Recent content by mcjam

I know I am jumping in at the end of the season, but just wanted to note that around these parts there are just two seasons, Winter and Getting Ready for Winter. We are now about to leave the first season and enter the second, which means just about all we do is Getting Ready For Winter. Now I...

Education in our house happens every day! Schooling does not happen much at all. Read "Dumbing us Down" by John Taylor Gatto or watch him on utube and you will never think of school the same again, and hopefully will be freed up to help your children really learn to learn. They really are...

I keep my guineas separate as I found that while they get along with the adult chickens, they will torment and kill chicks and young pullets. I thought I might too like to breed them, but they are elusive nesters and I usually cannot find their eggs until late fall when the brush has died off. I...

Yes, we do our own butchering and have accumulated a goodly amount of handy tools (meat band saw, large grinder, commercial cutting boards and good knives) to make the job go more quickly since our first attempts. A little experience is a great help too. We have fewer "mystery cuts" than we...

We've had some hard freezes, but are still harvesting brussels sprouts, kale, parsnips, and lettuce and herbs from the cold frame. Pullets just kicked in, so we are swimming in eggs, and butchering time is upon us. 40 chickens, 2 geese, one turkey, and one pig processed and in the freezer...