Menagerie Acres

04/16/2025

https://agr.georgia.gov/spotted-lanternfly If you happen to see this critter, please do the following: [1] photograph it [2] kill it, [3] report the finding. If you can't do #1 or #3, at least kill it. See the link for more info.

04/08/2023

Time to celebrate Easter, Spring and a return of the "green". Still putting seeds in the ground, but the pullets are laying, the ducklings are 'bout ready to join the adults, and there's a batch of meat birds in the broody box. Except for continuing to have to plant, life can't get better than that. Concentrating on pickling cucumbers, seed beans, petite French green beans, and potatoes for early in the season. Sure beats last spring at this time. Hoping to see lots of folks at the market.

02/26/2023

It's SPRING!. . . . you do know that it's still February, right? It's hard not to have the planting itch when the days are so nice (when it's not raining). Have you seen the pollen on the cars? Redbud and peach trees are popping with blooms and allergies spring forth from even a slight breeze. Hard not to step on a wild flower, in the grass which will have to be cut soon. Bluebirds and Cardinals have already set up housekeeping, and we've got potatoes in the ground (fingers crossed). Quinn and Clodagh checked out the pullets and all the daffodils. Glad to have them visit and enjoy early spring with me.

01/12/2023

Josh's girls checking out the spring pullets. The girls specifically wanted Rhode Island Red, so they got 10 among the other 55 layers. Looking forward to lot of eggs this season! (Clodagh on left and Quinn on right)

11/24/2022

These photos were taken 06 NOV 22. I looked down the pasture and was amazed how it looked more like springtime instead of mid-autumn. Didn't even see the rainbow at first. It's been quite a while since we've had a rainbow, and never this early, and thus never in this direction. What a way to start a Sunday morning!

09/20/2022

This evening we said goodbye to the Bulldog. It served us faithfully for many years, and in Jim's final months it was my salvation in getting Jim transported from one location to another. In the later days, it even took him the short distance from the porch to the car. Though I will miss it, a dad with a pair of boys, 19 and 16 years of age, decided it would be the perfect father/son project to bring it back to working condition. I couldn't be happier about the decision to let it go to a new family. P.S.: my children could be thinking of a newer model for their dear old mum.

02/20/2022

For all of you who miss ALG, or who would like fresh from the garden produce and eggs, let me introduce you to the West Broad Locally Grown in Athens on S. Rocksprings St. It works the same way ALG did, and it's a drive-in/pick-up, so you don't even get out of your car. I have been with them for 3 weeks now, and as a vendor, I am impressed. Missy and Hannah will be there to assist you in any way they can. Just sign up on the following link, you will see the familiar page set-up, and order. Many of the growers from ALG have been absorbed, so friendly faces, friendly places and good deals on items for your menu.

Locally grown food from local growers! LocallyGrown.net takes the best things about traditional farmers markets, CSAs, and buying clubs and wraps them all together in an online system that's easy for both the grower and the consumer. Find a locally grown market near you, and if there isn't one, star...

10/21/2021

It is not often that I have two-legged help. While their pop was out with the annual fall cutting of the pasture, Clo and Q were busy picking HUNDREDS of green beans in the hoop house. Thank you, girls, for a job well done.

11/28/2020

This is our new cat, Leo. He is the same age and size as Loveless, and never slows down. He has gotten used to the dogs, cats, and even the hens/ducks. He's a good hunter, and the other cats are teaching him the ins and outs of the place. He doesn't understand the cat or the dog door, as yet, but give him time. He is a fantastic addition to Menagerie Acres.

11/23/2020

Quinn, Clo and Lucy on the farm after a weekend of tractor work, leaf blowing and w**d pulling. Looks so good here, even with the leaves abandoning the trees. Pretty soon that pasture will be a beautiful green. Hens and twin deer really appreciated having the pasture cut.

11/02/2020

Another year gone by, and 2020 has been a real doozy. Still have 200 hens, and need to get some ducklings to bring the count back up to 30 laying ducks. I tried letting the birds out of their very large pen, and they did wonders for my garden. They took out some very hard-to-get-to w**ds and I had hardly any grasshoppers to cause problems. Down to 2 dogs, but up to 4 cats with the addition of a ginger cat named Leo. Please check out this article by Heather, who is John's wife. When she talks of "farm", that's Menagerie Acres. We are still at the Hartwell Market during the season, and Athens Locally Grown all year. I hope to have a good winter in my hoop house, and plan to have 2 houses planted for spring. I also hope to add more to this site. Once I get the hoop houses growing, there will be time to sit and contemplate where we have been and where we are going. Hope your winter is mild, and best wishes to all.

Macro photography enthusiast Heather Larkin brings the SIGMA 105mm F2.8 DG DN Macro Art to the farm for a day of close-up shooting.

08/30/2019

Haven't written anything here in a while. Today is a warm, hazy, dreamy type day, which leads to thinking over the year that has been.

Every year we have a papa cardinal. As long as I have sunflower seeds on my bird feeder, he brings his last brood of the season in to eat. One year he had 5 female babies, all lined up for instructions. This year, he hasn't lined them up, but I know there's at least one male and maybe two females.

I have two pair of hummingbirds this year. Have been watching their merry fights at the feeder in the heat of the day when the flowers are wilted and the feeder is in the shade. One more month, and they will be gone to their winter home.

My pear trees are over 15yrs old. One had ONE pear, and the other, having given me 6 pear every year for the last 5, had almost 3/4 of a bushel! Made delicious dried pears for the market. Peach tree was harvested by the squirrels, and the apple trees had a few, but not many, apples.

John has kept the back areas mowed, and after the small chick house/pen was damaged, the hens have been more and more in the grasses. I now let them out, in the heat of the day, so they can take advantage of the coolness under the post oak. It's fun going out and seeing all the bright feather dusters scratching around in the cut grass. Since the garnden has been sleeping this summer, the hens have contributed a great number of eggs to keep us going. I have just short of 200 hens of so many different colors, and eggs of blue, brown and white.

Today is the first day that I saw the leaves falling. So sad. I love the summer. The tupelo has not colored out, and neither has the tulip tree. Looks like another brown autumn, but if that means a warm fall, so I can get up some leaves, then I won't miss the colors. I do miss Jim looking at the multi-colored tupelo in mid-August and saying that we'll have an early winter.

We are back to 4 dogs and 3 cats. Loveless is very happy here, and he does very well with the dogs. Bandit always puts the dogs in their place with a quick, slicing slap, and Bubba just sits and watches.

The hawk took only a few hens this summer, and the black snakes grabbed a handful of eggs. We've had worse summers. No possums, skunks or racoon stealing hens/eggs as long as Lucy is around. Coyotes have been quiet. During the day, our Great Pyrennes, Lucy, sleeps by the cool air vent and by night she's patrolling the garden area. The other night she moved, what I interpreted as a bobcat in heat, off the property and over towards the highway.

Josh and John are helping with cleaning the property, and this fall I hope to bring a lot of leaves out of the woods, chopped and into the garden.

There's always things to be done, and markets to prep for, but right now it's a drowsy, bittersweet time in the garden.