The homestead life evokes
simplicity
nature
presence
in the moment
fresh air
green
It is work. It is the work of the hands and mind. The hands do their thing, setting pea fences and placing trees in the orchard, clearing rocks and weeds for grass seed and white clover. The mind listens eagerly for ideas to companion plant and sifts through seed magazines and Pinterest boards. The mind plans new garden beds and sequences spring’s projects.
It is caretaking. The orchard needs clover and calendula. The comphrey wildly spreads, then will be cut for garden feed. It is nurturing the blank, god made canvas. There are more greens to be added, green hosta, green dogwoods, green ferns. There are blue lilacs and purple lavender, red dogwoods and yellow calendula, pink echinacea and orange poppies. Walk the garden with gloves and a pail to rid new weeds so the colours will grow.
It is survival. There is a fight of man against nature, shoveling a hundred feet of walkway to clump through three feet high snow up to the car. There are deer pathways to study and height of deer fence to be decided, bells and whistles and flashing red lights to install around the yard. There are boulders to be removed, or blasted, from the mountain ground. There are trees to clear from windy storms and to fell without dropping on the house.
It is nourishing. There is strawberry rhubarb jam in the middle of winter, and lettuces growing in cold frames as the dirty snow still covers the ground. There are plantains and dandelion heads to make into tea and salve. Wild strawberries and thimbleberries to forage. Cans must be water bathed to house dilled carrots that decorate window sills. There is hard work, done with rough hands and dirty fingernails, but creative soul satisfaction at the end of each day.
Wonderful!!! It was nice to see a post from you again. I recently thought that I had not seen a post for a while, and figured you were busy with the homestead. My own dream of a homestead will not apparently materialize anytime soon, so I love reading other people’s adventures through this journey. Thank you for sharing!
Thank you! (& thanks for noticing). I quite enjoy this busy season. I have been listening to podcasts about urban homesteading if that applies to your scenario. To me, there’s nothing that quite compares to activities in the great outdoors. I am thankful.
Yes, thank you! I had been listening to urban gardening podcasts as well and attended some tour of urban gardeners here in Phoenix. In fact, I just listened to the talk by Michael Ableman of Canada and his efforts to involve disenfranchised people in urban farming. Urban desert gardening is not my passion, but for now, it is my scenario and it is very encouraging to see people’s perseverance in extreme conditions.
Ha, I happen to be wearing my Super Bowl 2015 tshirt! You always get warmth in Phoenix…xeriscape is gardening, officially;) (we lived in a half desert in canada, tricky gardening).
I will have to check that fellow’s name. Our ‘semi-arid’ community did have a few open gardens, cleverly situated for anyone’s use.
At present we are building a deer fence for a 1500 sq ft garden, placing posts in rock! It isn’t little house on the prairie, but it is challenging.
This post makes me ridiculously excited to come visit you!
Absolutely! You can teach me about goats;)
goats were a wonderful addition to our little farm!
I love seeing families living this way <3 I can't wait to start living this way soon!