Twenty

blacksheepfarms — Sun, 16 Jun 2013 21:02:19 +0000

In the past 18 months, we have only posted 20 times on this blog. In context, there are 177 total posts, which means we have been very quiet. There are some reasons. For starters, we found out in January 2012 that we would be moving from the Bennington farm because our lease was not being renewed. At the end of July, we made the public announcement in a post, Moving the Farm. In between, we tried desperately to find a new location and funding, and that took up a lot of mental space. In October, we made the move back into Omaha and immediately started building out our urban farm. Then, in November, Molly died.

There were a lot of things happening, but that is no excuse. While on the farm, we wrote plenty of articles, took beautiful photographs, and lived a busy life. The truth is I didn’t know what to say. With so much uncertainty and transition, I gave up talking about the farm because I was afraid that we didn’t have a future.

Well, we do.

Black Sheep Farms is an urban farm. We help people learn how to grow plants, how to start their own farms, how to keep chickens in the city, and how to live life closer to the earth. We grow food. And flowers. We consult. We write. We have a new dog.

Say hello to Peach.

Our life is different than it was on the big farm. I needed to come to terms that it is as important and as valid. This last year was a mourning period for me. I let things slip away. I stopped showing our journey and helping people find the joy in their own discoveries.

No matter where we live, Kelly and I can always have Black Sheep Farms. I am ready to share it with you again.

Love, Brian

“Just” is a four letter word.

blacksheepfarms — Fri, 12 Apr 2013 19:31:36 +0000

This winter (one that never seems to end) has been one of reflection for me. For the last several years, I have used winter as a time to dream, learn, and plan for the following year. With our recent move from the farm to the city, I’ve had different things on my mind. Losing our lease on the farm not only meant a change of location, but a complete change of lifestyle. The giant question of “What happens to Black Sheep Farms?” has hung over our heads for many months now. For five years, we have talked about the farm, showed off the farm, taught about the farm, and loved the farm. When we moved, we wondered, can we still do these things? I knew that I would not stop growing vegetables, herbs, and flowers, but would we still be farmers? This was on my mind as I was tilling up some lawn in favor of food the other day. “How will I introduce myself now?” I thought. Before I started farming, I was just a stay-at-home mom, or just a teacher to my 3 boys. When we started farming, I told people I was a farmer, but just a small-time farmer. Now that we are even smaller, what do I say? I’m just a backyard gardener? Then it struck me, why do I put that word “just” in front of everything? It belittles what I do, makes me seem less than, somehow. So I thought, what if I replaced the word “just” with something else….like PROUD? Then I become a proud gardener, teacher, and mom. Which is exactly what I am.

So I’ve been concentrating a lot lately on everything I am. Everyone can create a list of what they lack, or how they are less than they want to be. We are good at recognizing how we don’t stack up to everyone around us, or to the image in our heads of what we think we should be. I’m erasing all those lists and replacing them with lists with titles like, “Positive things I did today” or “Things I am good at” or “Things that don’t suck”. It is not easy for me and I don’t always have much to put on those lists, but it’s a start. I love the connection I have with my kids because I stay at home with them and teach them every day. I love to grow plants of all kinds. These things don’t make me “just” who I am, these things make me proud of who I am.

~Kelly

Spring Flowers

blacksheepfarms — Sun, 07 Apr 2013 17:42:08 +0000

I thought we would share our first bouquet of the season. Enjoy.
-Brian

Chicken Academy – April 2013

blacksheepfarms — Sun, 31 Mar 2013 14:45:29 +0000

It’s Spring, and that means Black Sheep Farms is hosting another round of Chicken Academy. Find out how to keep feathery friends for eggs and enjoyment. Yes, you can keep birds in the city!*

We are offering classes at 10am and 2pm on Saturday, April 27 and Sunday, April 28. Each class runs approximately 90 minutes and covers all major topics on urban chickens. Learn about housing, care, and more.

Class size is limited. Register for tickets now.

*Applies is most Omaha metro areas. Check with your homeowners association or city permits department before any purchase.

