01/06/2026
We had an eventful early season, up until the Fall when Jess needed hip surgery. Since then, it has been slowly recovering to full operation. We implemented new measures, such as a new rabbit hutch to better protect the ground rabbits and an arch system to protect the new seedlings better. We also had to say goodbye to our farmstand as the material it was made from was rotting beyond repair. We built a new garden patch, which features strawberries and more plum trees. Jess propagated many fruit tree cuttings and started tree seedlings to add to the food forest. We had smaller amounts of production, primarily because of the wet weather that contributed to a fungal overload (if you didn't know, we do things all natural here and avoid chemicals as much as possible, so we will be treating with an organic fungicide across our orchard as the fruit trees were most heavily hit). We also realized that we have the stinging asian needle ants, and let me tell you, those things are immensely undesirable. We plan to use diatomaceous earth to treat. We also downsized on our chickens as we regulate to our desirable breeds (they went to good homes with families that love them). The saddest news of all from 2025 was that a big, fat raccoon ate our 3 pet ducks. We spotted him even looking into the windows of our home. But the happiest news was that we brought home a couple of new kittens to aid in mousing duties (we have a 14-year-old cat named Fatness that loves it, but there are more in the woods than he is capable of catching). So the kittens have been doing double-duty as snuggle buddies, and while they have yet to show their mousing abilities, they have shown their love for the outdoors. So as I said, eventful. Not necessarily busy regarding things, but we accomplished a few things and had to slow our pace a little to accommodate some changing needs.
