Who's Who at Rehoboth Farm

Me & Mr. Steady

 

When I met Charlie 11 years ago, he was a golf pro (yah, crazy right?).  He has also worked in retail management, sold health supplements, managed several banks, and was even an optician. And he was wildly (and almost instantly) successful at each one of these vastly different endeavors. 
How did he become so adaptable?
Charlie's parents met in the U.S. Coast Guard (jumping out of perfectly good helicopters!) and he was raised in the pick-up-and go of a typical military family.  His childhood was a blur of transition and change. That constant instability, only by the grace of God, has created an internal stability in Charlie that is truly unshakable.  His faith and steady nature has been an example for our family of God's unchanging character.  Charlie is predictable, reliable, and I know no matter what we come across (or what crazy idea I come up with), he won't waiver. He'll just assess, strategize, and lead us through.  This amazing Renaissance man is more than just brawn - he is the backbone of our family, our business, and our farm.
Then there's me...sometimes referred to as "the brains" in the relationship - a nickname that has less to do with intellect and more to do with my desire to solve, arrange, create, design, change, and dream.  I was raised by a wise and resourceful single Mother on a tight budget.  I quickly learned to see potential and possibilities in everything. Starting projects is like breathing to me. I can't help but pursue progress, improvement, and beauty.  I can be overly passionate, pretty distractible, and a bit of a wild card. That unbridled enthusiasm is the reason why my blog topics are so "diverse", my homeschool style is somewhat opportunistic, and my garden is always a surprise....but, mostly it's the reason why I need Mr. Steady.

Charlie's courage and willingness to try, fail, and try again is the reason why we could leave our suburb in the city for a nearly century old farmhouse several states away, start our own business, renovate every square inch of our home, build an in-law apartment, and work a family farm (and that was just the first two years!).
My victory over fear (and a grizzly stubborn streak) is the reason why we're still alive to tell the tale.
And God's amazing grace is the reason why we're smiling about it. Thank you, Jesus!


Meet the rest of the gang:

 Our Curious Cowgirl

 

Tenderhearted and thoughtful, this sweet girl has been seeking opportunities to be a blessing to the family since she learned to walk.  She has a helpful sprit and is never far away when a need is made known. She is an amazing big sister, farm hand, and the official "Chicken Wrangler" here at Rehoboth Farm.

 

 

 Our Sweet Songbird

 

She was a peeper and a squeaker from birth and still serenades us daily and nightly (and sometimes at 3am) with her own little lullabies. She faces the world fearlessly (as we all should) and never wastes a moment standing still. She was an early crawler, early walker, and the official "Early Riser" (yawn) here at Rehoboth Farm!

 

 

Our Shop Shepherd

Have you seen those bumper stickers that say "My German Shepherd is smarter than your Honor Roll student"? - That's Sophie.  She is our diligent protector, sweet companion, and official "Shop Dog" here at Rehoboth Farm.

Investing in a Lawn Sweeper - Is it Worth it?

This post contains affiliate links.

Growing up in Palm Springs, I felt deprived of the quintessential autumn fun that most of the U.S. enjoys (Well, besides New Mexico, Arizona, and Utah - I feel you, desert states!).  I'm an October baby and I've always been drawn to the fall season.  I loved seeing the leaves changing colors, dancing gracefully to the ground in a blustery wind on movies and postcards. I even hung "Scenic Vermont" calendars in my room and dreamed of a "true Autumn" while trying to work flip flops and sunscreen in to my trick-or-treating costume.  I adapted to the heat and learned to expect it (It was 100 degrees on our wedding day - in December), but the monotony was always a disappointment. Sand, Ocotillo cactus, gravel, and Aloe Vera plants don't budge a bit as the seasons pass. No loss, no gain, no color, no change.
So, the first fall season here at Rehoboth Farm was a true delight!

A glorious time of celebration, leaf angels, acorn discovery, and jubilant raking.....all 2 1/2 acres....twice.

We keep a no-till garden (based on the principles taught in the Back to Eden film) and are forever looking for a healthy "covering" to apply each season.  We had invested in several loads of wood mulch to get started and intended to purchase more, but didn't have the money yet. So when "free mulch" just started falling "right out of the sky" we knew it was a blessing and an opportunity. So, we raked and gathered...

and raked and gathered....

and raked and gathered...