Welcome, Spring!

blacksheepfarms — Thu, 14 Mar 2013 23:58:16 +0000

I know we’re jumping ahead of ourselves: Spring officially starts in six days. But today’s weather has been amazing! Kelly and I took a walk today, and the wave of green has started to reveal itself. The melting snow is making the ground a soggy mess, but we will be able to sow new seeds soon.

What can the home gardener grow now? As soon as the soil dries a bit, you can sow peas, potatoes, and hardy greens like kale, chard, and spinach. I can hardly wait to eat something fresh!

-Brian

Valuable Gardening Tools

blacksheepfarms — Fri, 04 Jan 2013 23:23:17 +0000

It may surprise you to hear this, but one of my most valuable gardening tools is my paper shredder. Yup, a good ol’ paper shredder that everyone has to shred their sensitive documents. How is that a gardening tool you ask? Well, from the shredder comes valuable material that can be used several different ways in the garden.

The two ways I use it most are for adding dry, or brown, materials to the compost pile and for worm bedding. I keep several worm bins going at a time, so I need lots of bedding. In addition to sensitive documents, I shred old school papers, newsprint or any other old papers I have lying around (and I usually have PLENTY).

After a few short weeks, the paper bedding is broken down and the worms are ready for a new bed. How is that for protecting your identity?

*Sometimes I forget to take the plastic windows off envelopes before I shred them and I find them later like this: It is a pain to dig through and find those pieces, so do remember to pull those off!

New Farm, New Snow

blacksheepfarms — Thu, 20 Dec 2012 01:06:20 +0000

Today, Kelly snapped a photo of the snow on our raised beds. Enjoy!

Goodbye, Molly

blacksheepfarms — Fri, 16 Nov 2012 23:50:46 +0000

Molly as a pup

Today, we had to say goodbye to our little dog, Molly.

On Sunday, we noticed that she was behaving strangely. She tipped a potted plant in the living room, then began digging holes all over the yard. When we took her to the veterinarian on Monday, he said that Molly had a severe infection and was digging holes to lay in them and cool her fever.

We put her on antibiotics, but she showed little improvement during the week. This morning, she couldn’t even walk. Her kidneys were failing, and there was no real hope for her recovery.

Molly was only 3 1/2 years old, and she lived a full life for a dog. She spent nearly the entire time on a big, old farm where she could run, explore, bark at critters, and keep us company in the fields. She accompanied us on walks, herded pigs, and killed our dang chickens. She moved to Omaha with us and was the best behaved dog in the neighborhood.

Molly grew up under the guidance of Lexie, our previous dog, and she proved to be a remarkable friend. We never thought that any dog would be as good as Lexie, and Molly proved us wrong. We wish we could have had her for many more years. Goodbye, little girl.

Look Back: All About Turkey

blacksheepfarms — Thu, 08 Nov 2012 18:45:01 +0000

Looking back three years, almost all of our November posts were about turkey. I cherish the memories of the turkey gang who would roam the farm, puffing out, and calling out challenges to any imagined threat.

If you listen to NPR or watch food shows on television, you’ll probably start hearing about heritage turkeys. I am always amazed at how much money some people spend on a bird, but it’s certainly a centerpiece to the meal for most families.

This year, I’m looking forward more to the veg, especially sweet potatoes!

-Brian

Urban Farming Quirks

blacksheepfarms — Wed, 17 Oct 2012 02:25:46 +0000

Today, urban farming revealed its quirks.

Kelly has a friend in Benson who has an art studio, and posted on Facebook that she had hay bales to give away. After I got home from my office, I hitched up the trailer – the back half of a 1960 International pickup – and headed over there.

As I pulled up, I saw a gaggle of artists and hangers-on going in and out of the roll-up door behind the studio. Cowboy boots are now the footwear of choice, apparently, which struck me as ironic since I was wearing a pair, too.

They gave me some help loading the 12 bales, and I was on my way back to our developing .17 acre urban farm… with hay from an art project. These will provide bedding for the chickens and line the raised beds we construct in the spring. Life is connected in many ways.

-Brian