Strawberry Fields Forever

We harvested a ton of strawberries and they were gone almost as fast as they were plucked from the vine! 

Daily update

82 degrees and 6 eggs gathered. 

I'm pretty sure three were from today and three from yesterday. 

Bunnies are loving the carrots!  And to clarify....I didnt purchase a beoken watermelon. I busted my reusable bag after placing the watermelon in it. It weighed so much it ripped the handles off and fell to the ground. It was a boo hoo moment, but hey, it was half a dollar!!  

My EXTREME produce stand visit!

Thanks to Sarah for the heads up about a MASSIVE carrot sale!  I purchased FIVE 2lb bags of baby carrots for $1!  Couldn't stop at a dollar, so I bought 30 bags.  Believe it!  The rabbits are going to feast!  I spent a whopping $11 dollars for all of the veggies and fruit you see in the picture. There are two lbs of strawberries, mushrooms, and grapes all at a buck each, a 50¢ honey dew melon and a 50¢ watermelon!  ACK!  I went bananas, pun in-tend-ed!  

TIME TO JUICE!! 

A light at the end of the tunnel.

We have been patiently waiting for a change, and today we saw this scarlet colored gem in our garden!  It is a very exciting time and a very positive sign of things to come. I am especially anxious to see the heirloom tomatoes and tomatillos change colors!  

Radishes

Time to learn how to make rosettes! 

Daily update

84 degrees, and my egg getter was slacking off today because I don't have a count! 

The farm is growing and growing. Daily maintenance to keep these lovely plants alive and providing. Not much excitement. 

  

...and another one!

Thank you to all who contributed to my squash recipes!  Below are a few of the responses I received.  Happy cooking! 

"Sliced squash, slice a sweet onion, chop fresh garlic used powder if no fresh. Cook all in butter until all have brown edges." - Grandma R

"All zuke recipes work for yellow squash.  Try it raw sliced.  Try it stewed or stir fried with tomatoes, onions, and garlic.  Tomatoes can be fresh or canned." - Granmo

"Butternut squash is one of our favorites.  Peel, seed, cut in cubes and roast with salt, pepper and olive oil at 400 degrees for about 30 to 40 minutes and it is wonderful.  We had some tonight." - GG Moss

And of course I received this gem....

"Barf. My recipe is throw them in the trash!  ;)" - Jen Pelley

Thank you for the ideas and the honesty!  I appreciate them both! 

Daily update

High temperature today was 79 

Three eggs gathered. 

Yep, that's a squash!

Now, who has recipes???

Daily update

High of 77, but it felt a bit warmer 

4 eggs all had strong shells. 

Everything is growing well!  We couldn't ask for a better crop this year. We have had our ups and downs, but we are having a ton of fun. That alone is enough for us!  

Bigger cukes

These are the cucumbers I was talking about the other day!  I couldn't believe there were biggies on the vine.  It will look neat seeing them hanging up the barn wall. This one is about five inches long. 

Daily update

81 degrees, 4 eggs gathered. 

Birds and bunnies are ALL healthy! 

Terrific day! 

"Before & After"

"Walla Walla Sweet Tooth"

This onion was absolutely delicious.  It was also very large!  It's satisfying to know that I planted that seed myself.  I know I am constantly tooting my horn, but at times I can't figure out what we did differently this year to make it work...to actually make things grow!  I'm not gloating.  I'm flabbergasted. Hahaha! 

Daily update

82 degrees. Very warm! 

2 eggs gathered. 

Ups and downs today with the rabbits as noted in the previous post.  I'm not sure just how to feel...

The strawberries are growing and are tasting perfectly sweet and very delicious. There's just something about eating fresh food off the vine or out of the earth that you've grown yourself. And there's nothing like fresh strawberries, peaches, or watermelons in the summertime! 

The cantaloupe, pumpkins, bell peppers, squash, strawberries, cucumbers, jalapeños, tomatoes, and tomatillos are all covered in flowering buds. We will soon be seeing some new growth! 

Cucumbers!

These are growing wonderfully!  I was taking a look at these and after taking the picture I noticed a huge one on the vine!  I'll have to go out tomorrow and make that the day's photograph. It really surprised me! 

Another surprise today was a deceased bunny, and a NEW kindle!  Six more kits from Eve!  A total of 11 bunnies*. Not quite sure why we lost the one, but Andy said it appeared ill over the last few days.  We are tanning its little hide and saved all four feet.  Time to get crafty!

*If anyone would like to buy a bunny before we process them, please do not hesitate to ask!  