 

But, after the 20th wheelbarrow trip to the garden our enthusiasm was starting to dim. Somehow we managed to get every leaf moved to our garden patch for an overwinter covering, put the rakes away, and glowed in gratitude for all the "free" mulch.

 

 

The second year...not so much. I was 8 months along in my second pregnancy when the first leaves began to fall.  There was no jubilation to be had. The Renaissance Man was scrambling to complete a nursery (complete like 'walls and doors' not 'cute elephant pillows and teddybear lamps') and didn't have a free moment to gather his thoughts, let alone gather piles and piles of leaves and haul them across the yard.  Our 7 year old raked a pile or two, but mostly the leaves blew out to the back field and weren't dealt with at all. I felt helpless and frustrated (hormones weren't helping).

We started thinking quite a bit about a lawn sweeper and the pros and cons of the investment.  With the baby coming and the season over, we knew it wouldn't be something we considered seriously until the following year, so my husband started his typical research process (insanely thorough) and eventually narrowed it down to a few options. They were a lot more expensive than I initially thought.  I (ever the cheapskate) rallied for a push behind sweeper to save money, but with over 2 acres to sweep, I knew it really wouldn't be a wise choice.  We went back and forth on what we were willing to spend. I asked over and over would we really use it that often? Would it be worth it in the end?
We ultimately chose the Brinly Tow Behind Lawn Sweeper, 42-Inch and the answer is YES. SO WORTH IT!

We put it to use right away.  Late in the summer season my husband put the mower on the "mulch" setting, pulled the lawn sweeper behind him, and collected enough grass clipping to cover an 80'x65' garden area almost 12" high! We figured it would kill the weeds off and help prep the garden for overwintering. I didn't get a picture of that - but, here's the start of our new garden, using the same method:

Much to our surprise - without any watering, tending, or attention for over a month - the tomato plants, basil, Zinnias, and bean plants that were left over from a dud crop (and buried almost a foot under grass clippings) suddenly came back to life - with vigor!  They were blooming right out of the top of the heaping grass piles and we were enjoying a surprise fall garden! I know gardening logic says that the nitrogen overload would stunt fruit production if not kill the plants altogether (especially since they were pretty well gone to start) but, just look at these tomatoes:

 

So, we begin collecting lawn clippings regularly.  We found LOTS of uses for them:

1. We dumped them in the chicken run.  The chickens could level a 2 foot pile in a matter of minutes, digging and scratching for crittery treats.  And as the grass clippings decompose, they leave a powdery compost in place - no more mud!

2. We dumped them around the chicken coop. The weight and heat of the pile killed the Bermuda grass and weeds so our daughter could get to the nest boxes more easily - no more weed eater!

3. We started a new garden a little closer to the house for herbs and seasonal veggies - no more trekking to the back forty for a tomato!

And soon enough, Autumn came again...and with it - more free mulch! 

 

I was so glad to see the lawn sweeper clear the yard in minutes - no more raking!

 

The whole 2 1/2 acres was done in under an hour - and I had beautiful piles of phosphorus-rich covering waiting to cover my new herb garden!

 

 

In conclusion, the Renaissance Man doesn't use the lawn sweeper every time he mows, just when the leaves fall, the garden needs a boost, weeds need controlling, chickens need a snack, mud needs covering, or we're starting a new growing area...etc.  And we've found that for us - that's enough to be worth it!

A few notes:

 

I am not receiving anything from the Brinly company for this review. I HONESTLY just love the lawn sweeper and want you to know it!

 

However, Rehoboth Farm is part of the Amazon Affiliate program. Our family business will receive a small commission if you choose to purchase this product through one of the links on this page. 

DIY Compost Bin for the Chicken Run

 

 

This simple compost bin began its life as a make-shift brooder for our little chickies.  To make the sides taller, we added old wire shelving. To keep our growing flock contained, we added bird netting across the top. 

 

It wasn't long (9 short weeks) before they were ready for their new coop.  This is what was left of the brooder after the Great Chicken Extraction...

 

 

We get a lot of our sustainable gardening ideas from concepts in the film Back To Eden.  One aspect we wanted to create was a compost area in the chicken run.

