Oh hello spring, you cheeky devil!
Much like an ex-fling, you show up just enough to make me remember how much fun we used to have, before casting me back to the darkness of winter without you.
But your temper tantrum antics, my dear spring, won't get the best of me this year… because there is far too much life to be had on the farm! I can barely contain the dreams… excitement… projects… and potential that are practically busting from the seams of my heart!
(Dramatic? I don't care.)
An additional bee hive has been ordered (the others need to be repainted, cleaned, and prepared for fresh bees!). Bulbs have been planted. Courtyards have been started. Barns have been bid. Chicks have been purchased. Pergolas have been built. There is much to do, oh yes, there is much to do!
When I started homesteading years ago, I had the best of intentions with so many of my projects and dreams – y'all, I bought a cow off Craigslist before I had a barn to put her in! I've been one of those “jump in the deep end” type of people with regards to… well, life. I simply can't stop the stream of dreams from flowing – trust me, I'm tried.
But I suppose some good has come of it. For starters, I've learned many lessons the hard way which also is one of the best ways to learn them. Because when a lesson is learned the hard way (ahem, *Craigslist cow*, ahem) it's not quickly forgotten.
I had the pleasure of teaming up with Lyon's Press Publishing over the past 18 months to write, photograph, and publish an all encompassing catalog of these lessons, both good and bad, to share with others out there who are interested in starting their homestead as well. Welcome To The Farm is designed to help inspire YOUR own homestead. Each day, my inbox fills with questions like:
“Which type of chicken should I buy?”
“How much do you feed a pig?”
“Can you tell me how to milk a cow? What supplies will I need?”
“Do you eat your rabbits? Which breed do you raise?”
“Can you teach me how to can things? It scares me!”
“Which vegetables should go in the fall garden? I'm so confused!”
I've spent years answering questions just like this until finally it dawned on me that perhaps we need a better resource for learning how to build our homesteads from the ground-up. Maybe that's why so many questions were coming in in the first place! I'll be the first to tell you, no book can answer or prepare you fully for life on the farm. It's not that cut and dry and I certainly don't have all the answers. But there are tips, tricks, information, and wisdom that is valuable to share. To pass on. And to learn!
Even if you're just starting a vegetable or garden or raising a few chickens. This is for you.
And if you're wanting to learn to butcher a pig in it's entirety and salt-cure the cuts? Ya. This is for you, too.
Spring is the time of year when we dream big. It's the time of year when we're greeted with pear trees at our home improvement stores and chicks at our local feed stores. Farmers markets begin to open and offer their local, organic goodies for preserving. The soil warms and we begin to sink our fingertips into that black gold. We dream of what can be planted, created, cultivated, and born of our hopes.
For the homesteader, there simply isn't another life. This is it. We're all in.
For a wee bit longer, you can snag all 300+ pages of Welcome To The Farm for a special pre-launch price on Amazon HERE.
Bonus: it qualifies for Prime shipping, which means you can have a copy in your hand in just a few days!
I can't wait to be a part of spring on your farm. Tell me: What are you dreaming of this spring?
Spring is a memory of a past fling. Autumn is beckoning, days are getting shorter (and cooler, thankfully). Time to think of winter brassicas , peas (oh.. those peas). Hearty soups and stews.
I hope you enjoy your warming weather, and have a bumper season.
Love your work
Hi Shaye, I am a homesteader wannabe, a dreamer for a simpler more self sustaining life. I have gardened for years, well… let’s say I have tried to garden for years. I have lost crop after crop of tomato and squash to rats…HATE RAT’s!!! Also I am so limited in my abilities. I am a hands on, watch and learn, kinda woman. I, for some reason can not get the directions on things. Never have been that kind of learner. Year after year I end up missing my mark on when to plant seeds.which ends up making me go to the local nursery and spend outrageous prices on a limited verity of starts. My question is this, I live in the Willamette Valley of Oregon, RAIN, RAIN, RAIN… when people such as you say what you should have in your “Spring Garden” what does that mean as far as when you should plant the seeds? when it says, direct sow after last frost… when is last frost??? I am very confused!!! Is now, the end-ish.. of March a good time to plant Kale and Spinach seeds for instance? and is it ok to plant them outside, in the actual garden??? I need help……..
I am adding bees to the homestead this year! Also, I LOVE your book. I love all of the info, the photography, everything. I know this is going to sound weird, but the book even feels good. Somehow it almost feels soft or something. I can’t explain it, but it feels better than the other homesteading books I have. Anyways, great job! I will turn to it again and again.
Yeah!!!! I ordred my copy this AM with Amazon Prime. I already know what I will be doing this weekend!!!!!!
Please, may I have some sun? And no more snow? Yes, please, no more snow? And maybe a bit melting of the snow we do have? Thank you. And could we please see some dirt? No more snow, but some dirt, please? And also some warm breezes from the south? Yes, the south? Thank you. Whew. I guess that will do for now.
Oh Shaye! I dream of so many things, but like you sometimes my dreams are bigger than what daylight there is. But for now I am dreaming of a fully organized and cleaned studio room to work in (it is a mess right now, the cats got into my spring veggie starts and there is dirt on everything), and that the rain would clear long enough to plant my spring garden. It is sunny right now, so I must run to see what I can get done. This is Oregon after all and in another 10 minutes it could be raining, snowing, or hailing. Have a wonderfuly productive spring day!
I’m dreaming of growing even more of our own food than last year, learning from my mistakes in hopes of not having the same problems as last year, expanding my garden, growing celery, which I’ve never done before, not killing 10 of my 12 sweet potato plants again, expanding my herb garden and growing medicinal herbs as well as culinary, preserving in new ways that I have learned from Welcome to the Farm, convincing my husband to let me get bunnies, preserving many more jars of peaches and tomatoes (in various forms), and many more! Whew, will I have time for all this!?!
I found your blog not that long ago while looking for a homemade chicken feed recipe. I kept talking to my husband about your fun posts and he bought me your cookbook, to the which I have made the turkey pot pie and spiced meatball cabbage soup and all of the family agreed the book was well worth the money. Anyways, I digress . . . I ordered your latest book today and am so excited to receive it. I wanted to say well done lady on a fabulous blog, from a former Washingtonian, homeschooling mom of 5, and fellow small time homesteader.
Thank you Kersten. I’m so glad you and your family are enjoying the cookbook!
I’m dreaming of jumping back in at 60! This time with dairy goats, (we’re kidding this month, so precious ) of sweet milk and creamy cheese, of gardens full of juicy tomatoes and heirloom popcorn, of fresh eggs and shaum torte, . . . and a brand new grand baby to share it all with. God is good.
Ok totally unrelated, but I just saw on Angelas blog that you are into DYT. So am I! I like it alot. Totally curious, what type are you? I’m a 1/2. It’s been such a refreshing change.
There I was in Barnes and Noble strolling through the homestead and farming books and there it was … Welcome to the Farm, by Shaye Elliot. Was it weird that I thought “I know her”?
Elliot family, it is a beautiful and in depth book of information, stories, and look into your family and homestead. Thank you for allowing us in over the years and through this work of art. They’ll now have to restock in this Kentucky store.
great sight loads of useful information.
trying to get my own homestead site started
any advice
http://www.hkorganincs.com