Daily update

81 high temp

4 eggs and those freshies sold like hot cakes!  Our neighbor came by because she was busy baking and realized she didn't have eggs. "Oh no!" she thought,  but wait...."I know where I can grab a half dozen!  The Smiths next door!" 

And that's exactly what we made that sign for!  :) 

A marvelous sight to see!

Those, my friends, are silks!  Our corn is coming in, and I cannot wait!  It feels a bit early and the plants appear to be young, but there is no mistaking silks on a corn plant!  Fingers crossed! 

Daily update

81 and beautifully sunshiny

We enjoyed the lightning and thunder last night!  It was booming and the lightning flashed so bright it nearly lit the room!  It was great! 

Three eggs gathered. All still solid shells. 

The Donnas enjoyed cantaloupe today and the bunnies all enjoyed big carrots. I found a great deal on carrots and scooped up a couple bags. 

Squash

Check out the squash on that vine!  The cucumbers are growing too!  Just babies right now, but I'll be slicing them up and bathing them in lemon juice in no time! 

The Donnas

Here are the girls making a mess of that bale of straw we picked up.  It was in a matter of minutes! Bad Donnas!

Daily update

79 high, four eggs.  They're all looking healthy and strong again. 

The Oscars are a little hesitant when it comes to trusting us, but I hope they come around. I mean, yes, we are going to eat them, but THEY DONT KNOW THAT!!  Soon enough...

Some light reading....

Daily update

Three eggs gathered, 82 degrees. 

All shells were nice and strong. I bumped up the calcium and hopefully that helps. 

The kits are getting big and are eating a ton!  We thought we would share some carrots and they gobbled them right up! We may need to make a trip to the produce stand soon.  Between the kids and the kits, I'm not sure if there are enough carrots to keep up! 

Front yard to table

What a good feeling it is to have the girls want more salad, grab the scissors, and walk outside to refill their bowls! Matilde loved hand-picking the leaves she wanted to eat! Evan was just excited to finally get to harvest the lettuces we planted. 

Daily update

76 and a beautiful day!  Perfect for a farm tour! 

Three eggs gathered. One had a weak, rubbery shell. I think it may be from the Orloff. We will continue to feed them calcium and watch her laying these next few days, weeks. I hope we can correct it soon. 

The tour was fantastic!  Lots of visitors, we even sold some eggs!  Thank you to all who stopped by.  Thank you for your support and for all of your encouragement. We are "starter farmers" and are learning little by little, day by day. What a great experience and an incredible honor! 

The 2013 Seattle Tilth Chicken Coop and Urban Farm Tour

We were honored to have nearly 125 visitors to our farm today!  Some traveling from down the street and others as far as Milton and Woodenville!  We had a fun time hosting and the girls enjoyed selling cups of chicken feed and lemonade for 25¢. I still cannot believe we were chosen as one of the city's "Top 25" urban farms!  It was a real treat to show off the aspects of our garden that work and hear suggestions of changes we can make to improve and grow as farmers. 

I think those who visited enjoyed their stop. Thank you to all who could make it, and remember all of you are welcome to El Gallo Blanco Farms anytime! 

Daily update

70 cloudy, cool

4 eggies

Lots of cleaning and raking and weeding and tidying. I think we're ready!  It's TOMORROW!!  See you then! 

Seattle Tilth's 2013 Chicken Coop and Urban Farm Tour

Saturday, July 13th

10am-4pm

Buy your tickets online at:  http://seattletilth.org/special_events/chickencoopurbanfarmtour2013

We feast....

....on the BETSIES!!

And boy were they yummy! 

Daily update

Four perfect little eggs, high of 71.  

Nice day.  Lots of work to do for Saturday's big event!  Looking forward to the (hopefully) many visitors.  

Adjusted the trellis veggies, harvested potatoes, tied up the tomato stragglers, removed Eve's nesting box to make a little more room for the kindle, tied up the alfalfa to get it ready to hang, watered the garden and the yard, and trimmed the Donnas' behinds for the tour. Dirty little chicken butts are not that fun to look at. 

I ate a strawberry today and Andy flipped!  Hahaha If we don't eat them, they will dry out and die. He seems to think they'll grow to the size of watermelons if we stay away!  I'll stay my distance for a while to see what happens, but I'm not sure how long that will be since I love both strawberries and driving Mr. Wonderful bananas! 😊

More potatoes!

I know I just sent out a potato photo, but I have since tasted them and they deserve a second round!  

They are DELICIOUS. 

There is no better description of these creamy, soft, smooth, and perfectly imperfect tiny edibles than DELICIOUS. 

Yes, they are that good. Oh, and did I mention we grew them ourselves! ;) 

Daily update

73 and overcast. 

