Keeping up with summer’s tasks

It’s nearly overwhelming keeping up with all the homestead tasks that arrive with the summer weather. It seems as though everything requires our attention during this warm but short season. More than likely, before the calendar says its fall, it will snow. But before then, we have a lot to do.

For the third year in a row, this year’s snowpack was so low that we have not received any irrigation from our water rights. Rather than try to make sense of the Colorado surface water laws, just understand that Colorado’s law states that those who use the water first have the first right to that use. Every water right is assigned a priority based on this concept. The oldest and most senior water right in the state is 1852 in the San Luis Valley. Our Valley’s rights started in the late 1860s and are generally junior to those on the eastern plains which only make sense because those eastern areas were settled and irrigated before ours. Our own water rights are from 1880 and 1882 which in normal snowpack years gives us irrigation water throughout the summer. 

But this year South Brush Creek, the source of our water, is eighteen inches below its normal June level. In a good year it will lap our foot bridge. Coupled with the ongoing drought and drying winds we are forced to water from our well to keep veggie crops, fruit trees, and other gardens alive. Portions of the pasture that are not sub-irrigated have dried up. 

Irrigating takes a lot of time because the water flow must be changed constantly as areas are saturated. We don’t have that task this year but instead must balance the use of the water from our well to keep important crops surviving as we wait for the start of the monsoon season in July. This year we may be getting lucky as some rains have begun. We can only hope that a long, wet season is arriving. 

This looks to be another good year in the orchard though we did have to dodge several freezing nights in early June.  The fruit trees are fed throughout the growth season with both foliar sprays and soil amendments. The early sprays include liquid fish, kelp, neem oil and various herbs. At blossom time Don only uses Bee Scent to attract the pollinators. Following petal fall he goes back to foliar sprays and includes soil additives such as Gardener’s Special, wood ash and compost to help the trees not only grow fruit but also start the buds for next year’s crop. Don also starts thinning the immature fruits so that only one or two are left per blossom cluster. If he didn’t thin, we would have lots of small fruits rather than nice large ones.

We also beefed up our fencing around the orchard this year. Last year the raccoons kept finding or creating ways in and enjoyed more fruit than we did. So this year we added two strands of electric fence wire powered by a solar charger, one at nose height to a raccoon and one at nose height to a bear. When we get closer to fruit ripening we’ll add some strips of aluminum foil coated in peanut butter to the electric wires. This actually attracts the animal robbers for a quick lick followed by a quick zap and a permanent lesson in avoiding the area. While I have never stuck my tongue on the hotwire, I have contacted the wire and been zapped more times that I would like to recall. It’s definitely unpleasant but not lethal. 

The grazing season arrived on May 17^th when our neighbor and friend brought in 4 heifers, 2 steers and one old cow (who was here last year). We have to keep a closer eye on the fences and water tanks now. We get a lot of elk traffic through the pasture with elk cows and their new calves moving back and forth from the forest during the day to the pasture at night. Elk aren’t the greatest fence jumpers and often cause some damage that allows the cattle into areas where we don’t want them right now. It’s a daily task to fill the water tanks and check and repair the fencelines. 

The battle to control exotic and noxious plants in the wetland and pond areas is one that I will fight as long as we live here. Brought in with the winds and free-roaming animals, the unwanted plants flourish and out-compete the native plants because there are few natural deterrents. In their native lands, these plants were controlled by disease and insects but here these natural forces are absent so I must take up the fight. Our main problems are houndstongue, a biennial that is controlled by cutting the flowers and stopping the cycle, and several types of thistles. The most difficult thistle is Canada thistle which is a perennial and spreads by root growth. Over the years I have tried many different natural controls from dead-heading to experimental insects with little success. If anything, I have lost ground with this thistle so two years ago I started using a chemical. I swore I would never use chemicals here but have since  realized that nothing is that cut and dry. By careful spot-spraying I am slowly taking back areas that were badly infested. Three or four mornings a week, we head out with shovel and sprayer to continue the battle.

The veggie garden is coming along nicely this year with garlic, onions, potatoes, summer squash, tomatoes and greens. We had a little hail several days ago but most of the veggies survived without too much damage. Only the greens are producing anything edible at the moment but everything else is full of promise.

Of course there are countless other tasks to keep up and soon we will start in on firewood for the winter. But for now we enjoy the time spent with the plants, the cattle, the wildlife and all the other parts of this little homestead. And we pray for more rain.

From Fleur Creek Farm

Elk Wallow

The warm weather of the past days has melted much of the snow in the meadow revealing an elk wallow. During the fall rut (breeding season), the bull elk create a mud hole where they urinate then thrash around in the pungent, wet earth. Trees and shrubs are often torn from the ground by their massive antlers. 

 

 The bull elk use this process in an attempt to increase their presence and dominance for it is the most dominate male who will have the greatest success during the breeding season. 

Even now, nearly five months later, the earthy, musty smell still lingers. In a matter of months when the meadows green up and the aspen trees breakout in leaf, the elk calves will begin arriving fulfilling the cycle. 

From Fleur Creek Farm

 

Under Seige

When I undertook writing this blog my goal was to write about living at this wonderful place. I would leave politics and un-related topics out of my blog. But an issue very dear to my heart compels me to deviate from my initial decision. 

