The Growing Homestead

Since I have not been keeping this blog updated recently, I think an update on the happenings and plans for the homestead is in order!

 

The front garden is 100% planted and things are growing in nicely. I've been harvesting some spinach and radishes already! Still to come are carrots, kale, potatoes, various kinds of squash, cucumbers and (maybe) watermelon. I need to get another garden bed plowed in the backyard and plant my tomatoes, peas and beans that are all started in the laundry room. We'll also need at least one area dedicated to pumpkins!

 

We're averaging 7 eggs a day from the hens. Only 8 of our girls are laying now, when the younger girls start laying we should be getting a dozen a day easily! Hen count is now 18, one of our older hens was culled due to infection and it's official that Cloud, Alex's leghorn, is a rooster. Since we can't have a rooster due to city ordinance, he's up for sale, if he crows before he's sold then into the freezer he goes!

 

Our two sweet Nigerian dwarf goats are growing well and getting used to us. They've cleared most of the over grown blackberries, I just need to get them working along the back fence. Early next week I'll be picking up our third goat. He won't live here long, just long enough for me to know that both girls are indeed pregnant and then I'll resale him (hopefully at a profit since I'm getting a great deal!) The kids should arrive in late August-early September. Selling those sweet kids is going to be hard but we just can't have a large herd here. I'm looking forward to being able to cut our milk budget and make our butter (yes, this sounds fun to me! And super yummy!)

 

The rabbits are almost overwhelming! I'm slowly building a rabbitry and setting up a more streamlined care system to improve efficiency because clearly we have a good market for rabbits here and need to expand, I've had to take down my "Rabbits for sale" sign after selling out of available kits! We still have all our breeding stock and 3 litters coming up for sale over the next month, 2 litters that may be here by morning and quite a few litters due over the next month. Current count of rabbits is 5 bucks, 16 does and 11 kits.

 

As for other homesteading things: I've got my clothes line up, I found a local place that specializes in dwarf fruit trees (and made my wish list!), we're getting day old ducklings sometime in the next week, found barrels and drew up plans for a rainwater catchment system and picked out a place for my fire pit. Also tried my hand at making paper bricks without a press, giant fail, I don't have the upper body strength for it I guess. I'm trying to decide if I want to buy a press to try of just scrap the whole idea. I'm cutting back my research time for the summer so mostly I'll be focusing on the plans already in place and if I find some of that illusive free time, I'll begin more plans to add to the homestead dream.