Water, Water Everywhere

We just set up our irrigation. We have 5 lines set up to a timer system. The timer sends a current to a solenoid, which opens the valve. Here is a picture of three solenoids.

We have a variety of drip systems; soaker-hose, tee-tape, and emitters.For our corn we set up long lines of tee-tape. Tee-tape is a plastic tube that has tiny perforations, set at intervals, that slowly drips water along a path. The following picture shows where the tee-tape connects to the main drip line.

As you can see, Our corn is doing quite well.

And while we are talking about water, I just got a job delivering water bottles. It is tough work, especially in this heat, but I am getting into great shape and I like the company I am working for.

A Dog and Her Boy

I adopted a dog from the local humane society! I've had her for two weeks now and she is working out great. Her name is Jenna, she is mostly black lab, with some pointer or maybe retriever. She is very affectionate and loves swimming. I am hoping I can get her onto the kayak!

Not only is she a lot of fun to have around; but she will also help with the farm. She gives the deer a little incentive to give our crops some space. And she can also scare off nocturnal pests like raccoons, foxes, skunks and bears. I've also been told that you can buy little saddlebags for your dog, and they tend to behave better while wearing them on a hike, because they are given a sense of responsibility.

Country Corn Flakes

Our corn has been in the ground for about a month now. It is amazing how quickly corn grows.

The seed we used promised 80% germination but we probably got a little under 50%. This could have been because the seed was old. We can harvest the new seed and try again, and see if the germination rate goes up.

We have added several different kind of fertilizers, added drip lines, then covered the area with hay, (to reduce water loss and weed growth).

We had to build a fence to keep the deer out. Usually a fence this high wouldn't keep deer out because they can hop over it. But since there is so much else for them to eat (our older apple trees are not fenced), the fence has been working as a deterrent.

You see a lot of deer around here, and they will get quite close to you. Here are some pictures I took right from my bedroom window.

Spontaneous Combustion

After being here for only two weeks, I had quite an exciting surprise, a brush-fire! I had removed some weeds and tomato vines, from last year's crop, in order to make room for planting some oregano and sage plants. I placed all of this dead material on top of a pile of hay. The weather was in the high 90s all day and the combination of the temperature and the heat from the decomposition caused the brush-pile to spontaneously combust. I didn't actually see it ignite, I just looked out my window and saw a ton of black smoke. I ran out there and put it out with an extinguisher and a hose.



Here you can see what the garden area looked like right after the fire.

Here is one my poor oregano plants. I lost 5 of the 6 oreganos I planted, the sage looks like it is going to make it.

Nestled in the hills of the Applegate Valley lies a little farmhouse.

Welcome to my blog. I just moved up my dad's farmhouse and I wanted to create a blog, to not only allow me to keep track of my progress here, but share it with others. So, without further ado, here is what we currently working on

Here are some Santa Rosa Plums. We have a few small orchards where we are growing plums, prunes, walnuts, olives, pears, and apples.

We have a small vegetable and herb garden near the house. We are currently growing tomatoes, tomatillos, basil, poblano peppers, and bell peppers (pictured here).

Here you can see the new little corn sprouts we just put in. It is becoming increasingly harder to find Non-GMO corn so we decided to grow some heirloom corn. We can harvest the seeds, for future use, and eat the rest.