Spring of 2019 is nearing its end, although some days have reminded me that it is indeed still spring as the temps have been unseasonably cool. In this post, I am going to share some of my homestead goals for the coming summer months and take a look back at the past three here on CG Heartbeats Farm.
A Look back at Spring 2019
Our Indiana spring produced a lot of rain. The saturated ground has created a delay in getting crops seeded, including on this homestead. While I have planted some seeds, there are several that still need to be planted. The big hold up is getting the ground ready as my plan was to have some ground plowed. There are a couple back up ideas floating around in my head that will be decided on soon.
I am excited about trying a new to me way of planting corn, beans and a third cover plant. Right now, I am using watermelon and squash, but more on that later this year. For now, here is a picture of what it looked like as of the beginning of June.
Using wood chips has proved effective in week control in the garlic gardens. I planted candy onions in between the rows of garlic. So far it appears to be working well. The garlic will be harvested in another 3 to 4 weeks.
Sweet Potatoes
I used 3 different methods to start sweet potatoes this year. I, spontaneously, tried removing the sprig from the potato and planting it directly in soil. To my surprise, the little plant thrived. Thus when it was time to plant sweet potatoes in buckets I removed springs from a potato and planted them directly into the soil. They are doing well. Look for more info on this year’s sweet potato crop on this web site after harvest this fall.
Shipping Chicks
I shipped chicks for the first time this year. This is a first for my journey and I look forward to successfully shipping additional chicks in the future. If you want to pre-order chicks(deposit required) or have your name added to the list(no charge) be sure to send an email.
Shipping Eggs
I have continued shipping eggs and to the credit of the Post Office, the eggs arrived in great condition for every shipment this year.
Broody Hen
A Swedish Flower Hen went broody for her second time. One of my breeding goals is to increase the number of broody hens in my flock. As I understand this is a genetic trait. I intend to keep all pullets from the group of six chicks she hatched to add to my breeding stock. The first time this pretty hen went broody she was less than a year old and there was no rooster in her pen, yet. I ended up giving her fertile eggs from another pen. You can read about how that ended up in the blog post titled: A Broody Swedish Flower Hen Breeding goals aside, I find the tenderness demonstrated between a momma and her babies endearing and the beauty of it all warms my heart a way nothing else does.
Silver Gray Dorking
I am excited the fertility has improved in the Silver Gray Dorking eggs over earlier this year. It is not as good as last year, unfortunately, but then summer isn’t over. Due to the eggs not staying viable long enough to hatch, my next step is going to be adjusting the temperature on the incubator slightly.
Lemon Cuckoo Niederrheiner
I am still facing difficulty with fertility in the Lemon Cuckoo Niederrheiners, unfortunately. I intend to continue to work with this pretty breed.
Grapes
I admit to feeling a bit disappointed to ending up with only an additional 2 grape plants after caring for almost 20 starts over the winter. I will say I am happy to have 2 more plants in the ground outside. My latest experiment, if you will, is taking this year’s new growth from a grape plant outside and placing into a jar of water. My hope is that it will grow roots. Look for a coming post about the process.
Summer 2019 Thoughts
Finish Planting
For a stretch of several weeks northern Indiana experienced excessive rain. The first round produced over 5 inches in less than a week. After the ground was saturated, the rain continued to fall almost daily, or often nightly. Thankfully, I was able to get some seed in the ground as I mentioned above. I find I enjoy this venture, planting and learning as I go. Onion bulb(yellow and white), potatoes, carrots,
Attending local farmer’s markets in Bremen and Culver
Last year I attended a local farmer’s market for the first time in Bremen, Indiana. I also attended another on in Nappanee, Indiana on Saturdays. Over the winter, I found a local indoor market to attend in Culver, Indiana and have continued to attend their outside market. Their summer market occurs on Sat and Tue. CG Heartbeats Farm plans to have a vendor booth at Culver on Tuesdays (5 pm to 7 pm), Bremen on Wednesday’s (4 pm to 7 pm) and back at Culver on Saturday mornings (9 am to 1 pm). Products available include seasonal items such as black raspberries, black raspberry plants, mint plants, farm fresh eggs, 4 varieties of garlic, soup beans, decorative and edible popcorn, black walnut tree seedlings, popular tree seedlings,
Maintaining Gardens
Keeping up with weeds and my case, the weeds are actually grass that works hard to take over, seems to be continuous, but using wood chips and chaff, helps to keep them at bay.
Pasture Maintenance
Summer always brings the need for pasture maintenance. Mowing down weeds (I do not use chemicals on the pastures) and keeping the fence rows cleaned out seem to be 2 jobs that I am always behind on. There are new fences to construct if I am to continue with my plans. These jobs are a bit tougher for me now as I work to balance my activity level with getting enough rest.
Black Raspberries
This spring I pruned 3 of my 4 Black Raspberry patches. I am impressed with the berries that are appearing on the pruned plants. I will also be offering black raspberry plants for sale at the farmers markets I attend. One of my goals is to also look into shipping plants and selling from this website.
Garlic Scapes
As of this week the garlic scapes are almost ready to harvest. Garlic scapes, you may ask? These are the top part of a garlic plant that will produce a flower and seed if not removed. The plants energy is directed into producing a larger garlic bulb instead.
Ongoing Projects
There are always chicken pens to clean. I have started a new manure pile leaving the previous one to compost. I started work on a container garden area, but the progress has slowed in the last 6 weeks. I want to continue working in the beds near the house. They were intended to be flower beds, but I have been using them for planting vegetables too. There is an area back of the chicken barn that needs to have old boards removed to the burn pile. The hold up is I want to remove the hardware on the boards It seems I have accomplished that step, yet.
Personal Goals
One of my personal goals for this year is to spend some time riding again, even if it is only a short jaunt in the round pen or around the pasture. I intend to enjoy these summer months. A final (personal) goal is to begin playing fiddle again, perhaps practicing on my fiddle again would be more accurate. What are your summer plans? Leave a comment below to share your plans.