grape pumice (seeds and skins) from the crush Friday. Starting the Compost Pile, Grape Pumice After harvest there is that brief period of relief and rest (one day!)— and then there is ever so much to do before winter! This week we started… Read more »
Pruning lavender mounds as goats weed. August: Lavender Pruning and Weeding This month we prune the lavender down into the even mounds it spends most of the year in. We then give the mounds a good watering, thank the lavender for a good year, and give it a couple of months to green up and… Read more »
© 2024 Patricia Damery.
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