This place is so beautiful! I'm from the Pacific Northwest. I've never seen the kinds of flora and fauna that abound here, nor have I been somewhere so warm in March. The tomatoes are already planted, and many of the greens have already bolted! It is a strange and awe-inspiring environment. Every day I notice a new birdsong, see a new insect. I am confused by two types of flowers that have seemed to fall from the sky; no evidence of a tree or bush for them to have fallen from, yet they are scattered on the ground in flat, pink and white, or orange, yellow and bulbous. Haven't identified them yet!
This morning we witnessed the collection of cow pies by a host of dung beetles! Mike says many people in this area do not have dung beetles on their property, because they use too many chemicals. The idea that giving poisons to your livestock would kill the thing that eats and raises babies in their poo makes all the sense in the world. But another clue to healthy soil cropped up today: fungi! A couple big stands of them showed up in the goats' pasture, large and healthy and lookin' good enough to eat! Unfortunately they too are unidentified as of yet.
A couple who had decided to move here has come to visit! Dara and Michael have a farm in Minnesota and are full of good stories, information and tricks of the trade. Here is a French coil that Michael made, and placed under a wisteria to help straighten out its growth. Dara is a professional cook and has brought the gift of baking bread to the homestead, among many other skills.
And here's Poppy, who's almost ready to POP! Mike says she's almost due. We'll probably wait another week at the most. So exciting! New life on the farm! Doesn't she look like she's going to start labor any second?
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