a man and his hoe

every day is a good day

Month: March 2016

Down Her Hatch

The cherry blossoms are in full bloom. Add a little blue to the sky, and it takes your breath away. If you’re outside, it’s impossible not to be entertained. One moment, it’s the cherry blossoms dancing their hearts out in the brisk spring wind. The next moment, it’s a hen gobbling down a field mouse.

I rushed to take some pictures, but she was too fast. Before I could get my camera on her, the mouse was almost down her hatch. If you look closely, you can see the tail of the field mouse dangling out her beak.

How do they do this? Chickens have hawk like eyes and are wickedly fast. If they spot a field mouse in the brush, it doesn’t stand a chance. One or two strikes with their strong beak, and the poor field mouse is dead. When they catch a field mouse, they have to gobble it as fast as possible, or another hen will steal it.

Watching my chickens run about, it makes me wonder where the idea for vegetarian chicken feed came from? Not from someone who has spent any time observing chickens in the field. These are brilliant, capable hunters.

March 11, 2016
No Shame

The bleeding hearts are spreading their lacy leaves. This morning their leaves are jeweled with yesterday’s raindrops. Before long, their pink flowers will dangle gracefully. Back in 2006, when we brought BB and Echo to live with us, Echo had his first encounter with bleeding hearts. His smile and playful, wagging tail are no longer with us, but the fond memories of him sniffing the bleeding hearts still delights.

I’m laughing frequently these days reading Fukuoka’s The One-Straw Revolution. His insight into nature and the ridiculously complex systems we’ve made to feed ourselves is a good read. I haven’t laughed so much in a long time.

“The world used to be simple. You merely noticed in passing that you got wet by brushing against the drops of dew while meandering through the meadow. But from the time people undertook to explain this one drop of dew scientifically, they trapped themselves in the endless hell of the intellect.”
Excerpt From: Masanobu Fukuoka, Larry Korn, Wendell Berry & Frances Moore Lappe. “The One-Straw Revolution.”

One of our cherry trees is in full bloom. There are just a few shy buds working up the courage to expose their delicate petals. Even cherry blossoms have personality. Some are unabashed tarts, too eager to show their wares. “Tickle me, tickle me,” they sing with no shame. The modest ones need to be coaxed to furl their skirts open.

Below the cherry trees, the chickens wait. You won’t read about this in chicken handbooks, but cherry blossoms are a spring time treat for chickens. In a few weeks as the cherry blossoms fall as thick as snow, the chickens will feast on them. If you close your eyes and taste their eggs during this brief time, you can pick up the hint of cherry blossoms on your tongue.

March 9, 2016
Eggs in a Cap

A cap comes in handy if you leave the egg basket in the house. You can get a lot of eggs in a cap. I brought in fifteen this afternoon in my cap.

March 8, 2016
Do Nothing for a Change

Rosemary blossoms are among my favorite flowers. Small and whimsical, clown-like really, they must attract insects with a sense of humor. The white Satsuma plum blossoms are far more formal. The serious insects pollinate them. You’d want to put on your Sunday best before landing on them.

This morning I started reading The One Straw Revolution by Masanobu Fukuoka 福岡正信. He is well known for advocating farming methods that rely on working with nature. He is also known for his insights on life. I enjoyed this tidbit near the beginning of the book:

“If you think there is life on this side, then death is on the other. If you want to get rid of the idea of death, then you should rid yourself of the notion that there is life on this side. Life and death are one.”

I’m reading an English translation of the book this morning, and am looking forward to getting my hands on the original Japanese version so I can read his words as he wrote them.

His take on modern agriculture made me laugh. It is so true about much of modern life. People seem to be busier than ever, running around in circles faster than their legs can carry them, or sitting in traffic, getting mad at not getting to somewhere they’ll want to leave soon after arriving.

The usual way to go about developing a method is to ask “How about trying this?” or “How about trying that?” bringing in a variety of techniques one upon the other. This is modern agriculture and it only results in making the farmer busier.
My way was opposite. I was aiming at a pleasant, natural way of farming which results in making the work easier instead of harder. “How about not doing this? How about not doing that?”—that was my way of thinking. I ultimately reached the conclusion that there was no need to plow, no need to apply fertilizer, no need to make compost, no need to use insecticide. When you get right down to it, there are few agricultural practices that are really necessary.
Excerpt From: Masanobu Fukuoka, Larry Korn, Wendell Berry & Frances Moore Lappe. “The One-Straw Revolution.”

It’s a quiet, drizzly morning. Along the wooded driveway, mushrooms are in bloom. I didn’t have to do anything for them to display their beauty. They’re blooming on fallen logs, or gently lifting the decaying leaves of last autumn as they push up out of the soft humus. Do nothing for a change and let nature show you how beautiful it is.

March 7, 2016
Spring’s Green Illicit Sweetness

The best vegetables never find their way onto store shelves. I left some cabbage grow after plucking their heads last fall. This spring, tender shoots of cabbage greens sprouted from their stalks. So green and mild, they make the sweetest of salads. For something to make it onto store shelves, it can’t be too delicate or too delicious, that seems to be the law. Which makes growing them feel illicit, making them taste sweeter still.

March 6, 2016