Recently the US Fish and Wildlife Service, an agency within the Department of Interior, removed gray wolves from the endangered species list. Rather than relying on scientific data to make this decision, they made the change to placate local interests such as livestock producers and hunters. By removing the wolf from the endangered list, FWS turned over the management of the wolves to local states. Immediately Idaho, Wyoming and Montana enacted hunting and in just 73 days over 350 wolves have been killed. Idaho has vowed to remove 80% of the wolf population from their state. Wyoming has opened 85% of the state to killing wolves by any means at any time. 

This action by FWS and reaction by Idaho, Wyoming and Montana is wrong and flies in the face of scientific data showing that the wolf is an important part of a healthy ecosystem.  The whole point of the reintroduction program in the early 2000s was to return a critical predator to the northern Rockies ecosystem in sufficient numbers in part to balance the elk populations.  The experiment has been a complete success. But for many human hunters who have grown accustomed to easy hunting from their motorized vehicles the wolf is a competitor and one they resent. In addition, some livestock producers using public lands for grazing refuse to provide adequate protection for their livestock and want the wolf gone.

The Natural Resources Defense Council has filed suit to stop the killing and has initiated a petition drive to Interior Secretary Ken Salazar to reinstate the gray wolf to the endangered species list. They have a short video clip available for viewing.

I ask you to watch this new 45-second video about the embattled wolves -- and then take action to help save them from slaughter. Please tell Interior Secretary Salazar to call off the guns and return wolves to the endangered species list until the states present a credible plan for protecting them.

From Fleur Creek Farm

Fall is Near

The calendar may say its early September but nature says fall is near. I can feel it the moment I step out the door in the morning as the thermometer hovers in the low 40s. Later this week the weatherman is forecasting 37 degrees. 

But is more than just the temperature. Everything is preparing for the change of the seasons. Our hummingbird feeder still hangs but only a few female broad-tailed hummers remain. Around us the cottonwoods and aspens are already changing, probably 2 – 3 weeks early. Aspens at high elevations are in full color. The deer families are joining with others in preparation for the fall mating season. 

Our early morning walk always includes some yoga poses before heading home. Until lately, it was a time of peace and quiet. Now it is filled with the haunting sounds of the bull elk calling a challenge to others in the woods. 

We watch the creatures of the forest - chipmunks, squirrels, rabbits and more – scurrying about with the collection of food stores for winter. It reminds me that we too need to finish our collection of wood and food. 

Fall is usually a wonderful time as the summer monsoon season gives way to dry warm days and cool nights. But this summer was another dry one and drought conditions persist. We hope and pray that this fall and winter will bring great quantities of snow. The weather forecast is promising. 

In the meantime, we’ll follow our forest neighbor’s example and prepare. Fall is near.

From Fleur Creek Farm

Simple pleasures on the Homestead

It's been snowing since yesterday morning, blanketing the earth with a beautiful layer of snow. After some decent storms in early October and late November, our winter has turned balmy. I am relieved to see this snow and hope for much more.

Winter in the high country limits our time outside so we focus on some simple indoor pleasures. I skipped the "coffee thing" for my first five decades but my sister got me hooked recently and now I enjoy lattes. Initially we made a little pot of coffee with our Mr. Coffee, added some almond milk and called it latte. But it just wasn't the same as the ones she produced on her microwave-sized espresso machine so we started searching for a simple espresso maker. After spending the last few years replacing all our aluminum cookware we weren't about to brew acidic espresso in one made of aluminum so we narrowed our search to a stainless steel version.

Thanks to the internet we found Kontessa, a darling 4 shot stovetop espresso maker from Italy. A couple of times a week, we fire up Kontessa on the top of our wood cookstove and enjoy a cup. To make the moment even more special, my sister sent us two handmade espresso cups from the Folk Art Museum in Santa Fe. With a little warmed almond milk and a quick whiz in the Vita-Mix and we have achieved near perfection - at least the homestead version.

After a new snow, I love to head out on snowshoes to see what animals are around. After the last snow, we found the tracks of a mountain lion in our wetlands and crossing the road just west of our barn. The lion passed by an area where several elk had bedded down. I can hardly wait to get out tomorrow and see who has been out and about.





From Fleur Creek Farm

Winter Solstice

Since the windstorm of November, I have had this sense that, as stewards of this special place, we needed to find a way to begin the healing process. The evil force of the winds that had so ravaged the forests needed to be banished. I struggled for awhile trying to understand how to do this. Then, several weeks ago, it came to me - a healing ceremony on the Winter Solstice. To cultures around the world, this is a special moment and it would be for us too.

Over the last week we have selected and prepared the spot and collected the items we would need. We found the perfect rock to use as an altar, one that a bear had turned over several months ago searching for grubs underneath. On Sunday, following the trail left in the snow by a large herd of elk, we collected small pieces of all the trees and shrubs so affected by the winds. We moved from pine, spruce, fir and juniper to cottonwood, alder, birch, chokecherry and gooseberry, taking a piece from the broken bodies lying on the ground. From these pieces we prepared a bundle tied with string.

On Wednesday night, the night of the Solstice, we returned to the ceremonial spot. Using blue, yellow and white corn meal, and red chili powder, we marked the earthly directions then laid the bundle in the center. Over it we crossed the shed antlers of a deer and an elk. With just the sound of the creek flowing by we thought about what had been lost but also what would be renewed.

For us in the northern hemisphere, the Winter Solstice marks the longest night and the shortest day of the year. It also represents the point when we begin our journey back to the light. At this moment, on this spot, resting on an altar picked by a bear, with pieces of plants selected by the elk, the journey has begun.

From Fleur Creek Farm