Three eggs....one of the Donnas is slacking. The Oscars are growing bigger and bigger everyday, as are the bunnies. 

That's a BIG salad!

Here are a ton of salad greens and radishes that we planted in order to use our empty space. The melons will take longer to grow, so we planted lettuces that are quick to mature in the mean time. 

Daily update

83 today, 4 eggies

Not much happening. We're just getting ready for the tour on Saturday. Lots of watering, raking, and composting. It's going to be a fun time!  We can't wait. 

Vertical Gardening

The cucumbers are really taking off! As they grow, we will continue to raise them off the ground and allow them to grow vertically. 

Daily update

80 degrees, pretty warm, very nice day

4 eggs, beautiful!

Transplanted peas, pink lemonade blueberries, two jalapeños, and harvested some green onions and potatoes to share with a friend. I'm excited about the berries!  Cannot wait! 

FREE Blackberries

Here are a few blackberries I found today. They are from the neighbor's overgrown, out of control bush. It hangs over the fence and is growing over our rabbit hutch. I absolutely love these berries, and I cannot wait for the yummy jam that will be made from them! 

Red, white, and dirty

Thought I'd dig up some of the potatoes in this planter to be sure they were healthy. Their leafy plant parts have all turned brown and died off, but these red potatoes look great. Tomorrow, Andy and I will make sure they taste good enough to share! ;) 

Also, I delivered all of your naming suggestions to the girls and they have chosen OSCAR as the official name for the new broilers!! 

PLEASE JOIN US--- Everyone is welcome!

Ticket information HERE

Oni-oni-ons!

They're growing very well in the wonderful sunshine we have been experiencing! 

Alfalfa

Today, my father-in-law showed Andy some alfalfa growing out in the yard. He would have assumed it was a weed had he not pointed it out. Kinda pretty, really....we have a fresh bundle ready to dry and make our bunnies happy. 

They're baaaaaack!

Our flock has grown!  We now have four more broilers to round out our family. After speaking with the nice woman at the new farm store, I think we may let these birds grow for another ten weeks depending.

Now.....what to name them?

Any suggestions?

Daily update

79, three eggs gathered

We visited a new farm store out in Maple Valley. It was a nice drive, and well worth the trip. We purchased four more broilers, diatomaceous earth, starter feed, and cedar animal bedding.  They said the hay is free to bag ourselves, but we need to bring the bags. We wished we would have known that beforehand... 

Off to the other feed store to purchase a hay bale and some alfalfa for the rabbits. 

We got home and readied the coop for the little broilers. We let them run around a bit in the chicken tractor away from harm, but they just huddled together in the corner.  They'll get use to it here soon enough.  The woman that sold them to us said we can process them at twelve weeks if we wanted to. Let them plump up a bit more. Think we might see how that goes. They're about two weeks old. 

The Donnas enjoyed sons yogurt this afternoon and made a mess if their chin feathers!  

Lots of odds and ends taken care of...pulled weeds, watered twice since we will be visiting family this weekend, laid hay down for the berries, tended to the rabbits, and added more lines for the trellises. 

Time to rest. 

A quick trip to the farm store.

When you farm in the city, you have to do things a little differently.  Since we do not own a pickup, we decided to make use of what we do have...a Thule roof rack!  I'm sure you can imagine the funny looks we got on the drive home. Two bags of hay is the same price as one full bale, and less than half of the hay, so we went for it!  

Can anyone guess what's in the box? 

Daily update

82 and perfectly sunny. 

Three eggs. 

Today, Andy and relaxed outside in the shade. We worked a crossword puzzle and couldn't help but notice the beautiful bald eagle flying overhead. It kept circling and circling. Andy said, "One of these days we are going to come outside and and eagle is going to be flying off with one of the Donnas if we're not careful!" I think he's right. We need to be careful with our babies. That bird was HUGE, and it was scoping out its next meal. I just hope that the Duwamish River has plenty of fish for it!! 

More bunnies!

Andy and I let all of them run around in the grass, but mama starts to panic without them. So it was a very short playtime. I think they're adorable! 

Daily update (yesterday)

High of 90

Four eggs gathered

We've been placing frozen bottles in with the rabbits to help cool them off during the day. I hope it's helping. The chickens keep cool under the barn in the dirt, but an ice cube or two throughout the day in their water doesn't hurt.  

For the Birds

This birdhouse is mounted without a back on our bedroom window. If any birds decide to stay, we will get to see what they're up to right from our bed. Sort of like a lazy bird watcher.  ;) 

Anyone notice the line Andy mounted for his hops???