 

So we scooped up all the litter from the brooder and hauled it out to the run area.

 

Then we dismantled the brooder and reconstructed it. 
We've been dumping compost in it ever since.  We can't wait until the chickens are out there scratching through it.  We're hoping to have the worm population up by the time we get our fencing up and the chickens have run of the pasture.  Mmmm...protein.

 

 

Happy Chickens In Their New Home - Out of the Brooder and in to the Coop

This post contains affiliate links. 

 

It was the big day! The chickens were moving out of their brooder and in to their new home!! All the preparations were made.  We built a Repurposed Chicken Palace for them from recycled materials we gathered from around the farmstead.

 

We put a deep layer of wood shavings down in the new coop and put up their handy recycled gallon jug feeders on a bungie cord (redneck, I know).

We placed two 1 gallon waterers in opposite corners - up on a grate so they wouldn't kick so much debris in them.

 

Then we fetched the chickens.  We didn't document this part of the adventure in pictures, but we have some stories to tell.  The brooder pretty much fell apart during the chicken extraction process and we had to catch a few in mid-air before they made their great escape. 

Somehow we managed to take two trips out to the coop with a Tupperware container full of (slightly traumatized) chickens.

 

Happy chickens in their new home.....

 

Hoop Coop Complete - The Repurposed Chicken Palace

 

 

In a mad rush to get the "stinky chickens" out of our garage and in to their proper home, we committed three full days to the completion of the coop.

 

 

 

 

We secured the front of the coop with hardware cloth ( a lot of it).

 

 

 

We wanted the back of the coop to be sheltered from the elements.  We found 5' x 10' Fiber Reinforced Panels (FRP) at a salvage shop for $10/each. 

 

 

 

We secured the fiberglass panels with wooden blocks on the inside.

 

We brought home 4 panels. We ran two horizontally along the sides, and then folded the other two over the top and overlapped the bottom panels.  In hindsight, we should have purchased a 5th as a rain cover for the front section by the door, but we can always go back.

 

 

We covered the 6" overhang over the back wall with the white panels.  We will eventually add the nesting boxes here and we wanted a little rain coverage.

 

 

 

We added a door latch...and a padlock (recommended for raccoon protection).

Ta-da!

Bright....

 Cozy...

 

 Secure...

 

And ready for chickens!

For more details of the construction process you can read my "Framing the Hoop Coop" post.

Framing the Hoop Coop

This post contains affiliate links.

 

 

The "chicken dust" was becoming unbearable in our little garage and several of our roos had begun to practice their crowing. It was time to finish the coop and move them out!

 

We started with a simple base, added recycled flooring material (vinyl tiles) from another demo project, and built a frame for the cattle panels.

Three cattle panels (4' x 16') were bent over and secured to create a 12 foot long hoop.
Cattle fencing also comes in rolls (a little more convenient for transport and handling). I would recommend purchasing it from your local feed/hardware store.

We originally designed an extravagant plan for nesting boxes to fit in the horizontal gap....like this:

 

but.....the chicks were only 9 weeks old and we needed them out of the garage in a hurry, so we filled in the gap and decided to worry about the nesting boxes later.

 

The piece of board on top came from our kitchen ceiling. That hole originally held the hood vent pipe for the stove.  It ended up a little off-center, but it serves it's purpose (ironically) as coop ventilation.

The rest of the wood was reclaimed from the floor demo. We figured the chickens wouldn't mind a little wear, tear, and termite damage.

 

We put a wind wall across the center to separate the front of the coop (open run) from the back (roosts and nests).  We wanted there to be a lot of airflow without straight runs for drafts.

 

We pulled two branches from the burn pile and stripped the bark off of them for smooth roosting poles.

A little geometry, heavy duty hinges, and some scrap wood... and voila - a door!

 

The most tedious part of the project was working with the hardware cloth ( a necessary evil to keep predators out).

Cutting each little square was quite a chore. We took turns cutting rows with a good pair of Tin Snips.

We put a strip of hardware cloth around the perimeter of the back wall and secured it around the wood with washers and screws.

 

The hardware cloth overlapped the cattle panel (eventually covered by roofing material) and wrapped around the back.  We decided it had too many gaps and ended up with this fancy "trim job"....

 

So far, so good!